cousinshelley | Multifandom Horror Exchange Letter

LIKES: Friendship, found families, loyalty, love whether it's sexual or not, deep emotional connections and devotion, supernatural elements where appropriate, third person POV, humor, people figuring things out together, gray areas and difficult choices, displays of affection and respect, characters sacrificing their own comforts to help others, dub-con in certain fandoms, hurt/comfort, forced proximity, missing scenes and fix-its, first times, happy endings, unrequited love finally realized, fake couple/marriage to real romance, snark and banter. For horror, I like close calls, one person injured in the close call and another having to help them, the horror of nightmares and visions, the horror of guilt and regret and helplessness, self-sacrifice to save another and the guilt that causes the saved party, lack of agency over your own mind or memories.

DO NOT WANT: Non-con, AU (coffeeshop, school, space, historical canon characters in modern day, A/B/O, etc.); First and second person POV (sorry, don't read them in fanfic except in journal or epistolary stories); Holiday stories; Unrequested ships; Kidfic and pregnancy; Unrequested identity headcanons; Focus on gender identity or sexuality; Genderswapping; Character death; Cruelty to animals; Original major characters except where noted; Crossovers; Crack; Fluff; Surprise serious illness that's not canon. Overall, if you stay pretty much within the bounds of the source material canon and in that spirit, it's hard to go wrong.

Please don't be overwhelmed by me blathering on about various prompt ideas. I enjoy brainstorming plot and characterization ideas, that's all. And please don't feel like you have to try to use more than one, or any!

Also, I may have more prompts for some than others, some ideas came easier than others, but that doesn't mean I want any less than the rest. I'll love a story about any of these characters!

The Exorcist
Fic: Not emphasizing sexual content
Horror: Religious, Psychological
Marcus Keane/Tomas Ortega, Marcus Keane & Tomas Ortega

Fathers and Catholics and Demons, oh my.

I do ship them, so hard, but canon-compatible friendship and devotion (and hopefully things like the hand clasps, face cupping and nape touching they do all the time) is absolutely enough for me. And because this is a horror exchange, feel free to really lean into the horror, but please have some comfort and relief by the end. Don't leave them in misery!

I'm a big fan of possessions that last and the possessed person has to behave normally in some situations, either with others knowing or not knowing the truth, so most of my prompts involve that kind of thing in one way or another. If you're really moved by an idea that's completely different from my prompts but is still focused on horror that also showcases their devotion to their cause and each other, write that!

Ideas:

A possession story in which Tomas is possessed and Marcus suffers the horror of it at least as much, if not more, because of his helplessness in the face of it and guilt that he couldn't protect him. It can be a straight up 'Tomas gets possessed, Marcus struggles to exorcise the demon' story in which the demon in Tomas taunts Marcus before he manages to banish it. The old gray lion and the cub thing kind of does it for me, those references are fine, so the demon!Tomas taunting him about losing his cub, wanting his cub (if you ship it), or about denying himself, whatever. It can hurt, badly, as long as the demon's cast out in the end and they get a least an embrace or a moment of comfort after.
Tomas possessed with consent and it's destroying him. I like the idea that he allows a demon inside for some reason--maybe in a Supernatural-like scenario the demon convinced them that they needed it to defeat a bigger, badder demon or something worse. Marcus can't exorcise it, they need its power to defeat that worse evil, and waiting for that time is hell for both of them. Sometimes the demon's in control, taunting Marcus, behaving like a predator around other people, but when it lets Tomas emerge from time to time, each time he's a little more broken and struggling to hang on, and in need of a lot of support from Marcus. I realize what a long and complicated story that has the potential to be, but I think it would be fine to jump in when the demon's already in him, they'd already made the horrible decision (and heck maybe Tomas made it and Marcus is still upset about that), and so there's no need to go into the reasons for it. the story could even start after whatever they needed to defeat has been defeated (or in mid-battle), and when it's over, the demon is reluctant to leave as it had agreed to. Or maybe it will do what it said, but they had to agree to terms beforehand and it gets a few hours or days after the other thing is defeated to remain as part of the agreement, and they have to ride that out. I think there are lots of possibilities here.
Another idea I really like is a similar type of thing where Tomas has no idea what's happening. Maybe part of the deal the demon insisted on was hiding the truth from Tomas once it's inside him to keep him from being resistant to it. But when he "wakes up" for a few hours at a time, though he doesn't know he's willingly taken on a demon, he suffers in other ways and thinks he's losing his mind because of memory fragments or lost time. And Marcus can't tell him the truth, not until it's over.
Marcus is possessed and knows it, but can't manage to communicate this Tomas because he's too busy fighting the demon who keeps trying to get him to hurt or kill Tomas. Tomas figures it out (maybe because Marcus ends up taunting him much like a couple scenes on the show, whispering in his ear and whatnot) and exorcises the demon, but not before some close calls and Marcus suffering at the idea that he's going to tire eventually and the demon will hurt or kill Tomas using his hands.
A non-possession story idea I like is for either Marcus or Tomas to get captured by an integrated priest or group of them to be offered up for possession or even just sacrificed to a demon or Satan himself. One seeing the other tortured or on the verge of being killed or integrated while trying to figure out a way to burst in and save them sounds (deliciously) horrific to me. And it occurs to me just now that'd be a great scenario for Tomas to come to an agreement for a demon to possess him, to go into wherever Marcus is being held and use its powers to free Marcus from those people before permanent damage is done. Then Marcus has to watch Tomas suffer for the remainder of the time he agreed to let the demon stay inside him knowing that it was all to save him.

Hellbent
Fic: Emphasizing sexual content or not, either is fine.
Horror: Violent, Survival, Killer
Joey/Jared Reynolds, Chaz/Tobey/Joey, Chaz/Tobey, Chaz/Joey, Tobey/OMC, Joey/OMC, Eddie/Jake

Fandom-Specific DNW: I don't mind mention of Eddie's eye, but not a heavy focus on it or anything kinky involving it, please. Definitely no blade hitting it like in the movie.

I love this damn movie with its sometimes bad acting and predictable slasher-movie moments, and I'm happy to admit that much of the reason I love it is down to the fact that not a single member of the main cast is straight. Chaz is bi, judging by the threesome he's having when he's introduced, and the rest are gay, and I love. Them. All. I'm a big old cheeseball, and the light friendship and relationship parts of this movie really appealed to me.

The horror here is obviously because there's a crazy motherfucker murdering people with a sickle, and while I want that type of horror, I don't want any of them killed during the course of the story. Maybe it's going to happen later, who knows, but I like my guys alive.

I'm sorry if I'm light on prompts, but there's a slasher murderer on the loose in his sexy devil costume, so any scenario where he menaces them, maybe injures them but they escape, and have to flee or fight for their lives will work for me. And I am perfectly okay (and even enthusiastic about) the idea that the OMC in the Tobey/OMC or Joey/OMC is the actual killer in his devil costume. Let them dance, make out, do more, before the killer tries to lop off a head and then chase them to finish them off. But of course, let them get away. I think it works particularly well with Tobey/OMC. Maybe in that alley the killer gets pretty sexy with Tobey instead of outright murdering him, and when they're done or in the middle, I don't care, he tries to kill him (and of course fails).

If you want to write sex, groping, handjobs, blowjobs, anal sex, frottage, a little ass slap or hair pull, necking, kissing and that kind of thing, please. Just kissing and groping is perfectly fine, really, but feel free to go beyond that if you want! Joey's chain and padlock and Tobey's dress and makeup (as well as Chaz' cowboy in vest look and Eddie's cop uniform) are okay for someone to really kink on and get into.

Ideas:

For Eddie and Jake, I'm fine with either them having the chance to get it on before the killer shows up and then hopefully fighting him off and escaping in a different way, or being attacked and chased at the club or away from it, with sexual tension and flirting building while that goes on. Making out against a wall in a quiet spot and they don't notice the crazed killer approaching until one of them moves and just misses getting his head lopped off as the sickle hits the wall just above their hair (maybe Jake goes down on his knees in front of Eddie, and that causes Eddie's knees to go weak so he slides down the wall a bit just in time to avoid a beheading? I like that scenario with any of them, tbh) and they have to fight and/or flee? Yes. Those kinds of close calls and scary situations mixed in with flirting, sexual tension and/or sex, and I am there.
I like the idea of or more of them discovering a brutal murder, escaping danger themselves, and having to be comforted by another, maybe having just missed being killed himself. Works for any of them, I think.
Sweet, sweet Joey with his crush on the jock. Please let Joey and Jared get out of that bathroom alive, whether it's because the killer comes in to attack them and they manage to fight him off (and they can be wounded slightly, just not murdered), or they leave the bathroom to go find a dark corner to be alone and uninterrupted and encounter the killer there. I'm all for them being chased and menaced (and I want that, because I do love horror), but let them get away. Maybe they get hot and heavy in the bathroom or somewhere else, and afterward the killer appears. Maybe the killer grabs Joey and holds the blade to his throat in front of Jared in a threatening way and strong and beefy Jared rescues him. Any of this works for me. I just want Joey to have some love and caring, whether it's flirting with compliments, being rescued and held close, or full-on sex.
When it comes to Chaz, I can see him with Tobey, Joey or both. He's so protective of Joey. I mean, the chain and padlock around his neck, I know Eddie put it on him, but only because Chaz was making such a big deal about him not being able to walk for three days. And then telling him it looks good. It kinda screams "mine" and I like the idea Chaz might get into that. And he and Tobey have such a snarky but loving relationship. I can totally imagine him dancing with Joey with an emphasis on pulling him close with that chain. And I can also see him really getting into Tobey's tight dress and heels. The three of them (or two) dancing together and bumping together in any kind of an intimate way before the killer arrives and sends them running for their lives, or comfort cuddling and/or sex after they've escaped and are safe, sound like great scenarios to me.
I would also like any of the pairings in a situation where they've had to hide or are otherwise trapped together for a while. Sounds like fun to me!

Prodigal Son
Fic: Not emphasizing sexual content
Horror: Killer, Psychological
Malcolm Bright, Malcolm Bright & Martin Whitly, Gil Arroyo & Malcolm Bright, Malcolm Bright/Edrisa Tanaka

Fandom-specific DNW: Malcolm/Martin or other incest. It makes sense, I get it, but I'm not looking for that in this story.

"I am trauma."

Malcolm Bright's life is already a horror show in so many ways, but I'm particularly interested in his nightmares and the times he's had PTSD flash memories of things. The man held his hand above a candle flame in the hopes that the pain would ground him and he'd stop hallucinating his father. He's hallucinated himself as a boy. He's hallucinated the girl in the box and poor dead Eve (she deserved better) calling on him to help them. All horror, and I'd like more of it (poor Malcolm).

I chose solo Malcolm, because as long as he's the focus, you don't have to stick to the character tags I chose and I don't want to limit you to that if you're moved to write someone else into it. You can do a story where he's totally inside his own head, and/or write something that include any other character(s) you want from the show.

I love everyone in this bar.

Ideas:

I ship Malcolm/Edrisa. I'm fully aware the show's not going to go there, we're going to eventually get Malcolm/Dani (which I am fine with) but after the end of the season where only Gil and Edrisa were totally backing him up even while JT and Dani were not, I love her even more (and that's saying something). She's a devoted friend to him, and of course has her crush, and why shouldn't she? They are so compatible! I really, really like the idea of him having a nightmare that involves Edrisa, either his father or John Watkins or any random killer has taken Edrisa, he can't find her, and is frantic to save her. Either she gets murdered in his dream or not, either way, but when he wakes and realizes it was a dream, he still has to rush to the morgue, all wild-eyed and shaken just to grab her and hug her in relief, and to make sure she's okay. It doesn't even have to be that shippy, and I'd still love it.
I also really like scenarios where one of them protects the other. Maybe another crime scene where there's a tripwire or some kind of booby trap or threat where Edrisa must remain still while others are trying to disarm or remove the threat. (Maybe in some crazy twist of fate, it's snakes again, because for Edrisa that is definitely horror.) Malcolm has to stand with her and talk to her to keep her calm, and whatever the threat is, it grows--time running out, her unable to stay still--but then the tension is somewhat relieved when they both realize it's working, she's calmed by him and able to hang on, and the realization that she trusts him that much can hang there. Maybe she even says so before it's over. And please then a big, tight hug, if nothing else?
Maybe Malcolm's wounded and trapped with Gil or Edrisa and they have to take care of him. (And that'd be a fine scenario with any character you wanted, really.) He can have nightmares/hallucinations during that time and make it harder for all of them. I like the same scenario with Malcolm having to care for a hurt Gil or Edrisa, too. And they would have to keep him calm as much as he would care for them. Same as with Edrisa, a nightmare involving Gil that would freak him out and make him rush to find and embrace Gil. A heartbreaking one would be dreaming that he didn't warn Gil for whatever reason and having to watch him crumple after drinking tea and know what was going to happen to him, and blame himself. Of course, let him wake and find Gil fine, but feel free to lay on the hurt beforehand as much as you want.
For Malcolm & Martin, he can dream about him or he can be in the cell with him learning things. Either can be horror, given their backgrounds. I like the idea of an adult Malcolm holding child Malcolm's hand as child Malcolm leads him in a dream or a hallucination through parts of his past he's not remembering. The child can show him something his father did that he saw, or what happened in the scenario where he held a knife against someone's torso, or it can show him imaginary things like murdering someone at his father's behest or witnessing his father do something he really didn't. Any truly disturbing dream, whether a real memory or not.
Any situation with any of the tagged characters where Malcolm dreams or imagines that he murders them, unable to stop himself (his father is making him do it somehow, maybe?), and of course wakes to relief (please end it without him being broken--I like relief/comfort in the end).
Another idea would be a whole story where he doesn't know he's dreaming, and keeps hearing his father's voice inside his head almost as if he's channeling him or possessed by him. He can say or do things out of character for himself and realize he's sort of becoming his father, and with that have the urge to torture and kill someone. I can't imagine a worse horror for Malcolm, especially if the person he thinks will be his victim is someone he cares about. Him not realizing it's a dream is what makes it more horrible, but do let him wake up in the end and have some comfort with that person or anyone else, please.
I'm also down for Malcolm dreaming that Martin has died or that something horrible has happened to him and rushing to the prison only to be relieved. I love the love/hate/horror relationship they have. I'm firmly convinced Martin loves his son as much as he's capable of experiencing love, and that Malcolm loves the father he knew until he was ten. I also believe Martin only told him that he had planned to kill him in order to make it more likely Malcolm would stab him. It was a calculated move to prevent as much suffering as possible, a rare altruistic move for Martin, and unfortunately the most suffering because of it was once again laid at Malcolm's feet. And this man who loves him gets bitter and pissy and has no problem gaslighting him when it serves his purposes. It's a fascinating relationship, and anything that leans into that dynamic is very welcome.

Thanks for writing one of these fandoms for me. I'm looking forward to reading your story!