Dear Chocolatier Letter 2019
Jan. 3rd, 2019 01:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
doranwenI love doing Chocolate Box every year. :D Below I've done a lot of describing the awesomeness about each pairing, and gave a few prompts in case you find them useful. I hope you have a lot of fun writing for me. :)
What I love about relationships is all the emotional depth: vulnerability, loyalty, knowing someone so well you know what they feel/think/need, even just having someone there as an emotional "rock". The whole "not being alone" feeling is such a powerful theme.
I once made up a 101 favorite tropes list (in no particular order), so feel free to make use of those if any of them get your muse going: https://doranwen.dreamwidth.org/240453.html
Besides those tropes, here are my general likes:
deep platonic friendship, romantic friendship, asexual romance, found families, apocalyptic fic, hurt/comfort, nonsexual physical touch (including cuddling), self-sacrifice, characters being vulnerable, character redemption, survival fic, positive treatment of religion, characters dealing with trauma, trust building, missing scenes, canon divergence AU (especially fix-it fic)
DNWs: supernatural/fantasy beings (elves outside of LOTR, vampires, werewolves, gnomes, zombies, etc.), AUs other than canon divergence or alt beginnings, noncanonical deathfic or horror, calling an adult "baby" or "darling", mpreg, crackfic, gore (mild violence is OK, just not as graphic as a surgery documentary), uncensored profanity, first/second person fic
DNW/Caution note: I'm not averse to mentions of sex, but I'd prefer the fic not focus on it or indulge in the physical feelings. Emotional feelings/bonds are what I focus on in any ship. If a prompt requires a mention or implies sex in some way, feel free to include it as necessary as long as the focus of the fic is elsewhere.
Don't worry if someone's written a similar idea before. My first real fandom was one where people used to write a dozen versions of the same TV ep, and I loved reading them all. There are never too many versions of the same story, in my opinion.
And now to the requests (in tagset category order):
Gold Diggers (1995)
Basic premise: Also known as Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain (1995), the film tells the story of two girls who become close friends and essentially save each other's lives. There's also a plotline involving gold (naturally, given the name), but the story is essentially a story of friendship.
Prompts by tag:
Beth Easton & Jody Salerno
This is the only tag for the film that I nominated because to me, this is the only relationship that really matters. :) Really, they are the heart of it all. I'd love anything from their friendship during the rest of the summer after the events in the film, or at school the following year; they're local celebrities now, but they're not going to let that get to their heads. What's popularity compared to a friendship you can count on? I'm good with turning it into a romantic friendship, too, if you'd like to go that way. I just love the bond these two have! I can see them talking about their dads, about what they'll do when they're grown up, going on more adventures at Bear Mountain… Feel free to AU things as well; as long as the girls have each other, you can go dark with this one.
Tomorrow When the War Began (2010)
Basic premise: Seven Australian teens (Ellie, Corrie, Kevin, Homer, Fiona aka Fi, Lee, and Robyn) go camping in the bush, and come back to find their country's been invaded; they become guerilla soldiers and fight back. One of the few films for teens that does not glorify violence but shows the (sometimes) necessity—and horror—of it, and its effects on the psyche. The focus of the film is Ellie (played by Caitlin Stasey), who's a farm girl with a lot of inner toughness. Another character is Robyn (played by Ashleigh Cummings), whose religious convictions draw her into an internal struggle between what she believes is right and the upside-down world she's suddenly living in. The other female teens in the film are Fiona aka Fi (played by Phoebie Tonkin) and Corrie (played by Rachel Hurd-Wood).
This movie is AMAZING. One of the best book-to-movie adaptations I've ever seen, it brings John Marsden's Tomorrow world to life. I requested the women because I love their characters the best, and find the relationships they have with each other by far the most fascinating.
Ellie carries the film with her strength. The actress pulled off subtleties of mood and emotion with the slightest twitch of facial features, and showed us all just why Ellie was the one everyone tends to look to. Homer may have taken over leadership, but if Ellie would assert it, she'd have it in a heartbeat. When Ellie knows what she wants, she will get it done, no matter what. But dealing with the consequences of her actions, on the other hand… my favorite scene in the film is when Ellie, Corrie, and Kevin meet up with Homer and Fi back at Fi's house. It's so emotional underneath it all.
Robyn is fascinating because she has strong convictions and is torn between following them and trying to keep her friends alive. The scene at the end of the movie is partly why I nominated her; the fact that it's a deviation from the book doesn't bother me, as it conveys her character development in a way that fits. I highly respect Robyn and find her struggle to maintain her beliefs alone in a world that's collapsing around her to be a compelling one. If I ended up in that world, I would find myself in a very similar position.
Corrie doesn't have as much of a standout role in the film, as she's mostly there to provide half of the "established couple", and to be the longtime best friend of Ellie. Fi's role is mainly to grow from naïve city girl to someone who can actually be useful in the guerrilla fighting. Neither are fleshed out very much in-film, which leaves lots of room for your fic. :)
Prompts by tag:
Ellie Linton & Robyn Mathers (TWTWB film)
Both of these characters have had to deal with directly killing people and it's changed them in different ways. I'd love to see them address some of that with each other, or just support each other. It would also be really neat to see their first meeting - how long ago? - or some of the circumstances that brought them to be good friends. Robyn's deeply religious/spiritual and Ellie is not; I'd love to see that acknowledged in a fic.
Ellie Linton & Robyn Mathers & Corrie Mackenzie & Fiona Maxwell (TWTWB film)
How did these four characters all get to know each other so that they would end up on the same camping trip? Backstory here would be a great thing to see. Or show some of the camping experience, or conversations between them during the events of the film. Feel free to AU things so Corrie isn't shot (or at least, not shot that badly); that would give you all sorts of possibilities for situations for the four of them to talk or do things together.
Crossover Fandoms
I've seen wilder crossover ideas, but some of these are a little tricky. To write most of them will take great amounts of AU-ing. The one generality I can say is that I like crossovers to be taken somewhat seriously; I'd prefer not to receive crackfic. But I'm perfectly OK with "I don't know how I got here" sorts of situations, where one person is suddenly dropped into another world (whether they woke up there, or walked through a weird spot in the air, etc.). You'll have to use some of that to get some of these characters in the same place! For crossovers with LOTR characters, while I love fics that recognize that Westron is not actually English (and Frodo is actually Maura, etc.), I'm also OK with characters being dropped into the world able to speak it as if it were English. Perhaps whatever magic dropped them there made it so that Westron would always sound like English to them?
Also note that for the X-Men characters, I've only seen X1, X2, and X3, and I'm not particularly tied to X3 being canon. You're free to make up any details that weren't in the first two films.
Prompts by tag:
Andy McNally (Rookie Blue) & Maggie Bell (FBI TV 2018)
The same actress plays both characters, which leaves all kinds of room for interesting crossover-ness. I can't usually buy "twins separated at birth" storylines, but mistaken identities are so much fun to play with, and both characters are great law enforcement agents in their own right. How do they meet?
Cassie Holmes (Push) & Jean Grey (X-Men Original Movieverse)
I mostly wanted to see Cassie with Jean because their perspectives are so radically different. Jean's used to dealing with runaways, scared teens who don't know how to control the powers they have. Cassie, on the other hand, is more of a soldier. A very young one, but a soldier, nonetheless. She's self-controlled in a way few of the teens Jean would know could ever be. Perhaps Cassie ends up staying at the X-Mansion to hide from Division, and that's how they meet. Either way, I'd love to see either one from the other's perspective. Cassie interacts on such an adult level and would not fit in with the other teens, I don't think. As far as the timeline goes, in order to include Jean, you can either set this sometime before the end of X2 or AU it so Jean makes it. (Would prefer that X3 never happened…)
Cassie Holmes (Push) & Miss Parker (Pretender)
Oh, this one could be veeerrrry interesting. On one hand you have Cassie, a fugitive from a powerful agency… and on the other you have Miss Parker, who works for a large corporation that controls things about as much as Division tries to. Does Cassie help Jarod escape and end up in Miss Parker's sights? Or does Jarod help Cassie out and that gets her to meet Miss Parker in some way? I'm not sure how they meet or what would happen (sorry I'm not more helpful!), but I would love to read whatever you come up with! :D
Chloe Sullivan (Smallville) & Cassie Holmes (Push)
I've not seen Smallville past season 3, really, but early years is where I see these two meeting up, when they'd be similar ages. Both are blonde, tough, city kids. Cassie might be younger, but she's even tougher - how many years has she been on her own, with her mom locked up by Division? And Chloe's all about discovering and exposing things like that. Whether they team up, whether they get into arguments because Cassie won't tell Chloe what's going on, whether it's just one of them observing the other and noting what they're like… I'm sure it won't be dull! I could see it as set either before the events of Push (wherein I'd wonder if Chloe helps Cassie get to Hong Kong somehow?) or afterward, with Nick and Cassie traveling together.
Gail Peck (Rookie Blue) & Miss Parker (The Pretender)
These two together would be a RIOT. I don't know whether they'd get along fabulously or whether the overload of sarcasm in one room would result in some kind of explosion or what. I haven't the faintest idea of how to get them together, so I hope you've got a great imagination. :D
Galathea Winthrop (Worldweavers) & Katherine Pryde (X-Men Original Timeline)
Both of these girls are talented with computers - but they approach them in entirely different ways! I'd love to see them meet up and connect somehow. :D
Jane Rizzoli (R&I TV) & Lindsay Boxer (WMC TV)
I love both these characters for their tough exterior covering the soft part inside. In both cases they've been wounded (Jane with the Surgeon, Lindsay with Kiss-Me-Not and her ex); Jane's armor is even thicker than Lindsay's, because of the greater trauma. The same actress plays both of these characters, so you could do something interesting with them being related somehow (not sure I'd buy identical twins, but maybe look-alike cousins they didn't know about?). Or else they get mistaken for each other, or work together on something…
Nina Theroux (Alphas) & Jean Grey (X-Men Original Movieverse)
These two are fairly evenly matched as far as powers go, I think. On one hand, Jean could take over Nina's mind and control her power, but on the other, if she weren't wary, Nina could do the same to her. I'd love to see what happens when they meet up!
Nina Theroux (Alphas) & Miss Parker (Pretender)
It would be extremely interesting to watch these two interact. Miss Parker's tough-as-nails exterior masks a vulnerable core, and Nina covers her own vulnerability with suave polish. Would they see through each other, would Nina push Miss Parker for some reason, would they team up in some way?
Ororo Munroe (X-Men Original Movieverse) & Éowyn (LOTR)
Oh, this one could be very interesting. What Éowyn would make of Ororo I'm not quite sure! And I really have very little ideas to prompt you on, other than that I'd love to see them interact, and I think it would be more interesting for Ororo to drop into LOTR than the other way around. What would the Rohirrim (or Gríma or Sarúman, for that matter) make of her ability to control the weather? I can see Éowyn finding a way for that to be useful. Either way, Éowyn really has few female friends and I think the two of them might get along well.
Rachel Pirzad (Alphas) & Rogue (X-Men Original Movieverse)
I think Rachel might understand Rogue rather well, with her sensitivity to touch. (Feel free to set this meeting anywhere in the series.) While her reaction to being kissed isn't the same thing as sucking someone's life out of them, it does tend to have a similar result in the inability to be intimate with the person one loves. Whether they discuss this point of connection or just simply meet up somehow, I'd love to see these two coming into contact with each other.
Cybergeddon (Web Series)
Basic premise: FBI Special Agent Chloe Jocelyn (played by Missy Peregrym) is framed for cybercrimes she didn't commit, and has to go on the run to prove her innocence and save the world. She breaks Chase "Rabbit" Rosen (played by Kick Gurry), a more-or-less white-hat hacker, out of prison to help her.
This is like a hacker version of The Fugitive (I'm told it's reminiscent of 24 as well). Missy Peregrym is amazing in this role with a great range - physical, emotional, etc. She sells her character so well and really makes you feel along with her. While I'm not crazy about the Norton ad aspects of the series (and I think they kind of forgot that Linux is a lot better protected than Windows in general), the rest of it is fantastic and well worth watching. You can see an awesome trailer for it here, or here if the first link is geo-blocked for you.
Prompts by tag:
Chloe Jocelyn & Rabbit Rosen (Cybergeddon)
I nominated only this tag because I don't really care much for Chloe's relationship with Frank - and I absolutely loved the ridiculous banter between her and Rabbit. His brand of flirting, with her eyerolling and sarcasm back, made for some great watching. I could see a romantic relationship between them years down the road, but I really just wanted to see more of the friendship that's there by the end of the film. (I got a fantastic treat for these two for Yuletide and it just whet my appetite for more, lol.)
Give me anything post-film with these two! I'd love to see some of the aftermath - go realistic with this if you want! - we see planes going down, we're told elevators fell all over the place… Show me Chloe's reaction to this, with Rabbit there providing his own brand of support. Or have them go after Gustov again and get him for good this time. Or have them deal with the legal issues - obviously they'll withdraw the charges from her with regards to hacking, but does she get in trouble for anything else? And Rabbit should technically be in jail, but you know they worked it out so he isn't - I'd love to see that process. Redo the end of the film, even! Since I'd rather not see her with Frank, maybe you want to redo the scenes in Washington, change up how all of that works, where Rabbit fits in. I love canon divergence AUs, so feel free to do all kinds of things with this. I'll love whatever you come up with!
This one can be tricky to find, so I'll give some pointers on that:
You can find the DVD at the US Amazon. If you can't do Region 1, then try here and here for the webisodes + soundtrack. (Unzip both zips to the same folder.) Or here for an edited-into-single-film version. If you want to see it but need a different file hoster (or the links have expired), do an anonymous comment and let me know which file and hoster you need, and I'll try to get that uploaded right away. (I promise I won't assume that I'm getting this for my gift or a treat - I'd just like to get other people into this too!)
Alphas (TV)
Basic premise: This show has been called "X-Men for thinking people", and is a deconstruction of humans with superpowers. (The tagline is "Their abilities make them super. Their actions make them human.") Dr. Lee Rosen (played by David Strathairn) is a therapist who manages a team of Alphas, people who have abilities anyone else might - except dialed up by a thousand into the superpower realm - and each with some kind of downside. They work for the government to identify other Alphas and stop rogue ones, including a terrorist group. The ensemble cast includes Nina Theroux (played by Laura Mennell), a woman with a troubled past and the ability to override willpower, and Rachel Pirzad (played by Azita Ghanizada), an Iranian immigrant with the ability to intensify any one sense at the cost of the others.
Oh man, Alphas. I got hooked on it and watched all 24 episodes in six days. I fell in love with Rachel from her very first scene, and by the third episode I loved Nina just as much or more. Dr. Rosen grew on me over the course of the show, and I really love his character too! But honestly, there's not a main character in Alphas that I don't like, and that's unusual for me! They're just really great. Plus the show doesn't hesitate to play hardball with government mistrust, character deaths, and intense scenes, and is possibly the best show I've seen in terms of how it balances characters and storylines. The only downside, imho, was the terrible cliffhanger Syfy ended it on! (What's with that, Syfy? It's a lousy way to treat fans! Give us a two-hour movie to wrap things up, at least!)
I liked Nina's relationship with Cam, but I also liked that it ended and moved on, and I'm ambivalent about whether they should get back together, as the S2 finale hinted at. I'm also ambivalent about Rachel's relationship with John. I like the tension the last two episodes brought, with the issue of loyalties. You could see the team slowly fracturing into two groups - Lee, Cam, and Nina on the side of "anything it takes", and Bill and Kat (and John, for that matter) on the side of "follow the rules", and Rachel torn in the middle. (Gary is really an independent in all of this.) If you write a fic set during or after those eps, I really don't want to see her split away from Lee and Nina, but there would need to be some development of her character in figuring out where she wants to be.
Prompts by tag:
Lee Rosen & Nina Theroux (Alphas)
I love the relationship these two have. Nina seems to be just about the only team member who calls him Lee, and she treats him as an equal in many ways. At the same time, she defers to him and follows him, especially after When Push Comes to Shove. (I've watched that final scene so many times, it's ridiculous.) Her feelings at being asked to use her pushing ability in Gaslight seem very conflicted, but she seems to recognize the need for it, and switches from "push mostly for my own gain" to "push only as Rosen needs me to". (The deleted scenes in Alphaville are very painful, though, when we see her realize she really is addicted to pushing, and Rosen prioritizes finding Parish over helping her with that. You'll notice she basically steers clear of romantic relationships for the rest of the season, with the exception of the one kiss in God's Eye - I don't think she trusts herself to not damage them, and I think she would eventually realize she shouldn't start things back up with Cam then either.) And later in The Devil Will Drag You Under, she's near tears when she realizes how much responsibility he's taking on himself in the ways he uses his team, for their well-being.
Nina's always the one concerned about Rosen's own well-being, whether it's telling him he needs to get an injury seen to, or being worried about him (did you catch her tone of voice—and later, her face—in Need to Know when she asks Cam, "Why don't you have Lee?"). Before When Push Comes to Shove, Nina acted very suave, polished, and independent, relying on her connections to the other members of the team and her pushing ability to fill the void in her life; after the events of that episode, she cannot use her pushing to compensate as she realizes the damage it has done to everyone, so she clings all the more to the human connections she has. Those being shaky at first with all but Lee, she grows very emotionally dependent on him, I think, and is very attuned to him. He probably has her loyalty more than anyone; Cam follows him at the end of S2 because they have a shared goal, Rachel follows to a point because she's Rosen's protegé, but Nina follows him because of what he means to her, and would follow him anywhere, I think. You'll notice in Need to Know, when Nina's exhausted, he orders Rachel to get the aminorex, and there's really no time for him to have any discussion about it with Nina; he had to have simply said "I'm going to give you this" and she accepted his judgment. So much trust…
I'd love to see anything from their first meeting, to early therapy sessions (Nina does say she was a mess when she first met Rosen and that he helped her a lot), to interactions between them as the team is being formed. Maybe the scene just after the last bit of convo we hear in When Push Comes to Shove? Or moments during the latter arc - such as discussion about using her pushing during Gaslight or beyond, or plotting the events in Need to Know. I see their relationship as platonic, but I've read at least one fic I liked that took it to a romantic dimension, so you could sell me on that. They're both two souls without much of a family and I'd love to see them lean on each other more.
Lee Rosen & Rachel Pirzad (Alphas)
The relationship between these two is really complex. On one hand, Rachel seems to really look up to Dr. Rosen and rely on him to a degree (such as in Wake Up Call when he's probably the only one who could get her to leave her room), but in Never Let Me Go she said sometimes she thought all he cared about was her Alpha ability. I presume she's realized how much he cares for her since, especially when he told her that she was like a daughter to him and that he cared about her more than she would ever know. (And she clearly cares about him, as you see in God's Eye where she tells John she won't leave Rosen, even after he goes beyond where she's comfortable with in Need to Know.) Though did you notice that he held back from reassuring her at the end of the episode, preferring instead to remind her of her own strength? I think he's got some issues with being vulnerable (doing it at that one point only so she would survive) - and she's naturally a very vulnerable person. It makes an interesting combination.
I'd love to see anything from their first meeting, to Dr. Rosen helping Rachel past her sensory overload, to an AU ending to Never Let Me Go where he does make himself vulnerable by declaring his affection for her. Or show me S2 Rachel - there's not nearly as many interactions between them but I'd love to see more. How did he convince her to be a part of the kidnap/interrogation plot in Need to Know? Or show a post-finale scene between them (they both have to have lived!) where they discuss her loyalty issues.
Rachel Pirzad & Nina Theroux (Alphas)
The relationship between these two changes so much over the course of the show. S1 Nina is very caring despite doing a good job of pretending to be all cool and not revealing much of her past, and I love the scene at the end of Anger Management where she reaches out to Rachel. She's always offering Rachel a ride, listening to her, encouraging her in her difficulties with her parents, etc. And then you have S2, where she pushes Rachel to stay calm in Wake Up Call - and then pushes for an entirely different reason in When Push Comes to Shove. It was painful to see their relationship in Gaslight, and lovely to see Rachel thawing towards Nina as she recognizes Nina's changed (and that Nina is taking responsibility for the results of her pushing). There are some very interesting undercurrents in Need to Know, though - from Nina's "You called them?" to the way Nina says "When Rachel…" to the looks Nina gives Rachel in the elevator and afterwards, and there wasn't time to really deal with that in the few hours that the last two episodes cover. Though I like that when Kat is trying to get a hold of Rachel, Bill says "Nina always knows where she is". I think Nina really cares for Rachel down deep. I'm not entirely sure what Nina's reasoning was for what she pushed Rachel to do in the club in When Push Comes to Shove (was she trying to find the quickest way to hurt Rachel, to force the rejection she was feeling coming anyway? or was there more to it?), but when she's in her right mind, she clearly has a lot of affection for Rachel.
I'd love to see anything from their first meeting to Rachel moving in with Nina, to bonding while roommates, to even Rachel moving back out to her parents' (when did that happen? right after Rosen's speech or further into the eight months?). Or show me some of the rebuilding of their friendship in S2, or even an AU where Rachel tracks Nina down at the end of The Quick and the Dead and gets through to her. Or show me some of the aftermath of the events of Need to Know or post-finale discussion of things. I just love these two and want to see more of them. Still so mad the show ended too soon!
Lee Rosen & Nina Theroux & Rachel Pirzad (Alphas)
I would love to see these three characters interacting somehow. Maybe the other guys are away on another case and it's down to Rosen and the two women to crack something? Or maybe we're focusing on each of them in turn during some plot. Or write a post-S2 finale fic that follows the trajectories of their stories. Or a conversation dealing with what happened in When Push Comes to Shove. I love all three of these characters so much and would adore anything about them. Feel free to come up with whatever strikes you!
FBI (TV 2018)
Basic premise: FBI Special Agent Maggie Bell (played by Missy Peregrym) works at the New York branch of the FBI. She's a widow who's still grieving the loss of her husband, and she's partnered with Omar "OA" Zidan (played by Zeeko Zaki), who's a good friend and partner.
OK, so Missy's playing a law enforcement agent of some kind - you've got me hooked with that. Seriously, that girl can sell any cop or FBI role, and I love watching her so much. This being an open canon (with new eps coming out during the writing period, let me tell you: I do not care if what you write gets majorly jossed, I love canon divergence AUs so I'm good with whatever you come up with! If you're worried, just say whatever ep you saw before you wrote it and I'm good. :) I'll love it, I promise.
Prompts by tag:
Maggie Bell & Omar Adom "OA" Zidan
I requested only this tag because while I love the warm friendship between them, I do not want to see it turned into romantic. I really like that it's platonic. I don't see Maggie ready to move on - she's still grieving - and something about the two of them, I can't go there. Maybe someday, but not now. So give me all the friendshippy-ness that you can. :)
I'd love to see more of her grief with OA being there for her, or them being awesome taking down bad guys, or her listening to OA open up about his terrible experiences in Afghanistan.
You could focus on 1x03 a bit - it's sort of ambiguous in that conversation in the car, where she's telling Omar "1 in 5", whether she was one of the "1" or the other 4 (at first it felt like she was, but then she said "but by the grace", which sounded sort of like "I could've been one of them", implying she wasn't, so it's hard to say!). If writing her backstory as part of the "1" appeals to you, go for it! I can see her emotions on this case going either way; on one level, they seemed to be a fairly appropriate response to the horror of the case. But on the other… her reaction to her boss telling her to be the one to go in and talk to him, there was something there that recoiled from it on a more visceral level, and I feel like there's a backstory there that we haven't gotten into, and I would love a fic delving into that, with OA learning about it. (My DNW about sex doesn't apply to a fic about that.)
Or go into 1x04 - Maggie's feelings about having to order Cole killed… I loved the exchange where OA asks her if she's OK and she answers "no". I'm assuming this isn't the first time she deliberately caused someone's death in order to protect innocents, so show me what the first time was as a flashback in connection to this. Or if he really was the first, deal with that.
Or give me the talk from the end of 1x07 from Maggie's POV - I'd love to see that!
Rookie Blue
Basic premise: Andy McNally (played by Missy Peregrym), Gail Peck (played by Charlotte Sullivan), and Dov Epstein (played by Gregory Smith) are rookie cops in Toronto. Sam Swarek (played by Ben Bass) is one of the senior officers who becomes Andy's TO and partner - in more ways than one. Also called the cop version of Grey's Anatomy - a procedural with heart.
This show is my biggest "why didn't you watch this sooner????" because the fandom is pretty much dead now, and I missed out on so much… I watched Stick It years ago and loved Missy Peregrym in that, but for some inexplicable reason waited until this past summer to watch Rookie Blue. I was hooked from the first couple episodes and watched all 74 in two weeks. :D All the drama, the emotion, the romance, the angst… (And SO MUCH AU POTENTIAL. Seriously. Feel free to AU this all over the place.)
Andy/Sam are an OTP for me, and I like Gail best with Dov (though if you're writing Andy/Sam, I'm good with her with Luke if that's your jam - just not so into Gail/Chris as endgame, Gail/Nick, or Gail/Holly), hence requesting the tags I did. My favorite parts of canon are the first couple seasons, up to where the boys drop Gail like a hot potato and Sam goes undercover.
Prompts by tag:
Andy McNally/Sam Swarek
These two are pretty much destined for each other from the start, and I will take just about ANYTHING. Trope it up as much as you want - I requested them for Multifandom Tropefest and had more than 20 tropes I'd love to see with them, some of them the tropiest tropes too. (Accidental marriage, amnesia, everyone thinks they're together, fake marriage, fight to survive, huddling for warmth, hurt/comfort, on the run together, secret relationship - forbidden/taboo, soulbonds, unplanned pregnancy…) Have them meet in an AU way, or diverge from canon. Or have Sam there for Andy in some spot we don't see it, such as finding her before she leaves the station in 2x06, or going with her to the hospital at the end of 2x04, or taking her home in 1x07… I'd prefer no future fic with this - set it somewhere in the canon, please! (Or before, if you want to have them meet in an alternate way.)
Dov Epstein/Gail Peck
To make this happen, you'll have to AU things some, but I would love to see Dov choosing Gail over Chris and thawing her out a bit. Or trope it up with them too - there's so many that would be hilarious. Accidental marriage or fake marriage with those two would be sooooo funny. Or go serious, with Dov being there for her after 3x09. (I'm also OK with making the events of that ep worse if you like - I've always thought Perik might not have waited till the end…)
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye
Basic premise: A Deaf woman (Sue Thomas, played by Deanne Bray) who can read lips very well is hired by the FBI and joins a surveillance unit consisting of five FBI agents (Jack, Bobby, Myles, Tara, and Dominick aka "D") and a "rotor" (Lucy, who calls herself that because she keeps the office running for all the agents). There's a lot of drama, humor, and bunch of "will they or won't they?" between her and her good-looking training agent (Jack Hudson, played by Yannick Bisson). Agent Myles Leland III (played by Ted Atherton) is disdainful of Sue at first but grows to respect her. Agent Tara Williams (played by Tara Samuel) is the lone female agent on the team and the tech whiz.
Prompts by tag:
Myles Leland III/Tara Williams (Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye)
These two are the "odd ones out" in a sense. Jack has Bobby, and Sue has Lucy, and D has his family, but who do Myles and Tara have? Myles sometimes confides in D, as D is a lot more mature than Jack and Bobby are (and despite Myles' shortcomings at the beginning of the show, he's got a lot more maturity, he's just scared to ever be vulnerable), but D isn't the sort of close friend you can go to anytime, I don't think. And Tara is probably used to spending her nights alone in front of a computer. But if they got to really talking with each other, I think they could open up, and Myles would be the sort of gentleman that Tara longs for—romantic, genuine, and sincere (as long as he can relax his guard enough to trust her). Plus I think she has the potential to really respect him (and cut back on those cutting barbs they like to throw Myles' way) and build on something deep. I'd love anything from a follow-up convo after the pretend dinner in Bad Hair Day (with a dawning realization on the part of one or the other that their feelings run deeper than they thought for the other agent) to Tara talking with Myles about how it doesn't work for her to date Bobby (but he might do?). Or it could be Myles and her in a bad situation and realizing that they don't want to die before they confess they love each other (sure, it's tropey, but I love it, lol). Whatever comes to mind for you!
Myles Leland & Tara Williams (Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye)
Notes here are the same as the / one, but focusing on just their potential for friendship. I can see them just hanging out in the evenings, especially if the rest of the team has no idea (precisely because they don't want to be teased when it's just friends). Playing games together and arguing playfully, I can picture it now. Or just conversations in between cases, or Myles saving Tara's life, etc. :)
Women's Murder Club (TV)
Basic premise: A small group of friends (three to start, with a fourth working her way in during the first couple episodes) who all work in related fields share information to help each other solve cases. Lindsay Boxer (played by Angie Harmon) is a homicide inspector (aka detective) who works in San Francisco's police department. She's friends with Jill Bernhardt, a deputy district attorney and Claire Washburn (played by Paula Newsome), the medical examiner. As the show unfolds, she begins to respect (and maybe even like?) Cindy Thomas (played by Aubrey Dollar), a young reporter who gets assigned to the crime beat. The show is an excellent mix of drama, comedy, and romance, and has a lot of similarities to Rizzoli & Isles.
I got into Women's Murder Club because I loved watching Angie Harmon in Rizzoli & Isles, and this sounded like a similar role for her. After I saw the video titled "The Best of Women's Murder Club" and read this comment, I was positive I had to see the whole show: "Now it all makes sense. Jane Rizzoli is an extension of Lindsay Boxer. The only difference, they keep butching up Angie Harmon." It is so true. Lindsay is like a milder version of Jane in some ways. But in the ways she's different, I fell in love with her character all over again. Lindsay can actually cry, she hates being vulnerable but she can actually do it and be real with her friends. And that just won me over. (Seriously, make Angie Harmon be all vulnerable and cry in a scene and you have me. Completely.) I love her dedication to her work, the toughness she can bring to the job, but I also love that she can still be human, still be vulnerable, that she doesn't feel like she has to be tough to be respected (Jane Rizzoli, in many ways, hardens herself in order to be respected in her job). I love that she cares about her friends, and that she's torn about her ex but still knows what the right thing is and even respects his fiancée. While Lindsay doesn't always take the best care of herself (or act the most responsibly), it helps that Claire can act as "mom" and give her the lectures she needs but sometimes doesn't accept even from her other friends (something Maura isn't very good at giving Jane in R&I).
Cindy stole my heart because of several reasons. One, she's cute and adorable (I don't usually find redheads fascinating but there's something about Cindy…). Two, she has a delightful personality, bubbly, a little lacking in some common sense now and then, which the others are happy to lecture her about. And three, she has a bravery and courage that is pretty amazing. When she volunteers for the dangerous decoy task in "Father's Day"… that took guts. Real guts. I think Lindsay had to respect her for that. And then with what happens to her in "And The Truth Will (Sometimes) Set You Free", well… I want to hear more. (I also have to admit, I might not be a sports fan, but I loved Cindy in "Play Through the Pain", especially her interaction with Claire's son.)
I love Claire because she's such an awesome character - a great mother figure, a bit snarky, talented, dealing with real life issues (such as her husband's injury and depression) and still being faithful and dedicated. She's great for telling the others what they need to hear, and being there for them.
Prompts by tag:
Cindy Thomas & Claire Washburn (WMC TV)
I'd love to see Claire mothering Cindy, or even Cindy helping Claire in some way. Cindy's sort of bonded with Claire's son already; I can see them inviting her over a lot, sort of a big sister/aunt figure.
Lindsay Boxer & Cindy Thomas & Claire Washburn & Jill Bernhardt (WMC TV)
I love the interactions of these four characters and would love anything in the theme of the show. Whether it's discussions of their club "it's not a club", or supporting each other through something, I just love them and would love to see more of them!
Lindsay Boxer & Cindy Thomas (WMC TV)
I love the interactions between these two. I see a bit of hero worship on Cindy's side, and annoyance that turns to fondness and respect on Lindsay's. I'd love to see Cindy being ridiculous, or Lindsay saving her life. Or more of Lindsay and Cindy regarding the shooting in ep #12. Maybe an alternate ending where Jill isn't the one that stays at the hospital? Or maybe a fic about Lindsay and Cindy's friendship starting to grow from the beginning. I see a bit of insecurity in Cindy with regards to her friendships with the others. Or a missing scene with the two women? One possibility is right after Cindy was a decoy (you could AU it so she gets injured doing that if you like), or later that day. I'm sure you can come up with more. Does Cindy ever find out about Lindsay and the baby? (Or crazy idea yet, what if the pregnancy test was positive after all? Cindy finding out would make an interesting story.) Or just a fic where Cindy's being her usual adorably ridiculous self and Lindsay is wondering if she needs to shoot her. Any interaction between these two would make me happy.
Happy writing! :D
What I love about relationships is all the emotional depth: vulnerability, loyalty, knowing someone so well you know what they feel/think/need, even just having someone there as an emotional "rock". The whole "not being alone" feeling is such a powerful theme.
I once made up a 101 favorite tropes list (in no particular order), so feel free to make use of those if any of them get your muse going: https://doranwen.dreamwidth.org/240453.html
Besides those tropes, here are my general likes:
deep platonic friendship, romantic friendship, asexual romance, found families, apocalyptic fic, hurt/comfort, nonsexual physical touch (including cuddling), self-sacrifice, characters being vulnerable, character redemption, survival fic, positive treatment of religion, characters dealing with trauma, trust building, missing scenes, canon divergence AU (especially fix-it fic)
DNWs: supernatural/fantasy beings (elves outside of LOTR, vampires, werewolves, gnomes, zombies, etc.), AUs other than canon divergence or alt beginnings, noncanonical deathfic or horror, calling an adult "baby" or "darling", mpreg, crackfic, gore (mild violence is OK, just not as graphic as a surgery documentary), uncensored profanity, first/second person fic
DNW/Caution note: I'm not averse to mentions of sex, but I'd prefer the fic not focus on it or indulge in the physical feelings. Emotional feelings/bonds are what I focus on in any ship. If a prompt requires a mention or implies sex in some way, feel free to include it as necessary as long as the focus of the fic is elsewhere.
Don't worry if someone's written a similar idea before. My first real fandom was one where people used to write a dozen versions of the same TV ep, and I loved reading them all. There are never too many versions of the same story, in my opinion.
And now to the requests (in tagset category order):
Gold Diggers (1995)
Basic premise: Also known as Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain (1995), the film tells the story of two girls who become close friends and essentially save each other's lives. There's also a plotline involving gold (naturally, given the name), but the story is essentially a story of friendship.
Prompts by tag:
Beth Easton & Jody Salerno
This is the only tag for the film that I nominated because to me, this is the only relationship that really matters. :) Really, they are the heart of it all. I'd love anything from their friendship during the rest of the summer after the events in the film, or at school the following year; they're local celebrities now, but they're not going to let that get to their heads. What's popularity compared to a friendship you can count on? I'm good with turning it into a romantic friendship, too, if you'd like to go that way. I just love the bond these two have! I can see them talking about their dads, about what they'll do when they're grown up, going on more adventures at Bear Mountain… Feel free to AU things as well; as long as the girls have each other, you can go dark with this one.
Tomorrow When the War Began (2010)
Basic premise: Seven Australian teens (Ellie, Corrie, Kevin, Homer, Fiona aka Fi, Lee, and Robyn) go camping in the bush, and come back to find their country's been invaded; they become guerilla soldiers and fight back. One of the few films for teens that does not glorify violence but shows the (sometimes) necessity—and horror—of it, and its effects on the psyche. The focus of the film is Ellie (played by Caitlin Stasey), who's a farm girl with a lot of inner toughness. Another character is Robyn (played by Ashleigh Cummings), whose religious convictions draw her into an internal struggle between what she believes is right and the upside-down world she's suddenly living in. The other female teens in the film are Fiona aka Fi (played by Phoebie Tonkin) and Corrie (played by Rachel Hurd-Wood).
This movie is AMAZING. One of the best book-to-movie adaptations I've ever seen, it brings John Marsden's Tomorrow world to life. I requested the women because I love their characters the best, and find the relationships they have with each other by far the most fascinating.
Ellie carries the film with her strength. The actress pulled off subtleties of mood and emotion with the slightest twitch of facial features, and showed us all just why Ellie was the one everyone tends to look to. Homer may have taken over leadership, but if Ellie would assert it, she'd have it in a heartbeat. When Ellie knows what she wants, she will get it done, no matter what. But dealing with the consequences of her actions, on the other hand… my favorite scene in the film is when Ellie, Corrie, and Kevin meet up with Homer and Fi back at Fi's house. It's so emotional underneath it all.
Robyn is fascinating because she has strong convictions and is torn between following them and trying to keep her friends alive. The scene at the end of the movie is partly why I nominated her; the fact that it's a deviation from the book doesn't bother me, as it conveys her character development in a way that fits. I highly respect Robyn and find her struggle to maintain her beliefs alone in a world that's collapsing around her to be a compelling one. If I ended up in that world, I would find myself in a very similar position.
Corrie doesn't have as much of a standout role in the film, as she's mostly there to provide half of the "established couple", and to be the longtime best friend of Ellie. Fi's role is mainly to grow from naïve city girl to someone who can actually be useful in the guerrilla fighting. Neither are fleshed out very much in-film, which leaves lots of room for your fic. :)
Prompts by tag:
Ellie Linton & Robyn Mathers (TWTWB film)
Both of these characters have had to deal with directly killing people and it's changed them in different ways. I'd love to see them address some of that with each other, or just support each other. It would also be really neat to see their first meeting - how long ago? - or some of the circumstances that brought them to be good friends. Robyn's deeply religious/spiritual and Ellie is not; I'd love to see that acknowledged in a fic.
Ellie Linton & Robyn Mathers & Corrie Mackenzie & Fiona Maxwell (TWTWB film)
How did these four characters all get to know each other so that they would end up on the same camping trip? Backstory here would be a great thing to see. Or show some of the camping experience, or conversations between them during the events of the film. Feel free to AU things so Corrie isn't shot (or at least, not shot that badly); that would give you all sorts of possibilities for situations for the four of them to talk or do things together.
Crossover Fandoms
I've seen wilder crossover ideas, but some of these are a little tricky. To write most of them will take great amounts of AU-ing. The one generality I can say is that I like crossovers to be taken somewhat seriously; I'd prefer not to receive crackfic. But I'm perfectly OK with "I don't know how I got here" sorts of situations, where one person is suddenly dropped into another world (whether they woke up there, or walked through a weird spot in the air, etc.). You'll have to use some of that to get some of these characters in the same place! For crossovers with LOTR characters, while I love fics that recognize that Westron is not actually English (and Frodo is actually Maura, etc.), I'm also OK with characters being dropped into the world able to speak it as if it were English. Perhaps whatever magic dropped them there made it so that Westron would always sound like English to them?
Also note that for the X-Men characters, I've only seen X1, X2, and X3, and I'm not particularly tied to X3 being canon. You're free to make up any details that weren't in the first two films.
Prompts by tag:
Andy McNally (Rookie Blue) & Maggie Bell (FBI TV 2018)
The same actress plays both characters, which leaves all kinds of room for interesting crossover-ness. I can't usually buy "twins separated at birth" storylines, but mistaken identities are so much fun to play with, and both characters are great law enforcement agents in their own right. How do they meet?
Cassie Holmes (Push) & Jean Grey (X-Men Original Movieverse)
I mostly wanted to see Cassie with Jean because their perspectives are so radically different. Jean's used to dealing with runaways, scared teens who don't know how to control the powers they have. Cassie, on the other hand, is more of a soldier. A very young one, but a soldier, nonetheless. She's self-controlled in a way few of the teens Jean would know could ever be. Perhaps Cassie ends up staying at the X-Mansion to hide from Division, and that's how they meet. Either way, I'd love to see either one from the other's perspective. Cassie interacts on such an adult level and would not fit in with the other teens, I don't think. As far as the timeline goes, in order to include Jean, you can either set this sometime before the end of X2 or AU it so Jean makes it. (Would prefer that X3 never happened…)
Cassie Holmes (Push) & Miss Parker (Pretender)
Oh, this one could be veeerrrry interesting. On one hand you have Cassie, a fugitive from a powerful agency… and on the other you have Miss Parker, who works for a large corporation that controls things about as much as Division tries to. Does Cassie help Jarod escape and end up in Miss Parker's sights? Or does Jarod help Cassie out and that gets her to meet Miss Parker in some way? I'm not sure how they meet or what would happen (sorry I'm not more helpful!), but I would love to read whatever you come up with! :D
Chloe Sullivan (Smallville) & Cassie Holmes (Push)
I've not seen Smallville past season 3, really, but early years is where I see these two meeting up, when they'd be similar ages. Both are blonde, tough, city kids. Cassie might be younger, but she's even tougher - how many years has she been on her own, with her mom locked up by Division? And Chloe's all about discovering and exposing things like that. Whether they team up, whether they get into arguments because Cassie won't tell Chloe what's going on, whether it's just one of them observing the other and noting what they're like… I'm sure it won't be dull! I could see it as set either before the events of Push (wherein I'd wonder if Chloe helps Cassie get to Hong Kong somehow?) or afterward, with Nick and Cassie traveling together.
Gail Peck (Rookie Blue) & Miss Parker (The Pretender)
These two together would be a RIOT. I don't know whether they'd get along fabulously or whether the overload of sarcasm in one room would result in some kind of explosion or what. I haven't the faintest idea of how to get them together, so I hope you've got a great imagination. :D
Galathea Winthrop (Worldweavers) & Katherine Pryde (X-Men Original Timeline)
Both of these girls are talented with computers - but they approach them in entirely different ways! I'd love to see them meet up and connect somehow. :D
Jane Rizzoli (R&I TV) & Lindsay Boxer (WMC TV)
I love both these characters for their tough exterior covering the soft part inside. In both cases they've been wounded (Jane with the Surgeon, Lindsay with Kiss-Me-Not and her ex); Jane's armor is even thicker than Lindsay's, because of the greater trauma. The same actress plays both of these characters, so you could do something interesting with them being related somehow (not sure I'd buy identical twins, but maybe look-alike cousins they didn't know about?). Or else they get mistaken for each other, or work together on something…
Nina Theroux (Alphas) & Jean Grey (X-Men Original Movieverse)
These two are fairly evenly matched as far as powers go, I think. On one hand, Jean could take over Nina's mind and control her power, but on the other, if she weren't wary, Nina could do the same to her. I'd love to see what happens when they meet up!
Nina Theroux (Alphas) & Miss Parker (Pretender)
It would be extremely interesting to watch these two interact. Miss Parker's tough-as-nails exterior masks a vulnerable core, and Nina covers her own vulnerability with suave polish. Would they see through each other, would Nina push Miss Parker for some reason, would they team up in some way?
Ororo Munroe (X-Men Original Movieverse) & Éowyn (LOTR)
Oh, this one could be very interesting. What Éowyn would make of Ororo I'm not quite sure! And I really have very little ideas to prompt you on, other than that I'd love to see them interact, and I think it would be more interesting for Ororo to drop into LOTR than the other way around. What would the Rohirrim (or Gríma or Sarúman, for that matter) make of her ability to control the weather? I can see Éowyn finding a way for that to be useful. Either way, Éowyn really has few female friends and I think the two of them might get along well.
Rachel Pirzad (Alphas) & Rogue (X-Men Original Movieverse)
I think Rachel might understand Rogue rather well, with her sensitivity to touch. (Feel free to set this meeting anywhere in the series.) While her reaction to being kissed isn't the same thing as sucking someone's life out of them, it does tend to have a similar result in the inability to be intimate with the person one loves. Whether they discuss this point of connection or just simply meet up somehow, I'd love to see these two coming into contact with each other.
Cybergeddon (Web Series)
Basic premise: FBI Special Agent Chloe Jocelyn (played by Missy Peregrym) is framed for cybercrimes she didn't commit, and has to go on the run to prove her innocence and save the world. She breaks Chase "Rabbit" Rosen (played by Kick Gurry), a more-or-less white-hat hacker, out of prison to help her.
This is like a hacker version of The Fugitive (I'm told it's reminiscent of 24 as well). Missy Peregrym is amazing in this role with a great range - physical, emotional, etc. She sells her character so well and really makes you feel along with her. While I'm not crazy about the Norton ad aspects of the series (and I think they kind of forgot that Linux is a lot better protected than Windows in general), the rest of it is fantastic and well worth watching. You can see an awesome trailer for it here, or here if the first link is geo-blocked for you.
Prompts by tag:
Chloe Jocelyn & Rabbit Rosen (Cybergeddon)
I nominated only this tag because I don't really care much for Chloe's relationship with Frank - and I absolutely loved the ridiculous banter between her and Rabbit. His brand of flirting, with her eyerolling and sarcasm back, made for some great watching. I could see a romantic relationship between them years down the road, but I really just wanted to see more of the friendship that's there by the end of the film. (I got a fantastic treat for these two for Yuletide and it just whet my appetite for more, lol.)
Give me anything post-film with these two! I'd love to see some of the aftermath - go realistic with this if you want! - we see planes going down, we're told elevators fell all over the place… Show me Chloe's reaction to this, with Rabbit there providing his own brand of support. Or have them go after Gustov again and get him for good this time. Or have them deal with the legal issues - obviously they'll withdraw the charges from her with regards to hacking, but does she get in trouble for anything else? And Rabbit should technically be in jail, but you know they worked it out so he isn't - I'd love to see that process. Redo the end of the film, even! Since I'd rather not see her with Frank, maybe you want to redo the scenes in Washington, change up how all of that works, where Rabbit fits in. I love canon divergence AUs, so feel free to do all kinds of things with this. I'll love whatever you come up with!
This one can be tricky to find, so I'll give some pointers on that:
You can find the DVD at the US Amazon. If you can't do Region 1, then try here and here for the webisodes + soundtrack. (Unzip both zips to the same folder.) Or here for an edited-into-single-film version. If you want to see it but need a different file hoster (or the links have expired), do an anonymous comment and let me know which file and hoster you need, and I'll try to get that uploaded right away. (I promise I won't assume that I'm getting this for my gift or a treat - I'd just like to get other people into this too!)
Alphas (TV)
Basic premise: This show has been called "X-Men for thinking people", and is a deconstruction of humans with superpowers. (The tagline is "Their abilities make them super. Their actions make them human.") Dr. Lee Rosen (played by David Strathairn) is a therapist who manages a team of Alphas, people who have abilities anyone else might - except dialed up by a thousand into the superpower realm - and each with some kind of downside. They work for the government to identify other Alphas and stop rogue ones, including a terrorist group. The ensemble cast includes Nina Theroux (played by Laura Mennell), a woman with a troubled past and the ability to override willpower, and Rachel Pirzad (played by Azita Ghanizada), an Iranian immigrant with the ability to intensify any one sense at the cost of the others.
Oh man, Alphas. I got hooked on it and watched all 24 episodes in six days. I fell in love with Rachel from her very first scene, and by the third episode I loved Nina just as much or more. Dr. Rosen grew on me over the course of the show, and I really love his character too! But honestly, there's not a main character in Alphas that I don't like, and that's unusual for me! They're just really great. Plus the show doesn't hesitate to play hardball with government mistrust, character deaths, and intense scenes, and is possibly the best show I've seen in terms of how it balances characters and storylines. The only downside, imho, was the terrible cliffhanger Syfy ended it on! (What's with that, Syfy? It's a lousy way to treat fans! Give us a two-hour movie to wrap things up, at least!)
I liked Nina's relationship with Cam, but I also liked that it ended and moved on, and I'm ambivalent about whether they should get back together, as the S2 finale hinted at. I'm also ambivalent about Rachel's relationship with John. I like the tension the last two episodes brought, with the issue of loyalties. You could see the team slowly fracturing into two groups - Lee, Cam, and Nina on the side of "anything it takes", and Bill and Kat (and John, for that matter) on the side of "follow the rules", and Rachel torn in the middle. (Gary is really an independent in all of this.) If you write a fic set during or after those eps, I really don't want to see her split away from Lee and Nina, but there would need to be some development of her character in figuring out where she wants to be.
Prompts by tag:
Lee Rosen & Nina Theroux (Alphas)
I love the relationship these two have. Nina seems to be just about the only team member who calls him Lee, and she treats him as an equal in many ways. At the same time, she defers to him and follows him, especially after When Push Comes to Shove. (I've watched that final scene so many times, it's ridiculous.) Her feelings at being asked to use her pushing ability in Gaslight seem very conflicted, but she seems to recognize the need for it, and switches from "push mostly for my own gain" to "push only as Rosen needs me to". (The deleted scenes in Alphaville are very painful, though, when we see her realize she really is addicted to pushing, and Rosen prioritizes finding Parish over helping her with that. You'll notice she basically steers clear of romantic relationships for the rest of the season, with the exception of the one kiss in God's Eye - I don't think she trusts herself to not damage them, and I think she would eventually realize she shouldn't start things back up with Cam then either.) And later in The Devil Will Drag You Under, she's near tears when she realizes how much responsibility he's taking on himself in the ways he uses his team, for their well-being.
Nina's always the one concerned about Rosen's own well-being, whether it's telling him he needs to get an injury seen to, or being worried about him (did you catch her tone of voice—and later, her face—in Need to Know when she asks Cam, "Why don't you have Lee?"). Before When Push Comes to Shove, Nina acted very suave, polished, and independent, relying on her connections to the other members of the team and her pushing ability to fill the void in her life; after the events of that episode, she cannot use her pushing to compensate as she realizes the damage it has done to everyone, so she clings all the more to the human connections she has. Those being shaky at first with all but Lee, she grows very emotionally dependent on him, I think, and is very attuned to him. He probably has her loyalty more than anyone; Cam follows him at the end of S2 because they have a shared goal, Rachel follows to a point because she's Rosen's protegé, but Nina follows him because of what he means to her, and would follow him anywhere, I think. You'll notice in Need to Know, when Nina's exhausted, he orders Rachel to get the aminorex, and there's really no time for him to have any discussion about it with Nina; he had to have simply said "I'm going to give you this" and she accepted his judgment. So much trust…
I'd love to see anything from their first meeting, to early therapy sessions (Nina does say she was a mess when she first met Rosen and that he helped her a lot), to interactions between them as the team is being formed. Maybe the scene just after the last bit of convo we hear in When Push Comes to Shove? Or moments during the latter arc - such as discussion about using her pushing during Gaslight or beyond, or plotting the events in Need to Know. I see their relationship as platonic, but I've read at least one fic I liked that took it to a romantic dimension, so you could sell me on that. They're both two souls without much of a family and I'd love to see them lean on each other more.
Lee Rosen & Rachel Pirzad (Alphas)
The relationship between these two is really complex. On one hand, Rachel seems to really look up to Dr. Rosen and rely on him to a degree (such as in Wake Up Call when he's probably the only one who could get her to leave her room), but in Never Let Me Go she said sometimes she thought all he cared about was her Alpha ability. I presume she's realized how much he cares for her since, especially when he told her that she was like a daughter to him and that he cared about her more than she would ever know. (And she clearly cares about him, as you see in God's Eye where she tells John she won't leave Rosen, even after he goes beyond where she's comfortable with in Need to Know.) Though did you notice that he held back from reassuring her at the end of the episode, preferring instead to remind her of her own strength? I think he's got some issues with being vulnerable (doing it at that one point only so she would survive) - and she's naturally a very vulnerable person. It makes an interesting combination.
I'd love to see anything from their first meeting, to Dr. Rosen helping Rachel past her sensory overload, to an AU ending to Never Let Me Go where he does make himself vulnerable by declaring his affection for her. Or show me S2 Rachel - there's not nearly as many interactions between them but I'd love to see more. How did he convince her to be a part of the kidnap/interrogation plot in Need to Know? Or show a post-finale scene between them (they both have to have lived!) where they discuss her loyalty issues.
Rachel Pirzad & Nina Theroux (Alphas)
The relationship between these two changes so much over the course of the show. S1 Nina is very caring despite doing a good job of pretending to be all cool and not revealing much of her past, and I love the scene at the end of Anger Management where she reaches out to Rachel. She's always offering Rachel a ride, listening to her, encouraging her in her difficulties with her parents, etc. And then you have S2, where she pushes Rachel to stay calm in Wake Up Call - and then pushes for an entirely different reason in When Push Comes to Shove. It was painful to see their relationship in Gaslight, and lovely to see Rachel thawing towards Nina as she recognizes Nina's changed (and that Nina is taking responsibility for the results of her pushing). There are some very interesting undercurrents in Need to Know, though - from Nina's "You called them?" to the way Nina says "When Rachel…" to the looks Nina gives Rachel in the elevator and afterwards, and there wasn't time to really deal with that in the few hours that the last two episodes cover. Though I like that when Kat is trying to get a hold of Rachel, Bill says "Nina always knows where she is". I think Nina really cares for Rachel down deep. I'm not entirely sure what Nina's reasoning was for what she pushed Rachel to do in the club in When Push Comes to Shove (was she trying to find the quickest way to hurt Rachel, to force the rejection she was feeling coming anyway? or was there more to it?), but when she's in her right mind, she clearly has a lot of affection for Rachel.
I'd love to see anything from their first meeting to Rachel moving in with Nina, to bonding while roommates, to even Rachel moving back out to her parents' (when did that happen? right after Rosen's speech or further into the eight months?). Or show me some of the rebuilding of their friendship in S2, or even an AU where Rachel tracks Nina down at the end of The Quick and the Dead and gets through to her. Or show me some of the aftermath of the events of Need to Know or post-finale discussion of things. I just love these two and want to see more of them. Still so mad the show ended too soon!
Lee Rosen & Nina Theroux & Rachel Pirzad (Alphas)
I would love to see these three characters interacting somehow. Maybe the other guys are away on another case and it's down to Rosen and the two women to crack something? Or maybe we're focusing on each of them in turn during some plot. Or write a post-S2 finale fic that follows the trajectories of their stories. Or a conversation dealing with what happened in When Push Comes to Shove. I love all three of these characters so much and would adore anything about them. Feel free to come up with whatever strikes you!
FBI (TV 2018)
Basic premise: FBI Special Agent Maggie Bell (played by Missy Peregrym) works at the New York branch of the FBI. She's a widow who's still grieving the loss of her husband, and she's partnered with Omar "OA" Zidan (played by Zeeko Zaki), who's a good friend and partner.
OK, so Missy's playing a law enforcement agent of some kind - you've got me hooked with that. Seriously, that girl can sell any cop or FBI role, and I love watching her so much. This being an open canon (with new eps coming out during the writing period, let me tell you: I do not care if what you write gets majorly jossed, I love canon divergence AUs so I'm good with whatever you come up with! If you're worried, just say whatever ep you saw before you wrote it and I'm good. :) I'll love it, I promise.
Prompts by tag:
Maggie Bell & Omar Adom "OA" Zidan
I requested only this tag because while I love the warm friendship between them, I do not want to see it turned into romantic. I really like that it's platonic. I don't see Maggie ready to move on - she's still grieving - and something about the two of them, I can't go there. Maybe someday, but not now. So give me all the friendshippy-ness that you can. :)
I'd love to see more of her grief with OA being there for her, or them being awesome taking down bad guys, or her listening to OA open up about his terrible experiences in Afghanistan.
You could focus on 1x03 a bit - it's sort of ambiguous in that conversation in the car, where she's telling Omar "1 in 5", whether she was one of the "1" or the other 4 (at first it felt like she was, but then she said "but by the grace", which sounded sort of like "I could've been one of them", implying she wasn't, so it's hard to say!). If writing her backstory as part of the "1" appeals to you, go for it! I can see her emotions on this case going either way; on one level, they seemed to be a fairly appropriate response to the horror of the case. But on the other… her reaction to her boss telling her to be the one to go in and talk to him, there was something there that recoiled from it on a more visceral level, and I feel like there's a backstory there that we haven't gotten into, and I would love a fic delving into that, with OA learning about it. (My DNW about sex doesn't apply to a fic about that.)
Or go into 1x04 - Maggie's feelings about having to order Cole killed… I loved the exchange where OA asks her if she's OK and she answers "no". I'm assuming this isn't the first time she deliberately caused someone's death in order to protect innocents, so show me what the first time was as a flashback in connection to this. Or if he really was the first, deal with that.
Or give me the talk from the end of 1x07 from Maggie's POV - I'd love to see that!
Rookie Blue
Basic premise: Andy McNally (played by Missy Peregrym), Gail Peck (played by Charlotte Sullivan), and Dov Epstein (played by Gregory Smith) are rookie cops in Toronto. Sam Swarek (played by Ben Bass) is one of the senior officers who becomes Andy's TO and partner - in more ways than one. Also called the cop version of Grey's Anatomy - a procedural with heart.
This show is my biggest "why didn't you watch this sooner????" because the fandom is pretty much dead now, and I missed out on so much… I watched Stick It years ago and loved Missy Peregrym in that, but for some inexplicable reason waited until this past summer to watch Rookie Blue. I was hooked from the first couple episodes and watched all 74 in two weeks. :D All the drama, the emotion, the romance, the angst… (And SO MUCH AU POTENTIAL. Seriously. Feel free to AU this all over the place.)
Andy/Sam are an OTP for me, and I like Gail best with Dov (though if you're writing Andy/Sam, I'm good with her with Luke if that's your jam - just not so into Gail/Chris as endgame, Gail/Nick, or Gail/Holly), hence requesting the tags I did. My favorite parts of canon are the first couple seasons, up to where the boys drop Gail like a hot potato and Sam goes undercover.
Prompts by tag:
Andy McNally/Sam Swarek
These two are pretty much destined for each other from the start, and I will take just about ANYTHING. Trope it up as much as you want - I requested them for Multifandom Tropefest and had more than 20 tropes I'd love to see with them, some of them the tropiest tropes too. (Accidental marriage, amnesia, everyone thinks they're together, fake marriage, fight to survive, huddling for warmth, hurt/comfort, on the run together, secret relationship - forbidden/taboo, soulbonds, unplanned pregnancy…) Have them meet in an AU way, or diverge from canon. Or have Sam there for Andy in some spot we don't see it, such as finding her before she leaves the station in 2x06, or going with her to the hospital at the end of 2x04, or taking her home in 1x07… I'd prefer no future fic with this - set it somewhere in the canon, please! (Or before, if you want to have them meet in an alternate way.)
Dov Epstein/Gail Peck
To make this happen, you'll have to AU things some, but I would love to see Dov choosing Gail over Chris and thawing her out a bit. Or trope it up with them too - there's so many that would be hilarious. Accidental marriage or fake marriage with those two would be sooooo funny. Or go serious, with Dov being there for her after 3x09. (I'm also OK with making the events of that ep worse if you like - I've always thought Perik might not have waited till the end…)
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye
Basic premise: A Deaf woman (Sue Thomas, played by Deanne Bray) who can read lips very well is hired by the FBI and joins a surveillance unit consisting of five FBI agents (Jack, Bobby, Myles, Tara, and Dominick aka "D") and a "rotor" (Lucy, who calls herself that because she keeps the office running for all the agents). There's a lot of drama, humor, and bunch of "will they or won't they?" between her and her good-looking training agent (Jack Hudson, played by Yannick Bisson). Agent Myles Leland III (played by Ted Atherton) is disdainful of Sue at first but grows to respect her. Agent Tara Williams (played by Tara Samuel) is the lone female agent on the team and the tech whiz.
Prompts by tag:
Myles Leland III/Tara Williams (Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye)
These two are the "odd ones out" in a sense. Jack has Bobby, and Sue has Lucy, and D has his family, but who do Myles and Tara have? Myles sometimes confides in D, as D is a lot more mature than Jack and Bobby are (and despite Myles' shortcomings at the beginning of the show, he's got a lot more maturity, he's just scared to ever be vulnerable), but D isn't the sort of close friend you can go to anytime, I don't think. And Tara is probably used to spending her nights alone in front of a computer. But if they got to really talking with each other, I think they could open up, and Myles would be the sort of gentleman that Tara longs for—romantic, genuine, and sincere (as long as he can relax his guard enough to trust her). Plus I think she has the potential to really respect him (and cut back on those cutting barbs they like to throw Myles' way) and build on something deep. I'd love anything from a follow-up convo after the pretend dinner in Bad Hair Day (with a dawning realization on the part of one or the other that their feelings run deeper than they thought for the other agent) to Tara talking with Myles about how it doesn't work for her to date Bobby (but he might do?). Or it could be Myles and her in a bad situation and realizing that they don't want to die before they confess they love each other (sure, it's tropey, but I love it, lol). Whatever comes to mind for you!
Myles Leland & Tara Williams (Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye)
Notes here are the same as the / one, but focusing on just their potential for friendship. I can see them just hanging out in the evenings, especially if the rest of the team has no idea (precisely because they don't want to be teased when it's just friends). Playing games together and arguing playfully, I can picture it now. Or just conversations in between cases, or Myles saving Tara's life, etc. :)
Women's Murder Club (TV)
Basic premise: A small group of friends (three to start, with a fourth working her way in during the first couple episodes) who all work in related fields share information to help each other solve cases. Lindsay Boxer (played by Angie Harmon) is a homicide inspector (aka detective) who works in San Francisco's police department. She's friends with Jill Bernhardt, a deputy district attorney and Claire Washburn (played by Paula Newsome), the medical examiner. As the show unfolds, she begins to respect (and maybe even like?) Cindy Thomas (played by Aubrey Dollar), a young reporter who gets assigned to the crime beat. The show is an excellent mix of drama, comedy, and romance, and has a lot of similarities to Rizzoli & Isles.
I got into Women's Murder Club because I loved watching Angie Harmon in Rizzoli & Isles, and this sounded like a similar role for her. After I saw the video titled "The Best of Women's Murder Club" and read this comment, I was positive I had to see the whole show: "Now it all makes sense. Jane Rizzoli is an extension of Lindsay Boxer. The only difference, they keep butching up Angie Harmon." It is so true. Lindsay is like a milder version of Jane in some ways. But in the ways she's different, I fell in love with her character all over again. Lindsay can actually cry, she hates being vulnerable but she can actually do it and be real with her friends. And that just won me over. (Seriously, make Angie Harmon be all vulnerable and cry in a scene and you have me. Completely.) I love her dedication to her work, the toughness she can bring to the job, but I also love that she can still be human, still be vulnerable, that she doesn't feel like she has to be tough to be respected (Jane Rizzoli, in many ways, hardens herself in order to be respected in her job). I love that she cares about her friends, and that she's torn about her ex but still knows what the right thing is and even respects his fiancée. While Lindsay doesn't always take the best care of herself (or act the most responsibly), it helps that Claire can act as "mom" and give her the lectures she needs but sometimes doesn't accept even from her other friends (something Maura isn't very good at giving Jane in R&I).
Cindy stole my heart because of several reasons. One, she's cute and adorable (I don't usually find redheads fascinating but there's something about Cindy…). Two, she has a delightful personality, bubbly, a little lacking in some common sense now and then, which the others are happy to lecture her about. And three, she has a bravery and courage that is pretty amazing. When she volunteers for the dangerous decoy task in "Father's Day"… that took guts. Real guts. I think Lindsay had to respect her for that. And then with what happens to her in "And The Truth Will (Sometimes) Set You Free", well… I want to hear more. (I also have to admit, I might not be a sports fan, but I loved Cindy in "Play Through the Pain", especially her interaction with Claire's son.)
I love Claire because she's such an awesome character - a great mother figure, a bit snarky, talented, dealing with real life issues (such as her husband's injury and depression) and still being faithful and dedicated. She's great for telling the others what they need to hear, and being there for them.
Prompts by tag:
Cindy Thomas & Claire Washburn (WMC TV)
I'd love to see Claire mothering Cindy, or even Cindy helping Claire in some way. Cindy's sort of bonded with Claire's son already; I can see them inviting her over a lot, sort of a big sister/aunt figure.
Lindsay Boxer & Cindy Thomas & Claire Washburn & Jill Bernhardt (WMC TV)
I love the interactions of these four characters and would love anything in the theme of the show. Whether it's discussions of their club "it's not a club", or supporting each other through something, I just love them and would love to see more of them!
Lindsay Boxer & Cindy Thomas (WMC TV)
I love the interactions between these two. I see a bit of hero worship on Cindy's side, and annoyance that turns to fondness and respect on Lindsay's. I'd love to see Cindy being ridiculous, or Lindsay saving her life. Or more of Lindsay and Cindy regarding the shooting in ep #12. Maybe an alternate ending where Jill isn't the one that stays at the hospital? Or maybe a fic about Lindsay and Cindy's friendship starting to grow from the beginning. I see a bit of insecurity in Cindy with regards to her friendships with the others. Or a missing scene with the two women? One possibility is right after Cindy was a decoy (you could AU it so she gets injured doing that if you like), or later that day. I'm sure you can come up with more. Does Cindy ever find out about Lindsay and the baby? (Or crazy idea yet, what if the pregnancy test was positive after all? Cindy finding out would make an interesting story.) Or just a fic where Cindy's being her usual adorably ridiculous self and Lindsay is wondering if she needs to shoot her. Any interaction between these two would make me happy.
Happy writing! :D
