fandom5k 2018 Letter

[straightforwardly]

AO3: straightforwardly

General Likes

• canon settings.
• canon divergence AUs.
• exploring the relationships between characters.
• quiet / subtle / low-key romances.
• hand-holding, casual touching, any focus on hands.
• dysfunctional or otherwise complicated relationships, especially if the people involved genuinely care about one another.
• worldbuilding.
• emotional hurt/comfort.
• trapped together / huddling for warmth scenarios.
• winter/autumn settings and atmosphere.
• enemies (reluctantly/forced to/willingly) working together, enemies becoming friends, enemies becoming lovers.
• any time-related shenanigans: time travel, time loops, peggy sue, etc.
• castles, shrines, abandoned ruins, dark forests, settings with a deep sense of atmosphere and/or history.
• unusual formats (e.g., epistolary, interactive fiction, non-linear storytelling, & so on.)

Do Not Wants

• porn without plot.
• eye injuries.
• zombies / any of the rotting undead.
• hopeless endings & permanent character death (of the requested characters).
• detailed descriptions of/focus on pregnancy, childbirth, weddings, and non-canonical marriages.
• kid!fic. anything to do with the next generation, both canonical or not.
• cannibalism; anything being eaten alive.
• crack!fic, A/B/O, and complete AUs.
• characters giving up on dreams/careers for the sake of romantic love.

Autumn’s Journey

Fandom-Specific Do Not Wants: n/a

Kerr/Auralee, Kerr/Auralee & Ilmari
I’m writing about these relationships under one heading because I essentially want the same thing for both of them! I ship Kerr/Auralee like mad, but Ilmari’s friendship with both of them is also incredibly important to me. Basically, take whichever relationship you matched on and apply it to any of the scenarios I mention below, and I will be more than pleased with whatever results!

What I want the most for this game is post-canon adventures. That’s pretty much all I ever wanted, ever since the first time I played this game. There’s just so much to explore! Some more specific scenarios that I’d love to see: the first time Auralee and Kerr (and Ilmari?) reunite! Does Kerr come to her the moment he learns the transformation spell, or does he have a specific reason for being sent to her? One of my favorite aspects about the friendship ending was the idea of Auralee working to become an envoy between dragonkind and heavenkind; does that happen here too and is that maybe related to why Kerr comes back?

Or, I’d like to see any of the adventures Kerr and Auralee (and Ilmari?) have after their initial reunion! This could be right after they reunite or x amount of months/years later. I’d love to see the kind of trouble they get into and the ways in which they help people.

I’d also love to see more of Kerr and Auralee exploring their relationship. Any focus on interspecies differences (especially cultural, though I’d be happy with the physical as well) would make my year. The difference between their expectations of physical contact was one of my favorite things about Kerr and Auralee’s interactions in the game and I’d love to see more in that vein. Speaking of which, I’d love to see their emotions for one another continue to deepen, but I’d also love to see more of how their physical relationship grows? That is, while I definitely don’t want a PWP, I would be interested in seeing some of their (probably fumbling) sexual exploration. This can also include Kerr’s dragon form, though I don’t know if I actually want full-on dragon/human sex for this. Maybe more along the lines of Auralee discovering unexpectedly sensitive areas/erogenous zones?

This ties in a little with my above request, but I’d love to see more worldbuilding, whether it’s about dragonkind culture, the ways in which dragonkind and heavenkind interact, the ways in which different kinds of dragonkind interact with one another, how magic is used in society, or anything about how the world itself is structured!

Some minor things I’d also love to see include: Kerr being knowledgeable about geological structures, Kerr and Ilmari’s take on various heavenkind things, fruit pastry-based food porn for Kerr, Auralee and/or Ilmari making Kerr blush, more UST-filled wrestling matches, more friendly group cuddles, Kerr’s dragonkind form making an appearance, nonstandard physical gestures of affection.

And, if all else fails, I will always, always be up for a fic where they get trapped in a cave during a snowstorm (and maybe have to cuddle for warmth?). ♥

Crossovers - A Song of Ice & Fire/Naruto

Fandom-Specific Do Not Wants: Don’t draw any details from the GoT show canon—I haven’t seen any of it. Book canon only, please. Exception: I do want Sansa to be aged up about ~2 years, so that she’s 15 at the time of Joffrey’s wedding (with the other Stark children/teenaged characters’ ages similarly adjusted, if any of them show up).

In regards to my rotting undead DNW: mentions of the White Walkers are fine, as are brief appearances, but no detailed descriptions of them, and don’t have them have a heavy role in the story. In regards to my weddings & non-canonical marriages DNW: weddings for political marriages (e.g., Joffrey's wedding) are fine; I'm also fine with Sansa's marriage prospects being discussed/planned for/even occurring, as long as 1) they're political marriages and 2) she doesn't end the fic living with someone as their wife.

Haruno Sakura/Sansa Stark
I love these two so much. ♥ They’re both my favorite characters from their respective canons. I already talked quite a bit about Sakura in the next section below, so I’m not going to repeat myself here, but as for Sansa: I love the “courtesy as a shield” thing she has going on and how she grows in her political understanding as the series goes on. my heart also breaks for her pretty much constantly, with all that she’s suffered through and lost. I do desperately want her to be happy, and I think Sakura would actually be a pretty good option for helping make that happen. (If nothing else, she can definitely understand the “had a crush on someone who turned out to be a horrible person” thing.)

I will say that I’m much more interested in seeing Sakura in Sansa’s world than in the reverse, mainly because I feel like Sansa’s skillset is one that works better for the ASOIAF world specifically, whereas Sakura’s works well anywhere. I like crossovers best when both parties bring something to the table. On a similar note, I’m not really interested in the details of how Sakura ends up in a different world—you can handwave it with a jutsu-gone-wrong, or just not bring it up at all. Their interactions are much more important to me.

As for how they meet—one scenario I’m particularly fond of is one where Sakura stumbles across Sansa while she’s fleeing from the aftermath of Joffrey’s wedding. The whole murdering Dontos bit Petyr does would be pretty obviously skeevy, I think, considering how shocked Sansa was by it, so I could see Sakura intervening. Or maybe they get set upon by bandits while traveling to the Vale and Sakura intervenes? (I could see this going in multiple directions—Sakura going with them to the Vale, Sansa being one of the only survivors and going along with Sakura in the aftermath…) Or maybe they meet after Sansa’s time in the Vale, somehow? Honestly, I’m up for any scenario that ends with Sakura taking Sansa away with her.

I mentioned this above, but I love it when both sides of a crossover get to show off their skillsets. Sakura rescuing/fighting for Sansa is the obvious one, and I’d definitely adore it, but I’d also like Sansa to have time to shine. Maybe she uses her courtesy and/or knowledge of Westeros families & politics to diffuse a tense situation?

One thing I never get tired of is Sansa reuniting with Arya or Jon. Maybe she asks Sakura to take her to her brother on the Wall? (Fic about how their relationship grows and changes during their journey there would be excellent.) Or maybe she just wants to get out of Westeros while she still can and they end up in Braavos instead? My kingdom for an outsider!POV Arya fic where she gets intrigued by Sakura while she’s out and about & ends up reuniting with Sansa by accident.

Or whatever you want to go with! I will say that I’m more interested in them meeting after Joffrey’s wedding rather than before, but other than that, I’m easy.

Naruto

Fandom-Specific Do Not Wants: A heavy focus on Sakura’s feelings for Sasuke. (Mentions of it are fine, though, especially if it’s in the context of her having gotten over him.) The endgame canon pairings. The canon ending in general. Sakura betraying Konoha.

Haruno Sakura
I love Sakura. She’s one of my all-time favorite fictional characters, and nearly all the fic I read for Naruto is about her in some shape or form. I’d love anything centered around her, whether it’s gen (both of the friendship!fic and solo!fic-with-OCs variety) or ship!fic. If you do write ship!fic, though, I’d still like the main focus to be on Sakura and her story, whatever it may be.

I’m particularly interested in mission fic. Send Sakura on a mission somewhere! Whether it’s by herself or with a team, both are fine with me. Case!fic or mysteries (even if they’re not mission-related) would also delight me. I also love worldbuilding and fantasy politics! Maybe she goes on a diplomatic mission somewhere, as the Hokage’s apprentice? (If you send her to Suna, I’d love to see her interact with Temari!)

Honestly, when it comes down to it, just anything plotty would make me happy. I particularly love: stories that explore Sakura’s strengths without ignoring her flaws. The use of genjutsu, especially in creating unsettling situations. (Ghost stories?) Anything about early!canon!Sakura growing stronger in a way that plays to her own natural talents.

I’d prefer fic set in either the vague post-canon setting that was used in so much fic before the actual ending for the series came out or something set during canon, whether it’s of the missing scene variation (especially during the timeskip!) or the beginnings of a canon divergence. If you want to pair her with someone, I… ship her with a lot of characters, but my favorite canon-adjacent pairings for her are Ino/Sakura (friends to rivals to lovers! ♥) and Sai/Sakura.

Deidara/Sakura
Okay, so I’m well-aware that this is a bit of a crack pairing, but I have been shipping it hard for nearly a decade at this point. It started from shallow reasons, but they survived as one of my ships because I found myself genuinely interested in how the dynamics would play out. I really like the idea of Deidara seeing Sakura’s destructive capabilities (i.e., using her chakra-fueled strength to shatter the ground) as art and being attracted to her capacity for destruction and violence.

On a related note, I do really like that Sakura… actually has some concept of morality and I wouldn’t want to see that erased in an effort to remove conflict. Also, please do note my Sakura-betraying-Konoha DNW. You can avoid that however you want (open-ending, any relationship being the result of a series of accidental and/or brief meetings when she’s out on missions, a one-time interaction, a post-apocalyptic scenario where Konoha doesn’t exist anymore…)

For all of these ideas, I’d be equally happy with canon-divergences or canon-compliant fics (especially ones set during/near the end of the timeskip), or post-canon (but not end-of-the-manga-compliant) fic where Deidara miraculously survives for ~handwave~ reason and took the chance to get the hell out of the Akatsuki.

For a canon divergence, what if they met for the first time outside of the context of being enemies? Perhaps Sakura runs into him on a mission, and their goals at the moment don’t actually clash. Maybe they even have similar goals, or at least want the same thing for different reasons, and end up working together! (You can include Sasori in this or not, as you desire, though if not then I’d appreciate at least a brief mention of what he’s doing instead—maybe he’s taking care of another aspect of his and Deidara’s mission?)

Or, the same scenario, but set post-canon! Does Sakura recognize him? (It’s not like she had that many interactions with him—but, then again, those interactions were during rather memorable moments in general, and she did kill his partner.) How reluctant, exactly, is this working together? …….Do they have post-mission adrenaline-fueled sex??? I’d love this scenario on its own; I’d also love it as a beginning to a series of accidental-until-they’re-not meetings, like I hinted at above.

One thing I wouldn’t want is a fic where Sakura infiltrates/pretends to join the Akatsuki or is kidnapped by the Akatsuki for any reason. I also prefer that Deidara’s verbal tic be written as “yeah”.

Gaara & Temari
I’m really fascinated by the relationship between these two, and it’s pretty much 100% due to their interactions during the Forest of Death portion of the Chunin Exam arc. Something about the combination of Temari trying to appeal to their connection as siblings after Kankuro annoys him + her and Kankuro’s clear fear of him despite him being their brother really appealed to me.

There are two general scenarios that I’m particularly interested in. First, I’d love to see anything about their pre-canon years functioning as a team. Again, mission!fic would be adored, but I’d especially love something where the mission/multiple missions are set as a backdrop to their relationship. What was all of that like for Temari, since she was obviously terrified of him? Were there ever moments of connection, or trying to connect? How much of it is actually feeling some sort of sisterly bond or duty to him and how much of it was pure self-preservation (and/or trying to protect Kankuro?) How did she manage the balancing act of working together with him while trying to ensure that he didn’t kill her and Kankuro? This has the potential to become quite dark and I would definitely be up for that.

I would also really love a fic set during the timeskip! By the time Shippuden starts, Gaara and Temari clearly trust and care about each other and there’s no sign of the fear she felt about him before. (Instead, she fears for him. ♥) How did they get to that point? Basically, I’d like to see how they rebuild their relationship. If you’re interested in worldbuilding, I would love to see more of Suna’s politics and rebuilding included, especially considering that they remain Kazekage-less for some time before Gaara gains the trust of the village, but that’s purely optional—what I’m most interested in is the relationship between Gaara and Temari.

For whatever you write, Kankuro can play as much or as little of a role as you please, but I would appreciate it if he got at least a mention, as he was canonically around for pretty much all of the above scenarios and it would feel odd if his existence was ignored entirely.

If neither of the above scenarios apply, then I’d love any plotty fic that focuses on their relationship! Also, Suna’s politics are always appreciated, regardless of what you choose to write.

Star Stealing Prince

Fandom-Specific Do Not Wants: Unrequested pairings. Snowe and Astra as children—if you’re writing pre-canon, then please have them no younger than young teenagers. Requested characters not genuinely caring about each other (in their own way).

I’ve only played the game, so please don’t include canon from the short stories/novel.

For this fandom, I have a lot of prompts that could easily overlap with different relationships. I tried to categorize them as best I could for the sake of organization, but feel free to take anything I prompt for one relationship and use it for another. I also requested this fandom for Darkest Night last year, and would still be interested in any of those prompts as well.

Snowe & Erio & Astra
I really adore the relationships between these three. I love Erio & Astra’s relationship to a ridiculous extent (see: the fact they’re included in every relationship I’m requesting), especially in regards to how devoted Erio is to her and the mutual concern they show for one another. I love the antagonistic start to Erio and Snowe’s relationship and how it shifts over the course of the game. And I love the solid bond of friendship that forms between Snowe and Astra and how (contrary to my expectations when I first played the game) it never turns into a romance.

I’d love anything that has these three interacting and showing the different facets of their relationships with one another. I’m equally interested in stories set during canon and post-canon.

For fic set during canon, I’d like to see any missing moments or adventures. IIRC correctly, the game’s timeline is pretty tight, and doesn’t leave much gap for side-adventures, but I don’t mind if you decide to handwave that for the sake of a story.

One possibility: The game stresses at several points that if too much demon magic goes through a human, they start decaying. Show this happening to someone. It doesn’t matter who it is—it could be Snowe, Astra, or even Relenia, if you want to include her. How do they react? Do they try to hide it from the others? Can it be healed, and, if so, how? This could also be a post-canon story, if you wanted to take it that way.

Or, if you want to focus more on interpersonal relationships, I would love to see something post-canon set on the ship where they (especially Snowe and Astra) finally get the chance to sort out their feelings about everything that’s happened to them.

Or, if you have another idea, go for it! I’d love to see anything about this setting. For post-canon fic, I’m much more interested in something set when they’re still on the ship rather than when they find their new home, but, again, if you have a great idea, go for it.

I would love a post-canon fic where one or all of them wake up at the beginning of the game again in a Peggy Sue-style time travel plot! How do they react? What do they do differently and what do they do the same? What goes wrong, or doesn’t? What changes because of it? You don’t have to follow the whole loop; I’d also be really happy with an in medias res take on it.

On a similar-but-different note, I’d also be more than pleased with canon-divergence AUs from any point in the timeline.

Erio & Astra & Hiante
I adore these three just as much as I adore the Snowe & Erio & Astra relationship. I love the sense of partnership and trust between Erio and Hiante and how, iirc, Erio seems to count on him in a way that he doesn’t with the rest of the cast. I love the genuine care between Hiante and Astra and how familial it feels at times. And, to repeat what I said above, I love Erio & Astra’s relationship to a ridiculous extent, especially in regards to how devoted Erio is to her and the mutual concern they show for one another.

If you have any ideas for a plotty pre-canon fic, go for it. Most of the ideas I can think of are better suited for shorter fic, but I would really love anything about these three’s relationship when Astra was still trapped in the tower.

Or, what about a canon-divergence AU? Specifically, I’d be really interested in a scenario that diverges from chapter 6 when “paradise” falls. What if Erio hadn’t managed to get help from his sister? It’s canon that Erio planned to save at least Astra if that happened, and I doubt that Hiante could really die from something like that, but what happens next? What does this outcome it mean for their fate (and that of all of Sabine), since the only person who could take down the stars died? This has the potential of becoming quite dark, which is fine as long as you don’t kill off any of the above three.

Or, again, I’d be happy with any other canon divergence that comes to mind!

Erio/Astra
So, I ship these two a lot. More than a lot, really; they’re easily an OTP of mine. Feel free to take any of my above prompts and add in extra Erio/Astra; that would already be more than enough for me. As for more relationship-specific desires:

Erio makes it clear in his conversation with Snowe that he doesn’t intend to pursue his feelings, so I’d absolutely adore anything where it’s Astra that pursues the relationship! I’d especially love it if his being a demon doesn’t bother her at all, because I honestly can’t picture Astra being bothered by it—she’s always seemed to see him as a person first. I’d love to see that aspect included. Loyalty kink would also be very much appreciated!

You also don’t actually have to make it a get-together fic—I would actually be delighted with a fic where their relationship remains platonic, but it’s clear within the fic itself that they both have unspoken feelings for one another. However, I will say that I’m not particularly interested in an established relationship for these two.