We Can't Rewind, We've Gone Too Far

So in multiple Yuletides past I have asked for someone to write me a queer consideration of Mercedes Lackey's Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms. I wouldn't recommend that series to anyone (I cannot even tell you how desperately it needs an editor) but it is excellent comfort reading for me ... except for things like One Good Knight, which I read around the same time as a couple other fantasy books that were also OBVIOUSLY setting up a lesbian relationship and then randomly threw in a het ending at the last minute and therefore have a probably disproportionate grudge against. Where was I?

Right. So. This year I requested it again but then also got assigned Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms, and there was nothing in my recipient's requests against it, so I decided I'd write it myself, and at least get some enjoyment out of it. ...And then I received exactly the kind of queer reimagining that I wanted! And my recipient liked my fic! So clearly I won Yuletide both ways.

Because they are basically just about queer fairy tales I would not say that you need to know anything about the Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms to understand these fics. My gift has more canon characters than my assignment does, but all you really need to know is that The Tradition is a magical force that makes fairy tales and folktales and songs play out in the real world (whether the people involved want to be in a fairy tale or not), and Godmothers are overworked magicians who try and mitigate the damage, usually by creating happy endings.

My gift was Writing Our Own Happily-Ever-Afters by StableState, which has poly and a GREAT take on the woman-disguised-as-a-man story and also an excellent pun.

I wrote

Title: Blossoms in Ashes
Wordcount: 6155 words
Fandom: Cinderella (Perrault), Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms (Lackey)
Rating: G
Relationships: Various
Characters: Cinderella, Prince Charming, Fairy Godmother, Stepsisters, Stepmother, Godmother Elena (Five Hundred Kingdoms)
Warnings/Enticements: Abuse, Queer themes, Regendering
Summary: “All over the Five Hundred Kingdoms, down through time, there have been countless girls like you for whom the circumstances were not right. Their destined princes were greybeards, infants, married or terrible rakes, or not even Princes at all, but Princesses! … And there are dozens and dozens of other tales that The Tradition is trying to recreate, all the time, and perhaps one in a hundred actually becomes a tale.”
A variety of events documented in the chronicles of the Godmothers of the Five Hundred Kingdoms.

And I managed to fit in a Madness treat before getting covid right before Christmas (booooo).

Title: Nevertheless
Wordcount: 350 words
Fandom: The Waste Land (T. S. Eliot)
Rating: G
Relationships: None
Characters: Madame Sosostris
Warnings/Enticements: Poetry, Clairvoyance, Telepathy, Common Cold, London, Post-World War I
Summary: She brings the horoscope herself.

So this year threesentenceficathon has its own community and we've already filled up the first post. Second post open over here!

( The Little Mermaid )

( Marvel (2) )

( The Old Guard (2) )

( Goncharov (1973) (2) )

( Narnia (2) )

Maybe if there is productive activity in one area I will actually go and listen to my microcontrollers lectures.

Three Sentence Ficathon is now at a new post, so if you were thinking "Oh god 50 pages of comments" now you can start there. It's fine, you don't need to read everything!

That said, these are mostly from the previous post.

( Marvel (2) )

( Narnia )

( Hamlet )

( The Little Mermaid (Hans Christian Andersen) )

( Fin-de-Siecle RPF )

( Calvin and Hobbes )

( Harry Potter )

( Cordelia (Movie Poster 2020) )

Okay, first of all, my gifts.

A Brother's Promise by malachibi, which is A Brother's Price fic with genderswapped Polly Oliver (so, exactly what I asked for) and huddling for warmth and a happy ending for a gay man which is still entirely in line with his society's norms and restrictions.

And Mending Fences and/or Femurs by VampirePaladin, which was very last minute so I had no idea it was coming which was great, and everyone needs more Cindy Moon.

Okay. Fics by me:

My assignment, for hlae:
Title: Marooned
Rating: T
Universe: Little Red Riding Hood
Character(s): Little Red Riding Hood, Big Bad Wolf, Woodcutter
Summary: On a routine supply run to a research station in the Grandmother Nebula, a courier finds the aftermath of a pirate attack, and discovers she's trapped there with the lone researcher until they can be rescued.
Warnings/Enticements: Alternate Universe - Space, Huddling For Warmth, Stranded, Pre-Femslash, Identity Porn, Space Pirates
Word Count: 3633
Author's Note: Three different people wrote LRRH science fiction AUs this year. I'm not sure how I feel about mine, but at least the title is awesome.

And a treat for vass, which was so much fun to write and made me feel so clever:

Title: Strike the Harp and Join the Chorus
Rating: T
Universe: The Hidden Almanac (Podcast) - If you don't know the Hidden Almanac, I highly recommend fixing that. It is a weird little four minute podcast, three times weekly, basically This Day in Alternate History with gardening tips and occasional incursions of Plot. It is great.
Character(s): Reverend Mord, Pastor Drom, George the Crow
Summary: It was on this day that the gifts in a holiday fanfiction exchange were revealed. It is the Feast Day of Yuletide, and in the garden, there are stories.
Be Safe, and Remember: You Are Not Alone.
Warnings/Enticements: Episode Style, History, Canon-Typical Weirdness, Mentions of Human Sacrifice, Mentions of RPF (Real Poultry Fiction), Characters Participating in Yuletide, Holiday Fic
Word Count: 3400

If there's one thing I can definitely do, it's pastiche.

Hi! Thanks so much for writing for me, and congratulations on your evident good taste!

If you want to benignly internet-stalk me to get an idea of my interests, Tumblr and AO3 (both linked in the sidebar) are probably a better idea than DW.

I am really feeling like angst and pining right now. That's not all I like - if you want to write fluff go right ahead and I will probably love it, but if you're wondering whether I'll be okay with unrequited love or bittersweet memories after a partner's death or hurt/comfort, the answer is absolutely yes. I am also happy with absolutely any fic rating or length. Smut, with or without plot, is good for any pairing but not required.

A large and random list of things I like in general: worldbuilding, adventure, alternate universes, ethical dilemmas, people being clever, twisty plots, gender, sibling or sibling-like relationships, epistolary fic, backstory, hurt/comfort, pining, dragons, physical affection, queerness, philosophy, romance, feminism, UST, found families, mythological allusions, polyamory, hidden worlds, cities, banter, complicated plans, beautiful landscapes, angst, puns, magical realism, history, happy endings, ambiguous endings, class differentials, creepy supernatural beings, older women with major roles, passionate platonic friendships, case fic, period accuracy, smut, pwp, diversity, secret identities, fairy tales... Feel free to use any of these.

Dislikes: I do not want child-focused fic. I have a major embarrassment squick, I don't like incest, and I'm not interested in graphic depictions of rape or gore or torture. However, I can be sold on most consensual kinks.

Fandom specific thoughts and optional details, to be taken more as suggestions and jumping-off points than requests:

( Read more... )

Title: At a Live Heart
Author: Violsva
Fandom: Little Red Riding Hood
Rating: G
Warnings/Enticements: Unhappy Ending, Unpleasant things happening just below the surface
Word Count: 3600
Summary: Robin knew she was watching. And when she finally showed herself, she was strange, and secretive. But fascinating. Far too fascinating.

On AO3