alyse: last of her breed

Dear Yuletide Writer

alyse — Sun, 03 Nov 2019 22:26:45 GMT

The fandoms (and characters) of my heart I've requested (in alphabetical order :D)
Blade (Movie Series) - Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King
Minor Mage – T Kingfisher - Oliver (Minor Mage), Eglamarck | The Armadillo (Minor Mage)
Practical Magic - Bridget "Jet" Owens, Frances Owens, Gillian Owens, Sally Owens

First of all, thank you for writing for me!

I usually find myself in small fandoms anyway, and therefore Yuletide is often my only chance to read fic that I haven't written myself, so there is at least one perennial fandom of mine on this list.

I know some people like to have bullet points and lists and prompts, but all prompts are, of course, optional. I just want you to have as much fun writing your story as I'm going to have reading it.

Loves:

I love stories that explore the relationships between characters, whether romantic, filial, or friends. I am never going to tire of stories about loyalty and trust, partners who have each other's backs, found families that are small and broken but still good. People who love each but can still call each other on their shit, and who will go to the end of the earth for each other.

I love female characters of all types: strong, capable, competent, caring, flawed. I have a massive competency kink which is pretty much doubled when it involves women, and I adore the trope of capable women and the still capable but slightly broken men who pretty much worship the ground they walk on and who actually trust the woman in their lives to know their own minds and their own limitations.

Stoic characters who hide so much beneath the surface (especially if they're female). Smart characters who might occasionally do stupid things for the right reasons. Broken characters who just keep on going out of sheer stubbornness because they just can't quit. I don't mind if it's casefic or shipfic, plot or porn or a combination of all of them, but I'm largely in fandom for the characters and what they mean to each other so I would love anything that explores that in any of the fandoms I've requested.

I like happy endings, but I don't mind if they're bitter sweet. I enjoy hurt-comfort and injury is fine as long as it's not permanent and doesn't result in death. And if you want to go the porn route (and you're under no obligation to do so, but, you know, porn :D), I like stories that focus on female pleasure and I have a particular fondness for threesomes, cunning linguists :D and pegging, plus fem!dom (with male subs) as long as it doesn't involve humiliation or significant pain.

Dislikes:

I don't have many hard do not wants, but the things below are pretty much guaranteed to stop me from being able to read your story:

I have a massive second hand embarrassment squick, so please, no humiliating characters or having them embarrass themselves.

non-con, whether that's actual, implied or somehow averted, unless it's happened in canon (and even then, I'd prefer it wasn't the focus of the story)

death fic, although I'm okay with a story dealing with the aftermath if it happened in canon.

Dear Yuletide Writer...

alyse — Sun, 08 Oct 2017 14:58:09 GMT

Dear Yuletide Writer

The fandoms (and characters) of my heart I've requested (in alphabetical order :D)
Blade (Movie Series) - Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King
Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004) - Javier Suarez, Katey Miller
Emerald City (TV 2016) - Dorothy Gale, Lucas/Roan
From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series - Kate Fuller, Seth Gecko
Open Range (2003) - Bluebonnet "Boss" Spearman, Button
Sólo quiero caminar | Just Walking (2008) - Aurora Rodriguez, Gabriel</i>

First of all, thank you for writing for me!

Generally, I'm drawn to small fandoms anyway, and in some cases, Yuletide is my only chance to read fic that I haven't written myself, so there is at least one perennial fandom of mine on this list.

I know some people like to have bullet points and lists and prompts, but all prompts are, of course, optional. I just want you to have as much fun writing your story as I'm going to have reading it.

Loves:

Female characters. Strong, capable, competent, caring, flawed. I have a massive competency kink which is pretty much doubled when it involves women, and I adore the trope of capable women and the still capable but slightly broken men who pretty much worship the ground they walk on.

Stories that explore the relationships between characters, whether those are romantic or not. I am never going to tire of stories about loyalty and trust, partners who have each other's backs, found families that are small and broken but still good. People who love each but can still call each other on their shit, and male characters who actually trust the woman in their lives to know their own minds and their own limitations.

Stoic characters who hide so much beneath the surface (especially if they're female). Smart characters who might occasionally do stupid things for the right reasons. Broken characters who just keep on going out of sheer stubbornness because they just can't quit. I don't mind if it's casefic or shipfic, plot or porn or a combination of all of them, but I'm largely in fandom for the characters and what they mean to each other so I would love anything that explores that in any of the fandoms I've requested.

I especially love relationships that are all about the unspoken bonds, where a quiet touch or a simple exchange means so much, so even shipfic doesn't need to be all romantic declarations of love.

I like happy endings, but I don't mind if they're bitter sweet. I enjoy hurt-comfort and injury is fine as long as it's not permanent and doesn't result in death. And if you want to go the porn route (and you're under no obligation to do so, but, you know, porn :D), I like stories that focus on female pleasure and I have a particular fondness for threesomes, cunning linguists :D and pegging, plus fem!dom (with male subs) as long as it doesn't involve humiliation or significant pain.

Dislikes:

I don't have many hard do not wants, but the things below are pretty much guaranteed to stop me from being able to read your story:

I have a massive second hand embarrassment squick, so please, no humiliating characters or having them embarrass themselves.

non-con, whether that's actual, implied or somehow averted, unless it's happened in canon (and even then, I'd prefer it wasn't the focus of the story)

death fic, although I'm okay with a story dealing with the aftermath if it happened in canon.

For most fandoms, I'd prefer fic set in the canon universe rather than outright AUs, although I don't mind 'what ifs' if you want to explore what would happen if canon went in a slightly different direction. And please no fic with men dominating women in the bedroom, although I would be happy if it was the other way around :D

Blade (Movie Series)

Characters I've requested: Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King

Background info: There are three movies making up this series, all of them about a half-blood vampire hunter, Eric Blade, who generally goes around being sullen and staking vampires, while also suffering some existential angst and looking cool in black leather and sunglasses.

Me, I like the sidekicks.

What it is that I love: Abby is my girl. She's stoic and kick ass, competent but with hints of vulnerability. I love Abby together with King, the way that they have each other's backs without a second thought and that she can silence him with just a single look. I love the way that their body language mirrors each other, the way they trade glances while Blade kicks ass, the way they move in sync while fighting. I ship Abby/King like whoah, but I know not everyone does, so I'm okay with stories that show them as friends and partners.

I love the whole 'found family' deal with the Nightstalkers, particularly with Zoe, so if you want to include any other of the Nightstalkers in the fic (or even Karen Jenson, who I also nominated), please feel free. Abigail and King are my favourite characters, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't love something more team-related as well. The only thing I would ask is no Drake/King, please. Definitely not my cuppa.

Prompts/Optional Details: All prompts are, again, optional. Feel free to pick and mix, choose little pieces of prompts or ignore them completely and write something different. Have fun! :)

As far as I'm concerned, there can never be enough stories exploring the wider world of the Blade movies, particularly the Nightstalker network. How does Whistler senior go about setting it up, and how does Abby get involved? How does Abigail and King's cell fit in with the wider Nightstalkers' network? Are they the main cell? R&D? The misfits?

In one of the codas at the end of the movie, seen in the extended version, the vampires have been wiped out by DayStar and Abby and King are now hunting werewolves with Caulder, with the suggestion that the werewolves they're hunting have somehow been vampirised. Tell me about that, whether it's how they move into werewolf hunting, or about one hunt in particular.

What happens when a hunt goes wrong? What if Abby's hurt? Or King?

Do they ever have to go undercover to find their mark? Troll night clubs looking for vampire lairs? Haunt metro networks or street corners?

Do they ever take the night off? What does downtime look like to a vampire hunter?

Other things you might want to know: This is one of the fandoms where there is in canon character death and non-con (I'm convinced that Danica/King wasn't consensual), so I don't mind if the story touches on that.

Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights

Characters I've requested: Javier Suarez, Katey Miller

Background info: Completely cheesy dance movie that's all about romance amid revolution. It's terrible, but I love it so!

What it is that I love: The dancing. The music. A very young Diego Luna and Romola Garai. The romance. The dancing.

I love the relationship that Javier has with his family, how he's so young and yet has so much responsibility placed on his shoulders. And I love Katey's whole fish out of water thing with the other rich kids of her supposed set, how she's both so old and young at the same time. And love the way they move together.

Prompts/Optional Details: As always, optional details are optional, so feel free to mix, match or ignore.

I'd love a story about Javier and Katey meeting again, maybe a few years down the line. Do things get worse for the Suarez family in Cuba. Do they end up making it to America anyway? How do Javier's and Katey's paths cross? Do they fall in love again, or have they never fallen out of it?

How was their first time? There was a lot of fade-to-black.

What about all of the rehearsals they did? Did they have any more almost kisses apart from the garage?

Tell me about their first kiss? Was that one on the dancefloor actually their first? If not, how many have they stolen before then?

Why are Katey's family okay with her staying out all night that night of the revolution?

Emerald City

Characters I've requested: Dorothy Gale, Lucas/Roan

Background info: Dorothy's all grown up and a nurse when she's whisked to Oz with police dog, Toto. There she rescues a tarred and feathered man, hung from a pole, and engineers the death of the witch, East. Then it really gets weird.

What it is that I love: I love the feel of this show, the opulence of it, the richness of the characters, the way it takes the books and just twists them a little. I love most of the characters, but I love the relationship between Dorothy and Lucas most of all, the trust and the betrayal, the love and the way it comes to border on hate.

Prompts/Optional Details: As always, all prompts are optional.

It looks like we won't be getting any more Emerald City (sad face) so I'm all about fic that picks up where the series left off.

What happens when Lucas comes for Dorothy? Does she go back to Oz with him? Does she not? Do they face the Beast Forever and defeat it, save her mother?

What about Lucas's relationship with Glinda? Is he still torn between being Roan and being Lucas? Why did Jane send him, or did she? Is it a trap?

Or, how did Lucas make the decisions he did that led to him trying to kill Dorothy? Was it simply the power that Glinda exerts, or something deeper that that? Something of Roan?

What about Dorothy? Was it grief or rage or something else that had her literally putting Lucas back where she found him?

How do they move past it? Do they? Or does it get buried under the weight of things they have to go, a silent tension between them while they do what needs to be done?

What about Toto? Does he make go back to Oz, too?

Other things you might want to know: I have read all of the Oz books, but that was many, many moons ago when I was wee.

From Dusk Till Dawn: TV Series

Characters I've requested: Kate Fuller, Seth Gecko

Background info: When professional bank robber Seth Gecko and his brother, Richie, take a job that goes wrong, they end up taking hostages just north of the Mexican border. They escape to a seedy bar called 'Titty Twisters' where they realise that Richie's deteriorating mental health is the least of their problems.

What it is that I love: Culebras and criminals and fucked up relationships, oh my!

I love Seth and Kate together, in all of their messed up, resentful glory. He ruined her life, and she's returned the favour. I love the fact that they're so different and yet so similar, always putting family first and dragged into the world of Culebras because of their love for their brothers, even while part of them resents that same affection.

I'd be happy with anything that explores Seth and Kate's relationship, whether that's shippy or not. It doesn't have to be hearts and flowers - it wouldn't be realistic if it was - but something raw and real, part attraction, part inevitability with all of the messed up baggage that goes with it.

Prompts/Optional Details: Optional details are optional :D

How Kate recovers from Amaru - if she does - and how Seth helps or hinders that.

There's a reference in Season 3 to Seth still having his own venom - tell me about that, how he beats his addiction, if he ever does. Does he replace it with something else, like alcohol or Kate perhaps?

Tell me how Kate adapts to the world of Culebras now that she knows Scott is never leaving it, and her attempts to help him ended so disastrously. Does she still try to have a normal life before she succumbs to the allure of the Gecko brothers?

What happens after the end of the Season 3 finale? One second it looks like Seth and Richie are leaving Kate behind, and then she's with them, robbing banks. How did that come about?

Tell me about Kate's first time.

Other things you might want to know: It's okay to include any of the other nominated characters, as long as Seth and Kate are the focus of the fic.

Open Range

Characters I've requested: Bluebonnet "Boss" Spearman, Button, Charley Waite

Background info: Boss Spearman and his small crew are free grazers, tending their cattle on the open range. However, times are changing and to some ranchers, free grazers are parasites. They believe that they own the land and they're willing to use violence to enforce that.

What it is that I love: I love this movie - the down to earth pragmatism of Boss and Charlie, and the relationship between the two, but most of all the quasi-paternal relationship that Boss has with Button, the 16-year old they rescued from the gutter. It's another of my 'found family' fandoms.

Prompts/Optional Details: Optional details are optional :D

I'd love a story that explores the relationship between Boss and Button in particular, so anything about that - how they found Button, why and how they decided to keep him with them when - especially in the beginning - he was small and scrawny - would be my jam.

I love how Button tries so hard to live up to their expectations of him, how he's itching to do more, but how he's still a child in many ways - trusting and impatient both at once. I love Charley's big brother like exasperation, and Boss's barely hidden affection, as rough and ready as the man himself. And how eager Button is for that praise, the need for validation.

Just anything about this little family - before the movie or after it - would be great.

Other things you might want to know: The only reason I haven't also selected Sue is because I don't want to limit you to a post-movie fic. But if you want to include her, I'd be really happy with that. And if you do want to set it pre-movie, feel free to include Mose.

No slash or underage sex for this fandom, please. Thank you.

Sólo quiero caminar | Just Walking

Characters I've requested: Aurora Rodriguez, Gabriel

Background info: Four women form a criminal gang, with strong ties between them and a ride-or-die attitude. When one of them marries an abusive Mexican crime lord, and suffers as a result, the rest of her gang are out for revenge. This is a full-blooded crime caper set in Spain and Mexico, lusciously full of barely suppressed passion.

What it is that I love: Oh my God. What's not to love. Leaving aside the fact that the leads are all women, I just love Aurora and the chemistry she has with Gabriel. They are two very damaged individuals on opposite sides of this war, and yet somehow they manage to forge a connection.

I love that Aurora is allowed to use men for just sex, that she's allowed to not want hearts and flowers, just a release of tension. And I love that Gabriel, who is so closed off, becomes fascinated by her - who wouldn't be - to the extent that he chooses her over everything else. And I love his twisted sense of honour, even as he works as an enforcer to a man who is anything but honourable.

Prompts/Optional Details: Optional details are optional :D

Can I just say one thing - why the hell does no one in this movie ever think to call a bloody ambulance? I mean, I get the aesthetic, but frankly if you've got time for a dramatically slow death scene, full of conversations with loved ones, then you've got time to call an ambulance.

So let's call one, yeah?

So what I want is fix-it fic. No one dies. They escape. They carry out more crimes. They're avenging angels for the abused women and children of the world. Gloria sees her kid grow up and Paloma isn't forced into that weird thing of raising a teenager who's got a crush on each other. Gabriel and Aurora actually learn about each other. Maybe they're all on the run from the mob. Maybe they aren't. Where do they go from here?

That's really what I want, but feel free to elaborate however you like on that bare-bones request :D

Other things you might want to know: I'm perfectly happy if you want to include the whole gang. I'm just thoroughly intrigued by Aurora and Gabriel (and those smoking hot scenes) between them, so I'd like any story to focus on them, please.

'Tis the most wonderful time of the year...

alyse — Fri, 15 Sep 2017 20:33:24 GMT

Made my Yuletide noms:

Blade (Movie Series)

Abigail Whistler
Hannibal King
Zoe Sommerfield
Karen Jenson

(Hands up if you're at all surprised by that.)

Open Range (2003)

Boss Spearman
Charley Waite
Button (Open Range)
Sue Barlow

(I really want Boss and Button fic, with that whole found family, paternal relationship thing.)

Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004)

Javier Suarez
Katey Miller

(I had lots of fun when I wrote this pairing for Chocolate Box this year.)

Kind of hoping that someone nominates From Dusk Til Dawn: The Series, but since I suspect it will be more popular than the ones I did nominate, I figured I'd go rare :D

So...

alyse — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 22:28:05 GMT

It’s amazing how many of my text posts start with 'So...'

So...

Back in 2012 (yes), I started a Blade: Trinity fic from an outsider POV. I think I finished it about a... year ago? At least to the point where I could get the blasted idea - which had been tormenting me for four bloody years - out of my head.

The hardest thing was trying to nail down the voice of OC, who is quite absolutely fundamental to the plot and with the wrong 'voice' would ruin the story.

So, I have something I’m vaguely happy with, which runs at around 36k, but I’ve got an extra 4.5k of stuff I’ve cut or rewritten from the pivotal final scene. And I keep looking at what I’ve got, and what I’ve cut, and going ‘but... I love this little bit’ and ‘that sounds so King’ and...

I’m definitely at the point where I need a second pair of eyes.

Anyone up for it?

alyse — Sun, 16 Apr 2017 12:26:29 GMT

So, apparently it's LJ's 18th birthday. Can't believe how long I've been on the site, even if I now no longer use it.

#mylivejournal #lj18 #happybirthday

Not even sure if this will cross post since I haven't accepted the terms and conditions yet.

alyse — Sun, 16 Apr 2017 12:25:18 GMT

So, apparently it's LJ's 18th birthday. Can't believe how long I've been on the site, even if I now no longer use it.

Not even sure if this will cross post since I haven't accepted the terms and conditions yet.

Fic: A Promised Kiss and a Heartfelt Wish (Dirty Dancing 2: Havana Nights, Javier/Katey, Teen)

alyse — Sat, 25 Feb 2017 22:28:56 GMT

A Promised Kiss and a Heartfelt Wish (937 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Katey Miller/Javier Suarez
Characters: Katey Miller, Javier Suarez
Additional Tags: First Kiss, Romance, Missing Scene

Summary:

"You see how much they want to be in each other's arms?"

His words curl around her like a caress and she shivers in spite of the heat. She doesn't need to look at the screen to see what he sees, not when she can see the reflection of it on his face. He sees a love that still shines as bright as the day it was filmed, and she feels an echo of it in the tremble of her fingers, in the catch of her breath, in the erratic beat of her heart.

Javier and Katey's first kiss.

Fic: Drift (Dark Angel, gen, teen)

alyse — Sat, 25 Feb 2017 22:10:49 GMT

Drift (2084 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Dark Angel
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Max Guevara | X5-452 & Joshua (Dark Angel) & Alec McDowell | X5-494
Characters: Max Guevara | X5-452, Joshua (Dark Angel), Alec McDowell | X5-494
Additional Tags: Families of Choice, Team as Family, Bickering, Protectiveness

Summary: "There are ways Joshua can help that don't involve him having to carry a gun."

"You and me, Max, we don't get to make that choice for him." It's the 'you and me' that finally silences her.

Max and Alec have a heart to heart in Terminal City.

Dear Chocolate Box Author

alyse — Fri, 06 Jan 2017 23:55:01 GMT

First of all, thank you for agreeing to write for me :) I've pulled together some information on why I have chosen the Fandoms I have, and what I love about them, and set it out below, so hopefully you'll find that helpful. Most importantly, have fun!

Fandoms and Pairings I've requested:

Blade (Movie Series) – Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler, Abigail Whistler & Karen Jenson

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) - Cassian Andor/Jyn Erso (Rogue One), Cassian Andor & Jyn Erso & K-2SO (Rogue One), Bodhi Rook & Baze Malbus & Cassian Andor & Chirrut Îmwe & Jyn Erso & K-2SO (Rogue One)

Stargate: Atlantis - Elizabeth Weir/Radek Zelenka

Terminator Genisys (2015) - Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese (Genisys)

Things I love:

My fandoms tend to have themes, similarities between them that just make me happy, and those are the sort of things that I just love in fandom, too. These include: fierce, competent women and the slightly broken men who worship the ground they walk on; height differences between men and women, but she can still kick his ass; found families; you and me against the world/I'm with you to the end of the line.

Other tropes/narrative kinks that I love include: competency; loyalty; hurt-comfort; comfort in general; the woman being the stoic one; characters forced to cooperate and trust growing between them; trust in general; unspoken feelings; small gestures that mean big things; friends to lovers; undercover lovers; mutual pining; sharing a bed; fem!dom without humiliation or significant pain.

Genres I love: mysteries; science fiction; creature flicks; comforting character driven stories; action/adventure; domestic bliss. I like happy endings and tension and sex and bittersweet threads running through things. Also, porn. Porn is always good :D

Things I don't like

Character death, non-con or rape, character bashing. I have a huge humiliation squick, so I literally will not be able to read anything where the characters are made a fool of (even worse if they make a fool of themselves and don't even realise it). I'm not generally fond of AUs as I prefer fics in keeping with canon, but that being said I'm perfectly happy with fix-it fic for certain (no spoilers!) fandoms.

Prompts/Fandom specific things:

Please consider all prompts to be entirely optional – I know some people prefer to have prompts, and some people prefer not to, so they're just here in case you're one of the people who likes to have them.

Blade (Movie Series)

This fandom is a long-standing love of mine, and I'm always wanting more fannish stuff for it. I love Abby/King – it's my pairing of choice – but I'm also intrigued with how Karen fits into the wider world of the Nightstalkers, and wonder whether she and Abigail ever met.

Prompts: I'm a sucker for any stories about Abigail saving King, or vice versa, so anything that explores his statement about how Abigail found him and gave him the cure would make me happy. Or maybe they save each other during a mission, or they have to go undercover in order to infiltrate a vampire clan, or maybe they just get into a fight and have to patch each other up afterwards.

How did Abigail and Karen meet? Does Abigail drag Karen into saving King? How does Karen feel about that? Or maybe, given that she is a doctor, she has to patch Abigail up in Somerfield's absence.

I love all of the Nightstalkers, so feel free to include any in your story you would like.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

I've just seen this movie and, boy, do I want more of these characters, particularly given that ending. I came out of the movie shipping Cassian and Jyn like whoa!, and the whole Rogue One team just satisfied my 'found family' kink.

Prompts: Give me more. More of the team, running missions post Scarif. More of Cassian and Jyn slowly falling for each other. Give me missing scenes, stolen moments from the movie. Give me more of Bodhi and his issues, of Churrit and his faith, of Baze and his cynicism and protective streak, of K–2S0 and his sarcasm and loyalty to Cassian.

Given how close the movie was to a traditional war movie instead of the Star Wars universe we're more familiar with, what about an AU where they're in the resistance in the Second World War instead of in space, or where they're spies, deep undercover, during the Cold War? What about a story that picks up the team, with all of their myriad of issues, and drops them somewhere else, that little cluster of broken, wounded souls who came together to forge something stronger? Cassian and Jyn, street rats now in their early 20s trying to make a go of it when the whole world's stacked against them. Bodhi, broken but still trying to do the right thing. Churrit and Baze, running a mission or a halfway house for lost souls. Go wild and have fun.

Stargate: Atlantis

This is a nostalgic fandom for me, but there still isn't enough Elizabeth Weir/Radek Zelenka fic in the world.

Prompts: anything where Elizabeth is awesome and Radek follows her around, basking in the awesomeness. Sometimes, it seems as though the pair of them are the only sane members of the Atlantis crew – for a certain value of 'sane'. So give me a mission where they have to save everybody else's ass because they're the only ones who keep their heads. Or quiet moments stolen in between diplomatic disasters and scientific chaos. Who does Elizabeth unburden herself to at the end of the day? At what point will Radek actually seriously consider killing Rodney and hiding his body in one of the less explored areas of Atlantis?

Terminator Genisys

I've loved Sarah and Kyle since I was barely old enough to rent the video legally. I love the newest incarnation just as much, and this time they got their happy ending. I haven't, however, watched the Sarah Connor Chronicles and I don't remember much about the other movies, so please bear that in mind. Thank you.

Prompts: How do Sarah and Kyle's childhoods differ, and how are they the same? Both were raised by warriors to be warriors, after all. The after the credits scene suggests that Skynet/Genisys survived, so what happens next? Are Sarah, Kyle and Pops left running for their lives?

What if Judgement Day happens anyway - tell me something about Sarah, Kyle and Pops in the aftermath. Or what about something about the three of them adapting to life in 2017 - it's a whole new world for Sarah and Kyle.

What happens now that Sarah's chosen Kyle? Will she get scared again? Will she commit? Did John survive the destruction of Genisys? If yes, what happens next? If no, how do Sarah and Kyle cope with the grief?

What about some quiet moments between them now that they have time to breathe? How do they connect, overcome that awkwardness?

Dear Chocolate Box Author

alyse — Fri, 06 Jan 2017 23:51:42 GMT

First of all, thank you for agreeing to write for me :) I've pulled together some information on why I have chosen the Fandoms I have, and what I love about them, and set it out below, so hopefully you'll find that helpful. Most importantly, have fun!

Fandoms and Pairings I've requested:

Blade (Movie Series) – Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler, Abigail Whistler & Karen Jenson

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) - Cassian Andor/Jyn Erso (Rogue One), Cassian Andor & Jyn Erso & K-2SO (Rogue One), Bodhi Rook & Baze Malbus & Cassian Andor & Chirrut Îmwe & Jyn Erso & K-2SO (Rogue One)

Stargate: Atlantis - Elizabeth Weir/Radek Zelenka

Terminator Genisys (2015) - Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese (Genisys)

Things I love:

My fandoms tend to have themes, similarities between them that just make me happy, and those are the sort of things that I just love in fandom, too. These include: fierce, competent women and the slightly broken men who worship the ground they walk on; height differences between men and women, but she can still kick his ass; found families; you and me against the world/I'm with you to the end of the line.

Other tropes/narrative kinks that I love include: competency; loyalty; hurt-comfort; comfort in general; the woman being the stoic one; characters forced to cooperate and trust growing between them; trust in general; unspoken feelings; small gestures that mean big things; friends to lovers; undercover lovers; mutual pining; sharing a bed; fem!dom without humiliation or significant pain.

Genres I love: mysteries; science fiction; creature flicks; comforting character driven stories; action/adventure; domestic bliss. I like happy endings and tension and sex and bittersweet threads running through things. Also, porn. Porn is always good :D

Things I don't like

Character death, non-con or rape, character bashing. I have a huge humiliation squick, so I literally will not be able to read anything where the characters are made a fool of (even worse if they make a fool of themselves and don't even realise it). I'm not generally fond of AUs as I prefer fics in keeping with canon, but that being said I'm perfectly happy with fix-it fic for certain (no spoilers!) fandoms.

Prompts/Fandom specific things:

Please consider all prompts to be entirely optional – I know some people prefer to have prompts, and some people prefer not to, so they're just here in case you're one of the people who likes to have them.

Blade (Movie Series)

This fandom is a long-standing love of mine, and I'm always wanting more fannish stuff for it. I love Abby/King – it's my pairing of choice – but I'm also intrigued with how Karen fits into the wider world of the Nightstalkers, and wonder whether she and Abigail ever met.

Prompts: I'm a sucker for any stories about Abigail saving King, or vice versa, so anything that explores his statement about how Abigail found him and gave him the cure would make me happy. Or maybe they save each other during a mission, or they have to go undercover in order to infiltrate a vampire clan, or maybe they just get into a fight and have to patch each other up afterwards.

How did Abigail and Karen meet? Does Abigail drag Karen into saving King? How does Karen feel about that? Or maybe, given that she is a doctor, she has to patch Abigail up in Somerfield's absence.

I love all of the Nightstalkers, so feel free to include any in your story you would like.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

I've just seen this movie and, boy, do I want more of these characters, particularly given that ending. I came out of the movie shipping Cassian and Jyn like whoah!, At the whole Rogue One team just satisfied my 'found family' kink.

Prompts: Give me more. More of the team, running missions post Scarif. More of Cassian and Jyn slowly falling for each other. Give me missing scenes, stolen moments from the movie. Give me more of Bodhi and his issues, of Churrit and his faith, of Baze and his cynicism and protective streak, of K–2S0 and his sarcasm and loyalty to Cassian.

Given how close the movie was to a traditional war movie instead of the Star Wars universe we're more familiar with, what about an AU where they're in the resistance in the Second World War instead of in space, or where they're spies, deep undercover, during the Cold War? What about a story that picks up the team, with all of their myriad of issues, and drops them somewhere else, that little cluster of broken, wounded souls who came together to forge something stronger? Cassian and Jyn, street rats now in their early 20s trying to make a go of it when the whole world's stacked against them. Bodhi, broken but still trying to do the right thing. Churrit and Baze, running a mission or a halfway house for lost souls. Go wild and have fun.

Stargate: Atlantis

This is a nostalgic fandom for me, but there still isn't enough Elizabeth Weir/Radek Zelenka fic in the world.

Prompts: anything where Elizabeth is awesome and Radek follows her around, basking in the awesomeness. Sometimes, it seems as though the pair of them are the only sane members of the Atlantis crew – for a certain value of 'sane'. So give me a mission where they have to save everybody else's ass because they're the only ones who keep their heads. Or quiet moments stolen in between diplomatic disasters and scientific chaos. Who does Elizabeth unburden herself to at the end of the day? At what point will Radek actually seriously consider killing Rodney and hiding his body in one of the less explored areas of Atlantis?

Terminator Genisys

I've loved Sarah and Kyle since I was barely old enough to rent the video legally. I love the newest incarnation just as much, and this time they got their happy ending. I haven't, however, watched the Sarah Connor Chronicles and I don't remember much about the other movies, so please bear that in mind. Thank you.

Prompts: How do Sarah and Kyle's childhoods differ, and how are they the same? Both were raised by warriors to be warriors, after all. The after the credits scene suggests that Skynet/Genisys survived, so what happens next? Are Sarah, Kyle and Pops left running for their lives?

What if Judgement Day happens anyway - tell me something about Sarah, Kyle and Pops in the aftermath. Or what about something about the three of them adapting to life in 2017 - it's a whole new world for Sarah and Kyle.

What happens now that Sarah's chosen Kyle? Will she get scared again? Will she commit? Did John survive the destruction of Genisys? If yes, what happens next? If no, how do Sarah and Kyle cope with the grief?

What about some quiet moments between them now that they have time to breathe? How do they connect, overcome that awkwardness?

Dear Yuletide Writer...

alyse — Sun, 09 Oct 2016 20:11:47 GMT

The fandoms (and characters) of my heart I've requested (in alphabetical order :D)
Blade (Movie Series) - Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King
Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters - Hansel, Gretel
Terminator Genisys - Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese, Pops
Thoughtcrimes - Freya McAllister, Brendan Dean

First of all, thank you for writing for me!

The fandoms and characters I've requested are ones that are close to my heart. I'm a small fandom girl so I tend to write in some of these fandoms all year around. In many cases, Yuletide is my only chance to read fic that I haven't written myself, so please don't be disheartened by the fact that I often request these fandoms. It's not that I haven't loved what I've received in the past - it's just that I'm just greedy and I always want more. I'm sure I'll love whatever you write :)

I know some people like to have bullet points and lists and prompts, but all prompts are, of course, optional. I just want you to have as much fun writing your story as I'm going to have reading it.

Loves:

Female characters. OMG female characters. Strong, capable, competent, caring, flawed. I have a massive competency kink which is pretty much doubled when it involves women, and I adore the trope of capable women and the still capable but slightly broken men who pretty much worship the ground they walk on. That might ::cough:: be slightly obvious from the fandoms I'm in.

I'm all about the relationships, whether those are romantic or not. I'm about loyalty and trust, characters who have each other's backs until the end of the line. People who love each other, but who aren't afraid to call each other on their shit. Found families, the ones that are small and broken but still good. Those are just my jam. And, oh, male characters who actually trust the woman in their lives to know their own minds and their own limitations.

Stoic characters who hide so much beneath the surface (especially if they're female). Smart characters who might occasionally do stupid things for the right reasons. Broken characters who just keep on going out of sheer stubbornness because they just can't quit. Partners who rely on each other, and friends who will always be there. I don't mind if it's casefic or shipfic, plot or porn or a combination of all of them, but I'm largely in fandom for the characters and what they mean to each other so I would love anything that explores that in any of the fandoms I've requested.

I especially love relationships that are all about the unspoken bonds, where a quiet touch or a simple exchange means so much, so even shipfic doesn't need to be all romantic declarations of love (not that I object to those :D).

I like happy endings, but I don't mind if they're bitter sweet. I enjoy hurt-comfort and injury is fine as long as it's not permanent and doesn't result in death. And if you want to go the porn route (and you're under no obligation to do so, but, you know, porn :D), I like stories that focus on female pleasure and I have a particular fondness for threesomes, cunning linguists :D and pegging, plus fem!dom (with male subs) as long as it doesn't involve humiliation or significant pain.

Dislikes:

I don't have many hard do not wants, but the things below are pretty much guaranteed to stop me from being able to read your story:

I have a massive second hand embarrassment squick, so please, no humiliating characters or having them embarrass themselves.

non-con, whether that's actual, implied or somehow averted, unless it's happened in canon (and even then, I'd prefer it wasn't the focus of the story)

death fic, although I'm okay with a story dealing with the aftermath if it happened in canon.

For most fandoms, I'd prefer fic set in the canon universe rather than outright AUs, although I don't mind 'what ifs' if you want to explore what would happen if canon went in a slightly different direction. And please no fic with men dominating women in the bedroom, although I would be happy if it was the other way around :D

Phew. Hopefully that's not too offputting! Now to the fandoms:

Blade (Movie Series)

Characters I've requested: Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King

Background info: There are three movies making up this series, all of them about a half-blood vampire hunter, Eric Blade, who generally goes around being sullen and staking vampires, while also suffering some existential angst and looking cool in black leather and sunglasses.

Me, I like the sidekicks.

What it is that I love: Abby is my go to girl. She's stoic and kick ass, competent but with cracks that let the vulnerability shines through. I love Abby together with King, the way that they spark off each other, have each other's backs without a second thought, and the way she can silence him with just a single look. I love the way that their body language mirrors each other, the way they trade glances while Blade kicks ass, the way they move in sync while fighting.

I'd love a fic that explored the relationship between them, whether you see that relationship as romantic or best friends/partners. I ship them like burning, but even if you don't, the whole movie screems 'found family' to me, not just with the Nightstalkers when they're first introduced, but also with Zoe in the aftermath. It smashes every single one of my happy buttons in so many different ways.

If you want to include any other of the Nightstalkers in the fic, please feel free - Abigail and King are my favourite characters, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't love something more team-related as well (see that whole found family thing). And even Karen Jenson - I know she doesn't appear after the original movie, so if you offered her and would like to write her interacting with the Nightstalkers, I did nominate her so please feel free to include her :)

Prompts/Optional Details: All prompts are, again, optional. Feel free to pick and mix, choose little pieces of prompts or ignore them completely and write something different. Have fun! :)

There can never be enough stories exploring the wider world of the Blade movies, particularly the third one. How does Abigail and King's cell fit in with the wider Nightstalkers' network? Are they the only cell active? Also, what about the feds? Was there any blowback after the Talos Clan were wiped out?

In one of the codas at the end of the movie, seen in the extended version, the vampires have been wiped out by DayStar and Abby and King are now hunting werewolves with Caulder, with the suggestion that the werewolves they're hunting have somehow been vampirised. How did they end up figuring that out? How to their hunts go? Have they had to refine their hunting techniques? Are there 'good' werewolves as opposed to the vamped ones? Does the cure even work on werewolves?

How does the first cell get set up? How/why does Abby save King the way he says she does? How does King end up working with the Nightstalkers?

What happens when a hunt goes wrong? What if Abby's hurt? Or King is?

Do they ever have to go undercover to find their mark? Who does that? Does King fit in seamlessly or can he not keep his mouth shut? Or is it Abby who takes the risk? How does it go? So may potential disasters, so much tension!

Do they ever take the night off? What does downtime look like to a vampire hunter?

Other things you might want to know: This is one of the fandoms where there is in canon character death and non-con (I'm convinced that Danica/King wasn't consensual), so I don't mind if the story explores those. If you're more comfortable with gen, that's absolutely fine! You don't have to try and stick some ship in just to make me happy :)

The only thing I would ask is no Drake/King, please. Definitely not my cuppa.

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters

Characters I've requested: Hansel, Gretel

Background info: Completely over the top and joyful gorefest based on a the awesome premise that Hansel and Gretel grow up into Gemma Arterton and Jeremy Renner and proceed to kick witch ass while dressed in black leather and carrying anachronistic weaponry. \o/

You may have noticed a theme with the things I love :D

What it is that I love: Gemma Arterton in tight black leather, being head bitch in charge and not putting up with sexist bullshit. Jeremy Renner with a face like a kicked puppy but who has her back and knows she has his. Witches. Ass kicking. Loyalty to the end. Ludicrous plots and over the top magic. Women taking names and then crossing them off their list because they've killed the bastards. That kind of thing.

Seriously, it's just one of my ridiculous happy places.

I love the relationship between Gretel and her brother, the way it's messed up and yet so utterly functional on every single level. I just love how fierce they are about protecting each other, how brusque and yet still caring they can be. I love how it's them against the world, but at the end of the day they still manage to make some room for Ben and Edward and Mina. I love the way that she leads and he follows, trusting her and respecting her without question.

I do ship them, but I'm just as happy with a story that explores the 'families, you and me against the world, tightly knit and slightly offputting to outsiders' sibling relationship that they have.

Prompts/Optional Details: As always, optional details are optional, so feel free to mix, match or ignore.

Hansel says something about 'trolls being extra', which implies they've faced witches with troll servants before. Tell me about that.

Hansel and Gretel have been doing this a long time now. Are they growing complacent? Do they even bother to keep a count of the witches they kill any more? Is that a recipe for disaster, or just same shit, different day?

Gretel obviously has to deal with a load of crap from dirt bags. Just how many times has Hansel had to hold her coat? How does she normally deal with it? Is there ever a time when she gets the respect she deserves?

Does Hansel strike out with every barmaid he meets? Does Gretel have more luck with them?

What was their worst fight? What was their best? Just how many varieties of witches are there and are different tactics required?

Exactly who designs and makes their weapons?

What impact do Gretel's new found powers have on their dynamic, or even their fighting style? How many fires does Hansel have to put out, or how many towns does he burn to the ground to keep his sister safe?

What's the impact of the addition of Ben and Edward to what was previously just Hansel-and-Gretel?

Or, you know. Porn. Porn is always good :D (As long as that is your thing - if it's not your thing, killing witches? Just as good!)

Other things you might want to know: God, I love this movie, and the soundtrack is my go to for writing fighting scenes.

Terminator Genisys

Characters I've requested: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese, Pops

Background info: Time travelling shenanigans and killer robots, this movie reboots the original into a different timeline. The one constant is that Kyle will always cross time for Sarah, will always love her, even if this version gets saved by her at least as much as he does the saving.

What it is that I love: I've always loved The Terminator, which I first saw when I was 18, and so I didn't expect much from this reboot, especially after the sequels so far. But I love this version of Sarah, the one who's been raised to be a warrior, how closed off she is, how hard she fights against fate. And I love this version of Kyle, still damaged in his own way, but not as closed off as the version in the original timeline, still being what Sarah needs - not the stone cold warrior, because she's got that covered, but someone more open than she is, someone softer, someone able to get behind her barriers.

And Pops, oh, Pops. All the little ways he's learned to care about Sarah, the growth he's gone through leaving behind the ghosts of a real father. I just love all three of them together, the way that they grow together - Kyle learning to trust the machine, Sarah learning that some things aren't to be feared, Pops learning about the world in Sarah's absence.

I love Sarah/Kyle - they were one of my first OTPs, and this iteration hasn't changed that - but would be perfectly happy with a gen story, particularly given my love of the found family trope.

Prompts/Optional Details: As always, all prompts are optional.

How about a story that compares and contrasts Sarah and Kyle's childhoods, raised by Pops and John respectively.

Has Skynet actually been destroyed - the post credits coda suggests not, so what's the next step? How does it cause problems for Sarah and Kyle in the future?

Judgement Day happens anyway - Sarah, Kyle and Pops in the aftermath.

How the three of them adapt to life in 2017 - it's a brave new world to Sarah and Kyle, but is Pops any better off given his inability to build a rapport with humans?

Pops through the years, waiting for Sarah.

Sarah and Kyle - how do you connect when everything is falling apart around you and grief is the only thing holding you together?

Sarah and Kyle, post movie. What happens now that Sarah's chosen Kyle?

Did John survive the destruction of Genisys? What impact does that have on Sarah and Kyle's future.

Other things you might want to know: I haven't yet seen the Sarah Connor Chronicles or T3, although I have seen the other movies.

Thoughtcrimes

Characters I've requested: Freya McAllister, Brendan Dean

Background info: After Freya McAllister starts hearing voices at her high school prom, she's unable to block them out and ends up being institutionalised, with a diagnoses of late onset schizophrenia. However, the voices are real - Freya is a telepath. When an NSA researcher, Dr Welles, realises this, he retrieves her and she's paired with FBI agent Brendan Dean to bring down a terrorist hitman.

What it is that I love: I'd forgotten how much I loved this movie until I saw it in the tag set. But I love Freya - how brittle she is and how strong at the same time, resilient and quick thinking as she plows forward in spite of her own pain. And I love Brendan, and the relationship between them, from his immediate distrust when she's forced to reveal her telepathy to him to his complete trust when they need to work together. Plus, you know, Scooby Doo :D

There were so many things they could have done with this scenario post movie. It was just tailor made to be a TV series, and yet the movie is all we have. So I would love anything about their partnership as it moves forward, the cases that they crack, the way that their trust in each other builds and builds. I love Freya's newfound confidence at the end, and the subtle hints about Brendan's attraction to her sister even though, in my heart, I think it's secretly Freya he wants.

Prompts/Optional Details: Optional details are optional :D

Anything about Freya and Brendan working together - what's their next case, or the one after that?

Does June ever find out about her sister's gift? How does she react?

What about Brendan's gift - how has an eidetic memory helped or hindered him? Plus, it might be hard to be partnered with someone who reads your mind, but how about someone who never forgets a damned word you said? Even the bad ones?

What about Freya's mother? From what her father said at the beginning of the movie, there are hints that Freya's mother also had the same gift and it either killed her or forced her to kill herself?

Dystopian future - how would Freya's gift be exploited? Is it more common than it is now? Would she find herself running for her entire life, and where does Brendan fit in?

How does sex work when Freya can anticipate every single one of Brendan's desires? Is it a plus, even if it means she can anticipate everything he's about to do to her?

Brendan and Freya sparring - he's more highly trained but that telepath thing sure comes in handy. How badly does she kick his ass?

What other cartoon theme tunes run through Brendan's head?

Other things you might want to know: Freya and Brendan sitting in a tree...

Fic: You're the One (Blade: Trinity, Abigail/King, PG)

alyse — Thu, 07 Apr 2016 21:28:01 GMT

You're the One (5718 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Blade (Movie Series)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler
Characters: Hannibal King, Abigail Whistler
Additional Tags: Domestic Fluff, Pregnancy, Romance, Post-Movie(s), Established Relationship

Summary: Everything moves on eventually. Even Nightstalkers.</p>

Fic: Darling, Lay Your Bones (Blade: Trinity, Abigail/King, PG)

alyse — Fri, 01 Apr 2016 19:02:51 GMT

Darling, Lay Your Bones (4838 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Blade (Movie Series)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler
Characters: Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King
Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Humor, Hurt/Comfort

Summary: King's smarter than he looks, in theory. But even Abby could be forgiven for questioning his intelligence when he doesn't walk away from a fight with a guy twice his size and who he's already pissed off.</p>

Knowing King, that had probably been deliberate.

Fic: Waking Up (At the Start of the End of the World) (Sarah/Kyle, Terminator Genisys, NC-17)

alyse — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 21:19:12 GMT

Waking Up (At the Start of the End of the World) (25880 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese, Pops (Terminator Genisys)
Additional Tags: First Time, Romance, Angst

Summary: Cyberdyne has fallen. Now all Sarah has to do is decide how she's going to spend the rest of her life.

Dear Canadians on my flist...

alyse — Sun, 28 Feb 2016 21:41:34 GMT

Do you say 'wank'. As in, I have King saying: 'XXX is a wank-stained festering shithead with deep seated mommy issues.'

I've checked with Aithine, and it's not a phrase that an American would use, but since I'm convinced King is Canadian (he is in the comics, and Ryan does let his accent slip at one point), I'm happy to go with it if it's a word that would be familiar to Canadians, and that they'd use.

If not, I'll have to come up with a new insult for him to use :D

Thank you!

(I'm writing Blade: Trinity, in case you hadn't guessed :D)

Fic: the things you give away (Terminator Genisys, Sarah/Kyle, G)

alyse — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 15:52:32 GMT

the things you give away (1904 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese
Additional Tags: Angst, Romance, Sharing Clothes
Author's Notes: For shetiger

Summary: Kyle hasn't had much in his life that he could legitimately point to and say 'mine'.

Kyle would give Sarah the shirt off his back if she asked for it.

Fic: told it like it was (Blade: Trinity, Abby/King, G)

alyse — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 22:31:51 GMT

told it like it was (2839 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Blade (Movie Series)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler
Characters: Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King, Zoe Sommerfield
Additional Tags: Slow Dancing, Romance, Humor

Summary: "And what about you, Whistler? What are your moves on the dance floor like, hmm?"

Slow dancing, Abby and King style.

Fic: the last goodbye (that hasn't happened yet) (Terminator Genisys, Sarah/Kyle, G)

alyse — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 19:08:52 GMT

the last goodbye (that hasn't happened yet) (6123 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese, Pops (Terminator Genisys)
Additional Tags: Sickfic, Sick Character, Hurt/Comfort

Summary: Crowds might be good to hide in, but they came with noise and dirt and a whole ecosystem of germs that neither she nor Kyle had been exposed to before. It was inevitable that sooner or later one of them would come down with something.

Kyle is sick. Sarah is unsympathetic, at least until she realises that there's a story behind Kyle's reaction that she doesn't know.

Fic: In bitter safety (Terminator Genisys, Sarah/Kyle, PG13)

alyse — Sat, 23 Jan 2016 20:49:47 GMT

In bitter safety (1133 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese
Additional Tags: implied PTSD, Vignette, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort

Summary: The worst were the nights like these, the nights he woke up crying, and Sarah stayed still and quiet in her bed, trying to pretend that he hadn't woken her, that she didn't hear him breaking his heart over his past, her future. Trying to pretend he wasn't breaking her heart, too.

In which Kyle is suffering and Sarah is silent; she can never find the words.

Fic: Show Time, Blow Time (Tremors, Tyler/El Blanco, NC-17)

alyse — Sun, 17 Jan 2016 14:46:46 GMT

I would just like to point out that this is all moonlettuce's fault. ALL OF IT!

Oh, God. The things I do for her.

Show Time, Blow Time (1311 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Tremors: The Series
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: El Blanco/Tyler Reed
Characters: El Blanco (Tremors), Tyler Reed, Burt Gummer
Additional Tags: Tentacle Sex, Public Sex, Anal Sex, Oral Sex, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot
Summary:

There's a soft snuffling sound somewhere near Tyler's feet and he closes his eyes, biting back on a curse. Not now. Any goddamned time but now.

But the world - or his world, at least - isn't listening.

Fic: Lift Me Up and Hold Me Down (Terminator Genisys, Sarah/Kyle, NC-17)

alyse — Sun, 17 Jan 2016 14:38:00 GMT

So, I may have written TG porn for fandom_stocking for geckoholic. I admit nothing.

Lift Me Up and Hold Me Down (2424 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese
Additional Tags: Community: fandom_stocking, Femdom, Woman on Top, Established Relationship, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot
Summary:

It was cold, and their beds were too damned far apart.

Sarah seeks comfort, and something more, in the middle of the night.

Yueltide 2015

alyse — Sun, 03 Jan 2016 02:03:01 GMT

I ended up writing 5 stories in four fandoms, around about 22k words in total, which I think might be a personal record :).

I matched on Maid Marian and Her Merry Men, which I have written for Yuletide before. This time, however, I wrote 8.5k of zombie apocalypse with added witches and socialism :D I had fun writing it, even if at times I was tearing my hair out, but the recipient’s response was really positive, and I’m quite pleased with how it turned out.

Now We Don Our Grey Apparel (8524 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Maid Marian and her Merry Men
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Characters: Maid Marian, Sheriff of Nottingham
Additional Tags: Zombie Apocalypse, Humor, Socialism, Witches

Summary:

It was Wednesday afternoon, early closing day in Worksop, which meant - as usual - the entire village was dead.

Only this Wednesday afternoon it seemed that the inhabitants of Worksop were taking the 'dead' thing a little more literally than usual.

Then I wrote two Terminator Genisys fics, both Sarah/Kyle, which is the latest fandom to eat my brain - one shameless porn story for geckoholic and one not porn for stars-inthe-sky. My first attempts at Terminator Genisys but not, I think, my last :D

Through and Through (4459 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese
Additional Tags: Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Angst, Yuletide Treat, Rough Sex, Yuleporn, Canon-Typical Violence
Summary:

When Kyle is injured in a firefight, Sarah finds the adrenaline more than she can take. Kyle helps her burn it off in the best of ways.

Snowfall (3643 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Terminator Genisys (2015)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Sarah Connor/Kyle Reese
Characters: Sarah Connor, Kyle Reese
Additional Tags: Yuletide Treat, Romance, Angst
Summary:

Sarah wasn't sure that Kyle could ever stop running, or fighting. Or dreaming, judging by the way he still twitched in his sleep.

Sarah and Kyle deal with life in a world that's new to both of them.

I then wrote Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters fic - hurt/comfort with an incestuous vibe but no sex. I do like this pairing, which I wrote as my assignment last year, and it was fun to revisit them in something quieter and more introspective than my usual ‘beating up witches and then maybe adrenaline fueled sex’ output.

I tear my heart open, I sew myself shut (1234 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Gretel/Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Characters: Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters), Gretel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Additional Tags: Sibling Incest, Hurt/Comfort, Yuletide Treat
Summary:

Of the two of them, Hansel has always thought he's the more impatient. Right now, however, it's Gretel who's shifting impatiently, irritation snapping in her fingers, tense along her spine.

Gretel is injured and impatient. Luckily, Hansel's needlework has always been better than hers.

Finally, I wrote Jupiter Ascending knotting fem!dom porn for hiddencait, for she is adorable and it was the only fandom of hers I could even attempt to write in. I’m not sure I got the characterisation right, and I’m sure that given the fandom I didn’t write anything that hadn’t been written before, but the point was to make Cait happy and that seems to have happened.

Feeling the Heat (2571 words) by alyse
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Jupiter Ascending (2015)
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Jupiter Jones/Caine Wise
Characters: Jupiter Jones, Caine Wise
Additional Tags: Yuletide Treat, Femdom, Yuleporn, Knotting
Summary:

So, Jupiter has always thought of space as vast, and empty, and colder than a proverbial witch's tit. Turns out, she might have been wrong about that.

It's hot in space, a hell of a lot hotter than Jupiter ever expected.

Unfortunately my assigned gift included one of my DNWs, but I got two awesome and awesomely long treats in The Eagle fandom, which saved Yuletide for me :):

A Little Less Sixteen Candles (14173 words) by foxxcub
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: The Eagle | The Eagle of the Ninth (2011), The Eagle | The Eagle of the Ninth - All Media Types
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Marcus Flavius Aquila/Esca Mac Cunoval
Characters: Marcus Flavius Aquila, Esca Mac Cunoval
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - College/University, frat boys
Summary:

The rivalry between the Theta Sigma Rhos and the Delta Omicrons began so long ago, no one really knew the exact date. But the truth now was that the Thetas were jocks and the Deltas were nerds, and everything else was just history.

This story was a sweet and funny (and touching towards the end) frat!boys AU wherein Marcus is a Theta Sigma Rho and Esca a Delta, and the two fraternities have a whole rivalry going on, and I love it to itty bitty pieces!

Under Fire (18617 words) by Frostfire
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: The Eagle | The Eagle of the Ninth (2011)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Marcus Flavius Aquila/Esca Mac Cunoval
Characters: Marcus Flavius Aquila, Esca Mac Cunoval, Lutorius Drusillus Salinator
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Space Opera
Summary:

Esca is a prisoner on Marcus Flavius Aquila's transport ship. What could go wrong?

And this story is a space pirate AU! I repeat - Space Pirate AU. This is not a drill, people. My God, how awesome is that? Marcus is the captain of a prison ship and Esca is his prisoner, but they save each other and everything is awesome!

So, basically, I had fun :) And now I'm 5,000 words into a fandom_stocking treat that is never, ever going to end! Because I am chronically incapable of writing short! FML! :D

Dear Yuletide Writer

alyse — Sat, 17 Oct 2015 12:11:03 GMT

Dear Yuletide Writer

The fandoms (and characters) of my heart I've requested (in alphabetical order :D)
Blade (Movie Series) - Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King
The Eagle | The Eagle of the Ninth (2011) - Marcus Flavius Aquila, Esca Mac Cunovel
Jupiter Ascending (2015) - Jupiter Jones, Caine Wise
King Kong (2005) - Jimmy, Mr Hayes
Rat Queens - any

First of all, thank you for writing for me! Just having someone write fic for one of the tiny fandoms of my heart is enough to make me happy so I am sure that I will love whatever you write.

I tend to be fairly small fandom orientated anyway, and I tend to stay with fandoms for a while, so please don't be put off by the fact that I may have requested some of these fandoms before. It doesn't mean that I haven't loved the fics I've had in the past - it's just that in many cases, these are the fandoms I've been writing in all year around and Yuletide is my once-a-year chance to get to read some fic that I haven't written myself!

So, on that note I thought it would be helpful to give my likes and dislikes upfront, just to give you an idea of what makes me happy and what might not :) These tend to be pan-fandom things, but if there's anything specific to a fandom I'll put it there.

Likes:

I love female characters, and I have a massive competency kink which is pretty much doubled when it involves women. I also have a soft-spot for capable women and the still capable but slightly broken men who pretty much worship the ground they walk on.

This year I've also requested some fandoms with solely male characters because these are things I've watched and loved during the year, and I desperately want fic for them. They may not have the female characters that are my default go to, but they do share many of the same things that I love in other canons, namely relationships between characters that just resonate with me.

I love found families, and those that are small and broken, but still good, and I love stories that are about trust - whether that's simply instinctive or has to be earned. Because of that, I also adore relationships (romantic or not) where people aren't afraid to call each other on their shit, and it just makes me wriggle with glee when male characters actually trust the woman in their lives to know their own minds and their own limitations. I love stoic characters who hide so much beneath the surface (especially if they're female), and I especially love relationships that are all about the unspoken bonds, where a quiet touch or a simple exchange means as much as the most ardent declaration.

Give me faith and trust, characters who have each other's backs, who will go to the end of the line for each other. The ones who will walk through fire for the people they love, whether that's familial or romantic, who will fight to the death for someone even if they occasionally drive each other nuts. (Yes, I have a loyalty kink :D) Smart characters who might occasionally do stupid things for the right reasons. Broken characters who just keep on going out of sheer stubbornness because they just can't quit. Partners who rely on each other, and friends who will always be there. I don't mind if it's casefic or shipfic, plot or porn or a combination of all of them, but I'm largely in fandom for the characters and what they mean to each other so I would love anything that explores that in any of the fandoms I've requested.

I like happy endings, but I don't mind if they're bitter sweet, and hurt-comfort or injury is fine as long as it's not permanent and doesn't result in death. And if you want to go the porn route, I have a particular fondness for threesomes, cunning linguists :D and pegging, plus fem!dom (with male subs) as long as it doesn't involve humiliation or significant pain.

Dislikes:

I have a massive second hand embarrassment squick, so please, no humiliating characters or having them embarrass themselves. No non-con or death fic, please, although I'm okay with a story dealing with the aftermath if it happened in canon. For most fandoms, I'd prefer fic set in the canon universe rather than outright AUs, although I don't mind 'what ifs' if you want to explore what would happen if canon went in a slightly different direction (although The Eagle is my exception to that general rule). And please no fic with men dominating women in the bedroom, although I would be happy if it was the other way around :D

Phew. Hopefully that's not too offputting! Now to the fandoms:

Blade (Movie Series)

Characters I've requested: Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King

Background info: There are three movies making up this series, all of them about a half-blood vampire hunter, Eric Blade, who generally goes around being sullen and staking vampires, while also suffering some existential angst and looking cool in black leather and sunglasses.

Me, I like the sidekicks.

What it is that I love: I love Abigail and King, and the relationship between them. I've love a fic that explored their relationship - whether you see it as romantic or best friends/partners - because it hits so many of my happy buttons. She's the stoic, kick-ass, competent woman with the odd crack in her facade that lets the human shine through. He's the snarky, crude, rude guy with a vulnerable side who worships the ground she walks on. Together they fight vampires!

I will be honest here and state that I ship them like burning. But even if you don't, they also have the whole 'found family' thing going on with the Nightstalkers (and particularly Zoe in the aftermath of the movie) so my happy buttons will still be just as mashed.

If you want to include any other of the Nightstalkers in the fic, please feel free - Abigail and King are my favourite characters, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't love something more team-related as well (see that whole found family thing). And even Karen Jenson - I know she doesn't appear after the original movie, so if you offered her and would like to write her interacting with the Nightstalkers, I did nominate her so please feel free to include her :)

Prompts/Optional Details: If you like prompts (if not, feel free to skip), I'm always fascinated by the wider world of the Blade movies, particularly the third one. So, how does Abigail and King's cell fit in with the wider Nightstalkers' network? Are they the only cell active? Also, what about the feds? Was there any blowback after the Talos Clan were wiped out?

What happens after the movie? Do Abby and King raise Zoe, or do they find an alternative? What about the future? Are they still fighting vampires or are they all wiped out? Do they go after werewolves next, as in the movie coda?

Or even before the movie - how does the first cell get set up? How does King end up fitting in with the Nightstalkers? What kind of logistic nightmares does Abby have to deal with? How did King join the Nightstalkers in the first place? He mentions that Abby gave him the cure, but why did she make that decision? How did they meet?

Other things you might want to know: This is one of the fandoms where there is in canon character death and non-con (I'm convinced that Danica/King wasn't consensual), so I don't mind if the story explores those. If you're more comfortable with gen, that's absolutely fine! You don't have to try and stick some ship in just to make me happy :)

The only thing I would ask is no Drake/King, please. Definitely not my cuppa.

The Eagle | The Eagle of the Ninth (2011)

Characters I've requested: Marcus Flavius Aquila, Esca Mac Cunoval

Background info: Roman era master and slave bonding and barely subtext homoeroticism while they undertake an epic journey to retrieve the lost Eagle of the Ninth and restore honour to the Aquila name. Together they fight... picts?

What it is that I love: Trust. Oh, God the trust, and the hurt-comfort, and the barely subtext homoeroticism, and the stoic-ness and the stubborness of the main characters and the fact that they both need each other, believe in each other, have each other's backs even after all of the doubts and the tensions between them.

Plus, you know, that whole rain scene with the neck gripping and the naked vulnerability on Marcus' face. It is my jam.

This is another pairing that I ship, but I would also be happy with something that explores their friendship, the trust that they have in each other, a trust that has been very hard earned. This is a fandom in which I have no problem with outright AUs, as long as the central relationship between Marcus and Esca remains at the core, no matter whether you see it as slashy or not.

Prompts/Optional Details: If you like prompts (if not, feel free to skip): Oh, boy. As I've said, I'm happy with AUs in this fandom, so if you want to go whole AU on the 'how do Marcus and Esca meet and what is the catalyst for their friendship given the disparities between them if it's not the whole slave/master thing', then go for it :D If you want to write post movie Happy Gay Farmers fic, then go for that. What do Esca and Marcus do after the movie? Do they buy that farm? Do they go looking for remnants of Esca's tribe? Do they get involved in more covert missions for Rome? Do they travel the world, go back to Marcus' homeland or to Esca's formal tribal lands? If you do want to go slashy, how and when did their romantic relationship start and how does it fit in with Esca or Marcus' cultural norms?

Or, you know. Porn. Porn is always good :D (As long as that is your thing - if it's not your thing, epic friendship is just as good!)

Other things you might want to know: I'm happy if you include supporting characters, but would prefer that the Seal Prince isn't a focus. Also, I don't think non-con happened in canon - although I can see why others would - so I'd prefer that my story doesn't include any non-con or aftermath.

Jupiter Ascending (2015)

Characters I've requested: Jupiter Jones (Jupiter Ascending), Caine Wise

Background info: Down-trodden janitor 'lost princess' gets saved a lot by her roller blading space werewolf angel (possibly sub) boyfriend but still manages to kick the Dark Lord's ass with the help of a handy piece of pipe. There are mother issues galore and politics of the bureaucratic nightmare kind, plus ~~Soylent Green~~ Regenex is people!

What it is that I love: Oh. My. God. I sat through this movie at the cinema (5 times in total) making grabby hands of glee the entire way through! Just... yes! This is my happy place! I know that a lot of people have criticised the female protagonist as being 'passive', but I pooh-pooh those people and point to a piece of pipe. Jupiter is awkward, uncertain and more than a little wide-eyed, but please! As if most people who had no idea that aliens existed would react any differently when confronted with Channing Tatum with elf ears on roller-blades. Space roller blades!

I love Jupiter's saavy here. Yes, she's naive at first, but this is a whole new world for her - literally! But I love how her good heart, and eventually her good head, carry her through it all. I love how she tries so hard to do the right thing, and how it exhausts and upsets her that she might be the only one. And I love her relationship with Caine, the way he subtly teases her and how he himself grows under her regard, as though he sees himself as worthy because that's how she sees him. Plus, you know, she loves dogs. She's always loved dogs.

Glee, I tell you. Glee! Also, I'm pretty sure that fem!domming is canon. I'm sure he doesn't just call her 'Your Majesty' out of the bedroom :D

Prompts/Optional Details: If you like prompts (if not, feel free to skip): Given that their relationship is canon by the end of the movie, I feel a little less guilty for asking for ship fic. However, please don't feel that you have to write that if that's not your jam. I'm also fascinated by space politics and the wider Jupiter Ascending Universe.

So, ship wise, I'd love to see the development of their relationship explored, especially if it's at least slightly fem!dommy (although, again, only if you're comfortable - I'd rather you wrote a story you enjoyed than tried to write something you weren't happy with to try and make me happy :D). I've mentioned my general preferences at the beginning of my letter, but basically I'm all about the trust and the respect, so I've love something that explores that in spite of their differences and different expectations. If you do want to explore the fem!dom side of things, I'm not sure I buy Jupiter as an experienced dom - I quite like the idea that this is new territory for her, one she's happy to explore with Caine.

Non-ship wise, I've love something that explores the wider Jupiter Ascending universe, particularly the parts that were only touched on in the film. More about Ourus, maybe, or about the bureaucratic nightmare that is this Universe. Or more about splices, and the idea that they're made to order. Or more about the Aegis, and how they fit into a universe of Entitled who seem to do what they want, only constrained by archaic tax rules. More about the Regenex industry and how on earth (pun intended) the wholesale harvesting of humans became an accepted practice.

Mostly I'd like fic with Jupiter and Caine at the centre of it but that can explore any of these issues that you like :) Or, alternatively, porn would be good (if that's your thang!) :D

Other things you might want to know: I feel a bit embarrassed mentioning this, but I am totally down for knotting in this fandom.

King Kong (2005)

Characters I've requested: Jimmy (King Kong), Benjamin (Ben) Hayes (King Kong)

Background info: This is the remake of King Kong, directed by Peter Jackson. Among the characters who didn't appear in the 1933 original (or the 1976) remake are Jimmy (the 'cabin boy' type character) and Mr Hayes (the first mate).

What it is that I love: Jimmy in particular intrigues me - we get very little sense of his character in the movie, beyond his desire to prove his worth despite being seen as too young, but there are some hints in both the movie itself and in the deleted scenes that his character, and the things his character has been through, are far darker than appear at first. For example, the fact that Mr Hayes first found him in the animal cages, badly beaten as a child, and the fact that he knows intimately how a man dies when he's been stabbed. (As an aside, I love the deleted scenes because of the insights they add to the characters of Jimmy and Hayes in particular, and if you're interested (and if you've offered the fandom I suspect you might be :D) you can find most of them on Youtube on this playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwECeDzZVX281i6PBcTgx2zjgCd-3mXP2, plus there's this one scene that was scripted and mostly filmed, but that didn't make the final cut that's just incredibly slashy here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3FnAQClpAk).

I love the relationship between the two of them, the reluctant way in which Hayes cares for his charge, alternatively harsh and roughly affectionate. I love Jimmy's contradictory character, all bluff bravado; cold, calculated clear view of the way in which the world works; and heartbrokenness when he loses the one anchor in his life. I love the way they bounce off each other and there is so very, very little fic about them. I would absolutely adore anything that explores what they mean to each other.

Again, I do ship them, in their brokenness, but I'd also be very happy with anything familial if that's not how you see them. All that tension, the push and pull between Hayes trying to keep Jimmy safe and Jimmy's desire to break free - it's just so delicious to me, no matter what form it takes. The only thing I would ask is that if you do write slash, please make Jimmy at least 17 or whatever's required by age of consent in your locality. (It's 16 in the UK, where I am, but that still seems a little too young for me when compared to Hayes' age).

Prompts/Optional Details: If you like prompts (if not, feel free to skip): How about pre-movie fic, about the way that Hayes finds Jimmy and how the decision was made to keep Jimmy on board? Was Hayes instrumental in that? What promises did he have to make to Captain Englehorn to make it happen? What about some of their adventures together before they travel to Skull Island? Or how about Hayes finally accepting that Jimmy is no longer a child? Does Hayes know more about Jimmy's past than he lets on? How is it that Jimmy is intimately acquainted with how a man dies when he's stabbed? What about the dancing? Who taught Jimmy to dance like that, and with whom has he danced before?

How did Hayes move from being a World War I hero to the first mate of a broken down tramp steamer? How does he feel about his options being limited? Does the company help make up for that? What about missing scenes from the movie itself? It was a long voyage and we saw comparatively little of it.

Basically anything about the two of them :)

Other things you might want to know: I'm absolutely fine if you include other canon characters, but I'd prefer the story to focus on the relationship between Jimmy and Mr Hayes, however you see them. Also, as I mentioned in my introduction, I'm okay with themes like death and non-con if they happen in canon, so you can bear that in mind for this fandom :).

Rat Queens

Characters I've requested: Betty, Dee, Hannah, Violet

Background info: Rat Queens is a comic published by Image Comics about a group of adventurers in a D&D like universe who are totally and utterly awesome. Even if comics aren't your thing (they aren't usually mine, because I'm more narratively orientated than visual) and have no intention of Yuletiding it, I would still encourage you to check it out because it is love and because I wave the first couple of trade paperbacks at anyone who stands still for more than five minutes! Sometimes only three!

What it is that I love: Found families! Competency! You and me against the world! Banter! Snark! Female characters who are all individuals and none of them are stereotypes! Who love each other fiercely, even when they fight. And woe betide anyone who picks a fight with them! Because those people? They're about to become a smear on the sidewalk.

Hannah, the rockabilly dark mage with a sardonic outlook on life.
Dee, the cleric, whose parents worship a giant flying squid! (Dee's an atheist, but figures she's enough of a goddess for her spells to work)
Betty, the smidgen who's all about the balanced diet - candy and drugs for dinner!
Violet, the hipster dwarf, who shaved her beard off before it was cool and who loves her sword ironically.

And the art work - even though they're now up to Artist Number 3 - is just gorgeous.

Prompts/Optional Details: If you like prompts (if not, feel free to skip): ALL THE THINGS!

No, seriously. I would love anything about these characters, whether it's slice of life, them going on another adventure together, how they met and formed their group, why they chose 'Rat Queens' as their name, how they interact with other people, or their backgrounds. Why is Dee still an atheist even though the most recent arc has confirmed that her ancient gods exist, at least as beings if not as gods? What future do Betty and Faeyri have? Do Hannah and Sawyer have a future? What about Violet and Orc Dave? What is Hannah's relationship with her parents really like and what went on at her University? Why are she and Tizzie on the outs if the flashbacks show them as friends. Will Violet ever go home? Or will she just keep punching her brother, Barry, in the face?

This is honestly a fandom where I would just like anything, even a bar brawl or two :D

Other things you might want to know: I am okay with het or femslash or threesomes or no-somes or gen or anything you can think of! And then some :D

Yuletide and other goodies!

alyse — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 17:49:17 GMT

I really got lucky with gifts this Yuletide. I got three - count them! three! - Hansel and Gretel fics that were various shades of wonderful, including two that ship my sole incest fic :D

-o-

Shades of Pale (6234 words) by Fahye
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Relationships: Gretel/Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Characters: Gretel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters), Ben (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters), Edward (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Additional Tags: Sibling Incest, Yuletide Treat

Summary: "A white witch will not use magic to harm humans," Hansel says. "That still leaves my sister with plenty of options."

I loved this one, oh how did I love it - it was snarky and wonderful, with Gretel kicking ass and Hansel holding her coat :D Or, more accurately, it's about Gretel coming to terms with her possession of magic, learning to understand and appreciate it, and some of the imagery is just breathtaking. I won't spoil it for you, but Gretel's eventual wand... yes :D It's just perfect and so her.

-o-

Sickness and Health (1168 words) by ChokolatteJedi
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters), Gretel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Additional Tags: Pre-Canon, Yuletide, Yuletide 2014, Sickfic, Magic, Children

Summary: A few days after they escape from their first witch, Hansel becomes very sick.

A look at how Hansel and Gretel came up with Hansel's 'medicine'. I always thought the sugar sickness was more akin to diabetes, but in this story it has a magical source and a magical cure and was a very interesting take. Plus, sibling interaction is always a plus :) Sweet and just the right amount of sibling sour.

-o-

the water’s sweet but blood is thicker (1634 words) by baroqueriot
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Gretel/Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Characters: Hansel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters), Gretel (Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters)
Additional Tags: Sibling Incest

Summary: Gretel and Hansel clean up after a particularly disgusting witch hunt.

A quiet - for a certain value of quiet that fits Hansel and Gretel's lifestyles :D - interlude following a particular disgusting hunt. The character voices are very strong in this one, and I love fics that are just about people connecting, where the world is somewhere else for a while. Lovely.

-o-

And then I got bonus Madness Fic! Bonus Blade: Trinity Madness Fic and, lo, it is awesome!

Take It (536 words) by hiddencait
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Blade (Movie Series)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler, Hannibal King/Abigail Whistler/Karen Jenson
Characters: Hannibal King, Abigail Whistler, Karen Jenson
Additional Tags: Threesome - F/F/M, All the Smut, because alyse deserves it, PWP, Yuleporn

Summary: One of Abigail's better ideas.

OMG! A threesome I didn't know I wanted until I got it and now I want ALL OF IT! I love this one so much!

I said to moonlettuce before the reveals that I knew from the tags that it had to be written by someone I knew or had interacted with in the past in relation to Blade (and damn right I deserve all the pegging porn! :D) but the only person I could think of who did Yuletide was hiddencait and she didn't do pegging fic.

Apparently I have persuaded her to my porny ways. \o/ I'm taking that as a win :D

-o-

I also wrote two fics, which was fewer than I was hoping to write, but I'm a bit meh about them at the moment. Neither recipient has commented yet, but I know one of them is away until mid Jan at the earliest, because a friend of theirs was kind enough to let me know. The other appears to be a serial defaulter but on past form will comment eventually.

In September.

So... yeah. Don't think I'll be holding my breath for that one somehow :D

I'll post them eventually, but the funny thing is that there were 9 Hansel and Gretel fics posted this Yuletide.

Three of them were for me.

Two of them were by me.

I am officially responsible for more than 50% of the fic for that fandom in this exchange :D

And finally, I also got a lovely Leo/Cara fic from meridian_rose for the legendland Secret Santa Exchange. Really sweet and tender (as tender as Cara gets, anyway :D)

Picture Perfect (800 words) by meridian_rose
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Leo Dane/Cara Mason
Characters: Leo Dane, Cara Mason
Additional Tags: Snow, Alternate Canon, Leo is alive, Winter Solstice, Gift Giving, Romance

Summary: Leo has purchased a solstice gift for Cara. For the Legendland Gift Giving Challenge, prompts Leo/Cara, snow. AU in which Leo is alive and still the Seeker.

Fic: Steady Ground (Legend of the Seeker, Cara/Zedd, PG13

alyse — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 14:56:32 GMT

Title: Steady Ground
Author: alyse
Fandom: Legend of the Seeker
Pairing: Cara/Zedd
Rating: PG13
Warnings/Spoilers: No warnings. Vague spoilers for season 2.
Word Count: 2,750
Author's Notes: Written for meridian_rose for the legendland Thing-a-Thon exchange using the prompt 'powerful magic', and being crack, fluff and hurt-comfort :D.

Enjoy!

Summary: Getting back to killing things was always a welcome relief. It was familiar ground, but then Zedd was developing the annoying habit of yanking that right out from underneath her feet.

-o-

For all that he was happy to play the fool, Zedd was much more shrewd than Cara gave him credit for. He hadn't missed the sidelong looks she'd been shooting him, or the way that she was usually frowning when she did so.

Not that she wasn't usually frowning - she was Mord'Sith after all. She had a reputation to maintain.

And it appeared that Zedd's reputation - the one that had entire villages saying his name with awe - was entirely earned. It was difficult to reconcile the old man who walked beside her every day, rambling away quite happily in both senses of the word, with the one who was capable of creating entire castles out of the sky.

Powerful magic indeed.

She was determinedly not thinking about how he'd also managed to become young again, how much power that had taken - and she had no doubt that the magic behind that little transformation had come from Zedd, not the Witch of Agadon Reach, no matter Shota's reputation.

She was determinedly not thinking about how attractive a young Zedd had been.

She shot Zedd another look, still frowning.

He was smiling back at her, his tolerant, amused smile, the one that said all was right with the world, and that he still managed to find delight in it - and in her - no matter what the world threw back at him.

"What?" she asked him belligerently, her hand flying automatically to the handle of her agiel, the way it always did whenever she felt caught off balance. The low-level thrum of pain that ran through her was comforting, grounding her when she needed it.

"Why don't you just ask, dear one?" he said mildly. "Something is obviously bothering you."

Nothing was bothering her. She had no idea what the old idiot was rambling on about now. She quickened her pace, not intending to give him whatever satisfaction he was looking for.

Her treacherous mouth had other ideas, but then it had a habit of getting her into trouble, trouble that her agiels usually had no difficulty getting her out of.

Not that they would help this time.

"If you could do that - be young - why would you...?"

She jerked her head at him, the move managing to sum Zedd up in one neat gesture, and only then realising how it sounded. But she was Mord'Sith, and Mord'Sith did not apologise. Ever.

Zedd chuckled, not at all offended by her question or the way she'd phrased it. "Richard had very much the same question," he said mildly.

"Are you going to give me the same answer?"

He smiled, still amused. "I'm going to give you an honest answer, as I answered Richard honestly, even if the detail differs."

Cryptic as usual. Cara rolled her eyes, wondering why she was even bothering.

She knew exactly why, and it was that reason that was really bothering her.

Zedd's steps had slowed as he considered her question, his face creased thoughtfully, and she slowed her steps to match his, barely registering it.

"May I ask you a question first?" Zedd began, giving her a little quizzical look of his own. He didn't wait for her to answer, blithely assuming that even if she protested he'd be able to persuade her around to his way of thinking. He wasn't exactly wrong based on his past record in that respect. "You are a Mord'Sith - you have your leathers and you have your scars, but travelling with Richard - " He nodded towards his grandson, who was ahead of them now, his head bent towards Kahlan as the pair of them talked to each other too softly for their words to carry back.

She didn't need to hear it - she'd heard it too often, the sweet nothings that they exchanged, and the genuine feeling that lay underneath their honesty.

"Yes, Wizard," she said, letting her impatience colour her voice. "Do you have a point?"

Zedd laughed softly. "With Richard, you have no need to continue to wear Mord'Sith red. You could wear anything you like - no uniform, no allegiance but that you choose to give. And as for your scars... Well, my magic is at your command. I can't remove all traces, but I can fade those you have underneath your leathers."

The blood rose to her face, leaving her skin tight and uncomfortable, and not the kind of discomfort that she wore with pride. The idea of Zedd thinking about what was under her leathers wasn't an entirely easy one to get used to.

And it wasn't entirely unwelcome, which was worse.

Before she could lose her temper, get back on more familiar ground, Zedd drew to a stop, his gaze piercing.

"Would you? If you could?"

"No!" Her protest was forceful, but that didn't seem to come as a surprise to Zedd. He nodded thoughtfully, still watching her face.

"Because they are part of you," he said, still mild even as her blood was beginning to boil. She opened her mouth, ready to let forth some of the vitriol, let loose some of the pressure building up in her the way it always did when she was pushed out of her sense of true, but Zedd cut her off, still watching her closely, his expression no longer amused but fond, now.

"They map your past, child, and like you I have no desire to forget my past, not even the painful parts." He touched his face, fingers tracking the lines that radiated from the corners of his eyes, the furrows in his cheeks from smiling. His expression was rueful, but his eyes were still bright blue, still piercing and heading back towards amused. At himself, she thought, rather than her. "These are my scars," he added. "They mark the journey from who I was to who I am today. These lines, this hair... I've lived a long life, Cara, and I no longer have the desire to hide it. The Creator knows I have my faults - many, many of them and I'm willing to admit that vanity is one of them, but it's not that kind of vanity, thankfully. Not anymore."

"Unless you're visiting a whorehouse," she said, a bite in her voice. "I notice you had no problem putting on a pretty face in there."

Zedd laughed, as part of her had known he would.

"Well, as I've said, I have my vanity," he admitted, his eyes twinkling instead of piercing now. "And Salindra, poor thing, was worth the effort, even if she was too shallow to see the gold in the dirt without that transformation." He winked at her and she snorted, easier now that they were back on familiar territory.

"But," said Zedd, neatly sweeping that certainty out from underneath her feet, "I'm flattered that you thought me pretty."

He winked at her again while she was still reeling and lengthened his stride to catch up with Richard and Kahlan, leaving Cara to stare after him, open-mouthed.

-o-

She was more aware of Zedd after that, and not just in the 'where is he while we're fighting so I don't accidentally remove his fool head' way. If Zedd noticed her stolen looks - or her frowns or snorts or any other one of the myriad ways she probably gave herself away - he was kind enough not to mention it.

It was, of course, entirely possible that he remained oblivious. He could be shrewd, true, but he was still a man and therefore - in Cara's not so humble opinion - still ruled by his appetites.

And, for once, she wasn't just thinking of the one that concerned him filling his stomach.

It was disconcerting, disorientating and damned inconvenient. But Cara was Mord'Sith, and Mord'Sith were more than capable of ruling their own appetites. They were not men to succumb to fleeting cravings; they were disciplined, self-controlled - they did not submit to their desires. They made others submit to them.

And she wasn't hungry.

Not at all.

Not until she died and became a Baneling and had to deal with a hunger of a different sort.

She had Zedd - or his family, at least - to thank for changing her back.

-o-

Time passed, as time seemed to do in the Midlands - rapidly, frenetically and full of people trying to kill them.

Cara was starting to lose patience with it all.

The kidnapping Gars though, they were new. New and vermin ridden and really she could have done without the whole 'pretending to be a Princess' thing. Or the Zedd being strangely appealing in a dress thing. That was... almost as disturbing as the idea that someone could train Gars.

Almost.

Fighting the Margrave's guards - putting a knife to his throat (and other areas of his anatomy to which he was more attached, although that attachment could be a temporary thing as far as Cara was concerned) - was therefore cathartic. She knew where she was - who she was - when she had a sword in her hand, even if it didn't have the comforting weight of her agiels.

But that didn't mean that she wasn't relieved when Zedd changed back out of his dress into his more familiar Wizard's garb.

She knew who he was then. How she should treat him. And it didn't involve wondering how his mouth would taste with lipstick on it, whether it would have the familiar waxy feel to it as Triana's lips had had, or Dahlia's. Or finding herself distracted by thoughts about whether his lips would be soft underneath that makeup mask, and whether he would nip at her bottom lip, fighting her for dominance, or simply sigh, submitting to her touch.

Getting back to killing things was a welcome relief. It was familiar ground, but then Zedd was developing the annoying habit of yanking that right out from underneath her feet.

-o-

Apparently she'd turned evil.

She wasn't entirely sure how she felt about that, or how she felt about the fact that Zedd had, quite literally, remade the world to get her back.

Twice.

The one thing she was sure of was how she'd felt when Zedd had bellowed her name, panic and fear in his voice, or the relief that flooded his face when she answered him. At the sound of his voice, the fear in it and the longing attached to her name, her heart did that little trip, the one she buried underneath familiar affection and irritation, ignoring the ever-present pull that she felt around him.

They still had the world to save, and that helped.

Frankly, that distraction was the only thing keeping her sane.

-o-

And then Zedd died.

There was a moment, between the blow landing and Zedd crumpling to the floor, where the world stopped turning. She felt it like a blow herself - that absence, that stillness as the colour leached from everything, leaving it grey, unformed. Her ears were ringing, as though someone had screamed, a cry of fear and rage and grief that echoed throughout the clearing.

When the world came back, in flashes of brilliant red and white, D'Haran soldiers lay dead around her, their bodies twisted with the pain she'd inflicted as she'd killed them, and Zedd was so still, so very still as she knelt by his side, her throat aching and tasting of iron.

"Cara!"

Richard's cry sounded faint, distant, as he skidded to a stop, and there was grief in his voice, too. Even Richard's pain seemed distant as she reached out, settling her hand on Zedd's chest, right over his heart.

A heart that beat no longer, but that instead stained her glove with a deep red to match her leathers.

She summoned her magic, pulling everything she could into her, pulling on Richard's magic, too, the magic that bound the Mord'Sith to their Lord Rahl. Richard grunted, another sound of pain and loss, but she shut him out, shut everything out but the sound of the heart beneath her hand, the one that no longer beat.

She pressed her mouth against Zedd's, breathing out everything she had, all of her magic, all of her soul, pushing it into him.

The remnants of his magic - those lingering strands that still clung to his corpse, infusing every cell but fading now, fading as Zedd was fading - resisted her, turning her magic back on her like a Mord'Sith's power turned back all other magic. It was stubborn, slippery, like trying to pour water into a vessel in the face of a fierce wind. So much spilled away; so much, while so little settled into Zedd.

She persisted, determined to out-stubborn the old man, even now, at the point of death. She pushed and pushed, fighting fiercely, fighting to overcome him and his Keeper-damned magic, pouring everything she had into him, everything and more.

She was a Mord'Sith. She didn't lose. She wouldn't lose.

Not him.

The world greyed out again, and still she pushed, still she breathed for him, fighting his magic with her own, forcing his heart to beat again in time with her own.

His chest rose, once, twice, and then she felt it, that beat she'd been seeking, slow and soft at first and then growing stronger, steadier.

His hand closed over hers, and the world came back in flashes of red and gold.

"Cara," he murmured, and her hand became a claw, digging into his robe, gripping at his flesh, holding him to her, anchoring him when she was the one who - for once - needed that anchor. If she hurt him, he didn't make a sound - not Zedd, who complained constantly, a twinkle in his eye even as he did so.

There was no twinkle now, just a concern and a warmth that was only for her. He struggled to sit up and she let him, her hand still pressed against his chest, his hand still covering it.

"Richard," he said, his eyes finally leaving Cara's to meet Richard's over her head. "Perhaps you and Kahlan might like to hunt down the rest of this D'Haran contingent?"

Richard must have nodded, although Cara didn't turn her head to see it, unable to tear her eyes away from Zedd, Zedd who was breathing again. She heard Richard leave, though, the Lord Rahl slipping away almost silently like the wood guide he'd been.

It was not silent enough to escape Cara, not when everything was suddenly so clear and so sharp.

"My dear," Zedd said softly, his thumb stroking the back of her hand. She should pull away, put the walls back up again, but she couldn't move, couldn't retreat back to safety. "I could make myself look young again if that would help?"

That twinkle was back in his eyes, the corner of his mouth turning up, full of amusement and warm affection - with love - for her. He finally let go of her hand, his palm settling gently on the side of her face, cupping it carefully and his thumb now stroking over her cheek.

His touch was so gentle, and a Mord'Sith didn't need gentle. A Mord'Sith couldn't handle gentle, and she felt the pain of it - the pain and the longing - deep in her core.

"You deserve a young man, you know. Someone like Leo, whose knees don't ache on cold mornings and who might stand a chance of keeping up with you."

"You can keep up just fine, Wizard." His voice might have been soft, but hers was hard, uncompromising. It didn't throw him - if anything, his smile simply deepened, a slightly smug edge to it now.

If she'd had the energy - if her eyes didn't still sting and burn and her heart still ache - she'd have rolled her eyes at him, not let him get away with it. Remind him who she was and what it meant to be Mord'Sith.

A Mord'Sith was strong, unbending. A Mord'Sith resisted, but Cara no longer wanted to.

A Mord'Sith also took what she wanted, and that was the easier path to take. The right one to take, no matter how unsteady her footing felt.

She kissed him, pressing her lips firmly against his, demanding - and getting - his submission. His lips were dry and a little chapped, but they opened up under hers beautifully, letting her taste the remnants of her magic, and his on his tongue, in his soul.

And the ground stayed steady beneath her feet.

The end