Mali (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
malachiical) wrote2023-01-07 06:40 am
malachiical) wrote2023-01-07 06:40 am
Entry tags:
Candy Hearts Exchange 2023
NOTE: I did not include individual prompts in this particular letter, but feel free to use just my likes and my explanations of what I like about the characters and their relationships as a jumping-off point. I also link to some of my previous letters if you do want some prompts!
Hello, Candy Hearts creator! Thank you for writing for me! I'm Mal or Mali (malachiical @ AO3 as well); I'll try to keep each individual section of this letter brief, and you should be able to skip to wherever you like with anchor links and/or just expand the parts relevant to you via cut. I hope our ids align and you have a blast writing, because I'm definitely looking forward to whatever you come up with!
General DNWs
General Likes
Porn Likes
Crossover Fandom - Hiruma Youichi (Eyeshield 21)/Ootori Kyouya (Ouran High School Host Club)
DCU (Comics) - Maxivermis Mind/Dr. Thaddeus Sivana
The Last Halloween (Webcomic) - Dr. Fugue/Robert; Eugene Otto/Robert
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon) - Quentin Beck/Phineas Mason; Quentin Beck/Chameleon/Phineas Mason
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon) - Otto Octavius/Adrian Toomes
Vampire Cleanup Department (2017) - Yip Chi Chau/Yeung Chung
General DNWs
General Likes
Porn Likes
Crossover Fandom
Hiruma Youichi (Eyeshield 21)/Ootori Kyouya (Ouran High School Host Club)
This ship strikes me as fascinating and with a ton of potential for fun stuff! Hiruma and Kyouya are incredibly different people, but also alike in a lot of ways that I think could both make them respect one another, be impressed by one another, see the value in one another, and also sometimes grate on each others' nerves like hell. They are both likely to know way too much about each other, and about each others' clubmates/teammates, and I could easily see them being on mostly equal footing.
I'm betting both would have a hard time actually pulling off blackmailing the other (or people close enough to the other to have any of their protection) or really getting one over on the other, with maybe one or two moments on either side where they get the upper hand for a VERY short period before the other manages to get things back under control. This would usually leave them having to approach each other in other ways, either more subtle manipulation (that they're both probably aware of and also aware that they're both aware of) or flat-out making deals with each other for mutual benefit. Which is great because they'd also make a scary good team when and if they did come together, so I could also see them both being savvy enough to seek the other out as a useful contact to get and to uphold.
Basically, with these two I especially like the idea of them being basically evenly matched, and them being drawn to each other specifically because of that. Neither of them actually being able to have the upper hand over the other or really intimidate the other is a key part of why I'm interested in them!
(I would also like to mention that while Hiruma resembles Kyouya waaaay more than he resembles Tamaki, still, Jesus, blond boys who are super passionate about a thing are going to be the death of Kyouya seriously. I am also fine with some minor former or current one-sided Kyouya->Tamaki feelings, and it's cool if Hiruma has some one-sided feelings for someone, I don't really have Feelings Preferences there. Just assume that he and Mamori aren't together, feelings can have happened but whether it's one-sided or a handwavey breakup or just something they decided wouldn't work is fine, I imagine they're still on fine terms.)
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done a few freeform exchanges!
Canon-Specific DNWs
DCU (Comics)
Maxivermis Mind/Dr. Thaddeus Sivana
[Where you can find the comics: Here!
All Pertinent Issues:
Justice League 2011 #7-11 (B story)
Justice League 2011 #0 (A story)
Justice League 2011 #14-21 (B story)
Shazam! 2019 #1-14]
(Note: I specifically focused on the New 52 issues above because I am far, far more familiar with them there than their pre-52 incarnations.)
Honestly, the thing I love most about these two is the sheer loyalty and dedication they seem to have. Which is just absolute catnip for me with supervillains, frankly, and Mind/Sivana are one of my absolute favorite examples of it.
Sivana first meets Mind while he's actively dying, body being aged and broken down by its connection to magic, which humans are really not meant to have. Mind is imprisoned just outside the Wizard's sanctum, and offers to save Sivana's life and help him further if he's freed. And this could so easily be played as manipulation, a setup for betrayal, but it's not. The next we see them, Mind has helped Sivana figure out how to stabilize himself (I theorize that Sivana's now able to use the magic to basically achieve homeostasis, no longer breaking down or aging at all but instead keeping himself going with it), and is guiding him through what he'll need for a spell; it's never spelled out but given that it doesn't actually map to anything we see them doing later, and Sivana spent the entire previous arc desperate for a way to save his family (though it's never mentioned again), I just assume that's what they needed "the tongue of a medicine man" for and Mind helped him with that too.
In return, Sivana's dedicated himself entirely to Mind to, like, an immense degree. And the loyalty seems to be mutual! Mind guides Sivana through fighting Black Adam, and tells him the full extent of all of his plans. In return, Sivana is more than willing to fight Black Adam for him, to go and free the rest of the Monster Society for him... in fact, nearly everything we see Sivana do after he meets Mind is for the sake of Mind's plans. There is even a moment, when freeing the Monster Society, that Sivana has to trust that Mind isn't just willing to sacrifice him to free his team, and plunges a magic dagger into his eye (the one that is his connection-point to magic) in order to make it act like a key and melt the locks on the cells. This completely works, and Sivana remains unharmed, and continues to act loyally to Mr. Mind. (As well as continuing to call out to him in concern when something seems to be going wrong.)
Also, I gotta say, despite it not being so simple canonically due to spoilers, Mind being small enough to fit snugly in someone's ear canal combined with his very strong telepathic (and magic) abilities is weirdly hot to me. As is the idea that Sivana is un-fucking-believably powerful magically-speaking, even more so than Mr. Mind, and yet dedicates all of that power to Mind's service. And how Sivana fearlessly asks so many questions and Mind just patiently (and even happily) explains every single time, often fully explaining. There's just so much intimacy between these two and they actually do seem to care about one another and be mutually dedicated, even if I can see Sivana being The Most loyal. I love it!
And then, potentially, we add in King Kid. The relationship there is pretty much entirely theoretical, but it still intrigues me. We have the Monster Society, after all, so Mind collects misfits and those deemed monsters by the worlds of the Magiclands they come from. After the events of canon, King Kid now fits, and is apparently imprisoned right in the Funlands which he used to rule.
Mind has had a little interaction with King Kid, though in the guise of Billy Batson's father; interestingly, he steps in when Billy has King Kid grabbed and is threatening him with prison (or "juvie hall, at least") to remind Billy that King Kid mentioned being mistreated by his parents, remind Billy that he and King Kid had been kinda similar due to Billy's own parental abandonment, and tries to appeal to King Kid with apologies for how he'd been treated and an appeal to earn his trust. This seems entirely unnecessary even as part of the act he's putting on; Mind could easily have had Billy's father tell him after that he'd been harsh but fair, or something. Just as interestingly to me, during dinner after the fight, Mind-as-Billy's-dad brings up King Kid again and feeling like they failed him, concerned for what's going to happen to him now, and while this could be meant to make Billy lose faith in the Wizard, since Mind seems astonished that the Shazams would turn against the Wizard after, that feels a bit off too. I like the idea that Mind does feel for those who are labeled monsters and attacked or punished for it, maybe especially kids.
And while Sivana has no canonical interaction with King Kid... Well, he has "his family," at least, and though it's unclear in canon what's meant by that, since I'd rather he not be married during the events of the fic (infidelity DNW), him having at least a couple kids of his own would make sense, and he does seem dedicated to trying to save them. (See canon likes section below for ideas!) King Kid is the hardest part of this, tbh, and I'd love to see him slowly (maybe very slowly) working through his hatred and distrust of adults to bond with these two and maybe the Monster Society in general! (Maybe it would help that Mind is a worm...)
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I haven't really asked for this ship much before, but you might be able to find some extra ideas in the AO3 Automagic App, and I did sign up to Playlist Exchange recently:
Canon-Specific DNWs
The Last Halloween (Webcomic)
Dr. Fugue/Robert
Eugene Otto/Robert
[Where you can find the comic: Here!
Book 1 is by far the most pertinent; that's 7 chapters/about 114 pages.]
For Dr. Fugue/Robert, this takes a little bit of explaining, since their interactions are minor and not particularly significant. But the more I thought about them individually, I liked what their slight interplay does say about them and how the shapes of their arcs kinda work together.
Doctor Fugue is undead, a doctor and supernatural (mad) scientist, a Victorian-ish ghost. One who haunts the church and can't leave. He employs what he thinks of as a little group of undead children to help him graverob bodies for his raising-the-dead experiments (as well as upgrading/replacing Jangles's various bits). He's a big faker: Robert flat-out says he's not a good doctor, which is proven very correct when Mona comes back; he not only hands a ten year old a magic weapon he knows nothing about and sends her and the other "kids" out with completely incorrect information, he's apparently sent multiple "group[s] of untrained misfits to their deaths without actually nowing what was going on," to the point that Charon's chewed him out about it at least once before. His whole arc seems to involve him getting a huge dose of guilt for once in his unlife, realizing just how badly he fucked this little group up, seeming to have a change of heart about the "playing Dr. Frankenstein" thing and trying in some small ways to start to make amends.
Robert, on the other hand, is posing as an undead, a doll cursed to life by voodoo. Until he tells Mona and Shirley, literally no one in the group including Fugue knows that he's a monster, not undead at all, and is also immortal (or what they call immortal) due to killing his human several decades prior; he claims to be an undead to avoid the attention of the Phagocyte. He's around 117 years old, if not a bit older, and he's often the closest thing the group has to a straight-man; he keeps his own secrets, even when it would be really helpful to share, because he rarely feels invested in others, and he doesn't tend to personally lend much of a hand, especially not to save people. He's calm and soft-spoken, good with normal human adults, and very calmly makes threats when called for as well (and sometimes even commits violence against his undead "friends," such as sewing Ringley's mouth shut, though they don't seem to mind). His own arc involves him actually becoming attached to the situation and its people for once, to the point of purposefully sacrificing his life to give Mona a chance to survive and succeed (on what is, unbeknownst to them, a fool's errand), even admitting his own origins and past and coming face-to-face with the fact, for the first time, that maybe his nature as a monster is something he can choose to act counter to.
...So Fugue sends Mona, Robert, and the others off on a pointless quest that gets one of them killed and nearly kills two more of them, and is having to live with that fuck-up (figuratively speaking). And by the end of Book One he still hasn't even been made aware that Robert was a monster the whole time and has sort of... fused with the magic sickle that's supernaturally bonded to Mona.
But he fucked up big time and he knows it, and it seems to have potentally started helping him change and grow as a person -- albeit late. He shoved a magic sickle into a protesting ten-year-old's hands and pushed her out the door with a few undead "child" chaperones during the Apocalypse so she could go "save the world," a whole bunch of terrible decisions all in a clump, made worse by him not understanding the situation and actually sending them on a wild goose chase in the end. Mona nearly died and lost an arm to the ordeal, something she makes clear to Fugue that she'll never forgive him for (which, by the end, he finds fair and seems legitimately gutpunched by having to face what he did for once). And Robert changed, too, going along to keep everyone on track and give them even a tiny chance; he saved Mona's life once and told her he'll never do it again so she'd better learn to save herself, but he became more attached to her (and Shirley) and invested in the outcome of their mission, to the point that he eventually actually opens up, becomes somewhat more reassuring (and even open to affectionate touch, which was Not a thing for him at first), shedding the lies he'd been telling, sort of stepping into a mentor role, and he actually sacrificed his own life to give Mona a fighting chance. Mona and Fugue are obviously both hit pretty hard by his death, and Fugue definitely comes to regret his choices and the results they had on Mona and Robert (and Shirley). You can always include Mona and/or Shirley (and/or other characters!) but I wanted to put this in there because their mutual but separate character development intrigues me and might inform how they act and interact in any post-canon/post-Book-One time period.
And for Eugene Otto/Robert... Quite frankly, I completely love this ship. There's just so much complexity here... Unhealthiness, but not for lack of trying.
I'm so fascinated by how Robert talks about their relationship, how the way he tells Mona about it makes it sound like he really did legitimately want things to work between himself and Gene, likely did not realize where his immense jealousy was leading until it happened, but his mixed feelings now about not even knowing if he regrets it or not. I love that you can tell he loved Gene in his own way then and might even be capable of different, healthier kinds of love now -- might even have been more capable then than he'd believed -- but still wound up ruining Gene's life and killing him... and how Gene asked him to kill him. I love the whole monster aspect entirely, a creature who is born when you are and whose life is tied to yours in so many inextricable ways, how it leaves you both vulnerable, and all the monsters' thoughts on that and Robert's thoughts specifically on that, including how he comes to realize that maybe he could have gone against his nature. I love how their history had them so intertwined from when Gene was a young child to when he died an adult. I love how Robert killing Gene made him immortal but he proceeded to think about Gene every day and still has uncertain feelings about how everything went down, and has come to see immortality as more of a curse than a blessing.
Also, I love how complicated and tragic they are in basically all ways, but I'd prefer a more... wistful feel than purely tragic, despite both their canon fates, if possible. And you can feel free to give them a happier ending, too, but I like at least hopeful stuff!
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've asked for Eugene Otto/Robert a few times before, and Dr. Fugue and Robert twice:
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon)
Quentin Beck/Phineas Mason
Quentin Beck/Chameleon/Phineas Mason
[Where you can find the series: Here!
Most Pertinent Episodes:
For all three together - S1E10 (Persona)
For Quentin and Phineas together - S2E1 (Blueprints); S2E3 (Reinforcement)
For Phineas - S2E4 (Shear Strength); S2E9 (Probable Cause) (scene at the beginning)
For Quentin - S2E12 (Opening Night) (admittedly just for the robot reveal tbh)
For Chameleon - S2E13 (Final Curtain)]
THESE TWO MAKE ME HAPPY. When we're first introduced to them they're the kinda grouchy-seeming professionals working with Chameleon and playing a dumb card-flicking gamein "bisexuals can't sit normally" fashion while they wait. They're basically Chameleon's backup in that episode, and you don't get to see fully what they're like until the second season, but I really like the juxtaposition of how they are in this episode as compared to later ones! (Personally, I feel as if neither of them had their supervillain identities at all until somewhere between "Persona" and "Blueprints" when the Master Planner hired them. I also feel that they'd been working together for at least a little while before their introductory episode, though who was the first to work with who, out of the three of them, and for how long, is totally up to you. Also up to you whether they usually call each other by first name or last name, and how often they call each other by supervillain name nowadays!)
Quentin Beck used to be a special effects technician before leaving for his life of crime, and he's got a very interesting balance between his real self and the Mysterio act that I find really fun! He's a professional and Mysterio is an overly-theatrical fuckin dork, but Quentin is also deep down (and not so deep down) a theatrical dork. I can imagine that Quentin puts some of the things he wants to be into Mysterio, because that's common for supervillains and superheroes both, but Mysterio is also a role he plays for a specific purpose: misdirection, keeping people focused on him rather than his tricks or the crimes his act is distracting away from! That said, he got hired to be Mysterio for the thefts and then just decided that was fun as hell and absolutely wanted to do from then on, so there's also that element to him. I feel like he's also enjoying getting to be center stage as Mysterio in a way he doesn't get to be on jobs with Chameleon. Phineas Mason, on the other hand, is an inventor who rolls his eyes at "actors" being theatrical but is absolutely theatrical himself even if he won't admit it. I don't think he's an actor, not in the way that Chameleon and Quentin are; he was wayyy in the background in "Persona" in non-speaking roles whenever his presence was necessary out in the field, and he seems to prefer to stay back and provide "technical support" and make things for other people to use. But he obviously has fun leaning into the mad scientist supervillain act at least a little ("allow me to introduce our host and benefactor"; "welcome to your lair, Master Planner"; "all that remains is calibration... and testing") and occasionally amuses himself making dorky jokes ("put even more 'ric' in your 'ochet'"). I also imagine he has no criminal record (the arrest at the end of "Persona" didn't seem to stick and one of the cops did say in the first episode that the people Spider-Man apprehends nearly always walk...) and is staying in the background to avoid getting one for as long as possible, because him being able to work within the law is really convenient for them.
Basically, though, I love the dynamic of two characters who are just doing this shit because they love it, who've been working together a while and are developing supervillain personas kind of simultaneously mostly for the fun of it. I have a feeling Tinkerer made most of the robots and tech that Mysterio uses, though Quentin himself also contributed the "will-weaking" gas and the mask and makeup for his own android. (Which also means that the reason Quentin is just never arrested after "Persona" and it's always a goddamn android is thanks to Phineas, which makes me smile.) Phineas might not even charge him for that stuff! Just in general they're basically married and I love that...
AND THEN POTENTIALLY ADD CHAMELEON TO THE MIX. IMO it was absolutely brilliant for The Spectacular Spider-Man to introduce these three as a team working together; Mysterio might have hired the Chameleon once in the comics, but otherwise none of them really teamed up, but it works perfectly! The person who can disguise himself as anyone, the special effects expert, and the inventor/technological expert have a lot to offer each other, and I love that they seem to usually hire themselves out to steal shit for the rich and powerful.
Chameleon is a fascinating character to me, both in and of himself and in the dynamic with these two. He's a professional who can have a no-nonsense sort of response to things (seeing his phone call with the person who hired them to steal the symbiote, and his "I did not sign on for this" response in the finale), but who also has a mischievous sense of humor and is absolutely theatrical especially when inhabiting a role (his Spider-Man impression was really funny to me). He has his own life and isn't always working with Beck and Phineas, but given the way he talked in "Persona" I get the strong impression Beck makes his disguises, including the face masks, so I imagine they at least keep in touch often. I also feel like the three of them worked together for at least a few years before we meet them in canon, which is a dynamic I love; they'd all be very used to each other! And I enjoy the idea that when they do jobs together they split the take rather than Beck or Phineas charging Chameleon (or each other) or anything... As well as really liking the idea that even being incredibly close with the two of them it's just Chameleon's habit to call even people he loves by their surnames. I also also like how "Mason" and "Beck"'s names are first given while Chameleon is requesting their help and simultaneously praising their skills! And I just in general really love the idea of a team of criminals who work great together and highly respect one another's skills and are also all in love. (Though I also don't mind if it's a poly V so long as the center of the V is Quentin or Phineas, not Chameleon.)
I'm also fascinated by Chameleon in the sense of like... Outside of Chameleon, who is often pretending to be other people, who is he? Does he even have a legal identity outside of Chameleon, or has he erased it? Feel free to use the name Dmitri Smerdyakov for him (though I prefer he not be related to Kraven in this universe), but if you wanted to solely stick with Chameleon for him or give him a fake name like, idk, Leon Smirnov (the most common surname in Russia, basically like giving him the surname Smith) or w/e that he goes by now when necessary that is obviously not his birth name, go nuts.
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done several freeform exchanges! In most of them I asked for both Beck/Mason and Beck/Chameleon/Mason as well; I'll mark what I asked for next to the links below.
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon)
Otto Octavius/Adrian Toomes
[Where you can find the series: Here!
Most Pertinent Episodes:
For the two together - S1E1 (Survival of the Fittest) (though this is majorly a Vulture episode); S1E11 (Group Therapy); S2E3 (Reinforcement); S2E4 (Shear Strength); S2E8 (Accomplices) (for them showing up at the auction together, also interesting for Ock's character in some ways); S2E10 (Gangland)
For Otto - S1E5 (Competition); S1E6 (The Invisible Hand); S1E7 (Catalyst) (only in a small scene); S1E8 (Reaction) (Doctor Octopus origin episode, and check the photo on Otto's wall!); S2E1 (Blueprints) (scene at end as Master Planner); S2E2 (Destructive Testing) (scene at beginning and end as Master Planner)
...Adrian literally does not have episodes where his relationship with Otto isn't immensely interesting to me! Well then.]
I am just WAY TOO INVESTED in these ridiculous theatrical supervillains being pre-supervillain friends who are now loyal and in love while trying to take over the world/take murderous revenge!
While the first episode introduces both characters with Adrian furious at Otto, it makes sense, since they seem to have been close before (the photo on Otto's wall in the Doctor Octopus origin episode!) and Adrian was probably feeling hurt/betrayed. The rest of their dynamic is so far from what one might expect from that first impression that it's insane! Reunited as cellmates, Vulture helping Doc Ock with a big jailbreak, not just working together in the Sinister Six but Vulture ceding his desire to take vengeance on Osborn to follow Ock's plan to take out Spider-Man first... And they just never work apart again? Adrian is one of only three people to find out the Master Planner's true identity, part of his inner circle! When Ock tests out the technology meant to allow him to hack into every single electrical device in the city, he does so by trying to kill Norman Osborn, seemingly for Adrian's sake, and despite revenge being Vulture's driving motivation Adrian is totally fine about it not working. When Otto tries to credit him and Phineas Mason and for doing brilliant work assembling the technology, Adrian immediately demurs the compliment and turns it back around on him: "The brainwork was all yours, Otto." For a grouchy old man, he smiles a lot around Otto, too!
And even after the Master Planner's master plan is defeated and literally every other member of the Sinister Six seems to go their separate ways and do their own things, Vulture just stays with Doctor Octopus, seemingly acting as bodyguard for the auction, for the Valentine's Day summit (where they also dress up fancy and hot)... There are also just these cute little touches I love, like how in the first Sinister Six fight when Spider-Man jumps on the Vulture's back you can see the back of Doctor Octopus's head tracking them, and a few moments later Otto is the one to pull Spider-Man off Adrian's back. And when Doctor Octopus puts a tentacle on everyone's shoulders in the Sinister Six ep to ease them back down into their chairs, it looks like his tentacle is on Adrian's back instead of his shoulder. And when Hammerhead shoots at Adrian at the summit and knocks him unconscious, Otto's cry of "TREACHERY!" is fuckin pissed and he just has no patience for Tombstone in that fight after. I love how Ock seems to honestly care about his team and make an effort to make them happy, and how Vulture is perfectly willing to put his own goals on the backburner in a way that feels very "I am helping this man take over the world because he wants to and he deserves to get whatever he wants, fuck you." I love seeing these supervillains have huge soft spots, in general and especially for each other!
TL;DR they married, ty for reading my villain shipping Ted Talk.
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done several freeform exchanges!
Vampire Cleanup Department (2017)
Yip Chi Chau/Yeung Chung
[Where you can find the movie: Here!
(turn on the English closed captions in the bottom right if you need them; it's also available in Spanish!)
Or for free on Youtube with hard-coded English subtitles!
Also, enjoy these gifs as an enticement to get into this canon (with some spoilery moments) :D]
Vampire Cleanup Department is a Hong Kong comedy-horror-romance movie that came out four years ago and short version: The titular VCD is a secret government-created agency that disguises themselves as cleaners but really go around using talismans and other magical items to hunt down and destroy vampires, specifically jiangshi (which means they hop around with their arms outstretched, and this is by turns played as creepy, funny, and cute). But when the main character Tim Cheung joins up after being bitten by a vampire and not turning, he finds out that his dead parents used to work for the VCD until a mission went terribly wrong, and accidentally winds up bonding with a vampire named Summer who starts changing and gaining more human emotions and mentality after biting him. He trains with the VCD while keeping the fact that he didn't actually destroy her when he was supposed to a secret.
I am here for different characters, however! And oh man I am so into them. Yip Chi Chau is Tim's "master," the early-50s-ish combat expert of the VCD who trains Tim in how to fight vampires; he knew Tim's parents and was close friends with his father, Yat Lung Cheung, and promised them that he'd take care of Tim as they were dying. Yeung Chung, or "Uncle Chung," is an older man in his 70s who's the director of the VCD and their "technical support" and a more openly kindly figure.
Where Chau is an incredibly skilled fighter and trainer, Chung is definitely not a combatant... but he is still brave enough to go into the field, and to step in to help people when they're in trouble, and he's great at directing the others during a fight. Where Chau is closed-off and hot-headed, Chung is calm, amiable, and understanding, good at being diplomatic when it's needed (and at distracting people so the others can work)... and also good at calming Chau down and redirecting him. They've worked together for decades, and despite what Chung says multiple times to Chau about training new blood so that they can eventually retire, neither of them seems to be willing to just quit. They know each other incredibly well ("Have I ever misjudged anyone? And you... never mean what you say."), Chau saved Chung and a rookie police officer in the very first scene (while Chung called for his help), when Tim was in trouble Chung called Chau back from a chase...
And in a moment that really got me, when Tim's "final test" went wrong and Chung tried to step in to help him against the vampire that was trying to kill him. Summer showed up to help as well and accidentally flung both the vampire and Chung through a table, and Chau reacted with such immediate alarm to kill the vampire before it could attack Chung! Chung was hurt and needed medical attention, and with Chung hurt and also not around to calm him down, Chau was furious with Tim. (I will also say that during that final test, Chau was acting like a nervous parent... while Chung sat on the couch and video taped everything, also like a parent, haha.)
Even when Tim is the one training the new recruits at the end of the movie, it's Chau and Chung standing on the walkway above watching and obviously still involved despite any talk of retirement, chatting and comfortable with one another. I just really love their shared history, how obvious it is that Chau cares deeply about certain people -- Chung, Tim, and Tim's father in the past -- despite him not saying it or being touchy-feely, and how comfortable with one another they are and how well they work together and know one another as people.
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done a few freeform exchanges!
Canon-Specific DNWs
Hello, Candy Hearts creator! Thank you for writing for me! I'm Mal or Mali (malachiical @ AO3 as well); I'll try to keep each individual section of this letter brief, and you should be able to skip to wherever you like with anchor links and/or just expand the parts relevant to you via cut. I hope our ids align and you have a blast writing, because I'm definitely looking forward to whatever you come up with!
General DNWs
General Likes
Porn Likes
Crossover Fandom - Hiruma Youichi (Eyeshield 21)/Ootori Kyouya (Ouran High School Host Club)
DCU (Comics) - Maxivermis Mind/Dr. Thaddeus Sivana
The Last Halloween (Webcomic) - Dr. Fugue/Robert; Eugene Otto/Robert
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon) - Quentin Beck/Phineas Mason; Quentin Beck/Chameleon/Phineas Mason
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon) - Otto Octavius/Adrian Toomes
Vampire Cleanup Department (2017) - Yip Chi Chau/Yeung Chung
General DNWs
- noncon/dubcon
- smut with characters under 16 or shipping between adults and under-18 characters
- gore or permanent injury (unless otherwise stated)
- permanent character death (unless otherwise stated)
- infidelity
- halves of a ship feeling like they really just don't like or care about each other at all (even with more complicated stuff I am a BIG SOPPY ROMANTIC)
- a ship having sexualities that mean they aren't attracted to one another
- being ashamed of or hating one's body (even for trans stuff, if you write it; just no focus on dysphoria please)
- unhappy endings
- unrequested AUs (canon divergence is fine)
- unrequested identity headcanons (mentions for OCs are fine)
- unrequested noncanon ships (background canon ships that don't break up the requested pairing are fine; mentions of OCs being in relationships with one another is fine)
- unrequested poly (mentions of OCs being in poly relationships with one another is fine)
- unnecessary use of safewords or stoplight symbols (if the characters are kinking on it that's a fine reason)
- feederism, weight gain, inflation, pregnancy (mentions of OCs being pregnant are fine; breeding kink without any possibility of pregnancy is great!)
- scat, watersports, vomit kink (mentions of someone throwing up not in a kink context are fine)
- vore, bestiality, somnophilia, mommy- or daddykink, 24/7 D/S
- canon-specific DNWs and exceptions in the fandom sections!
General Likes
- seasonal stuff and holiday stuff (whether winter and Valentine's Day or White Day, or other holidays around-about the season, or even summer fic!)
- fic rated from G through E!
- pining and culmination of pining: getting together, kissing, romantic tension/UST being resolved, mutual pining or initially one-sided pining, pining that lasts for weeks or even years
- fluff, snapshot moments of what's going on in their lives
- romantic tension, UST that eventually becomes resolved
- flirting, confident or awkward or just fuckin disastrous
- extreme loyalty
- redemption arcs, gray morality, general complexity, lighter takes on villains & villain redemption both
- hurt/comfort
- happy or at least hopeful/somewhat upbeat endings
- first times and milestones (sexual or non, doesn’t even have to be overly romantic, stuff like taking a photo for the first time together or and the like is also good!)
- I really do love age gaps tbh and find older characters hot & also love when the other characters do... in the New 52 Dr. Sivana is only 40 but has been magically aged quite a bit; in TSSM I can easily imagine Otto being in his 30s or early 40s while Adrian is in his 60s, and Mason being in his 50s while Beck is in his 30s or 40s (and Chameleon in his 30s or 40s as well); in Vampire Cleanup Department Chau is probably meant to be in his 50s with Chung in his 70s
- descriptions of making out tbh
- trans headcanons where it’s not A Thing in the fic, no coming out or explanations necessary, or it's just accepted and not super dwelled on unless the prompt is about self-exploration. no Having To Deal With Bigotry or issuefic or anything, just character(s) happen(s) to be trans (both same gender/pronouns as in canon and different gender/pronouns are fine)
- canon divergent AUs, change one thing about a canon and maybe other things happen differently
- more canon-specific likes in the fandom sections!
- fic and art treats are both more than welcome!
Porn Likes
- first times and milestones
- frot, scissoring, intercrural, grinding against ass, basically all that stuff
- handjobs, fingering, oral
- romantic smut, lots of touching, focus on touching/wanting to touch and sensations and body parts, loving descriptions of partner's body (description of both stereotypically attractive and not stereotypically attractive features welcome so long as they're INTO it!), kissing during sex, hand-holding during sex, eye contact during sex, all that stuff!
- clothed sex, partially clothed sex, and clothing kink!
- inexperience, awkward, clumsy but eager and enjoyable sex
- XENO. xeno xeno xeno I am so into xeno, play around with alien genitalia and I am here for it, tentacles, cloacas, characters having both sets of genitalia, ovipositors, genitals resembling flowers or wet pinecone dick, Mouths Down There, legit whatever you can think of just g o f o r i t
- BDSM tones, mild or more formal
- praise kink and instructions/requests/begging flavors of dirty talk
- breeding kink is welcome when pregnancy is outright impossible, even if it's handwaved impossible (PIV but they know it can't happen is fine; neither has a womb and obviously it can't happen is fine; this type of sex can't even result in pregnancy but we'll talk about it anyway is fine; species are incompatible is fine)
- even without breeding kink, kinking on coming inside is also hot, but so is kinking on come/cum-play and messier sex like that
- mutually enjoyed/kinked-on breeding kink dirty talk when actual pregnancy is outright impossible and does not happen
- manhandling, hair pulling, love bites and scratches, rough but not outright painful (or only pleasantly painful) sex
- orgasm delay (though not total denial), edging
- alternately, multiple orgasms, "forced" orgasms that are still enjoyable
- e n t h u s i a s m and detailed descriptions of sex, just go for it
- in general, prefer the terms: penis, cock, dick, length; nipples, ass, and testicles/balls can just be called those things; vagina, vulva, cunt, or pussy if that comes up; come or cum are both fine spellings (but please avoid "cumming")
- piv in trans smut is fine; oral and pia sex super welcome, alternatives are also loved; prefer for vagina to be called vagina, cunt, or pussy, or to be referred to vaguely, not "hole"; prefer for ass NOT to be called a vagina/cunt/pussy, but referred to vaguely & implied to be one is fine, or just called ass; fine with clit being called clit or penis/cock/dick, fine with penis being called penis/cock/dick or hen or clit
- porn is always welcome!
Crossover Fandom
Hiruma Youichi (Eyeshield 21)/Ootori Kyouya (Ouran High School Host Club)
This ship strikes me as fascinating and with a ton of potential for fun stuff! Hiruma and Kyouya are incredibly different people, but also alike in a lot of ways that I think could both make them respect one another, be impressed by one another, see the value in one another, and also sometimes grate on each others' nerves like hell. They are both likely to know way too much about each other, and about each others' clubmates/teammates, and I could easily see them being on mostly equal footing.
I'm betting both would have a hard time actually pulling off blackmailing the other (or people close enough to the other to have any of their protection) or really getting one over on the other, with maybe one or two moments on either side where they get the upper hand for a VERY short period before the other manages to get things back under control. This would usually leave them having to approach each other in other ways, either more subtle manipulation (that they're both probably aware of and also aware that they're both aware of) or flat-out making deals with each other for mutual benefit. Which is great because they'd also make a scary good team when and if they did come together, so I could also see them both being savvy enough to seek the other out as a useful contact to get and to uphold.
Basically, with these two I especially like the idea of them being basically evenly matched, and them being drawn to each other specifically because of that. Neither of them actually being able to have the upper hand over the other or really intimidate the other is a key part of why I'm interested in them!
(I would also like to mention that while Hiruma resembles Kyouya waaaay more than he resembles Tamaki, still, Jesus, blond boys who are super passionate about a thing are going to be the death of Kyouya seriously. I am also fine with some minor former or current one-sided Kyouya->Tamaki feelings, and it's cool if Hiruma has some one-sided feelings for someone, I don't really have Feelings Preferences there. Just assume that he and Mamori aren't together, feelings can have happened but whether it's one-sided or a handwavey breakup or just something they decided wouldn't work is fine, I imagine they're still on fine terms.)
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done a few freeform exchanges!
Canon-Specific DNWs
- smut with either character under 16
- infidelity (just have them not with any of the other characters when they're together)
- two canons just taking place in the same universe and playing around with what that might mean
- slight canon AUs to make crossovers work
- Hiruma and Kyouya being evenly matched/on equal footing
- noncanon background pairings I actually enjoy if they happen to come up: Sena/Monta, Sena/Suzuna, Mamori/Suzuna, Musashi/Kurita, Jumonji/Kuroki/Togano, Natsuhiko/Ishimaru, basically any from the other teams, Hikaru/Kaoru, Honey/Mori, Nekozawa/Tamaki, Kasanoda/Tetsuya, Haruhi/Renge, Haruhi/basically any of the hosts singularly or together...
- NAMING CONVENTIONS. Hiruma usually comes up with somewhat dismissive/insulting/abraisive things to call people, so what about if/when he uses Kyouya's name? is Kyouya on a first or last name basis with him? feel free to include honorifics if you like as well, extrapolating from the characters' usage of them in canon.
- if you're interested, I like trans headcanons for these characters! I like the idea of Kyouya as a trans girl or nonbinary, but trans boy is fine too, and anything's fine for Hiruma or pretty much any of the other characters. if Haruhi shows up or is mentioned I also have a slight preference for her as nonbinary, but trans boy is fine -- just not trans girl, please! and of course trans headcanons aren't obligatory!
- I am actually always into the idea of the Host Club as all being girls who are pretending to be guys, just like Haruhi, either with the other Ouran students aware or not -- maybe it's an all girls' school? so feel free to play with that genderswap AU, with the Devil Bats genderswapped as well or not! Hiruma/Kyouya being m/f or f/f are both fine if you go this route!
DCU (Comics)
Maxivermis Mind/Dr. Thaddeus Sivana
[Where you can find the comics: Here!
All Pertinent Issues:
Justice League 2011 #7-11 (B story)
Justice League 2011 #0 (A story)
Justice League 2011 #14-21 (B story)
Shazam! 2019 #1-14]
(Note: I specifically focused on the New 52 issues above because I am far, far more familiar with them there than their pre-52 incarnations.)
Honestly, the thing I love most about these two is the sheer loyalty and dedication they seem to have. Which is just absolute catnip for me with supervillains, frankly, and Mind/Sivana are one of my absolute favorite examples of it.
Sivana first meets Mind while he's actively dying, body being aged and broken down by its connection to magic, which humans are really not meant to have. Mind is imprisoned just outside the Wizard's sanctum, and offers to save Sivana's life and help him further if he's freed. And this could so easily be played as manipulation, a setup for betrayal, but it's not. The next we see them, Mind has helped Sivana figure out how to stabilize himself (I theorize that Sivana's now able to use the magic to basically achieve homeostasis, no longer breaking down or aging at all but instead keeping himself going with it), and is guiding him through what he'll need for a spell; it's never spelled out but given that it doesn't actually map to anything we see them doing later, and Sivana spent the entire previous arc desperate for a way to save his family (though it's never mentioned again), I just assume that's what they needed "the tongue of a medicine man" for and Mind helped him with that too.
In return, Sivana's dedicated himself entirely to Mind to, like, an immense degree. And the loyalty seems to be mutual! Mind guides Sivana through fighting Black Adam, and tells him the full extent of all of his plans. In return, Sivana is more than willing to fight Black Adam for him, to go and free the rest of the Monster Society for him... in fact, nearly everything we see Sivana do after he meets Mind is for the sake of Mind's plans. There is even a moment, when freeing the Monster Society, that Sivana has to trust that Mind isn't just willing to sacrifice him to free his team, and plunges a magic dagger into his eye (the one that is his connection-point to magic) in order to make it act like a key and melt the locks on the cells. This completely works, and Sivana remains unharmed, and continues to act loyally to Mr. Mind. (As well as continuing to call out to him in concern when something seems to be going wrong.)
Also, I gotta say, despite it not being so simple canonically due to spoilers, Mind being small enough to fit snugly in someone's ear canal combined with his very strong telepathic (and magic) abilities is weirdly hot to me. As is the idea that Sivana is un-fucking-believably powerful magically-speaking, even more so than Mr. Mind, and yet dedicates all of that power to Mind's service. And how Sivana fearlessly asks so many questions and Mind just patiently (and even happily) explains every single time, often fully explaining. There's just so much intimacy between these two and they actually do seem to care about one another and be mutually dedicated, even if I can see Sivana being The Most loyal. I love it!
And then, potentially, we add in King Kid. The relationship there is pretty much entirely theoretical, but it still intrigues me. We have the Monster Society, after all, so Mind collects misfits and those deemed monsters by the worlds of the Magiclands they come from. After the events of canon, King Kid now fits, and is apparently imprisoned right in the Funlands which he used to rule.
Mind has had a little interaction with King Kid, though in the guise of Billy Batson's father; interestingly, he steps in when Billy has King Kid grabbed and is threatening him with prison (or "juvie hall, at least") to remind Billy that King Kid mentioned being mistreated by his parents, remind Billy that he and King Kid had been kinda similar due to Billy's own parental abandonment, and tries to appeal to King Kid with apologies for how he'd been treated and an appeal to earn his trust. This seems entirely unnecessary even as part of the act he's putting on; Mind could easily have had Billy's father tell him after that he'd been harsh but fair, or something. Just as interestingly to me, during dinner after the fight, Mind-as-Billy's-dad brings up King Kid again and feeling like they failed him, concerned for what's going to happen to him now, and while this could be meant to make Billy lose faith in the Wizard, since Mind seems astonished that the Shazams would turn against the Wizard after, that feels a bit off too. I like the idea that Mind does feel for those who are labeled monsters and attacked or punished for it, maybe especially kids.
And while Sivana has no canonical interaction with King Kid... Well, he has "his family," at least, and though it's unclear in canon what's meant by that, since I'd rather he not be married during the events of the fic (infidelity DNW), him having at least a couple kids of his own would make sense, and he does seem dedicated to trying to save them. (See canon likes section below for ideas!) King Kid is the hardest part of this, tbh, and I'd love to see him slowly (maybe very slowly) working through his hatred and distrust of adults to bond with these two and maybe the Monster Society in general! (Maybe it would help that Mind is a worm...)
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I haven't really asked for this ship much before, but you might be able to find some extra ideas in the AO3 Automagic App, and I did sign up to Playlist Exchange recently:
Canon-Specific DNWs
- Mr. Mind just using Sivana, having manipulated and lied to or even mind-controlled him to get his help; I much prefer an actual mutual enjoyment and loyalty there, however strange, and for Sivana to be making his own choices
- Sivana having been living on Venus at any point
- Sivana being currently married or dating someone (basically infidelity DNW again)
- any focus on King Kull's sexism
- any focus on Mr. Merry-Go-Round or Superboy-Prime at all, though they can be mentioned/Mr. Merry-Go-Round can be in the background!
- totally villainizing King Kid especially, but really any of the three of them being presented as irredeemably crazy/evil
- their New 52 stuff specifically, but also drawing some inspiration from pre-52 stuff as long as it doesn't fully contradict the New 52 canon!
- Magiclands exploration stuff
- having Mister Mind be from the Beastlands, having him be from one of the other Magiclands, or having him be from Venus
- Sivana's kids being his biological kids, being adopted, or being his clones; also, feel free to give him 2-4 kids and either keep their names the same as from previous canon or change them
- Mind meeting and bonding with Sivana's kids
- Mind having a soft spot for those he identifies as being rejected and perceived as monsters, especially kids who have been
- either/both of them bonding with King Kid
- Sivana pretending to have been mind-controlled by Mr. Mind in order to not go to prison and then just immediately turning around to free Mind
- the immense amounts of loyalty Sivana seems to have for Mind, and I love the idea of it being mutual as well, or at least near-even
- Sivana bonding with and being accepted by the Monster Society
- Sivana actually becoming a monster of some kind (and being happy with it) could also be fun!
- Scapegoat surviving
- complex takes on the Wizard/the Council, them being very flawed, or even them being Just As Bad
- Sivana's immense magic power (maybe even more than Mind's) and Mind's immense psychic and magic power
- SIZE DIFFERENCE AND XENO AND TELEPATHIC INTIMACY/SEX?
- nicknames! pet names! names in general! canonically, Mind calls Sivana "Sivana" and Sivana calls Mind "Mr. Mind"; could that ever change? Mind beginning to call him "Thaddeus" could mark them growing closer; Sivana simply calling him "Mind," "Maxivermis," or even perhaps a less-than-humanly-pronouncable name in Mind's original language could likewise! and might they ever use endearments?
- if you're interested, I like trans headcanons for either/both of these characters! I really like the idea of Sivana as a trans man or nonbinary, but trans woman is also good; I could see Mind as either outside of any human binary or a trans man (he will be called "Mr."). trans headcanons for any characters if they show up are also 100% good; that goes for the Shazam family, and also any of the Monster Society (some of which might also be outside of any human binary, some of which might be binary trans). and of course trans headcanons aren't obligatory!
The Last Halloween (Webcomic)
Dr. Fugue/Robert
Eugene Otto/Robert
[Where you can find the comic: Here!
Book 1 is by far the most pertinent; that's 7 chapters/about 114 pages.]
For Dr. Fugue/Robert, this takes a little bit of explaining, since their interactions are minor and not particularly significant. But the more I thought about them individually, I liked what their slight interplay does say about them and how the shapes of their arcs kinda work together.
Doctor Fugue is undead, a doctor and supernatural (mad) scientist, a Victorian-ish ghost. One who haunts the church and can't leave. He employs what he thinks of as a little group of undead children to help him graverob bodies for his raising-the-dead experiments (as well as upgrading/replacing Jangles's various bits). He's a big faker: Robert flat-out says he's not a good doctor, which is proven very correct when Mona comes back; he not only hands a ten year old a magic weapon he knows nothing about and sends her and the other "kids" out with completely incorrect information, he's apparently sent multiple "group[s] of untrained misfits to their deaths without actually nowing what was going on," to the point that Charon's chewed him out about it at least once before. His whole arc seems to involve him getting a huge dose of guilt for once in his unlife, realizing just how badly he fucked this little group up, seeming to have a change of heart about the "playing Dr. Frankenstein" thing and trying in some small ways to start to make amends.
Robert, on the other hand, is posing as an undead, a doll cursed to life by voodoo. Until he tells Mona and Shirley, literally no one in the group including Fugue knows that he's a monster, not undead at all, and is also immortal (or what they call immortal) due to killing his human several decades prior; he claims to be an undead to avoid the attention of the Phagocyte. He's around 117 years old, if not a bit older, and he's often the closest thing the group has to a straight-man; he keeps his own secrets, even when it would be really helpful to share, because he rarely feels invested in others, and he doesn't tend to personally lend much of a hand, especially not to save people. He's calm and soft-spoken, good with normal human adults, and very calmly makes threats when called for as well (and sometimes even commits violence against his undead "friends," such as sewing Ringley's mouth shut, though they don't seem to mind). His own arc involves him actually becoming attached to the situation and its people for once, to the point of purposefully sacrificing his life to give Mona a chance to survive and succeed (on what is, unbeknownst to them, a fool's errand), even admitting his own origins and past and coming face-to-face with the fact, for the first time, that maybe his nature as a monster is something he can choose to act counter to.
...So Fugue sends Mona, Robert, and the others off on a pointless quest that gets one of them killed and nearly kills two more of them, and is having to live with that fuck-up (figuratively speaking). And by the end of Book One he still hasn't even been made aware that Robert was a monster the whole time and has sort of... fused with the magic sickle that's supernaturally bonded to Mona.
But he fucked up big time and he knows it, and it seems to have potentally started helping him change and grow as a person -- albeit late. He shoved a magic sickle into a protesting ten-year-old's hands and pushed her out the door with a few undead "child" chaperones during the Apocalypse so she could go "save the world," a whole bunch of terrible decisions all in a clump, made worse by him not understanding the situation and actually sending them on a wild goose chase in the end. Mona nearly died and lost an arm to the ordeal, something she makes clear to Fugue that she'll never forgive him for (which, by the end, he finds fair and seems legitimately gutpunched by having to face what he did for once). And Robert changed, too, going along to keep everyone on track and give them even a tiny chance; he saved Mona's life once and told her he'll never do it again so she'd better learn to save herself, but he became more attached to her (and Shirley) and invested in the outcome of their mission, to the point that he eventually actually opens up, becomes somewhat more reassuring (and even open to affectionate touch, which was Not a thing for him at first), shedding the lies he'd been telling, sort of stepping into a mentor role, and he actually sacrificed his own life to give Mona a fighting chance. Mona and Fugue are obviously both hit pretty hard by his death, and Fugue definitely comes to regret his choices and the results they had on Mona and Robert (and Shirley). You can always include Mona and/or Shirley (and/or other characters!) but I wanted to put this in there because their mutual but separate character development intrigues me and might inform how they act and interact in any post-canon/post-Book-One time period.
And for Eugene Otto/Robert... Quite frankly, I completely love this ship. There's just so much complexity here... Unhealthiness, but not for lack of trying.
I'm so fascinated by how Robert talks about their relationship, how the way he tells Mona about it makes it sound like he really did legitimately want things to work between himself and Gene, likely did not realize where his immense jealousy was leading until it happened, but his mixed feelings now about not even knowing if he regrets it or not. I love that you can tell he loved Gene in his own way then and might even be capable of different, healthier kinds of love now -- might even have been more capable then than he'd believed -- but still wound up ruining Gene's life and killing him... and how Gene asked him to kill him. I love the whole monster aspect entirely, a creature who is born when you are and whose life is tied to yours in so many inextricable ways, how it leaves you both vulnerable, and all the monsters' thoughts on that and Robert's thoughts specifically on that, including how he comes to realize that maybe he could have gone against his nature. I love how their history had them so intertwined from when Gene was a young child to when he died an adult. I love how Robert killing Gene made him immortal but he proceeded to think about Gene every day and still has uncertain feelings about how everything went down, and has come to see immortality as more of a curse than a blessing.
Also, I love how complicated and tragic they are in basically all ways, but I'd prefer a more... wistful feel than purely tragic, despite both their canon fates, if possible. And you can feel free to give them a happier ending, too, but I like at least hopeful stuff!
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've asked for Eugene Otto/Robert a few times before, and Dr. Fugue and Robert twice:
- Shipoween 2019 (Eugene Otto/Robert)
- Shipoween 2020 (Eugene Otto/Robert)
- Soul-2-Soul 2021 (Eugene Otto/Robert)
- My Automagic trickortreatex2022 signup! (Eugene Otto/Robert and some slight Fugue and Robert and Mona stuff)
- Playlist Exchange 2022 (Eugene Otto/Robert and Fugue/Robert, plus some notes on Mona)
- a strong focus on Fugue's sexism; I'd prefer for him to be capable of at least a bit of growth there
- Fugue being entirely unrepentant post Book 1, actually
- Mona easily and completely forgiving Fugue
- implications that Robert and Gene never loved each other, especially that Robert never loved Gene
- shutting the door completely on the idea of a)Robert ever getting an afterlife b)these Robert and Gene ever making up; these things not happening in the fic is fine, ofc, just no "this is impossible/will never happen/could never happen"
- trans headcanons of any kind for Gene specifically
- Halloween, spooky, and outright horror stuff works especially well for this canon!
- Ringley's dad/Mona's parent as a background ship is super cool; feel free to give them names (and/or surnames) or not
- Robert and Gene meeting again in the afterlife
- resurrections and ghosts when it comes to either/both of those two
- Fugue helping Mona resurrect Robert (probably partly out of guilt)
- AU where Robert didn't die against Ba'al
- AU where Robert never killed Gene
- AU where Gene is a kid during the canon time period and he and Robert meet then
- really complicated relationship between those two
- forgiveness, second chances, trying again somehow (for either of the requested ships, and/or between Robert and Mona friendship-wise)
- anything set during Robert and Gene's long relationship or Robert and Fugue's time knowing one another
- Mona and Robert meeting again ...post where we are in canon
- pre-canon or post-canon (or post-Book 1) fic in general
- Robert still being alive in Mona's sickle and being able to be brought back and/or show up as a ghost that way
- the sickle thing, if that idea is used, meaning that Mona is now immortal and also not aging (oops)
- Fugue finding out super belatedly that Robert is a monster, like possibly even 1-3 years after Book 1 (but less time than that is also good)
- protectiveness of any of the requested characters towards any of the others
- Mona softening a bit on Fugue but still not forgiving him (like, noticing he's trying hard and maybe feeling sorry for him, maybe he makes her feel more tired than angry now)
- Robert, explaining how monsters even find their humans: "Certain humans look certain ways to us -- appetizing, you could say. Or perhaps appealing or attractive." UM, YES, I am into that??
- nonhuman characters, particularly monsters, being ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ about gender
- like I said, I like to imagine especially monster (rather than undead) characters being pretty ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ about gender, so an interpretation of Robert not actually having anything like human gender would be cool; I can imagine him having absolutely no preferred pronouns and just going with whatever anybody calls him, but feel free to go with whatever! Fugue figuring out some odd gender stuff himself could also be interesting! (probably not a trans man, then, and I'd rather not a trans woman for him, but nonbinary could be interesting there...) other characters being trans if they're included could also be fun and I encourage it. and of course trans headcanons aren't obligatory!
- nicknames! pet names! names in general! Robert seems to call Eugene Otto "Gene," and Gene not only calls him Robert but gave him his first name (his full name was Robert Eugene Otto but after Robert came into the picture he insisted the doll was Robert now and he would be Gene from then on)... Fugue also calls him Robert, I don't think he would accept a nickname (from anyone but Gene) frankly, and he calls Fugue "Doctor Fugue" pretty constantly. what might make him shorten that to Fugue? or does Fugue have a first name (or can he not recall)? what, on the other hand, might make Robert call Gene "Eugene"? would he accept "Rob" from Gene, maybe? and if you could sell me on an endearment/pet name being used in either ship by anyone I would LOVE it!
- for horror stuff specifically, if you go that route, feel free to kill off OCs but not any canon characters that didn't die in canon; psychological and cosmic horror, but body horror can be great, as can ghosts and other monsters, isolated horror, and characters just telling scary stories, and I'm fine for gore and injury for this particular canon, and even perma-death if it involves an afterlife situation with Robert and/or Gene (and obviously Dr. Fugue is perma-dead, but like, also a ghost about it)
- ...I am also open to unusual takes on smut if you do include any, since Robert is a living doll and Fugue is a ghost; how might either of them sexually interact with a human or with each other? can Fugue still get aroused and/or orgasm? how/why? does Robert not have genitalia but have some other erogenous places, and/or not get aroused or orgasm like humans but still have something sort of analagous, or does he pick up on others' feelings and emotions in a sort of psychic-ish stimulation? or feel free to go unusual xeno; I do not mind!
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon)
Quentin Beck/Phineas Mason
Quentin Beck/Chameleon/Phineas Mason
[Where you can find the series: Here!
Most Pertinent Episodes:
For all three together - S1E10 (Persona)
For Quentin and Phineas together - S2E1 (Blueprints); S2E3 (Reinforcement)
For Phineas - S2E4 (Shear Strength); S2E9 (Probable Cause) (scene at the beginning)
For Quentin - S2E12 (Opening Night) (admittedly just for the robot reveal tbh)
For Chameleon - S2E13 (Final Curtain)]
THESE TWO MAKE ME HAPPY. When we're first introduced to them they're the kinda grouchy-seeming professionals working with Chameleon and playing a dumb card-flicking game
Quentin Beck used to be a special effects technician before leaving for his life of crime, and he's got a very interesting balance between his real self and the Mysterio act that I find really fun! He's a professional and Mysterio is an overly-theatrical fuckin dork, but Quentin is also deep down (and not so deep down) a theatrical dork. I can imagine that Quentin puts some of the things he wants to be into Mysterio, because that's common for supervillains and superheroes both, but Mysterio is also a role he plays for a specific purpose: misdirection, keeping people focused on him rather than his tricks or the crimes his act is distracting away from! That said, he got hired to be Mysterio for the thefts and then just decided that was fun as hell and absolutely wanted to do from then on, so there's also that element to him. I feel like he's also enjoying getting to be center stage as Mysterio in a way he doesn't get to be on jobs with Chameleon. Phineas Mason, on the other hand, is an inventor who rolls his eyes at "actors" being theatrical but is absolutely theatrical himself even if he won't admit it. I don't think he's an actor, not in the way that Chameleon and Quentin are; he was wayyy in the background in "Persona" in non-speaking roles whenever his presence was necessary out in the field, and he seems to prefer to stay back and provide "technical support" and make things for other people to use. But he obviously has fun leaning into the mad scientist supervillain act at least a little ("allow me to introduce our host and benefactor"; "welcome to your lair, Master Planner"; "all that remains is calibration... and testing") and occasionally amuses himself making dorky jokes ("put even more 'ric' in your 'ochet'"). I also imagine he has no criminal record (the arrest at the end of "Persona" didn't seem to stick and one of the cops did say in the first episode that the people Spider-Man apprehends nearly always walk...) and is staying in the background to avoid getting one for as long as possible, because him being able to work within the law is really convenient for them.
Basically, though, I love the dynamic of two characters who are just doing this shit because they love it, who've been working together a while and are developing supervillain personas kind of simultaneously mostly for the fun of it. I have a feeling Tinkerer made most of the robots and tech that Mysterio uses, though Quentin himself also contributed the "will-weaking" gas and the mask and makeup for his own android. (Which also means that the reason Quentin is just never arrested after "Persona" and it's always a goddamn android is thanks to Phineas, which makes me smile.) Phineas might not even charge him for that stuff! Just in general they're basically married and I love that...
AND THEN POTENTIALLY ADD CHAMELEON TO THE MIX. IMO it was absolutely brilliant for The Spectacular Spider-Man to introduce these three as a team working together; Mysterio might have hired the Chameleon once in the comics, but otherwise none of them really teamed up, but it works perfectly! The person who can disguise himself as anyone, the special effects expert, and the inventor/technological expert have a lot to offer each other, and I love that they seem to usually hire themselves out to steal shit for the rich and powerful.
Chameleon is a fascinating character to me, both in and of himself and in the dynamic with these two. He's a professional who can have a no-nonsense sort of response to things (seeing his phone call with the person who hired them to steal the symbiote, and his "I did not sign on for this" response in the finale), but who also has a mischievous sense of humor and is absolutely theatrical especially when inhabiting a role (his Spider-Man impression was really funny to me). He has his own life and isn't always working with Beck and Phineas, but given the way he talked in "Persona" I get the strong impression Beck makes his disguises, including the face masks, so I imagine they at least keep in touch often. I also feel like the three of them worked together for at least a few years before we meet them in canon, which is a dynamic I love; they'd all be very used to each other! And I enjoy the idea that when they do jobs together they split the take rather than Beck or Phineas charging Chameleon (or each other) or anything... As well as really liking the idea that even being incredibly close with the two of them it's just Chameleon's habit to call even people he loves by their surnames. I also also like how "Mason" and "Beck"'s names are first given while Chameleon is requesting their help and simultaneously praising their skills! And I just in general really love the idea of a team of criminals who work great together and highly respect one another's skills and are also all in love. (Though I also don't mind if it's a poly V so long as the center of the V is Quentin or Phineas, not Chameleon.)
I'm also fascinated by Chameleon in the sense of like... Outside of Chameleon, who is often pretending to be other people, who is he? Does he even have a legal identity outside of Chameleon, or has he erased it? Feel free to use the name Dmitri Smerdyakov for him (though I prefer he not be related to Kraven in this universe), but if you wanted to solely stick with Chameleon for him or give him a fake name like, idk, Leon Smirnov (the most common surname in Russia, basically like giving him the surname Smith) or w/e that he goes by now when necessary that is obviously not his birth name, go nuts.
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done several freeform exchanges! In most of them I asked for both Beck/Mason and Beck/Chameleon/Mason as well; I'll mark what I asked for next to the links below.
- Id Pro Quo 2021 (Beck/Mason with Beck/Chameleon/Mason under that)
- Smut 4 Smut 2021 (Beck/Mason with Beck/Chameleon/Mason under that)
- Soul-2-Soul 2021 (Beck/Mason with Beck/Chameleon/Mason under that)
- Just Married 2021 (Beck/Mason with Beck/Chameleon/Mason under that)
- AU Exchange 2021 (both Beck/Mason and Beck/Chameleon/Mason)
- Pine 4 Pine 2021 (just Beck/Mason)
- Id Pro Quo 2022 (Beck/Mason with Beck/Chameleon/Mason under that)
- Stork Swap 2022 (just Beck/Mason)
- Playlist Exchange 2022 (both Beck/Mason and Beck/Chameleon/Mason)
- any requested character or really any of the Sinister Six being presented as irredeemably crazy/evil
- any of the requested characters or the Sinister Six in general betraying each other (Shocker not included, he's an Enforcer first and foremost, he was just on loan)
- Electro being referred to as anything other than Electro by any of the requested characters or any of the Sinister Six
- Chameleon being Kraven's brother
- the Mysteriobots and Tinkerer's inventions in general being pervertable
- having fun with costuming and maybe makeup (kinky or just enjoying slipping into new roles)
- dorky roleplaying with Chameleon, Mysterio, and Tinkerer (especially Chameleon and especially ESPECIALLY Mysterio)
- the characters having fun with the supervillain/criminal team thing
- noncanon background pairings I actually enjoy if they happen to come up: Doctor Octopus/Vulture(/Electro), Sandman/Rhino
- generally I like Sinister Six poly even if it's not the focus, actually, if the Sinister Six are included
- nicknames! pet names! I count Chameleon's habit of referring to literally everyone by surname as this tbh, I like that he calls these two Beck and Mason, and that they call him Chameleon as that seems to be how he wants to be known. I like Electro's habit of calling Doctor Octopus "Doc" and Vulture "Vulch"; if he shows up in the fic, maybe he calls them "Mysty" and/or "Tink"? (If so I'd rather they like it than hate it.) I would love them calling each other endearments, them calling each other by surname as well but it still being intimate, them calling each other by supervillain name (teasingly? flirtatiously?), them calling each other by their first names or even Quentin calling Phineas "Phin" is fine. I love any type of this shit.
- if you're interested, I like trans headcanons for any/all of these characters! I like the idea of Phineas as a trans man (though nonbinary or trans woman are acceptable), and I could see Quentin as anything really, and I especially like nonbinary for Chameleon. trans headcanons for any other Sinister Six if they show up are also 100% good; I would prefer Electro as a trans woman or nonbinary if you write that character as trans, but anything goes for all the rest of them! and of course trans headcanons aren't obligatory!
- tbh, while not necessary, I like the idea that Chameleon is just Chameleon now and had Mason help him erase all official and government records of his former identity, that's just neat to me
The Spectacular Spider-Man (Cartoon)
Otto Octavius/Adrian Toomes
[Where you can find the series: Here!
Most Pertinent Episodes:
For the two together - S1E1 (Survival of the Fittest) (though this is majorly a Vulture episode); S1E11 (Group Therapy); S2E3 (Reinforcement); S2E4 (Shear Strength); S2E8 (Accomplices) (for them showing up at the auction together, also interesting for Ock's character in some ways); S2E10 (Gangland)
For Otto - S1E5 (Competition); S1E6 (The Invisible Hand); S1E7 (Catalyst) (only in a small scene); S1E8 (Reaction) (Doctor Octopus origin episode, and check the photo on Otto's wall!); S2E1 (Blueprints) (scene at end as Master Planner); S2E2 (Destructive Testing) (scene at beginning and end as Master Planner)
...Adrian literally does not have episodes where his relationship with Otto isn't immensely interesting to me! Well then.]
I am just WAY TOO INVESTED in these ridiculous theatrical supervillains being pre-supervillain friends who are now loyal and in love while trying to take over the world/take murderous revenge!
While the first episode introduces both characters with Adrian furious at Otto, it makes sense, since they seem to have been close before (the photo on Otto's wall in the Doctor Octopus origin episode!) and Adrian was probably feeling hurt/betrayed. The rest of their dynamic is so far from what one might expect from that first impression that it's insane! Reunited as cellmates, Vulture helping Doc Ock with a big jailbreak, not just working together in the Sinister Six but Vulture ceding his desire to take vengeance on Osborn to follow Ock's plan to take out Spider-Man first... And they just never work apart again? Adrian is one of only three people to find out the Master Planner's true identity, part of his inner circle! When Ock tests out the technology meant to allow him to hack into every single electrical device in the city, he does so by trying to kill Norman Osborn, seemingly for Adrian's sake, and despite revenge being Vulture's driving motivation Adrian is totally fine about it not working. When Otto tries to credit him and Phineas Mason and for doing brilliant work assembling the technology, Adrian immediately demurs the compliment and turns it back around on him: "The brainwork was all yours, Otto." For a grouchy old man, he smiles a lot around Otto, too!
And even after the Master Planner's master plan is defeated and literally every other member of the Sinister Six seems to go their separate ways and do their own things, Vulture just stays with Doctor Octopus, seemingly acting as bodyguard for the auction, for the Valentine's Day summit (where they also dress up fancy and hot)... There are also just these cute little touches I love, like how in the first Sinister Six fight when Spider-Man jumps on the Vulture's back you can see the back of Doctor Octopus's head tracking them, and a few moments later Otto is the one to pull Spider-Man off Adrian's back. And when Doctor Octopus puts a tentacle on everyone's shoulders in the Sinister Six ep to ease them back down into their chairs, it looks like his tentacle is on Adrian's back instead of his shoulder. And when Hammerhead shoots at Adrian at the summit and knocks him unconscious, Otto's cry of "TREACHERY!" is fuckin pissed and he just has no patience for Tombstone in that fight after. I love how Ock seems to honestly care about his team and make an effort to make them happy, and how Vulture is perfectly willing to put his own goals on the backburner in a way that feels very "I am helping this man take over the world because he wants to and he deserves to get whatever he wants, fuck you." I love seeing these supervillains have huge soft spots, in general and especially for each other!
TL;DR they married, ty for reading my villain shipping Ted Talk.
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done several freeform exchanges!
- Id Pro Quo 2021
- Smut 4 Smut 2021
- Soul-2-Soul 2021
- Just Married 2021
- AU Exchange 2021
- Pine 4 Pine 2021
- Id Pro Quo 2022
- Playlist Exchange 2022
- either requested character, Chameleon, or really any of the Sinister Six being presented as irredeemably crazy/evil
- either of the requested characters, Chameleon, or the Sinister Six in general betraying each other (Shocker not included, he's an Enforcer first and foremost, he was just on loan)
- Electro being referred to as anything other than Electro by any of the requested characters or any of the Sinister Six
- Chameleon being Kraven's brother, if either of those characters come up
- noncanon background pairings I actually enjoy if they happen to come up: Mysterio/Tinkerer(/Chameleon), Sandman/Rhino
- I am also totally open to including Electro in this ship if you'd like, but I do want the main focus on Ock/Vulture!
- generally I like Sinister Six poly even if it's not the focus, actually, if the Sinister Six are included
- Vulture being Doctor Octopus's loyal right hand and bodyguard; Vulture and Electro and Tinkerer being Ock's most trusted inner circle
- Adrian and Otto having been friends for years before the start of the series
- sex while cellmates after Ock got arrested that first time...
- the characters having fun with the supervillain/criminal team thing
- added confidence after breaking free from their normal lives and becoming supervillains (and that confidence maybe being attractive)
- Vulture's sharp teeth, and also both their voices
- look they just clean up nice in "Gangland" okay?
- NICKNAMES/PET NAMES, and honestly, I count how Otto and Adrian always seem to address each other by their first names when not being totally professional on the job; I also love the way Electro always calls Otto "Doc" and seems to call Adrian "Vulch" and how they're both totally open to being called those things from him, if he shows up!
- if you're interested, I like trans headcanons for either/both of these characters; for both of them I'm happy with anything, nonbinary or trans man or trans woman. trans headcanons for any other Sinister Six if they show up are also 100% good; I would prefer Electro as a trans woman or nonbinary if you write that character as trans, but anything goes for all the rest of them! and of course trans headcanons aren't obligatory!
Vampire Cleanup Department (2017)
Yip Chi Chau/Yeung Chung
[Where you can find the movie: Here!
(turn on the English closed captions in the bottom right if you need them; it's also available in Spanish!)
Or for free on Youtube with hard-coded English subtitles!
Also, enjoy these gifs as an enticement to get into this canon (with some spoilery moments) :D]
Vampire Cleanup Department is a Hong Kong comedy-horror-romance movie that came out four years ago and short version: The titular VCD is a secret government-created agency that disguises themselves as cleaners but really go around using talismans and other magical items to hunt down and destroy vampires, specifically jiangshi (which means they hop around with their arms outstretched, and this is by turns played as creepy, funny, and cute). But when the main character Tim Cheung joins up after being bitten by a vampire and not turning, he finds out that his dead parents used to work for the VCD until a mission went terribly wrong, and accidentally winds up bonding with a vampire named Summer who starts changing and gaining more human emotions and mentality after biting him. He trains with the VCD while keeping the fact that he didn't actually destroy her when he was supposed to a secret.
I am here for different characters, however! And oh man I am so into them. Yip Chi Chau is Tim's "master," the early-50s-ish combat expert of the VCD who trains Tim in how to fight vampires; he knew Tim's parents and was close friends with his father, Yat Lung Cheung, and promised them that he'd take care of Tim as they were dying. Yeung Chung, or "Uncle Chung," is an older man in his 70s who's the director of the VCD and their "technical support" and a more openly kindly figure.
Where Chau is an incredibly skilled fighter and trainer, Chung is definitely not a combatant... but he is still brave enough to go into the field, and to step in to help people when they're in trouble, and he's great at directing the others during a fight. Where Chau is closed-off and hot-headed, Chung is calm, amiable, and understanding, good at being diplomatic when it's needed (and at distracting people so the others can work)... and also good at calming Chau down and redirecting him. They've worked together for decades, and despite what Chung says multiple times to Chau about training new blood so that they can eventually retire, neither of them seems to be willing to just quit. They know each other incredibly well ("Have I ever misjudged anyone? And you... never mean what you say."), Chau saved Chung and a rookie police officer in the very first scene (while Chung called for his help), when Tim was in trouble Chung called Chau back from a chase...
And in a moment that really got me, when Tim's "final test" went wrong and Chung tried to step in to help him against the vampire that was trying to kill him. Summer showed up to help as well and accidentally flung both the vampire and Chung through a table, and Chau reacted with such immediate alarm to kill the vampire before it could attack Chung! Chung was hurt and needed medical attention, and with Chung hurt and also not around to calm him down, Chau was furious with Tim. (I will also say that during that final test, Chau was acting like a nervous parent... while Chung sat on the couch and video taped everything, also like a parent, haha.)
Even when Tim is the one training the new recruits at the end of the movie, it's Chau and Chung standing on the walkway above watching and obviously still involved despite any talk of retirement, chatting and comfortable with one another. I just really love their shared history, how obvious it is that Chau cares deeply about certain people -- Chung, Tim, and Tim's father in the past -- despite him not saying it or being touchy-feely, and how comfortable with one another they are and how well they work together and know one another as people.
Links to Previous Letters
If you want more ideas for prompts, I've done a few freeform exchanges!
Canon-Specific DNWs
- permanent character death of requested characters (temporary is fine)
- noncanon background pairings I actually enjoy if they happen to come up: Ginger/Kui(/M), Tim/Winter
- Tim/Summer is ofc also good in the background
- Summer surviving or not are both fine (feel free to just handwave)
- Chau having been in love with Yat Lung before he died
- AU where no cure exists, Chau remains a jiangshi at the end of the movie, and he stays on with the VCD as a good jiangshi like Summer
- PINING. even extended, like, years-long pining.
- nicknames! pet names! names in general! they seem to refer to one another as Chau and Chung (or sometimes, semi-sarcastically, "Uncle" Chung). do they always stick to that however close they are? do they ever call one another by first name, or shift over to doing so? does Chau ever call him Old Chung or old man/grandpa in the somewhat disparaging (but still fond) sense? does Chung ever call Chau by anything like Old Chau, Young Chau (or Ah-Chau), Young Chi (or Ah-Chi)? or does either absently or purposefully get affectionate, calling the other something like dear/darling or old man (in the boyfriend/husband sense...) or even one of the endearment forms of silly/fool/dummy/idiot? does Chung ever call Chau Master/Sifu like Tim does, just to refer to him as Tim's master, and does it hit different coming from Chung than when Tim calls him that? seriously, I love any type of this shit, go nuts!
- some exploration of sexuality stuff for these two! Chung has a granddaughter but no other family is mentioned; is he bi and is just seperated from his wife or she died, or is he gay and he just had a wife and child back before admitting it to himself/them and they separated after that? Chau seems to be a bachelor; is he gay or bi or does he think he's straight (but oops he's not)?
- if you're interested, I could like trans headcanons for either of these characters. for Chung I most like the idea of trans man, but nonbinary is also good, just not trans woman. for Chau anything goes, though, and anything is fine for any of the other characters as well! and of course trans headcanons aren't obligatory.
- this canon is also good for spooky or outright horror stories; I love monster/ghost horror especially for it, either canon-typical jiangshi dealings or the VCD having to deal with some other sort of creature or ghost; other supernatural phenomenon such as curses welcome, and cult stuff and/or characters being stranded could work great here as well; feel free to injure the characters, just no gore and no permanent cognitive issues, and temporary character death is absolutely on the table so long as they're both alive by the end and there's a happy ending; feel free to kill off other characters as well, just not Tim or (if Summer died as in canon) Winter
- I love appropriate/accurate cultural stuff for this sort of canon, too; any sorts of seasonal (winter or summer tbh) holidays or festivals would be really enjoyable to read about!