Get your plot bunnies here! (Fanfic challenges)

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Alexannah

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I have lots of ideas and have written up a few challenges for others to try. I'll probably still write the original ideas myself, but I've allowed leeway for challenge responses to be different. So, who wants to grab a bunny?

Just as an intro, I'm a Spuffy shipper. You won't find contradicting ship challenges here. But feel free to browse anyway. I also ship Giles/Joyce love the kind of family stories with all of them together. I also don't do smut, so no NC-17 responses please. Keep any sex stuff PG-13 or below. No comics either, I haven't read them yet!

Please reply or PM me if you want to have a go - I'd love to read them!

Let's start with ...

William the Bloody Brilliant Poet

Can be set during or after the BtVS/AtS series - but no comics. Spike can be alive or dead.

Buffy has to find out that, after his death in 1880, William’s poetry became very popular, and Spike never knew he was a success.

Buffy goes to England and visits his house which has been turned into a museum in his memory.

The story has to include Buffy’s positive feelings for Spike, and some kind of communication between Spike or Buffy and Anne, e.g. letter, ghostly appearance, etc.
 
Family Ties

Anne is included in quite a few fanfics, but not enough stories in my opinion deal with Spike's family. So here's the deal. Somehow, during any plot device you fancy, Spike and Wesley are brothers. (Biologically, not magically or anything else, although they can be that as well.)

I made them brothers in a fantasy fic and it stuck with me, and I have had an idea how it can be done in canon, so it is possible. Be creative with how they find out. Anne must appear, even if just in a flashback. Buffy is obviously a main character, and the main ships must be Spuffy and Wesley/Fred. Perhaps one or both of the girls act as a mediator between the guys.
 
Those are great ideas! Too bad I have no idea how to write a fanfic. But look forward to reading other people's! 🙂

And if you do write the original ideas yourself, can you please post the fics here or tell me where I can read them? Because they're very intriguing ideas and I'd love to see how they turn out. 🙂
 
sosa lola: Yes, I suppose so.

Spikefan31: Well, none of the abode challenges I've come near to posting the responses for yet. The poetry one is part of my second ever Buffy fanfic idea, but still needs some rework before it's posted. I will post a link on this thread though, when it is. I have a lot more challenges, though, and my response to the one I'm posting now is nearer posting.

Conturbus Challenge (the what? I hear you ask)

The Conturbus came to Earth in the meteorite when the Queller was summoned (Episode Listening to Fear). It's not a living thing, and not exactly evil in itself, but a mist that spreads through the atmosphere, causing rifts in dimensions and Hellmouths to open. Similar to the Key, but more widespread.

Anyway, the Scoobies find it, and records of it having come to Earth before "“ complete with a spell to transform it into something harmless. (Impossible to completely destroy, by the way.)

What it transforms into is up to you. However, the spell doesn't work exactly how they expect "“ and just because a book says it's now harmless, doesn't necessarily mean it is/will always be "¦

Must have:

- Spuffy happy ending
- Spike and Buffy performing the spell together
- Having to deal with the consequences together, however reluctantly on Buffy's part
- Joyce still being ill, but not necessarily dying
- Buffy, Spike, Dawn, Joyce and Giles all living together at some point, however briefly
- Giles/Joyce, even if only mentioned as a regret after Joyce dies *sniff*
- Spike displaying his talent for perceptiveness when it comes to relationships (perhaps on the above "¦?)

Can't have:

- Contradicting ships*
- Miracle Recovery Joyce with no explanation
- The Conturbus being destroyed

Can have:

- A flash of the future, perhaps years on "“ good or bad, up to you
- If bad, the person who saw it has to change it! (Otherwise, where's the happy ending?)
- An encounter with Angel or one of his associates
- Disagreeing opinions on what to do with the Conturbus now

*Obviously the canon ship at present is Riley/Buffy, so when I say no contradicting ships, I don't mean pretend they weren't together. Just break them up at some point during the story, whether the same as in canon or through another plot point.
 
OK, next challenge I'm posting is an interesting one. It's a little ... different.

Willow's Secret Challenge

Several years past Chosen and NFA, Buffy is still not over Spike. Not knowing he's actually alive, she's just trying to get through each day with the weight of regrets about their relationship and the final loss.

However, Willow has known Spike was alive for quite some time, and instead of telling her friend, moved away and lost contact, leaving Buffy feeling betrayed.

This is where things get interesting. Willow knows about Spike because Andrew told her. But the two of them are also keeping another (even bigger, maybe) secret, which came from the Powers That Be with strict instructions not to tell Buffy.

Up to you what the secret is. I've had an idea myself, but I'm saving it for my own version. It has to be something to do with Buffy and Spike's relationship. Come up with a plausible reason why Buffy can't know.

Have Willow, Buffy, Andrew and Spike all as main characters.

Must have:

- Spike and Buffy meeting again, and it turning out W/A knew all along.
- Andrew/Willow pairing. Don't be put off, it doesn't necessarily have to be romantic, but at the least a deep friendship that's come through sharing this secret together.
- Xander and Spike at one point united in their joint fury at Willow.
- Buffy having some kind of breakdown, either post Spike's death or post Willow's "˜betrayal'.
- Dawn older and more mature, but still squealing like an exited little sis when she sees Spike 🙂
- Cleveland Hellmouth. Or a Hellmouth somewhere else, but still set somewhere nice and Hellmouthy.
- Happy ending.

Can't have:

- Willow bashing. She's one of the good guys, after all.
- Explicit sexual stuff. Keep it PG-13 or below. R-rated is fine for other stuff, but no NC-17 fics please.
- Willow can't tell the secret. They have to find out some other way.
- Too much Xander vs Spike. Xander's more mature, and he's also seen how much Buffy has missed Spike. He doesn't have to like him, but be grateful that she's happier.
- Angel. Not in this fic. He's off saving the world somewhere else.
- Comic verse. It's not fair because I haven't read them yet, and I want to read any of these fics. Besides, I have no idea how this idea would fit.

Can have:

- Giles back being the father-figure to Buffy.
- Buffy and/or Dawn slapping Spike for being such an idiot, followed by tearful hug.
- A prophecy. Always fun to write.
 
OK, I caved. I had to set this as a challenge. Only because I think I'm the only one who's ever attempted it. Twice. (With another possible idea bouncing around ...) And I want to read some myself! Both fics have got good responses, so it's not so out-there it's unlikeable. I think here my Harry Potter fandom influences are obvious, because over there this kind of idea is so common it's a cliche. Anyway ...

Daddy's Little Slayer Challenge (also the title of my first fic)

Giles is Buffy's father - that is, biologically as well as in the emotional sense.

Of course, for this plot to work, you have to work around the Joyce thing. Do they pretend not to know each other? Does she somehow not remember? Or do you do what I did (at first), which was set it in post-series one AU-land and ignore everything that came after? (Well, nearly everything.)

Um, yes, Joyce still has to be Buffy's mother. No adopting!

Must have:

- Buffy finding out on her own. No sitting-down-and-having-an-it's-time-you-knew-the-truth-talk. Or at least, have her find out something first.
- Giles/Joyce. Duh.
- Happy ending for the above 😀
- If shipping Buffy with anyone, make it Spuffy.
- A plausible story behind the secrecy, whether it's a domestic tale or something mystically intervening.

Can have:

- The Watchers not being happy ... perhaps concerned about Giles' judgement? (Depends a bit on canon setting I guess.)
- Very confused Buffy 😕
- The Dawn thing making things interesting. I personally haven't explored that avenue with mine, but you're free to.

In the case of this challenge, I have responses to show for it 😉

The first was my first ever Buffy fic idea, set post-series one because I'd only seen that far at the time. Fairly basic backstory (at least compared to the other!). Still a work in progress: Daddy's Little Slayer.

This next one's quite different, more developed backstory. At present it's only a one-shot but I'm working on a follow-up, details in AN: The Daughter He Never Had.

Hope they inspire you, please leave a review, and please don't copy me outright. Thank you.
 
I've posted my own response to the Conturbus Challenge I set up there somewhere. It's called Diamonds and just a prologue at the moment. Don't steal my idea! 🙂 Happy reading.
 
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