Yuletide 2023 letter
Oct. 20th, 2023 11:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
verecundaDear Yuletider,
Hello and Happy Holidays to you! Thank you for offering to write one of my rare faves. :D This letter includes some general likes and DNWs, as well as some potential prompts. If you find something to inspire you here, that's great! But don’t feel restricted to what’s here, either. If you have another idea of your own, or if you want to take one of my prompts but put a slightly different spin on it, I’d love to see that too!
I can be found on AO3 as![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://p2.dreamwidth.org/b164c54b26e4/-/archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
Verecunda.
If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to get in touch via the mods.
Treats are enabled and welcome!
Likes
DNWs
Dickensian (TV)
- Amelia Havisham, Mr. Jaggers
Exile | Avernum
- Empress Prazac, General Baziron
The Jacobite Trilogy | The Flight of the Heron Series - D. K. Broster
- Ewen Cameron, Keith Windham, Francis Lord Aveling
Kidnapped - Robert Louis Stevenson
- David Balfour, Alan Breck Stewart
Likes:
• Fic of any rating.
• Most genres: humour, angst, fluff, darkfic, hurt/comfort, slice-of-life, character pieces, plotty pieces. I like happy endings as well as a good tragedy, or even a bittersweet ending.
• I’ve got a special fondness for things that fill in characters’ backstories, “missing scenes” from canon, and alternate POVs on canon events. Post-canon settings are always good, of course, as are canon divergence AUs and 5+1 fics.
• Worldbuilding detail. I always want to know more about the worlds these characters inhabit.
• Intelligent characters being intelligent and competent.
• Characters with tough/stoic/snarky exteriors having to confront and/or show their vulnerabilities.
• Pairings and friendships that cross cultural/class/professional lines, and how they navigate the conflicts that arise.
• Odd couples. I love opposites that attract: characters who seem so different but who end up complementing each other perfectly. (This can be either romantic or platonic.)
• Banter! I love witty characters who have a good back-and-forth.
• Gen and ship fic are equally good. I love my otps, but I know how it is. Sometimes you love the characters and their relationship, but just don’t catch the shippy vibe. In that case, there’s no pressure: I’ll be just as happy with a gen take on their dynamic.
• When it comes to ships, I love both first times and established relationships. I’m also weak for all those moments of quiet intimacy: heart-to-heart talks, kisses on cheeks, foreheads, noses, etc., hand-holding, light touches, face-stroking, hair-stroking, cuddles, resting heads on shoulders or chests, etc.
• Smut is great, but by no means obligatory.
• Pining!! I live for good old-fashioned, hopeless pining, especially if it’s mutual and all parties are in silent agonies, equally convinced it can never be. UST and unrequited love also hurt so good.
• Apart from my requested characters, I'm quite happy with other canon characters and pairings making an appearance.
• Most of my fandoms are in historical settings. I love history, so if you want to nerd out on the background details, awesome!! But this is definitely not obligatory. First and foremost, I’m here for the characters.
DNWs:
• Modern/mundane/coffee-shop AUs.
• Soulmate/soulmark/soulbond AUs.
• A/B/O.
• First or second person POV (unless featured in canon, or in epistolary format).
• Unrequested gender/sexuality headcanons.
• Smut/kink specific: watersports, scat, rimming, mpreg, tentacles.
• Most of my fandoms are in historical settings, and historical mores being what they were, I’m fine with references to or depictions of characters getting married and/or having sex in their early teens, but I’d rather not have any explicit sexual content featuring characters under the age of 16 (or equivalent, if dealing with immortal characters).
• I don’t mind non-con/dub-con in a kink context, but don’t want rape/sexual abuse/prostitution as plot devices for tragic character backstory, unless it’s already canon. Even then, I’d prefer not to dwell on it.
Dickensian (TV)
Requested characters: Amelia Havisham, Mr. Jaggers
The nights are drawing in, which in my house means it’s time to cosy in with the BBC Dickens boxsets, and Dickensian is high up on the list of faves. I absolutely love this big, mad crossover series, and I’m forever gutted it was cancelled so soon. To get it out of the way now: Amelia/Jaggers is the odd, absolutely hopeless otp of my heart, so if you wrote me ship fic for them, I would love you forever. But I also love both characters individually, and would be perfectly happy for to get something focusing on one or the other.
Individual prompts first, then:
I adore Amelia, and my heart aches for her every time I watch the series, knowing what’s coming for her. She’s a woman of very marked contrasts: haughty yet vulnerable, self-possessed yet passionate, strives to be independent, but also longs for love and companionship… so anything exploring these contrasts would be fascinating. I’d also love any missing scenes from canon, or something exploring what becomes of her after the series finale, as she starts turning into the bitter, cobwebby Miss Havisham we all know from Great Expectations.
I’d also love to know more about her background. We know she reveres her father, so I’d love to see anything sketching in their relationship more. Did Mr. Havisham ever take her to work with him, or try subtly to prepare her for taking over the business after his death? Does she have any memories of her mother? What was her relationship with her stepmother like?
Her relationship with Compeyson (boo, hiss!!) is obviously vital to the proceedings, so what about something touching on that? What about an AU where the wedding goes ahead after all? How would she react to learning about his deceit after she was already married to him? Maybe she still ends up going gothic and vengeful, but starts plotting revenge on him specifically! (I wouldn’t complain if he came to a sticky end. Just sayin’. :P)
Jaggers is probably one of my favourite literary characters of all time, and I love the younger version of him in Dickensian (the fact that he’s played by John Heffernan doesn’t hurt none, either). I like that in the show, he’s almost an inverse of himself in the original novel: in Great Expectations, he’s a decidedly shady figure who we find out later actually has quite a good heart; in Dickensian, he’s generally a good guy, but as the series goes on, we find out he’s also involved in some pretty shady dealings. It’s this moral ambiguity that I find so fascinating about him, and I’d adore anything that explored it further. How do you survive when you’re essentially good at heart, but are regularly involved in stuff that you feel the need to physically wash off after you’re done with it?
He’s also a character whose background we know absolutely nothing about - he doesn’t even have a canon first name! - so I’d welcome absolutely anything at all that filled it in. Or something about the acrimonious partnership with Mr. Tulkinghorn - I’m fascinated to know what's going on there! Or his relationship with the Havisham family in general: why does he seem to have such a strong emotional commitment to them, out of all his clients? Why does he revere Mr. Havisham’s memory so much?
I also love all the scenes he shares with Inspector Bucket, how in once scene they might give each other help and information, but in the next, find themselves in conflict. They’re both agents of the law, but in very different ways. They’re both all-too familiar with the dark underbelly of Victorian London, and have very different ways of reacting to it, and I find that contrast between them fascinating.
If you do fancy writing Amelia/Jaggers, I’m an absolute sucker for practical, cynical, misanthropic people in love, and I’ll never, ever be over the way Jaggers looks at Amelia during her shareholders’ meeting, or how his wee face goes all sad whenever she argues with him. On the one hand, there’s all sorts of room for good old-fashioned pining and UST and Repressed Victorian Denial. I can easily imagine Jaggers in particular experiencing emotions and being all “Thanks, I hate it.” Or you could explore what these two might be like if they ever did get together. A formidable public power couple, or a more private “you and me against the world” sort of relationship?
One possible AU idea: maybe Amelia is so disturbed by Compeyson’s contradictory behaviour when she first meets him that she ends up confiding her unease to Jaggers, and they end up working together to uncover his true scheme, which leads to them becoming closer.
I’d also love to see anything exploring their pre-canon dynamic. They seem to get along pretty well before Compeyson comes in and ruins everything. What was their first meeting like? Was there ever a time that their relationship almost became romantic - and if so, what stopped them? I wonder what Mr. Havisham would make of the family lawyer making obvious heart-eyes at his daughter! Has Jaggers ever considered actually proposing to Amelia, or is he too busy trying to deny everything to himself? And what about Amelia? Am I really meant to believe that she’s never looked twice at that handsome young solicitor who actually treats her as an equal?
I’m happy for their feelings to be mutual, or for some unrequited longing on Jaggers’ part. Considering the canon and the characters, angst is pretty much a given, and I’m ready and willing to have my heart broken!
Exile | Avernum
Requested characters: Empress Prazac, General Baziron
This is one of my absolute favourite RPG series of all time. Honestly, I don’t even want to think about how many weeks of my life I’ve lost to these games! I’ve been a fan since the original Exile trilogy, and I’ve played through the Avernum remakes too (with the exception of Avernum 4-6. I love the underworld setting, the exploration, the quirky humour… all of it.
Empress Prazac is my favourite character. I find her so intriguing: she’s the daughter of a tyrant, yet she’s so different from Hawthorne. I wonder what influenced her in turning out so different from him? Anything exploring her backstory would be fascinating. Why is her mother’s name censored out of the official history books? I’d also love anything exploring her early reign. Was she at the Royal Spire at the time of Hawthorne's assassination? How much did she know about what the Empire was doing during the War? Why was Garzahd the effective ruler of the Empire at that time: was Prazac just too young and naïve then to assert her own authority, or was there manipulation or even mind control involved?
What I find most admirable about Prazac is her willingness to do the right thing by Avernum, though it means putting herself in danger from the more fanatic elements in her own government - as well as her acceptance that the Empire has many crimes it still has to atone for. She had high ideals, but she also doesn't shrink from making tough decisions, so I'd love to see her dealing with high politics: perhaps facing uprisings or even assassination attempts from the hostile factions (as I said, I haven't played A4-6, so don't feel bound by the events of A5 if you want to ignore it). Maybe even coups: did Hawthorne have any other illegitimate children apart from her? Or what about conducting diplomatic negotiations with King Micah and/or Anaximander? Does she ever teleport down to Avernum to see it for herself?
General Baziron is a character I also really like, because - like his Empress - he’s willing to pit himself against the authorities to do the right thing. I love his practical, matter-of-fact character, and I'd love to know more about his battles with the golems and his relationship with his soldiers - holding Tevrono all that time must have been gruelling, and must have required keeping up morale as well as fighting power, so how was he able to do it? He also served during the Empire War and, unlike many Empire citizens, recognises Avernites as fellow humans, not monsters. Perhaps something about his experiences during the War could be interesting to write about, maybe an event that allowed him to see the fellow humanity on both sides?
I would definitely enjoy a fic featuring the two of them.I wrote a fic once, set pre-canon, where I had Baziron serving as the young Prazac's bodyguard and friend, and it's become a bit of headcanon of mine, so if you wanted to do something with that idea, I'd love it. But obviously that's not mandatory! In any case, I can imagine that Prazac would like Baziron, if she ever met him. Maybe after Valorim is saved, she rewards him for his role in fighting the golems. We know there are strong anti-Avernite factions in Prazac's government, so maybe after the events of A3, some of them start plotting against her, and Baziron helps to foil it. I'd be interested in anything that had them as allies, friends, or maybe even lovers.
The Jacobite Trilogy | The Flight of the Heron Series - D. K. Broster
Requested characters: Ewen Cameron, Keith Windham, Francis Lord Aveling
I read The Flight of the Heron and The Gleam in the North this year, and have been utterly captivated ever since. I adore stories about love and esteem across cultures, and enemies finding their way across the divide to become friends - or more! In addition, I love the vivid historical setting of this series, the rich descriptions of landscape and setting, and the unfolding, inevitable tragedy of it all.
Above all, I love Ewen and Keith. I mean… just… *gestures at the whole book* I can’t help but ship them. I mean - there’s Keith’s absolutely unbridled thirst when the book’s describing Ewen from his POV, not to mention Ewen’s unending gallantry and protectiveness, as well as the way in which they both compromise the strict letter of their duty out of loyalty to each other. I would love anything more about that strange, intense bond between them. Romance would be especially lovely, but I’ll happily take gen as well. Any missing scenes, perhaps? Maybe they have a chance to talk and learn a bit about each other during the days of Keith’s captivity. I love the heartbreaking tragedy of the whole story, so feel free to lean into that and twist my heartstrings, but equally, I’d welcome any fix-it AUs where Keith lives - however you want to bring that about! In fact, any kind of canon divergence AU would be great. What if Keith didn’t manage to escape at Fassefern? Or if one of them was taken prisoner during the Edinburgh episode? What would happen if Keith was around for the events of The Gleam of the North?
I love outsider POVs, and this seems like such a great dynamic for that. Canon does give us a Live Major Guthrie Reaction, but what about a more sympathetic observer? Aveling, maybe, or Aunt Marget? There are probably others. Hell, even Lachlan’s POV would be class!
Individually, I love Keith’s constant struggle between his strict code of honour and duty, and his love and loyalty to Ewen. His loneliness also makes my heart break, and if you’re not going for tragedy, I’d just really love to see him get the love and appreciation he so richly deserves. With Ewen, I love his natural good naturedness coupled with his slow-burn but very intense temper when roused, and his conflict in the second book, with trying to live peacefully at Ardroy, but still strongly feeling the pull of his Jacobite loyalties.
I’m also very fond of Aveling, and I’d love something that featured him too. Maybe a story about him and Keith, pre-canon? We know that they’re fond of each other, even though Keith thinks he scorns all personal relationships, and there are quite a few years between them, so what was their dynamic like? I wonder if Keith ever wrote home while he was in Scotland, and if so, did he ever mention Ewen in his letters? I’d love maybe an epistolary story, with his letters to Francis containing more and more intense mentions of this Highlander he keeps running into! Or what about an AU where he visits Keith in Scotland and gets to witness - or get mixed up in! - the events of the story for himself.
Whether AU or canon-compliant, I’d also be interested in seeing more of Francis’ dynamic with Ewen. Maybe something about them grieving Keith together, with Francis providing the anecdotes that Lady Stowe couldn’t provide? I’d also love to see Francis visiting Ardroy. I’m sure he would charm Aunt Marget for sure! If it’s a fixit, maybe he and Keith could compare notes on their experiences of the Highlands!
Kidnapped - Robert Louis Stevenson
Requested characters: David Balfour, Alan Breck Stewart
The novel was published in 1886, so various ebook options are available for free on Gutenberg.
This is one of my all-time favourite books, and Davie and Alan are one of my all-time favourite literary double acts. I just love their back-and-forth, and their strong mutual loyalty and respect, despite the vast cultural and political differences between them, David’s stark Lowland Protestant Hanoverianism vs. Alan’s flamboyant Highland Catholic Jacobitism. The shippy potential is just incredible: They both sleep under Alan’s coat!! Also: “Whereupon he gave me both of his [hands], saying surely I had cast a spell upon him, for he could forgive me anything.” I mean!!! But as per my Likes section above, I’d also be very happy with gen. As long as I can have more of these two idiots being wonderful together!
Any missing scenes would be fab: battling midges, dodging redcoats, and snarking at each other all the way across the Highlands. I’d also love anything set post-canon, because hell, that last chapter is hard on the old heartstrings. Please tell me that they meet again! One post-canon scenario I’d love to see is Alan sneaking back to Scotland to visit David at the House of Shaws, with Davie being like “YOU ABSOLUTE IDIOT” while being secretly touched. Maybe Alan meets Mr. Campbell, the minister, and has to grit his teeth and be polite to him for Davie’s sake! Maybe he’s involved in further Jacobite shenanigans, which see him returning to Scotland - and naturally, David gets roped into the madness too. Alternatively, Davie and Alan take Europe! Davie mentions studying at Leiden, so maybe he gets to visit Alan in France, or vice versa. Or even an AU where they both have to escape to France after all?
If you want to write something shippy - well! RLS kindly provided us with some wonderfully tropey material to exploit. For all it’s an adventure novel, there are quieter moments which would be great for a relatively, slower-burning coming-together, like those five idyllic days in the Heugh of Corrynakiegh. THERE'S ONLY ONE COAT. Perhaps some snuggling for warmth turns into something else entirely? Or the adrenaline from another successful escape has an unforeseen outlet?
There’s also spades of room for hurt/comfort: I’d love anything about Alan fussing over David while he’s ill, especially in Balquhidder. Their making-up after their quarrel is so hilarious and sweet at the same time, and I’d love to know what sort of heart-to-heart talks they had as soon as Davie was feeling up to it again. Or maybe Davie, in the delirium of his fever, lets slip something about his true feelings for Alan… Or we could switch the roles about and have Alan be the one in need of some TLC for a change.
The book is entirely from David’s POV, so getting Alan’s perspective could be fun. I’m sure certain things in the story, or about their relationship, would look very different through his eyes! For example, one thing I love is how, in Kidnapped, David says of Alan: “For though he had a great taste for courage in other men, yet he admired it most in Alan Breck,” yet in Catriona, we have Alan saying to Davie, “Man, I wish that I had your courage! […] for auld, cauld, dour, deadly courage, I am not fit to hold a candle to yourself.”
(Speaking of Catriona, I enjoyed it all right, but if you’re not fond, or haven’t read it, feel free to ignore its existence completely.)
As far as shippy stuff goes, there are also a few things that could be interesting to explore, but you may or may not want to deal with them. For example, David in particular is a very religious character, so if you want to delve into historical/religious attitudes towards sexuality, that’s great, but you can also handwave that if it doesn’t appeal to you. (RLS never felt himself especially bound by historical accuracy either!) Another thing is the age difference. Do either of them have any qualms about it?
I love canon divergence AUs, so I’d love any “what if?” scenario you wanted to explore. What if they get separated - or David does suggest separating for greater safety - and one of them runs into Difficulties, requiring the other to find and rescue him? The National Theatre of Scotland’s stage adaptation this year features David storming off alone after their quarrel and Alan being captured by the Campbells, resulting in Davie pretending to throw in his lot with them in order to free him - so what about something similar in the book-verse? Anything of that kind would be great!
Other possible AU ideas: I’m always in favour of adding supernatural elements to historical fandoms, and I’d love it here too. What if it’s not just redcoats they have to be wary of in the Highland mists? What if Davie, in his Lowland Whiggish ways, manages to annoy some of the Good Folk? Or Alan is so short because he has sidhe blood (as well as a king's name!)? What if they actually do encounter a water-kelpie by one of the rivers above Balquhidder? What if Jennet Clouston really is a witch and Davie inherits her curse along with the Shaws? Go mad!!
This is also one fandom where, given that the book is narrated in first-person, I'm happy to waive my usual first-person DNW.
Hello and Happy Holidays to you! Thank you for offering to write one of my rare faves. :D This letter includes some general likes and DNWs, as well as some potential prompts. If you find something to inspire you here, that's great! But don’t feel restricted to what’s here, either. If you have another idea of your own, or if you want to take one of my prompts but put a slightly different spin on it, I’d love to see that too!
I can be found on AO3 as
If you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to get in touch via the mods.
Treats are enabled and welcome!
Likes
DNWs
Dickensian (TV)
- Amelia Havisham, Mr. Jaggers
Exile | Avernum
- Empress Prazac, General Baziron
The Jacobite Trilogy | The Flight of the Heron Series - D. K. Broster
- Ewen Cameron, Keith Windham, Francis Lord Aveling
Kidnapped - Robert Louis Stevenson
- David Balfour, Alan Breck Stewart
Likes:
• Fic of any rating.
• Most genres: humour, angst, fluff, darkfic, hurt/comfort, slice-of-life, character pieces, plotty pieces. I like happy endings as well as a good tragedy, or even a bittersweet ending.
• I’ve got a special fondness for things that fill in characters’ backstories, “missing scenes” from canon, and alternate POVs on canon events. Post-canon settings are always good, of course, as are canon divergence AUs and 5+1 fics.
• Worldbuilding detail. I always want to know more about the worlds these characters inhabit.
• Intelligent characters being intelligent and competent.
• Characters with tough/stoic/snarky exteriors having to confront and/or show their vulnerabilities.
• Pairings and friendships that cross cultural/class/professional lines, and how they navigate the conflicts that arise.
• Odd couples. I love opposites that attract: characters who seem so different but who end up complementing each other perfectly. (This can be either romantic or platonic.)
• Banter! I love witty characters who have a good back-and-forth.
• Gen and ship fic are equally good. I love my otps, but I know how it is. Sometimes you love the characters and their relationship, but just don’t catch the shippy vibe. In that case, there’s no pressure: I’ll be just as happy with a gen take on their dynamic.
• When it comes to ships, I love both first times and established relationships. I’m also weak for all those moments of quiet intimacy: heart-to-heart talks, kisses on cheeks, foreheads, noses, etc., hand-holding, light touches, face-stroking, hair-stroking, cuddles, resting heads on shoulders or chests, etc.
• Smut is great, but by no means obligatory.
• Pining!! I live for good old-fashioned, hopeless pining, especially if it’s mutual and all parties are in silent agonies, equally convinced it can never be. UST and unrequited love also hurt so good.
• Apart from my requested characters, I'm quite happy with other canon characters and pairings making an appearance.
• Most of my fandoms are in historical settings. I love history, so if you want to nerd out on the background details, awesome!! But this is definitely not obligatory. First and foremost, I’m here for the characters.
DNWs:
• Modern/mundane/coffee-shop AUs.
• Soulmate/soulmark/soulbond AUs.
• A/B/O.
• First or second person POV (unless featured in canon, or in epistolary format).
• Unrequested gender/sexuality headcanons.
• Smut/kink specific: watersports, scat, rimming, mpreg, tentacles.
• Most of my fandoms are in historical settings, and historical mores being what they were, I’m fine with references to or depictions of characters getting married and/or having sex in their early teens, but I’d rather not have any explicit sexual content featuring characters under the age of 16 (or equivalent, if dealing with immortal characters).
• I don’t mind non-con/dub-con in a kink context, but don’t want rape/sexual abuse/prostitution as plot devices for tragic character backstory, unless it’s already canon. Even then, I’d prefer not to dwell on it.
Dickensian (TV)
Requested characters: Amelia Havisham, Mr. Jaggers
The nights are drawing in, which in my house means it’s time to cosy in with the BBC Dickens boxsets, and Dickensian is high up on the list of faves. I absolutely love this big, mad crossover series, and I’m forever gutted it was cancelled so soon. To get it out of the way now: Amelia/Jaggers is the odd, absolutely hopeless otp of my heart, so if you wrote me ship fic for them, I would love you forever. But I also love both characters individually, and would be perfectly happy for to get something focusing on one or the other.
Individual prompts first, then:
I adore Amelia, and my heart aches for her every time I watch the series, knowing what’s coming for her. She’s a woman of very marked contrasts: haughty yet vulnerable, self-possessed yet passionate, strives to be independent, but also longs for love and companionship… so anything exploring these contrasts would be fascinating. I’d also love any missing scenes from canon, or something exploring what becomes of her after the series finale, as she starts turning into the bitter, cobwebby Miss Havisham we all know from Great Expectations.
I’d also love to know more about her background. We know she reveres her father, so I’d love to see anything sketching in their relationship more. Did Mr. Havisham ever take her to work with him, or try subtly to prepare her for taking over the business after his death? Does she have any memories of her mother? What was her relationship with her stepmother like?
Her relationship with Compeyson (boo, hiss!!) is obviously vital to the proceedings, so what about something touching on that? What about an AU where the wedding goes ahead after all? How would she react to learning about his deceit after she was already married to him? Maybe she still ends up going gothic and vengeful, but starts plotting revenge on him specifically! (I wouldn’t complain if he came to a sticky end. Just sayin’. :P)
Jaggers is probably one of my favourite literary characters of all time, and I love the younger version of him in Dickensian (the fact that he’s played by John Heffernan doesn’t hurt none, either). I like that in the show, he’s almost an inverse of himself in the original novel: in Great Expectations, he’s a decidedly shady figure who we find out later actually has quite a good heart; in Dickensian, he’s generally a good guy, but as the series goes on, we find out he’s also involved in some pretty shady dealings. It’s this moral ambiguity that I find so fascinating about him, and I’d adore anything that explored it further. How do you survive when you’re essentially good at heart, but are regularly involved in stuff that you feel the need to physically wash off after you’re done with it?
He’s also a character whose background we know absolutely nothing about - he doesn’t even have a canon first name! - so I’d welcome absolutely anything at all that filled it in. Or something about the acrimonious partnership with Mr. Tulkinghorn - I’m fascinated to know what's going on there! Or his relationship with the Havisham family in general: why does he seem to have such a strong emotional commitment to them, out of all his clients? Why does he revere Mr. Havisham’s memory so much?
I also love all the scenes he shares with Inspector Bucket, how in once scene they might give each other help and information, but in the next, find themselves in conflict. They’re both agents of the law, but in very different ways. They’re both all-too familiar with the dark underbelly of Victorian London, and have very different ways of reacting to it, and I find that contrast between them fascinating.
If you do fancy writing Amelia/Jaggers, I’m an absolute sucker for practical, cynical, misanthropic people in love, and I’ll never, ever be over the way Jaggers looks at Amelia during her shareholders’ meeting, or how his wee face goes all sad whenever she argues with him. On the one hand, there’s all sorts of room for good old-fashioned pining and UST and Repressed Victorian Denial. I can easily imagine Jaggers in particular experiencing emotions and being all “Thanks, I hate it.” Or you could explore what these two might be like if they ever did get together. A formidable public power couple, or a more private “you and me against the world” sort of relationship?
One possible AU idea: maybe Amelia is so disturbed by Compeyson’s contradictory behaviour when she first meets him that she ends up confiding her unease to Jaggers, and they end up working together to uncover his true scheme, which leads to them becoming closer.
I’d also love to see anything exploring their pre-canon dynamic. They seem to get along pretty well before Compeyson comes in and ruins everything. What was their first meeting like? Was there ever a time that their relationship almost became romantic - and if so, what stopped them? I wonder what Mr. Havisham would make of the family lawyer making obvious heart-eyes at his daughter! Has Jaggers ever considered actually proposing to Amelia, or is he too busy trying to deny everything to himself? And what about Amelia? Am I really meant to believe that she’s never looked twice at that handsome young solicitor who actually treats her as an equal?
I’m happy for their feelings to be mutual, or for some unrequited longing on Jaggers’ part. Considering the canon and the characters, angst is pretty much a given, and I’m ready and willing to have my heart broken!
Exile | Avernum
Requested characters: Empress Prazac, General Baziron
This is one of my absolute favourite RPG series of all time. Honestly, I don’t even want to think about how many weeks of my life I’ve lost to these games! I’ve been a fan since the original Exile trilogy, and I’ve played through the Avernum remakes too (with the exception of Avernum 4-6. I love the underworld setting, the exploration, the quirky humour… all of it.
Empress Prazac is my favourite character. I find her so intriguing: she’s the daughter of a tyrant, yet she’s so different from Hawthorne. I wonder what influenced her in turning out so different from him? Anything exploring her backstory would be fascinating. Why is her mother’s name censored out of the official history books? I’d also love anything exploring her early reign. Was she at the Royal Spire at the time of Hawthorne's assassination? How much did she know about what the Empire was doing during the War? Why was Garzahd the effective ruler of the Empire at that time: was Prazac just too young and naïve then to assert her own authority, or was there manipulation or even mind control involved?
What I find most admirable about Prazac is her willingness to do the right thing by Avernum, though it means putting herself in danger from the more fanatic elements in her own government - as well as her acceptance that the Empire has many crimes it still has to atone for. She had high ideals, but she also doesn't shrink from making tough decisions, so I'd love to see her dealing with high politics: perhaps facing uprisings or even assassination attempts from the hostile factions (as I said, I haven't played A4-6, so don't feel bound by the events of A5 if you want to ignore it). Maybe even coups: did Hawthorne have any other illegitimate children apart from her? Or what about conducting diplomatic negotiations with King Micah and/or Anaximander? Does she ever teleport down to Avernum to see it for herself?
General Baziron is a character I also really like, because - like his Empress - he’s willing to pit himself against the authorities to do the right thing. I love his practical, matter-of-fact character, and I'd love to know more about his battles with the golems and his relationship with his soldiers - holding Tevrono all that time must have been gruelling, and must have required keeping up morale as well as fighting power, so how was he able to do it? He also served during the Empire War and, unlike many Empire citizens, recognises Avernites as fellow humans, not monsters. Perhaps something about his experiences during the War could be interesting to write about, maybe an event that allowed him to see the fellow humanity on both sides?
I would definitely enjoy a fic featuring the two of them.I wrote a fic once, set pre-canon, where I had Baziron serving as the young Prazac's bodyguard and friend, and it's become a bit of headcanon of mine, so if you wanted to do something with that idea, I'd love it. But obviously that's not mandatory! In any case, I can imagine that Prazac would like Baziron, if she ever met him. Maybe after Valorim is saved, she rewards him for his role in fighting the golems. We know there are strong anti-Avernite factions in Prazac's government, so maybe after the events of A3, some of them start plotting against her, and Baziron helps to foil it. I'd be interested in anything that had them as allies, friends, or maybe even lovers.
The Jacobite Trilogy | The Flight of the Heron Series - D. K. Broster
Requested characters: Ewen Cameron, Keith Windham, Francis Lord Aveling
I read The Flight of the Heron and The Gleam in the North this year, and have been utterly captivated ever since. I adore stories about love and esteem across cultures, and enemies finding their way across the divide to become friends - or more! In addition, I love the vivid historical setting of this series, the rich descriptions of landscape and setting, and the unfolding, inevitable tragedy of it all.
Above all, I love Ewen and Keith. I mean… just… *gestures at the whole book* I can’t help but ship them. I mean - there’s Keith’s absolutely unbridled thirst when the book’s describing Ewen from his POV, not to mention Ewen’s unending gallantry and protectiveness, as well as the way in which they both compromise the strict letter of their duty out of loyalty to each other. I would love anything more about that strange, intense bond between them. Romance would be especially lovely, but I’ll happily take gen as well. Any missing scenes, perhaps? Maybe they have a chance to talk and learn a bit about each other during the days of Keith’s captivity. I love the heartbreaking tragedy of the whole story, so feel free to lean into that and twist my heartstrings, but equally, I’d welcome any fix-it AUs where Keith lives - however you want to bring that about! In fact, any kind of canon divergence AU would be great. What if Keith didn’t manage to escape at Fassefern? Or if one of them was taken prisoner during the Edinburgh episode? What would happen if Keith was around for the events of The Gleam of the North?
I love outsider POVs, and this seems like such a great dynamic for that. Canon does give us a Live Major Guthrie Reaction, but what about a more sympathetic observer? Aveling, maybe, or Aunt Marget? There are probably others. Hell, even Lachlan’s POV would be class!
Individually, I love Keith’s constant struggle between his strict code of honour and duty, and his love and loyalty to Ewen. His loneliness also makes my heart break, and if you’re not going for tragedy, I’d just really love to see him get the love and appreciation he so richly deserves. With Ewen, I love his natural good naturedness coupled with his slow-burn but very intense temper when roused, and his conflict in the second book, with trying to live peacefully at Ardroy, but still strongly feeling the pull of his Jacobite loyalties.
I’m also very fond of Aveling, and I’d love something that featured him too. Maybe a story about him and Keith, pre-canon? We know that they’re fond of each other, even though Keith thinks he scorns all personal relationships, and there are quite a few years between them, so what was their dynamic like? I wonder if Keith ever wrote home while he was in Scotland, and if so, did he ever mention Ewen in his letters? I’d love maybe an epistolary story, with his letters to Francis containing more and more intense mentions of this Highlander he keeps running into! Or what about an AU where he visits Keith in Scotland and gets to witness - or get mixed up in! - the events of the story for himself.
Whether AU or canon-compliant, I’d also be interested in seeing more of Francis’ dynamic with Ewen. Maybe something about them grieving Keith together, with Francis providing the anecdotes that Lady Stowe couldn’t provide? I’d also love to see Francis visiting Ardroy. I’m sure he would charm Aunt Marget for sure! If it’s a fixit, maybe he and Keith could compare notes on their experiences of the Highlands!
Kidnapped - Robert Louis Stevenson
Requested characters: David Balfour, Alan Breck Stewart
The novel was published in 1886, so various ebook options are available for free on Gutenberg.
This is one of my all-time favourite books, and Davie and Alan are one of my all-time favourite literary double acts. I just love their back-and-forth, and their strong mutual loyalty and respect, despite the vast cultural and political differences between them, David’s stark Lowland Protestant Hanoverianism vs. Alan’s flamboyant Highland Catholic Jacobitism. The shippy potential is just incredible: They both sleep under Alan’s coat!! Also: “Whereupon he gave me both of his [hands], saying surely I had cast a spell upon him, for he could forgive me anything.” I mean!!! But as per my Likes section above, I’d also be very happy with gen. As long as I can have more of these two idiots being wonderful together!
Any missing scenes would be fab: battling midges, dodging redcoats, and snarking at each other all the way across the Highlands. I’d also love anything set post-canon, because hell, that last chapter is hard on the old heartstrings. Please tell me that they meet again! One post-canon scenario I’d love to see is Alan sneaking back to Scotland to visit David at the House of Shaws, with Davie being like “YOU ABSOLUTE IDIOT” while being secretly touched. Maybe Alan meets Mr. Campbell, the minister, and has to grit his teeth and be polite to him for Davie’s sake! Maybe he’s involved in further Jacobite shenanigans, which see him returning to Scotland - and naturally, David gets roped into the madness too. Alternatively, Davie and Alan take Europe! Davie mentions studying at Leiden, so maybe he gets to visit Alan in France, or vice versa. Or even an AU where they both have to escape to France after all?
If you want to write something shippy - well! RLS kindly provided us with some wonderfully tropey material to exploit. For all it’s an adventure novel, there are quieter moments which would be great for a relatively, slower-burning coming-together, like those five idyllic days in the Heugh of Corrynakiegh. THERE'S ONLY ONE COAT. Perhaps some snuggling for warmth turns into something else entirely? Or the adrenaline from another successful escape has an unforeseen outlet?
There’s also spades of room for hurt/comfort: I’d love anything about Alan fussing over David while he’s ill, especially in Balquhidder. Their making-up after their quarrel is so hilarious and sweet at the same time, and I’d love to know what sort of heart-to-heart talks they had as soon as Davie was feeling up to it again. Or maybe Davie, in the delirium of his fever, lets slip something about his true feelings for Alan… Or we could switch the roles about and have Alan be the one in need of some TLC for a change.
The book is entirely from David’s POV, so getting Alan’s perspective could be fun. I’m sure certain things in the story, or about their relationship, would look very different through his eyes! For example, one thing I love is how, in Kidnapped, David says of Alan: “For though he had a great taste for courage in other men, yet he admired it most in Alan Breck,” yet in Catriona, we have Alan saying to Davie, “Man, I wish that I had your courage! […] for auld, cauld, dour, deadly courage, I am not fit to hold a candle to yourself.”
(Speaking of Catriona, I enjoyed it all right, but if you’re not fond, or haven’t read it, feel free to ignore its existence completely.)
As far as shippy stuff goes, there are also a few things that could be interesting to explore, but you may or may not want to deal with them. For example, David in particular is a very religious character, so if you want to delve into historical/religious attitudes towards sexuality, that’s great, but you can also handwave that if it doesn’t appeal to you. (RLS never felt himself especially bound by historical accuracy either!) Another thing is the age difference. Do either of them have any qualms about it?
I love canon divergence AUs, so I’d love any “what if?” scenario you wanted to explore. What if they get separated - or David does suggest separating for greater safety - and one of them runs into Difficulties, requiring the other to find and rescue him? The National Theatre of Scotland’s stage adaptation this year features David storming off alone after their quarrel and Alan being captured by the Campbells, resulting in Davie pretending to throw in his lot with them in order to free him - so what about something similar in the book-verse? Anything of that kind would be great!
Other possible AU ideas: I’m always in favour of adding supernatural elements to historical fandoms, and I’d love it here too. What if it’s not just redcoats they have to be wary of in the Highland mists? What if Davie, in his Lowland Whiggish ways, manages to annoy some of the Good Folk? Or Alan is so short because he has sidhe blood (as well as a king's name!)? What if they actually do encounter a water-kelpie by one of the rivers above Balquhidder? What if Jennet Clouston really is a witch and Davie inherits her curse along with the Shaws? Go mad!!
This is also one fandom where, given that the book is narrated in first-person, I'm happy to waive my usual first-person DNW.
