Chocolate Box letter
Jan. 3rd, 2022 09:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meteordustDear Chocolatier,
Thank you so much for offering to write a story for me! I love all these fandoms, and I'm really keen to see what you do in them! I've provided some prompts in case you're looking for inspiration, but I'd also love to see whatever other ideas capture your imagination.
For me, it's about the characters and their interactions. I'm not a stickler about researching canon details, as long as the spirit of the characters and the flavour of their world is there. I want to see adventures that might have been, or missing moments from between scenes, or a slice of their daily lives, or where the future might take them.
LIKES: Some of the things I enjoy in stories are: undying loyalty, personal bravery, risking self to protect others, displaying cool competence, big damn hero moments, special everyday moments, banter, hijinks, confessions exposing emotional vulnerability, conversations loaded with unspoken meaning, tough people showing a soft side, and soft people showing a tough side. Some of my favorite tropes and genres are: amnesia, angst with a happy ending, animal transformation, arranged marriage, bodyswap, cosmic horror, curtainfic, five things fic, getting together, hurt/comfort, mutual requited pining, mystery solving, road trips, sex pollen, slice of life, stranded together, and time travel.
DISLIKES: I generally prefer optimistic stories in exchanges, so I'm not keen on anything that is brutally violent or hopelessly bleak. However, I don't mind darkness during the story, as long as there is a glimmer of light at the end. Endings that are bittersweet or ambiguous are also fine.
DO NOT WANT: Noncon, underage, bleak endings, crossovers (unless requested), setting change AUs like high school, coffee shop, or omegaverse (but canon divergence AUs are fine).
RATING: I've requested some gen and some ships in this exchange. For the latter, I'm fine with explicit sex, but it's usually not the most important part of the story for me.
STYLE: I'm fine with first, second, or third person. I'm fine with past or present tense. I'm fine with stories of any length, including stories that start in media res or consist of a scene that implies a larger plot.
POV: I'm open to stories from the point of view of a different character from the ones requested, especially if they provide an interesting perspective on the requested characters.
INTERACTIVE FICTION: I like interactive fiction and would welcome it.
I've listed more details under each individual request.
I hope this helps. Have fun writing!
Yours sincerely,
meteordust
(AO3 name Serenade)
***
Request 1: Captive Prince - CS Pacat (Damen & His Vaskian Daughters) - fanfic
Oh, Damen. I love his courage, competence, and good heart. I love when actions he thinks are ordinary and necessary, stun and impress people, who were not expecting it. And I'd love to see him surprised or delighted or moved by his own children. I'm intrigued that he might actually have a number of daughters out there, from his time in the Vaskian camp when various women requested his services.
I'd love to find out what happens when Damen meets one or more of his Vaskian daughters. They may or may not have accurate preconceptions of each other. Does she come to the court of the king, as a diplomat or a runaway? Does he encounter an oddly familiar warrior or trader on the road? Or maybe kidfic, where Damen is faced with a mob of adorable - but possibly loud and chaotic - little girls.
***
Request 2: Fall of Ile-Rien - Martha Wells (Tremaine/Ilias/Giliead) - fanfic
This series is such a comfort read for me! I love the characters and their worlds, and I just want to spend more time hanging out with them. I love how the relationship between Tremaine and Ilias develops, through the stages of trust, respect, friendship, admiration, and love. I love that Ilias and Giliead are each other's Most Important Person, whatever the exact form of their love. I love that Ilias thinks Tremaine and Giliead are similar in many ways. I'm open to triangular or V-shaped relationships between these three. I love exploring the cultural differences between Ile-Rien and Cineth, and seeing people bridge the divide with goodwill and kindness.
I love that when the council insists on a marriage to seal the alliance, Tremaine calls their bluff and agrees to marry Ilias. What if some tradition or law means that Giliead is unexpectedly looped into the marriage too? Maybe because they are both from Andrien House? Maybe because of the role of the Chosen Vessel?
I love learning about Cineth's matriarchal society, where women are the landowners and can take more than one husband. When it looks like Giliead might lose his position in the community, Ilias suggests to Tremaine that she could marry Giliead too, to put him under her protection. What if they actually went through with it?
Fandom Specific Do Not Want: Ilias was adopted into the same family as Giliead, when his own cast him out. I am open to their relationship being platonic or romantic, but if the latter, I don't want them angsting over being related or revelling in transgressing rules. Maybe it's not a big taboo for their situation, or maybe they're just discreet. Either way, I'd like them to have the same kind of easy affection as in canon.
***
Request 3: Foreigner Series - CJ Cherryh (Bren/Machigi) - fanfic
Bren has chemistry with so many people, and as soon as Machigi showed up - sparks! I love that Machigi seems fascinated to meet Bren, and even comments on his southern accent. And I love that Bren has to bring his best game to deal with Machigi, and is maybe even slightly flustered.
What form might their diplomatic negotiations take? Would they take the chance to engage in cultural exchange? Or for a slightly more cracky approach, how far do Bren's duties as paidhi extend? Does Tabini send him out with instructions to do whatever is necessary to secure an alliance or calm troubled waters? Anything from flirting to sexytimes would be fun to read.
Fandom Specific Do Not Want: I would prefer no infidelity. For their canon relationships, I'd be happy with any of the following: before it starts or after it ends, alternate universe where it never happened, or just not mentioned.
***
Request 4: Crossover Fandom (Din Djarin (The Mandalorian) & Murderbot (The Murderbot Diaries), Xanthippe Voorhees (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) & Yuri Plisetsky (Yuri!!! on Ice)) - fanfic
Din Djarin (The Mandalorian) & Murderbot (The Murderbot Diaries) - I love that here are two people so used to hiding their faces behind helmets, that they have trouble controlling their expressions, and cannot deal with being stared at. Do they meet at a spaceport bar and bond over their similarities? Or - oh no! - do they end up on opposite sides of a mission? Or are they, to everyone's surprise, long time friends because they get each other? Murderbot introduces Din to Sanctuary Moon? Din shares Mandalorian media with Murderbot? (Note: For Murderbot, I prefer using the canon pronoun 'it'.)
Xanthippe Voorhees (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) & Yuri Plisetsky (Yuri!!! on Ice) - I have a soft spot for teenagers who are prickly grouches with hearts of gold. However they cross paths (waiting in an airport lounge? attending the same gala event?) I'm curious what kind of rapport they might have. Maybe they commiserate with each other about the weirdly dramatic people in their lives. Maybe they have a deep and meaningful conversation about hopes and fears for the future. Maybe they join forces to pull off a daring heist, or find the perfect gift for a friend, or rescue a cat from a tree.
Thank you so much for offering to write a story for me! I love all these fandoms, and I'm really keen to see what you do in them! I've provided some prompts in case you're looking for inspiration, but I'd also love to see whatever other ideas capture your imagination.
For me, it's about the characters and their interactions. I'm not a stickler about researching canon details, as long as the spirit of the characters and the flavour of their world is there. I want to see adventures that might have been, or missing moments from between scenes, or a slice of their daily lives, or where the future might take them.
LIKES: Some of the things I enjoy in stories are: undying loyalty, personal bravery, risking self to protect others, displaying cool competence, big damn hero moments, special everyday moments, banter, hijinks, confessions exposing emotional vulnerability, conversations loaded with unspoken meaning, tough people showing a soft side, and soft people showing a tough side. Some of my favorite tropes and genres are: amnesia, angst with a happy ending, animal transformation, arranged marriage, bodyswap, cosmic horror, curtainfic, five things fic, getting together, hurt/comfort, mutual requited pining, mystery solving, road trips, sex pollen, slice of life, stranded together, and time travel.
DISLIKES: I generally prefer optimistic stories in exchanges, so I'm not keen on anything that is brutally violent or hopelessly bleak. However, I don't mind darkness during the story, as long as there is a glimmer of light at the end. Endings that are bittersweet or ambiguous are also fine.
DO NOT WANT: Noncon, underage, bleak endings, crossovers (unless requested), setting change AUs like high school, coffee shop, or omegaverse (but canon divergence AUs are fine).
RATING: I've requested some gen and some ships in this exchange. For the latter, I'm fine with explicit sex, but it's usually not the most important part of the story for me.
STYLE: I'm fine with first, second, or third person. I'm fine with past or present tense. I'm fine with stories of any length, including stories that start in media res or consist of a scene that implies a larger plot.
POV: I'm open to stories from the point of view of a different character from the ones requested, especially if they provide an interesting perspective on the requested characters.
INTERACTIVE FICTION: I like interactive fiction and would welcome it.
I've listed more details under each individual request.
I hope this helps. Have fun writing!
Yours sincerely,
meteordust(AO3 name Serenade)
***
Request 1: Captive Prince - CS Pacat (Damen & His Vaskian Daughters) - fanfic
Oh, Damen. I love his courage, competence, and good heart. I love when actions he thinks are ordinary and necessary, stun and impress people, who were not expecting it. And I'd love to see him surprised or delighted or moved by his own children. I'm intrigued that he might actually have a number of daughters out there, from his time in the Vaskian camp when various women requested his services.
I'd love to find out what happens when Damen meets one or more of his Vaskian daughters. They may or may not have accurate preconceptions of each other. Does she come to the court of the king, as a diplomat or a runaway? Does he encounter an oddly familiar warrior or trader on the road? Or maybe kidfic, where Damen is faced with a mob of adorable - but possibly loud and chaotic - little girls.
***
Request 2: Fall of Ile-Rien - Martha Wells (Tremaine/Ilias/Giliead) - fanfic
This series is such a comfort read for me! I love the characters and their worlds, and I just want to spend more time hanging out with them. I love how the relationship between Tremaine and Ilias develops, through the stages of trust, respect, friendship, admiration, and love. I love that Ilias and Giliead are each other's Most Important Person, whatever the exact form of their love. I love that Ilias thinks Tremaine and Giliead are similar in many ways. I'm open to triangular or V-shaped relationships between these three. I love exploring the cultural differences between Ile-Rien and Cineth, and seeing people bridge the divide with goodwill and kindness.
I love that when the council insists on a marriage to seal the alliance, Tremaine calls their bluff and agrees to marry Ilias. What if some tradition or law means that Giliead is unexpectedly looped into the marriage too? Maybe because they are both from Andrien House? Maybe because of the role of the Chosen Vessel?
I love learning about Cineth's matriarchal society, where women are the landowners and can take more than one husband. When it looks like Giliead might lose his position in the community, Ilias suggests to Tremaine that she could marry Giliead too, to put him under her protection. What if they actually went through with it?
Fandom Specific Do Not Want: Ilias was adopted into the same family as Giliead, when his own cast him out. I am open to their relationship being platonic or romantic, but if the latter, I don't want them angsting over being related or revelling in transgressing rules. Maybe it's not a big taboo for their situation, or maybe they're just discreet. Either way, I'd like them to have the same kind of easy affection as in canon.
***
Request 3: Foreigner Series - CJ Cherryh (Bren/Machigi) - fanfic
Bren has chemistry with so many people, and as soon as Machigi showed up - sparks! I love that Machigi seems fascinated to meet Bren, and even comments on his southern accent. And I love that Bren has to bring his best game to deal with Machigi, and is maybe even slightly flustered.
What form might their diplomatic negotiations take? Would they take the chance to engage in cultural exchange? Or for a slightly more cracky approach, how far do Bren's duties as paidhi extend? Does Tabini send him out with instructions to do whatever is necessary to secure an alliance or calm troubled waters? Anything from flirting to sexytimes would be fun to read.
Fandom Specific Do Not Want: I would prefer no infidelity. For their canon relationships, I'd be happy with any of the following: before it starts or after it ends, alternate universe where it never happened, or just not mentioned.
***
Request 4: Crossover Fandom (Din Djarin (The Mandalorian) & Murderbot (The Murderbot Diaries), Xanthippe Voorhees (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) & Yuri Plisetsky (Yuri!!! on Ice)) - fanfic
Din Djarin (The Mandalorian) & Murderbot (The Murderbot Diaries) - I love that here are two people so used to hiding their faces behind helmets, that they have trouble controlling their expressions, and cannot deal with being stared at. Do they meet at a spaceport bar and bond over their similarities? Or - oh no! - do they end up on opposite sides of a mission? Or are they, to everyone's surprise, long time friends because they get each other? Murderbot introduces Din to Sanctuary Moon? Din shares Mandalorian media with Murderbot? (Note: For Murderbot, I prefer using the canon pronoun 'it'.)
Xanthippe Voorhees (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) & Yuri Plisetsky (Yuri!!! on Ice) - I have a soft spot for teenagers who are prickly grouches with hearts of gold. However they cross paths (waiting in an airport lounge? attending the same gala event?) I'm curious what kind of rapport they might have. Maybe they commiserate with each other about the weirdly dramatic people in their lives. Maybe they have a deep and meaningful conversation about hopes and fears for the future. Maybe they join forces to pull off a daring heist, or find the perfect gift for a friend, or rescue a cat from a tree.
