Dear Yuletide Author,

[eirenical]

Dear Yuletide Author,

I squeaked my sign-up in last minute, so I haven't had a chance to write my letter yet. My plan is to get it done this weekend (by 10/26). In the meantime, you're welcome to peruse my letter tag, if you like. For canons I've requested before, I will probably request similar things, and for the front matter of the letter, anything through the DNWs will most likely be the same.

Thank you for your patience!
a grateful recip

Previous ETAs:
ETA (10/26, 9:37 AM EDT): Whoops! Since my assignment just showed up in my inbox, I assume yours has, too. I'm hoping to have this done by this evening (EDT) at the latest. Sorry about the delay!

ETA (10/26, 1:05 PM EDT): I have about half the letter written, so I'm going to put it below. I still have three requests to finish, but I'll stick a little "complete" next to each one that is done. Thank you for your patience! ^_^

ETA (10/26, 2:43 PM EDT): OK, I've finished all sections except two, but no one offered either one of those (...except me XD), so I'm going to assume we didn't match on those. I have a couple of errands I need to run, so I will finish those up when I get back, and hopefully the sections you need are in the ones I already finished. *thumbs up* ^_^

ETA: (10/26, 6:40 pm edt): dear writer, I'm sorry, something came up and I'm not going to be able to finish the last two until tomorrow. (And I forgot about bucket offers, so you might have offered one of those last two. 😬) I'll try to get them done ASAP. It just won't be tonight. Thank you so much for your understanding!

ETA (10/27, 5:18 pm EDT): I haven't forgotten you, I promise. I woke up running a fever this morning and slept most of the day. This was not in my plans. OTZ

ETA (10/30, 8:18 PM EDT): Getting over the worst of what turned out to be bronchitis. Hoping to have enough brain to finish this for you tomorrow, author. Thank you for your patience!

ETA (10/31, 10:34 PM EDT): Got the South Wind Knows Section done! Now on to the Over Again section and then this letter is FINISHED. :D

ETA (10/31, 11:21 PM EDT): AUTHOR, IT'S DONE. THE LETTER IS FINISHED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE! \o/

First and foremost, I'd like to offer up a huge "Thank You!!" to you for writing a story for me. I know how difficult it can be to put any part of your creative process into the hands of another individual, so I will do my best to treat that trust with the care and respect it deserves. ^_^

And for the record, gifting is turned on and treats are welcome. ^_^

AO3: eirenical (chibi1723)
tumblr: eirenical

Notes on rating, kink and general likes and dislikes (DNWs):

Rating and kink:

Rating: Any rating is fine. I generally prefer slash, femmeslash, and polyamory.

Kinks: I'll specify within specific fandoms if there are any particular kinks I might be interested in. Though I will say that I have a noncon kink a mile wide, so... that may come up once or twice in this letter.

(If you'd like to include a kink and you aren't sure I'll be OK with it, please ask the mods to contact me and ask. I'm pretty approachable and I really won't mind being spoiled with something like that. If anything, it will only heighten my gleeful anticipation. ^_^)

Likes: Some general things I like, along with some nonspecific tropes that I'm always up for, in case none of my prompts strike your fancy...

1. Hurt/comfort
2. Sick!fic
3. Blanket scenario
4. Caretaking (i.e., hair brushing, drawing a bath for someone/helping wash them, food is love, snuggling, hugging, all the nice nonsexual physical affections, etc.)
5. There was only one bed/sleeping bag/cave!
6. Huddling for Warmth
7. Nightmares/soothing from nightmares
8. Dramatic Irony Injury Reveal (Audience Knows About It But Other Characters Do Not)
9. Curtain fic/Slice of Life
10. PWP
11. Canon Divergence
12. Competence Porn
13. King and Lionheart/fealty
14. Found family
15. Time Travel fix-its
16. Time Loops
17. Outsider POV

DNWs (do not wants):

1. Entirely changed setting AUs, particularly mundane AUs (i.e. coffeehouse AUs, high school AUs, etc.) but also historical AUs, modern AUs, fantasy AUs, superhero AUs, etc., unless specified. (AUs of the canon divergence/"What if?" variety (i.e. what if character A had made a different decision here; what if character B hadn't died) are fine.)
2. Infidelity/cheating/going behind someone's back/etc.
3. Embarrassment/secondhand embarrassment/humiliation
4. Animal abuse or pet death. Referring to animals with the pronoun "it."
5. Derealization: character believes they are in one situation and that turns out not to be true. (The old "it turns out the character is in a mental institution and all of canon was a hallucination" trope is a classic example of this.)
6. No unrequested gender or sexuality headcanons or swaps
7. The following kinks: Age play/infantilism, scat, watersports, omegaverse. (...basically, if I haven't listed it as something I'd like for a particular story, please err on the side of caution and just don't include it. Thanks!)

Specific Requests:

1. All Seeing Eye - Rob Thurman -- Jackson Lee Eye, Hector Allgood, Tessa "Tess" Lee, Meleah Guerrera (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags)
2. Ephemera Series - Anne Bishop -- Danyal (Ephemera), Lee (Ephemera) (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags
3. Great Cities Series - N. K. Jemisin -- Padmini Prakash | The Avatar of Queens (Great Cities - Jemisin), The Avatar of Atlantis (Great Cities - Jemisin), Manny | The Avatar of Manhattan (Great Cities - Jemisin), The Avatar of New York (Great Cities - Jemisin) (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags; or it may use exceptions I explain in the form)
4. 沉香如屑 | Immortal Samsara (TV) -- Ying Yuan | Tang Zhou, Yu Mo (Immortal Samsara), Yan Dan (Immortal Samsara) (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags; or it may use exceptions I explain in the form)
   
5. 回到过去拥抱你 | Over Again (2019) -- Gao Silin, Zhang Ziyang, Guo Sijia (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags
6. 南风知我意 | South Wind Knows My Mood (TV) -- Fu Yunshen, Ji Silang, Zhu Jiu (South Wind Knows), Fu Xizhou (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags; or it may use exceptions I explain in the form)
7. Thermos Flower Series Commercials -- Zhu Yilong's Character (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags)

You are free to utilize any prompt I toss out there or none of them. If reading what I like about the characters/worlds sparks a fic idea in your head, feel free to ignore the prompts and run with it. ^_^

Also, length of babble in no way indicates my fandom preferences. (i.e., some of these I literally just finished a full re-up of canon before sign-ups so I ended up having a LOT more to say about those canons than some of the others, but it in no way means that I care less about the others. Some are just fresher in my mind.) I promise I'm equally excited about the possibility of all of these requests. ^_^ Some of these are also cribbed from earlier letters, because I just honestly can never get enough of them, so here we are. ^_^


All Seeing Eye - Rob Thurman
Characters: Jackson Lee Eye, Hector Allgood, Tessa "Tess" Lee, Meleah Guerrera (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags)

One of the most compelling parts of the book to me is the enemies-to-friends(-to-lovers? ^_~) thing going on between Jackson and Hector. I absolutely love the entire arc of their developing friendship from angry and antagonistic to deep-seated trust and practical co-dependency. Anything that looks at that friendship (or romance, if you want to look at it that way!) through that lens is something I'd really enjoy. The other most compelling part of the book to me is how Jackson thinks he is this surly, antisocial hermit... and yet many times when he meets someone new, they end up being friend-shaped somehow. This happens with Charlie, with Abby, with Hector (eventually), with Meleah... honestly, for someone who's so antisocial, he's done a pretty good job of building himself a family, and I am a sucker for found family tropes. ^_~

A note on Tess: I nominated this character with the intent of her being included as her end of/post novel reincarnation, but if you want to utilize her as her ghostly self from between lives or somehow as her younger self, that's fine by me, too.

Prompts:

• I mentioned in my likes that hurt/comfort is one of my favorite tropes? Jackson is practically made for it if that's something you're into writing. ^_^ (I mean... at least half the book is Hector/Jackson hurt/comfort. ;D) So, something where Jackson's powers get him into trouble (i.e., coming into contact with something someone died on violently) and one of the others having to take care of him while he puts himself back together would be right up my alley. ^____^


• And again, if you're slash minded, we know that Jackson and Hector once had a really awkward conversation about why Jackson doesn't have sex. Do they ever try it? What do they do to try to get around the whole overly enforced intimacy? Do they end up in a relationship where they're platonically intimate but not having sex? Hell, do they ever even manage to sleep in the same bed, for that matter? Inquiring minds want to know!


• The other thing that I really love about this book is the way it ends. I love that Jackson has started to open himself up to other people. I love that he has a second chance to do right by Tess. I love that he's built this family for himself out of nothing and completely against the odds. And I would love to see what happens from there. The adventures of Jackson raising Tess, for instance. What's it like for him and his powers living with another person? What's it like for someone who didn't have ANY kind of a healthy childhood to try to raise a child? Where do Meleah and Hector fit in to this happily ever after? They were there the night Tess arrived; what do they think of Jackson trying to be any kind of father? Maybe they become honorary (or actual) godparents, or something? The punch line is that I'd love to see a little more of everyone's found-family-happily-ever-after. ^_^

What about ships?

• Honestly, I love the canon ships and would be perfectly happy with them written/included exactly as they are. I think Hector and Meleah are awkward and adorable, and I would love to see her managing him with that quietly competent way she has. And I am so on board for Jackson's asexual-by-default situation that he's landed in thanks to his powers.

However... !

• I also ship Hector and Jackson and would be thrilled to see how that might or might not work out, giving the restrictions of Jackson's powers. How do they get around that? Do they get around that? What would a relationship between them look like? And if you choose to go that route, does Meleah get involved? Do those impressions Jackson picked up from Charlie ever rear their head again?

Yuleporn prompts:

• As mentioned above, Jackson and Hector once had a really awkward conversation about why Jackson doesn't have sex (he's a very powerful touch-postcognitive; so that much skin on skin contact generally gives him way too much information about his partner). So, I wonder... do Hector and Jackson ever try it? What do they do to try to get around the whole overly enforced intimacy of Jackson's gift? ...or not? How does that play out in bed? Do they end up in a relationship where they're platonically intimate but not having sex?


• For that matter... what might they do instead, if Jackson can't stand to be in physical contact during sex? Maybe some toys and voyeurism are involved? Maybe Hector invests in lots of latex gloves so that fingering and/or fisting can be options? Maybe Hector and Meleah have sex while Jackson mostly watches and enjoys? All of these are fair game! ;D

-- Contains Yuleporn prompts; COMPLETE


Ephemera Series - Anne Bishop
Characters: Danyal (Ephemera), Lee (Ephemera) (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags
Other Nominated Characters I love and wouldn't mind seeing included: Gloriana Belladonna, Teaser
Ships I like: Danyal/Lee

My history with these books is a really interesting one. On first read-through, the character I hooked into most was Sebastian. On the second read-through, it was Glorianna. Right now, I seem to be falling further and further in love with Danyal and Lee. I am always a sucker for the self-sacrificing types who may angst quietly to themselves but would never even dream of not helping the people who need them. And both of these characters fit into that archetype, though Lee a bit more so than Danyal. More importantly, though, I absolutely love how they manage to get each other past that and form a truly supportive and thriving partnership where both can live fully up to their strengths and potential. And, for the record, I love their canon friendship, but I’d also love to see them romantically shipped, so whichever way you want to go there is fine by me!

Prompts:

• When Lee and Danyal first meet, Lee is blind and thought to be insane, and is thus wholly dependent on those around him. This plays out in some vicious and cruel abuse by his keepers, essentially torture under the guise of caretaking. I’ve mentioned I’m a fan of hurt/comfort and sick!fic, yes? We know that Sholeh and Khobrah are the ones who mostly take care of him, but I’d love to see Danyal in there, too.


• I’m just honestly fascinated by their dynamic all the way through. Once Lee starts to recover, it isn’t long before Danyal starts leaning on him as though he’s another Shaman. Certainly, Danyal’s instincts are pretty damned good, but that’s still an extreme level of trust in someone who is supposedly mad. It is pointed out to Danyal that he treats Lee like a colleague who is there to rest and heal, rather than like a patient. How did that come about? What was going through Danyal’s mind? How did he finally decide he could trust Lee that much? What tipped the balance?


• Lee, by contrast, has been working himself into an early grave most of his life, and now finds himself forced into a life of leisure. He seems to swing back and forth over how much he accepts that. What was it like for him to find himself suddenly forced to take a backseat after years of being crucial in the fight against the Eater of the World? And once he accepted that he had to step back, was Danyal reaching out to him for assistance more of a blessing or a curse? Was he eager to get back into things or did he resent it?


• Lee is just so, so bitter at the beginning of the book. He’s given up everything for Glorianna, always, and he’s feeling abandoned, pushed aside. You can still see flashes of it in the beginning of his friendship with Danyal. Do they ever talk that out? Does Lee tell him willingly or is it a forced necessity when Danyal meets Lee’s family? Does that bitterness ever really heal or is it just dormant, waiting to flare up into resentment at a time that isn’t even appropriate for it?


• What about after the events in Bridge of Dreams? They have this beautiful new complex and a huge playground for Ephemera to play around in. I just kind of want to know everything about what happens next. ^_^


• A kind of case fic, maybe? They’re going to use the playground to help people find the landscapes they belong in. Tell me about someone’s journey and how they help them on the way.


• Those quiet moments between them. Oh, man. I loved the little walks they used to take with Lee acting as teacher and guide for Danyal, as Lee slowly coaxed him to accept truths about the world that he hadn’t been ready for. Do those talks continue? I just loved how at peace they both were with each other. How does that evolve?


• Both Danyal and Lee were almost starved for friendship by the time they met—Lee because he hadn’t dared befriend anyone and Danyal because, even among other Shaman, he was always different. What was that like to find someone they could finally connect to? Did it ever progress to also include intimacy? Friends with benefits? Lovers? Beloved?


• …does Ephemera ever try to play matchmaker for them in its own awkwardly endearing way?


• For that matter, I’d love to just see them relaxing into that partnership, learning to work together in this new venture of theirs, growing closer over time +/- falling in love… sex. Really, just anything involving the two of them taking care of each other and supporting and appreciating each other. Really, I’ll take anything I can get for the two of them. ^_^ -- COMPLETE
  
  
  3. Great Cities Series - N. K. Jemisin
  Characters: Padmini Prakash | The Avatar of Queens (Great Cities - Jemisin), The Avatar of Atlantis (Great Cities - Jemisin), Manny | The Avatar of Manhattan (Great Cities - Jemisin), The Avatar of New York (Great Cities - Jemisin) (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags; or it may use exceptions I explain in the form)
  Ships I like: Padmini & the Avatar of Atlantis, Manny/Avatar of NYC
  Other Nominated Characters I love and wouldn't mind seeing included: Brooklyn Thomason | The Avatar of Brooklyn
  Non-nominated characters I would not mind seeing included: Any of the NYC borough avatars or other city avatars, any of the avatars families. There's really no one in the books I dislike (at least on a character level), so basically feel free to include anyone else who strikes your fancy. ^_^
  
  Every time I think about this series I get overwhelmed. It has SO MANY things that I love in it, but the things I probably love the most are the importance of loyalty and listening to people and how a family can look like anything and there’s just… SO MUCH THERE. This is such a rich universe to play in and it had so much potential, and I'm glad it did get a satisfying ending, but there was so much more that could have been done with it and I would have like ten more books and all the backstory and just… I'm VERY excited by these books!!
  
  This is a series where I'm OK with you not including all requested characters, so I'm going to talk about them in the sets I'm most interested in seeing together.
  
  1. Padmini Prakash & The Avatar of Atlantis
  2. Manny & The Avatar of New York
  3. All four of my requested characters (see 1 & 2)
  
  
  All characters, requested and otherwise
  
  Honestly, I love all the NY boroughs, even isolated Staten Island. I would love to see anything involving them all getting to know each other and living and working together, and how their families react to the situation, so I'd be happy with seeing them doing just about anything together: face down a new threat, giant family get togethers involving all the extended family of all the Avatars we meet, just general day-to-day goings on.
  
  I'd also really enjoy getting to see them shepherd another US City through its growing pains of becoming. I'm sure that someone else is going to handle Chicago, given how Manny and his family are on very fraught terms by the end (...or maybe not? If you want to jump into that tangled mess, be my guest! :D), but there are so many other possible choices! For that matter, it doesn't even have to be a US city. If there is another city you love and want to play with bringing that one to life, please go to town! Make this story a love letter to a city of your choosing and I will really enjoy getting to know that city through your eyes. ^_^
  
  Padmini Prakash & The Avatar of Atlantis
  
  I am utterly fascinated by everything about Atlantis. The way it was written out of history until it became only legend, yet still somehow exists in a way that people can travel to it. The absolute feeling of peace and relaxation that Padmini feels when she visits. The way the Avatar is somehow still alive and alone and able to affect events even though the city technically is no longer alive. Just everything about this fascinates me and I would love anything more about this city and how Padmini fits in with what's happening with it!
  
  Prompts:
  
  
  
  1. I would love any backstory on Atlantis. In this case, I understand Padmini may not necessarily be able to be involved, but I am just over-the-moon curious about Atlantis and I'll take any backstory you care to give.
  
  
  
  2. We get Padmini's side of her encounters with Atlantis, the city, but we never really hear about the Avatar's side of this. All we know is that they were happy to have been visited and remembered… and that's it. What was that like from their side of things? To experience Padmini's visit and getting to see the wonders of their city again through her eyes?
  
  
  
  3. I know that at the end of the duology, Atlantis dies again, and it's implied that the city is wholly destroyed for real this time. But what if it wasn't? What if it still existed in some way? Could Padmini still visit? Could the Avatar perhaps visit her? I just think there's so much potential from that almost-relationship that never got realized in the novels, and I'd love for it to have a chance to develop. (Side note: the text strongly implies that Padmini is asexual and aromantic and I would like to see her kept that way.)
  
  
  Manny & The Avatar of New York
  
  These two have certainly run the gamut of flailing confusedly at each other in every direction until they finally came close to sorting things out at the end, didn't they? XD For as competent as they are at their Avatar jobs and responsibilities, they are ABYSMAL at relating to each other. Miscommunication central. To the point where Manny literally almost left to become the Avatar of another city. I love every aspect of their relationship, from the confused flailing to the "maybe let's start with the sex and figure out the relationship later" conclusion.
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. What does their happily ever after relationship look like? Does it ever progress to more than just sex? Does Nyc ever figure out that the terrifying ordeal of being known is worth the emotional intimacy payout?
  
  
  
  2. Manny's overprotective bodyguard side is one of my favorite parts of him, but does that ever get them into trouble? Does he ever get hurt on Nyc's behalf and need some care to get better? (I am a hurt/comfort junkie, so feel free to take this in whatever direction you like as regards that. ^_^)
  
  
  
  3. Manny had an entire potential life plotted out before him. Before he derailed himself by moving to New York and becoming Manhattan, he was supposed to become the Avatar of Chicago. What if he actually had followed through on that? We know that relationships between Cities are possible, so could Chicago and Nyc have worked that out between them somehow? How might it have changed Manny to be Chicago?
  
  
  
  4. I love how Manny took it upon himself to be the ambassador of New York to all the other Cities. I'd love to meet any more Cities you'd like to bring in that he could wander off to meet on Nyc's behalf, be they Cities we've already met or new ones that were never introduced.
  -- COMPLETE
  
  
  4. 沉香如屑 | Immortal Samsara (TV)
  Characters: Ying Yuan | Tang Zhou, Yu Mo (Immortal Samsara), Yan Dan (Immortal Samsara) (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags; or it may use exceptions I explain in the form)
  Ships I like: Yan Dan/Ying Yuan/Yu Mo, Ying Yuan/Yu Mo
  Other Nominated Characters I love and wouldn't mind seeing included: Lu Ming
  Non-Nominated Characters I love and wouldn't mind seeing included: Zhao Lan, Zhi Xi, Zi Lin, Marshal Huo De, I'm sure there are others, but I'm blanking. XD
  
  There is so much going on in this series. The web of complicated relationships between the characters is a tangled knot by the end of the series it's almost impossible to imagine it untangled. But the relationships that compel me the most in the whole series are the ones between the three leads. They change so much throughout the whole story, but by the time we reach the last few episodes they've settled into such a supportive, loving, solid trio of relationships (whether you see them as platonic or romantic), and they just KNOW each other so well that it's hard to imagine them apart after that. Each side of that triangle is just as strong as the other two sides and that's honestly rare. So often the 2nd male lead ends up turning evil or shunted to the side, or killed off, and that didn't happen here, and I love that for all of them. ^_^
  
  And then the show has such variety to pick from in time periods between these three! You have the beginning where the solid relationship is mostly between Yan Dan and Yu Mo, where neither has really grown into themselves yet. Then the focus shifts to Yan Dan and Ying Yuan, first as student and teacher, then that back and forth whiplash of unrequited love and pining. Then they're on Earth and Yan Dan and Yu Mo have a chance to get to know each other again, but this time with Yu Mo being the "older and wiser" of the two of them and getting to protect and spoil Yan Dan instead of the other way around. And then Tang Zhou ends up in the picture and we get the growing closeness between he and Yan Dan, then a rivalry between he and Yu Mo that grows into a close and supportive friendship, and then the three of them start building the threads that will eventually grow into that stable triangle we see at the end… but not before exploding in all their faces when certain truths come to light. It's just SUCH a rich tapestry of relationship angles to choose from, and I'd love a look at them from any location along the way. ^_^
  
  This is a series where I'm OK with you not including all requested characters, so I'm going to talk about them in the sets I'm most interested in seeing together.
  
  1. Yan Dan, Ying Yuan, Yu Mo
  2. Ying Yuan, Yu Mo
  
  
  Yan Dan, Ying Yuan, Yu Mo
  
  As mentioned above, what I love most about them is those moments when they've started to build, or finally settled into that stable triangle that is so loving and supportive at the end. I also really enjoy the beginning of that triangle when they're traveling around together and solving cases and just beginning to learn to work together… and when they find out that Tang Zhou is Ying Yuan and their trio nearly explodes, before settling down to some serious hurt/comfort. ;D
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. A case fic, perhaps? From when the three of them are wandering the jianghu together and just starting to learn to work together. And maybe they're more bickering than loving, but they start to build friendships with each other almost grudgingly, almost without realizing it, until it's suddenly THERE.
  
  
  2. I am a sucker for hurt/comfort, and Tang Zhou has a few huge moments where some hurt/comfort can happen – both when he loses his entire cultivation base and also towards the end of his time as a moral when they're taking care of him on the mountain. Or it could even be something smaller, like him getting sick or getting injured on a case. Does he handle that well and play into it? Or does he try to pretend he's fine and refuse help until he can't?
  
  
  3. The extras did a really admirable job of fixing the tragic ending the three of them suffered. But I want MORE. I don't love that they ended up separated from each other. (I have my own suspicions why, but we'll get to that later. XD) Just bring them back together somehow, please. TT^TT
  
  
  4. My theory about the end is that Ying Yuan (+/- Yan Dan) ended up being/fueling the barrier the way Ran Qing used to. If it's just Ying Yuan, perhaps Yu Mo and Yan Dan can work together to free him and find another way to fuel the barrier? It it's both Ying Yuan and Yan Dan, maybe Yu Mo can free them both! (Feel free to bring in anyone you like from my list of liked characters above to help him out in doing this, btw. ^_^)
  
  
  5. Or maybe they don't end up fueling the barrier. Maybe Ying Yuan and Yan Dan are dead. In that case, I'd love to see Yu Mo live long enough to see them reincarnate in some other life. ^_^ This could be a modern day reincarnation or closer to the show time period. Have fun with it!
  
  
  6. One of my other favorite things about Ying Yuan is that when given an opportunity to dream the happiest life he could possibly imagine, he dreams himself married to and gently bullied by Yan Dan for life. He is a happily whipped spouse and father and he likes it that way! In the extras, we see him and Yan Dan have a child, so let me see that happily ever after for him and his (two!) spouses! ^_^
  
  
  7. Back on the hurt/comfort track, especially as Ying Yuan, Ying Yuan has a tendency to punish himself by working himself into the ground, always feeling like he has to take literally everything on his shoulders. And that breaks my heart. Do Yan Dan and Yu Mo ever just… sit on him and try to get him to take care of himself? Or at least find him after he's collapsed and help him pick up the pieces? Does he handle that well? Or does the thought of someone trying to protect and take care of him scare him? Another angle: he's so convinced that there's no way to control the Asura blood and powers within him. He's willing to essentially commit suicide to prevent himself from hurting anyone else. What if they were to try to help him learn control so he doesn't have to turn so self-destructive?
  
  
  Ying Yuan, Yu Mo
  
  So what really fascinates me about these two is that they go through several times when Yu Mo almost begins acting like a bridge between Ying Yuan and Yan Dan, and in so doing, his relationship, first with Tang Zhou, and then with Ying Yuan slowly deepens to the point where they end up ride or die for each other, even without Yan Dan being there. There are several times, in fact, when Yan Dan is actively pushing Ying Yuan away, and it's Yu Mo who reaches out to him to let him know that he's not alone. I'd love to see more of that!
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. Anything good and tropey between Tang Zhou and Yu Mo when they're still trying to get along could be fun. (I'm picturing this when they're still in their bickering/rivals stage over Yan Dan, and then "trope thing happens" and forces them to get over their antagonism in some way.) Yan Dan can be there, too, or she can be separated from them for some case-related-but-not-dire reason. (Or maybe it is a dire reason, up to you. XD) Some fun tropes for this: handcuffed together, sudden telepathy acquisition (one-sided or two-sided), sex pollen, forced to tell the truth, huddling for warmth, sick!fic or hurt/comfort, nightmares, etc.)
  
  
  2. On a more serious note: When Yan Dan regains her memories, Tang Zhou goes through a REALLY low period in his life. He's not-so-borderline suicidal at that point. He loves her with his entire heart, and she's insisting that he isn't who he thinks he is, that he is, in fact, cruel and unfeeling and has hurt her very badly, and just like Ying Yuan often does, he takes to punishing himself for this in various ways – indulging in drink, suicidal thoughts, etc. At this point, Yu Mo is a bit torn about how to react to this reveal, but when he sees how much pain Tang Zhou is in, he turns sympathetic in ways that Yan Dan never does. I'd love to see some of that play out in him trying to take care of Tang Zhou somehow.
  
  
  3. By the same token, when Ying Yuan is finally Ying Yuan again, we see Yan Dan spurning his attention and presence entirely, but Yu Mo is willing to talk to him, willing to still befriend him. I'd love to see something between them at this point, where again, Yu Mo is reaching out to Ying Yuan, either trying to take care of him or reassure him or just bring him back to them/keep him tethered to them in some way.
  
  
  Yuleporn/Crueltide Prompts:
  
  1. As I mentioned at the top of my letter, I have a noncon kink a mile wide. ^_^ So, riffing of the hurt/comfort idea… maybe the injury Tang Zhou takes is sexual in nature. This could be a fun opportunity for a tentacle monster, or any demon, either in human form or otherwise, to attack him. Maybe the wedding case goes wrong. and he gets assaulted by the cat demon before Yan Dan or Yu Mo can get to him? Or just a demon of the day situation? Whichever the case, do they manage to stop the attack partway through? Do they show up after? Or does it happen without their knowledge? If the latter, does Tang Zhou try to hide it? Or do they know right off the bat that something is wrong? Is he willing to accept their help or does his pride get in the way until he breaks? If he does manage to hide it, does it come back to haunt him later on? Perhaps when he has his memories back? Is it worse for him to remember that as Ying Yuan or not? Feel free to get as graphic on the front end of this prompt as you like! Or if you prefer, you can focus on the aftermath and the hurt/comfort of it all. ^_^
  
  
  2. From the third prompt in my Ying Yuan & Yu Mo section: I could see some ill-advised sex happening here, especially if that was something that happened between them when Ying Yuan was Tang Zhou. And given how the Heavens feel about sex and romance, that could either make things better or make it SO MUCH WORSE.
  
  
  3. If you want to go really dark, some scenario where either Tang Zhou and Yu Mo or Ying Yuan and Yu Mo are forced to have sex for some reason (maybe some dark Asura ritual or just a twisted demon who wants them to suffer or Tang Zhou's old Sect Leader trying to use them to dual cultivate power that he can steal)? Maybe Yan Dan is forced to watch? Does Ying Yuan even know it's Yu Mo who's fucking him? Does Yu Mo try to comfort him in some way while it's happening?
  
  
  -- Includes Yuleporn/Crueltide Prompts, COMPLETE
  
  
  5. 回到过去拥抱你 | Over Again (2019)
  Characters: Gao Silin, Zhang Ziyang, Guo Sijia (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags)
  Ships I like: Guo Sijia x Zhang Ziyang (the canon ship of the movie), all three together (Gao Silin always reads as either deeply asexual/aromantic to me or just… so career-focused that he'd not interested, but I could see him getting involved if the other two invited him in.)
  Places the movie can be found, if you haven't seen it and are interested ^_^: Viki, YouTube, My Dropbox
  (A note about the sources: the Viki version is the complete movie, but only accessible with an account. The Youtube version is missing a key scene in which Gao Silin saves Zhang Ziyang from an attempted suicide off a bridge around minute 30:05. It cuts the part where Ziyang jumps, and Silin jumps in after him to rescue him. About a minute is missing. The version I have in my Dropbox is identical to the Viki version and contains the missing scene, which starts around 30:30. All three are in Mandarin and have hard-encoded subs in Mandarin and English.)
  
  So… have you ever started to really like an actor to the point where you follow them down an IMDB or mydramalist rabbit hole to movies they made when they were younger that are… maybe not the best? And then you realize this is EXACTLY the kind of sci-fi nonsense that would have been played on Sunday afternoon broadcast TV when you were in middle school, and you would have been instantly obsessed with it even though no one else would have any idea what it was?
  
  …ok, maybe you haven't, but that's how I ended up at this movie. XD
  
  The three characters in question are teenagers when the movie begins. They're young, they're all a little bit in love with each other, and they all have some dark secret or another that they can't even bring themselves to share with each other. Gao Silin gets badly injured in a way that leads to permanent learning disabilities that derail his career. Zhang Ziyang falls further and further into depression and a rock-and-roll life style in an effort to defy his parents. Guo Sijia, torn between the two of them and unable to bridge the gap, faces moving away and never seeing either of them again.
  
  Attempts are made at reconciliation, but they never quite get there… until Zhang Ziyang dies. And Gao Silin just cannot handle that. And he finds a way to travel back in time to try to save him.
  
  And this starts a repeating pattern of epic proportions where Gao Silin and Guo Sijia try to defy fate and rescue their friend. Of course, they're unable to do so. They can visit the past. They can even bring Ziyang with them to the future for a time. But they can't change what's happened. But then in a truly bizarre twist, Ziyang eventually manages to travel forward… beyond the edges of the known universe of time. And at the very end, it's strongly hinted that he's been the one answering the phone and helping the other travel through time… the whole time.
  
  And I am just FLAT OUT OBSESSED with this entire concept.
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. Just holy cow, anything about Ziyang's future self. How does that bizarro city even WORK??? Who else lives there? Are they like him? How did they get there? How did HE get there? Can he leave? Visit his friends? Bring them to visit HIM? Does he ever interact with other people like he and his friends when they were traveling in time? Is there a higher purpose to all this? I'm just UTTERLY FASCINATED. Have fun! Tell me more!
  
  
  2. The three of them really do always seem happiest when they're together, but Sijia and Ziyang seem to love each other in a more traditional way, while Silin always seems happiest just to see them together and happy and be a part of the three of them. He's also the one who time travels most between them. He becomes almost like a bridge between them in the future and them in the past. Does he ever manage to get all the way to the future to visit Ziyang? What is that like for whatever Ziyang has become to have him back like that? Does he become a bridge for this more powerful future Ziyang, too?
  
  
  3. After Silin's injury, he becomes severely dyslexic and can't read at all. For a boy whose entire future was writing and literature and academics, that's a very hard blow, especially as he kind of loses at least one of his friends, if not both, in that transition. But by the time they're reunited, he has found so many ways to compensate for his disability and seems to be getting along just fine. (In the future, he's even able to finally write that novel he always wanted to.) What was that transition time like for him? Alone? Kicked out of school? Having to support himself? Was he resentful or angry or hurt? How did he make peace with that?
  
  
  4. In the future we see Silin and Sijia happy together and celebrating the publication of Silin's novel. They two were never interested in each other in the past. Are they together now or not? Is this their attempt to hold on to each other after they lost Ziyang? What is that future time like for them? Are they happy? What's it like for them to have Ziyang back again so briefly? Is it worse for them again after he's gone, or was that their chance to finally make peace with his death?
  
  
  Yuleporn Prompts:
  
  1. Riffing off that last prompt: Do the three of them have one time together while Ziyang is in the future with them? What is that like?
  
  
  2. I know I said I read Silin mostly as aro/ace, but I could also see him making an exception to try to bridge the gap between Sijia and Ziyang or to try to give Ziyang something to hold onto in that faraway future, using himself as a go between to bring the other two closer. Maybe sometimes he can even feel them both if they have sex when he's just traveled from one to the other, able to be a bridge so they can all be together, even in just that one way for that one moment?
  
  
  -- Yuleporn prompts included, COMPLETE.
  
  
  6. 南风知我意 | South Wind Knows My Mood (TV)
  Characters: Fu Yunshen, Ji Silang, Zhu Jiu (South Wind Knows), Fu Xizhou (My gift must feature all of my chosen character tags; or it may use exceptions I explain in the form)
  Ships I like: Fu Yunshen x Ji Silang x Zhu Jiu, Fu Yunshen x Zhu Jiu, Fu Yunshen x Ji Silang, Fu Yunshen x Fu Xizhou, Fu Xizhou x Gu Ruanruan, Chen Le x Fu Yunshen, Gu RuanRuan x Zhou Zhizhi, Chen Le x Zhou Zhizhi, I’m sure I've missed a few. XD
  Non-Nominated Characters I love and wouldn't mind seeing included: Chen Le, Fu Lingtian, Gu Ruanruan, Jiang Shuning, Leo, Zhou Zhizhi, Zhu Jiu's grandmother, Zhu Jiu's Great Aunt
  
  This series is SO MUCH. It reads a lot like a soap opera and the time line is all over the place, and every time you think things can't get worse THEY DEFINITELY DO. But I love it to pieces. XD I love the characters. I love the tangled, interwoven relationships between them. I love the fact that though they all start out so very very flawed, they still somehow manage to grow and evolve and make it all work out by the end. Even Yunshen's mother gets a growth arc, and I did not see that coming at all. And I am a whump and hurt/comfort JUNKIE, so this series just ticked all the boxes. XD
  
  This is a series where I'm OK with you not including all requested characters, so I'm going to talk about them in the sets I'm most interested in seeing together.
  
  1. Fu Yunshen and Fu Xizhou
  2. Fu Yunshen, Zhu Jiu, and Ji Silang
  3. All four characters
  
  
  All four characters:
  
  Note: Please, if we're going for a post-canon situation, I would like Ji Silang to live. That death hurt me deeply, and I'd love it undone for Yuletide. TT^TT He doesn't necessarily have to be shipped with anyone, but I'd like him alive and happy somehow.
  
  I will admit that Yunshen is my favorite so that's going to bias my requests a bit, but I honestly love all four of these characters and particularly how they fit together in various ways. But I want to talk about this one specific thing about Yunshen, because it is one of my favorite things in the show and I'm just fascinated by it. ^_^
  
  Fu Yunshen is such a people-pleaser it's almost PAINFUL. And he's a veritable chameleon about how he presents himself to most be what it is that the person he's with needs him to be (ask me about how he dresses for different people sometimes, seriously. I still need to write that meta. XD). And he's practically allergic to admitting he needs help, and when he helps someone else, half the time, he keeps it completely secret. Even once it's done, a large part of the time he won't take credit. Just look at him visiting Zhu Jiu's grandmother in the hospital and then bearing the guilt that Zhu Jiu threw on him when she thought he hadn't? He was super sick, himself—he'd JUST ALMOST DIED. AGAIN. Not that long ago—and here he is dressing himself up neat as a pin and trendy, to go play the gallant for Zhu Jiu's grandmother. So she won't see anything is wrong with HIM and so he can be there for her, even though he won't claim the credit. And when he pays for not only Meng Meng's surgery but sets up a foundation to pay for similar surgeries, but he never tells anyone (except Ji Silang, which is part of my reason for seeing that as a ship. Yunshen lets himself lean on Ji Silang in ways he won't let himself lean on anyone else.).
  
  But also, Yunshen is the lynch pin his family depends on to hold itself together. Every single person in his family depends on him in some way. And he's forever putting his needs last, if he even considers them at all. And that just UTTERLY fascinates me about him. And when he went abroad, he got a job at a gas station of all places (considering how generally fastidious he is??) and actually genially learned to do the job well. Like, for a spoiled little rich boy, who sometimes ACTS like a spoiled little rich boy… he is… really not one. Not at all. *coughs* So, yeah. Just a few thoughts. XD Take them or leave them?
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. Yunshen's cooking. I just… I’m sorry, I'm obsessed. :D Where did he pick up this particular skill?? His grandfather obviously can't cook, no matter how much he seems to like to, his mother seems ok at it but also doesn't seem to spend much time doing it. The only person we see do much real cooking in the house is the maid. Did Yunshen learn from her? (Feel free to explore that or come up with your own answer. XD) The POINT though, is that by the time he's an adult, he's a REALLY good cook. And he's definitely the kind of character where food and cooking for people is a love language. I'd love anything with him cooking for or with any of the others and that being at least a part of how he shows affection. (My LIFE for a "grandma lives" AU where it's just him learning her entire repertoire and them cooking for his whole married extended family. …only half joking. XD)
  
  
  2. Happily ever after! There has been so much angst and pain and drama, but by the end most everyone seems to be happy. (Pretty sure Yunshen has "property of Zhu Jiu" stamped on his ass with the way he runs around telling everyone he's her boyfriend. XD) They all seem to have careers and family lives that they're happy with. So just… give me more of that for them! What does this happily ever after look like? Maybe a big family celebration?
  
  
  3. Hurt/comfort! There were so many times where Yunshen got hurt or got sick or was hospitalized or impaled, for goodness sake (twice! In a modern setting show with no swords! XD), and he tries so hard to put a good face on it, but sometimes he just utterly and completely fails. And he needs physical taking care of as well as emotional. And I'd love to see any or all of these guys get a chance at that. I'm happy for you to look at any of the actual canon injuries or make something up for post-canon. ^_^
  
  
  Fu Yunshen and Fu Xizhou
  
  These two fascinate me so much. Fu Xizhou had a really rough start in life. His parents' forced divorce, his mother losing her mind to the point she forgets who he is and begins mistaking him for his father, then being forcefully (and possibly wrongly) institutionalized, then he gets taken away from her and dumped into the household of the woman who instigated all of it – Yunshen's mother. And there is little Yunshen, the golden child, the one everyone pampers and loves and who has had it so easy and who just so desperately wants Xizhou to love him, to be his big brother. And then there's the big question of: how much does Xizhou really give in to that? We see so many flashbacks of them happy together, of them sharing everything, and protecting each other. Xizhou is genuinely terrified when Yunshen goes missing in Country M and is deeply relieved to find him. But later on he claims that was all an act. That he never loved Yunshen in the first place. I think that's a lie he tells himself to make all of this revenge business easier. I think all along he HAS loved Yunshen, but it's so tangled up in his resentment for Yunshen's family that it's hard for him to separate it all. And Yunshen is just there ready to forgive Xizhou every time he hurts him. Every. Time. As long as his brother is looking at him, as long as he comes back, Yunshen will forgive him everything. And I am a sucker for that kind of codependency. ^_^
  
  …and I also have a dark interest in these two that I will expand upon in the Yuleporn/Crueltide section, but I'll keep this section tamer. XD
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. Hurt/Comfort! OMG, seriously, I'll take anything. Some canon hurt/comfort when Xizhou rescued Yunshen in Country M? …or the second time he rescued him in Country M when he got shot? Maybe when Yunshen was paralyzed Xizhou stopped in visit, even though he was so sure he hated him? Or maybe some time when they were younger, Yunshen got hurt or sick and for some reason, his mother wasn't there, and it fell to Xizhou to take care of him? Or some time in the future as a consequence of one of his many injuries? Any hurt/comfort or sick!fic would be good. ^_^
  
  
  2. Happily ever after? By the end, Xizhou is happily married to RuanRuan, they have a beautiful little girl with a little boy on the way, and he is just so happily settled into that life. I'd love a glimpse of Yunshen in there, too (either by himself or with a partner of your choice between Zhu Jiu and Ji Silang). He'd make such a great uncle, and I bet his niece and nephew love him as much as their father does. Maybe a holiday celebration or a day out at the amusement park or just anything with all of them getting to have a little joy with each other. ^_^
  
  
  3. A glimpse into their backstory could be fun, too. What was it like for them to grow up together in that mangled household? There is so much strange that happened there. I already talked about Xizhou's background, but Yunshen's was damned odd, too. There's the whole super tight relationship with his mother, with her treating him like a doll she can parade around, more an extension of herself than his own person, but in other ways she's also very subservient to him. And then there's his grandfather, who clearly adores him, and who has a very special bond with him, but also loves Xizhou just as much, even though there's all that guilt in the way. What was it like for them to grow up in that mess? How did they navigate that?
  
  
  Fu Yunshen, Zhu Jiu, and Ji Silang
  
  OMG, I love these three so much. They're such a mess. XD There's Yunshen and Zhu Jiu's canon everything. And then there's Ji Silang who is definitely in love with Zhu Jiu. And then the whole frenemies-to-something that happens between Yunshen and Ji Silang. XD (Seriously, Yunshen WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING HERE? This draping yourself over furniture and cupping your face while smiling at your rival thing is maybe a bit more homoerotic than you intended it to be. XD And then they go out for drinks where Yunshen undoes a truly indecent amount of buttons, and forces Ji Silang to add him on WeChat, I just… seriously Yunshen, WHY. XD)
  
  Anyway, my personal read on these three is that they would have balanced each other out very well as a neat little threesome and I would enjoy seeing them interpreted that way. ^_^ I would also, however, love seeing the canon relationship between Yunshen and Zhu Jiu with Ji Silang just ending up a good friend if that threesome ship doesn't work for you. But I really enjoy their interactions, both personally and professionally and the way they all take care of each other, even if it's sometimes grudging.
  
  Prompts:
  
  1. In the interest of not having to copy these things again… XD *insert any prompt you like from the "all four" characters section*
  
  
  2. If they do all end up together, how do they make that work? Who (if anyone) gets married? Is Yunshen's mother accepting of this new twist to her son's relationship or does that cause further problems?
  
  
  3. Whether they're together or not: Does Ji Silang have parents or grandparents who have opinions on their trio (either as romantic or platonic partners)? (I'd honestly love both Yunshen and Zhu Jiu getting to have at least one fully loving family home to go to where they can be accepted for who they are and be just a little spoiled with love and affection. ^_^)
  
  
  4. A getting together story? There is so much going on between the three of them; how dose that actually work out into a threesome (or a solid friendship, if you choose to go that route)?
  
  
  5. JI SILANG LIVES. I know I mentioned it before, but tell me the story of how it happens? And the aftermath—how do the three of them heal from where they are at the end of the story proper before all the happy epilogue stuff? I'd love to see them supporting each other through that trauma recovery.
  
  
  Yuleporn Prompts:
  
  1. OK. I admit it. I ship Yunshen and Xizhou. I do. I know they're half-brothers and I know that makes this very tangled, but they are SO INTENSE about each other. And as I mentioned way back at the top of this one, Yunshen is very much a people-pleaser. And if this is something that would please Xizhou… I think he'd go for it. ^_^ Maybe it happened when they were younger and more innocent and Yunshen was trying so hard to win Xizhou's approval? Maybe when they were older and had drifted apart a little through college and found themselves under one roof again at break and things just… happened? Maybe a little drunken poor decision making? Do either of them angst about it at afterwards or is this just something where it's like… yeah, we do this now, what of it? Or maybe a little borderline hate!sex during the time they're estranged? Or is this something Yunshen offers to try to buy Xizhou back to his side? I don't know. Have fun? ;D
  
  
  2. Yunshen, Zhu Jiu, and Ji Silang: I think the three of them trying to figure out how sex works could get very very complicated. And again, I think Yunshen's people pleasing ways might lead him to get in over his head from time to time. I think he'd have a really, REALLY hard time saying no to the two of them or even just establishing proper boundaries for what he does and doesn't want. I'd love to see how they work that out. Or maybe they *don't* work that out and as noted, it gets them into trouble.
  
  
  3. Or honestly, just straight up sex between the three of them. ^_^ I'd love to see Yunshen on the bottom in this configuration in some way. Maybe Silang fucks him. Maybe Zhu Jiu gets to do a little pegging or there are toys involved. For that matter, Yunshen has "service sub" written all over him. Maybe he just gets stripped naked (or in some cute little easy-access apron kind of situation ^_~) to serve them all day in whatever way they want? And in the end, he gets gently taken care of and spoiled a little and told he's been a good boy until he maybe—just maybe—almost believes it. ^_^
  
  
  …and now for something much darker? ^____^
  
  Yuleporn/Crueltide Prompts:
  
  As I mentioned at the top of my letter, I have a noncon kink a mile wide. ^_^ And many of these prompts are going to riff off of that, thus why they're under both fests.
  
  1. When Yunshen and Zhu Jiu get attacked in that garage, Yunshen is beaten pretty badly. Maybe that's not all that happened to him? Rape? Torture? Is Zhu Jiu forced to watch? Or maybe they videotape it and save it to send for blackmail later? If Zhu Jiu doesn't see, does Yunshen manage to hide it until that tape arrives? Or maybe she helps him hide it and it's someone else who gets sent the tape? Xizhou? Silang? Lots of fun possibilities there. ^_^
  
  
  2. Down the Yunshen x Xizhou road, maybe Yunshen *isn't* so willing? I'd be ok with dubcon or straight noncon on this prompt.
  
  
  3. Again with the people-pleasing situation… does Yunshen ever offer to help out at the company during one of the times it's having trouble, and someone interprets that in a way that he absolutely didn't mean to offer? Maybe his mother pimps him out to a board member for a vote when he's younger? Maybe he gets volunteered to test out some drugs (an aphrodisiac, per se?) from a less than legal side of the company? And he wants to be helpful, so he doesn't say no and doesn't tell anyone? Does Xizhou find out? What does he do in response? Maybe gets him out of that situation as far as he can? Or becomes just one more abuser?
  
  
  4. Or if you want to look at the aftermath of that above situation, how does this play out between he, Zhu Jiu, and Ji Silang afterwards? He's still eager to please and terrified of losing this piece of happiness he's found… but sex is just in no way a thing he really wants, after his experiences. Maybe he drugs *himself* with an aphrodisiac just so he can get through sex. Maybe they catch him at it and the truth all comes spilling out?
  
  
  -- Yuleporn, and Yuleporn/Crueltide Prompts included. COMPLETE.
  
  
  7. Thermos "Flower Series" Commercials
  Characters: Zhu Yilong's Character
  
  YouTube Playlist with the seven videos and one extra
  
  To start with, if we didn't match on this fandom, and none of my prompts on the one we did match are appealing to you, this is a very quick fandom to pick up. It's about 7 minutes worth of commercials. ^_^ Basically, the Thermos people really did just look at each other and say "If we've managed to get Zhu Yilong to agree to promote our products, then damn it, we are going to make the best use of him we can!" and then gave him a bunch of mini-movies to act in. ;D
  
  What really appeals to me about these commercials is the sheer world-building potential. I saw the Gardenia commercial first, and it had me at "here is this person who has magic portal powers and uses them to... wander the city and solve everyone's sadnesses and worries by being a... Fairy... Thermos... Father...???" And then each successive commercial I saw just compounded the potential, especially if we assume that this Wanderer/Magician character is the same character in each commercial. (Though the thought of them all being the same world and same character does appeal to me, if one of the commercials in particular appeals to you more than the others, and you'd rather look at it as its own world, that's fine by me, too.)
  
  The Commercials:
  
  • Gardenia: Z1L's character helps out sad and struggling people with magical Thermoses.
  • Sunflower: Z1L's character finds a magical sun seed in a tomb and uses it and a Thermos to bring life back to a world of ice.
  • Wisteria: Z1L's character, sad and alone in a boat on an ocean, climbs a ladder to the moon to find a lush world in which can find respite. There is a cat. ^_^
  • Camellia: Z1L's character finds a magical cottage in a land of ice, full of lush overgrown plants, an oasis in the cold.
  • Unlabeled (Peony): Z1L's character wanders through a lush wilderness delighted with the flowers he smells.
  • Tulip: Z1L's character explores an old mansion, finds a secret room with a magical flower that turns into a Thermos.
  • Daisy: Z1L's character explores a gallery (looking very like the virtual gallery Thermos created for his birthday this year), becomes fascinated with a painting of a field of daisies, steps into the painting to explore, brings the magic and Thermoses back with him to the gallery when he returns.
  
  Prompts:
  
  
  
  1. General world building: What kind of magic does he have? How do these worlds connect to each other? Do the people of these worlds know about the magic that helps and protects them? How does he know who needs help?
  
  
  
  2. Is he alone out there? Are there others like him? What are their interactions like? (Bonus crossover idea: Xiao Zhan did a very similar commercial to the Gardenia commercial for bubly, where he runs around helping people solve their problems with the magic of soft drinks. If it strikes your fancy to play with that, I'd definitely be on board. ^_^)
  
  
  
  3. Tell me about someone he helped, maybe on Gardenia world. Does he check up on them later? Do they know who he is? Is he a known cryptid or more like someone who blends into the background? Are there sightings boards? Internet theories? People wishing on their Thermoses to get his attention? I want to know! (This could be a fun place for an outsider POV on him. ^_^)
  
  
  
  4. There could also be some fun crossover potential with the Time Engraver commercials, if you wanted to go there. ^_^
  
  
  
  5. In the Wisteria, Peony, and Daisy ads, he's filled with such wonder, coming into these beautiful garden worlds. Are these worlds that he's healed? New worlds? Resting places? That wonder is almost childlike in nature; has he never seen a world undamaged like these?
  
  
  
  6. In both the Gardenia and Wisteria commercials, he seems to have animal companions. I... I don't have any suggestions for what to do with that, but it's adorable and I thought you should know, and if you WANT to do something with that, please feel free. ^_^ (...if you wanted to play with a Guardian crossover idea, Da Qing would make an ADORABLE animal companion, don't you think? XD Maybe he got stuck on Haixing way back when, this powerful, yet somehow far too innocent Magician, and lost his memory? I always love a Guardian crossover, so feel free to go down that road, if it strikes your fancy. ^_^)
  
  
  
  7. In the snow-covered worlds that the Magician brings light to (Sunflower and Camellia), how did they end up so dark and cold to begin with? Why did the Magician come to them?
  
  
  
  8. We see the end where he heals these dark worlds or finds places of light within them, but what happened there when these worlds were still cold and dark? Does he run into people who are as cold and dark as their worlds? Does he ever get hurt by these people?
  
  
  
  9. Does he ever get tired? We see him wandering alone so much of the the time, and in the Wisteria commercial, he seems so sad in the beginning. Does he ever want to give up? Can he even given up? Is he allowed? How did this end up his responsibility to begin with?
  
  
  Yeah, so basically, these commercials are a lot of fun and there's so much potential there, and I'd love to see what you can do with them! -- COMPLETE
  
  Holy cow, as usual, that's a really long letter. O_O I just tend to get excited. ^_^ Hopefully you found something at least a little bit helpful in there, somewhere. If you didn't, however, they really were just thoughts and suggestions. So, if any of the details I provided don't work for you, feel free to toss them out the window and write what's most comfortable for you. If you are happy and excited about what you're writing, I'm sure I will love it. Passion comes across and I do not in any way want to dampen yours. ^_^ Go with your gut. The fact that you're writing something for me is plenty enough to have me thrilled and excited and bouncing for joy. ^_^
  
  Happy writing! ^_^
  A grateful recipient