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AU Exchange Dear Creator Letter
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chacusha on AO3. Requesting art and fic for everything. Treats are welcome!
I love AUs of all kinds. However, for the sake of simplicity, I've themed this sign-up around mostly setting change AUs. While I have requested certain characters, I really like AUs in general and how an AU would affect other characters/the setting more generally outside of the requested characters/ships. So if you want to do a general, whole-cast, gen-heavy sort of work, that is totally fine with me, just as long as one of my characters/ships are also there! So yeah, please consider, like, "Whole cast" being requested if you want that as a focus (with my faves thrown in as part of the cast). Feel free to throw in additional pairings in the background for any of these fandoms.
Commonly DNW'd things I am fine with receiving in a gift:
I'm a bit short on time, and my AU tastes are so broad, I've decided to just write, like, a listicle -- my top 10 setting change AUs. Well, more like 10 setting change AUs + 1 AU that requires a mild setting change + 1 that has no setting change needed at all.
1. Whatever setting change AU idea you already have for these fandoms, or which you get while reading the requested freeform list or this letter
If you've got a setting change AU idea in your mind but it doesn't match anything I've mentioned/requested here, please go with it.
2. Mundane/Modern AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Modern AU; ALL: Artist/Model AU; ALL: Bakery; ALL: Characters do fic exchanges; ALL: Coffee Shop AU; ALL: College/University AU; ALL: Creator's workplace; ALL: Flower Shop AU; All: grad students AU; ALL: High School AU; ALL: Library AU; ALL: Model/Photographer AU; All: Office AU; ALL: Online Dating; ALL: Sports Team AU; ALL: Teachers
Mundane/Modern AUs: By modern AU, I'm really okay with anything set within the last 100 years or so. I very much like period pastiche (e.g. characters wearing very [decade]-ish clothing) if that's what you want to do. Here are some modern AU ideas:
• Coffee shop AU. So, I am very basic and will always kill for a coffee shop AU for my fandoms. Or you know, any other kind of cozy shop AU: flower shop, rival bakeries, tattoo artist, bookshop, etc. etc. What do I love about these? Cute settings, store displays, workplace outfits (e.g. aprons), etc. The coziness of those repeated employee/customer or customer/customer or employee/employee or rival/rival interactions where relationships/closeness can develop slowly over time. Characters with an expertise and/or passion in whatever their shop specializes in, etc.
• High school or college (students and/or teachers) AU. I am also very basic and love a good ol' high school AU or really anything involving students and teachers. Things I love about school AUs: translating characters' personalities and strengths/weaknesses into what kind of attitude they'd have to their studies/teaching and what subjects they'd be interested in. Translating the problems/tensions featured in canon into something more like low-stakes drama. Dating and romance drama at a stage of life when you don't have much experience and everything about it seems hard and important and high-stakes. Older characters reimagined at a younger, fresher stage of life.
• Workplace AUs: The characters now all work in the same company/organization. Or the cast now has your niche field/line of work/hobby. I love seeing casts of a canon translated to teams that work together with their own roles and the way that personalities and positions bounce off each other in interesting ways.
• Actor AUs. The characters are actors. Maybe they play their characters in a piece of fiction resembling canon and then interact with each other somewhat differently when the camera isn't rolling. You can get really meta with it. Or maybe just a certain character(s) is an actor (or other celebrity) and the others have other lines of work as you find appropriate.
• Sports AUs. Omg, I love sports AUs. The cast of characters from a canon on a team together, sorted into appropriate roles and their play style influenced by their personality is just my jam. I also just love characters being really passionate and specialized/practiced in a niche thing. I really don't care what the sport is, I just love the whole genre of sports anime (and similar) and am happy for any canon to be transmuted to become such. (I requested Sports Team AU but really, it doesn't have to be a team sport. I'm very happy for the sport to be a solo game or competition.)
3. Fairy Tale AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Fairy Tale AU; ALL: Ghibli Movie AU; ALL: Greek Mythology AU; ALL: Medieval AU; ALL: Mythology; All: Cinderella AU; All: East of the Sun and West of the Moon Fusion; ALL: Hades and Persephone AU
Fairy tale and myth AU/fusions: Some things I enjoy about fairy tales and fairy tale fusions: characters who are under curses of whatever type -- prophesied to have something happen to them; sleeping curses; curse of obedience; cursed into animal/monster form (if any character gets turned into a bird or a flower, I go wild); unable to speak. I like fairy tale stock characters and tropes -- characters making their way through the world and being rewarded (punished) for (in)hospitality along the way, town fool/youngest son, rules of three, Baba Yaga, old couple who wants children gifted with a supernatural child, wondrous settings/items (golden/jeweled trees, nutshell dresses, tablecloths that create infinite food), etc. Encounters with fairies, dragons, princes(ses), mermaids, etc. I love characters who switch between different forms, especially if that comes with identity porn potential.
Some random fairy tales and myths I like: The Six Swans (and similar tales), The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast / East of the Sun, West of the Moon, The Frog Prince, Swan Lake, The Little Mermaid, The Snow Queen, Pinocchio, Little Red Riding Hood, Tale of the Bamboo Cutter/Princess Kaguya, Tsuru no Ongaeshi, Urashimataro, Momotaro, Gilgamesh, Hades and Persephone, The Last Unicorn. I'm going to go ahead and put Ghibli movies under this category too... My favorites are Princess Mononoke, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Nausicaa, but I'm seriously happy with any of them and I very much think they all have enough of the above elements I mentioned to count here!
I'm also okay with general medieval AUs with or without magical/supernatural elements to them! Give me peasants, knights, princesses, D&D-style classes, etc. etc.
4. Western AU
Related freeforms: All: Western AU; ALL: Feudal Japan AU; ALL: Old West; ALL: Spaghetti Western AU
Western AUs are just... so great. I always go wild whenever a show has that one episode that is inexplicably in a Western setting (e.g. "Living in Harmony" in The Prisoner; "A Fistful of Datas" in Star Trek: The Next Generation, etc.). I love the aesthetic -- the clothes, horses, guns, little towns and stark landscapes. I love the character archetypes and thinking about where characters from another canon fit into them. I love the melancholy-tinged plots, the struggle between good and evil, the contrast between the lone cowboy (or ronin samurai*) stumbling across/protecting a community.
* In addition to the typical American West setting, I am very much open to all kinds of Westerns-in-different-settings including samurai films, knights-errant (medieval setting Westerns), space cowboys (Westerns IN SPACE!), etc. It's all good!
5. Superpowers AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Magical Girl | Mahou Shoujo; ALL: Superheroes/Superpowers
Magical Girl/Superheroes AU: Things I love about these genres: Flamboyant/flashy costuming! Strongly-themed characters including assigning powers or attacks and a superhero name to characters from canon! The opportunity for drama-filled plotlines involving saving a town/city/world from attacks or villainous threats; identity porn potential of keeping your identity secret, characters knowing each other under different guises and having very different attitudes toward each, etc.; potential for teamwork/teamups between multiple characters from the original cast (see also my love of office AUs).
I'm definitely happy with either a fusion with a specific magical girl/superhero/tokusatsu canon (e.g. Sailor Moon, Miraculous Ladybug, X-Men, The Boys, etc.) or making up your own superhero world.
6. Regency AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Regency AU; ALL: Persuasion AU; All: Pride and Prejudice AU
Regency AU my beloved. <3 Okay so what do I like about Regency settings... I've adored every Jane Austen story I've read. I love the aesthetic: the dresses and jackets, the sitting rooms and the writing desks, etc. The courtship; the balls. The social mobility (upward and downward) that has people trying to secure the best marriage they are able to, using education to find a job/eke out an independent living, avoiding ticking off someone who might write them out of their inheritance, etc. etc. There's just so many opportunities for drama created from romance and social interactions. I love the character types in regency stories and would love to see characters reimagined/mapped to those types.
7. Personality sorting system AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Avatar & Benders Setting; ALL: Hogwarts AU; All: Star Trek AU; ALL: Westeros AU
There are some canons that feature a fun personality or sorting system as part of the canon. Some canons I'm familiar with that have that kind of system: Harry Potter's Hogwarts houses and magic or quidditch specialties; Avatar: The Last Airbender's nations and elemental benders (as well as non-benders); A Song of Ice and Fire and its themed houses (color-coded and with thematic house words) and many nations and religions; and Star Trek with its Starfleet divisions and its various races each with its own "hat."
I'd love to see the characters I've requested reimagined as where their best fit would be in any of these universes. I'm fine with any time period setting for these canons!
I think I would get a bit less out of fusions with canons I'm less familiar with (like, I'm vaguely aware that Kushiel and His Dark Materials have this kind of sorting potential although I haven't read them), but if you want to go for some other kind of canon with a sorting system like this, please do!
8. Sci-fi AU
Related freeforms: ALL: IN SPACE!; ALL: Blade Runner Fusion; ALL: Cyberpunk AU; All: Mecha; ALL: Pacific Rim AU; ALL: Robots or Androids AU; ALL: Science Fiction AU; ALL: Space Opera AU; All: Star Trek AU; ALL: Star Wars Setting; ALL: The Expanse AU; All: Tron AU
Things I like about sci-fi AUs: Well, I just like a kind of tech-y/futuristic aesthetic. I love stars and spaceships and exotic planets/lifeforms. I LOVE mecha (/characters piloting mecha), whether that's on Earth/a planet or in space, especially if the mecha reflects the personality of the character. I love seeing elements from non-sci-fi canons translated into sci-fi/technological elements.
9. Angels and Demons AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Angels and Demons AU; ALL: Angel AU; ALL: Demon AU; ALL: Demon Hunters
Things I like about angels and demons AUs: Characters with wings! Angels who like to hang out with demons and demons who like to hang out with angels. The kind of forbidden love of an angel and a demon who love each other. I love translating a canon's cast into the heavenly or hellish bureaucracies with tiers of angels and demons and the various duties they might have (see also: my love of office AUs).
I'm fine with something with just angels or just demons. There's also lots of interesting possibilities involving a human + an angel or a human + a demon kind of setups and interactions. Love angel/demon characters that work with humans and learn about humanity that way and have an outsider's view of humanity. I also love incubus/succubus type AUs as a subset of demon AUs.
10. Phantom Thief and Detective AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Phantom Thief & Detective AU
Okay, this one is super specific, but why not. It's a bit more mundane than a superhero AU; a bit more fantastical than a regular detective AU. I feel like that makes it quite a lot of fun to play with. The heists can be a bit over-the-top and not grounded in reality. I love the pseudo-romantic dynamic of "always chasing after someone who is one step ahead of you," and I love the identity porn potential. Yep, more identity porn potential -- turns out I really love this thing.
11. Soulmate AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Soulmate AU and too many to list!
A slight setting change this time -- I like soulmate/soulmark AUs because it's fun to think of different mechanics and how that might change (or fit) certain existing dynamics between characters and certain characters' personalities. I'm interested in whatever soulmate or soulmark mechanic you want to use.
I also like stories where two characters are soulmates or connected cosmically in some way and they keep finding each other across lives/times/alternate universes (obviously pairs nicely with other setting change AUs if you want to go that way).
12. Roleswap AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Roleswap AU
And here is the one non-setting-change AU that I loved too much to leave it off the list: I love the "what if?" exercise of imagining if two characters' roles or life situations were flipped. It's fun seeing what would/wouldn't change in canon, little parallels and differences; making the characters recognizably themselves while also changing something significant about them. I love seeing how a roleswap might change little things about a character's appearance.
A Song of Ice and Fire
Sandor Clegane/Sansa Stark
• Fairy Tale AU: Well... The Beauty and the Beast vibes are absolutely blaring here... But feel free to do anything else fairy tale-related with these two. I feel like Sansa and Sandor's strong association with birds/dogs makes for a natural curse or alternate form.
• Western AU: A lot of ASOIAF themes are Western themes, particularly around Sandor's story and especially his relationship to Sansa -- jaded but skilled fighter finding some purpose in protecting/aiding a damsel in distress.
• Regency AU: I'm also pretty convinced that Sandor fits pretty naturally into a regency story. He's withdrawn/gruff/dour, but has a lot of emotions going on inside and makes for a decent love interest despite the initial very offputting impression he gives off.
• Angels and Demons AU: I think Sansa and Sandor could work as an angel and a demon. The idealism/cynicism tension between them seems like a good fit for that kind of dynamic.
Bravely Default
Alternis Dim/Edea Lee
• Modern AU: Lots of interesting things to do here. I like the idea of modern AU Alternis is more officially adopted into Edea's family. Also, I like the idea of motorcyclist!Alternis. Alternis, Edea, and the rest of the Bravely cast imagined as high schoolers or teachers is also pretty great.
• Coffee Shop AU: Alternis/Ringabel's love of coffee (and Edea's love of sweets) makes for a natural coffee shop AU... (or a patisserie AU!).
• Fairy Tale AU: I feel like Alternis and Edea work pretty naturally for Beauty and the Beast or Hades and Persephone kind of vibes.
• Office AU/Superheroes AU: I have a superhero AU where Alternis is a superhero who works with Edea in his civilian identity, Ringabel. Literally anything even vaguely inspired by this would be great.
Final Fantasy VI
Celes Chere
Cyan Garamonde
Edgar Roni Figaro
Gau
Sabin Rene Figaro
Setzer Gabbiani
Shadow
Terra Branford
Terra Branford & Celes Chere
Terra Branford/Kefka Palazzo
I have kind of requested a random collection of characters/relationships here. All these characters I'd love to see AU versions of and Terra is a fave, but I find the whole FF6 cast interesting and I don't have any NOTPs, so if you want to focus on platonic or romantic relationships not listed here, please go ahead. Just as long as at least one of these characters appears, I will be happy.
• Sports AU: Because of how different all of the FF6 party members are, I feel like they would make for a WACKY sports team. I don't really have any specific sport in mind -- just feel like each character would have their own weird niche/play style.
• Western AU: For a very long time, I have thought that FF6 translates very naturally into a Western. You've got Shadow the bounty hunter right there; Edgar very naturally filling the role of a mayor or sheriff; Maria as a saloon girl and Setzer as her favorite patron; etc. etc. Anyway, anything you want to do with this theme (including one of my requested characters), I will love.
• Ghibli Movie AU: With the conflict between the technological empire vs. the magical esper realm, I feel like FF6 would translate naturally to Princess Mononoke or Nausicaa. (Well, I suppose Final Fantasy has a long history of being inspired by Ghibli films.)
• Sci-fi AU: FFVI is already quite steampunky which is a sci-fi-y flavor, but I think it would be fun to give the game a more space-y theme and imagine what the characters would look like in a futuristic setting. Terra and a mech might be cool.
• Phantom Thief & Detective AU: Well, Locke makes a great thief. Who is the detective? (Celes?)
Pinocchio (1940)
Lampwick/Pinocchio
Blue Fairy/Jiminy Cricket
• Modern AU: I would love to see a (more) modern setting for Pinocchio -- Pinocchio and Lampwick as modern schoolmates; the Blue Fairy and Jiminy Cricket translated into some kind of non-magical equivalent; the coziness of any of them having a shop of some kind; etc.
• Fairy Tale AU: I requested this but obviously I would like fairy tale elements from a different source than Pinocchio if you go with this idea.
• Sci-fi or Star Trek AU: I know that sci-fi Pinocchio is a very common thing since Pinocchio the animate puppet can be seen as a proto-robot character. But heck, I will absolutely eat it up every time. Please just throw Lampwick in there interacting with Pinocchio and I will be very happy.
• Angels and Demons AU: Once again, morality code tension between Pinocchio and Lampwick makes a translation to angels and demons pretty natural. Maybe instead of becoming a real boy, Pinocchio is an angel who wants to "earn his wings," maybe by getting a human Lampwick back on the straight and narrow path? Or Jiminy Cricket is the one who's a guardian angel trying to earn his wings by looking over Pinocchio and impress the higher-order-angel Blue Fairy?
• Soulmates AU: I'm always curious how aspects of the movie might change if soulmates/soulmarks were added. How would they work in this already quite surreal universe? How might it change the characters' actions?
Soul Calibur / Soulcalibur
Hong Yun-seong
Isabella "Ivy" Valentine
Maxi
Seong Mi-na
Taki
Zasalamel
Cassandra Alexandra & Sophitia Alexandra
Heishiro Mitsurugi & Setsuka & Taki
Hong Yun-seong/Seong Mi-na
Pyrrha Alexandra/Tira
I have kind of requested a random collection of characters/relationships here. This fandom has such a HUGE cast and there is not that much fanworks in existence, so I am interested in any part of cast here. I've nominated and requested some of my faves and but please feel to focus on whatever characters or platonic or romantic relationships you like even if they're not listed here. Just as long as at least one of my requested character(s) appears, I will be happy.
• High School AU: I would love any kind of modern take on any SC character, but in particular, I think a school filled with Soulcalibur characters would be so hectic. I'm fine with the cast being all students, all teachers, or split between students and teachers.
• Magical Girl/Superheroes AU: Soulcalibur already has a kind of exaggerated, supernatural-powers sort of vibe -- I'd love to see that formalized with SC characters actually being superheroes. What would they look like, what would their name/theme be, and what kind of superhero/villain would they be?
• Westeros AU: Soulcalibur's cast is so sprawling and so is Westeros's cast of characters. I feel like it provides the opportunity for some interesting parallels to be drawn/placements to be made of SC characters in Westeros.
• Angels & Demons AU: The strong good/evil alignment of SC's world and its characters I think naturally lends itself well to an angels and demons kind of setup. I'd love to see any character's aesthetic translated into an angelic/demonic one. Also: wings!
• Roleswap AU: Honestly, pick any two characters and flip them up a bit -- I'd love to see how that changes the world, plot, or particular dynamics. Or, I'd love to see any two characters with their clothes/style and/or personalities swapped.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Odo/Quark
• Modern AU: Well, DS9 has a canonical modern AU ("Far Beyond the Stars"). Feel free to dig into that more, or go with a modern AU of your own. Quark's role as a bartender translates naturally to the same in a modern setting, but also could easily be translated to coffee shop or other kind of shop. The idea of Odo and Quark as somewhat nightmarish coworkers also tickles me. There is also always modern-day (or period piece) detective/criminal. :)
• Western AU: Well, DS9 is already a Western of sorts, so if you choose this one, please choose a different setting than Space Western! (At least it's really easy to translate this one!) Give me Odo and Quark in a different setting and I will love it.
• Regency AU: I don't have specific ideas for this, but I have the feeling that Quodo would work well for regency setting because Quark and Odo already have such strong romance novel vibes to them. I am certain it could work. I guess the most natural parallel would be Pride and Prejudice because of the enemies-to-lovers dynamic between the characters, and one character being spirited/outspoken and the other one being hella repressed and arrogant.
• Angels and Demons AU: I actually have an angel and demon AU for these two (also, not my art, but this devil Quark might be of interest too). But that concept is basically all I've got -- if you want to draw your own take or write a story for this concept, that would make my day.
• Phantom Thief and Detective AU: I feel like this would be a fun tweak on their canon dynamic. The detective-pursuing-thief dynamic would be the same, but there would be opportunities to add identity shenanigans and a different kind of dynamic between Odo and Quark as well as a different sort of case/detective work. And I think it would be funny to see how Quark fits into this genre because he's very much not a gentleman thief -- more like an asshole thief.
If none of the above matches an idea you already have, that's fine! Please go with your idea -- I will love it.
General notes:
I love AUs of all kinds. However, for the sake of simplicity, I've themed this sign-up around mostly setting change AUs. While I have requested certain characters, I really like AUs in general and how an AU would affect other characters/the setting more generally outside of the requested characters/ships. So if you want to do a general, whole-cast, gen-heavy sort of work, that is totally fine with me, just as long as one of my characters/ships are also there! So yeah, please consider, like, "Whole cast" being requested if you want that as a focus (with my faves thrown in as part of the cast). Feel free to throw in additional pairings in the background for any of these fandoms.
DNWs:
- Non-canonical pregnancy; kidfic / original child characters.
- Feces; urine; cannibalism.
- Overly bleak endings like mindbreak or permanent damage in noncon.
Opt-ins:
Commonly DNW'd things I am fine with receiving in a gift:
- Non-con, dub-con, and unhealthy relationships.
- Incest and underage pairings.
- Unhappy endings, major character death, dark/heavy themes.
- Infidelity.
- Experimental styles/format/media, including 1st and 2nd POV.
I'm a bit short on time, and my AU tastes are so broad, I've decided to just write, like, a listicle -- my top 10 setting change AUs. Well, more like 10 setting change AUs + 1 AU that requires a mild setting change + 1 that has no setting change needed at all.
1. Whatever setting change AU idea you already have for these fandoms, or which you get while reading the requested freeform list or this letter
If you've got a setting change AU idea in your mind but it doesn't match anything I've mentioned/requested here, please go with it.
2. Mundane/Modern AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Modern AU; ALL: Artist/Model AU; ALL: Bakery; ALL: Characters do fic exchanges; ALL: Coffee Shop AU; ALL: College/University AU; ALL: Creator's workplace; ALL: Flower Shop AU; All: grad students AU; ALL: High School AU; ALL: Library AU; ALL: Model/Photographer AU; All: Office AU; ALL: Online Dating; ALL: Sports Team AU; ALL: Teachers
Mundane/Modern AUs: By modern AU, I'm really okay with anything set within the last 100 years or so. I very much like period pastiche (e.g. characters wearing very [decade]-ish clothing) if that's what you want to do. Here are some modern AU ideas:
• Coffee shop AU. So, I am very basic and will always kill for a coffee shop AU for my fandoms. Or you know, any other kind of cozy shop AU: flower shop, rival bakeries, tattoo artist, bookshop, etc. etc. What do I love about these? Cute settings, store displays, workplace outfits (e.g. aprons), etc. The coziness of those repeated employee/customer or customer/customer or employee/employee or rival/rival interactions where relationships/closeness can develop slowly over time. Characters with an expertise and/or passion in whatever their shop specializes in, etc.
• High school or college (students and/or teachers) AU. I am also very basic and love a good ol' high school AU or really anything involving students and teachers. Things I love about school AUs: translating characters' personalities and strengths/weaknesses into what kind of attitude they'd have to their studies/teaching and what subjects they'd be interested in. Translating the problems/tensions featured in canon into something more like low-stakes drama. Dating and romance drama at a stage of life when you don't have much experience and everything about it seems hard and important and high-stakes. Older characters reimagined at a younger, fresher stage of life.
• Workplace AUs: The characters now all work in the same company/organization. Or the cast now has your niche field/line of work/hobby. I love seeing casts of a canon translated to teams that work together with their own roles and the way that personalities and positions bounce off each other in interesting ways.
• Actor AUs. The characters are actors. Maybe they play their characters in a piece of fiction resembling canon and then interact with each other somewhat differently when the camera isn't rolling. You can get really meta with it. Or maybe just a certain character(s) is an actor (or other celebrity) and the others have other lines of work as you find appropriate.
• Sports AUs. Omg, I love sports AUs. The cast of characters from a canon on a team together, sorted into appropriate roles and their play style influenced by their personality is just my jam. I also just love characters being really passionate and specialized/practiced in a niche thing. I really don't care what the sport is, I just love the whole genre of sports anime (and similar) and am happy for any canon to be transmuted to become such. (I requested Sports Team AU but really, it doesn't have to be a team sport. I'm very happy for the sport to be a solo game or competition.)
3. Fairy Tale AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Fairy Tale AU; ALL: Ghibli Movie AU; ALL: Greek Mythology AU; ALL: Medieval AU; ALL: Mythology; All: Cinderella AU; All: East of the Sun and West of the Moon Fusion; ALL: Hades and Persephone AU
Fairy tale and myth AU/fusions: Some things I enjoy about fairy tales and fairy tale fusions: characters who are under curses of whatever type -- prophesied to have something happen to them; sleeping curses; curse of obedience; cursed into animal/monster form (if any character gets turned into a bird or a flower, I go wild); unable to speak. I like fairy tale stock characters and tropes -- characters making their way through the world and being rewarded (punished) for (in)hospitality along the way, town fool/youngest son, rules of three, Baba Yaga, old couple who wants children gifted with a supernatural child, wondrous settings/items (golden/jeweled trees, nutshell dresses, tablecloths that create infinite food), etc. Encounters with fairies, dragons, princes(ses), mermaids, etc. I love characters who switch between different forms, especially if that comes with identity porn potential.
Some random fairy tales and myths I like: The Six Swans (and similar tales), The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast / East of the Sun, West of the Moon, The Frog Prince, Swan Lake, The Little Mermaid, The Snow Queen, Pinocchio, Little Red Riding Hood, Tale of the Bamboo Cutter/Princess Kaguya, Tsuru no Ongaeshi, Urashimataro, Momotaro, Gilgamesh, Hades and Persephone, The Last Unicorn. I'm going to go ahead and put Ghibli movies under this category too... My favorites are Princess Mononoke, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Nausicaa, but I'm seriously happy with any of them and I very much think they all have enough of the above elements I mentioned to count here!
I'm also okay with general medieval AUs with or without magical/supernatural elements to them! Give me peasants, knights, princesses, D&D-style classes, etc. etc.
4. Western AU
Related freeforms: All: Western AU; ALL: Feudal Japan AU; ALL: Old West; ALL: Spaghetti Western AU
Western AUs are just... so great. I always go wild whenever a show has that one episode that is inexplicably in a Western setting (e.g. "Living in Harmony" in The Prisoner; "A Fistful of Datas" in Star Trek: The Next Generation, etc.). I love the aesthetic -- the clothes, horses, guns, little towns and stark landscapes. I love the character archetypes and thinking about where characters from another canon fit into them. I love the melancholy-tinged plots, the struggle between good and evil, the contrast between the lone cowboy (or ronin samurai*) stumbling across/protecting a community.
* In addition to the typical American West setting, I am very much open to all kinds of Westerns-in-different-settings including samurai films, knights-errant (medieval setting Westerns), space cowboys (Westerns IN SPACE!), etc. It's all good!
5. Superpowers AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Magical Girl | Mahou Shoujo; ALL: Superheroes/Superpowers
Magical Girl/Superheroes AU: Things I love about these genres: Flamboyant/flashy costuming! Strongly-themed characters including assigning powers or attacks and a superhero name to characters from canon! The opportunity for drama-filled plotlines involving saving a town/city/world from attacks or villainous threats; identity porn potential of keeping your identity secret, characters knowing each other under different guises and having very different attitudes toward each, etc.; potential for teamwork/teamups between multiple characters from the original cast (see also my love of office AUs).
I'm definitely happy with either a fusion with a specific magical girl/superhero/tokusatsu canon (e.g. Sailor Moon, Miraculous Ladybug, X-Men, The Boys, etc.) or making up your own superhero world.
6. Regency AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Regency AU; ALL: Persuasion AU; All: Pride and Prejudice AU
Regency AU my beloved. <3 Okay so what do I like about Regency settings... I've adored every Jane Austen story I've read. I love the aesthetic: the dresses and jackets, the sitting rooms and the writing desks, etc. The courtship; the balls. The social mobility (upward and downward) that has people trying to secure the best marriage they are able to, using education to find a job/eke out an independent living, avoiding ticking off someone who might write them out of their inheritance, etc. etc. There's just so many opportunities for drama created from romance and social interactions. I love the character types in regency stories and would love to see characters reimagined/mapped to those types.
7. Personality sorting system AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Avatar & Benders Setting; ALL: Hogwarts AU; All: Star Trek AU; ALL: Westeros AU
There are some canons that feature a fun personality or sorting system as part of the canon. Some canons I'm familiar with that have that kind of system: Harry Potter's Hogwarts houses and magic or quidditch specialties; Avatar: The Last Airbender's nations and elemental benders (as well as non-benders); A Song of Ice and Fire and its themed houses (color-coded and with thematic house words) and many nations and religions; and Star Trek with its Starfleet divisions and its various races each with its own "hat."
I'd love to see the characters I've requested reimagined as where their best fit would be in any of these universes. I'm fine with any time period setting for these canons!
I think I would get a bit less out of fusions with canons I'm less familiar with (like, I'm vaguely aware that Kushiel and His Dark Materials have this kind of sorting potential although I haven't read them), but if you want to go for some other kind of canon with a sorting system like this, please do!
8. Sci-fi AU
Related freeforms: ALL: IN SPACE!; ALL: Blade Runner Fusion; ALL: Cyberpunk AU; All: Mecha; ALL: Pacific Rim AU; ALL: Robots or Androids AU; ALL: Science Fiction AU; ALL: Space Opera AU; All: Star Trek AU; ALL: Star Wars Setting; ALL: The Expanse AU; All: Tron AU
Things I like about sci-fi AUs: Well, I just like a kind of tech-y/futuristic aesthetic. I love stars and spaceships and exotic planets/lifeforms. I LOVE mecha (/characters piloting mecha), whether that's on Earth/a planet or in space, especially if the mecha reflects the personality of the character. I love seeing elements from non-sci-fi canons translated into sci-fi/technological elements.
9. Angels and Demons AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Angels and Demons AU; ALL: Angel AU; ALL: Demon AU; ALL: Demon Hunters
Things I like about angels and demons AUs: Characters with wings! Angels who like to hang out with demons and demons who like to hang out with angels. The kind of forbidden love of an angel and a demon who love each other. I love translating a canon's cast into the heavenly or hellish bureaucracies with tiers of angels and demons and the various duties they might have (see also: my love of office AUs).
I'm fine with something with just angels or just demons. There's also lots of interesting possibilities involving a human + an angel or a human + a demon kind of setups and interactions. Love angel/demon characters that work with humans and learn about humanity that way and have an outsider's view of humanity. I also love incubus/succubus type AUs as a subset of demon AUs.
10. Phantom Thief and Detective AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Phantom Thief & Detective AU
Okay, this one is super specific, but why not. It's a bit more mundane than a superhero AU; a bit more fantastical than a regular detective AU. I feel like that makes it quite a lot of fun to play with. The heists can be a bit over-the-top and not grounded in reality. I love the pseudo-romantic dynamic of "always chasing after someone who is one step ahead of you," and I love the identity porn potential. Yep, more identity porn potential -- turns out I really love this thing.
11. Soulmate AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Soulmate AU and too many to list!
A slight setting change this time -- I like soulmate/soulmark AUs because it's fun to think of different mechanics and how that might change (or fit) certain existing dynamics between characters and certain characters' personalities. I'm interested in whatever soulmate or soulmark mechanic you want to use.
I also like stories where two characters are soulmates or connected cosmically in some way and they keep finding each other across lives/times/alternate universes (obviously pairs nicely with other setting change AUs if you want to go that way).
12. Roleswap AU
Related freeforms: ALL: Roleswap AU
And here is the one non-setting-change AU that I loved too much to leave it off the list: I love the "what if?" exercise of imagining if two characters' roles or life situations were flipped. It's fun seeing what would/wouldn't change in canon, little parallels and differences; making the characters recognizably themselves while also changing something significant about them. I love seeing how a roleswap might change little things about a character's appearance.
Fandom-specific ideas
A Song of Ice and Fire
Sandor Clegane/Sansa Stark
• Fairy Tale AU: Well... The Beauty and the Beast vibes are absolutely blaring here... But feel free to do anything else fairy tale-related with these two. I feel like Sansa and Sandor's strong association with birds/dogs makes for a natural curse or alternate form.
• Western AU: A lot of ASOIAF themes are Western themes, particularly around Sandor's story and especially his relationship to Sansa -- jaded but skilled fighter finding some purpose in protecting/aiding a damsel in distress.
• Regency AU: I'm also pretty convinced that Sandor fits pretty naturally into a regency story. He's withdrawn/gruff/dour, but has a lot of emotions going on inside and makes for a decent love interest despite the initial very offputting impression he gives off.
• Angels and Demons AU: I think Sansa and Sandor could work as an angel and a demon. The idealism/cynicism tension between them seems like a good fit for that kind of dynamic.
Bravely Default
Alternis Dim/Edea Lee
• Modern AU: Lots of interesting things to do here. I like the idea of modern AU Alternis is more officially adopted into Edea's family. Also, I like the idea of motorcyclist!Alternis. Alternis, Edea, and the rest of the Bravely cast imagined as high schoolers or teachers is also pretty great.
• Coffee Shop AU: Alternis/Ringabel's love of coffee (and Edea's love of sweets) makes for a natural coffee shop AU... (or a patisserie AU!).
• Fairy Tale AU: I feel like Alternis and Edea work pretty naturally for Beauty and the Beast or Hades and Persephone kind of vibes.
• Office AU/Superheroes AU: I have a superhero AU where Alternis is a superhero who works with Edea in his civilian identity, Ringabel. Literally anything even vaguely inspired by this would be great.
Final Fantasy VI
Celes Chere
Cyan Garamonde
Edgar Roni Figaro
Gau
Sabin Rene Figaro
Setzer Gabbiani
Shadow
Terra Branford
Terra Branford & Celes Chere
Terra Branford/Kefka Palazzo
I have kind of requested a random collection of characters/relationships here. All these characters I'd love to see AU versions of and Terra is a fave, but I find the whole FF6 cast interesting and I don't have any NOTPs, so if you want to focus on platonic or romantic relationships not listed here, please go ahead. Just as long as at least one of these characters appears, I will be happy.
• Sports AU: Because of how different all of the FF6 party members are, I feel like they would make for a WACKY sports team. I don't really have any specific sport in mind -- just feel like each character would have their own weird niche/play style.
• Western AU: For a very long time, I have thought that FF6 translates very naturally into a Western. You've got Shadow the bounty hunter right there; Edgar very naturally filling the role of a mayor or sheriff; Maria as a saloon girl and Setzer as her favorite patron; etc. etc. Anyway, anything you want to do with this theme (including one of my requested characters), I will love.
• Ghibli Movie AU: With the conflict between the technological empire vs. the magical esper realm, I feel like FF6 would translate naturally to Princess Mononoke or Nausicaa. (Well, I suppose Final Fantasy has a long history of being inspired by Ghibli films.)
• Sci-fi AU: FFVI is already quite steampunky which is a sci-fi-y flavor, but I think it would be fun to give the game a more space-y theme and imagine what the characters would look like in a futuristic setting. Terra and a mech might be cool.
• Phantom Thief & Detective AU: Well, Locke makes a great thief. Who is the detective? (Celes?)
Pinocchio (1940)
Lampwick/Pinocchio
Blue Fairy/Jiminy Cricket
• Modern AU: I would love to see a (more) modern setting for Pinocchio -- Pinocchio and Lampwick as modern schoolmates; the Blue Fairy and Jiminy Cricket translated into some kind of non-magical equivalent; the coziness of any of them having a shop of some kind; etc.
• Fairy Tale AU: I requested this but obviously I would like fairy tale elements from a different source than Pinocchio if you go with this idea.
• Sci-fi or Star Trek AU: I know that sci-fi Pinocchio is a very common thing since Pinocchio the animate puppet can be seen as a proto-robot character. But heck, I will absolutely eat it up every time. Please just throw Lampwick in there interacting with Pinocchio and I will be very happy.
• Angels and Demons AU: Once again, morality code tension between Pinocchio and Lampwick makes a translation to angels and demons pretty natural. Maybe instead of becoming a real boy, Pinocchio is an angel who wants to "earn his wings," maybe by getting a human Lampwick back on the straight and narrow path? Or Jiminy Cricket is the one who's a guardian angel trying to earn his wings by looking over Pinocchio and impress the higher-order-angel Blue Fairy?
• Soulmates AU: I'm always curious how aspects of the movie might change if soulmates/soulmarks were added. How would they work in this already quite surreal universe? How might it change the characters' actions?
Soul Calibur / Soulcalibur
Hong Yun-seong
Isabella "Ivy" Valentine
Maxi
Seong Mi-na
Taki
Zasalamel
Cassandra Alexandra & Sophitia Alexandra
Heishiro Mitsurugi & Setsuka & Taki
Hong Yun-seong/Seong Mi-na
Pyrrha Alexandra/Tira
I have kind of requested a random collection of characters/relationships here. This fandom has such a HUGE cast and there is not that much fanworks in existence, so I am interested in any part of cast here. I've nominated and requested some of my faves and but please feel to focus on whatever characters or platonic or romantic relationships you like even if they're not listed here. Just as long as at least one of my requested character(s) appears, I will be happy.
• High School AU: I would love any kind of modern take on any SC character, but in particular, I think a school filled with Soulcalibur characters would be so hectic. I'm fine with the cast being all students, all teachers, or split between students and teachers.
• Magical Girl/Superheroes AU: Soulcalibur already has a kind of exaggerated, supernatural-powers sort of vibe -- I'd love to see that formalized with SC characters actually being superheroes. What would they look like, what would their name/theme be, and what kind of superhero/villain would they be?
• Westeros AU: Soulcalibur's cast is so sprawling and so is Westeros's cast of characters. I feel like it provides the opportunity for some interesting parallels to be drawn/placements to be made of SC characters in Westeros.
• Angels & Demons AU: The strong good/evil alignment of SC's world and its characters I think naturally lends itself well to an angels and demons kind of setup. I'd love to see any character's aesthetic translated into an angelic/demonic one. Also: wings!
• Roleswap AU: Honestly, pick any two characters and flip them up a bit -- I'd love to see how that changes the world, plot, or particular dynamics. Or, I'd love to see any two characters with their clothes/style and/or personalities swapped.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Odo/Quark
• Modern AU: Well, DS9 has a canonical modern AU ("Far Beyond the Stars"). Feel free to dig into that more, or go with a modern AU of your own. Quark's role as a bartender translates naturally to the same in a modern setting, but also could easily be translated to coffee shop or other kind of shop. The idea of Odo and Quark as somewhat nightmarish coworkers also tickles me. There is also always modern-day (or period piece) detective/criminal. :)
• Western AU: Well, DS9 is already a Western of sorts, so if you choose this one, please choose a different setting than Space Western! (At least it's really easy to translate this one!) Give me Odo and Quark in a different setting and I will love it.
• Regency AU: I don't have specific ideas for this, but I have the feeling that Quodo would work well for regency setting because Quark and Odo already have such strong romance novel vibes to them. I am certain it could work. I guess the most natural parallel would be Pride and Prejudice because of the enemies-to-lovers dynamic between the characters, and one character being spirited/outspoken and the other one being hella repressed and arrogant.
• Angels and Demons AU: I actually have an angel and demon AU for these two (also, not my art, but this devil Quark might be of interest too). But that concept is basically all I've got -- if you want to draw your own take or write a story for this concept, that would make my day.
• Phantom Thief and Detective AU: I feel like this would be a fun tweak on their canon dynamic. The detective-pursuing-thief dynamic would be the same, but there would be opportunities to add identity shenanigans and a different kind of dynamic between Odo and Quark as well as a different sort of case/detective work. And I think it would be funny to see how Quark fits into this genre because he's very much not a gentleman thief -- more like an asshole thief.
If none of the above matches an idea you already have, that's fine! Please go with your idea -- I will love it.