Yuletide 2024 Letter
Oct. 15th, 2024 10:44 amHello!
This letter contains slightly rearranged versions of my sign up for Yuletide, but the information is the same in all locations. Thank you so much for taking a look. This is my first time signing up for an exchange this big, and I'm finding myself more nervous than I expected.
As a note, I do have treats enabled if anyone looking at this feels so inclined.
GENERAL LIKES:
• Amnesia
• Unreliable Narrator
• Outside POV
• Slice of Life
• Missing Scenes
• Mutual Pining
• Worldbuilding
• Extended Cast Plays a Role
• Romance Without Major PDA
• Bodysharing
• Epistolary Fic
• Forced Proximity
• Time Travel
• Magical Realism
• Dual Timelines
• Secret Societies
• Alternate Realities
• Explicit sexual content. Please fade to black.
• Underage kink
Examples: "hips round with baby fat", "smooth, barely pubescent legs", "my sexy baby boy/girl" - things that call attention to the age of the younger character in a sexual way.
• Rape or noncon, whether occurring between the two MCs or done by a third party to one of the MCs.
• Fanon nicknames or forms of address, unless specifically noted.
• Unrequested trans characters.
To be clear, this does not apply if the character is trans in canon, e.g., a trans character you wanted to use as a supporting character/outside POV. I’m purely referring to unrequested trans headcanons for the characters I’ve nominated. (There are characters I strongly prefer as trans, and if I request them, I will be sure to make that clear in my sign up prompts or likes.)
• Endings with the couple breaking up, unless otherwise noted.
• Any implications of incest between any two (or more) siblings.
• Permanent character death.
* * *
BLACK JACK:
Black Jack is one of my all time favorite manga, and Black Jack and Kiriko's antagonistic relationship is one of my favorite parts of it. I love how normally the disaffected and dour Black Jack becomes emotional at the mere sight of Kiriko. Both of them become so bitingly sarcastic and immature around the other - there's almost nothing that motivates Black Jack to waive his ridiculous fees more often than knowing Kiriko is waiting in the wings to take over should he refuse. However, I also love the lighter, softer moments between them, like at the end of One Hour to Death or A Fussy Suicide.
I do ship the two of them, in a sort of drunken, antagonistic more-than-enemies-with-benefits-but-less-than-lovers sort of way, however if you want to keep things purely gen between them, I'd love anything that involves the two of them interacting. (I'm also a sucker for Kiriko interacting with Pinoko, if you want to bring her into things.)
TOTALLY OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
• I'd love to see the stages Black Jack would go through if he heard about Kiriko's death. (Whether it's true or not is up to you.) I just think he'd run a full gamut of emotions, ending with a surprisingly deep depression. For this one, I wouldn't need Kiriko to be physically there, though Black Jack nonchalantly running across him much later would make a pretty funny ending, personally.
• Any unusual circumstance where they have to stick with one another for a prolonged time in order to survive. Snowed in cabin? Hospital taken over while they're both inside? Both of them kidnapped at the same time? Something else I haven't mentioned? Please go for it!
• We've seen Black Jack's reaction when he and Kiriko work together to save a patient, and Kiriko's reaction when Black Jack's operation still ends in death, but I'd love to see Black Jack's reaction to Kiriko attempting to save someone's life that ends in failure. (Perhaps Black Jack was set to do the operation, but was unavoidably delayed? I think it would be interesting for him to come in and assume Kiriko had killed his patient, but Kiriko had been driven to try until the end for a change.)
Series Specific Likes:
• Medical Mysteries
• Immature Rivalry Between Kiriko and Black Jack
• Globetrotting
• Kiriko and/or Black Jack Operating on One Another
• Melancholy Endings
• Kiriko and/or Black Jack Getting into Legal Trouble
• Character death is fine for this specific series, as is making out and/or mentions of arousal; I'd just prefer not to get fic where sex is the primary focus.
Series Specific DNWs:
• Black Jack seriously considering Pinoko his wife.
If you need a refresher, Kiriko shows up in the following chapters. I've listed the volume that corresponds to the English release, but I've included the Japanese name and chapter number if you have a different version. I've marked my favorites with a star.
046. Terror Virus - 恐怖菌 - Volume 06
056. Two Dark Doctors - ふたりの黒い医者 - Volume 03*
079. There Was a Valve! - 弁があった! - Volume 05
106. Urashima - 浦島太郎 - Volume 14
128. The One That Remains - 最後に残る者 - Volume 01 (English limited edition exclusive)
146. 99% Water - 99.9パーセントの水 - Volume 05*
177. One Hour to Death - 死への一時間 - Volume 08*
191. A Fussy Suicide - 小うるさい自殺者 - Volume 13* (Should avoid this one if you're sensitive to comedy centered around attempted suicide.)
229. The SL Called Life - 人生という名のSL - Volume 11
* * *
AKACHAN TO BOKU - BABY AND ME:
There are very few series I've reread as often as Akachan to Boku. While it's light in tone - considering the subject matter - I enjoy its exploration of the complicated and sometimes negative emotions of adolescence. Sometimes Takuya resents his family and his situation. Sometimes Akihiro feels unbearably stifled and irritated by his family.
Takuya and Akihiro are my favorite characters in the series, either as a romantic couple or separately. (If you want to age them up before writing them in a romantic relationship, please feel free. I'm very interested in exploring things beyond the scope of the manga for this series.) I like that they're not one another's best friend, but there's still an odd sweet and sour tension that pervades almost all of their interactions. They really notice one another in ways the others don't is perhaps the best way I can put it.
TOTALLY OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
• I can't see Minoru handling Takuya dating anyone well and, if he's going through a rebellious period, I could see him saying things that he regrets. With both of their tempers being as bad as they are, I'd love to see this be an emotional hurdle both have to work to get over. (Dating Akihiro is obviously optional, but preferred by yours truly.) This prompt is from Minoru's POV, but I'd love it from Takuya's just as much.
• For something a little lighter, I'd love Akihiro's family's reaction to his first relationship, because I'm sure it would be just as nightmarish in a totally different way. Akihiro can be sensitive in his own way, so I'd enjoy him either trying to hide it (and failing) or overthinking a piece of advice he gets from his siblings.
• I'm really interested in the aftermath of Minoru's hospital stay on the Enoki family. Emotionally, that sort of thing takes such a huge toll on families. Even when the crisis is over and you're out of the woods, the ghost of it remains and can influence your actions and reactions to things forever.
Series Specific Likes:
• Gay Awakening
• Well-Meaning Families Causing Problems
• Juggling Relationships with Families
• Being Uncomfortable with Competitive Feelings
Series Specific DNWs:
• None that aren't covered by my general DNW list at the top.
* * *
ARSLAN SENKI - THE HEROIC LEGEND OF ARSLAN
I love Arslan Senki. It's been one of my great fictional loves for more than half my life at this point. (My favorite version is the novels, but don't be worried if you're more familiar with the old movies or the Arakawa version. I'm sure I'll love whatever you write.)
My two favorite characters are Arslan and Daryun, both separately and as a couple. I think both of them are good people as a whole, but I love seeing their common morality fly out the window where the other is concerned, whether it's Arslan threatening Rajendra or Daryun threatening to cut out an unarmed man's tongue for insulting Arslan. By the end of the novel series, we have Daryun saying that he doesn't care about the nation as long as Arslan is happy. I wonder what that lone knight at the very beginning of the story would think about that.
TOTALLY OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
• Since it's canonical that Arslan requested he and Daryun be buried together, what do historians make of that? If you want to go explicitly romantic (please do!), is one of their love letters in a museum? Their relationship "sanitized" in history classes? I'd also love reincarnation fic that explores this premise. (Feel free to age Arslan up if you do go for reincarnation, btw.)
• I'd really enjoy anything that has the two of them interacting alone. Ideas in this vein would include Daryun teaching Arslan swordsmanship, or even both of them fretting over the other's wounds after a battle. I'd love something like Daryun covering for Arslan when he tries to hide from Rushan's lectures about the importance of getting married as soon as possible, too.
• I've always wanted to find out Daryun's reaction to Arslan's threats towards Rajendra. Is he concerned because it feels out of character for his prince? Happy that Rajendra got what was coming to him? Touched that Arslan would put these ally negotiations in danger for Daryun's sake? All of the above and more? Please tell me!
Series Specific Likes:
• Gay Awakening (Specifically Arslan in regards to Daryun; it's fine if the relationship itself remains platonic, though.)
• Sneaking Out of the Palace for Some Fun
• Absolute Loyalty as a Bad Thing
• Avoiding a Royal Marriage
Series Specific DNWs:
• Implications of a romantic or sexual relationship between Daryun and Narses, even in the past. (I'm fine with Daryun having other past relationships with men or women, just not with Narses.)
• Implications of anything beyond friendship between Arslan and Etoile.
This letter contains slightly rearranged versions of my sign up for Yuletide, but the information is the same in all locations. Thank you so much for taking a look. This is my first time signing up for an exchange this big, and I'm finding myself more nervous than I expected.
As a note, I do have treats enabled if anyone looking at this feels so inclined.
GENERAL LIKES:
• Amnesia
• Unreliable Narrator
• Outside POV
• Slice of Life
• Missing Scenes
• Mutual Pining
• Worldbuilding
• Extended Cast Plays a Role
• Romance Without Major PDA
• Bodysharing
• Epistolary Fic
• Forced Proximity
• Time Travel
• Magical Realism
• Dual Timelines
• Secret Societies
• Alternate Realities
GENERAL DNWS (click to view):
• Explicit sexual content. Please fade to black.
• Underage kink
Examples: "hips round with baby fat", "smooth, barely pubescent legs", "my sexy baby boy/girl" - things that call attention to the age of the younger character in a sexual way.
• Rape or noncon, whether occurring between the two MCs or done by a third party to one of the MCs.
• Fanon nicknames or forms of address, unless specifically noted.
• Unrequested trans characters.
To be clear, this does not apply if the character is trans in canon, e.g., a trans character you wanted to use as a supporting character/outside POV. I’m purely referring to unrequested trans headcanons for the characters I’ve nominated. (There are characters I strongly prefer as trans, and if I request them, I will be sure to make that clear in my sign up prompts or likes.)
• Endings with the couple breaking up, unless otherwise noted.
• Any implications of incest between any two (or more) siblings.
• Permanent character death.
BLACK JACK:
Black Jack is one of my all time favorite manga, and Black Jack and Kiriko's antagonistic relationship is one of my favorite parts of it. I love how normally the disaffected and dour Black Jack becomes emotional at the mere sight of Kiriko. Both of them become so bitingly sarcastic and immature around the other - there's almost nothing that motivates Black Jack to waive his ridiculous fees more often than knowing Kiriko is waiting in the wings to take over should he refuse. However, I also love the lighter, softer moments between them, like at the end of One Hour to Death or A Fussy Suicide.
I do ship the two of them, in a sort of drunken, antagonistic more-than-enemies-with-benefits-but-less-than-lovers sort of way, however if you want to keep things purely gen between them, I'd love anything that involves the two of them interacting. (I'm also a sucker for Kiriko interacting with Pinoko, if you want to bring her into things.)
TOTALLY OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
• I'd love to see the stages Black Jack would go through if he heard about Kiriko's death. (Whether it's true or not is up to you.) I just think he'd run a full gamut of emotions, ending with a surprisingly deep depression. For this one, I wouldn't need Kiriko to be physically there, though Black Jack nonchalantly running across him much later would make a pretty funny ending, personally.
• Any unusual circumstance where they have to stick with one another for a prolonged time in order to survive. Snowed in cabin? Hospital taken over while they're both inside? Both of them kidnapped at the same time? Something else I haven't mentioned? Please go for it!
• We've seen Black Jack's reaction when he and Kiriko work together to save a patient, and Kiriko's reaction when Black Jack's operation still ends in death, but I'd love to see Black Jack's reaction to Kiriko attempting to save someone's life that ends in failure. (Perhaps Black Jack was set to do the operation, but was unavoidably delayed? I think it would be interesting for him to come in and assume Kiriko had killed his patient, but Kiriko had been driven to try until the end for a change.)
Series Specific Likes:
• Medical Mysteries
• Immature Rivalry Between Kiriko and Black Jack
• Globetrotting
• Kiriko and/or Black Jack Operating on One Another
• Melancholy Endings
• Kiriko and/or Black Jack Getting into Legal Trouble
• Character death is fine for this specific series, as is making out and/or mentions of arousal; I'd just prefer not to get fic where sex is the primary focus.
Series Specific DNWs:
• Black Jack seriously considering Pinoko his wife.
HELPFUL MISC (click to open for a list of all Kiriko's canon appearances):
If you need a refresher, Kiriko shows up in the following chapters. I've listed the volume that corresponds to the English release, but I've included the Japanese name and chapter number if you have a different version. I've marked my favorites with a star.
046. Terror Virus - 恐怖菌 - Volume 06
056. Two Dark Doctors - ふたりの黒い医者 - Volume 03*
079. There Was a Valve! - 弁があった! - Volume 05
106. Urashima - 浦島太郎 - Volume 14
128. The One That Remains - 最後に残る者 - Volume 01 (English limited edition exclusive)
146. 99% Water - 99.9パーセントの水 - Volume 05*
177. One Hour to Death - 死への一時間 - Volume 08*
191. A Fussy Suicide - 小うるさい自殺者 - Volume 13* (Should avoid this one if you're sensitive to comedy centered around attempted suicide.)
229. The SL Called Life - 人生という名のSL - Volume 11
AKACHAN TO BOKU - BABY AND ME:
There are very few series I've reread as often as Akachan to Boku. While it's light in tone - considering the subject matter - I enjoy its exploration of the complicated and sometimes negative emotions of adolescence. Sometimes Takuya resents his family and his situation. Sometimes Akihiro feels unbearably stifled and irritated by his family.
Takuya and Akihiro are my favorite characters in the series, either as a romantic couple or separately. (If you want to age them up before writing them in a romantic relationship, please feel free. I'm very interested in exploring things beyond the scope of the manga for this series.) I like that they're not one another's best friend, but there's still an odd sweet and sour tension that pervades almost all of their interactions. They really notice one another in ways the others don't is perhaps the best way I can put it.
TOTALLY OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
• I can't see Minoru handling Takuya dating anyone well and, if he's going through a rebellious period, I could see him saying things that he regrets. With both of their tempers being as bad as they are, I'd love to see this be an emotional hurdle both have to work to get over. (Dating Akihiro is obviously optional, but preferred by yours truly.) This prompt is from Minoru's POV, but I'd love it from Takuya's just as much.
• For something a little lighter, I'd love Akihiro's family's reaction to his first relationship, because I'm sure it would be just as nightmarish in a totally different way. Akihiro can be sensitive in his own way, so I'd enjoy him either trying to hide it (and failing) or overthinking a piece of advice he gets from his siblings.
• I'm really interested in the aftermath of Minoru's hospital stay on the Enoki family. Emotionally, that sort of thing takes such a huge toll on families. Even when the crisis is over and you're out of the woods, the ghost of it remains and can influence your actions and reactions to things forever.
Series Specific Likes:
• Gay Awakening
• Well-Meaning Families Causing Problems
• Juggling Relationships with Families
• Being Uncomfortable with Competitive Feelings
Series Specific DNWs:
• None that aren't covered by my general DNW list at the top.
ARSLAN SENKI - THE HEROIC LEGEND OF ARSLAN
I love Arslan Senki. It's been one of my great fictional loves for more than half my life at this point. (My favorite version is the novels, but don't be worried if you're more familiar with the old movies or the Arakawa version. I'm sure I'll love whatever you write.)
My two favorite characters are Arslan and Daryun, both separately and as a couple. I think both of them are good people as a whole, but I love seeing their common morality fly out the window where the other is concerned, whether it's Arslan threatening Rajendra or Daryun threatening to cut out an unarmed man's tongue for insulting Arslan. By the end of the novel series, we have Daryun saying that he doesn't care about the nation as long as Arslan is happy. I wonder what that lone knight at the very beginning of the story would think about that.
TOTALLY OPTIONAL PROMPTS:
• Since it's canonical that Arslan requested he and Daryun be buried together, what do historians make of that? If you want to go explicitly romantic (please do!), is one of their love letters in a museum? Their relationship "sanitized" in history classes? I'd also love reincarnation fic that explores this premise. (Feel free to age Arslan up if you do go for reincarnation, btw.)
• I'd really enjoy anything that has the two of them interacting alone. Ideas in this vein would include Daryun teaching Arslan swordsmanship, or even both of them fretting over the other's wounds after a battle. I'd love something like Daryun covering for Arslan when he tries to hide from Rushan's lectures about the importance of getting married as soon as possible, too.
• I've always wanted to find out Daryun's reaction to Arslan's threats towards Rajendra. Is he concerned because it feels out of character for his prince? Happy that Rajendra got what was coming to him? Touched that Arslan would put these ally negotiations in danger for Daryun's sake? All of the above and more? Please tell me!
Series Specific Likes:
• Gay Awakening (Specifically Arslan in regards to Daryun; it's fine if the relationship itself remains platonic, though.)
• Sneaking Out of the Palace for Some Fun
• Absolute Loyalty as a Bad Thing
• Avoiding a Royal Marriage
Series Specific DNWs:
• Implications of a romantic or sexual relationship between Daryun and Narses, even in the past. (I'm fine with Daryun having other past relationships with men or women, just not with Narses.)
• Implications of anything beyond friendship between Arslan and Etoile.
