themorikelife

I am so excited to see what you (yes, you!) will create for me. I am fairly easy to please, so don't sweat this assignment. This letter is here to mostly serve as a guide for why I like the relationships I'm requesting. I will also include prompts for ideas, but you are under no obligation to follow them. If your muse takes you in a different direction you think I would like, please go in that direction!

Treats of any medium are very welcome.

Likes & DNWs:

General Things I Love: AUs of all sorts but especially modern AUs (coffee shop, flower shop, romcom remakes, etc.) and creative settings AUs (weird west, steampunk, space western, solarpunk, etc), complicated relationships, enemies-to-lovers, slow burn, asexual characters finding love, grumpy/sunshine, pining/mutual pining, arranged marriage, fake relationships, happy endings, sexless physical intimacy, adult characters adopting lost/orphaned younger characters, angst with a happy ending, angst/whump, hurt/comfort, ostracized characters finding a friend/family, strong and independent characters being vulnerable/taken care of

My Opt-ins are things I find cool. If you think your creation will work with one of the following, don't be afraid to try it out!

Opt-ins: Non-linear narrative, epistolary, second-person POV, interactive fiction, other experimental forms of storytelling

General Smutty Likes & opt-ins: Smut as Character Study, Aftercare, A/B/O Dynamics, Blindfolds, Bondage, Playing with Breasts, Cunnilingus, Dubious Consent, Face-Sitting, Finger Sucking, Finger Fucking, Friends with Benefits, Gags, Girl!dick, Held Down, Honor Bondage, Impact Play (Paddles, Whips, Hands, etc), Nipple Play, Oral Fingering, Polyamory/Open Relationships, Restraints, Rough Sex, Sex Pollen & Similar Setups, Sex Toys, shibari, Squirting, Strap-Ons, Thigh Riding, Vaginal Fingering, Vibrators, Fucked Unconscious, Wax Play, Whipping

If you think of something I may like that is not listed here and is not listed in my DNWs, this is permission to write it. Chances are I just don't know if I like it yet!

DNWs: noncon/rape/sexual violence/sexual assault (references to prior offscreen violence are fine), scat, pisskink, underage characters having on-page sex (references to it happening off-screen are fine), incest, major character death (in most cases), infidelity/cheating, mpreg, fatphobia, ace-phobia, celebrity AUs, time travel/funky time shenanigans

Princess Mononoke

Eboshi/San

I've been seeing this on a lot of exchanges lately, and it has instigated the brainworms. Princess Mononoke wasn't my first Studio Ghibli but it was the most formative.

Eboshi is such a charismatic and intelligent character. I hesitate to call her a villain because everything she does has a veneer of kindness behind it, but she is certainly an antagonist. I love her morals and I love her competence and I love the loyalty she inspires in the people she governs.

San, on the other hand, is feral, angry, reckless, and a great foil to Eboshi. She is protecting her own and going about it with nothing but gut instinct and guerrilla tactics. She's rough and unrefined and growing into a woman that doesn't care about finesse or precision.

For these two together, I'd like to see them learn from each other. Eboshi learns to let go of her image and San learns to attack with grace. San learns what it means to work with others, and Eboshi learns the necessary strength of independence. I also love how, given their differences, they both have hearts of gold at their very center but they can't see the other's.

Some prompts:

AU where Ashitaka never comes to Iron Town. Does Eboshi kidnap San when she attacks? Does Eboshi save San from death by mob?
Post-canon where Eboshi takes regular trips into the forest to learn more about it. San follows her, untrustworthy, but manages to teach Eboshi the ways of the forest and how taking care of it means it will take care of you.
Post-canon where San is gravely injured and nursed back to health by Eboshi.

Sailor Moon (1992 Anime)

Hino Rei/Tsukino Usagi
Seiya Kou/Tsukino Usagi
Kaiou Michiru/Tenoh Haruka

Sailor Moon is my O.G. fandom! I loved that girls were kicking ass but they didn't have to mimic boyishness or disregard femininity in order to do it. In fact, they explored all the different ways a woman could be strong, or has to be strong, in their day to day lives. Sailor Moon was a celebration of being a woman that, in my memory, I can appreciate as an adult a lot more than I could appreciate when I was a child and preteen.

Rei/Usagi: These two argue so much, and everyone calls them really good friends when they do. I would love an exploration of your best friend being the person you disagree with the most. That your best friend is the only person that you feel comfortable disagreeing with. So what happens when your best friend agrees with you about something? What happens when those antagonistic feelings that you have relied on so much to help center you are pulled out from under you? I don't know, that sounds interesting to me.

Seiya Kou/Tsukino Usagi: In the Sailor Stars season, I actually really loved the star-crossed (pun intended), slow-burn romance growing between these two. I would love to see moments, in canon or canon-adjacent, where they really do kiss or take things a little further. Where Usagi allows herself to let go of the responsibilities of being Queen Serenity and gives in to her desires. I would love to see her defend love as she feels it. I would love to see her grasp onto it and experience it and realize that it is worth fighting for. As long as she and Seiya both believe in it, then it is worth being the only two people who support them being together.

Michiru/Haruka: These two fascinate me. They are an item. They flirt with other people to make the other jealous or possessive. They are attached at the hip and so, so sure that the other is going to be there for them. They are unhealthy codependence but don't want others to know the extent of it. I am feral. I want a fic where their loyalty to each other is tested and maybe, just maybe, one of them thinks that this might be the end. Only to spring back together as though it would have been obvious all along. Have fun with that one.

The Locked Tomb Series

The Locked Tomb was the book series that got me writing fiction and participating in fandom that was not collecting fanart and constantly re-reading the series. I love this series to death. I love the memes, I love its chaos, I love the foreshadowing, and I especially love the characters. I have different preferences and thoughts for each pairing, so I'll go into a little more detail with each one. For all of these pairings, feel free to completely change the setting and backstories so long as everyone's dynamics remain relatively the same in canon.

Gideon Nav/Harrowhark Nonagesimus: The ship I sailed at the very beginning. I love how in canon, they've spent two books separated and spent the entire time thinking about the other, even when it seems they weren't. This is the ship that would literally read anything for; I am partial to Modern AUs, the canon AUs at the end of Harrow the Ninth, and anything where they start out absolutely hating each other. Don't be afraid to get dark with these two either. Either they're hatefucking or they're both dealing with something and taking it out on each other. Let your imagination go wild.

Gideon Nav/Ianthe Tridentarius: I knew I wanted these two to be best friends when I read their interactions at the end of Harrow the Ninth. They hate each other but they can't quit each other because they're all they other has. Would love to see your version of the six months before Nona the Ninth. Did Ianthe propose marriage to Gideon as a way to increase her political power? What does Gideon do to mess with Ianthe? Do they bone and call out Harrow's name when they each come?

Camilla Hect/Harrowhark Nonagesimus: This ship is fascinating to me. The most loyal woman in the world finds something she wants outside of the man she serves. The most determined woman in the world finds someone who is, for once, patient and supportive of her ambition. They kind of fit wrongly, but I'd love to see them at least try. Maybe Harrow is conducting an experiment. Maybe Camilla needs to defy Palamedes a bit. Maybe they both need a relationship that requires work only to wonder if it's even worth it in the first place. Maybe they're queer platonic partners! Go wild!

Camilla Hect/Our Lady of the Passion: Pash wears machetes on her thighs and Camilla says that's uncool as she also wears her two blades. I think Pash draws some inspiration from Camilla, she won't admit to it but she does. And Camilla is fascinated by Pash in return, either as a rival who grew proficient in a weapon in a short amount of time, or as someone else who swore her life to the protection of someone important.

Coronabeth Tridentarius/Our Lady of the Passion: Coronabeth is used to everyone fawning over her, and Pash is maybe not the first person to be antagonistic as a result, but she's the first one to really cut Coronabeth. These two are great Enemies to Lovers material. Coronabeth can't shake her upbringing, and Pash tries so hard to get Coronabeth to break away once and for all. She fails, of course, because where Coronabeth is refined and calculating, Pash is unrefined and in over her head. They're great. Chef's kiss.

Cytherea the First/Mercymorn the First: These two spent millenia together. If they ever got together, was it a slow spiral of circling each other until it finally happened? Did it start from a one night stand and then grew into an on-again-off-again where they couldn't quit each other? Did they keep it a secret from everyone else? Would love to see these two through the ages, bonus points if they are absolutely not good for each other.

Mercymorn the First/Cristabel Oct: I would love love LOVE to hear more about Cristabel. From what little we get in the text, she sounds so interesting. She was a nun! She was Mercymorn's best friend! She showed Jod how to manipulate the soul! She is a fanatic and probably had the idea of a suicide pact with Alfred before anyone else. Would love to see Mercymorn fall in love with Cristabel only to learn that Cristabel was in love first. In my own headfanon, Cristabel was a chaste nun and remained chaste throughout the pre-Resurrection timeline. Her first time was post-Resurrection, and probably with Mercy. Would be great to see something like that play out in a fic.

Arcane League of Legends

Cait/Vi
Sevika/Mel Medarda
Sevika/Vi

When Arcane first came out, I could not get enough. The story was big and thorough but the characters were only concerned about their own small parts.

I was mostly invested in the relationship between Caitlyn and Vi. Their arc is all about learning to let go of their own biases because the people they've always considered their enemy is actually not that bad. I love that "we're not so different, you and I" dynamic and the slow burn spiral of them rotating around the other, still sizing them up, and not realizing their growing loyalty until it's put to the test.

I am also fond of taking that dynamic and putting it in a setting change AU, like a modern AU or something outrageous like a Western or Science Fiction setting. If you have it in you, you can melt my heart by recreating your favorite romcom with these two.

Getting back to complicated women, Sevika/Mel is a pairing I never anticipated to like until I saw fanart of Sevika railing Mel. It's the tropes of the rugged street rat and the refined princess amplified. The rugged street rat believes in whatever she's fighting, and she's discerning with where she puts her loyalty. The princess, meanwhile, is extremely politically savvy and can talk her way out of any situation. Would love something that explores how these two might get together in canon.

Finally, there's Sevika/Vi, which is rife with hatesex and Enemies and Lovers. I don't want Enemies to Lovers, I want Enemies AND Lovers. They fought and then they fucked, but they still hate each other. I want that.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

I am partway through what is technically a re-watch but often feels like a first watch of this show. As I write this letter, I am halfway through season 3. If I factor in that I am taking in about 5-7 episodes in a week, then I should be somewhere in season 5 when the collection is revealed. I would prefer if I am not spoiled for anything, so anything exploring moments or relationships in seasons 1 thru 3 is fair game. That being said, let me explain why I like this show.

There is something comforting about this show and how it's told. I think television today forgot how fun the "adventure of the week" format was. Television today also forgot that episodes that don't drive the plot forward are just as vital for character development. I love how we get to sit with a situation for several episodes, even a full season, before it's resolved. I love that this show requires you to invest in the long-term. We need to bring back 22-episode seasons.

Enough about that! I have less than three seasons with Cordelia Chase and I wanted to protect her as early as episode 1. The narrative wants to paint her as shallow and self-centered, but I think there is a lot more to her than fashion and relationships and reputation. She got a good score on the SATs! She continues to hang around the Scooby Gang and help people! Yet even there she's not really taken seriously. I would love to see some angst with Cordelia and how lonely it is being a high-femme woman that no one takes seriously; not even the people that feel sympathy for a vampire really listen to her. There is something anti-feminist about everyone's treatment of Cordelia. I think it would be fun to address that.

Another character I really like is Faith, what little I've seen of her so far. Faith has had a bad time and is trying to make do with what she's got, which is basically a hotel room and the occasional patrol with Buffy. Does she even attend school? I think it would be fun if she talks the big talk about getting it down with some guys, but has actually gotten down with women. Similar to how Buffy "coming out" as a Slayer to her mom is played like a kid coming out as gay, I want Faith to be the experience of coming out and then getting kicked out. But, you know, she's actually gay.

And then there's Buffy herself. She's a jock, she mocks the nerds, she used to be a popular prep, she's got all these fun quips lined up for every occasion. She's great, and I would like to see her explore what else she could be into, like nerdy best friends and other Slayers. Have fun with that!

One final note, if you're going to include a background Buffy/Angel pairing, I would love if Angel were genderswapped. So long as they keep their dreamy, puppy dog eyes and brooding mouth and exposed upper body. Yum!

The Expanse

Bobbie Draper/Camina Drummer
Bobbie Draper/Clarissa Mao
Camina Drummer/Naomi Nagata
Chrisjen Avasarala/Camina Drummer

The Expanse was one of those shows where I needed to binge it in order to like it. And once I was in, I was in. I love the level of competence of the characters and how their challenges are either proportional to their skills or they're in over their head but they do it anyway. It also takes place in a space environment without gravity engines, which I absolutely love and appreciate as someone who loves a world with great worldbuilding. I just think this show is great at taking badass characters and putting them in situations that stretch them beyond their capabilities.

Bobbie/Camina: This is a rarepair that I never thought I would like. Camina is too loyal to the Belt to fall for someone from an inner planet, which means Bobbie would have to prove her loyalty to the Belt in order to win Camina's trust. For Bobbie, I see her getting weak knees for someone who's not afraid to boss her around. I can see this ship being antagonistic as a way to navigate their sexual tension. At the height of an argument, instead of throwing a punch, they kiss (or bite but it's kinda like kissing).

Bobbie/Clarissa: I can see these two getting together because they're a good fuck. Bobbie needs to release some steam, and Clarissa wants to be tossed around. I can see Clarissa finding comfort in someone she knows can handle her. And I can see Bobbie being a good top/domme for that. If you want to make this kinky, go right ahead! I would love to see it.

Camina/Naomi: What I like about these two is their relationships has a foothold in the canon. Camina provides a place for Naomi to be around more Belters, which is a community Naomi misses. Naomi and Camina both gave their loyalty to an Earther, so understand that others see that as a betrayal even when their intentions are good. As leaders, they make a great team. Would love to see an AU where they got to be a power couple/battle couple.

Camina/Avasarala: These are two powerhouses in their own environment, so what happens when one goes into the other's territory? Is Camina accommodating or not showing Avasarala the easy way out of things? Is Avasarala accommodating or lauding over Camina for having stronger bones? I would like to see these two see each other's strengths and wanting to try a taste of it.

Cosmoknights

Pandora/Tara
Kate/Princess Scottie

I first read Cosmoknights earlier this year, and I knew right away that I needed to see what sort of fanfiction existed for it. Unfortunately, there is zero fanfic on AO3 for Cosmoknights. Zero! I may write my own eventually, but until then, I shall request it in my exchanges.

What I love about this graphic novel (or webcomic because it can be read online for free) is everything. I love the idea of the princesses being fought over, I love the hints of cosmoknights being champions for patrons who actually get to marry the princesses. I love the space adventures and the fact that everyone is in love with somebody else. I love that this feels like a space adventure story from my childhood, except now everybody's a queer girl but no one cares that everyone is a queer girl. A ragtag crew on a ship that doesn't get along has revolution at the front of their mind, not romance (though the romance is definitely there). Here is a link to read Cosmoknights online if you are interested.

Pandora/Tara Their relationship fascinates me. As children, Pandora was a secret friend to Tara, who wasn't allowed friends, I guess? As adults, Tara and Pan had the potential to clash as two revolutionaries with opposing goals. I would love to see more of their childhood friends to enemies dynamic. I want to see messiness and them not getting along like they used to because their motivations no longer align in a cohesive way. There's heartache in growing apart from someone you were close to. It's a natural thing to happen, but it hurts anyway. And I want these girls to hurt.

Kate/Princess Scottie I love Kate. Kate is perhaps my favorite character. She's a hacker. She changes her appearance on a whim. She may or may not be connected to a larger revolutionary group bent on destroying the princess-as-warprize system. She is so, so against anybody who grew up with privilege and money that it's suspicious. And yet, she can be a friend when you need her to. Show her that you're not out to get her, and she'll stand by your side. I love that Princess Scottie is fascinated by her and I want to explore more of that relationship. There is more to Princess Scottie than we see in the comic so far, and I want to see her standing up for Kate and proving herself as a powerful ally to have. I want Kate's worldview challenged. I want Scottie to get comfortable in her discomfort. These two should have a "we're not so different" type arc. Where Pan and Tara go from love to hate, these two should go from hate to love.

Original Works

Troublemaking Bad Girl at School/Goody Two-Shoes Assigned to Tutor Her
Werewolf/Little Red Riding Hood
Rich Vampire Patron/Artist She Hires as a Bloodbag
Lonely Frontier Farmer/Mail Order Bride With a Past
Ancient Forgotten Goddess/Clueless Historian Obsessed With Her
Reclusive Witch Living in the Woods/Wounded Werewolf Looking for Shelter
Mermaid/Wild Woman Living in a Cave by the Sea
Lady Trapped in a Tower/Lady Who Can Turn into a Hawk
Knight Sworn to Hunt Witches/Childhood Friend Who is Secretly a Witch
Cowgirl/Resident of a Cattle Town

The following is a list of ideas/prompts for each pairing. As mentioned earlier, if your muse is taking you elsewhere, go where your muse takes you!

Troublemaking Bad Girl at School/Goody Two-Shoes Assigned to Tutor Her: I love the idea of corruption with this prompt. Does the Bad Girl recognize something familiar in the Good Girl and help to break out of her shell/come out of the closet? Does the Good Girl want to prove that she can have just as much fun as the Bad Girl and they end up crashing into each other? Is the Bad Girl actually the brightly colored prep and the Good Girl an academic goth? If you are also a fan of those YA high school romances, lean into that, except now it's better because it's gay.

Werewolf/Little Red Riding Hood: So Amanda Seyfried has this cover of the song "Little Red Riding Hood" that is soooo cool and sexy. This prompt makes me think of this. This prompt also makes me think of this other fic I read where Red and Wolf were in love but could only be together during the full moon. This is a great fairy tale about a girl discovering that her normal is actually monstrous, but I want her to fall in love with that.

Rich Vampire Patron/Artist She Hires as a Bloodbag: This prompt is kind of borne from my own wish to have a patron that supports me and my lifestyle and in exchange I write a little story on their behalf every so often. Except instead of doing an art for the patron, the patron takes my blood. Is the bloodbag loyal to the patron? Does the patron have other bloodbags in their payroll? Maybe the patron vampiress is the only one who can see the artist's work. I love the idea of someone clinging to a single lifeline and truly believing that is all they will ever need, when it is perhaps the most unhealthy lifeline ever.

Lonely Frontier Farmer/Mail Order Bride with a Past: What is the Bride running from? Why does the Farmer order a companion? I would love if the Farmer is resistant to the idea of sex when the Bride first arrives. Perhaps she's asexual? Or perhaps she ordered a Bride to deal with the more domestic affairs of running a farm and not for a sexual reason at all. Maybe the Farmer is lacking in such self-confidence that they take pains to leave the Bride alone, but the Bride is extremely curious about their new, enigmatic spouse. Moreover, I love the idea of being in forced proximity to someone, of love as a choice you make every day, of love being something that happens slowly, over time, and when you are not expecting it.

Ancient Forgotten Goddess/Clueless Historian Obsessed with Her: There are so many delicious ways this can go. Is the Historian an academic by profession or by hobby? Is the Historian finding refuge in seeking forgotten knowledge because their life otherwise sucks? From the Goddess's perspective, what sort of Goddess is she? What drew the Historian to her? Is the Goddess miffed that she got interrupted from a nice lifetime of not being remembered, or is she excited to finally have a follower again? Go wild with this prompt. I'm not sure what I want exactly other than this sounds very fun.

Reclusive Witch Living in the Woods/Wounded Werewolf Looking for Shelter: This prompt satisfies my iddy of one beaten and vulnerable spirit finding another and finding comfort in each other's scars. Was the wolf injured because they were cast out from their pack? Perhaps the Wtich learned independence because no one would help her with anything anyway? I could use more werewolf stories in my life.

Mermaid/Wild Woman Living in a Cave by the Sea: Who is the wild woman? Did she used to be civilized? Is she a runaway selkie? Was she the little mermaid with a bad ending? And who is the mermaid? Why is she drawn to this wild woman? Does she want to help her or destroy her? Or maybe the mermaid is injured and the wild woman cares for her? Or they both knew each other previously and now awkwardly rebuild their old relationship?

Lady Trapped in a tower/Lady Who Can Turn Into a Hawk: I am realizing that this is the third prompt here that is similar to a fairy tale. This prompt sounds like Rapunzel finding a friend in someone other than her prince. I would very much like an ending where she does not find refuge with a prince. Instead, she should find refuge with a friend, or "friend" as it were. Wink wink.

Knight Sworn to Hunt Witches/Childhood Friend Who is Secretly a Witch: Another iddy trope is a character's intentions being drastically misinterpreted by others. Maybe the Witch cast a spell that had a positive effect, but because magic has such a bad reputation that everyone thought it was an evil curse. Maybe the Knight is hunting Witches to save them, but the Witch thinks it's for the bounty on her head.

Cowgirl/Resident of a Cattle Town: You know the old Western trope of a cowboy traveling through town, having an effect on a local, and then riding off into the sunset? And the more interesting characters are the stationary ones who encounter the cowboy? I would like something like that, but the cowboy is a woman and she's charismatic and polite and sexy. Would love that.