Yuletide Letter 2025

[dye_ann]

Dear Writer,

Yuletide is upon us for yet another year! As always I’m very excited: it’s a tradition that means a lot to me.

I’ll do my best to give you an idea of what I like in general and what I particularly love about my requested fandoms. Here you will also find plenty of prompts to use as inspiration if you’re so inclined. Prompting is something I do for my own fun: don’t feel too compelled by what I suggest.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: have fun and create something you love. I’ll never stopped being awed by the idea of someone writing for me specifically, and I trust you (clearly you have excellent taste!). So if you’re dying to write a specific idea, be my guest.

I’m Beatrice_Sank on AO3, here’s my account, if you’d like to know me better. My bookmarks are not necessarily a good representation of my reading habits as a whole (I tend to forget to use them, and then only remember when I’m reading the same type of story obsessively), but you can find things I tend to enjoy there, and some of the fandoms I’m familiar with if that’s an information you need.

Language note: I also read French (it’s my first language), so I’m happy to receive something either in English or in French if you prefer to write in that language.

I’m (very) fine with treats and unplanned gifts!

 

Themes, atmosphere and tropes

Banter, future fics, fix-it, backstory, plot used to develop relationships, world-building, character study, competent female characters, experimental writing, alternative story-telling forms (letters, found manuscripts or records, outsider point of view…), found intimacy, difficult intimacy, intimate body language, found families, queer narratives, conflicting world-views and people having their reasons, moral ambiguity, historical details, sensory notations, time-loops of the “Groundhog Day” kind, AU of the “what if” kind, heist fic, tropes subversion, humor, melancholy, a little psychological cruelty when it fits the story too.

Ships-wise: romantic and sexual tension (resolved or unresolved), pinning, slow burn, friends to lovers, enemies (to friends) to lovers, love/hate relationships, power struggles, fake/pretend relationships, angst, accidental proximity, subverting power dynamics, people falling in love While Trying Not To, things changing so gradually it’s hard to name it, little touches and physical reactions, sensual things going on at a slow pace, first kiss/getting together (not a fan of established relationships, by which I mean that the characters are already together when the fic begins), porn used as character study, characters expressing their feelings by actions instead of words, characters being so comfortable with each others they barely realize they’re behaving like couples and keep being in denial.

Smut-wise: praise, alternate power dynamics, desperation, teasing, repressed character letting go, dom/sub undertones or even full dom/sub dynamics depending on the context, sex in semi-public places, voyeurism and mirrors, overstimulation, banter and generally talking during sex, body worship, phone sex, edging, intimacy issues, clothed sex. I’m fine with dubcon, but no non-con, please.

It’s worth noting that I’m open to sex scenes for every ship requested, but it’s by no mean mandatory if you don’t want to write them (fade to black is fine by me, as well as romance without sex scenes).

 

Opt-ins: any rating, any tense or point of view, any additional character showing up (even if they’re not nominated), experimental writing all the way (if it fits your project of course), your gender headcanons for the characters, ambiguous/bittersweet endings.

 

Amadeus

Wolfgang Mozart, Antonio Salieri

The one-sided animosity between Salieri and Mozart keeps me awake at night. I just want more of Salieri playing mind-games with himself and his own twisted aspirations, tastes and desires, more of Mozart perhaps not-so-naive inscrutability. I very much enjoy how ridiculously emo Salieri is, how he tries so hard to be a caricature of a clock-and-dagger villain, for… what, exactly? Goofy Mozart is also a fav, but I like when we get to see glimpses of his hidden depths (which I’m sure he has… somewhere). If you’re a fan of that period and know a ton of trivia about the historical characters or the music, be my guest, I really enjoy that sort of details. Same goes for obscure references and symbolism.

I’m not going to lie, I’m hoping for slash here (of the rating you prefer), but I’ll always be happy with something platonic that explores the intense tension between them, this weird mix of rivalry, friendship, fascination and (sometimes) indifference. For this fandom, I would prefer not to receive something completely fluffy: these characters are very imperfect, and I’m happy for them to stay that way at least to an extent.

Given the tone of the canon, I’m fine with a happier ending (e.g.: Mozart doesn’t have to die) but also with something more tragic if needs be.

Prompts:

- A time-loop that occurs at some sort of turning point (e.g. right before Mozart’s illness and death, but I like the idea of finding other, perhaps less obvious, crossroads) and force them to reconsider their relationship. I could very well see Salieri completely panic because he can’t manage to kill Mozart or get rid of him because he rises again comes morning: a perfect occasion for some “kill, kill, kiss”! But the time loop could also apply to one of their opera’s opening night, with different consequences, for example.

- Salieri doing anything he can to provokes Mozart’s professional and personal jealousy. There’s a chance he won’t be in his element here, but I don’t know… Perhaps it takes a bit of time to understand what would make Mozart loose his cool?

- Salieri finally snaps, and it leads to a physical confrontation, but this, to his surprise, turns into something else… (I’m thinking ship, but he could also simply betrays his platonic admiration/adoration, reveals his dark secrets, etc.).

- Mozart tricks Salieri into some fort of physical proximity, and Salieri desperately tries to understand why...

- Someone of influence (could be the Emperor, could be someone else) sets up a contest between Salieri and Mozart (composition, interpretation, whatever strikes your fancy). Tension between them escalates, but resolves in an unexpected (sexy? friendly?) way.

 

DNW: gore, underage, non-con (dubcon is fine), A/B/O, watersports (sexual activities involving urine and/or feces), alternate universe that changes the setting.

 
 

Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre; Edward Rochester

I read the novel this year for the first time ever, and well, what a ride. It’s been a long time since I’ve grown this attached to a fictional character: I adore Jane, she’s simply the best in very human, very wise, and although quite unreliable way.

Which is also why I have complicated feelings towards Jane and Rochester. The way they interact from the start simply blew my mind: it’s almost banter, but not quite, at least not the banter you would expect; it’s both witty and intense, with philosophical talk and flirting so forward and so odd you have to pause and wonder. I love how socially “deviant” they both are, each in their own style (by the way, I’m very supportive of autistic headcanons here). And for a good part of the novel I lived for their friendship and romance, and all the oddities and over-the-top events that come with it. But, ah, you know. There always needs to be a grain of salt when Rochester is involved. Rochester, who locked up his socially unacceptable wife and who’s the one who gets to tell her story (while we know him not to be particularly reliable). Rochester, who is so moody and unsettling, sometimes child-like when it comes to Jane, but who can’t stand not getting his way, both as an employer and a suitor, so much so that it looks like the narrative feels the need to make him less physically threatening in the end. To me, this complexity is essential to the novel and to what made me love it so much. Nothing is simple, morals are often very murky, so don’t feel like you have to depict those characters like perfect beings. In fact, I would very much love a fic that explores those ambiguities, the little white lies, the diffuse cruelty of it all. It’s a gothic novel to some extend, so let’s be gothic if we need to be. I also feel like our current readings of Jane Eyre are necessarily informed by the larger cultural discourses that surrounds it at the present, and I’m fine with that.

So in short, I’m interested in their relationship at large, especially before they are married. If you want to to do a post-canon fic I’d prefer it to acknowledge the complexity of marrying a man of Rochester’s character in Jane’s position, perhaps also taking into account the ghost of Bertha Mason between them. I’m very much into the friendship they develop (so I’m good with Gen too) and the flirting, tension and eventual romance, but perhaps not in a “pure fluff” way. You can give me all the ambiguities, power struggles and uncertainties, and even go a little dark if you want.

Pastiche would be great here, as I love Jane’s voice very much, but if you want to experiment with other voices that could also be interesting (Rochester as a narrator, or another character’s point of view for example).

Prompts:

- As manipulative as it was (or perhaps because of it), I really enjoyed how the Blanche Ingam story-line played in their relationship. I’m not averse to torturing Jane a bit more with new elaborate scenarios of the kind (with Blanche or another person). The subtle cruelty of it interests me, not just the tension: it makes you question Rochester’s character even more, and why he may feel almost belligerent toward Jane (and toward Blanche Ingam, although I think the novel explains that one rather clearly). So any new episode of that would be great.

- Anything exploring the strange power dynamics between them while Jane is still Rochester’s employee but also his friend and his (secret?) love interest. Sometimes he orders her around just to provoke a reaction, sometimes she laughs at him and he submits without a protest. He has virtually complete power over her, pays her next to nothing compared to his own income, but refers to her on many things, especially intellectual matters. Are they, as the novel suggests, equals? And what does that mean to them? Do they see it in the same way? I’d like something that compares points of views and feelings, perhaps, or conversations between them exploring that topic. Or perhaps something comes up that challenges the idea of them being equals: another party visiting the estate, or something revealing how their worldview can be at odds. And yes, I’m also interested in the dom/sub undertones here: feel free to explore that in any way you see fit (including kink). I think it would be interesting to look deeper into the sort of understated role play that sometimes seem to be developing between them.

- I really enjoy their talks, with all that nonsense about Jane being a fairy, and their more philosophical musings. Especially I like how whimsical Rochester can be, the fictions he will invent on an impulse and what they tell about him, and Jane’s sometimes blunt honesty and subsequent embarrassment. Building on that, I think it would be interesting to place them in a situation when they have to play a game together, or invent some sort of collaborative fiction, through a parlor game or for the benefit of Adele. This could be a good way to explore their relationship indirectly or even reveal some feelings.

- Since I like the way they talk to each other and the strange intimacy that goes with it, I’d like for Jane to share a bit more of her life story with Rochester. Perhaps tales of her rebellious nature when she was younger, or her memories of Helen. Feel free to invent adventures for them: they can have these talks in a variety of circumstances. Perhaps Rochester decides to travel with Jane and Adèle for a change?

- We don’t get to see a lot of this, but it is suggested towards the end, when Jane goes back to Rochester, that he’d be easily jealous (when he mentions her potential fiance) – and how surprising is that. So, what if someone else had tried to court Jane while she was still working for him? The courtship can be real or taking place solely in Rochester’s mind, I don’t have a strong opinion on this (although it would be interesting to have Jane’s thoughts on the matter if it was real; I’m quite curious to see how she would react considering she never really got to experience such a thing in the novel, at least in the socially accepted way). What does this reveal about Jane and Rochester, and to what reflections do that lead them? Yes to all the jealousy tropes, but I also think it would be interesting to comment on them a bit.

- Not really a prompt as much as a thought, but I would love a story that explores the theme of Jane’s desire(s). It’s a complex subject and I enjoyed how the book often tackles it. A story where Jane would be continually flustered and perhaps forced to reflect about what she wants and what that implies would be great. Rochester needs not be the only character involved: if that’s relevant, I tend to headcanon her as bi (between Helen and Maria, I think there is material to feed that idea), which is something that would be interesting to explore I think in a period piece, but do whatever you want on that front, I’m not an authority on Jane’s preferences ^^.

 

DNW: gore, underage, non-con, A/B/O, watersports (sexual activities involving urine and/or feces), alternate universe that changes the setting.

 
 

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrel

Worldbuilding

This is one of my favourite books, and I’m very much a Susanna Clarke’s girl, so any allusion, fusion or crossover with either Piranesi or Ladies of Grace Adieu is absolutely welcome if that appeals to you. I have a few ideas for worldbuilding here, but there is so much that can be done, if that doesn’t inspire you please go for what you had in mind originally. I’m very interested in the history of magic, various magicians (including the Raven King), but I’m also very curious about marginalized points of view (something that Clarke does very well, with Stephen or Lady Pole for example) and the culture of magical Britain.

I think that, as a rule, I’m also always curious about elements of world-building that helps recontextualise or give a new significance to elements of the canon, especially when it goes against what the canon suggested (hence my interest for alternative points of view on magic in this universe).

I love all the characters, so feel free to include whoever you like if you want characters to world-build with. I’m also here for any magician, and all of your OC.
 

World-building likes for this fandom: alternative story-telling forms (letters, found manuscripts or records, outsider point of view, montage of various documents, academic account…), period-appropriate details, conflicting hypotheses and theories about how things work in universe, myths and legends, the historically accurate version of said myths and legends, nerdiness, minority-related themes (feminist and queer takes and the likes), lush descriptions of things, literary allusions, backstory.

I’m always happy to read something that reflects the author’s field of expertise or culture, so don’t hesitate to do that if you want (some of the prompts specifically invite you to do so).

 

Prompts:

* Unknown or forgotten female magicians.

Here I would be interested in anything you might invent about female magicians at the time of canon (or earlier) anywhere in the world. Feel free to use your own culture to write about whatever area of the world you know best. For example, it would be cool to look into traditionally female fields of expertise (like lace-making or cooking or midwifery and the likes) and see what magic might be hidden there. Or into important figures who have been erased from the history of magic. What is their legacy?

I really enjoy the idea that female magic would be less noticeable, hidden or ignored because of the historical and social context (we know that Norrell isn’t very enthusiastic about female magicians). Feel free to explore that or come up with your own explanations. Were there any secret societies of female magicians in the past? Perhaps some female magicians were ignored because they weren’t British (*gasp*)?

* In-universe parodies and lampoons of Gilbert Norrell and Jonathan Strange, and what society made of it.

I mean, Norrell and Strange are extremely famous in England, we know there are etching of them, probably portraits circulating too, so I’m thinking there must be caricatures and offensive lampoons circulating too.

On the one hand, I’m sure English magic doesn’t only have friends: about about its enemies? What scathing critics do they address to Norrell and/or Strange, what is their game. Do they have different views about magic, or do they simply want to abolish it? I’d love to read a lampoon attacking Strange and Norrell’s positions on magic, bonus points if it’s partially bullshit and partially super on point.

On the other hand: the sheer comedic potential of Strange and/or Norrell (or other characters) seeing themselves caricatured in a text or in a play! There’s also the fact that lampoons are often filled with lewd allusions and sexual accusations, so what if Norrell and/or Strange chanced upon something that accuses them of sleeping together? I’m up for any scenario: they aren’t sleeping together and the thought is appalling to them (but it might amuse other people, I’m thinking Childermass, but really whoever you want); they aren’t sleeping together, but one of them is pining, or maybe both of them; or maybe they are sleeping together, but it’s certainly not respectable to see it printed in cheap ink!

* The influence of magic on the British literary canon.

JS&MN famously read like in some places like Jane Austen with magic. I would really love to read something like extracts from an anthology of British literature after magic is revived in England. The excepts and authors could be invented (maybe new authors entered the canon, it’s alternative history after all). Or maybe the well-known texts got altered because magic was rediscovered. I mean, I’m curious about what Dickens, or Alice in Wonderland, or Jane Eyre, or modernist literature (Joyce? Woolf? See also my request for A Room of One’s Own) might become in a context where magic is part of society.

Alternatively, does Norrell and Strange’s life and fate influence literary history? Do they become the model for something like a new type of Byronic hero? Do famous authors write about them (poems, plays, novels…)?

* The “historically accurate” version of encounters with fairies that were transposed in tales and art, in the spirit of the canon.

I like the idea that fairy tales or famous pieces of art that we know of in our universe could be transformations of fortunate or tragic encounters with fairies that actually took place. The allusions that are made in the book about Shakespeare and Midsummer’s Night Dream are very inspiring, and I’m wondering if other works of art could undergo the same treatment. I’m thinking of anything involving fairy godmothers, for example. But there are many possibilities.

* And if you’re into fusions, I’d be ecstatic to read something that merges JS&MN and Piranesi, especially if it shows how these universes connect.

 

DNW: gore, A/B/O, watersports (sexual activities involving urine and/or feces), graphic depiction of sexual violence. Note: I usually have a larger DNW regarding sexual violence but I’d like to give you the option of exploring those topics here since I feel they could play a role in stories involving fairies for example.

 

 

Parlement

Carmen Sauru, Eamon Geragthy

The thing about these two is that they’re basically the Greek Gods of the show (and of the European Parliament of course). Right? I mean. They seem to float above the never ending ridiculousness with a sort of poise and prescience that I found rather fascinating. The fact that they embody more or less rival institutions makes it even better. I just want more of them being classy éminences grises all over the place and judging everything from afar while staring at each other in the eyes over the buildings at night just to see who will yield first.

I was also very moved to see in the last season that Carmen was ready to cross countries to find Eamon because at the end of the day, he’s the only one who understands her and will listen. No matter how depressing that episode was, it was still rather beautiful to see them like that, ready to face the catastrophe together. This is really something I need more of.

Do I ship them? Very much so. But I’ll be just as happy with anything that explores their frenemies dynamic and/or just let me see how they occupy their time.

If you need to, you can of course incorporate real life politics into this (or just invent, I’m not particularly expecting something realistic on that front). If you enjoy European politics and are super into the inner workings of the Parliament, feel free to be super nerdy about it: those characters certainly are! And insert cameos by whoever you want: I love this show and all its characters dearly.

One final note: go multilingual with this if you want to, it’s in the spirit of the show and I’m here for it.

Prompts:

- I would love to see them compete over political issues (or perhaps, hilariously, over some administrative trifle), being very Machiavellian, very polite about it (probably using a whole international army of interns), until things begin to escalate and go out of control. They probably both refuse to admit it’s a war, and that in the end, it’s always personal – and it can go where you want to take it from there. Alternatively, they could compete over an intern and try to influence them like they do with Sammy in the show.

- Because of Reasons (a common foe raising to power, an institutional threat, budget cuts, etc.) they have to form an uneasy alliance. How do they work together (great comical potential, if you ask me)? Do they learn things about each other they wouldn’t have imagined? Do emotions find a way into this?

- I’m very fond of the idea that they perform hostility almost out of professionalism, but they may secretly have established traditions that allow for truces and proximity. Something like: they can go on a date every time they’re both satisfied with an adopted bill, or when the other looses too sorely and is entitled to some form of compensation. I think this works too for a Gen treatment: perhaps they’re allowed to be friends and have tea, but only when nobody’s watching. I like the idea that things would be very contractual between them, perhaps even to their secret frustration (after all this time, maybe they aspire to a bit more spontaneity, or have trouble sticking to their cold and distant personas).

- What if, by a lucky coincidence, Carmen had been on a research trip at the European University Institute at the same time as Eamon, and they both ended up together in Fiesole (as seen in season 4, episode 7)? Are they going to be academic rivals too, or is it time for a truce?

- Alternatively, what happens after she finds him in the European University Institute in said episode? I mean, are they going to talk about the fact she basically has travelled 1000 km (and took like, three trains I guess) just to see him, his alleged Nemesis? Or just pretend some more it doesn’t mean anything, as she stays for a while (I would be game for that too)?

- Little ways they have of annoying each other over legalese and technical details that nobody else understands or cares about. And in the same vein, little gestures and attentions they have for each other that nobody sees or understands. In general, I’m very interested in the way they tend to communicate indirectly.

- A moment of vulnerability after a very, very long night of negotiations (just as we saw with the Blue Deal trilogue).

- Generally, I’m open to All the Tropes of the “enemies to friends (to lovers)” here, and I think the Parliament offers plenty of space to experiment with that. Anything involving local habits and the daily life of Parliament would be great.

 

DNW: gore, underage, non-con, A/B/O, watersports (sexual activities involving urine and/or feces), alternate universe that changes the setting.

 

 

A Room of One’s Own

No character nominated

Also known as: A Fic of Your Own. It’s my perennial fandom, I love everything I’ve received for it so far, so I don’t think I’ll ever stop asking. I feel like people tend to enjoy writing for this, too.

After all, we’re on Archive of Our Own.

In short, this is an all-you-can-write woolfian buffet. I don’t nominate characters because I’ll genuinely take anything you might imagine. I guess my only real preference is that I’d like the core ideas of the essay to be used at face value and not in a satirical light.

This is, I think, one of the texts that moves me the most. It tells such a quiet emotional tale of forgotten voices, broken lives, limited possibilities. I love the sense of sorority that comes from it, but also the speaker’s indignation that seeps through at various points. I love Woolf’s sense of rhythm, memorable sentences, and how fiction and reality perpetually blend together through the various figures of the essay: Judith Shakespeare, the three Marys (Mary Beaton, Mary Seton and Mary Carmichael), Chloe and Olivia, the speaker herself… I think the in-between state between full fictional characters (Judith has her whole life told, the various Mary have different personalities, Chloe and Olivia liked each other) and symbols (every forgotten woman artist is a Judith Shakespeare or a Mary, the Marys are taken directly from the ballad Mary Hamilton, Chloe and Olivia could stand for sorority or, well, they’re lesbians, Harold) is very interesting, and opens up lots of opportunities for fic. I add that I’m very open to the idea of making Virginia Woolf, or some version of her (the speaker in this text doesn’t have to fully correspond to Woolf in an autobiographical sense) a character in this. Any story that shows sympathy for the struggles the essay evokes, tries to recreate its ring in different contexts, develops the characters through time and space, modernizes the obstacles that prevent women from creating and being heard, pays homage in any way to what was lost to time, would make me so, so happy.

So, does Judith Shakespeare write fanfiction? Are the Marys all sleeping together? What about a new Mary Hamilton ballad about how the speaker isn’t allowed to step on the grass, and it’s tragic somehow? Etc. Don’t be afraid to go meta if you need to.

I’m going to prompt very broadly, but again if you think of something else, please go for it. Also, please go as queer as you like with this: it could always use more servings of Gender.

 

Prompts:

- An exploration of various incarnations of Judith Shakespeare or/and the various Marys, the various Chloe and Olivia across time and space. Since they are after all largely symbolic characters or masks for women all around the world and through the centuries, I would love to read about any different Judith or Mary or Chloe. Regarding Judith Shakespeare, I think that invites to consider what would be the equivalent of Shakespeare at various point in history and in various places, to diversify the literary figures of the essay (I’m very open to any deconstruction of the literary genius thing, by the way).

- A sort of fix-it for Judith Shakespeare’s tragic tale. I don’t particularly expect her to live happily ever after, but perhaps something a tiny bit hopeful, or less gloomy, with the idea that at least something of her lives on somewhere. What would have happened if she hadn’t die so early?

- What if the speaker lied about Judith’s story for some reason? Is there a secret society of women keeping her memory alive somewhere? In the same conspiracy vein: what if some major works of literature had actually been written by Judith?

- Lesbians everywhere! Anything about Chloe and Olivia and who they might be. Bonus points if you keep the historical setting: I’d love a 20s romance, but any other point in time could be interesting too. Also, what if one Mary liked another Mary? What would have happened to Judith if she had met a woman instead of a man in London? Etc.

- Give any of the character a room of her own, see what happens. What sort of space would it be, how could she acquire it, what does it mean to her, is it an actual room or something else?

- An anthology of the Complete Works of Judith Shakespeare (edited by one of the characters, or the speaker maybe? I would love some in-universe document with notes and references).

- Magical AU where the Marys, Judith, and possibly the others are mysterious figures that travel through time with various incarnations. Are they cursed, stuck in a loop, and what sort of powers do they have?

- I think this is absolutely ripe for crossover, of any sort. I’m going to give you suggestions, but if you want to try something very metatextual with a lot of different characters pertaining to different universes, I’m open to it even if I don’t know all of the fandoms used. For example, it’s okay to travel through the multiverse to focus on several women writers from different fandoms, be they historical figures or fictional characters.

* I’m just putting this out there on the off-chance that someone would be willing to write for this and be familiar with Susanna Clarke’s works, but I figured that given some of the themes of Jonathan Strange and Mister Norrell (access to knowledge, the erasure of women in magic’s history and the general role of minorities in the book), that would make an absolutely fantastic match. What if the Marys were forgotten female magicians? And Judith Shakespeare lived in the shadow of the Aureates? Do they have something to do with faeries? What can we make of the folk ballad where the Marys are named, in this context? Of course if you’re familiar with this, it also makes a lot of sense to build upon The Ladies of Grace Adieu.

* This would probably works well too in an actual Austenian setting, but there are lots of possibilities, really.

* Do what you will with this but: what if Judith Shakespeare was the Mary Poppins of writers?

* Harry Potter: Judith Shakespeare, trans witch writer?

 

DNW: gore, underage, non-con, A/B/O, watersports (sexual activities involving urine and/or feces).

 
 

The Young Pope

Angelo Voiello; Sister Mary

The relationship between Voiello and Sister Mary is probably my favourite thing about this show (besides its stunning visuals and overall craziness). It ticked all the boxes for me because 1) I love myself some enemies to friends to lovers (or in that case, enemies to friends to cockblocked by the Pope) 2) I have a passion for nuns in fiction 3) older people’s romance rules and 4) I love when people bond by plotting together. All their scenes are both hilarious and adorable, and it was great to see how their relationship was used to add nuance to their characters. Their journey through the season is also quite fascinating because in some way they’re the most “normal” people in the show: they both can appreciate the value of a balanced position for the Church, the way they come to feel about each other looks worldly, simple. And yet it is anything but, because they can’t have that normalcy: they’re surrounded by people doing (*waves hand at the show*) this, the Church looks like it’s going to explode every episode, while the Pope does strange miracles and sips coke and also dies, and they’re basically star-crossed lovers of their own accord. *sigh*. I just wish they could get some peace and quiet from time to time. But on the other hand, I do love how they respond to all this by secret meetings-turned-dates in the wild and crazy schemes (we think Voiello because sure, it’s expected, but remember Sister Mary was responsible for the whole ‘fake parents’ debacle, and wasn’t that something). I like that those elderly people, who want nothing more than take a nice walk holding hands and watch sports on TV together, just have to be the Vatican’s gray eminences, because someone has to do it (okay and because Voiello loves it).

Let the record show that if you write slash for them I’m absolutely open to sex scenes (I’m a champion for older people –and nuns, apparently-- having sex lives), but I’m not prompting for that specifically and not particularly expecting it, go where you heart take you and do what you’re comfortable with. And if you want to write about something post-canon, feel free to take into account the events of The New Pope or to ignore them completely, I really don’t mind.

 

Prompts

- I’d really love to read anything about them getting together, in whatever context (feel free to change the canon, create you own little pocket of time inside it or go full post-canon, etc). If you need inspiration, you can give me All the Tropes: since they’re so hesitant, forced proximity seems a good start (from “stuck somewhere together” to “there was only one confessional” (bed is good too)).

- Now that I’ve mentioned it, anything involving a confessional is very welcome (yes, I’ve watched Fleabag too many times).

- Something showing how their relationship evolved across a long period of time could be great too; if you go there, feel free to ignore canon and have them reunite in some way, or just continue to live their lives in the Vatican (what if, for example, Lenny never collapsed and stayed in function?). In that spirit, I feel we don’t really see Voiello falling in love with her before his outburst in episode 5, and I’m curious about that.

- 5 times + 1 (they were tempted and resisted; “someone may see them”; they learned something about each other... etc).

- They’re so cute at the end of the show, but I was really into their early dynamic too, with all the banter going on and the idea that they’re going to be rivals: I think it would be really fun to expand on that and develop their relationship from there. Could also be a great option if you prefer Gen. It’s probably the point when they’re at their funniest, and imagine all they could do to drive the other crazy and be little nuisances.

- A confrontation between them about political or theological matters gets out of hands and evolves into… something else.

- They have to plot together to save the Church / Lenny / whatever important cause in the Vatican, and it brings them closer. Is it an uneasy or a natural alliance? What do they learn about each other in the process? What sort of unexpected intimacy does that create?

- Even though I’m forever frustrated by the finale, it had one silver lining. Lenny tells Sister Mary, who’s supposed to leave for Africa in the morning: “Before you go, if you like, you can say goodbye to the Cardinal Secretary of State”. Wink wink. That’s a missing scene if I ever knew one. Besides, I like to think of Lenny’s words as a sort of free pass for… well, whatever you like (I’m certainly not opposed to them breaking their vows). But for something more vague: since they keep meeting outside, and we never see them alone in a private context, so I’m very curious about that, especially when the emotional stakes are so high.

- God ships it. I’m kidding mostly, but I’d love to read about a series of mysterious coincidences and signs similar to what we see in the show pushing them together when they insist They Shouldn’t.

- Though I’d prefer a hopeful ending for them, I’m not opposed to exploring the more tragic aspects of their situation. The show has always been a mix of goofy and tragic (well I guess it’s mostly tragic in fact, but still hilarious), and they’re a nun and a cardinal in love, which must involve some degree of internal conflict. Something about how they torture themselves, and ideally each other too, could be interesting. Alternatively, perhaps they find each other while facing the various tragedies the show throws at them?

- What if someone (be it Lenny, one of the next Popes or even Voiello himself once he’s Pope) allowed for all the clergy to get married? How would they react? Would they still be conflicted, would truths emerge or would they disagree on theological options? I’m interested in the possibility for a relationship here, not necessarily in having them marry (although the idea of the Pope publicly marrying a nun after authorizing it is crazy enough to look promising).

- If you feel like involving Lenny, I could also see him subtly (or perhaps not so subtly) creating occasions for them OR on the contrary, trying to prevent anything between them in the background (little devil that he is).

- The walls have eyes and ears in the Vatican, so it could be nice to see how their relationship is perceived by others (so outsider’s point of view, your pick of character(s), I love the whole cast).

- For a somewhat different mood: them catching a break, being comfortable together and Not Labelling It, having little cute moments. Heck, I’m even open to some downright fluff, there I’ve said it. I mean “napping together” would be perfect too.

- A series of dreams they have about each other (not necessarily sexual or anything, just whatever sort of dream you want) and how that affects their daily life.

 

DNW: gore, underage, non-con, A/B/O, watersports (sexual activities involving urine and/or feces), non-canonical character death, tragic ending, alternate universe that changes the setting.