Dear Chocolate Box Writer (or possibly artist)
I'm requesting fic for my main gift, but if anyone wants to do an art treat, that would be 100% welcome! I love all kinds of art so long as it's worksafe. In bed together is fine, but no genitals showing.
General Loves:
Hurt-comfort - all h/c tropes that don't infantilize anyone are delicious to me. Injured and stuck without medical care on another planet/behind enemy lines/etc, bedside vigils, tender caretaking, stoic characters pretending they are JUST FINE right up until they collapse - I love it all. The only thing I don't like is characters getting tons of care taking lavished on them for minor illnesses like colds - that hits my infantilization button. (But fevers with delirium are lovely, especially if they make characters babble secrets or true feelings that they'd never in a million years admit to if sober.) Emotional h/c is also excellent.
Loyalty, conflicting loyalties, being torn between a cause or job and the woman she loves - I adore all that. I love knight's vows, royalty determined to do right by their responsibilities, soldiers' camaraderie, backstage bonding, and gangsters' codes. People belonging to some sort of in-group, whether it's pirates or a ka-tet, is always fascinating to me. So is being an outcast from a group.
I love bonding through shared hardship or a shared hard job, through both being outcasts or both having a secret. I love characters who trust each other with their lives. I also love characters who don't trust each other for good reasons, but are forced to work together/depend on each other.
I am fine with any type of relationship or smut level - established, beginning, friends-to-lovers, enemies-to-lovers, enemies having sizzling angry hatesex, smoldering sexual tension but no onstage sex, etc. Do what feels right for the characters and story.
Sex: I like BDSM, especially if it's extremely informal (like, the characters might not have even heard the term, they just know they like being pinned down/tying up their girlfriend/etc). I like bruising (spontaneous or ornamental), and rough and/or frantic/desperate sex. I like "let's have sex because we might die tomorrow/we might not survive the war." I like fingering and frottage, especially when partly clothed, reaching into clothes, touching through clothes, etc. I like praise, bondage, honor bondage, and characters discovering kinks for the first time. I like characters entering new or dangerous territory, like if they're control freaks or emotionally damaged and have never really relaxed and enjoyed themselves, or lost control, or cut loose before.
I like lavish descriptions of things, from food to clothing to scenery to the human body. I love all types of bodies, so whatever strikes you or you think would strike the characters as especially attractive, whether it's long clever fingers or delicately arched feet or battle scars or an Earth Mother figure, I will enjoy reading or looking at. I like strong muscular women, voluptuous women, and little dainty-looking women; also strong-looking men, men with scars, etc.
I love sexy clothing, which could be slinky 40s dresses or battle-worn leathers. Scars and brands and tattoos are hot.
I like worldbuilding, whether it's of literal worlds or exploring the setting/culture of our real world.
I like any kind of writing, from completely straightforward to 5 Things to any sort of odd format that serves the story. I even like second person if there's a reason for it.
General DNWs:
Issuefic, terminal illness, dementia, A/B/O, PWP in the sense of all sex and no characterization, change-the-setting AUs unless otherwise stated (I like "this happened differently" AUs), detailed descriptions of gross stuff like vomit, body horror, pregnancy, babies, infantilization or age play, adult/child (older teenagers with each other is fine), and characters being gross or stinky during sex. Clean/fresh blood, sweat, and tears is totally fine. But if they're having sex after being on a pirate ship for months, just don't mention what they'd probably actually smell like.
Black Sails (Fic)
Captain Flint/John Silver.
I like their relationship; its exact nature isn't so important to me so long as they stay their magnificent asshole selves. My big request here is to not soften them too much. I love their vulnerability and occasional moments of sweetness, but I also love how ruthless they are, and how they're locked in an eternal power struggle and constantly fighting to manipulate and control each other and the narrative. Speaking of which, the way the characters - especially those characters - consciously try to create a story that will serve them, either original or made up of existing (in-canon) legends, is fascinating to me. I would be interested in any point along the way of the series.
For specific ideas, it could be fun to see them interact some more with pirate tropes like "marooned," "stranded on an island," "mutiny," "ghost story," "ancient mariner," etc. You could take it in a supernatural direction if you want to use sea legends, many of which are pretty spooky. What if Flint (or Silver) is literally as well as figuratively haunted? What happens after they become legends - could they in some way be literally as well as figuratively immortal, either in the flesh or as spirits or in a way that's ambiguous which it is? (That might be a good outsider POV.) I like hurt-comfort and that could be fun to explore in the context of their push-pull, rival/enemy/equal/friend/beloved enemy/etc relationship.
As I write this, I am a few episodes from the end but will have finished it by the time of reveals, so no worries about spoilers. I have been spoiled in a general sense for how canon goes, so don't worry about later events impacting what I want with this prompt. I know very little about this time period so I will not be bothered by historical inaccuracies. That being said, please keep it in the tone of the show, i.e., no poly negotiations that sound like a letter to Captain Awkward.
Miranda Barlow/Blackbeard (Edward Teach).
Hear me out: I think they'd be a good match. They're both very smart, very eloquent, very strong-willed people with compatible sexual orientations and sexual appetites. I think Miranda would make an excellent pirate queen. The fuses in the beard are amazing and hilarious, and I would love to see Miranda seeing THAT for the first time.
Basically I just love them both and would like to see Miranda be happy for once, in an AU where neither of them meet their canon fates. I don't need to see how this came about (though that would be fun if you liked), but would love to see them interacting. I would also be interested in some of what I wrote about in the prompt above, of how the characters try to create their own story. Or (also see above) of them interacting with pirate lore.
Dark Tower (Fic)
Roland Deschain & Eddie Dean & Susannah Dean & Jake Chambers
Eddie Dean & Roland Deschain
Roland Deschain & Jake Chambers
Roland Deschain & Man in Black
Roland Deschain/Man in Black
Roland Deschain/Rosalita Munoz
Susan Delgado/Roland Deschain
Susan Delgado/The Man In Black
Susannah Dean & Susan Delgado
So, obviously I love all the characters and would like some combination of them. I included a bunch so you can go for any that strike your fancy. I love this series for the worldbuilding, the atmosphere, the emotion, and most of all, for the characters. I love all the nominated characters and would be happy with any of the listed combinations, or mix-and-matching some combos if you feel like it. I love the ka-tet. I love the Sisters of Oriza. I love the creepy intensity of eternal chase of the gunslinger vs. the man in black. I love Susan Delgado and would love to see more of her, either in a missing scene or a canon AU.
I forgot to nominate some combos, but if, for instance, you wanted to do Mejis-era ka-tet plus Susan, later ka-tet plus Susan, etc, feel free. I mostly went with non-romantic pairings when those were an option, but that was mostly to steer away from PWP. If you like any romantic pairings I didn't list, feel free to go there so long as they don't involve Jake. The reverse is also true: I'm fine with & for any listed as /. Basically I'm more into the relationship itself than its exact nature.
This series has five things that never happened, fix-its, and canon AUs built into its very structure. I love all of those things, and especially for this canon. I'm fine with an AU in which Roland died at Mejis, or any AU with canon character death, given that death is pretty contingent in this series, so long as the death isn't focused on as the main thing that happens in the story. i.e., torture porn no, "someone died and so things went differently" is A-OK. I love hurt/comfort and that is also a natural for this canon. I love western tropes like "a new sheriff in town," "lost without water," "gold rush," etc. I love the weirdness of Mid-World - Shardik, the distorted remnants of our world, the melancholy of moving on, Gilead - and would love something focusing on that.
A completely optional option would be to include a crossover with any of the King books that I've read and love. If that appeals, my favorites are The Stand, Duma Key, Firestarter, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, The Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, The Langoliers, The Shining/Doctor Sleep, Pet Sematary, Carrie, Rose Madder, Misery, The Dead Zone, "Mrs. Todd's Shortcut," and Lisey's Story.
DNW: If you go for Susan Delgado/Man in Black, please keep it on a more-or-less equal footing rather than having Susan subjugated. Dubcon is fine so long as it's more-or-less mutual. No Jake/anyone.
Hamilton - Miranda (Fic)
Aaron Burr/Alexander Hamilton
Aaron Burr & Alexander Hamilton
I love these two and their dysfunctional yet essential relationship:
Hamilton: Knock-knock! Hey, it's 3:00 AM. Wanna help me write the Federalist Papers?
Burr: GOOD NIGHT. [slams door]
I ship them but you don't have to. ;)
If you read Aaron Burr's diaries and want to try to square that or mash it up with his canon (I mean, theatre canon) characterization, that would be amazing and hilarious.
I'd prefer an anachronistic style a la canon to straight historical. Canon AU, 5 Things, cool non-modern AUs like pirates, steampunk, space opera, etc, absolutely welcome! Metafiction welcome! Slash, hurt/comfort, character studies welcome! Tragic or intense or bittersweet welcome! In-character porn welcome! Ghosts welcome! Daemons, psychic wolves, jaegers, Mid-World excursions, or other fusion elements welcome!
DNW: Modern mundane AU (college, coffeeshop, etc).
If you do an art treat, please base it on the play, not history (i.e., they should not be white) but any cast or an imaginary one is fine. For instance, I have not yet heard of an Asian Hamilton but I think that would have a lot of resonance.
I am a bit obsessed with this canon so I have a bunch of tags for it if that helps.
Original Works (Fic)
Female Bodyguard/Female Musician
I love all the bodyguard tropes - protectiveness, opposites attract, being thrust into a strange new milieu, taking a bullet, falling in love when hearing her perform. Is the musician a superstar? Or not famous, just unfortunate enough to have a stalker? Does the bodyguard first not think much of her, then see how hard she works and how talented she is? Or is the bodyguard already a fan, who now gets to see what her idol is like as a real person? I love very late nights post-concert when everyone's exhausted yet exhilarated, protecting her with her body, the musician watching the bodyguard exercise and covertly admiring her muscles, the bodyguard watching the musician perform and being determined to protect her. I would like a happy ending for this one.
Female Cop Undercover In BDSM Club/Female Domme
Female Cop Undercover in BDSM Club/Female Werewolf Pack Leader
I love "undercover in a BDSM club" and I am not ashamed to admit it. I think it works best if the undercover person doesn't normally frequent clubs. So is the cop in denial of her desires, or only discovering them when she enters the club? Or is this something she knew she wanted but never explored before? (Because of shame? Fear of social/employment consequences?) I think both of these would be great to riff on coming face to face with hidden desires, whether they're for submission, for dominance, for pain or pleasure, for control, to be prey, or to run with the wolves.
Is the person the cop is falling for is also the suspect she's investigating? Is the werewolf in the club to investigate a threat to her pack? Is the cop undercover to investigate rumors of werewolves, or a murder or some other mundane crime? Does the cop end up joining the pack (or the club)? Are there werewolf BDSM practices possibly involving silver or role-playing predator-prey? (If so, I'd prefer taking it in a more serious/sexy direction than cracky comedy - like, less dressing in bunny suits, more terrifying yet hot stalking of prey). I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Experimental Subject With Powers/Female Scientist
I am SUCH a sucker for "people with powers being studied." It's one of my favorite tropes ever. I love all the variations on it: kidnapped and imprisoned in an evil lab, created and owned by an evil lab, being secretly monitored without knowing it, having such genuinely destructive and/or out of control powers that being held in a lab might be the only choice, etc. Please give me ALL the angst of being an experimental subject, "is this power a curse or a blessing," cool powers, conflicts of loyalties, etc.
Is the scientist creepily drawn to her subject because her fascination with the power is spilling over into fascination with the person? Is the scientist coming to the realization that she's working for the bad guys? Did she know the experimental subject before she got given powers, and got a job at the lab to see what's going on? Has she infiltrated the lab specifically because she thinks it's doing something similar? Is this a grand tragedy where the subject can't be freed without putting the world at risk, and her only chance for human contact is the scientist studying her? Do her powers make sex or touching difficult or impossible, and if so, how do they work around that? I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Fighter Pilot/Female Enemy Fighter Pilot
I have long had a fascination with fighter pilots. I love the legends of chivalry, rivalry, codes of honor, death or glory, and so forth high in the skies, where you're fighting one on one, possibly with someone famous. Or someone you know. So, how do these two get to know each other? Do they have signature moves or articles of clothing or distinctive planes? Were they always on opposite sides, or is this a civil war or some other situation where they could have known each other pre-war? Is the entire story told in midair, with them never speaking but only being strangely attracted by each other's skills and honor? Does one get shot down, and the other decide to save her life or let her go? Do they meet after the war, or does it all end in flames? Are female pilots rare or common, or are all of them women? Feel free to invent a setting or alternate history for this; if you use a real one, please avoid Nazis or any real-life atrocities. I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Hyperspace Test Pilot/Sentient Hyperspace Ship
I especially like the version of hyperspace where it's incredibly awesome in some way but also kills most people who enter it or will kill everyone eventually, or isn't deadly but is extremely taxing or painful or something, or is liable to give you visions and/or drive you insane and/or offer you artistic insight. Or something like that. Basically, I think hyperspace should be cooler and more dangerous than just instantaneous travel. I like the idea that the pilot willingly takes huge risks or even certain bad consequences to explore or be one with her beloved ship or...?
How does the hypership feel about her fragile human companion risking her life/sanity/health/ever seeing Earth again/etc? Think of the / as just denoting an intense and/or romantic relationship. Physical sex not necessary. However a hypership could totally be the sort where you jack in and enter some sort of VR or telepathic communion, and anything could happen there. Just saying. I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Mob Boss/Female Undercover Detective
I love mob movies. I love undercover tropes. And I have never seen anything where the mob boss and the undercover detective are both women, so that would be amazing. (I'm taking "detective" to mean either "private eye" or "undercover cop" - either is fine.) I think a mob boss can't be too young, so this could be a fascinating battle of wits between two very experienced people at the top of their game. Does the mob boss suspect the detective, and is having an affair in the hope of finding out for sure? Does the mob boss know for sure, and can't bring herself to pull the trigger (yet)? Was the detective appalled to find herself admiring the mob boss's ruthlessness and intelligence, and finding that super hot? Are they just playing each other, or has one or both fallen in love... and even if there is love involved, is that enough to stop them from destroying each other? I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Space Marine/Female Space Marine
Female Space Marine/Female Space Medic
I love space Marines. I also love medics. Either of these pairings would work great for an action or hurt/comfort story. Are they fighting aliens? Exploring new worlds? Trapped on a spaceship during an alien infiltration or plague? Or just sweatily training together, chilling in their barracks, bonding while cleaning their big guns, etc? I love ALL the space Marines/military sf tropes, so any of those plus femslash is my catnip. I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Supersoldier/Female Journalist
I love supersoldiers. They are one of my favorite tropes. A lot of my prompts for "female vigilante" and "female experimental subject" would also work for this pairing. Is the supersoldier a celebrity, and the journalist is openly covering her? Or on the run or held in a secret lab, and the journalist is in pursuit of a scoop? I'd love something that plays on their very different lives, and what they find in common despite that. Or if the journalist is a war correspondent, something on how surprisingly similar their experiences have been. Do they end up on the run together? Banding together to bring down the military-industrial complex that created and enslaved the supersoldier? Or was she a volunteer, and the journalist is using her a rallying point with her full cooperation because Earth is being invaded by aliens and everyone needs to fight however they can? Does the supersoldiering process have drawbacks, like a shortened lifespan? I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Vigilante/Female Activist
Female Vigilante/Female Journalist
I find vigilantes fascinating. I'd like the vigilante to have some righteous rage, so I'd prefer this to be more serious rather than cracky. That is, humor is fine, I'd just rather not have the whole thing be jokey. I'd also like the vigilante to have reasonable reasons, even if her actions are OTT. Is the vigilante motivated by vengeance, disillusionment in the system, or idealism? Does the journalist or activist know her real identity? If not, does she know both identities without realizing they're the same person? Does the journalist or idealist disapprove of the vigilante's methods or targets, or secretly (or not-so-secretly) agree with her? Does one or the other of them have their ideas changed by the end? Do they ever join forces or switch roles? Is there desperate, adrenaline-fueled sex in a dark alley or while wearing masks? Or phone sex?
I'd be fine with a contemporary setting, including one that uses any real-world issues, so long as it's not too preachy and RL people are not name checked. I'd also be fine with a historical or fantasy or sf setting. I'm fine with any type of ending for this one.
Healer/Exhausted Female Knight Returning From The War
I would like some hurt-comfort, obviously. "Knight" does not need to be a medieval one - interpret that as you will. I would like her to be psychologically as well as physically exhausted and need emotional healing as well. Maybe the healing goes both ways - the healer might be burned out too. Do they mutually revive each other's idealism and interest in life? Is the knight permanently done, or is the healer patching her up so she can go back to the war? Is the war something the knight is committed to, maybe for a very good reason, or pointless? Feel free to go as dark or light as you like along the way, so long as it doesn't end with "knight returns to pointless war to die for no reason." I would like a happy or hopeful ending.
Post-Apocalyptic Coffee Shop Owner/Post-Apocalyptic Mercenary
This prompt is delightful in every way. Is coffee valuable and pricey, or has the apocalypse been surprisingly good for the coffee supply? Are they even drinking coffee, or some substitute? Is this a reasonably hopeful post-apocalypse, where things have been rebuilt, just different, or is this the lone place where you can get a moment of goddamn peace without being attacked by killer mutant animals/plants/gangs (until one comes crashing through the window)? Do people have mutations, physical or psychic or otherwise? Is the mercenary coffee shop security, or just stopping by for a cup after a job and finding an unexpected connection? Is the coffee shop owner doing something like The Postman, recreating civilization by means of setting up one of its trappings? I would like a happy ending for this.
Spirit of Ancient Demigod War Hero & Pint-Sized Little Girl Who Summoned Him to Save Her People
This is such a delightful prompt, I would like an entire anime based on it. Lacking that, please write me a story. I don't have specific prompts as the concept is a prompt itself. Any setting is fine, but a happy ending please.
The Punisher (Fic)
I don't think I've ever approached a show or character with lower expectations (my brief exposure to the comic book character did not endear him to me) and ended up loving it this much. Who would have expected the goddamn Punisher to be such an emotional experience?
I love Frank Castle so much, it's ridiculous. If you can capture some of his immense capacity for both heartbreaking tenderness and horrific violence, how he's trying to make himself into an emotionless killing machine because feelings hurt so damn much yet keeps getting into emotionally intense relationships that both terrify him and bring out the best in him, I will be a very happy camper.
I love hurt/comfort and could read infinite reams of him getting taken care of after being beaten half to death, or of him caring for someone else, whether physically or emotionally. For a man with such amazingly dysfunctional ways of dealing with his own emotions, he's surprisingly good at handling difficult emotional situations involving other people's feelings.
II'm a multishipper and am primarily interested in the relationship rather than exactly what sort of relationship it is. If you take the sexy option for the ones that have one, I'm more interested in sex that illuminates character than in sex that's primarily about being hot. (If you can do both, awesome!)
Frank Castle & David "Micro" Lieberman
Frank Castle/David "Micro" Lieberman.
I love them SO MUCH. The domestic squabbling! The awkward conversations! Frank pouting over not getting a sandwich! Frank making David soup! "My friend is dying!"
I would love a domestic moment, or some hurt/comfort, or anything. Frank and David go on a road trip? More bonding through cooking? David gets hurt for a change, and Frank patches him up? Frank accepted the Thanksgiving invite after all? David drags him home some other time? I loved all of Frank's interactions with David's family, so feel free to bring them in.
There were multiple points in the show that easily could have led in a romantic/sexy direction, so maybe taking some of the canon dick-showing or comforting or emotional intimacy just a step farther. I'd also love to see how they handle the first morning after.
If you take the shippy route, please don't put down Sarah if she's mentioned. I would be fine with either not mentioning her at all, or having them wrestle with the fact that David is married and loves his wife. This was literally the only show I've ever seen that had an infidelity-ish storyline that I actually liked, because the characters weren't mean and horrible about it, and generally acted like adults. So if you want to bring that dynamic in, that's fine, and if not, that's also fine.
Frank Castle & Leo Lieberman.
I loved their interactions and could read an infinite amount of Frank being a surrogate dad. Leo felt like such a real character, and I loved that we got to see her in so many different situations, including being quite heroic in a plausible manner. I loved how Frank supported her and cared for her, and how she was so open-hearted toward him.
I would love to see them interacting some more. Does he ever teach her some of what he knows that might interest her, like fixing cars or other stuff? Rescue her again? I like role reversal - what if for some reason he needed her help because shit went down and she was the only one in the vicinity, he was injured and in the neighborhood and she was the only one home, etc?
We didn't see him show his dark side so much with her, as he did with Zach in the scene with the knife, so that would also be interesting to explore - what if he pulled something along those lines with her, where he means well but is being weird/terrifying/wildly inappropriate? (NOT IN A SEXUAL WAY.) I could see that happening if he started teaching her how to shoot or disassemble/assemble a gun, and ended up telling her or teaching stuff she really doesn't need to know. How would that go down, and how would he pull it back or make it right?
Frank Castle/Karen Page
Frank Castle & Karen Page.
This is one of the most romantic relationships I've ever seen on TV, even if you read it as sexually platonic, with so much trust and feeling and intensity and loyalty and working together like an oiled machine. So except for the one sex-specific prompt, you can take all these prompts in either a sexual relationship or intense friendship way.
If you want to write sex, I would love to see the first time they have it - what leads up to it? Adrenaline-fueled "we both nearly died, let's take this chance?" Emotional intimacy leading to physical? Comforting touch? And/or, what is it like for them to literally sleep together in the same bed? Is it emotionally healing or difficult or both? He has nightmares - does she too? How do they deal with that? What's it like for him to relax for probably the first time in months, if not years? Or, maybe something dealing with all his scars.
Frank being ready to burn down the world if anyone threatens Karen is always excellent. I like role reversal and I'd also love to see her getting that protective about him. I adored the scene where she and Frank defuse a bomb together without having to use words, and the elevator scene, and "I will come for you." I'd love to see them work together in an actiony way again.
I really missed seeing Karen in the final episodes; what if she'd been in on it, either during the action we saw or afterward? Maybe some hurt/comfort in the immediate or later aftermath? Or, going farther ahead, I'd love to see their relationship if Frank does give up on being the Punisher. Like he says, it's terrifying to be without a war. How do they handle that?
Or just show them having fun or taking a break together. After all they've been through, if they went to the beach or for a picnic and could relax and feel safe enough to fall asleep in the sun, that would be so satisfying for them and me.
Frank Castle/Billy Russo.
Please be inspired by "Goddamn, Frankie. I love to watch you work." That was the moment that completely sold me on the pairing. Billy's unabashed lust as he drapes himself over the bars! Frank's shellshocked, blood-spattered upward glance! I couldn't believe I was seeing something that hot and dark and weird and perverse on TV.
I also liked how it was preceded, with Frank's betrayal and Billy's manipulation but also remnants of genuine, though battered and twisted, feeling. Who knows, but I did get the impression that Billy really had planned to give Frank the quick, clean death he promised, and on some level did feel sort of bad for him, though not enough to do anything about it. Their friendship felt as if it had been very real, and in some way still was: you don't get that angry with someone unless you still care about the relationship on some level. Shattered love, rage and hate, scraps of inappropriate, resentful caring: this is the ultimate love/hate pairing.
So, be as dark and twisted as you like, just please avoid any super-gross or really graphically violent descriptions. That is, having sex while covered in blood is fine, but please don't do the written equivalent of the broken mirror scene. Other than that, go to town with hatesex, beating the hell out of each other somehow leads to sex, or just inappropriate sexual tension.
Dubcon is fine if it's the semi-mutual sort where they're manipulating or deceiving each other, sex pollened (even if it's Billy who released the sex pollen, I'd still count that as dub rather than non), etc. I'd like them on equal or constantly shifting ground or tables turned, not one outright forcing the other. Would also be down with "villain made them do it."
One hard DNW for this pairing: if you do anything along the lines of "covered in someone else's blood/just finished murdering someone/etc," the murdered person or persons must be a bad guy who deserved it. Otherwise it's a huge squick. So if you want to do a pre-series story where they're in Afghanistan together, please don't do that particular prompt. A story where they're just chilling in the barracks or something along those lines would be great though.
Crossposted to https://rachelmanija.dreamwidth.org/2177504.html. Comment here or there.
General Loves:
Hurt-comfort - all h/c tropes that don't infantilize anyone are delicious to me. Injured and stuck without medical care on another planet/behind enemy lines/etc, bedside vigils, tender caretaking, stoic characters pretending they are JUST FINE right up until they collapse - I love it all. The only thing I don't like is characters getting tons of care taking lavished on them for minor illnesses like colds - that hits my infantilization button. (But fevers with delirium are lovely, especially if they make characters babble secrets or true feelings that they'd never in a million years admit to if sober.) Emotional h/c is also excellent.
Loyalty, conflicting loyalties, being torn between a cause or job and the woman she loves - I adore all that. I love knight's vows, royalty determined to do right by their responsibilities, soldiers' camaraderie, backstage bonding, and gangsters' codes. People belonging to some sort of in-group, whether it's pirates or a ka-tet, is always fascinating to me. So is being an outcast from a group.
I love bonding through shared hardship or a shared hard job, through both being outcasts or both having a secret. I love characters who trust each other with their lives. I also love characters who don't trust each other for good reasons, but are forced to work together/depend on each other.
I am fine with any type of relationship or smut level - established, beginning, friends-to-lovers, enemies-to-lovers, enemies having sizzling angry hatesex, smoldering sexual tension but no onstage sex, etc. Do what feels right for the characters and story.
Sex: I like BDSM, especially if it's extremely informal (like, the characters might not have even heard the term, they just know they like being pinned down/tying up their girlfriend/etc). I like bruising (spontaneous or ornamental), and rough and/or frantic/desperate sex. I like "let's have sex because we might die tomorrow/we might not survive the war." I like fingering and frottage, especially when partly clothed, reaching into clothes, touching through clothes, etc. I like praise, bondage, honor bondage, and characters discovering kinks for the first time. I like characters entering new or dangerous territory, like if they're control freaks or emotionally damaged and have never really relaxed and enjoyed themselves, or lost control, or cut loose before.
I like lavish descriptions of things, from food to clothing to scenery to the human body. I love all types of bodies, so whatever strikes you or you think would strike the characters as especially attractive, whether it's long clever fingers or delicately arched feet or battle scars or an Earth Mother figure, I will enjoy reading or looking at. I like strong muscular women, voluptuous women, and little dainty-looking women; also strong-looking men, men with scars, etc.
I love sexy clothing, which could be slinky 40s dresses or battle-worn leathers. Scars and brands and tattoos are hot.
I like worldbuilding, whether it's of literal worlds or exploring the setting/culture of our real world.
I like any kind of writing, from completely straightforward to 5 Things to any sort of odd format that serves the story. I even like second person if there's a reason for it.
General DNWs:
Issuefic, terminal illness, dementia, A/B/O, PWP in the sense of all sex and no characterization, change-the-setting AUs unless otherwise stated (I like "this happened differently" AUs), detailed descriptions of gross stuff like vomit, body horror, pregnancy, babies, infantilization or age play, adult/child (older teenagers with each other is fine), and characters being gross or stinky during sex. Clean/fresh blood, sweat, and tears is totally fine. But if they're having sex after being on a pirate ship for months, just don't mention what they'd probably actually smell like.
Black Sails (Fic)
Captain Flint/John Silver.
I like their relationship; its exact nature isn't so important to me so long as they stay their magnificent asshole selves. My big request here is to not soften them too much. I love their vulnerability and occasional moments of sweetness, but I also love how ruthless they are, and how they're locked in an eternal power struggle and constantly fighting to manipulate and control each other and the narrative. Speaking of which, the way the characters - especially those characters - consciously try to create a story that will serve them, either original or made up of existing (in-canon) legends, is fascinating to me. I would be interested in any point along the way of the series.
For specific ideas, it could be fun to see them interact some more with pirate tropes like "marooned," "stranded on an island," "mutiny," "ghost story," "ancient mariner," etc. You could take it in a supernatural direction if you want to use sea legends, many of which are pretty spooky. What if Flint (or Silver) is literally as well as figuratively haunted? What happens after they become legends - could they in some way be literally as well as figuratively immortal, either in the flesh or as spirits or in a way that's ambiguous which it is? (That might be a good outsider POV.) I like hurt-comfort and that could be fun to explore in the context of their push-pull, rival/enemy/equal/friend/beloved enemy/etc relationship.
As I write this, I am a few episodes from the end but will have finished it by the time of reveals, so no worries about spoilers. I have been spoiled in a general sense for how canon goes, so don't worry about later events impacting what I want with this prompt. I know very little about this time period so I will not be bothered by historical inaccuracies. That being said, please keep it in the tone of the show, i.e., no poly negotiations that sound like a letter to Captain Awkward.
Miranda Barlow/Blackbeard (Edward Teach).
Hear me out: I think they'd be a good match. They're both very smart, very eloquent, very strong-willed people with compatible sexual orientations and sexual appetites. I think Miranda would make an excellent pirate queen. The fuses in the beard are amazing and hilarious, and I would love to see Miranda seeing THAT for the first time.
Basically I just love them both and would like to see Miranda be happy for once, in an AU where neither of them meet their canon fates. I don't need to see how this came about (though that would be fun if you liked), but would love to see them interacting. I would also be interested in some of what I wrote about in the prompt above, of how the characters try to create their own story. Or (also see above) of them interacting with pirate lore.
Dark Tower (Fic)
Roland Deschain & Eddie Dean & Susannah Dean & Jake Chambers
Eddie Dean & Roland Deschain
Roland Deschain & Jake Chambers
Roland Deschain & Man in Black
Roland Deschain/Man in Black
Roland Deschain/Rosalita Munoz
Susan Delgado/Roland Deschain
Susan Delgado/The Man In Black
Susannah Dean & Susan Delgado
So, obviously I love all the characters and would like some combination of them. I included a bunch so you can go for any that strike your fancy. I love this series for the worldbuilding, the atmosphere, the emotion, and most of all, for the characters. I love all the nominated characters and would be happy with any of the listed combinations, or mix-and-matching some combos if you feel like it. I love the ka-tet. I love the Sisters of Oriza. I love the creepy intensity of eternal chase of the gunslinger vs. the man in black. I love Susan Delgado and would love to see more of her, either in a missing scene or a canon AU.
I forgot to nominate some combos, but if, for instance, you wanted to do Mejis-era ka-tet plus Susan, later ka-tet plus Susan, etc, feel free. I mostly went with non-romantic pairings when those were an option, but that was mostly to steer away from PWP. If you like any romantic pairings I didn't list, feel free to go there so long as they don't involve Jake. The reverse is also true: I'm fine with & for any listed as /. Basically I'm more into the relationship itself than its exact nature.
This series has five things that never happened, fix-its, and canon AUs built into its very structure. I love all of those things, and especially for this canon. I'm fine with an AU in which Roland died at Mejis, or any AU with canon character death, given that death is pretty contingent in this series, so long as the death isn't focused on as the main thing that happens in the story. i.e., torture porn no, "someone died and so things went differently" is A-OK. I love hurt/comfort and that is also a natural for this canon. I love western tropes like "a new sheriff in town," "lost without water," "gold rush," etc. I love the weirdness of Mid-World - Shardik, the distorted remnants of our world, the melancholy of moving on, Gilead - and would love something focusing on that.
A completely optional option would be to include a crossover with any of the King books that I've read and love. If that appeals, my favorites are The Stand, Duma Key, Firestarter, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, The Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, The Langoliers, The Shining/Doctor Sleep, Pet Sematary, Carrie, Rose Madder, Misery, The Dead Zone, "Mrs. Todd's Shortcut," and Lisey's Story.
DNW: If you go for Susan Delgado/Man in Black, please keep it on a more-or-less equal footing rather than having Susan subjugated. Dubcon is fine so long as it's more-or-less mutual. No Jake/anyone.
Hamilton - Miranda (Fic)
Aaron Burr/Alexander Hamilton
Aaron Burr & Alexander Hamilton
I love these two and their dysfunctional yet essential relationship:
Hamilton: Knock-knock! Hey, it's 3:00 AM. Wanna help me write the Federalist Papers?
Burr: GOOD NIGHT. [slams door]
I ship them but you don't have to. ;)
If you read Aaron Burr's diaries and want to try to square that or mash it up with his canon (I mean, theatre canon) characterization, that would be amazing and hilarious.
I'd prefer an anachronistic style a la canon to straight historical. Canon AU, 5 Things, cool non-modern AUs like pirates, steampunk, space opera, etc, absolutely welcome! Metafiction welcome! Slash, hurt/comfort, character studies welcome! Tragic or intense or bittersweet welcome! In-character porn welcome! Ghosts welcome! Daemons, psychic wolves, jaegers, Mid-World excursions, or other fusion elements welcome!
DNW: Modern mundane AU (college, coffeeshop, etc).
If you do an art treat, please base it on the play, not history (i.e., they should not be white) but any cast or an imaginary one is fine. For instance, I have not yet heard of an Asian Hamilton but I think that would have a lot of resonance.
I am a bit obsessed with this canon so I have a bunch of tags for it if that helps.
Original Works (Fic)
Female Bodyguard/Female Musician
I love all the bodyguard tropes - protectiveness, opposites attract, being thrust into a strange new milieu, taking a bullet, falling in love when hearing her perform. Is the musician a superstar? Or not famous, just unfortunate enough to have a stalker? Does the bodyguard first not think much of her, then see how hard she works and how talented she is? Or is the bodyguard already a fan, who now gets to see what her idol is like as a real person? I love very late nights post-concert when everyone's exhausted yet exhilarated, protecting her with her body, the musician watching the bodyguard exercise and covertly admiring her muscles, the bodyguard watching the musician perform and being determined to protect her. I would like a happy ending for this one.
Female Cop Undercover In BDSM Club/Female Domme
Female Cop Undercover in BDSM Club/Female Werewolf Pack Leader
I love "undercover in a BDSM club" and I am not ashamed to admit it. I think it works best if the undercover person doesn't normally frequent clubs. So is the cop in denial of her desires, or only discovering them when she enters the club? Or is this something she knew she wanted but never explored before? (Because of shame? Fear of social/employment consequences?) I think both of these would be great to riff on coming face to face with hidden desires, whether they're for submission, for dominance, for pain or pleasure, for control, to be prey, or to run with the wolves.
Is the person the cop is falling for is also the suspect she's investigating? Is the werewolf in the club to investigate a threat to her pack? Is the cop undercover to investigate rumors of werewolves, or a murder or some other mundane crime? Does the cop end up joining the pack (or the club)? Are there werewolf BDSM practices possibly involving silver or role-playing predator-prey? (If so, I'd prefer taking it in a more serious/sexy direction than cracky comedy - like, less dressing in bunny suits, more terrifying yet hot stalking of prey). I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Experimental Subject With Powers/Female Scientist
I am SUCH a sucker for "people with powers being studied." It's one of my favorite tropes ever. I love all the variations on it: kidnapped and imprisoned in an evil lab, created and owned by an evil lab, being secretly monitored without knowing it, having such genuinely destructive and/or out of control powers that being held in a lab might be the only choice, etc. Please give me ALL the angst of being an experimental subject, "is this power a curse or a blessing," cool powers, conflicts of loyalties, etc.
Is the scientist creepily drawn to her subject because her fascination with the power is spilling over into fascination with the person? Is the scientist coming to the realization that she's working for the bad guys? Did she know the experimental subject before she got given powers, and got a job at the lab to see what's going on? Has she infiltrated the lab specifically because she thinks it's doing something similar? Is this a grand tragedy where the subject can't be freed without putting the world at risk, and her only chance for human contact is the scientist studying her? Do her powers make sex or touching difficult or impossible, and if so, how do they work around that? I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Fighter Pilot/Female Enemy Fighter Pilot
I have long had a fascination with fighter pilots. I love the legends of chivalry, rivalry, codes of honor, death or glory, and so forth high in the skies, where you're fighting one on one, possibly with someone famous. Or someone you know. So, how do these two get to know each other? Do they have signature moves or articles of clothing or distinctive planes? Were they always on opposite sides, or is this a civil war or some other situation where they could have known each other pre-war? Is the entire story told in midair, with them never speaking but only being strangely attracted by each other's skills and honor? Does one get shot down, and the other decide to save her life or let her go? Do they meet after the war, or does it all end in flames? Are female pilots rare or common, or are all of them women? Feel free to invent a setting or alternate history for this; if you use a real one, please avoid Nazis or any real-life atrocities. I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Hyperspace Test Pilot/Sentient Hyperspace Ship
I especially like the version of hyperspace where it's incredibly awesome in some way but also kills most people who enter it or will kill everyone eventually, or isn't deadly but is extremely taxing or painful or something, or is liable to give you visions and/or drive you insane and/or offer you artistic insight. Or something like that. Basically, I think hyperspace should be cooler and more dangerous than just instantaneous travel. I like the idea that the pilot willingly takes huge risks or even certain bad consequences to explore or be one with her beloved ship or...?
How does the hypership feel about her fragile human companion risking her life/sanity/health/ever seeing Earth again/etc? Think of the / as just denoting an intense and/or romantic relationship. Physical sex not necessary. However a hypership could totally be the sort where you jack in and enter some sort of VR or telepathic communion, and anything could happen there. Just saying. I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Mob Boss/Female Undercover Detective
I love mob movies. I love undercover tropes. And I have never seen anything where the mob boss and the undercover detective are both women, so that would be amazing. (I'm taking "detective" to mean either "private eye" or "undercover cop" - either is fine.) I think a mob boss can't be too young, so this could be a fascinating battle of wits between two very experienced people at the top of their game. Does the mob boss suspect the detective, and is having an affair in the hope of finding out for sure? Does the mob boss know for sure, and can't bring herself to pull the trigger (yet)? Was the detective appalled to find herself admiring the mob boss's ruthlessness and intelligence, and finding that super hot? Are they just playing each other, or has one or both fallen in love... and even if there is love involved, is that enough to stop them from destroying each other? I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Space Marine/Female Space Marine
Female Space Marine/Female Space Medic
I love space Marines. I also love medics. Either of these pairings would work great for an action or hurt/comfort story. Are they fighting aliens? Exploring new worlds? Trapped on a spaceship during an alien infiltration or plague? Or just sweatily training together, chilling in their barracks, bonding while cleaning their big guns, etc? I love ALL the space Marines/military sf tropes, so any of those plus femslash is my catnip. I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Supersoldier/Female Journalist
I love supersoldiers. They are one of my favorite tropes. A lot of my prompts for "female vigilante" and "female experimental subject" would also work for this pairing. Is the supersoldier a celebrity, and the journalist is openly covering her? Or on the run or held in a secret lab, and the journalist is in pursuit of a scoop? I'd love something that plays on their very different lives, and what they find in common despite that. Or if the journalist is a war correspondent, something on how surprisingly similar their experiences have been. Do they end up on the run together? Banding together to bring down the military-industrial complex that created and enslaved the supersoldier? Or was she a volunteer, and the journalist is using her a rallying point with her full cooperation because Earth is being invaded by aliens and everyone needs to fight however they can? Does the supersoldiering process have drawbacks, like a shortened lifespan? I'm fine with any tone or type of ending for this one.
Female Vigilante/Female Activist
Female Vigilante/Female Journalist
I find vigilantes fascinating. I'd like the vigilante to have some righteous rage, so I'd prefer this to be more serious rather than cracky. That is, humor is fine, I'd just rather not have the whole thing be jokey. I'd also like the vigilante to have reasonable reasons, even if her actions are OTT. Is the vigilante motivated by vengeance, disillusionment in the system, or idealism? Does the journalist or activist know her real identity? If not, does she know both identities without realizing they're the same person? Does the journalist or idealist disapprove of the vigilante's methods or targets, or secretly (or not-so-secretly) agree with her? Does one or the other of them have their ideas changed by the end? Do they ever join forces or switch roles? Is there desperate, adrenaline-fueled sex in a dark alley or while wearing masks? Or phone sex?
I'd be fine with a contemporary setting, including one that uses any real-world issues, so long as it's not too preachy and RL people are not name checked. I'd also be fine with a historical or fantasy or sf setting. I'm fine with any type of ending for this one.
Healer/Exhausted Female Knight Returning From The War
I would like some hurt-comfort, obviously. "Knight" does not need to be a medieval one - interpret that as you will. I would like her to be psychologically as well as physically exhausted and need emotional healing as well. Maybe the healing goes both ways - the healer might be burned out too. Do they mutually revive each other's idealism and interest in life? Is the knight permanently done, or is the healer patching her up so she can go back to the war? Is the war something the knight is committed to, maybe for a very good reason, or pointless? Feel free to go as dark or light as you like along the way, so long as it doesn't end with "knight returns to pointless war to die for no reason." I would like a happy or hopeful ending.
Post-Apocalyptic Coffee Shop Owner/Post-Apocalyptic Mercenary
This prompt is delightful in every way. Is coffee valuable and pricey, or has the apocalypse been surprisingly good for the coffee supply? Are they even drinking coffee, or some substitute? Is this a reasonably hopeful post-apocalypse, where things have been rebuilt, just different, or is this the lone place where you can get a moment of goddamn peace without being attacked by killer mutant animals/plants/gangs (until one comes crashing through the window)? Do people have mutations, physical or psychic or otherwise? Is the mercenary coffee shop security, or just stopping by for a cup after a job and finding an unexpected connection? Is the coffee shop owner doing something like The Postman, recreating civilization by means of setting up one of its trappings? I would like a happy ending for this.
Spirit of Ancient Demigod War Hero & Pint-Sized Little Girl Who Summoned Him to Save Her People
This is such a delightful prompt, I would like an entire anime based on it. Lacking that, please write me a story. I don't have specific prompts as the concept is a prompt itself. Any setting is fine, but a happy ending please.
The Punisher (Fic)
I don't think I've ever approached a show or character with lower expectations (my brief exposure to the comic book character did not endear him to me) and ended up loving it this much. Who would have expected the goddamn Punisher to be such an emotional experience?
I love Frank Castle so much, it's ridiculous. If you can capture some of his immense capacity for both heartbreaking tenderness and horrific violence, how he's trying to make himself into an emotionless killing machine because feelings hurt so damn much yet keeps getting into emotionally intense relationships that both terrify him and bring out the best in him, I will be a very happy camper.
I love hurt/comfort and could read infinite reams of him getting taken care of after being beaten half to death, or of him caring for someone else, whether physically or emotionally. For a man with such amazingly dysfunctional ways of dealing with his own emotions, he's surprisingly good at handling difficult emotional situations involving other people's feelings.
II'm a multishipper and am primarily interested in the relationship rather than exactly what sort of relationship it is. If you take the sexy option for the ones that have one, I'm more interested in sex that illuminates character than in sex that's primarily about being hot. (If you can do both, awesome!)
Frank Castle & David "Micro" Lieberman
Frank Castle/David "Micro" Lieberman.
I love them SO MUCH. The domestic squabbling! The awkward conversations! Frank pouting over not getting a sandwich! Frank making David soup! "My friend is dying!"
I would love a domestic moment, or some hurt/comfort, or anything. Frank and David go on a road trip? More bonding through cooking? David gets hurt for a change, and Frank patches him up? Frank accepted the Thanksgiving invite after all? David drags him home some other time? I loved all of Frank's interactions with David's family, so feel free to bring them in.
There were multiple points in the show that easily could have led in a romantic/sexy direction, so maybe taking some of the canon dick-showing or comforting or emotional intimacy just a step farther. I'd also love to see how they handle the first morning after.
If you take the shippy route, please don't put down Sarah if she's mentioned. I would be fine with either not mentioning her at all, or having them wrestle with the fact that David is married and loves his wife. This was literally the only show I've ever seen that had an infidelity-ish storyline that I actually liked, because the characters weren't mean and horrible about it, and generally acted like adults. So if you want to bring that dynamic in, that's fine, and if not, that's also fine.
Frank Castle & Leo Lieberman.
I loved their interactions and could read an infinite amount of Frank being a surrogate dad. Leo felt like such a real character, and I loved that we got to see her in so many different situations, including being quite heroic in a plausible manner. I loved how Frank supported her and cared for her, and how she was so open-hearted toward him.
I would love to see them interacting some more. Does he ever teach her some of what he knows that might interest her, like fixing cars or other stuff? Rescue her again? I like role reversal - what if for some reason he needed her help because shit went down and she was the only one in the vicinity, he was injured and in the neighborhood and she was the only one home, etc?
We didn't see him show his dark side so much with her, as he did with Zach in the scene with the knife, so that would also be interesting to explore - what if he pulled something along those lines with her, where he means well but is being weird/terrifying/wildly inappropriate? (NOT IN A SEXUAL WAY.) I could see that happening if he started teaching her how to shoot or disassemble/assemble a gun, and ended up telling her or teaching stuff she really doesn't need to know. How would that go down, and how would he pull it back or make it right?
Frank Castle/Karen Page
Frank Castle & Karen Page.
This is one of the most romantic relationships I've ever seen on TV, even if you read it as sexually platonic, with so much trust and feeling and intensity and loyalty and working together like an oiled machine. So except for the one sex-specific prompt, you can take all these prompts in either a sexual relationship or intense friendship way.
If you want to write sex, I would love to see the first time they have it - what leads up to it? Adrenaline-fueled "we both nearly died, let's take this chance?" Emotional intimacy leading to physical? Comforting touch? And/or, what is it like for them to literally sleep together in the same bed? Is it emotionally healing or difficult or both? He has nightmares - does she too? How do they deal with that? What's it like for him to relax for probably the first time in months, if not years? Or, maybe something dealing with all his scars.
Frank being ready to burn down the world if anyone threatens Karen is always excellent. I like role reversal and I'd also love to see her getting that protective about him. I adored the scene where she and Frank defuse a bomb together without having to use words, and the elevator scene, and "I will come for you." I'd love to see them work together in an actiony way again.
I really missed seeing Karen in the final episodes; what if she'd been in on it, either during the action we saw or afterward? Maybe some hurt/comfort in the immediate or later aftermath? Or, going farther ahead, I'd love to see their relationship if Frank does give up on being the Punisher. Like he says, it's terrifying to be without a war. How do they handle that?
Or just show them having fun or taking a break together. After all they've been through, if they went to the beach or for a picnic and could relax and feel safe enough to fall asleep in the sun, that would be so satisfying for them and me.
Frank Castle/Billy Russo.
Please be inspired by "Goddamn, Frankie. I love to watch you work." That was the moment that completely sold me on the pairing. Billy's unabashed lust as he drapes himself over the bars! Frank's shellshocked, blood-spattered upward glance! I couldn't believe I was seeing something that hot and dark and weird and perverse on TV.
I also liked how it was preceded, with Frank's betrayal and Billy's manipulation but also remnants of genuine, though battered and twisted, feeling. Who knows, but I did get the impression that Billy really had planned to give Frank the quick, clean death he promised, and on some level did feel sort of bad for him, though not enough to do anything about it. Their friendship felt as if it had been very real, and in some way still was: you don't get that angry with someone unless you still care about the relationship on some level. Shattered love, rage and hate, scraps of inappropriate, resentful caring: this is the ultimate love/hate pairing.
So, be as dark and twisted as you like, just please avoid any super-gross or really graphically violent descriptions. That is, having sex while covered in blood is fine, but please don't do the written equivalent of the broken mirror scene. Other than that, go to town with hatesex, beating the hell out of each other somehow leads to sex, or just inappropriate sexual tension.
Dubcon is fine if it's the semi-mutual sort where they're manipulating or deceiving each other, sex pollened (even if it's Billy who released the sex pollen, I'd still count that as dub rather than non), etc. I'd like them on equal or constantly shifting ground or tables turned, not one outright forcing the other. Would also be down with "villain made them do it."
One hard DNW for this pairing: if you do anything along the lines of "covered in someone else's blood/just finished murdering someone/etc," the murdered person or persons must be a bad guy who deserved it. Otherwise it's a huge squick. So if you want to do a pre-series story where they're in Afghanistan together, please don't do that particular prompt. A story where they're just chilling in the barracks or something along those lines would be great though.
Crossposted to https://rachelmanija.dreamwidth.org/2177504.html. Comment here or there.