Zaniida's LairPOI Series and Collections

Note: I don't expect to keep this site up to date; enjoy it for what it is, and maybe you'll see it updated yearly (more likely bluemoonly).

AO3 is my main account; FFN holds a small and tamer subset of my writing. Further notes can be found at the bottom of the page.

Hover over (or press on) spoilers to see the contents.

The majority of my POI fics are written from Finch's point of view. But the series fics tend to switch that up a bit.

The Many Finchnappings

I love seeing my favorite characters get kidnapped, captured, forced into uncomfortable situations. It's my bread and butter. In fact, my first Birthday Request story promet, Three Minutes (379 words), was specifically about Harold Finch knowing that he's about to get kidnapped while John can do nothing but comfort him a bit over the phone.

Early on, before I'd come down with a terminal case of the plot bunnies, I decided to write a series of Finch getting kidnapped Once Per Episode. Each installment would have Finch in the total control of someone else.

If Finch had been kidnapped/captured in canon, I'd craft an AU version, and if he'd been captured only momentarily, I'd expand the moment enough to be enjoyed.

My attempt played out like this:

Timeline
  • April 21, 2017: Mirror (updated 4/24, 5/8, 5/29, 6/20, 7/24, 9/30; 2018 2/16, 4/17, 4/20; 2019 8/25, 9/30; 2023 8/17)
  • May 22, 2017: Series Begins (Strip Search chps 1-2; updated 7/17, 7/30, 8/27)
  • June 26: A Better Way* not officially part of the series
  • July 3-10: Man, on the Inside
  • July 16: Harold Would Have Thanked Him (updated 9/24, 12/31)
  • Aug 17: Three Minutes
  • Sept 7: Strange Bedfellas (updated 12/24)
  • Oct 1: AU Series Begins (Bespoke)
  • Oct 14: To Be There in Time (has a kidnapping sequence)
  • Oct 28: I don't want this body to hurt anyone (spoof podfic 2023 4/1)
  • Nov 2-30: Manipulations (Nanowrimo win)
  • Dec 4: Buying Time (updated 2018 1/31, 2023 12/27)
  • 2018
  • Jan 1: Bound to Fall (originally posted as January Promptly Arives; updated 2020 10/30)
  • Mar 1: March Comes Barreling In (updated 2022 3/1)
  • June 1: June Unexpectedly Arises
  • June 1: Numb Too Long (tweaked 6/9)
  • July 3: Obedience Is Bliss (has a capture sequence)
  • Dec 1: December Acts Selflessly
  • 2019
  • Feb 14: Everybody Wants Finch (updated 2/15, 2020 2/14, 3/3, 12/4)
  • Dec 31: Waif (written before I joined AO3)
  • 2020
  • Aug 25: Feasting on Fealty
  • Oct 31: The Imposter
  • 2022
  • Jan 10: Shadow of the Angel's Share (updated 10/11, 10/31)
  • 2023
  • Oct 28: Displacement

Shorter Version: I published Mirror (which starts with a double kidnapping) on April 21st, then started my Finchnappings series on May 22nd with Strip Search, which I shockingly completed within a few months (that never happens unless I'm writing for a fic exchange). I then published A Better Way on June 26th, which likely should be part of the series but I never incorporated it that way. July and August saw some tiny fics focused on kidnap/capture/transformation, then at the start of October I posted Bespoke which started my AU Finchnappings series.

A few others contain kidnapping sequences or a capture premise, and then on December 4th I posted Buying Time the second piece in my Finchnappings series. Which I updated on January 31st, and then......... in 2023.

Between those two points, I posted a variety of prompts, a group project, two fic exchange projects, and a variety of other pieces, all of which focus on or feature Finch dealing with captivity in one fashion or another.

TL;DR: I started my Finchnappings series in May 2017, completed the first fic in a matter of months, started the second fic in December, updated it in January... and then from early 2018 to late 2023 it languished until I finally updated it in December 2023. That's two whole entries in my series. Yay?

But I also posted a lot of other finchnapping-related content during that time, so I don't feel as bad as I did before typing this.

Once Per Episode?

The original idea didn't last very long, although I have lots of notes about how other episodes might go. Would cheerfully pass the torch to someone else (and share my notes) if they cared to work on one or more such episodes.

Also, these are all (so far) from the POV of Finch himself

Main Series
Episode 1-01 (Pilot): Strip Search (FFN Version)
Captor: John Reese
Word Count: 14,670 (5 chapters)
Content: Nonsexual nudity (nothing specific); psychological interrogation techniques
When Reese slams Finch against the wall, he accidentally knocks him out. Then he seizes this opportunity to tie him to a bed and interrogate him.
(I also posted part of my notes for this piece, in Strip Search (Abridged) (306 words). It's amusing.)
Episode 1-02 (Ghosts): Buying Time
Captor: The Hitman
Word Count: 3235 (3 chapters posted out of 4-5)
Content: Short deliberate pain; ramped-up fear, expectation of getting killed
Finch manages to convince Theresa to escape, but in return gets captured by the hitman, and all he can do is stall long enough for Theresa to get away.
Episode 4-18 (Skip): A Better Way (FFN censored version)
Captor: Root
Word Count: 5404 words (AO3) or 4240 words (FFN)
Content: Non-consensual drug use; begging/persuading; long delves into Harold's memories and traumas
The FFN version concludes in a satisfying way, and if you'd like to avoid more controversial issues, just read that version. But the AO3 version has an expanded ending:
AO3 Version Only: Discussion of a mutual DubCon/Non-Con encounter (neither wants it; both think it's the lesser of two evils). It's implied that this will happen, but the fic ends right as that content begins.
(Note: When I wrote this fic, one of my earliest, I didn't yet have this series in mind. Still, it fits: a canon moment expanded into a full kidnap/capture.)

AU Finchnappings

AU Series (Canon Kidnappings Reimagined)

If Finch actually does get kidnapped in canon (never seen a male character play Damsel in Distress so much! I love it), I craft an AU version to play around with the potential drama. A different AU each time.

Episode 1-23 (Firewall): Bespoke (FFN Version)
Style: Lovecraftian Horror
POV John Reese
Word Count: 5739 words
Spoiler: Instead of being captured by Root, Harold gets captured by extradimensional beings.
This piece is told from John's POV, as he tries to figure out why Harold is acting all weird and traumatized after just a few minutes apart.
Episode 2-17 (Proteus): The Imposter
Style: Supernatural Possession
Word Count: 3147 words (1 chapter posted)
Spoiler: The guy's been stealing identities, literally -- taking over the bodies of his victims.
I have plans for this piece, but as it's rather large in concept and I have too many open fics as it is, it'll have to wait quite a while.

Harold in Peril

Episode-Independent Finchnappings

I've written a ton of other fics where Harold gets kidnapped or captured, so... might as well stick 'em in a related series.

Let's start with a group project, though: Everybody Wants Finch (7445 words, 5 chapters) is an over-the-top Valentine's Day project I spearheaded where three writers (including myself) and two artists put together a tale of Finch getting targeted by three different people for three different reasons. The first chapter is a typical kidnapping, the second and third combine to make a... not-so-typical kidnapping, the fourth is not a kidnapping at all, and the last chapter is a piece of art that sums up the whole exhausting day.

As to the rest...

Basic Finchnappings

Numb Too Long
  • AO3 Main Version Numb Too Long; FFN Split Version: Fusco & Shaw, Finch
  • Genre: Casefic / Torture (split focus)
  • Captor: Original Characters
  • Word Count: 40,577 (16 chapters)
  • Style: Second-Person POV ("you") across three distinct characters
  • Content: Torture (obviously); physical damage requiring serious first aid; non-consensual alcohol use
  • Key Comment: All of that backstory and character depth is as flawless as it is rare. A lot of the numbers in canon aren't as well developed as your OCs. -- talkingtothesky

As I recall, this Fic Exchange had a 1000-word minimum. I, um, kinda overshot, in the best way. I was a bit nervious about my choice of style, but this fic garnered some of the best praise I've ever received:

Comments
  • epic and wonderful - a really tight case fic, with fantastic character insights
  • I like how Finch’s perspective changes how I see the other two
  • THiS is too fantastic and fresh and please tell me you’ve been working on this for long time and just happened to finish it for this exchange, bc if not how in the hell did you something so cohesive, so polished, THAT FAST.

The original version lets you read the fic in one of three ways; the FFN versions make this easier:

Casefic: AO3 Odd Chapters or FFN The Icy Hearts of Old Friends
Fusco & Shaw try to track down Finch before Reese finds out. They know he's been kidnapped but not why.
Captive: AO3 Even Chapters or FFN Numb Too Long
Finch gets captured by some old friends out for unusual vengeance. Can he bear up under the torture, and will he still be intact if rescue arrives?
Full Experience: All AO3 Chapters
Flips back and forth between the Fusco & Shaw chapters and the Finch chapters, giving a good overview of what's going on, often repeating scenes from another character's perspective.


Waif
  • AO3 Exclusive: Waif
  • Genre: Rapefic with internal focus
  • Captor: Faceless, nameless villain
  • Word Count: 2225 (1 chapter posted out of 2-3)
  • Content: Rape, agony; threat of torture; dissociation?

The first POI fic I ever wrote, but nowhere near the first I posted; I got derailed by astolat's One-Way Glass, started Mirror, and then didn't want to have two open rapefics at the same time. (That resolution lasted a couple years.) Notable because I wrote this before actually seeing the series; I'd been reading POI fics obsessively for a while, and got to know Finch enough to portray him pretty well.


Shorter Pieces

Three are story prompts from my 2018 Monthly Prompt series; one's a response fic. POV on the multi-chapter pieces is mixed.

Harold Would Have Thanked Him (Drabble Chapters (3))
Captor: The U.S. Government
Warning: Major Character Death
Blame astolat for the scenario; she likes to hint at dire fates and then evade them, while I like to explore what would happen if they couldn't be evaded.
Bound to Fall (January Promptly Arrives) (819 words across two chapters)
Captor: Choose-Your-Own Captor
Prompt: Harold's been captured and is being used as leverage to get John to surrender.
March Comes Barreling In (897 words)
Captor: A Boxcar
Prompt: Carter's been dosed with a substance that makes her violent, and Harold's one hope is that she doesn't notice him before it wears off (or John finds them).
June Unexpectedly Arises (835 words)
Captor: John Reese
Prompt: Harold just realized that John has drugged him; why?

AU Finchnappings

Manipulations (NaNoWriMo 2017)
  • AO3 Exclusive: Manipulations
  • Plot: Escaping the Matrix (based on the plot of Saints Row IV)
  • Genre: Um...... Speculative Fiction Whump "throw everything at the wall and see what sticks"?
  • Captor: The Matrix, as controlled by Samaritan Jr.
  • Word Count: 53,211 (32/?? chapters, and nowhere near complete)
  • Content: Mind the chapter warnings; this thing went to some uncomfortable places. Including invasive medical techniques.
  • Key Comment: I think the pressure to produce quickly has brought a great energy to your writing! Your writing is smooth as silk -- I think it may be my favorite thing you've written!!

This piece was great fun to write, and I'd love to update it a little, but I knew from the start that I would never complete it; the idea is just too big. I'd still like to maybe add a little bit; I've got some half-written bits and ideas, but I'm just too busy to delve into that right now.

Comments
  • This is amazing, I love the idea of the computer nerd actually being in the computer. The writing style flows smoothly and is very descriptive without being too overwhelming, and the fact that you describe actions and situations that never even crossed my mind is an added bonus.
  • Each chapter seems to introduce a new form of torture for Harold. It shares with many of your other stories an underlying theme of Harold being forced to submit to and accept suffering in oddly rape-like situations: rendered partially or completely naked and having various parts of his body painfully invaded. A garden of delight for those who enjoy his torment!
  • You know how much I love my Harold angsty and you're the best at his inner dialogue.

If anyone would like to build off this piece, I fully encourage it! I'm never stingy with my ideas.



Strange Bedfellas
  • AO3 Exclusive: Strange Bedfellas
  • Genre: Omegaverse
  • Plot: Elias invites Finch over for dinner, as a ruse to have him deal with Marconi's rut
  • Captor: Carl Elias (not particularly dark, but not great either)
  • Word Count: 7066 (2/4 chapters)
  • Content:
  • Key Comment: Your world building here is just extraordinary and you found a perfect balance between exposition and the immediate interaction of Harold and Anthony. So many awesome details: the drugs, the "furs," the careful attentiveness of the bond. It's an amazing story.

One of the neat things about not being a Shipper is that I can explore various unusual Ships without feeling disloyal to my "main." Marconi/Finch is hardly going to be a common or popular one, but I seem to have made it work:

Comments
  • Oh! Thats a whole different tone from your other works I've read, and I like it too! That caring mobster, his awful-at-times Boss, oh that love of Anthony and Boss (doesnt matter of which kind it is), that sad, lonely, but independance-craving Harold, needing touch and comfort...
  • I wonder how, in a world where omegas are a lower case o to the alphas upper case A, that Elias has managed to be so powerful and command pet alphas!
  • I think you've kind of sold me with the Finch/Marconi idea. I'm very surprised at that. You've done a nice job with the emotional aspect of everything that went on. I liked the fact that Anthony wasn't in on it either and you've done a very nice job with his characterization/personality as well. I'm looking forward to seeing how this plays out.

I have most of the third chapter written, but trying to wrestle the pieces into place has been repeatedly frustrating, so for now it's on the shelf. I do know exactly where I want to take this piece, it's just a matter of getting there.


Feasting on Fealty
  • AO3 Exclusive: Feasting on Fealty
  • Genre: Supernatural AU -- Dark Inverted FMI
  • POV: John Reese
  • Captor: "Daisy", a fae-like being who owns Harold and John as her slaves
  • Word Count: Double-Drabble Chapters (5)
  • Content: Emotional/psychological torment; direct-pain torture; body-related squick
  • Key Comment: Had to skip past some passages that were particularly unnerving. You took us on a faithful visit to the strange universe where John serves daisy!

Based on an AU by Maculategiraffe, where John and Harold are captives/slaves to an otherworldly being who calls herself "Daisy," who feeds on John's willingness to do anything at all to spare Harold.

This isn't the only piece I'm planning within that AU, but it'll be a while before I have the free time to even draft one of the other pieces I have planned.


Shorter Pieces

In both of these pieces, the "captor" is Samaritan, who managed to convert Harold via nanites. The first is just a hint of the scenario; the second goes in his perspective as he realizes he's about to change and can do nothing about it.

Man, on the Inside (FFN Version) (Drabble Chapters (2))
Harold's been captured and his humanity stolen away -- but the silver lining might be the last thing he wanted to hear.
I don't want this body to hurt anyone (FFN Version) (879 words)
After getting dosed with nanites that will soon take over his brain, Harold barely has time for one quick phone call to say farewell to John and give one last wish before his body goes on without him.

This AU concept -- Samaritan/Decima using nanites to subvert its enemies, rather than directly killing useful assets -- is something I'd love to see explored in greater depth, but my plate is simply too full to go added longer pieces to right now. If anyone takes this idea and runs with it, I would love to hear about it!

I'm looking forward to more such unusual scenarios. They're tons of fun to dream up and write.

The Many Kidnappings of Harold P. Finch

Anyway, this idea has spawned three series:

(In case it's not obvious, I can't get enough of Harold in Peril.)

Lengthy Fics

The majority of my POI fics are written from Finch's point of view. But the series fics tend to switch that up a bit.

Yearly Retrospectives

My intial intention was to contemplate the year's events with a fic uploaded on New Year's Eve. I'd write a short piece that pulled double duty, describing both (a) the circumstances that Finch finds himself in, and (b) the real-life circumstances that the author has dealt with during the year.

The fics themselves turned out pretty well. The timing... well. On the one hand, I was pretty annoyed that I didn't complete Retrospective: Fire anywhere near the end of 2019. On the other hand, delaying that fic by most of a year actually improved it, given that 2020 was the year that thoroughly set everything on fire (sometimes literally). I feel like, if I had written and posted the fic back around New Year's, it would have quickly felt woefully naive ("You call that a crisis? Girl, you ain't seen nothin' yet").

At any rate, the fics did turn out well, so here they are: Water (2017), Air (2018), and Fire (2019-2020) (a crossover with Tony Stark of the Marvel Cinematic Universe)

Story Prompts

Shortly after joining AO3, I tried to make use of their mechanics to create some story prompts. Sadly, I don't think anyone even saw them, let alone got interested enough to make something based on them.

Original Neglected Prompts
Hopscotch John (based on S4 E04 Brotherhood)
POI raised the idea of John playing hopscotch to get information from a group of school kids, and I was sorely disappointed that they never showed that oncreen. I want to see people make short fics of John having to play games (or do other weird things) in order to get information from the kind of people who can't (or shouldn't) be bribed with money.
Thanks to one of my birthday prompts, merionees created a fan comic version of this prompt: Upgrading your skillset (every day), which is pretty funny.
Intense Duet Scenes
Michael Emerson: I like great, intense duet scenes with good actors. I like being in a confined space with someone very dangerous, and having a conversation that could blow up at any minute.
By coincidence, so do I! I love seeing this kind of thing in fics. I would like to see more fics capitalizing on this core aesthetic.
Mission Creep Finch
Out of communication, Harold must put himself in danger to deliver crucial information to John. Basically, I'd just like to see more iterations of this general idea: Harold (especially early-series Harold) shows his dedication to John's safety and the mission's success by wading into the danger instead of staying behind his computer screen.
Odd Couple Donnelly
Nicholas Donnelly is so delightfully oblivious and single-minded. And even though we're rooting against him, he's not a villain; he's doing what he thinks is right, and upholding the law, and our characters are, after all, lawbreakers. So I did find his death kinda sad.
The contrast between Donnelly and any other character in POI could make for some amusing (or poignant) scenarios. Just throw him and another character into a situation where they have to work together. Maybe he's aware of their identity or affiliation, but they must work together to survive or escape. Maybe he has no idea that the person he's working with is not on his team (e.g. Marconi or Hersh masquerading as a cop). Maybe Reese sets him up with Leon Tao just to get revenge on both of them.

Lastly: Integrity Crisis (a term coined by my beta reader)

Bob has been compromised (drugs, a spell, amnesia, emotional upset, whatever) in a way that removed his inhibitions. He starts coming on to Jim, and appears totally willing to have sex. However, Jim realizes that Bob is in no condition to consent, and so Jim resists. The temptation is strong, but Jim's integrity is stronger. Maybe he'll even have to take extreme measures to evade Bob's advances (while also keeping Bob safe).

I've seen this in a few fics, most commonly with a form of Sex Pollen, but I've also seen a nonsexual variant where Bob is willing to give Jim his secrets, but Jim, who desperately wants those secrets, refuses to let Bob tell him. It fascinates me that you can take 100% of the sexual content out of a normally sexual trope and still have the exact same trope; I would love to see if any other variants could be created.

Monthly Prompts for 2018

I still don't know how these things work, but I challenge y'all anyway!

After getting no response to my initial attempts, I started making ficlets that were their own story prompts; these got some hits immediately, and turned into a whole series and more!

I pledged to create a follow-up based on the number of fills posted within a two-month deadline. About half the 2018 series got fills. I'm slow to update, so I've only written one follow-up so far, but I still intend to make good on my pledge (eventually), and possibly to write short follow-ups for the rest anyway.

Prompts That Got Fills
Bound to Fall (January Promptly Arives)
Prompt: A villain is using Harold as a hostage to force John to surrender/comply.
One Fill: The Catch by elbowsinsidethedoor
I was pretty shocked to see who created the fill for this piece! See, there's a spectrum among my readers, from those who love Whump to those who are (mostly) Whump-averse and prefer my tamer pieces. I'd crafted this prompt specifically for one Whump-loving writer/fan/friend, and elbows is quite on the opposite side of that spectrum!
February Soon Appears
Prompt: When a case goes wrong, John and Harold are stuck in a dark basement and must evade their enemies without being able to see.
Three Fills: In the Dark (Tipsylex), In the Light (Lisagarland), and The Dark (elbowsinsidethedoor)
I'm looking forward to writing a follow-up with no visual detail. That's always a fun challenge.
April Flounces By
Prompt: "Mr. Reese. I'm afraid I must ask you to stop that -- immediately.
I'm actually a bit surprised that I got three fills for such a short prompt, but: Stop (Lisagarland), Not Taking Orders (talkingtothesky), and The Library System (Fringuello).
June Unexpectedly Arises
Prompt: John has drugged Harold; why?
Two Fills: Things Have Changed (oddgit) and Tea and Absolution (PreachingtotheQuire).
I love this scenario. But then, I love any scenario where a character realizes that they're about to be incapacitated, and can do nothing other than struggle futilely against the inevitable.
July Goes Nuts
Prompt: Do something in a creative medium that you're not familiar with or not yet used to.
This actually became a yearly prompt! Each July, I encourage people to stretch outside their comfort zone and see what they come up with. Not just fics, fan art, and fanvids, but arts and crafts, sewing (knitting, crochet, cross-stitch, etc.), food art, filk songs, podfics, crossword puzzles, video games or text games... there's a ton of possibilities.
Five Fills: Lisagarland created July___ヽ(´▽`)/, merionees created Upgrading your skillset (every day), and Fringuello created Stitches of Interest, The Ballad of Team Machine, and Fanart for Hamartia.
I believe the fills fell short of my offer for creating a better version of "Squirrel Reese and Chipmunk Finch." Still, I got fills, and I did come up with a fun idea for a written follow-up, so that's in the works.
October Feels Odd (FFN: Post-Surgery Pronoia)
Prompt: Explore a complicated emotion! Mine explores Pronoia, the annoyance of everyone trying to help you.
The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows offers some possibilities, but there are plenty of lists of emotional terms from other languages... or very specific or niche emotions that are difficult to express succinctly using existing terms (so people create odd new terms that might or might not catch on, but at least allow us to consider the emotion as a concept).
Two Fills: Onism by Triss_Hawkeye and Their Memory Remains by Murus.
For one, I'm looking forward to picking a new emotion to explore. For two, this is one of the few prompts that made it to a fully fleshed-out story on its own, and thus one that I eventually posted on FFN (absent the context that it was ever a story prompt at all).
Prompts That Went Unfilled
March Comes Barreling In
Prompt: Carter's been dosed with a substance that makes her violence; she and Finch are trapped in a small space, and all Finch can do is hope she doesn't turn on him before the drug wears off -- or John finds them.
Sadly, nobody took me up on this idea. I'd still like to see someone give it a shot.
May Hesitates to Join
Prompt: “It shouldn’t be a big deal, it’s just that… well… I’ve gotten so used to doing it the other way.” (A habit that's become routine gets disrupted.)
This is the month where I ran out of time and threw something together with the least amount of effort. Unsurprisingly, it didn't get any fills.
August Zooms In
Prompt: Let's see some love for the little guys! Write something about a character who only showed up in one episode.
No fills.
September Lets Go (The Plot Bunny Purge)
Prompt: Got more story ideas than you can reasonably complete? Post one in the comments (or as a not!Fic) so it's not taking up time in your brain. Who knows, maybe someone else'll write it!
I did this to get rid of a Criminal Minds plot that I'm no longer in the right headspace to explore. Not surprisingly, I got no fills. I'm vaguely debating about what POI plot I might be able to let go this way.
November Shuffles the Deck
Prompt: Change some key component of the canon tale, and explore the consequences of the change. Mine has Nathan, rather than Harold, survive the bombing.
No fills.
December Acts Selflessly
Prompt: Create Gift Fics for three types of recipients: Someone New, Someone Inspiring, and Someone Quiet. That's someone who recently started reading your work, someone whose writing or comments were particularly useful to you, and someone who hasn't yet written anything on AO3.
No fills -- well, maybe there were, and I just didn't notice; it is, after all, a prompt about surprise gifts, so I wouldn't necessarily hear about them.

So that's the 2018 series. That gave me enough feedback to settle on three prompts a year: January and July, plus my Birthday Prompt.

The Monthly Birthday Prompts led to a series of July Prompts, which are always the same thing: Push outside your comfort zone and create something in a medium you're not yet familiar with, or not yet comfortable with. This has led to some very interesting projects!

July Creativity Prompts

Thus began this series:

And it garnered these fills:

  1. 2018: July___ヽ(´▽`)/ (Lisagarland): Art and screenshot manips/comics
  2. 2018: Stitches of Interest (Fringuello): Knitted character squares
  3. 2018: The Ballad of Team Machine (Fringuello): Filk song lyrics
  4. 2018: Fanart for Hamartia (Fringuello)
  5. 2018: Upgrading your skillset (every day) (merionees): Fan comic
  6. 2019: Nathan (Fringuello): Doll
  7. 2019: The Adoption of Kristal_293 (ReaderFreak5000): First fanfic
  8. 2019: Art for Cover Up the Sun (CrazyLikeThat): First fan art
  9. 2019: Marvel Bento Boxes (Prosto_Dasha): Food Art
  10. 2020: Podfic for Rules are made to be broken (EndlessStairway)
  11. 2020: Crossword Puzzle: POI Episode Titles (Seasons 1-2) (Fringuello)
  12. 2020: Podfic for for that which grows (Fringuello)

Who knows what next year's prompt will bring into the world?

Actor Birthday Prompts

My January Prompts have become one year-long prompt, giving a general idea with themes for each month. I've done this with POI and the MCU; not sure what theme I'll go with for the coming year. Crossovers, maybe?

Anyway, for 2019 and 2020, my prompts were based around actor birthdays: I grouped all the actors whose birthdays fell under the same month, picked the most prominent or interesting one, and added a couple of suggested themes:

2019: Person of Interest

Person of Interest Actor Birthday Prompts:

January: Shaw Month (Sarah Shahi: Jan 10th)
Bonus Themes: "We don't have time for this!" / infiltrating where John can't
Twins: Leon Tao and Farouk Madani (Jan 21st)
Andrea Gutierrez; Hersh, Alistair Wesley, "Alan Fahey"
February: Elias Month (Enrico Colantoni: Feb 14th)
Bonus Themes: Matchmaker / bachelor fun / unusual skills
Twins! Claire Mahoney and Karolina Kurkova (Feb 28th)
Jessica Arndt, Maxine Angelis; Tara Velander aka "Jordan Hester"
Given that Elias's actor was born on Valentine's Day, and that the patron saint of love was Saint Anthony, I'd enjoy seeing some unusual pairings during this month. Here's some interesting choices to pair with Elias (whether romantically, sexually, or platonically):
  • Fusco: They had some chemistry, especially in the fifth season.
  • Carter: At least a one-sided attraction: "She was civilized to the very end. I don't think she liked me. But I liked her very much."
  • Zoe: She and Elias can have a similar pragmatic mindset at times.
  • Bruce Moran: Elias's other lose friend, who was upset at not being told that Elias had survived.
  • Will Ingram: I would love to see this potential relationship explored. There are some intriguing threads that might pull them together, and Will's curiosity might get him in over his head.
March: Control Month (Camryn Manheim: Mar 8th)
Same Birthday: Abby Monroe (played by Jessica Collins)
Bonus Themes: Family secrets / captive to Decima
Twins: Michael Cole & Anton O'Mara (Mar 19th)
Martine Rousseau, Rick Dillinger
(I would love to see some Control/Cole Dom/sub, whether sexual or not.)
April: Cal Beecher Month (Sterling Kelby Brown: Apr 5th)
Bonus Themes: Things he can't talk about / getting to know Taylor
Twins: Dani Silva and Paula Vasquez (Apr 25th)
Bruce Moran, Lou Mitchell; Alonzo Quinn
May: Zoe Morgan Month (Paige Turco: May 17th)
Bonus Themes: Wit and poise / out of the city
Twins: Mark Snow and John Greer (May 22nd)
Caleb Phipps, Riley Cavanaugh; Ulrich Kohl
June: Grace Hendricks Month (Carrie Preston: June 21st)
Bonus Themes: Secrets she never shared with Harold / loneliness / vampires
Megan Tillman, Theresa Whitaker, Beth Bridges, Mira Dobrica
Additional Bonus Theme: Girls' Month
July: Fusco Month (Kevin Chapman: July 29th)
Bonus Themes: Nicknames he grew up with / actually a competent detective
Additional Bonus Theme: He keeps seeing people who look like Root, but they aren't (since the gal who played Root's first appearance shares Fusco's birthday)
Arthur Claypool, Sofia Campos; Kara Stanton
August: Nathan Ingram Month (Brett Cullen: Aug 26th)
Zaniida Birthday Request Themes: Captivity / injury recovery
Other Themes: Nathan trying to cook / saving the Numbers / smarmy asshole Nathan
Joey Durban, Harper Rose, Monica Jacobs, Genrika Zhirova; Peter Collier, Jeffrey Blackwell
Additional Birthday Request Theme: Give Jeffrey Blackwell a better ending. He did not deserve the ending he got; Decima pulled him into a world he didn't understand and had no way out of, and I feel for him so much.
September: Carter Month (Taraji Henson: Sept 11th... wait)
September: Person of Interest Key Month
Reese, Finch, and Carter all in the same month. Carter on the very day that started the character arcs for both Finch and Reese. Throw Anthony Marconi into the mix (he shares Carter's birthday!) and maybe Captain Moreno (who shares Finch's birthday) and it's just one big ball of POI.
Bonus Themes: Drugged / quiet house / going it alone causes problems
Daniel Casey, Mr. Han; Patrick Simmons, Floyd
October: Will Ingram Month (Michael Stahl-David: Oct 28th
Bonus Themes: Curiosity leads to trouble / unexpected need for a healer
Madeleine Enright, Hannah Frey; Peter Yogorov, Tyrell Evans
November: Logan Pierce Month (Jimmi Simpson: Nov 21st)
Bonus Themes: Too many 'friends' / tall buildings / alcohol / intentions misunderstood
I've never understood why Pierce ends up as a sadistic villain in a few fics I've come across. He doesn't seem to be a bad guy in the slightest, just a bit of an ass sometimes, eccentric, nosy, and with no sense of self-preservation. But he still chooses to do what's right, even at cost to himself, he stays true to his word, he's got a sympathetic backstory, and he
Also a good month for a Fix Fic, since Reese died in November.
Nicholas Donnelly, Alicia Corwin; Dominic, Jeremy Lambert, Angela Markham
December: Root Month (Amy Acker: Dec 5th)
December: Root Month Dec 5th: Amy Acker Theme: Recovered memories / manipulation / difficult decisions Good thing it’s early in the month—leaves more time for writing presents and such ^_^ Frankie Wells (17), Joan (30) If you know of any significant cast members with December birthdays, point them out in the comments!
2020: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Marvel Cinematic Universe Actor Birthday Prompts

January: Hawkeye Month Jan 7th: Jeremy Renner Theme: Lingering effects / broken arms Rocket (5), Luis (13), Drax (18) Proxima Midnight (24) February: Loki Month Feb 9th: Tom Hiddleston (also Erik Killmonger) Theme: Magic has its cost / trying to escape HYDRA Bonus: Also in February: Frigga and Thanos. Hmm… Twins! Wanda Maximoff & Malekith (16) Okoye (14), Frigga (17), The Collector / Taneleer Tivan (19), Kurt (29) Ultron (7), Thanos (12), Jack Rollins (23), W'Kabi (24) March: Sif Month Mar 12th: Jaimie Alexander Theme: Survivor guilt / girls' night out Bonus: Bucky's canon birthday is March 10th. Nakia (1), Cassie Lang (14), Nova Prime (19), Maria Stark (23), Liz (28) Ego (17), Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (20), Ronan the Accuser (25) April: Coulson Month Apr 2nd: Clark Gregg Theme: Amnesia / juggling too many assets Bonus: I would love to see Coulson in a scene with Yondu. Triplets! Scott, Yondu, & Yinsen (6) Twins! Tony Stark & Red Skull, of all things (4); also, Maria Hill & Talos (3) Peggy Carter (5), Flash Thompson (28), Janet van Dyne (29) Ulysses Klaue (20), Korath the Pursuer (24) May: Vision Month May 27th: Paul Bettany (Vision and JARVIS) Theme: Fragmented memories / torn loyalties / humanity is bizarrely unorganized Triplets! Mantis, Jim Paxton (Cassie's stepdad), & Maya Hansen (3) Sharon Carter (12), Kraglin (22), Rhomann Dey (24), Volstagg (25), Mar-Vell (29) Hela (14) June: Peter Month! June 1st: Tom Holland (Peter Parker) June 21st: Chris Pratt (Peter Quill) Theme: Regretting immaturity / found family Quadruplets! Steve Rogers, Darcy Lewis, Erik Selvig, & Pietro Maximoff (13) Howard Stark (younger version) (2), Wong (3), Jane Foster (9), Eitri (11), Gamora (19), Laura Barton (25) Skurge (7), Brock Rumlow (8), Brandt (12), Helmut Zemo (16) July: Strange Month July 19th: Benedict Cumberbatch (also Taserface) Theme: Magic is no substitute for… / my teammates are bizarre Bonus: Steve & Coulson canonical birth dates (July 4th and 8th). Also: Groot! Betty Ross (1), Stakar Ogord (6), Groot (18), Maggie (20) Karl Mordo (10) August: Bucky Month Aug 13th: Sebastian Stan (and older Howard Stark) Theme: On the run / simple life in Wakanda Bonus: Pair him with Edwin Jarvis Quadruplets! Red Skull, Laufey, Algrim / Kurse, & young Thor (22) Twins! Korg & Queen Mother Ramonda (16) Hope van Dyne (3), Harley Keener (6), Thor (11), Edwin Jarvis (24) Cull Obsidian (14) September: Pepper Potts Month Sept 27th: Gwyneth Paltrow Theme: Past vs. future / organization / everyday perils of motherhood Bonus: Pair her with Heimdall Twins! Hank Pym & Dave (25); Corvus Glaive & Ivan Vanko (16) Michelle Jones (1), Heimdall (6), Everett Ross (8), Col. Chester Phillips (15), Sam Wilson (23) Vulture (5), Arnim Zola (7), Jasper Sitwell (12) October: Valkyrie Month Oct 3rd: Tessa Thompson Theme: Ordeals of being Queen / where was that pegasus hiding? Bonus: Pair her with Captain Marvel, Shuri, or the Grandmaster Carol Danvers (1), Ned (9), Happy Hogan (19), Ayo (26), Shuri (31) Aldrich Killian (5), the Grandmaster (22) November: Nebula Month Nov 28th: Karen Gillan Theme: Adjusting to humanity / glitches in the system Bonus: Pair her with Natasha, Christine Palmer, Ebony Maw, or Bruce/Hulk Triplets! Bruce Banner, Natasha Romanov, & Kaecilius (22) Twins! T'Challa and Rhodey (29); the Ancient One & Justin Hammer (5); the Christines (Palmer & Everhart) (17); Hogun & Maria Rambeau (27) Dr. Abraham Erskine (11), Lord M'Baku (15), King T'Chaka (30) December: Odin Month Dec 31st: Anthony Hopkins Theme: Balancing leadership with fatherhood / adjusting to life on earth Bonus: Pair him with Fury, Fandral, or Aunt May Excelsior Bonus: Stan Lee cameo! Twins! Aunt May & Obadiah Stane (4) Fandral the Dashing (18), Quentin Beck (19), Nick Fury (21), Janet van Dyne (the younger) (26), Stan Lee (28) Yon-Rogg (29)
My Birthday Requests

(FFN Version)
Genderswap FMI

The Journey of Anton O'Mara Genderswap FMI / Miss Kittiwake POI AU-Verse Fics?? Silly Shenanigans
AO3 vs. FFN:

I am invested in my AO3 account, and that's the site that gets the bulk of my work and my attention. I do have an FFN account, but I update it only rarely, and don't have a strong connection to my FFN readers.

So if you want fics and updates as soon as I post them, it's only ever AO3. And none of my Event pieces are written with FFN in mind.

AO3: Intense and Varied (Mind the Tags!)

My niche is intense drama, and I cover a wide range of topics, some quite dark, some controversial. Mind the Warnings, Tags, and Author's Notes, especially if you're a sensitive reader. If you think something should be tagged that isn't, please let me know in the comments.

I'll read just about anything, but I'm not a Shipper; the relationships I most enjoy are deeply intimate male/male relationships with no sexual interest in each other. Only about 10% of my fics even go near sex or Ships, and most of those are responses to other fics.

I figure the fandom is saturated with sexual content; I provide alternatives.

I also coined the Five Moments of (Nonsexual) Intimacy (FMI, FMNI, or 5MI) fic form, mostly as a counter to this "intimacy means sex" idea that so pervades fandom (and society at large). So I've written a lot of FMI fics, not just in my main fandoms but across a variety of other fandoms as well. Most of my lower-intensity fics are of this form, although the FMI form doesn't preclude intensity!

FFN: Family-Friendly (sorta)

By "Family-Friendly" I mean that if my wider circle of family and friends ran across it, I wouldn't have to run damage control. So it can have a dark creepy tale like Bespoke, but it will never get the fics that deal with sexual content, torture, or controversial issues.

My fics start on AO3, and a small portion of them eventually migrate to FFN. Nothing ever starts on FFN, so if you follow my AO3 account, you can be assured that you won't miss any of my fics.

However, a few fics have been altered from their original (AO3) version. This can be to maintain the family-friendly rating, but it's also a way for me to explore how the fic would feel if written in a slightly different way (e.g. changing the POI from "you" to "he"), or to see if a mechanic would work better another way (e.g. Numb Too Long got split into two fics, the Finch-kidnap-experience side and the Shaw-and-Fusco-casefic side).

Now that I have a front end for my content, I hope to be able to showcase any variations I've created.