shipswap letter placeholder
(Dear Author: I'll have a real letter up by the end of today, I swear! Sorry it's not done yet.)
Edit 21 April: or two weeks later, oh my God, I apologise hardcore.
Dear Author - seriously, I'm so sorry about the delay in posting this letter. If you do still want some guidance here it is, but feel free to ignore it too. These are only suggestions.
I'd prefer no: death, non-con, dirty talk, or anything very angsty. In case of art, the only thing I'd really want to avoid is characters staring out at the fourth wall because for some reason it just bugs me.
Some things I like, no order of preference: Humour even when things are dark, exploration of weird mindsets and powers, xeno, backstory, crack taken seriously, creepiness, fluff.
If one of the non-canon ships ends up as friends rather than lovers that's fine. Any rating is okay by me.
Bleach, Grimmjow/Orihime - this is the kind of ship that could go in a dark direction, but I'd much prefer something that doesn't delve much into that aspect of it. Or at least not into Grimmjow being violent to Orihime, basically. Maybe Grimmjow's been reincarnated (--but what are these strange memories?!), or he's been rendered less harmful, or it's a complete AU, or they have to fight together against some outside force and suddenly realise they're getting along. and would smooch. And just a thought - Orihime/Grimmjow bodyswap played relatively straight would be awesome.
Fullmetal Alchemist, King Bradley/Mrs. Bradley - did she ever realise that he was a kind of a monster? How inept was Bradley at dating, and how did he learn to be a better human being in the first place? It'd be interesting to see them on a family outing with Selim, especially if there are undercurrents of strange and disturbing things under the surface. I'd be so down with a post-canon Mrs Bradley retrospective of her marriage, you don't even know. Or maybe an AU where she finds out about King Bradley's homunculus nature or background much earlier?
Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Lancia/Tsuna - with Tsuna older than in canon, please. I like affections born from the place of You Saved Me, that Lancia was the first person to inspire Tsuna to take responsibility, and Lancia's terrible life. It'd just be interesting to see how their lives intersect. Given Lancia's experience with Mukuro and in the mafia, he might never really want anything to do with mafia life and that kind of violence ever again, and Tsuna pretty much never wants anything to do with it but is highly unlikely to escape.
Bianchi/Shamal - my affection for this ship came about because of a novel story about them, which was translated at
at-mark, but is locked there and I'm not sure more people are being added at their journal. Their dynamic is an interesting mix of competing idealism and cynicism, with Bianchi believing in love and death, while Shamal believes in life and sex, with a touch of badass to top it off; I'd enjoy anything playing with that. I'd also be interested in something gross and weird and body-horror-ish relating to their respective superpowers of tricked out mosquitoes and spontaneous poisons. Once I read about
bacon therapy and thought that could somehow lead to the best most awful Shamal/Bianchi. Also, I don't mind at all if Bianchi/Reborn is endgame, as it's such a big part of Bianchi's life.
Chrome/M.M. - I don't even know, MM is a wretched horror (it's what I love about her) and Chrome shouldn't have to put up with her, but I still like the idea of her doing so! They run in the same circles and will probably do so for some time, and while MM's antagonistic, Chrome has a terribly high threshhold for awfulness and when she adopts people, she tends to do it hard. I'd be interesting in something playing up the tension with Chrome's somewhat divided loyalties between the Vongola and Kokuyo gangs. Or having MM drag her on a crime/shopping spree and they indulge in all sorts of riches, or honestly, anything from Fuck Or Die, to fluff where they learn to value each other, to hateshipping. Just nothing where Chrome is solely a punching bag, please - it can get rough but it being one-sided that way would be depressing.
Gokudera/Kyouko -I have an idea of Kyoko trying to treat the mafia thing as Very Normal, because that seems to be how she copes with stress and strangeness, and that clicking with the way it really is Gokudera's normal (and hardly any of his peers really get that or try to get it). Speaking of how Kyoko copes - there was a mention in the TYL arc that she forced herself to forget the worst of what had happened to her TYL for some time and just pretends she's still okay. It could be interesting if there was a situation where Gokudera had to help her deal with that, because it'd be such cranky and emotionally stunted H/C. He'd probably suggest she try and use it as a way to be a secret assassin.
This is something of a tall order, but I'd prefer if there was no conflict regarding Tsuna's crush on Kyoko. Either he never got the guts to mention it and cries quietly in the background, or they're in a threesome (I love them as an OT3) but the fic focuses on the Kyoko/Gokudera side of things.
Haru/Kyouko - I basically think of them as married by TYL. In fact, having fluffy mafia domestic married life for these two would be great. But I'd love anything with them supporting each other, and trying to make lives for themselves and each other while mafia life goes on all around them. Maybe they break free, maybe they dive in. Maybe Haru joins the same school as the other kids and she and Kyoko start to really live in each other's pockets, maybe an AU where they never get into Tsuna's circle of friends at all but still meet, make friends, manage not to realise that Namimori periodically explodes with violence, and realise they're in love. I just really like how well they click with each other and work through similar troubles, and how they're both so odd and sweet. And similar to the idea mentioned in the Kyoko/Gokudera bit above, it'd be nice to see something where Haru helps Kyoko through trauma-induced amnesia.
Discworld, Mr. Nutt/Glenda Sugarbean - I'd really just like to see something set immediately after the book once they've ridden off into the sunset. You would get PRIZE MONEY for makeouts. I'm sorry this is sparse but I just love them individually, each learning they deserve to have good things for themselves, and love them together.
Chaos Walking, Todd/Davy, Viola/Todd - I feel like I shouldn't request happiness for fic of this book, but it's what I want. Whatever moments of it Davy and Todd could get, and whatever I insist in my heart Viola and Todd got post-canon. Fix-it fic is also good, and I am so not averse to a cuddlepile of Viola/Todd/Davy. It's not that I want the trauma ignored or that everything in the fic necessarily be easy, but it would just be really nice if these characters got a break. Anything that explores the world and the way people adapt post-canon would also be great.
The Queen's Thief
Costis/Eugenides - I would LOVE Costis having to learn to steal in order to do right by Eugenides and his god. Or hijinks of any kind, really, because I enjoy Eugenides living all over Costis. it would also be interesting to see a darker take on things, though, playing with the ways Eugenides uses Costis in the line of duty and Costis gets ever deeper into the world of politics.
Attolia/Eddis - I'd love something that tracks their relationship losing its contentious edge, despite the awful start to their becoming close. Or future fic, playing with things like heirs, the threats of war, or the impending volcano problem. Or AU, where they did not have such a rocky start, or Attolia had the easier reign and Eddis had to struggle with hers, or anything at all, seriously.
Please no killing husbands or wives off, as I love the main Queen's Thief characters, and I'd prefer to avoid angst about infidelity. Just go AU or make everybody poly.