Five Figure Fanwork Exchange 2021 Letter
Saturday, August 7th, 2021 17:44![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
staylooseHi! Thank you for writing for me, or just for looking at this letter! My AO3 username is ![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://p.dreamwidth.org/b164c54b26e4/-/archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
hisen. I am requesting all fic for this exchange, both 1 x 10000 word fic and 2 x 5000 word fics.
I've formatted this letter differently to how I usually format them, due to the high minimum for this exchange. There is a 'general likes in long fic' section, that is for all the fandoms I've requested and my more general likes which aren't enough for 10k alone but might be helpful. There's a section for each fandom, too, which talks about what I like about that fandom, where to find it and specific ideas and prompts for that fandom.
I wrote a lot but please take what you want from this letter and don't feel you have to try to work everything in! I wanted to give my writer enough options so they don't feel like they have nothing to work with.
• Fixing a canon typical problem/situation while falling in love.
• Fixing a canon typical problem/situation while already being in a relationship!
• Getting together more generally – a lot of my ideas below are more action orientated, but I enjoy slow burn getting together with a focus on emotional development, too!
• Trapped in a fake perfect world. Possibly the fake perfect world gives them a relationship with their crush, too, to really add to their conflict about it? Usually I request that alone, but I'd also be interested if their crush or partner doesn't show up in the world, too. Particularly if the force responsible for it didn't realise that person mattered so much. I'm happy with a variety of causes, from canon typical magic, to being trapped in a dream world, to mysterious supernatural origins to 'actually in a coma in the real world'. I particularly like if there's a creeping sense of something being off, but it takes the character a while to identify what's going on. Are they conflicted about leaving, or do they really want to go? Or, in fact would they like to stay for a while longer?
(I am open for a character's canon crush, if they have one who isn't in the pairing I've requested, to be the one the fake perfect world puts them in a relationship, as long as the pairing I've requested is explicitly end-game.)
• Trapped together and they have to rely on each other to get out. This could be a physical trapping, like being kidnapped together, or stuck in a building together where they can't get out easily (power outage shutting down all the electronic locks?), or anything else you can think of. I would also like it as more unusual trapping, like in a dream world or a parallel universe that's like canon but off, or very different. If you do go for a parallel universe, I'd prefer it's not a completely mundane setting if you go fully AU.
• Memory issues. This could be easy amnesia where they forget everything, certain memories (like they've lost a set period of time, like when their life started to get better after a low) or they've just lost memories of the other half of the pairing only. This could be from a curse, or some kind of magic, or an accident. I'd prefer that if it's due to an accident, it's fictional 'they recover fine apart from their memories' than being realistic about head injuries and trauma.
• Hurt/Comfort. I like both emotional and physical h/c. I enjoy the catharsis of the situation building up and then the other person steps in to save them, so as long as you mind my DNWs, I'm up for most things! I've put specific prompts for this too in some of my fandoms.
• Character decides they gotta do the self-sacrifice and gears themselves up to do it, only to get derailed, possibly at the very last minute. This could be the other party stepping in to save the situation (and likely being annoyed that they didn't just ask)...or they were the one planning to commit a serious act of self-sacrifice instead, as most of the pairings I've requested are rather prone to this.
• Character is made to or has to live through and experience the other's memories. I really like this with tightly-controlled, stoic characters or characters who put up a protective front, either as the memories or as the one going through them and finding it much, much more overwhelming than they expected, even if they hide it pretty well and it makes them more sympathetic to the other. I'd like it if the character whose memories are being explored gets reassurance afterwards if they find out or are aware of it happening at the time. If they don't find out, please don't have the other character violate their trust and spread around what they saw.
• Time loops. I like Groundhog Day style loops the most, where it's the same day repeating. I'm a sucker for 'the loop is trying to get you to realise/learn something important' and once they do, that breaks the loop. That could be serious, like 'you need to stop living in the past', or 'open your heart' or 'stop being a complete jerk'. However if you did make it more ridiculous, like 'you need to put your recycling out on the correct day and not just leave it there for days' and perhaps everyone thinks the cause is in fact something very serious, I'd liked that too!
• Worldbuilding. If you want to go into detail about how this world works, like a particular form of magic, or the history of it, or the social structures, I'm interested!
• "You are the only person I can trust right now". Wherever it's because the world has literally turned on them apart from that person, there are people after them, or just because they have so many trust issues, or any other reason, I love this.
• The 'Much Ado About Nothing' trope (I finally saw a name for this and I'm hoping it catches on). A thinks B is in love with them, B is not but as A starts paying more attention to B they fall for them, and then later on so does B for A. Also interested in the way Shakespeare did it, with both sides mistakenly thinking the other is in love with them!
• Undercover as a couple.
• Denial of feelings
• Getting together
• Canon divergence AUs
• Angst
• Miscommunication, mixed messages, reasonable misunderstandings
• First impressions that turn out to be wrong or misleading (positively), e.g. someone comes across as very cold but actually feels deeply, they just doesn't express their emotions much.
• Accidental physical contact, hands touching unexpectedly
• Communication without using words
• Characters who are very good at what they do with their powers, smarts etc., but bad at social interaction/emotional stuff etc.
• Time loops/time travel
• Accidentally fucking up reality somehow and needing to fix it.
• They thought nobody was coming but they were.
• On-screen switch from a formal name basis to informal basis, possibly in a meaningful moment but also just casually happening too.
• Fake-out make-outs
• Epistolary material. It doesn't have to be the whole fic, if you'd like to include letters, emails, texts, social media posts (for canons that already have social media!) or official documents, I would be interested.
• That moment when someone realises their feelings have changed
• Bed sharing
• Slow burn
• Nature
• Changes in seasons, weather and the passing of time
• Sharing an umbrella
• Kabedon, particularly when played for laughs because of genre savvy characters, character is not actually cool enough to make it work, the other character immediately reverses it and does it much better etc.
• Tsunderes
• Characters being forced to work together in difficult circumstances
• Hurt/comfort
• Canon smokers smoking
• Taking comfort together in desperate situations
• Nightmares, unusual dreams, visions
• Unintentionally turning their partner on
• Sex so enthusiastic that it's kind of clumsy and messy
• Dirty talk
• Praise kink
• Bickering during sex (with couples who already bicker all the time)
• Semi-public sex
• Semi or fully clothed sex, or just one piece of clothing stays on
• Solo masturbation
• Mutual masturbation
• Denial of feelings even in the middle of sex
• Fingering
• Frottage
• Oral sex
• Anal sex
• Come play
• Sexting/phone sex
• Reading dirty books (or outright porn) that leads to sex (either out loud to their partner or by themselves and it gets them in the mood)
• Sharing a bed together turns into sex (doesn't have to be penetrative!)
• Non-canon permament death of canon characters (for Love in Limbo, I do not consider reincarnation to be permanent death)
• For Form of Sympathy and Unripe Expression: death of canon characters
• Unrequested non-canon pairings
• For Naruto: Boruto content (Kakashi being Sixth Hokage/general post-canon setting is okay)
• Current events
• Any reference to COVID-19
• Graphic description of serious injuries, violence, sickness or torture
• For Form of Sympathy and Unripe Expression: serious injuries, violence, sickness and torture
• Body horror
• Cannibalism/vore
• Bodily fluids apart from sexual fluids and blood (including canon-typical bodily fluids)
• Sexual content with characters under 16
• Intentional violence in sex (rough is okay)
• Non-con
• Age play
• D/s
• Omegaverse
• Breath play/choking
Medium: webtoon
Length: 48 chapters (ongoing)
Estimated reading time: 18 hours.
Further information: Form of Sympathy
While Form of Sympathy is a spin-off and can be read without reading For Your Love, I would really recommend reading it first. I have a little explainer for For Your Love that I wrote for a different exchange here. I actually tried reading Form of Sympathy before reading it and found it didn't work for me. It was only after reading For Your Love I devoured it. The character motivations make a lot more sense after reading For Your Love, even thought they're not the main characters in it. This makes it, in effect, the longest canon I've requested.
This canon is currently on-going, and at the moment it's not clear when it's going to end. I am staying up to date with this canon as it's released, so if anything happens during the creation period that you want to use in your fic, please do! On the other hand, if anything happens in canon that scuttles a lot of my specific ideas, I would suggest going for a canon divergence AU or trying something based on my general likes if that doesn't work for you.
Form of Sympathy is a spin-off of For Your Love, set three years later. It's darker in tone, focusing on two characters who can be summed up with the words "not doing very well right now": Kwon Yuri and his former teacher, Lee Seonwoo. Meeting Seonwoo again at the wedding of his cousin/adopted sister who he's had a crush on for years, he discovers that he's just as unhappy about the marriage...because Seonwoo's in love with Yuri's new brother-in-law. Neither of them are handling their unrequited love well. Seonwoo's life is falling apart as he sinks under depression and a developing drinking problem, while Yuri's being even more of an asshole than usual and is isolated from the people who care about him. They might also be the only people who understand each other.
Content warnings: Yuri is in love with his cousin/adopted sister, thought she doesn't return his feelings, so there is (unrequited) incest. Lee Seonwoo has a drinking problem and serious depression with occasional suicide idealisation.
So I would like their dynamic being as messy as it is in canon, and also be interested in how it develops when the two of them start to recover. I would also like distant future fic, if you're interested in writing that! The only dynamic I'm not interested in is their romantic relationship starting when Yuri was a high school student – while they were friendly when he was, I don't get the feeling they were interested in each other romantically/sexually then.
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Form of Sympathy tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
•A proper conversation between them? Where nobody is drunk and/or crying? I am sure they can do it if they try hard enough. Surely they can. Conversely, they attempt to have a proper conversation and it turns into a mess where someone's feelings get really hurt this time. Yuri is very good at casually being emotionally devastating, but Seonwoo is very observant and can hit someone's weak points effectively when pushed to it.
•They start fixing their problems together, while still just being whatever they are now (sex buddies? Probably the best description), and very slowly they start to realise their feelings are shifting as they get better. For this sort of story, I wouldn't mind if they're still fumbling into calling it a proper relationship, as long as they're in a better position with each other than when they started.
•Trapped in a fake, perfect world. I've discussed this in my general long fic ideas above, and I am open for either Heejoo or Jeong-Ho to be the one the fake perfect world puts them into a relationship with, as long as my requested pairing is explicitly end-game. I think these two would be more willing to stay in the fake world for as long as possible, perhaps until they realised that it doesn't make them happy like they thought it would.
•One of them realises that they've caught serious feelings for the other and isn't sure what to do about it. I think Yuri would be the most at a loss for this – he's been in love with her since he was a kid, and now suddenly it's changed. I would like to see the struggle to get to a point where he's willing to confess it. The same goes for Seonwoo, although his struggle would likely be more focused on not ruining Yuri's life and having the courage to do such a thing. Lots of angst and pining (angry pining in Yuri's case) is welcome!
•That moment where they meet their previous object of affection and realises, suddenly and intensely, that they are no longer in love with them and they're in love with someone else instead.
•A recent chapter has Seonwoo say he wants to leave everything behind, and Yuri points out that he can. I am very curious what he would do if he did leave. He became a teacher straight out of college, so he's not really done anything else. What would Seonwoo do? Could he try to have a second career doing something else? Maybe he'd even decide to try living in a different country and have to decide what to do about his developing relationship with Yuri. Maybe it forces them to a point to make a decision about what happens next.
•I like the roughness of the sex between them in canon, so more of that. Or maybe it starts out like that, and it gets unexpectedly gentle halfway through and neither of them are sure what to make of it. It could be the trigger for them both reassessing their feelings for each other and it develops from there.
•Future fic where they've finally recovered and have settled down together. What are they both up to? Where are they? Have they decide to go live somewhere else together, or are they still making it work in Seoul together? I don't think it'd be completely smooth sailing but I'd like to think they could be happy together in the long term.
•I love their friendship, so if you'd like to feature Jung Yohan in any context, I would enjoy that. I can see Jung Yohan attempting to help Yuri, because they are friends that go so far back, and maybe even giving Yuri relationship advice. I also cannot imagine a thing that would make Yuri more pissed, apart from if it turned out to be good advice that worked. I also ship Jung Yohan/Park Moogyeong so if you want them being involved, or just in the background, please do feel free to put them in.
Medium: manga/anime
Length: 704 chapters (manga), 367 episodes and a final movie (anime) (both complete).
Estimated reading/watching time: A couple of days at least for watching/reading them in full.
Sources: The anime is on Crunchyroll, and the manga was published by Viz in English but finshed at Volume 23. Alternate translations may be available!
Further information: Gintama
Gintama is about a samurai with naturally wavy hair and a cast of hundreds, in an alternative version of Japan where instead of the Black Fleet, it was aliens who forcibly opened the country up. Despite running in Shounen Jump, and having some really cool fight scenes, it is not a battle shounen. Nor is the protaganist an optimist, bouncy kid. Gintoki is a loser, as is most of the cast, and that's why I love it. It's a character driven comedy and also can make you cry, often within moments of that comedy.
I've only watched the anime, but since it sticks pretty closely to the manga I don't think this should be a serious issue. I would be happy with fic set early on during any point of the series, I would just ask for no spoilers for the final movie because I haven't watched it yet. Otherwise, set it whenever you'd like to!
The mixture of comedy and heartfelt moments, and how it's so character-driven, is one of my favourite things about Gintama, so feel free to lean into that!
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Gintama tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
•The two of them wake up in bed together after a drunken night out, and have to piece together what happened. This could be the two of them working together, while swearing they definitely didn't have sex (but they did? Possibly), maybe they have to get some assistance from other cast members (which they really won't enjoy). It could be fun if it anyone asked gives their own, self-serving and contradictory version of events. Or just straight up lies (cough Okita).
•I would enjoy the two of them getting handcuffed together again. Seriously, what's the likelihood of the same damn thing happening again? This time there's no tainted mayo and they end up in a series of increasingly improbable romantic situations which they refuse to back out of because no way are they losing to this guy.
•Gintoki working undercover as Paako for an extended period of time. Perhaps it's a (very well) paying mission from the Shinsengumi, and Hijikata is his contact so he has to keep visiting him as his client. There is absolutely no other reason why he would do this. Maybe it's on one of these visits it all kicks off, finally, and it doesn't go to plan so it ends up a weird, sexy struggle for survival that leads to sex afterwards?
•Gintoki as Pakko generally. It doesn't need to be the focus of the story, I just really like it. Particularly Hijikata finding him really hot like that (and generally).
•Participating on a TV show where both of them have to forge the best romantic relationship possible in a set number of days to win an insane amount of money that they both really, really need and are willing to sacrifice their pride for. All the romantic stuff? Only for the show, there are absolutely no feelings going on here and they are not falling for each other for real. I'm happy with them either winning or losing at the end, or losing on a technicality at the last second.
Medium: manga
Length: 2 volumes (complete).
Estimated reading/watching time: 2-3 hours.
Sources: The manga is licensed by SuBLime in English, and is available through their website as well as through Amazon and other retailers.
Further information: 辺獄のカレンデュラ| Hengoku no Calendula | Love in Limbo
Love in Limbo is about a soldier called Calen waking up in the afterlife with no memories, after narrowing avoiding getting sent to Hell and ending up in Limbo instead, and being appointed as a reaper. To atone for his previous sins, Calen has to protect the souls of Limbo, which he does with the help of his helper Makoto.
I read this manga and went 'how on earth did someone manage to make the very story I wanted to write when I was 14?' Then I read the author note which said 'the volume one cover is very Chuunibyou' and I laughed because, yes, it is. That is in a very complimentary way, I really enjoyed reading it. She did it much better than my attempt at it and it just hits so many of those buttons. Dramatic relationships! Everyone is dead and in the afterlife! There's supernatural world-building and lots of regrets for things done while they're alive, and they're atoning for it while they wait. Apart from Makoto who is a relative innocent compared to everyone else.
I really enjoyed the setting and world-building for this manga, and because it's only two volumes, a lot of it got set-up and then didn't get explored much further. I went 'wait, where's Calen's backstory' when I finished it, as well as other stuff. So I would love to see more! Most of my ideas are post-canon but if you wanted to write something set during canon, I'd be interested!
I love the long-ears so, so much, please include them as much as you want to. I love the weird bunnies who have important plot powers.
fight crime defend Limbo from invaders who want to eat the souls. I enjoy their dynamic of Makoto being so eager and big-hearted, even with his impending death looming, and Calen being more reserved and stoic but who cares deeply, too.
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
• Post-canon adventures in general is what I'm hankering for with this fandom. More exploration on what's going on elsewhere in the rest of the after life, perhaps new trouble arrives with new souls coming in. What other weird duties do reapers have that Calen hasn't done yet? Maybe they're particularly difficult, or morally questionable?
• World-building. I like the mixture of stuff that went into the world-building, and would like to learn more about this particular version of the afterlife. Feel free to dive into stuff that you think would be cool to have, I feel the author did this too so it'd be very fitting.
• Calen starts to regain his memories – either naturally or due to a more supernatural cause. From what we saw in-series, his life was one of fighting through numerous, brutal wars as a soldier, so I'd be interested on how all that coming back to him impacts when he's living in the relative peace of Limbo. There's also a big contrast between what we saw of his personality when he was alive and in Limbo, so Calen struggling with who he used to be and who he is now would be really interesting. I think it could be a big struggle for Makoto as well if he starts to change from the Calen he fell in love with, and I would find conflict between them interesting, as long as it gets resolved.
• Particular details about Calen's past I'm interested in, though my interest is by no means limited to these questions:
◦ What was his life growing up, before he joined the military? What about the early days of his career?
◦ How exactly did he lose his eye?
◦ What kind of world did he live in?
◦ Is there a lot of pain there that he'd much rather forget?
• Calen and Makoto decide to do something about all those souls trapped between Limbo and Hell. Maybe Heaven goes 'ah, good point' or perhaps God has their own reasons for not wanting to do it, that are just a little hard to parse from their level.
• Getting sent on a mission to Earth for some reason, like not enough angels to cover it, or only a reaper can do an important task. Perhaps there's a time limit on how long they can go before they're permanently stuck, wandering Earth forever that really adds pressure to the situation? Maybe they run into Makoto's reincarnated dad as well. There's lots of potential here!
• Makoto learning to adjust to having a real body again after having the clay one for so long. Perhaps it feels very strange and he has to learn to adapt to it all over again? Maybe he's still reckless with it like he used to be, and has to start unlearning that behaviour after getting hurt, along with some comfort to go with it.
• Hurt/Comfort, perhaps emotional hurt or physical hurt after defending Limbo? Or something else entirely!
• It's finally time for one (or both) of them to reincarnate. Maybe they try to fight it like Makoto's dad did, maybe they accept it, maybe both following after each other! Since I'm asking for this, angst and despair is absolutely welcome, and I would like the hope that they will both meet again in their next lives.
• Post-reincarnation, one of them is living a normal life (for wherever they are, I'm fine with mundane settings for this prompt and also for anything more unusual or fantasy based too!) but keeps having weird dreams about the past, and then run into someone who seems familiar, how mysterious. What's up with that? I'd prefer if there's some level of similarity between their previous life's appearances and the next one, but I'm otherwise pretty open. Go as cheesy, angsty and dramatic as you want, I like that in this kind of story!
Medium: manga/anime
Length: 700 chapters (manga), 500 episodes (anime) (both complete).
Estimated reading/watching time: a couple of days to read the whole manga.
Sources: The manga is published by Viz and available on the Shounen Jump app. The anime is on Crunchyroll.
Further information: Naruto
It's a series about a big-mouthed ninja who eventually grows up to save the world. There's also this guy called Kakashi in it. It has its flaws but it's one of my oldest fandoms and I'm very fond of the characters and also the worldbuilding. It's such a cool setting!
I am a manga-only reader. I've watched the Kakashi ANBU arc in the anime but I'm not familiar with anything else that's exclusive to the anime. For the pairings I've requested, you could do a very limited canon review. I'm happy with fic set before canon, during canon and afterwards.
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Naruto tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
• Pining! I love pining for these two (I say that like I don't like it for all my pairings). Just absolute, no way they could ever feel the same way about me, or in Kakashi's case, they will end up dead if I let myself have them.
• The loyalty between these two, perhaps taken to a level that might not be completely reasonable. Maybe to the extent that they might consider opposing the village for the sake of each other, and all the trouble that could cause.
• They are in a casual friends-with-benefits situation, and both of them are catching serious feelings but struggling because surely, the other doesn't feel the same way! Lots of pining and angst follows.
• Hurt/Comfort. You can whump these two hard, I'm down for it. Freeforms from h/c exchange I found particularly inspiring, for either of them as A or B:
◦ A's unrequited pining found to be requited while B helps them recover from serious injury
◦ Accidental arousal while cuddling for comfort
◦ Character A abandons plans in order to rescue Character B
◦ Character A falls asleep on B's shoulder; B gently moves A to rest on lap instead
◦ Character Cradling Sick Character's Head In Their Lap
◦ Character gets injured or sick and expects to be left behind now that they're no longer useful
(I feel like this only works for Tenzo during his early days in ANBU after Root but oh man, does it work.)
◦ Character resigned to their death survives; doesn't know how to cope
◦ Character takes blame for someone's bad decision because consequences for them are worse
◦ Characters live together while one recovers from hurt
◦ Character with injured hands requires assistance (which turns sexual)
◦ Comfort after a mission gone sideways
◦ Fighting to protect someone while injured yourself
◦ Kidnapped and used as leverage against the other character
◦ Pining Character Throws Themselves Between Crush and Lethal Danger
◦ A presumed dead; B refuses to believe A died
◦ Refusing to Leave Other Character's Side
◦ Sex to forget horrible situation for a short time
◦ Touch-Starved - Stoic Character Falls Apart When Someone Touches Them
• One of them thinks they're about to die and voices their feelings for the other; but oops they survive and it's completely awkward afterwards.
• Undercover missions together. This could be while they're in ANBU, maybe once Kakashi has left or even during Shippuden (or post-canon). Maybe it goes well, or maybe it goes so horribly wrong that they are left solely relying on each other for survival.
• One of them got caught by enemy forces, brainwashed into believing they were part of enemy forces and then gets rescued. Time for the deprogramming! The sheer amount of angst this would cause is just incredible. The unintentional betrayal! The distrust! I think if it was Kakashi, it'd probably be worse for both of them, but if it was Tenzo, it would hurt a lot to see him lose everything again and not even realise. I'm interested in both 'the power of love manages to break through' and 'they don't remember their past but they're able to build a new future together anyway'.
• Time travel. I'd prefer accidental over intentional time travel, but I'd be interested in intentional time travel going wrong and ending up in the wrong time period. I'd really enjoy this going backwards into their own past history for these two, considering their dramatic pasts and how much they've probably never discussed that with each other, ever. Perhaps they end up helping younger versions of themselves, or of the other? Maybe they just give the kid versions a hug because damn do they need it (Kakashi would hate it but so what).
• I'd also love if they ended up back during the Second War and Sakumo showed up. A lot of mixed feelings to navigate there. If you wanted to send them back to the warring states era and they have to navigate that while both of them have powers they're not supposed to have as they don't belong to the clans, however, I would be interested in that too!
• An extra to the time loop ideas I discussed above: a time loop where they're forced to watch the other to die repeatedly until they break the loop succeeding in rescuing them.
• Dimension Travel - Just Friends Find Out They're Married In An Alternate Universe.
• Marriage contest. As the Sixth Hokage, Kakashi is expected to get married (Tsunade was old enough to get out of it but Kakashi isn't) but he's really not keen on the idea. So he agrees, with the terms being he gets to set up a marriage tournament/contest of his own devising, and he'll marry the winner. Of course, the plan is to make it unwinnable so he can go 'oh, shucks, well I tried' but there's a lot of serious contenders...and Yamato is one of them. I'm really open to whatever ideas you have for the contest – I like the idea of it not being physical prowess alone, but other things too, like loyalty and smarts.
• Mokuton. Not as body horror 'it's taking over me' but more 'this is very difficult to control and I've experienced so much already'. Seasonal changes in using Mokuton would be interesting too! Basically, just anything about it. It's one of my favourite jutsus.
• The Fourth War arc was very frustrating for me to read in real time because Yamato spent all of it stuck in a tree. If you would like to make his war arc more interesting, I would be interested. Especially if Kakashi ended up rescuing him. Or maybe he didn't, and he feels guilty about it.
• I am also interested in recovery fic for Yamato set after canon. From his war experience? Maybe that's enough by itself, or maybe it's the straw that broke the camel's back, and Kakashi helps him through it. Or just Yamato coming to terms with his past more generally. Canon skims over that, so an in-depth exploration would be interesting!
Medium: anime and a spin-off, not entirely canon manga
Length: 22 episodes 11 chapters (both complete)
Estimated watching/reading time: the anime is 11 hours, and the manga is 1-2 hours.
Sources: The anime was recently removed from Crunchyroll (RIP) but is available on Funimation with a subscription. The manga was never officially licensed in English but fan translations are available.
Further information: Samurai Flamenco - Another Days (manga)
Samurai Flamenco is about Hazama Masayoshi, a guy who's watched too much tokusatsu and wants to be a hero for real, while having no special abilities or physical talents. After a fateful (naked) encounter with an off-duty cop, Gotou, Masayoshi starts to work towards making his dream come true, within what appears to be the bounds of reality and while working/competing against an idol singer who wants to be a magical girl to kick guys in the nuts.
And then the last ten minutes of episode 7 happen, and nothing is the same afterwards.
A show summed up by 'I want to get off Samurai Flamenco's Wild Ride', it's a mess of twists, turns, some pacing issues and an overall vibe of 'what the fuck am I watching'. It's glorious and I geninuely love it for its sheer vision and just going for it, even if it's kind of a mess. For me, the heart of it is a love of tonkusatsu and how Masayoshi grows and develops over the course of the series. And a big part of that growth is from his growing relationship with Gotou.
I also find the final scene a little more ambiguous than some, in that they still might be edging their way into a proper relationship. If you want to involve Gotou/his girlfriend in your story, I am definitely up for that!
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Samurai Flamenco tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
• "What are we to each other?" after the show-down with Haiji. I can see them just avoiding talking about it initially, because well, a lot happened and they both need to think about what to do next. I'd really like it if Masayoshi ended up redoing his marriage proposal in less hectic circumstances, too. Or it's meant to be less hectic, anyway...
• Pining. I love pining, so give me all the pining.
• Making up a romantic partner who turns out to be real, either via magic or by chance. This could be Masayoshi making another Flamwenco wish, but honestly Gotou making up a fake partner, while being in a different fake relationship, who turns out to be a real person is a LOT. I would like both the humour of it (seriously, what are you doing man?) and the tragedy lying under it (seriously, what are you doing?). Maybe he has to go back home and facing questions about if he's got over his girlfriend, already, and makes up a fake partner who just happens to fit Masayoshi's profile, despite not meeting him yet. And then he shows up.
• Hurt/Comfort. You can whump these two hard, I'm down for it. I'd like anything from minor hurt to aliens have them captive and one of them is alarmingly close to death. Gotou insisting that he's fine when he's most definitely not.
• Getting married! I could see them ending up with a very big, fancy wedding despite not really wanting it because Masayoshi's future president of the world status. Disastrous wedding planning? Unhelpful 'helpful' suggestions from MMM? Deciding to eventually elope because they can't cope with the strain of a big fancy wedding? Going through with it regardless because of a sense of duty and it's kind of a disaster, but they make it through the day with each other's support?
• One of them appears to have vanished from existence and the other is the only person who remembers him. Maybe aliens did it, maybe someone else got their wish granted by saying ‘flamwenco’ enough, maybe reality just warped weirdly again. Ideally I'd like the other to return. If it's Gotou, he might even end up believing the whole thing was just his imagination. I feel like Masayoshi would not quit, despite all odds and everyone else being convinced he imagined Gotou.
• Masayoshi is terrified he's accidentally forced Gotou to fall in love with him because he loves him enough to warp reality to make it happen. Either treated seriously or more lightly.
• Trapped in a fake, perfect world. I've discussed it above, but for this canon in particular, I'd be really interested in Gotou's girlfriend still being present in that world and how that affects his decision to resist or not, torn between wanting to stay to save her or protecting Masayoshi in the real world.
• Gotou being haunted by his missing girlfriend, possibly like he is in canon, or much more literally. Is she really a ghost? A hallucination caused by his guilt increasing as he gets closer to other people again despite himself? Or something else entirely? Something much more sinister...
• Undercover as a couple. It was probably not Gotou's idea, he did not want this, but now they're undercover together as a couple and Masayoshi is enjoying it more than he probably should.
• AU where Masayoshi has a different obsession and that ends up making him warp reality differently. This could be something with a similar vibe (Actual samurai? Medieval knights? Science fiction? JRPGs!) or something very different (Dating games! Cryptozoology! 19th Century Paris??? Maybe even your own personal favourite topic!). I'd like to see them coping with a very different set of challenges, particularly if he accidentally shifts the city into a completely different country or time period.
Medium: webtoon
Length: 70 chapters (complete)
Estimated reading time: 40 hours.
Sources: It's not been officially licensed in English, a completed fan translation is available.
Further information: Unripe Expression
Unripe Expression is a story about a guy whose face tends to give everything away, asking the Korean equivalent of Yahoo! Answers for advice about his developing feelings for his classmate and how it leads to him making a best friend who helps him on his journey of discovery. He also gains a (male) harem, including the rude, self-absorbed jerk who rejected him back when they were kids (who I actually like a lot but is definitely a jerk).
I am very fond of Ha Junseo. He's blunt, just a little rude and can come across as intimidating, but he's also got a really kind heart, is smart, more forgiving than he looks and capable of serious self-sacrifice.
I am fine with Jaewon having existing or past romantic feelings for Karam, including having been in a relationship with him, as long as the endgame is exclusively Junseo/Jaewon.
I'm open to both fic set during canon (with canon divergence) and also for post-canon fic where they've reunited. This could be during their third year, later on at college or after college. I am fine with Jaewon having existing or past romantic feelings for Karam, including having been in a relationship with him, as long as the endgame is exclusively Junseo/Jaewon.
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Unripe Expression tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
• Incredible amounts of pining occurring, which eventually get requited.
• Yoonsung tries to knock Junseo out of the running by telling him that Jaewon has fallen for him, but is hiding it because he's afraid of his reaction, and he should confess immediately. It's a ploy but Jaewon's behaviour is sufficient to make Junseo rethink his initial suspicion of it and start a charm offensive...which is what actually wins Jaewon over.
• Yoonsung is a jerk and tries to mess up their relationship, it completely backfires and it actually leads to Jaewon realise he's fallen for Junseo.
• Post high school, future fic where Karam and Jaewon eventually broke up, and Junseo and Jaewon end up running into each other again. Maybe this could be at the (inevitable) high school reunion, or maybe in a very different set of circumstances – they're both out so they end up going to the same places to hang out? They have overlapping friends but don't realise until they run into each other at a social event? Maybe they end up working at the same place and it is so, so awkward.
• I'd really like them awkwardly navigating how badly their friendship ended and trying to slowly rebuild it. It'd be amazing if Jaewon was the one to fall first this time around, and deal with the consequences of having rejected Junseo previously.
• Maybe they start up a FWB arrangement but it starts to get heavy and both sides are left pining but reluctant to quit, despite the pain it causes. I'd like to be eventually a happy ending, but with a lot of misunderstandings and regrets along the way to get there.
• Karam and Jaewon break up in the final year of high school and despite knowing that he should absolutely not, Junseo ends up comforting him again and helping him pick up the pieces again. This time, it leads to Jaewon falling for Junseo and it causes a lot of misunderstandings but it all works out in the end, somehow.
• When Karam rejects Jaewon's initial confession, it leads to Jaewon deciding to try getting over his crush instead of holding out, hoping he'll change his mind. Junseo helps him through it, and Jaewon realises his feelings have shifted towards his best friend.
• This is a ridiculous AU idea but here goes: AU where it's the mid 2000s and forums are still popular, so Jaewon joins a forum to get advice there instead and Junseo is a regular poster. Maybe this time it takes longer for them to realise they go to the same school, so their relationship develops differently because it's exclusively online (more honestly, perhaps?). Friendships that start online can have a very different dynamic to ones that start in-person, and it switches early enough in canon that I feel like it's more the latter. I'd like it if Junseo comes across far too blunt in his posting and Jaewon initially thinks he's a jerk but no, just a blunt guy who does actually care a lot. Basically, I have very fond memories of this kind of online environment, even if there's drama (I would find in-forum fighting really funny if you wanted to go there, btw) particularly for those who didn't fit in great irl, and I'd love to see an AU playing on that.
• Chapter 40 AU where nobody gets hiccups and Junseo just kisses him instead.
I've formatted this letter differently to how I usually format them, due to the high minimum for this exchange. There is a 'general likes in long fic' section, that is for all the fandoms I've requested and my more general likes which aren't enough for 10k alone but might be helpful. There's a section for each fandom, too, which talks about what I like about that fandom, where to find it and specific ideas and prompts for that fandom.
I wrote a lot but please take what you want from this letter and don't feel you have to try to work everything in! I wanted to give my writer enough options so they don't feel like they have nothing to work with.
General likes/ideas for long fic:
I thought this section might be helpful considering the minimums for this exchange. This applies to all the fandoms I've requested, but some of them will probably be less relevant in certain fandoms (like getting together ideas where the pairing I've requested get together in canon).• Fixing a canon typical problem/situation while falling in love.
• Fixing a canon typical problem/situation while already being in a relationship!
• Getting together more generally – a lot of my ideas below are more action orientated, but I enjoy slow burn getting together with a focus on emotional development, too!
• Trapped in a fake perfect world. Possibly the fake perfect world gives them a relationship with their crush, too, to really add to their conflict about it? Usually I request that alone, but I'd also be interested if their crush or partner doesn't show up in the world, too. Particularly if the force responsible for it didn't realise that person mattered so much. I'm happy with a variety of causes, from canon typical magic, to being trapped in a dream world, to mysterious supernatural origins to 'actually in a coma in the real world'. I particularly like if there's a creeping sense of something being off, but it takes the character a while to identify what's going on. Are they conflicted about leaving, or do they really want to go? Or, in fact would they like to stay for a while longer?
(I am open for a character's canon crush, if they have one who isn't in the pairing I've requested, to be the one the fake perfect world puts them in a relationship, as long as the pairing I've requested is explicitly end-game.)
• Trapped together and they have to rely on each other to get out. This could be a physical trapping, like being kidnapped together, or stuck in a building together where they can't get out easily (power outage shutting down all the electronic locks?), or anything else you can think of. I would also like it as more unusual trapping, like in a dream world or a parallel universe that's like canon but off, or very different. If you do go for a parallel universe, I'd prefer it's not a completely mundane setting if you go fully AU.
• Memory issues. This could be easy amnesia where they forget everything, certain memories (like they've lost a set period of time, like when their life started to get better after a low) or they've just lost memories of the other half of the pairing only. This could be from a curse, or some kind of magic, or an accident. I'd prefer that if it's due to an accident, it's fictional 'they recover fine apart from their memories' than being realistic about head injuries and trauma.
• Hurt/Comfort. I like both emotional and physical h/c. I enjoy the catharsis of the situation building up and then the other person steps in to save them, so as long as you mind my DNWs, I'm up for most things! I've put specific prompts for this too in some of my fandoms.
• Character decides they gotta do the self-sacrifice and gears themselves up to do it, only to get derailed, possibly at the very last minute. This could be the other party stepping in to save the situation (and likely being annoyed that they didn't just ask)...or they were the one planning to commit a serious act of self-sacrifice instead, as most of the pairings I've requested are rather prone to this.
• Character is made to or has to live through and experience the other's memories. I really like this with tightly-controlled, stoic characters or characters who put up a protective front, either as the memories or as the one going through them and finding it much, much more overwhelming than they expected, even if they hide it pretty well and it makes them more sympathetic to the other. I'd like it if the character whose memories are being explored gets reassurance afterwards if they find out or are aware of it happening at the time. If they don't find out, please don't have the other character violate their trust and spread around what they saw.
• Time loops. I like Groundhog Day style loops the most, where it's the same day repeating. I'm a sucker for 'the loop is trying to get you to realise/learn something important' and once they do, that breaks the loop. That could be serious, like 'you need to stop living in the past', or 'open your heart' or 'stop being a complete jerk'. However if you did make it more ridiculous, like 'you need to put your recycling out on the correct day and not just leave it there for days' and perhaps everyone thinks the cause is in fact something very serious, I'd liked that too!
• Worldbuilding. If you want to go into detail about how this world works, like a particular form of magic, or the history of it, or the social structures, I'm interested!
• "You are the only person I can trust right now". Wherever it's because the world has literally turned on them apart from that person, there are people after them, or just because they have so many trust issues, or any other reason, I love this.
• The 'Much Ado About Nothing' trope (I finally saw a name for this and I'm hoping it catches on). A thinks B is in love with them, B is not but as A starts paying more attention to B they fall for them, and then later on so does B for A. Also interested in the way Shakespeare did it, with both sides mistakenly thinking the other is in love with them!
• Undercover as a couple.
Other likes:
• Pining• Denial of feelings
• Getting together
• Canon divergence AUs
• Angst
• Miscommunication, mixed messages, reasonable misunderstandings
• First impressions that turn out to be wrong or misleading (positively), e.g. someone comes across as very cold but actually feels deeply, they just doesn't express their emotions much.
• Accidental physical contact, hands touching unexpectedly
• Communication without using words
• Characters who are very good at what they do with their powers, smarts etc., but bad at social interaction/emotional stuff etc.
• Time loops/time travel
• Accidentally fucking up reality somehow and needing to fix it.
• They thought nobody was coming but they were.
• On-screen switch from a formal name basis to informal basis, possibly in a meaningful moment but also just casually happening too.
• Fake-out make-outs
• Epistolary material. It doesn't have to be the whole fic, if you'd like to include letters, emails, texts, social media posts (for canons that already have social media!) or official documents, I would be interested.
• That moment when someone realises their feelings have changed
• Bed sharing
• Slow burn
• Nature
• Changes in seasons, weather and the passing of time
• Sharing an umbrella
• Kabedon, particularly when played for laughs because of genre savvy characters, character is not actually cool enough to make it work, the other character immediately reverses it and does it much better etc.
• Tsunderes
• Characters being forced to work together in difficult circumstances
• Hurt/comfort
• Canon smokers smoking
• Taking comfort together in desperate situations
• Nightmares, unusual dreams, visions
Smut likes:
• Desperation• Unintentionally turning their partner on
• Sex so enthusiastic that it's kind of clumsy and messy
• Dirty talk
• Praise kink
• Bickering during sex (with couples who already bicker all the time)
• Semi-public sex
• Semi or fully clothed sex, or just one piece of clothing stays on
• Solo masturbation
• Mutual masturbation
• Denial of feelings even in the middle of sex
• Fingering
• Frottage
• Oral sex
• Anal sex
• Come play
• Sexting/phone sex
• Reading dirty books (or outright porn) that leads to sex (either out loud to their partner or by themselves and it gets them in the mood)
• Sharing a bed together turns into sex (doesn't have to be penetrative!)
DNWs:
• Unrequested AUs (canon-divergence and canon AUs requested for all canons, and for any prompts for other types of AUs)• Non-canon permament death of canon characters (for Love in Limbo, I do not consider reincarnation to be permanent death)
• For Form of Sympathy and Unripe Expression: death of canon characters
• Unrequested non-canon pairings
• For Naruto: Boruto content (Kakashi being Sixth Hokage/general post-canon setting is okay)
• Current events
• Any reference to COVID-19
• Graphic description of serious injuries, violence, sickness or torture
• For Form of Sympathy and Unripe Expression: serious injuries, violence, sickness and torture
• Body horror
• Cannibalism/vore
• Bodily fluids apart from sexual fluids and blood (including canon-typical bodily fluids)
• Sexual content with characters under 16
• Intentional violence in sex (rough is okay)
• Non-con
• Age play
• D/s
• Omegaverse
• Breath play/choking
Fandom: 동정의 형태 | Form of Sympathy (Webcomic)
Medium: webtoon
Length: 48 chapters (ongoing)
Estimated reading time: 18 hours.
Further information: Form of Sympathy
While Form of Sympathy is a spin-off and can be read without reading For Your Love, I would really recommend reading it first. I have a little explainer for For Your Love that I wrote for a different exchange here. I actually tried reading Form of Sympathy before reading it and found it didn't work for me. It was only after reading For Your Love I devoured it. The character motivations make a lot more sense after reading For Your Love, even thought they're not the main characters in it. This makes it, in effect, the longest canon I've requested.
This canon is currently on-going, and at the moment it's not clear when it's going to end. I am staying up to date with this canon as it's released, so if anything happens during the creation period that you want to use in your fic, please do! On the other hand, if anything happens in canon that scuttles a lot of my specific ideas, I would suggest going for a canon divergence AU or trying something based on my general likes if that doesn't work for you.
Form of Sympathy is a spin-off of For Your Love, set three years later. It's darker in tone, focusing on two characters who can be summed up with the words "not doing very well right now": Kwon Yuri and his former teacher, Lee Seonwoo. Meeting Seonwoo again at the wedding of his cousin/adopted sister who he's had a crush on for years, he discovers that he's just as unhappy about the marriage...because Seonwoo's in love with Yuri's new brother-in-law. Neither of them are handling their unrequited love well. Seonwoo's life is falling apart as he sinks under depression and a developing drinking problem, while Yuri's being even more of an asshole than usual and is isolated from the people who care about him. They might also be the only people who understand each other.
Content warnings: Yuri is in love with his cousin/adopted sister, thought she doesn't return his feelings, so there is (unrequited) incest. Lee Seonwoo has a drinking problem and serious depression with occasional suicide idealisation.
Pairing: Kwon Yuri/Lee Seonwoo
This pairing is a mess. An absolute mess. Two people in unrequited love with people they really shouldn't be in love with, baiting each other but also being possibly the only people who understand each other and are willing to call each other out on their shit. They also fuck sometimes. I am hoping the story arc sees them start to recover from this low point in their lives, but I am also enjoying the messiness of it.So I would like their dynamic being as messy as it is in canon, and also be interested in how it develops when the two of them start to recover. I would also like distant future fic, if you're interested in writing that! The only dynamic I'm not interested in is their romantic relationship starting when Yuri was a high school student – while they were friendly when he was, I don't get the feeling they were interested in each other romantically/sexually then.
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Form of Sympathy tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
Ideas:
•Anything from my general likes and ideas for long fic above.•A proper conversation between them? Where nobody is drunk and/or crying? I am sure they can do it if they try hard enough. Surely they can. Conversely, they attempt to have a proper conversation and it turns into a mess where someone's feelings get really hurt this time. Yuri is very good at casually being emotionally devastating, but Seonwoo is very observant and can hit someone's weak points effectively when pushed to it.
•They start fixing their problems together, while still just being whatever they are now (sex buddies? Probably the best description), and very slowly they start to realise their feelings are shifting as they get better. For this sort of story, I wouldn't mind if they're still fumbling into calling it a proper relationship, as long as they're in a better position with each other than when they started.
•Trapped in a fake, perfect world. I've discussed this in my general long fic ideas above, and I am open for either Heejoo or Jeong-Ho to be the one the fake perfect world puts them into a relationship with, as long as my requested pairing is explicitly end-game. I think these two would be more willing to stay in the fake world for as long as possible, perhaps until they realised that it doesn't make them happy like they thought it would.
•One of them realises that they've caught serious feelings for the other and isn't sure what to do about it. I think Yuri would be the most at a loss for this – he's been in love with her since he was a kid, and now suddenly it's changed. I would like to see the struggle to get to a point where he's willing to confess it. The same goes for Seonwoo, although his struggle would likely be more focused on not ruining Yuri's life and having the courage to do such a thing. Lots of angst and pining (angry pining in Yuri's case) is welcome!
•That moment where they meet their previous object of affection and realises, suddenly and intensely, that they are no longer in love with them and they're in love with someone else instead.
•A recent chapter has Seonwoo say he wants to leave everything behind, and Yuri points out that he can. I am very curious what he would do if he did leave. He became a teacher straight out of college, so he's not really done anything else. What would Seonwoo do? Could he try to have a second career doing something else? Maybe he'd even decide to try living in a different country and have to decide what to do about his developing relationship with Yuri. Maybe it forces them to a point to make a decision about what happens next.
•I like the roughness of the sex between them in canon, so more of that. Or maybe it starts out like that, and it gets unexpectedly gentle halfway through and neither of them are sure what to make of it. It could be the trigger for them both reassessing their feelings for each other and it develops from there.
•Future fic where they've finally recovered and have settled down together. What are they both up to? Where are they? Have they decide to go live somewhere else together, or are they still making it work in Seoul together? I don't think it'd be completely smooth sailing but I'd like to think they could be happy together in the long term.
•I love their friendship, so if you'd like to feature Jung Yohan in any context, I would enjoy that. I can see Jung Yohan attempting to help Yuri, because they are friends that go so far back, and maybe even giving Yuri relationship advice. I also cannot imagine a thing that would make Yuri more pissed, apart from if it turned out to be good advice that worked. I also ship Jung Yohan/Park Moogyeong so if you want them being involved, or just in the background, please do feel free to put them in.
Fandom: Gintama
Medium: manga/anime
Length: 704 chapters (manga), 367 episodes and a final movie (anime) (both complete).
Estimated reading/watching time: A couple of days at least for watching/reading them in full.
Sources: The anime is on Crunchyroll, and the manga was published by Viz in English but finshed at Volume 23. Alternate translations may be available!
Further information: Gintama
Gintama is about a samurai with naturally wavy hair and a cast of hundreds, in an alternative version of Japan where instead of the Black Fleet, it was aliens who forcibly opened the country up. Despite running in Shounen Jump, and having some really cool fight scenes, it is not a battle shounen. Nor is the protaganist an optimist, bouncy kid. Gintoki is a loser, as is most of the cast, and that's why I love it. It's a character driven comedy and also can make you cry, often within moments of that comedy.
I've only watched the anime, but since it sticks pretty closely to the manga I don't think this should be a serious issue. I would be happy with fic set early on during any point of the series, I would just ask for no spoilers for the final movie because I haven't watched it yet. Otherwise, set it whenever you'd like to!
Pairing: Hijikata Toshirou/Sakata Gintoki
Ah, rivals with occasional grudging respect for each other. I love the constant bickering, baiting each other, and how they both wind each other up but are also much more similar to each other than they'd ever willingly admit, particularly in how devoted they are, if to very different causes. Both of them have their softer sides they don't like to admit to, as well.The mixture of comedy and heartfelt moments, and how it's so character-driven, is one of my favourite things about Gintama, so feel free to lean into that!
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Gintama tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
Ideas:
•Anything from my general likes and ideas for long fic above.•The two of them wake up in bed together after a drunken night out, and have to piece together what happened. This could be the two of them working together, while swearing they definitely didn't have sex (but they did? Possibly), maybe they have to get some assistance from other cast members (which they really won't enjoy). It could be fun if it anyone asked gives their own, self-serving and contradictory version of events. Or just straight up lies (cough Okita).
•I would enjoy the two of them getting handcuffed together again. Seriously, what's the likelihood of the same damn thing happening again? This time there's no tainted mayo and they end up in a series of increasingly improbable romantic situations which they refuse to back out of because no way are they losing to this guy.
•Gintoki working undercover as Paako for an extended period of time. Perhaps it's a (very well) paying mission from the Shinsengumi, and Hijikata is his contact so he has to keep visiting him as his client. There is absolutely no other reason why he would do this. Maybe it's on one of these visits it all kicks off, finally, and it doesn't go to plan so it ends up a weird, sexy struggle for survival that leads to sex afterwards?
•Gintoki as Pakko generally. It doesn't need to be the focus of the story, I just really like it. Particularly Hijikata finding him really hot like that (and generally).
•Participating on a TV show where both of them have to forge the best romantic relationship possible in a set number of days to win an insane amount of money that they both really, really need and are willing to sacrifice their pride for. All the romantic stuff? Only for the show, there are absolutely no feelings going on here and they are not falling for each other for real. I'm happy with them either winning or losing at the end, or losing on a technicality at the last second.
Fandom: 辺獄のカレンデュラ| Hengoku no Calendula | Love in Limbo (Manga)
Medium: manga
Length: 2 volumes (complete).
Estimated reading/watching time: 2-3 hours.
Sources: The manga is licensed by SuBLime in English, and is available through their website as well as through Amazon and other retailers.
Further information: 辺獄のカレンデュラ| Hengoku no Calendula | Love in Limbo
Love in Limbo is about a soldier called Calen waking up in the afterlife with no memories, after narrowing avoiding getting sent to Hell and ending up in Limbo instead, and being appointed as a reaper. To atone for his previous sins, Calen has to protect the souls of Limbo, which he does with the help of his helper Makoto.
I read this manga and went 'how on earth did someone manage to make the very story I wanted to write when I was 14?' Then I read the author note which said 'the volume one cover is very Chuunibyou' and I laughed because, yes, it is. That is in a very complimentary way, I really enjoyed reading it. She did it much better than my attempt at it and it just hits so many of those buttons. Dramatic relationships! Everyone is dead and in the afterlife! There's supernatural world-building and lots of regrets for things done while they're alive, and they're atoning for it while they wait. Apart from Makoto who is a relative innocent compared to everyone else.
I really enjoyed the setting and world-building for this manga, and because it's only two volumes, a lot of it got set-up and then didn't get explored much further. I went 'wait, where's Calen's backstory' when I finished it, as well as other stuff. So I would love to see more! Most of my ideas are post-canon but if you wanted to write something set during canon, I'd be interested!
I love the long-ears so, so much, please include them as much as you want to. I love the weird bunnies who have important plot powers.
Pairing: Calen/Onodera Makoto
The lead pairing! Calen is a dead soldier with an eyepatch and missing memories turned into a Reaper to protect Limbo. Makoto is a soul trapped in a clay body, thanks to his dad's inability to let him go when he died, who works as a helper to serve a Reaper (who in this case is Calen). Together, theyThe ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
Ideas:
•Anything from my general likes and ideas for long fic above.• Post-canon adventures in general is what I'm hankering for with this fandom. More exploration on what's going on elsewhere in the rest of the after life, perhaps new trouble arrives with new souls coming in. What other weird duties do reapers have that Calen hasn't done yet? Maybe they're particularly difficult, or morally questionable?
• World-building. I like the mixture of stuff that went into the world-building, and would like to learn more about this particular version of the afterlife. Feel free to dive into stuff that you think would be cool to have, I feel the author did this too so it'd be very fitting.
• Calen starts to regain his memories – either naturally or due to a more supernatural cause. From what we saw in-series, his life was one of fighting through numerous, brutal wars as a soldier, so I'd be interested on how all that coming back to him impacts when he's living in the relative peace of Limbo. There's also a big contrast between what we saw of his personality when he was alive and in Limbo, so Calen struggling with who he used to be and who he is now would be really interesting. I think it could be a big struggle for Makoto as well if he starts to change from the Calen he fell in love with, and I would find conflict between them interesting, as long as it gets resolved.
• Particular details about Calen's past I'm interested in, though my interest is by no means limited to these questions:
◦ What was his life growing up, before he joined the military? What about the early days of his career?
◦ How exactly did he lose his eye?
◦ What kind of world did he live in?
◦ Is there a lot of pain there that he'd much rather forget?
• Calen and Makoto decide to do something about all those souls trapped between Limbo and Hell. Maybe Heaven goes 'ah, good point' or perhaps God has their own reasons for not wanting to do it, that are just a little hard to parse from their level.
• Getting sent on a mission to Earth for some reason, like not enough angels to cover it, or only a reaper can do an important task. Perhaps there's a time limit on how long they can go before they're permanently stuck, wandering Earth forever that really adds pressure to the situation? Maybe they run into Makoto's reincarnated dad as well. There's lots of potential here!
• Makoto learning to adjust to having a real body again after having the clay one for so long. Perhaps it feels very strange and he has to learn to adapt to it all over again? Maybe he's still reckless with it like he used to be, and has to start unlearning that behaviour after getting hurt, along with some comfort to go with it.
• Hurt/Comfort, perhaps emotional hurt or physical hurt after defending Limbo? Or something else entirely!
• It's finally time for one (or both) of them to reincarnate. Maybe they try to fight it like Makoto's dad did, maybe they accept it, maybe both following after each other! Since I'm asking for this, angst and despair is absolutely welcome, and I would like the hope that they will both meet again in their next lives.
• Post-reincarnation, one of them is living a normal life (for wherever they are, I'm fine with mundane settings for this prompt and also for anything more unusual or fantasy based too!) but keeps having weird dreams about the past, and then run into someone who seems familiar, how mysterious. What's up with that? I'd prefer if there's some level of similarity between their previous life's appearances and the next one, but I'm otherwise pretty open. Go as cheesy, angsty and dramatic as you want, I like that in this kind of story!
Fandom: Naruto
Medium: manga/anime
Length: 700 chapters (manga), 500 episodes (anime) (both complete).
Estimated reading/watching time: a couple of days to read the whole manga.
Sources: The manga is published by Viz and available on the Shounen Jump app. The anime is on Crunchyroll.
Further information: Naruto
It's a series about a big-mouthed ninja who eventually grows up to save the world. There's also this guy called Kakashi in it. It has its flaws but it's one of my oldest fandoms and I'm very fond of the characters and also the worldbuilding. It's such a cool setting!
I am a manga-only reader. I've watched the Kakashi ANBU arc in the anime but I'm not familiar with anything else that's exclusive to the anime. For the pairings I've requested, you could do a very limited canon review. I'm happy with fic set before canon, during canon and afterwards.
Pairing: Hatake Kakashi/Tenzou | Yamato
I love their relationship. I love how close they are, how constantly Kakashi teases him and Tenzo respects him so deeply him anyway, and how much they trust each other. They have a very good understanding of each other, especially in battle and on missions. I like how they're both stoic, and shouldering large burdens, both in their pasts and by being able to use powers that aren't really theirs. However their attitudes towards their pasts and general demeanour are quite different, which is part of what I love about it. In terms of their relationship becoming romantic, I think they could probably do with a bit of an external push, particularly with Kakashi's fear of losing people he loves, but once they get there? It's a good starting place for success!I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Naruto tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
Ideas:
•Anything from my general likes and ideas for long fic above.• Pining! I love pining for these two (I say that like I don't like it for all my pairings). Just absolute, no way they could ever feel the same way about me, or in Kakashi's case, they will end up dead if I let myself have them.
• The loyalty between these two, perhaps taken to a level that might not be completely reasonable. Maybe to the extent that they might consider opposing the village for the sake of each other, and all the trouble that could cause.
• They are in a casual friends-with-benefits situation, and both of them are catching serious feelings but struggling because surely, the other doesn't feel the same way! Lots of pining and angst follows.
• Hurt/Comfort. You can whump these two hard, I'm down for it. Freeforms from h/c exchange I found particularly inspiring, for either of them as A or B:
◦ A's unrequited pining found to be requited while B helps them recover from serious injury
◦ Accidental arousal while cuddling for comfort
◦ Character A abandons plans in order to rescue Character B
◦ Character A falls asleep on B's shoulder; B gently moves A to rest on lap instead
◦ Character Cradling Sick Character's Head In Their Lap
◦ Character gets injured or sick and expects to be left behind now that they're no longer useful
(I feel like this only works for Tenzo during his early days in ANBU after Root but oh man, does it work.)
◦ Character resigned to their death survives; doesn't know how to cope
◦ Character takes blame for someone's bad decision because consequences for them are worse
◦ Characters live together while one recovers from hurt
◦ Character with injured hands requires assistance (which turns sexual)
◦ Comfort after a mission gone sideways
◦ Fighting to protect someone while injured yourself
◦ Kidnapped and used as leverage against the other character
◦ Pining Character Throws Themselves Between Crush and Lethal Danger
◦ A presumed dead; B refuses to believe A died
◦ Refusing to Leave Other Character's Side
◦ Sex to forget horrible situation for a short time
◦ Touch-Starved - Stoic Character Falls Apart When Someone Touches Them
• One of them thinks they're about to die and voices their feelings for the other; but oops they survive and it's completely awkward afterwards.
• Undercover missions together. This could be while they're in ANBU, maybe once Kakashi has left or even during Shippuden (or post-canon). Maybe it goes well, or maybe it goes so horribly wrong that they are left solely relying on each other for survival.
• One of them got caught by enemy forces, brainwashed into believing they were part of enemy forces and then gets rescued. Time for the deprogramming! The sheer amount of angst this would cause is just incredible. The unintentional betrayal! The distrust! I think if it was Kakashi, it'd probably be worse for both of them, but if it was Tenzo, it would hurt a lot to see him lose everything again and not even realise. I'm interested in both 'the power of love manages to break through' and 'they don't remember their past but they're able to build a new future together anyway'.
• Time travel. I'd prefer accidental over intentional time travel, but I'd be interested in intentional time travel going wrong and ending up in the wrong time period. I'd really enjoy this going backwards into their own past history for these two, considering their dramatic pasts and how much they've probably never discussed that with each other, ever. Perhaps they end up helping younger versions of themselves, or of the other? Maybe they just give the kid versions a hug because damn do they need it (Kakashi would hate it but so what).
• I'd also love if they ended up back during the Second War and Sakumo showed up. A lot of mixed feelings to navigate there. If you wanted to send them back to the warring states era and they have to navigate that while both of them have powers they're not supposed to have as they don't belong to the clans, however, I would be interested in that too!
• An extra to the time loop ideas I discussed above: a time loop where they're forced to watch the other to die repeatedly until they break the loop succeeding in rescuing them.
• Dimension Travel - Just Friends Find Out They're Married In An Alternate Universe.
• Marriage contest. As the Sixth Hokage, Kakashi is expected to get married (Tsunade was old enough to get out of it but Kakashi isn't) but he's really not keen on the idea. So he agrees, with the terms being he gets to set up a marriage tournament/contest of his own devising, and he'll marry the winner. Of course, the plan is to make it unwinnable so he can go 'oh, shucks, well I tried' but there's a lot of serious contenders...and Yamato is one of them. I'm really open to whatever ideas you have for the contest – I like the idea of it not being physical prowess alone, but other things too, like loyalty and smarts.
• Mokuton. Not as body horror 'it's taking over me' but more 'this is very difficult to control and I've experienced so much already'. Seasonal changes in using Mokuton would be interesting too! Basically, just anything about it. It's one of my favourite jutsus.
• The Fourth War arc was very frustrating for me to read in real time because Yamato spent all of it stuck in a tree. If you would like to make his war arc more interesting, I would be interested. Especially if Kakashi ended up rescuing him. Or maybe he didn't, and he feels guilty about it.
• I am also interested in recovery fic for Yamato set after canon. From his war experience? Maybe that's enough by itself, or maybe it's the straw that broke the camel's back, and Kakashi helps him through it. Or just Yamato coming to terms with his past more generally. Canon skims over that, so an in-depth exploration would be interesting!
Fandom: サムライフラメンコ | Samurai Flamenco
Medium: anime and a spin-off, not entirely canon manga
Length: 22 episodes 11 chapters (both complete)
Estimated watching/reading time: the anime is 11 hours, and the manga is 1-2 hours.
Sources: The anime was recently removed from Crunchyroll (RIP) but is available on Funimation with a subscription. The manga was never officially licensed in English but fan translations are available.
Further information: Samurai Flamenco - Another Days (manga)
Samurai Flamenco is about Hazama Masayoshi, a guy who's watched too much tokusatsu and wants to be a hero for real, while having no special abilities or physical talents. After a fateful (naked) encounter with an off-duty cop, Gotou, Masayoshi starts to work towards making his dream come true, within what appears to be the bounds of reality and while working/competing against an idol singer who wants to be a magical girl to kick guys in the nuts.
And then the last ten minutes of episode 7 happen, and nothing is the same afterwards.
A show summed up by 'I want to get off Samurai Flamenco's Wild Ride', it's a mess of twists, turns, some pacing issues and an overall vibe of 'what the fuck am I watching'. It's glorious and I geninuely love it for its sheer vision and just going for it, even if it's kind of a mess. For me, the heart of it is a love of tonkusatsu and how Masayoshi grows and develops over the course of the series. And a big part of that growth is from his growing relationship with Gotou.
Pairing: Gotou Hidenori/Hazama Masayoshi
I like how these two are oblivious to their own feelings and their attraction to each other for the majority of the series. I like how they are, without doubt, the most important people to each other, and deeply care about each other even if Gotou would rather die than admit it most of the time. Both of them grow during the course of the series, thanks to their relationship, even if Gotou's growth is less drastic than Masayoshi's.I also find the final scene a little more ambiguous than some, in that they still might be edging their way into a proper relationship. If you want to involve Gotou/his girlfriend in your story, I am definitely up for that!
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Samurai Flamenco tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
Ideas:
•Anything from my general likes and ideas for long fic above.• "What are we to each other?" after the show-down with Haiji. I can see them just avoiding talking about it initially, because well, a lot happened and they both need to think about what to do next. I'd really like it if Masayoshi ended up redoing his marriage proposal in less hectic circumstances, too. Or it's meant to be less hectic, anyway...
• Pining. I love pining, so give me all the pining.
• Making up a romantic partner who turns out to be real, either via magic or by chance. This could be Masayoshi making another Flamwenco wish, but honestly Gotou making up a fake partner, while being in a different fake relationship, who turns out to be a real person is a LOT. I would like both the humour of it (seriously, what are you doing man?) and the tragedy lying under it (seriously, what are you doing?). Maybe he has to go back home and facing questions about if he's got over his girlfriend, already, and makes up a fake partner who just happens to fit Masayoshi's profile, despite not meeting him yet. And then he shows up.
• Hurt/Comfort. You can whump these two hard, I'm down for it. I'd like anything from minor hurt to aliens have them captive and one of them is alarmingly close to death. Gotou insisting that he's fine when he's most definitely not.
• Getting married! I could see them ending up with a very big, fancy wedding despite not really wanting it because Masayoshi's future president of the world status. Disastrous wedding planning? Unhelpful 'helpful' suggestions from MMM? Deciding to eventually elope because they can't cope with the strain of a big fancy wedding? Going through with it regardless because of a sense of duty and it's kind of a disaster, but they make it through the day with each other's support?
• One of them appears to have vanished from existence and the other is the only person who remembers him. Maybe aliens did it, maybe someone else got their wish granted by saying ‘flamwenco’ enough, maybe reality just warped weirdly again. Ideally I'd like the other to return. If it's Gotou, he might even end up believing the whole thing was just his imagination. I feel like Masayoshi would not quit, despite all odds and everyone else being convinced he imagined Gotou.
• Masayoshi is terrified he's accidentally forced Gotou to fall in love with him because he loves him enough to warp reality to make it happen. Either treated seriously or more lightly.
• Trapped in a fake, perfect world. I've discussed it above, but for this canon in particular, I'd be really interested in Gotou's girlfriend still being present in that world and how that affects his decision to resist or not, torn between wanting to stay to save her or protecting Masayoshi in the real world.
• Gotou being haunted by his missing girlfriend, possibly like he is in canon, or much more literally. Is she really a ghost? A hallucination caused by his guilt increasing as he gets closer to other people again despite himself? Or something else entirely? Something much more sinister...
• Undercover as a couple. It was probably not Gotou's idea, he did not want this, but now they're undercover together as a couple and Masayoshi is enjoying it more than he probably should.
• AU where Masayoshi has a different obsession and that ends up making him warp reality differently. This could be something with a similar vibe (Actual samurai? Medieval knights? Science fiction? JRPGs!) or something very different (Dating games! Cryptozoology! 19th Century Paris??? Maybe even your own personal favourite topic!). I'd like to see them coping with a very different set of challenges, particularly if he accidentally shifts the city into a completely different country or time period.
Fandom: 미숙한 표현 | Unripe Expression
Medium: webtoon
Length: 70 chapters (complete)
Estimated reading time: 40 hours.
Sources: It's not been officially licensed in English, a completed fan translation is available.
Further information: Unripe Expression
Unripe Expression is a story about a guy whose face tends to give everything away, asking the Korean equivalent of Yahoo! Answers for advice about his developing feelings for his classmate and how it leads to him making a best friend who helps him on his journey of discovery. He also gains a (male) harem, including the rude, self-absorbed jerk who rejected him back when they were kids (who I actually like a lot but is definitely a jerk).
I am very fond of Ha Junseo. He's blunt, just a little rude and can come across as intimidating, but he's also got a really kind heart, is smart, more forgiving than he looks and capable of serious self-sacrifice.
Pairing: Ha Junseo/Lee Jaewon
I won't lie, I was holding out for this pairing to come out the winner in that love triangle but alas, it wasn't to be (in canon). I really liked their relationship dynamic, where both of them mistakenly think the other is a jerk at first but after some identity shenanigans, realise that actually, the other is a nice guy and not like they thought, and how they share so much with each other that they've both been keeping inside for too long. Also, their good natured arguing is fun.I am fine with Jaewon having existing or past romantic feelings for Karam, including having been in a relationship with him, as long as the endgame is exclusively Junseo/Jaewon.
I'm open to both fic set during canon (with canon divergence) and also for post-canon fic where they've reunited. This could be during their third year, later on at college or after college. I am fine with Jaewon having existing or past romantic feelings for Karam, including having been in a relationship with him, as long as the endgame is exclusively Junseo/Jaewon.
I've requested this pairing in other exchanges and the letters are available under the Unripe Expression tag. I would like any idea I've requested for them in a previous exchange, even if I've not listed it in this letter!
The ideas below are a mixture of ones that might be enough for a stand-alone fic on their own, and smaller ideas that can fit into a bigger one.
Ideas:
•Anything from my general likes and ideas for long fic above.• Incredible amounts of pining occurring, which eventually get requited.
• Yoonsung tries to knock Junseo out of the running by telling him that Jaewon has fallen for him, but is hiding it because he's afraid of his reaction, and he should confess immediately. It's a ploy but Jaewon's behaviour is sufficient to make Junseo rethink his initial suspicion of it and start a charm offensive...which is what actually wins Jaewon over.
• Yoonsung is a jerk and tries to mess up their relationship, it completely backfires and it actually leads to Jaewon realise he's fallen for Junseo.
• Post high school, future fic where Karam and Jaewon eventually broke up, and Junseo and Jaewon end up running into each other again. Maybe this could be at the (inevitable) high school reunion, or maybe in a very different set of circumstances – they're both out so they end up going to the same places to hang out? They have overlapping friends but don't realise until they run into each other at a social event? Maybe they end up working at the same place and it is so, so awkward.
• I'd really like them awkwardly navigating how badly their friendship ended and trying to slowly rebuild it. It'd be amazing if Jaewon was the one to fall first this time around, and deal with the consequences of having rejected Junseo previously.
• Maybe they start up a FWB arrangement but it starts to get heavy and both sides are left pining but reluctant to quit, despite the pain it causes. I'd like to be eventually a happy ending, but with a lot of misunderstandings and regrets along the way to get there.
• Karam and Jaewon break up in the final year of high school and despite knowing that he should absolutely not, Junseo ends up comforting him again and helping him pick up the pieces again. This time, it leads to Jaewon falling for Junseo and it causes a lot of misunderstandings but it all works out in the end, somehow.
• When Karam rejects Jaewon's initial confession, it leads to Jaewon deciding to try getting over his crush instead of holding out, hoping he'll change his mind. Junseo helps him through it, and Jaewon realises his feelings have shifted towards his best friend.
• This is a ridiculous AU idea but here goes: AU where it's the mid 2000s and forums are still popular, so Jaewon joins a forum to get advice there instead and Junseo is a regular poster. Maybe this time it takes longer for them to realise they go to the same school, so their relationship develops differently because it's exclusively online (more honestly, perhaps?). Friendships that start online can have a very different dynamic to ones that start in-person, and it switches early enough in canon that I feel like it's more the latter. I'd like it if Junseo comes across far too blunt in his posting and Jaewon initially thinks he's a jerk but no, just a blunt guy who does actually care a lot. Basically, I have very fond memories of this kind of online environment, even if there's drama (I would find in-forum fighting really funny if you wanted to go there, btw) particularly for those who didn't fit in great irl, and I'd love to see an AU playing on that.
• Chapter 40 AU where nobody gets hiccups and Junseo just kisses him instead.
