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Rare Pairs 2020 letter
Welcome to the Rare Pairs Exchange 2020 letter for ![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
laylah! Currently (june 7) I think I have this letter done! I might add to it if I come up with ideas for another ship, but I won't delete anything that exists now. Please, as always, take what you find useful here and leave the rest on the table; the ideas I have for a ship are never the only things I think would be fun to see for it, and if there's something else you're really craving for one of our shared faves, I'd love to see what you've got.
Fic Likes: sex, both kinky and vanilla; attention to power dynamics; canon-typical levels & types of violence; aphrodisiacs/Charm/sex pollen/etc.; xeno; incorporating game mechanics; emotional connections and reconnections; happy endings unless otherwise specified, even for villains
Art Likes: kisses; hands; significant touches like cradling someone's face in one hand; scars, bruises, post-battle bandaging up; attractively bloodied noses; alternate costumes or trading outfits; candlelight/firelight/other distinct light sources; single illustrations; comics/doujinshi; characters cuddling or leaning on each other; characters visibly enjoying sex
DNW: death of requested characters; pregnancy/birth/children; unrequested noncon; scat/vomit/force-feeding; issuefic; medical kink; mundane AUs; soulmate/soulmark tropes
Whew, this section goes on forever. There are just so many good ships! My default state here is "exploding in hearts over all these characters" and there is no wrong answer with them. I don't think any of my prompts involve the captain, but it you need to bring them into your work, I'm happy to see either Gran or Djeeta on the job.
Belial/Lucilius
Love sure is a mass of contradictions, huh. And Lucilius is just so clueless when faced with the unambiguous evidence of Belial's devotion to him! All that brilliance and he's been overlooking something that frankly has the power to change the world. Something exploring their past and the development of Belial's obsession would be lovely (for certain values of the word)—I'd rather it not end on a hopeless note, because clearly Belial has never given up on him, but this is a place where unresolved, unrequited feelings would make sense. But there's also the possibility of the unexpected future! What happens after they disappear through the portal, and are in a new place with nothing to depend on but each other? You could extrapolate on what we know of the Otherworld or send them to a different universe/canon or leave it undecided, and there's so much good mileage in "now we're stranded together someplace we don't know, with only each other to rely on." I would really like Lucilius to grow an emotion if you take that route ;3;
If you take it to sexy places (and I'm sure one of these two would like that)—I'd expect anything in their past to be one-sided, probably perfunctory on Lucilius' side ("just taking care of a bodily need so it doesn't get distracting," sort of thing), and with a clear power imbalance that Belial probably still kinked on. His ability to take whatever someone has and perv on that is one of his strengths. Pining & fantasizing on his part about a kind of encounter that Lucilius wouldn't provide, also good. Honestly any degree of obsession at any point is plausible; you could draw him making out with Lucilius' severed head and I'd be like "yep, that's Belial, that kinky fuck." And of course in the post-000 future all bets are off! Anything could happen.
Belial/Sariel
Their relationship was one of the most delightful surprises in 000 for me. Sariel is absolute catnip for me, the living weapon who would rather be soft, and engaging with him made Belial more complicated in great ways. I do deeply love that canon made it a Schroedinger's douchebag situation, and I find this compelling whether Belial was just playing a long game to get that weapon in his arsenal or whether he actually caught feelings (probably by mistake)—so take whichever tack appeals to you more!
Things I'd love to see: more of their past in the labs, possibly including h/c after a tough mission got Sariel roughed up—he'll regenerate, and he's just a soldier, so usually nobody worries about his injuries... why is Belial fussing over him?; sweet down time, maybe watching ants or other simple creatures together; Belial just generally being very touchy and not about personal space, petting and stroking hair back off Sariel's face and smoothing feathers back in order, and Sariel being generally touch-starved and easily overwhelmed by the very welcome attention; the sex that Belial initiates, probably also featuring Sariel being easily overwhelmed and unused to any of this; Belial finding a way back after 000 and discovering that Sariel came out of it in one piece (and trying to figure out what to do with his own feelings about that).
Beelzebub/Belial
Wreck this garbage angel please. Backstory in the labs or current-era off screen during 000, however you like; I'm just delighted by Belial more or less going "that's a real hot fire, I'mma stick my hand in it" as his reaction to Beelzebub. Is Beelzebub just trying to shut him up for five goddamn minutes by choking him on cock? Is it some kind of post-battle adrenaline-fueled celebration shoving Belial against the nearest available surface? Is it overtly violent, with Beelzebub venting his urge to attack and conquer on someone who's literally asking for it? Feel free to get rougher here than mortals would be comfortable with, if the spirit moves you—as long as Belial isn't sorry, I'm not either. (And he's going to regenerate as long as the Otherworldly blade isn't involved, so he's probably not sorry about much.)
It is absolutely fine to have this encounter just be physical, a straight-up lust/wrath adventure blowing off steam, BUT if you like Belial's scheming sneaky bastard-ness that's great too. I'd be delighted to see him using sex/his sexual advances to misdirect, distract, or generally make Beelzebub underestimate him. I hope he still also enjoys having this terrible bruiser fuck the life out of him, even if he has a plan. Multitasking is a good skill to develop!
Benjamin/Valentin
Valentin!!!! I'm so overwhelmed by the inclusion of a straight-up masochist here who's unafraid to go for what he wants, and I want him to be happy so much it hurts. That moment of Crawl, Valentin and then Benjamin just casually stepping on him short-circuited my brain. I keep just going kljasdfh when I try to prompt further. What I crave here is Valentin getting the pain he's so hungry for, and Benjamin finding the beautiful sounds he's seeking in Valentin's reactions. More blades/blood is fine but so is introducing other sources of pain, possibly as Benjamin seeks ways to make new sounds from this willing instrument. (Just sayin, impact play can easily be rhythmic, which is the kind of thing a drummer might appreciate.) You can address Valentin's apparent weirdly superhuman healing factor (most guys don't walk off being stabbed with swords!) or ignore it like the game did, I'm fine either way.
The name-calling & apologizing stuff is the least interesting part for me, which leads me to the possibility of post-Farewell Tour Aoidos/Valentin where Aoidos is getting back together with his old bandmates and figuring out how to interact with them given his new memories & experiences: he's going to show Valentin heaven in his bloody garden! Just as much intensity, less overt meanness, an explicit desire to push him to a point of ecstasy. Actual aftercare from Aoidos would probably make me cry.
Aoidos/Baal
I'm a sucker for a) rock stars and b) how does I human, so Baal's fates have been a delight for me. The chemistry between them when they're playing, gah! The way they're each looking for some perfect sound, and the other might be bringing them closer to hearing it! I'd love to see more of them playing for each other or having a conversation through their music. Baal's reactions to the reveals about Aoidos' past in Farewell Tour would also be fascinating; what's his inhuman perspective on Benjamin's search? Also, what would it be like to have them dueling for lead guitar instead of playing lead and rhythm? Also, glam and goth makeup styles are fabulous and Aoidos understands showmanship even if Baal isn't so sure yet. Also also, you can never go wrong with a backstage blowjob before or after the show.
Aoidos/Rackam
I'm still a sucker for rock stars and I love the contrast of personalities here, Aoidos being such a flamboyant steamroller and Rackam letting himself get swept up in it. Show me band practice having a surprising amount of chemistry, maybe with Rackam getting into the music as he starts to really understand how his job is to set a solid course for the song to follow. Playing with music metaphors and tying band roles to sex roles is awesome. Then maybe Aoidos dresses him up for their first show, and maybe Rackam likes the attention from somebody who explicitly wants to see him being sexy? He sure does look good in that leather jacket. That makeup from above is still good, and Aoidos doing Rackam's eyeliner is a really good image. You can still never go wrong with backstage quickies. Also if you wanted to do a jam session of Aoidos/Baal/Rackam, I'd buy that single.
Heles/Seruel
Heles/Naoise/Seruel
Okay, I'm very sorry, but my ideas about these ships are very poorly formed and shallow. I really want them to kiss. I'm a sucker for pretty cat people and good-hearted nobles and affectionate siblings. Heles and Seruel taking care of each other after the disaster of Irestill's downfall. Heles and Seruel teaming up to make it clear to Naoise just how much he really is welcome to come back and be with them! Somebody gets sex pollened or erunes go into heat and the other(s) have to help out.
Alternately, if you want something with a little more depth, I love the way their setting draws inspiration from Irish myth and legend, and fanwork that played with that would be awesome: Heles and Seruel in a war chariot! themes of geasa, dealings with fae, portents, bardic magic! The tale of the Cattle Raid of Alster!
Lucifer/Sandalphon
MY HEART. That's most of the prompt. I could read a thousand versions of their reunion post-000, so if you have an idea for Sandalphon's quest to be reunited with his beloved, I'm here for it. But I'm also here for sweet, clumsy dream-space discovery of feelings between WMTSB and Paradise Lost. Or for something after a reunion where they're learning how to live in the new post-primarch Sky Realm together. Adventuring together with the crew? Discovering other mortal pastimes? Shared sensation through the white wings would be a really cool kind of sensuality. As an art-specific thought, coming up with an outfit for Lucifer to match any of Sandalphon's alternate costumes would be pretty charming.
Lucifer/Lucio/Sandalphon
What if Sandalphon got what he wants but also more of it, basically. What if Lucio had some kind of ritual to bring Lucifer home and it involved sex! And then hey he shows up partway through and has to help complete it! What if Lucifer and Sandalphon are already a couple and the idea won't leave Sandalphon alone every time he sees the two Lucifaces talking on the Grandcypher. I honestly don't have any deep thoughts here, it's just that this would be so pretty and Sandalphon would be so overwhelmed and I'd really like him to have nice things. Put him in the middle and blow his mind.
Societte/Yuel
I'm probably missing a huge amount of context here. But I have Summer Yuel and frankly her fates are a fic prompt already. These losers stole each other's clothes to try to make sure they'd be able to spend more time together at the lake... but somehow they haven't figured out it's romantic? Please help them figure out they should kiss. Maybe they get a clue themselves, maybe someone on the crew can't stand to see them being morons about it anymore and decides to matchmake, possibly by tripping one of them into the other's cleavage. They're so pretty and so devoted and I need it. Also somebody should really rub somebody else's ears.
Cain/Reinhardtzar
One of an increasing number of ships where cygames just came for me directly. Their progression from hostile to "if you don't come back from this fight, I won't either" caused a hell of a lot of swearing over here. I would love to see them develop from their main story adventures: Reinhardtzar sharing more stories about Abel; them striking out away from Idelva to find new adventures and discover more of the world (Leona is welcome to travel with them but I don't ship her romantically with either of them); sparring goes sexy places; sex pollen happens or someone gets Charmed or draph have heats and sexy adventures become imperative, holy shit please play up the size kink there. I have really squirmy feelings about lost eyes and if Cain gets a chance to see and/or touch and/or kiss that scar I am extremely here for it.
They're just really good together and should fight back-to-back and or fuck like wild beasts. I apologize for how simple this is.
Sturm/Drang
At the start of the game I thought I didn't ship them, oh silly me. They have so much history and clearly know what to expect from each other so much, and I had just played the main quest trip to North Vast when A Mercenary's Life hit, and it was just such a one-two punch of LOOK AT HOW GOOD THESE ASSHOLES ARE FOR EACH OTHER. There was a flash exchange recently with a freeform tag like "I would sell you to Satan for one corn chip but if anyone hurts you I will end them," and that's Sturm right there.
I think what I'd really like with them is established relationship stuff, whether that's taking on a mission, one of them patching the other up after a mission strategy turned out to be too risky, downtime where maybe they take on one of the other challenges in the sky realm (we see them skyracing! what else would they try out?), or of course how their sex life works. On that last front, I really love how casually comfortable they seem to be with this under-negotiated (maybe just plain non-negotiated) kink thing they have going on; she's an impatient top and he's a bratty sub and they don't seem to talk about it ever but she gets stress relief out of hurting him and he (correctly, I think) reads it as affection. I'd love to see that develop into actual kinky sex adventures of whatever sort you think they'd like. PS size difference ♥
The two of them are also so good at working together that they can accommodate a third with no trouble, and that goes double in the bedroom: if you want to write/draw them having a good time with Gran, Djeeta, Apollo, or Orchid, whether that's a romantic thing or just a friendly celebration, I'm here for it.
Orchid/Apollo
My entire heart for the determined, fearless, lonely Black Knight finally getting some good things in her life. I was so, so glad in the resolution of their arc to see Apollo recognize that she was attached to both the princess she grew up with and the girl who'd been traveling with her, and she couldn't choose either of them at the expense of the other. ;3; And gosh, what that must be like for Orchid, to find out that Apollo has come to care about her so much!
I want to see them both exploring that: what it's like to have time for each other. What it's like to be able to touch someone you love, whenever you want to, just because you want to. Apollo spent so long completely focused on her mission and not making time for human connections, and Orchid at first was in a borrowed body kept under strict control before being given this new body at last—they're probably both inexperienced and clumsy about anything physical (even if Apollo tries to bluff at first). Accidental touches on a mission becoming Meaningful would be great (that thing where A offers a hand to help B climb a thing and then neither of them can let go, yessss), and any excuse for bed sharing whether that's "we just have to keep warm on this mountainside" or "Cat makes me feel better when I have nightmares, I'll go in there and hug Apollo until hers go away" or what have you. Sex continuing to explore those themes, A+, I'm here for the two sides of "clumsy and inexperienced" and "starving for exactly this" intersecting.
If you want to explore the differences between the flesh body and the golem body, feel free, as long as it doesn't leave Orchid unable to experience sensual pleasure. Experiencing it differently is fine! Just don't lock her out of that human experience. (If you don't want to engage with that topic, ignoring it is also a-ok.)
Orchid/Orchis/Apollo
When Orchis said she preferred the kind of ending where everyone was smiling, I think I started to cry. Me too, Orchis. A lot of the stuff above applies here too! Just with an extra kind soul.
Orchis I think brings more level-headed practicality (and optimism) to the group, and it'd be really neat to see her reaction to her sweet childhood friend grown up into this fearsome warrior. Plus there's the kindness and generous heart it must take to reach out to the soul who occupied your own body for years and say yes, I want you also to be happy. What a good! I want every sweet reunion here, Orchid and Apollo coming back to Erste after a mission to tell their queen all about it, possibly in a cuddle pile. All three of them working together on a project to restore Erste or improve life for its people—maybe putting on a festival with the crew's help! Or, of course, all three of them discovering intimacy together.
I should say for these last two that I haven't seen all the Society content; I started playing at the end of 2019 so haven't been able to play Peace of the Pie, Violet Violence, Second Advent, or Kappa Summer Chronicle. I don't mind spoilers for them, and I don't mind if you disregard anything I prompt that doesn't make sense with the whole story; I might be lost if you write plotty fic about Society/Foe happenings.
Beatrix/Zeta
I really like the way these two get along in their fates and in general scenes, but the thing that made me crave fanwork for them specifically was the rescue in Gripping Freedom, with Zeta charging in and Vaseraga like a good wingman holding off the trash so she could be the hero. I'd love something set after that, with Zeta's relief at Beatrix being safe (probably being expressed through "why do you do such reckless things!" yelling) and maybe some "thank gods you're safe" sex. Or, honestly, some sexy Beatrix-in-mock-peril inspired by how she looked tied to that stake, and Zeta "taking advantage" or "teaching her a lesson" while she blushes and struggles attractively. >_>
If that's not your jam, though, something lower stakes would also be great! Trying out new outfits to see who can be seductive enough to blow the other's mind, racing skyships with a sexy forfeit on the line for the loser, pick your poison—my favorite thing with them is the competitive energy backed up by honest affection, and you could show off that dynamic in a wide variety of situations and make me happy.
Vaseraga/Zeta
Vaseraga kinda slays me. Physically I'm a tremendous fan of that big powerful draph male physique (see above re Reinhardtzar) and then he adds onto that with the not feeling pain and the alterations and his stoic determination to tank and the possibility of Grynoth making him berserk and AUGH. I'm a huge sucker for determined partners, too, so when he and Zeta get past the surface bickering and both literally and metaphorically have each other's backs in battle, I die a little.
So I mean basically what I want is something that plays on their partnership and them learning to trust each other in battle. Their size difference would make for some great back-to-back fighting pose art! Their frankness about the state of Vaseraga's body and his inability to feel pain could lead to some cool h/c stuff. I'm always here for adrenaline-fueled sex, too (can Vaseraga feel that normally? does it change what they do if his nerves don't cooperate?). Some snark and bickering is pretty inevitable, but I'd rather it be the more toned-down version we see in later events rather than the non-stop yelling at each other from Footprints on Sacred Ground.
Reyson/Tibarn
Hawk king would destroy anything that threatened heron prince: a romance.
This is a criminally rare ship with so much good material to play with. A not-at-all-exhaustive list of things I'd like to see:
- Something from a dark canon divergence where Tibarn encourages Reyson to go ahead with the galdr of destruction, and they become terrible avenging angels together.
- Post-game stuff with them working together on political aims for the bird laguz
- Which could include them getting married to give Reyson standing to speak for the hawks
- Or they could just get married because who's going to stop them and they want to make their devotion public
- Reyson's sibs finding out about his relationship with Tibarn; Rafael is probably surprised and Leanne is probably a troll, possibly while still pretending she doesn't understand the modern tongue
- Tender affection like one of them grooming the other's wings
- Reyson having a tremendous appetite in bed and using the galdr of vigor to give Tibarn an extra turn, if you know what I mean
- That time when Tibarn joked about tying Reyson to the bed except totally not a joke and they nearly broke the headboard
Chaos and the dangerous ladies, which is to say all the Samurai/Hikaru or Yuriko ships
What I really want out of this fandom is for Hikaru, or Yuriko, or both, to get their wicked hands on one or more wide-eyed young holy warriors and corrupt the living hell out of them. Playing up the religious transgressiveness of kinky (quite possibly femdom) sex for someone raised with Mikado's repressive patriarchal god, toying with the characters' alternate forms, summoning additional demons or Ring members to contribute, committing deliberate acts of blasphemy to lead their young proteges away from their old faith, gangbangs as parts of pagan fertility festivals or celebrations of specifically non-fertile sexuality: picture a venn diagram with circles labeled "sex" and "demons" and "religion" and aim for somewhere in the overlapping zones.
Further thoughts about Yuriko: while she represents Chaos, it's never entirely explicit where she falls in the philosophical-political struggle between Merkabah and Lucifer. The Ring stands for refusing to take sides, and the idol in their temple is Mem Aleph from SJ, who stood outside YHVH's paradigm and wanted her people's freedom and power back. Having Yuriko's "knowledge and wisdom" agenda intended to shake her protege(s) free of the entire system would be fabulous. I love every iteration of her in every text and I would love to see her have even a momentary triumph.
Further thoughts about Hikaru/boys: I really like the idea of her seducing one or both of them as a deliberate part of her strategy for recruiting a champion in her ongoing conflict. The idea of the boy in question discovering later who she really is and reaction to that, also good shit. How that interacts with her need of a bodily sacrifice to take her true form, and what either of the boys feels about *that*, also interesting.
Hikaru/Yuriko
This is always, ALWAYS a ship that I love, in every version of the mythos ever, and the fact that both of them are passing as human women for part of IV delights me. I wanna see them being completely self-indulgent and pleased with themselves, probably with some blasphemy thrown in because they both love that, and as much affection for each other as two incredibly selfish ancient beings can manage. One or both of them dropping the human form during sex is cool (using forms they've taken elsewhere in the series, also good). Both of them deliberately maintaining human form and kinking on the pretense is also cool. I'm into this both as passionate connection and as wary mutual respect, so whichever way you like their mythos, I'm for it.
Flynn/Walter
As you might have guessed, I lean more Chaos than Law in this game, and I love a connection between these two, whether based on their common background, common leanings in Tokyo, both, or something else entirely. Flynn having a crush on bad-boy Walter is cute. Walter thinking he's a bad boy and then discovering a whole new scale in Tokyo but being reassured by Flynn's admiration? Either or both of them thinking that m/m is Just Not Done until they meet people in Tokyo who Just Do, also welcome—in a lot of settings I'm not into that trope but with their circumstances it works. The wildness growing between them, and the two of them urging each other on—in the arena battles, or in how they interact with the alternate timelines, just for some examples—would be awesome. Finding some way to actually keep them together, whether that's Walter taking over Lucifer's body or something more creative, would be super welcome.
Combining pairings is welcome if you're feeling ambitious. Fully consensual is great but any of the Samurai being victims in a dubcon or noncon situation is also welcome (in general I enjoy coercion more than physical violence).
Fujiwara/Skins
I just freakin love that these two have such comfortable, settled camaraderie, that together they're a pillar of stability for Tokyo, that they're battered old messes who have respect from their peers and a good thing going with each other. I'd love to see them getting together back when the dome had just recently gone up, or getting the Hunters' Association together, or some post-mission h/c when Skins is still going on hunts and Fujiwara doesn't expect him to stop but isn't about to stop giving him shit about it, either. Letting them get their hands on some material luxuries that are hard to find after the apocalypse is also pretty great, whether that's Fujiwara putting a bounty on body lotion because he knows it'll soothe Skins' dry scars or Skins hunting through the ruins of a candy shop to find chocolate for their anniversary or... you get the idea. Little things that mean a lot. <3
...Letting them go topside post-Bonds ending and see how different it is would also be pretty cool.
Also I am firmly of the opinion that they're kinky old bastards together, and if you want to go there you absolutely should.
Gaston/Hallelujah
I love that these two invert the Law Hero/Chaos Hero path of growing more opposed as the game puts them under stress; watching them learn to respect and support each other was so sweet and good for my heart. Now kiss.
Lean into them being awkward teenage boys, especially Gaston, who's been trying for his entire adolescence to prove that he could be the Most Serious Jerk after what his brother did to the family reputation. He has no idea what to do about pants feelings, especially not when they seem to be related to an unclean half-demon boy who sasses him all the time!
I would love all the dumb cliche UST scenarios here: trapped in an elevator, forced to share a bed or a blanket for warmth, caught in a sudden rainstorm and oh no Hallelujah's shirt sticks right to his skin—and now you better get him out of those wet clothes before he gets hypothermia! Maybe Chiro decides that this pining is ridiculous and some meddling mischief is called for to make them kiss. Hell, maybe a terminal malfunction leads to a bodyswap.
I'd also love resolving the UST, or some hookup later on when they've started to get a clue! Playing with Hal's alternate form and the inherent taboo of touching him like that would be delicious on that front.
General Preferences
Fic Likes: sex, both kinky and vanilla; attention to power dynamics; canon-typical levels & types of violence; aphrodisiacs/Charm/sex pollen/etc.; xeno; incorporating game mechanics; emotional connections and reconnections; happy endings unless otherwise specified, even for villains
Art Likes: kisses; hands; significant touches like cradling someone's face in one hand; scars, bruises, post-battle bandaging up; attractively bloodied noses; alternate costumes or trading outfits; candlelight/firelight/other distinct light sources; single illustrations; comics/doujinshi; characters cuddling or leaning on each other; characters visibly enjoying sex
DNW: death of requested characters; pregnancy/birth/children; unrequested noncon; scat/vomit/force-feeding; issuefic; medical kink; mundane AUs; soulmate/soulmark tropes
Granblue Fantasy
Whew, this section goes on forever. There are just so many good ships! My default state here is "exploding in hearts over all these characters" and there is no wrong answer with them. I don't think any of my prompts involve the captain, but it you need to bring them into your work, I'm happy to see either Gran or Djeeta on the job.
Belial/Lucilius
Love sure is a mass of contradictions, huh. And Lucilius is just so clueless when faced with the unambiguous evidence of Belial's devotion to him! All that brilliance and he's been overlooking something that frankly has the power to change the world. Something exploring their past and the development of Belial's obsession would be lovely (for certain values of the word)—I'd rather it not end on a hopeless note, because clearly Belial has never given up on him, but this is a place where unresolved, unrequited feelings would make sense. But there's also the possibility of the unexpected future! What happens after they disappear through the portal, and are in a new place with nothing to depend on but each other? You could extrapolate on what we know of the Otherworld or send them to a different universe/canon or leave it undecided, and there's so much good mileage in "now we're stranded together someplace we don't know, with only each other to rely on." I would really like Lucilius to grow an emotion if you take that route ;3;
If you take it to sexy places (and I'm sure one of these two would like that)—I'd expect anything in their past to be one-sided, probably perfunctory on Lucilius' side ("just taking care of a bodily need so it doesn't get distracting," sort of thing), and with a clear power imbalance that Belial probably still kinked on. His ability to take whatever someone has and perv on that is one of his strengths. Pining & fantasizing on his part about a kind of encounter that Lucilius wouldn't provide, also good. Honestly any degree of obsession at any point is plausible; you could draw him making out with Lucilius' severed head and I'd be like "yep, that's Belial, that kinky fuck." And of course in the post-000 future all bets are off! Anything could happen.
Belial/Sariel
Their relationship was one of the most delightful surprises in 000 for me. Sariel is absolute catnip for me, the living weapon who would rather be soft, and engaging with him made Belial more complicated in great ways. I do deeply love that canon made it a Schroedinger's douchebag situation, and I find this compelling whether Belial was just playing a long game to get that weapon in his arsenal or whether he actually caught feelings (probably by mistake)—so take whichever tack appeals to you more!
Things I'd love to see: more of their past in the labs, possibly including h/c after a tough mission got Sariel roughed up—he'll regenerate, and he's just a soldier, so usually nobody worries about his injuries... why is Belial fussing over him?; sweet down time, maybe watching ants or other simple creatures together; Belial just generally being very touchy and not about personal space, petting and stroking hair back off Sariel's face and smoothing feathers back in order, and Sariel being generally touch-starved and easily overwhelmed by the very welcome attention; the sex that Belial initiates, probably also featuring Sariel being easily overwhelmed and unused to any of this; Belial finding a way back after 000 and discovering that Sariel came out of it in one piece (and trying to figure out what to do with his own feelings about that).
Beelzebub/Belial
Wreck this garbage angel please. Backstory in the labs or current-era off screen during 000, however you like; I'm just delighted by Belial more or less going "that's a real hot fire, I'mma stick my hand in it" as his reaction to Beelzebub. Is Beelzebub just trying to shut him up for five goddamn minutes by choking him on cock? Is it some kind of post-battle adrenaline-fueled celebration shoving Belial against the nearest available surface? Is it overtly violent, with Beelzebub venting his urge to attack and conquer on someone who's literally asking for it? Feel free to get rougher here than mortals would be comfortable with, if the spirit moves you—as long as Belial isn't sorry, I'm not either. (And he's going to regenerate as long as the Otherworldly blade isn't involved, so he's probably not sorry about much.)
It is absolutely fine to have this encounter just be physical, a straight-up lust/wrath adventure blowing off steam, BUT if you like Belial's scheming sneaky bastard-ness that's great too. I'd be delighted to see him using sex/his sexual advances to misdirect, distract, or generally make Beelzebub underestimate him. I hope he still also enjoys having this terrible bruiser fuck the life out of him, even if he has a plan. Multitasking is a good skill to develop!
Benjamin/Valentin
Valentin!!!! I'm so overwhelmed by the inclusion of a straight-up masochist here who's unafraid to go for what he wants, and I want him to be happy so much it hurts. That moment of Crawl, Valentin and then Benjamin just casually stepping on him short-circuited my brain. I keep just going kljasdfh when I try to prompt further. What I crave here is Valentin getting the pain he's so hungry for, and Benjamin finding the beautiful sounds he's seeking in Valentin's reactions. More blades/blood is fine but so is introducing other sources of pain, possibly as Benjamin seeks ways to make new sounds from this willing instrument. (Just sayin, impact play can easily be rhythmic, which is the kind of thing a drummer might appreciate.) You can address Valentin's apparent weirdly superhuman healing factor (most guys don't walk off being stabbed with swords!) or ignore it like the game did, I'm fine either way.
The name-calling & apologizing stuff is the least interesting part for me, which leads me to the possibility of post-Farewell Tour Aoidos/Valentin where Aoidos is getting back together with his old bandmates and figuring out how to interact with them given his new memories & experiences: he's going to show Valentin heaven in his bloody garden! Just as much intensity, less overt meanness, an explicit desire to push him to a point of ecstasy. Actual aftercare from Aoidos would probably make me cry.
Aoidos/Baal
I'm a sucker for a) rock stars and b) how does I human, so Baal's fates have been a delight for me. The chemistry between them when they're playing, gah! The way they're each looking for some perfect sound, and the other might be bringing them closer to hearing it! I'd love to see more of them playing for each other or having a conversation through their music. Baal's reactions to the reveals about Aoidos' past in Farewell Tour would also be fascinating; what's his inhuman perspective on Benjamin's search? Also, what would it be like to have them dueling for lead guitar instead of playing lead and rhythm? Also, glam and goth makeup styles are fabulous and Aoidos understands showmanship even if Baal isn't so sure yet. Also also, you can never go wrong with a backstage blowjob before or after the show.
Aoidos/Rackam
I'm still a sucker for rock stars and I love the contrast of personalities here, Aoidos being such a flamboyant steamroller and Rackam letting himself get swept up in it. Show me band practice having a surprising amount of chemistry, maybe with Rackam getting into the music as he starts to really understand how his job is to set a solid course for the song to follow. Playing with music metaphors and tying band roles to sex roles is awesome. Then maybe Aoidos dresses him up for their first show, and maybe Rackam likes the attention from somebody who explicitly wants to see him being sexy? He sure does look good in that leather jacket. That makeup from above is still good, and Aoidos doing Rackam's eyeliner is a really good image. You can still never go wrong with backstage quickies. Also if you wanted to do a jam session of Aoidos/Baal/Rackam, I'd buy that single.
Heles/Seruel
Heles/Naoise/Seruel
Okay, I'm very sorry, but my ideas about these ships are very poorly formed and shallow. I really want them to kiss. I'm a sucker for pretty cat people and good-hearted nobles and affectionate siblings. Heles and Seruel taking care of each other after the disaster of Irestill's downfall. Heles and Seruel teaming up to make it clear to Naoise just how much he really is welcome to come back and be with them! Somebody gets sex pollened or erunes go into heat and the other(s) have to help out.
Alternately, if you want something with a little more depth, I love the way their setting draws inspiration from Irish myth and legend, and fanwork that played with that would be awesome: Heles and Seruel in a war chariot! themes of geasa, dealings with fae, portents, bardic magic! The tale of the Cattle Raid of Alster!
Lucifer/Sandalphon
MY HEART. That's most of the prompt. I could read a thousand versions of their reunion post-000, so if you have an idea for Sandalphon's quest to be reunited with his beloved, I'm here for it. But I'm also here for sweet, clumsy dream-space discovery of feelings between WMTSB and Paradise Lost. Or for something after a reunion where they're learning how to live in the new post-primarch Sky Realm together. Adventuring together with the crew? Discovering other mortal pastimes? Shared sensation through the white wings would be a really cool kind of sensuality. As an art-specific thought, coming up with an outfit for Lucifer to match any of Sandalphon's alternate costumes would be pretty charming.
Lucifer/Lucio/Sandalphon
What if Sandalphon got what he wants but also more of it, basically. What if Lucio had some kind of ritual to bring Lucifer home and it involved sex! And then hey he shows up partway through and has to help complete it! What if Lucifer and Sandalphon are already a couple and the idea won't leave Sandalphon alone every time he sees the two Lucifaces talking on the Grandcypher. I honestly don't have any deep thoughts here, it's just that this would be so pretty and Sandalphon would be so overwhelmed and I'd really like him to have nice things. Put him in the middle and blow his mind.
Societte/Yuel
I'm probably missing a huge amount of context here. But I have Summer Yuel and frankly her fates are a fic prompt already. These losers stole each other's clothes to try to make sure they'd be able to spend more time together at the lake... but somehow they haven't figured out it's romantic? Please help them figure out they should kiss. Maybe they get a clue themselves, maybe someone on the crew can't stand to see them being morons about it anymore and decides to matchmake, possibly by tripping one of them into the other's cleavage. They're so pretty and so devoted and I need it. Also somebody should really rub somebody else's ears.
Cain/Reinhardtzar
One of an increasing number of ships where cygames just came for me directly. Their progression from hostile to "if you don't come back from this fight, I won't either" caused a hell of a lot of swearing over here. I would love to see them develop from their main story adventures: Reinhardtzar sharing more stories about Abel; them striking out away from Idelva to find new adventures and discover more of the world (Leona is welcome to travel with them but I don't ship her romantically with either of them); sparring goes sexy places; sex pollen happens or someone gets Charmed or draph have heats and sexy adventures become imperative, holy shit please play up the size kink there. I have really squirmy feelings about lost eyes and if Cain gets a chance to see and/or touch and/or kiss that scar I am extremely here for it.
They're just really good together and should fight back-to-back and or fuck like wild beasts. I apologize for how simple this is.
Sturm/Drang
At the start of the game I thought I didn't ship them, oh silly me. They have so much history and clearly know what to expect from each other so much, and I had just played the main quest trip to North Vast when A Mercenary's Life hit, and it was just such a one-two punch of LOOK AT HOW GOOD THESE ASSHOLES ARE FOR EACH OTHER. There was a flash exchange recently with a freeform tag like "I would sell you to Satan for one corn chip but if anyone hurts you I will end them," and that's Sturm right there.
I think what I'd really like with them is established relationship stuff, whether that's taking on a mission, one of them patching the other up after a mission strategy turned out to be too risky, downtime where maybe they take on one of the other challenges in the sky realm (we see them skyracing! what else would they try out?), or of course how their sex life works. On that last front, I really love how casually comfortable they seem to be with this under-negotiated (maybe just plain non-negotiated) kink thing they have going on; she's an impatient top and he's a bratty sub and they don't seem to talk about it ever but she gets stress relief out of hurting him and he (correctly, I think) reads it as affection. I'd love to see that develop into actual kinky sex adventures of whatever sort you think they'd like. PS size difference ♥
The two of them are also so good at working together that they can accommodate a third with no trouble, and that goes double in the bedroom: if you want to write/draw them having a good time with Gran, Djeeta, Apollo, or Orchid, whether that's a romantic thing or just a friendly celebration, I'm here for it.
Orchid/Apollo
My entire heart for the determined, fearless, lonely Black Knight finally getting some good things in her life. I was so, so glad in the resolution of their arc to see Apollo recognize that she was attached to both the princess she grew up with and the girl who'd been traveling with her, and she couldn't choose either of them at the expense of the other. ;3; And gosh, what that must be like for Orchid, to find out that Apollo has come to care about her so much!
I want to see them both exploring that: what it's like to have time for each other. What it's like to be able to touch someone you love, whenever you want to, just because you want to. Apollo spent so long completely focused on her mission and not making time for human connections, and Orchid at first was in a borrowed body kept under strict control before being given this new body at last—they're probably both inexperienced and clumsy about anything physical (even if Apollo tries to bluff at first). Accidental touches on a mission becoming Meaningful would be great (that thing where A offers a hand to help B climb a thing and then neither of them can let go, yessss), and any excuse for bed sharing whether that's "we just have to keep warm on this mountainside" or "Cat makes me feel better when I have nightmares, I'll go in there and hug Apollo until hers go away" or what have you. Sex continuing to explore those themes, A+, I'm here for the two sides of "clumsy and inexperienced" and "starving for exactly this" intersecting.
If you want to explore the differences between the flesh body and the golem body, feel free, as long as it doesn't leave Orchid unable to experience sensual pleasure. Experiencing it differently is fine! Just don't lock her out of that human experience. (If you don't want to engage with that topic, ignoring it is also a-ok.)
Orchid/Orchis/Apollo
When Orchis said she preferred the kind of ending where everyone was smiling, I think I started to cry. Me too, Orchis. A lot of the stuff above applies here too! Just with an extra kind soul.
Orchis I think brings more level-headed practicality (and optimism) to the group, and it'd be really neat to see her reaction to her sweet childhood friend grown up into this fearsome warrior. Plus there's the kindness and generous heart it must take to reach out to the soul who occupied your own body for years and say yes, I want you also to be happy. What a good! I want every sweet reunion here, Orchid and Apollo coming back to Erste after a mission to tell their queen all about it, possibly in a cuddle pile. All three of them working together on a project to restore Erste or improve life for its people—maybe putting on a festival with the crew's help! Or, of course, all three of them discovering intimacy together.
I should say for these last two that I haven't seen all the Society content; I started playing at the end of 2019 so haven't been able to play Peace of the Pie, Violet Violence, Second Advent, or Kappa Summer Chronicle. I don't mind spoilers for them, and I don't mind if you disregard anything I prompt that doesn't make sense with the whole story; I might be lost if you write plotty fic about Society/Foe happenings.
Beatrix/Zeta
I really like the way these two get along in their fates and in general scenes, but the thing that made me crave fanwork for them specifically was the rescue in Gripping Freedom, with Zeta charging in and Vaseraga like a good wingman holding off the trash so she could be the hero. I'd love something set after that, with Zeta's relief at Beatrix being safe (probably being expressed through "why do you do such reckless things!" yelling) and maybe some "thank gods you're safe" sex. Or, honestly, some sexy Beatrix-in-mock-peril inspired by how she looked tied to that stake, and Zeta "taking advantage" or "teaching her a lesson" while she blushes and struggles attractively. >_>
If that's not your jam, though, something lower stakes would also be great! Trying out new outfits to see who can be seductive enough to blow the other's mind, racing skyships with a sexy forfeit on the line for the loser, pick your poison—my favorite thing with them is the competitive energy backed up by honest affection, and you could show off that dynamic in a wide variety of situations and make me happy.
Vaseraga/Zeta
Vaseraga kinda slays me. Physically I'm a tremendous fan of that big powerful draph male physique (see above re Reinhardtzar) and then he adds onto that with the not feeling pain and the alterations and his stoic determination to tank and the possibility of Grynoth making him berserk and AUGH. I'm a huge sucker for determined partners, too, so when he and Zeta get past the surface bickering and both literally and metaphorically have each other's backs in battle, I die a little.
So I mean basically what I want is something that plays on their partnership and them learning to trust each other in battle. Their size difference would make for some great back-to-back fighting pose art! Their frankness about the state of Vaseraga's body and his inability to feel pain could lead to some cool h/c stuff. I'm always here for adrenaline-fueled sex, too (can Vaseraga feel that normally? does it change what they do if his nerves don't cooperate?). Some snark and bickering is pretty inevitable, but I'd rather it be the more toned-down version we see in later events rather than the non-stop yelling at each other from Footprints on Sacred Ground.
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn
Reyson/Tibarn
Hawk king would destroy anything that threatened heron prince: a romance.
This is a criminally rare ship with so much good material to play with. A not-at-all-exhaustive list of things I'd like to see:
- Something from a dark canon divergence where Tibarn encourages Reyson to go ahead with the galdr of destruction, and they become terrible avenging angels together.
- Post-game stuff with them working together on political aims for the bird laguz
- Which could include them getting married to give Reyson standing to speak for the hawks
- Or they could just get married because who's going to stop them and they want to make their devotion public
- Reyson's sibs finding out about his relationship with Tibarn; Rafael is probably surprised and Leanne is probably a troll, possibly while still pretending she doesn't understand the modern tongue
- Tender affection like one of them grooming the other's wings
- Reyson having a tremendous appetite in bed and using the galdr of vigor to give Tibarn an extra turn, if you know what I mean
- That time when Tibarn joked about tying Reyson to the bed except totally not a joke and they nearly broke the headboard
Shin Megami Tensei IV
Chaos and the dangerous ladies, which is to say all the Samurai/Hikaru or Yuriko ships
What I really want out of this fandom is for Hikaru, or Yuriko, or both, to get their wicked hands on one or more wide-eyed young holy warriors and corrupt the living hell out of them. Playing up the religious transgressiveness of kinky (quite possibly femdom) sex for someone raised with Mikado's repressive patriarchal god, toying with the characters' alternate forms, summoning additional demons or Ring members to contribute, committing deliberate acts of blasphemy to lead their young proteges away from their old faith, gangbangs as parts of pagan fertility festivals or celebrations of specifically non-fertile sexuality: picture a venn diagram with circles labeled "sex" and "demons" and "religion" and aim for somewhere in the overlapping zones.
Further thoughts about Yuriko: while she represents Chaos, it's never entirely explicit where she falls in the philosophical-political struggle between Merkabah and Lucifer. The Ring stands for refusing to take sides, and the idol in their temple is Mem Aleph from SJ, who stood outside YHVH's paradigm and wanted her people's freedom and power back. Having Yuriko's "knowledge and wisdom" agenda intended to shake her protege(s) free of the entire system would be fabulous. I love every iteration of her in every text and I would love to see her have even a momentary triumph.
Further thoughts about Hikaru/boys: I really like the idea of her seducing one or both of them as a deliberate part of her strategy for recruiting a champion in her ongoing conflict. The idea of the boy in question discovering later who she really is and reaction to that, also good shit. How that interacts with her need of a bodily sacrifice to take her true form, and what either of the boys feels about *that*, also interesting.
Hikaru/Yuriko
This is always, ALWAYS a ship that I love, in every version of the mythos ever, and the fact that both of them are passing as human women for part of IV delights me. I wanna see them being completely self-indulgent and pleased with themselves, probably with some blasphemy thrown in because they both love that, and as much affection for each other as two incredibly selfish ancient beings can manage. One or both of them dropping the human form during sex is cool (using forms they've taken elsewhere in the series, also good). Both of them deliberately maintaining human form and kinking on the pretense is also cool. I'm into this both as passionate connection and as wary mutual respect, so whichever way you like their mythos, I'm for it.
Flynn/Walter
As you might have guessed, I lean more Chaos than Law in this game, and I love a connection between these two, whether based on their common background, common leanings in Tokyo, both, or something else entirely. Flynn having a crush on bad-boy Walter is cute. Walter thinking he's a bad boy and then discovering a whole new scale in Tokyo but being reassured by Flynn's admiration? Either or both of them thinking that m/m is Just Not Done until they meet people in Tokyo who Just Do, also welcome—in a lot of settings I'm not into that trope but with their circumstances it works. The wildness growing between them, and the two of them urging each other on—in the arena battles, or in how they interact with the alternate timelines, just for some examples—would be awesome. Finding some way to actually keep them together, whether that's Walter taking over Lucifer's body or something more creative, would be super welcome.
Combining pairings is welcome if you're feeling ambitious. Fully consensual is great but any of the Samurai being victims in a dubcon or noncon situation is also welcome (in general I enjoy coercion more than physical violence).
Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse
Fujiwara/Skins
I just freakin love that these two have such comfortable, settled camaraderie, that together they're a pillar of stability for Tokyo, that they're battered old messes who have respect from their peers and a good thing going with each other. I'd love to see them getting together back when the dome had just recently gone up, or getting the Hunters' Association together, or some post-mission h/c when Skins is still going on hunts and Fujiwara doesn't expect him to stop but isn't about to stop giving him shit about it, either. Letting them get their hands on some material luxuries that are hard to find after the apocalypse is also pretty great, whether that's Fujiwara putting a bounty on body lotion because he knows it'll soothe Skins' dry scars or Skins hunting through the ruins of a candy shop to find chocolate for their anniversary or... you get the idea. Little things that mean a lot. <3
...Letting them go topside post-Bonds ending and see how different it is would also be pretty cool.
Also I am firmly of the opinion that they're kinky old bastards together, and if you want to go there you absolutely should.
Gaston/Hallelujah
I love that these two invert the Law Hero/Chaos Hero path of growing more opposed as the game puts them under stress; watching them learn to respect and support each other was so sweet and good for my heart. Now kiss.
Lean into them being awkward teenage boys, especially Gaston, who's been trying for his entire adolescence to prove that he could be the Most Serious Jerk after what his brother did to the family reputation. He has no idea what to do about pants feelings, especially not when they seem to be related to an unclean half-demon boy who sasses him all the time!
I would love all the dumb cliche UST scenarios here: trapped in an elevator, forced to share a bed or a blanket for warmth, caught in a sudden rainstorm and oh no Hallelujah's shirt sticks right to his skin—and now you better get him out of those wet clothes before he gets hypothermia! Maybe Chiro decides that this pining is ridiculous and some meddling mischief is called for to make them kiss. Hell, maybe a terminal malfunction leads to a bodyswap.
I'd also love resolving the UST, or some hookup later on when they've started to get a clue! Playing with Hal's alternate form and the inherent taboo of touching him like that would be delicious on that front.
