[MEME] The Trope Meme (open to all!)

[freebaseforger]

[Shamelessly stolen from Bakerstreet's very own Trope Meme.]

The Trope Meme


Behind the cut is a list of common fanfiction and role playing tropes. What’s a trope? If we’re getting technical a literary trope is the use of figurative language. But in the case of this meme a trope is commonly recurring literary device or motif, a cliché. There’s a mix of fluffy, sexy, angsty and gen prompts in the list. Here’s how to play:

- Post with Your Character and any preferences from my character list (+ specification, hotheaddick, deceptiveparadox and others I might not have listed yet).
- List any preferences you have. Or list any tropes you absolutely refuse to play.
- Lets play out the tropes to our heart’s content!


Tropes

Accidental Baby Acquisition: One of the characters in your story, by means other than pregnancy or adoption, acquires a child. This could be because his or her parent was killed, or someone leaves the child on the doorstep, or any other plotline. The main idea is that the main characters have to band together to raise the child, even if it is only temporary.

Accidental Marriage: Two of the main characters, who may or may not already be in a romantic relationship, wake up and find that they are married. Often set in Las Vegas, and often there are mind-altering substances (alcohol, drugs) involved. The marriage may or may not be annulled by the end of the story.

Alpha/Beta/Omega: Alpha/Beta/Omega or Alpha/Omega (occasionally Alpha/Beta) is a kink trope where some or all people have defined biological roles based on a hierarchical system, with the terms originating from animal behaviour research. There may be werewolf, knotting, or other animalistic elements involved, or the characters may be otherwise purely human.

Amnesia: Giving a character amnesia is a popular fanfiction story trope. The amnesia is usually temporary with the cure and the aftermath as the climax of the story, but sometimes it is permanent.

Animal Transformation: Animal transformation is a fanfic trope in which one or more characters are transformed into an animal, or else an Alternate Universe story wherein the characters are cast as animals.

Bodyswap: Bodyswap is a plot device or story trope involving two (or more) characters switching their physical bodies by magical, scientific, mystical or unspecified means. The device is used in canon and fanfiction alike, and fanfic may expand upon canonical instances of bodyswap.

Celebratory Kiss: Two (or more) of the main characters kiss at the climax of some event. Often, the action is somewhat spontaneous, and the characters are not in a romantic relationship at the time. The kiss is often the impetuous for the characters to end up together.

Cross-dressing: Crossdressing refers to characters dressing as members of the "opposite" sex or gender. It is used comedically, as a plot device and as a kink, both sexualized and not, in fanworks and in canon.

Curtainfic/Domestic: Curtainfic is a term used to describe fan fiction that focuses on ordinary domestic situations (such as the characters in a romantic pairing shopping for curtains).

Day at the Beach: The main characters spend a day at the beach. This could be a vacation for one or two of them, or it could be a team-building exercise planned by a boss or administrator. Sometimes it is a planned excursion, other times, the characters decide to stay to soak up the sun after a mission or assignment that takes them to the beach.

De-aged: De-Aging is a story trope where adult characters are turned back into children or younger adults. The transformation can be fully physical and mental. It can also be a physical transformation that leaves the adult mind in a younger body; or the opposite, where the mind is reverted to a child-like state, but the body remains as is.

Fake Relationship: Pretend Couple is a trope found in all genres of fanworks. This trope includes all sorts of pretenses; marriages of convenience, undercover identities, investigations, financial schemes, immigration schemes, high school reunion dates, wedding dates, making someone jealous, and many others.

Fuck or Die: Fuck or Die is a fanfiction trope in which the author puts two or more characters into a situation that forces intimacy between them. Like many tropes it can be and often is combined with others such as sex pollen or Aliens Made Them Do It and Virginity Sacrifice. It can result in dub-con or non-con fanworks.

Handcuffed/Bound Together: Bound Together is a bonding trope in which two characters are chained together, psychically or physically, either through magical or technological means. The usual result (in ship fic) of all this one-on-one "bonding" time is that the characters either fall in love or realize they were in love all along.

Huddled for Warmth: Huddling for warmth or blanket fic is a trope that is generally found in both het and slash pairing-oriented fanfiction, and occasionally in some gen Hurt/Comfort. It is mainly used in order to maneuver two characters into a First Time. The advantages of putting your OTP into a "huddling for warmth" scenario are legion. The two characters are trapped in one place with no distractions, alone, and so their attention is focused entirely on each other. The tone of the story can range from fluffy to angsty.

In Vino Veritas: In Vino Veritas, or Confessions Under The Influence, is a trope in fic (which also occurs in canon), where under the influence of drink, drugs, truth serum, truth spell or the like, one character confesses to lust or love for another character. The character whom the confession is about is usually also present in the scene/being confessed to and is often less or not under the influence. A common trope is for the confessing character to forget their confession and the other character having to deal with this new knowledge without giving themselves away.

Kidfic: Kidfic is a sub-genre of fanfic that features children in some way. This may be as children of canon characters (whether they are a part of canon or original characters), sometimes known as next generation fic, the characters themselves as children, or the characters having been de-aged.

Kiss to Save the Day: For some reason, two (or more) of the main characters must kiss to save the day or one of their friends. The impetus could be a villain, or aliens, or some sort of illness to which the only cure is a kiss.

Mind Control: Mind control is a very popular trope in fanworks (and many canons).
In slash or ship fic that uses the trope, one part of the pairing is usually under the mental control of the other -- or is unable to resist orders from anyone, such as in Ella Enchanted AUs or fusions or "obedience curse" fics -- and the other part of the pairing figures this out and either helps the mindcontrolled character resist the urge to obey or takes advantage of them.

Poker/Strip Poker: The main characters play a card game, often poker, against one another. Sometimes it starts out at a friendly game, and eventually descends into a more competitive game of strip poker, sometimes it was originally about the nakedness. Often, mind-altering substances (alcohol and/or drugs) are involved.

Presumed Dead: A fanfiction trope in which a character appears to be dead, only to return later, alive and well. Comparable to a deathfic, only non-permanent, "presumed dead" stories often dwell on the emotional hurt/comfort, and sometimes the physical as well. Sometimes these are written as fix-it fics, resurrecting a character who dies in canon. In more reality-based fandoms, the character's death usually has been faked for various reasons, or otherwise mistaken; in fantasy and scifi fandoms sometimes the dead characters actually have expired, and are resurrected with magic or technology.

Rivals to Lovers: Two characters who were originally enemies or rivals fall in love. Their rivalry could have always been a cover for more tender feelings, or they could have been genuine enemies in which forced proximity showed them a better/softer side. There may or may not be a happy ending.

Road Trip: The characters must go on a long-distance trip in close proximity. There are any number of reasons for this, including a quest, mechanical failure of their original transport, or one of the characters (e.g. Tony Stark) thinks it will be a "good idea" or "fun." This then results in shenanigans or sex or both.

Secret Child: One of the characters is secretly a parent. They may or may not have custody of the child, especially if they have a dangerous job, and they may not have known about the child previous to the story. This includes stories where Character X is actually Character Y's son or daughter. Alternately, one of the characters may get pregnant and then disappear, thinking that her partner would not want the child, or fearful that some agency will kidnap the child once it's born. This trope is especially popular with brother/sister incest pairings, where it is called 'secret incest baby' (or sekrit incest baby).

Secret Relationship: Didn't know they were dating is a trope that shows up in ship-focused fanfiction. Often both parties are oblivious to the fact that everyone around them thinks they've been dating for some time. In other fics it may be that just one party is oblivious and the other party thinks they have been dating (just not putting out yet). In angstier versions of the trope, one party may be pining for the other, especially if they're having what one party (or both) thinks or pretends is casual, emotionally detached sex while the other party (or both) is secretly in love.

Sex Pollen: Sex Pollen is a common fanfiction trope used to bring two characters together in a sexual encounter. It involves one or several characters becoming infected with a pollen of some alien or magical plant, or they might be influenced in some other way (magic, alien technology, mind control, etc.) that causes them to lose inhibitions and/or revs up libido, usually resulting in non-con sex, which may lead to dramatic guilt and misunderstandings, or a resolution of UST.

Soul Bonding: In fanfiction and sometimes canon, a soulbond is a mystic or psychic bond between (usually) two people, who feel drawn to become devoted friends, or (more often) lovers. The bond may be something that brings them together, or something that results from their being together. It is usually portrayed as unbreakable and irresistible, a force that unites two people in a unique way. A soulbond can persist after the death of one or both partners, and through numerous reincarnations. It can be very similar to soulmates, which are two (or more) people who are always meant to be together.

Telepathy: A story in which one (or more) of the characters develops the ability to read thoughts. This ability could be limited to their love interest, or it could be more general. Mindmeld is a more specific form, in which both characters can read one another's thoughts. Depending on the needs of the story, it could require a physical link, and it could be temporary. It is named after the Vulcan Mind Meld in the Star Trek universe.

Truth or Dare: The main characters, often a whole team, play a game of truth or dare, or another game in which secrets are revealed, like "Never have I ever." Usually, mind altering substances (alcohol and/or drugs) are involved, and the situation is used to get two characters to admit romantic or sexual feelings for one another.

Wingfic: Wingfic is a fanfiction genre in which one or more human characters sprouts a pair of wings. Fanfic written for a fandom in which the character canonically has wings (e.g. Good Omens) is usually not considered wingfic. However, as a response to a surge of wingfic, a Good Omens writer came up with wingless fic, wherein canonically winged characters suddenly and inexplicably lose them. Wingfic can be whimsical, but it can also be much darker in tone.

[List taken from Trope Bingo, many definitions come from there as well.]

Comments

[tnioprorrim]

"You call it special. I'm not sure I can do that. Not with all I've been through." He'd lost too much, including of himself in trying to stay apart from the world so that he didn't hurt others.

"It means I consider you someone I don't want to lose yet," he said softly, almost shyly. "You're important to the life I have now, the one I want. Is that enough," he added in a small voice. Painfully shy in his social dealings and now nervous about how this might change things between them.

"There is often a... connection. A heightening of the senses between the two. It is an intimate act, after all. Especially to some," he added, looking anywhere but at Eames.

[freebaseforger]

Clarkie hadn't been completely serious when he said it had been a special birthday present. He could only truly imagine how much of Arthur's life had changed as a result.

He was, admittedly, a little surprised by Arthur's admission and the urge to wrap his arms around the point man as a response. "No, darling," he said, instead, watching him with an almost fonder look. "That's enough."

It was. It was enough to know that Arthur wanted to keep him around for a little longer and he was charmed at the fact that one of the best point men around was, dare he say it, shy around him.

The part about the connection and heightened senses caught him a bit off guard. Clarkie blinked. "To you," he asked, not able to help it.

The last hour was, quite frankly a blur but he had remembered those moments in which he almost hadn't wanted to stop sucking on Arthur's wrists. He wondered what it had felt like for Arthur, on the other end of it.

[tnioprorrim]

He hasn't made these kind of admissions for years. Not to anyone. Now that he was opening him emotionally to Clarkie, he couldn't bring himself not to keep it all quiet. So instead he took a deep, unneeded breath and tried to keep going on.

"The connection is... Yes, it's to me. You can feel it if you try. Since it was a moment of close to death, and you were closer to death than I thought until I gave you that blood, then you may feel it well. A bit of connection between us both like a cord between us. If you closed your eyes, you could feel it. But I wouldn't do that."

He rushed to say the words, voice tightening. "It's a feeling many enjoy and they never want to let it go. They seek it out and if the one they want can't help them, then they seek out others. I don't want that from you or for you."

The thought of Eames going to another for blood taking made him straightening, wanting to attack someone just at the thought of it. "I'll watch you, make sure you're safe, and make sure you don't end up like this."

[freebaseforger]

Clarkie watched Arthur as he spoke. He watched all the little minute motions he made as he talked and explained what happened, what it meant and what it changed between them. He heard the tightness of Arthur's words as he spoke about how others felt about letting someone bite them or wanting to suck on someone else's blood and... what was that? He was sure he could see something flair up in those piercing brown eyes of his.

He exhaled a breath, almost feeling the need to sit down but he resisted for the moment. If he sat down, he wasn't sure he'd want to stand up for a half dozen hours as everything caught up to him. "So, there are those who like it when vampires bite them and those who also enjoy being fed..." he asked, an eyebrow raising a little. In books and movies, he'd seen more of the humans who enjoyed being fed from so it was interesting to be on the other side of that.

It was perhaps telling that that was the first thing he asked. Not how long the connection between them would last or what sort of things they could feel from one another. He was pretty certain he had felt some kind of wave of possession when Arthur visibly straightened.

Clarkie lifted a hand and slid it through his hair, grimacing at the dirt caked in it. It wasn't the dirtiest that he's been but it's among the worst. "How long does this connection usually last?"

It was a lot to take in, a lot to digest what had happened not only over the last few days but the last few hours as well.

[tnioprorrim]

Arthur wished he had the right answers. He wished he could tell Clarkie it would be okay and that there was no reasons to worry. Yet he couldn't tell him that. If he was killed before this cleared, then he would become a vampire. He hated the idea of doing that to another, especially one whom he's enjoyed the company of like they have.

"There are actually clubs for those that want lives like that. Vampires who keep pets, others that offer themselves. I've never been a fan of them. I keep track of how often I need to feed and find those that are willing but don't live the lifestyle." He was never sure why they stayed with such a life, and wouldn't risk it wasn't willing and rather was desperation.

"Until it leaves your system. The more you push the blood through your system, the faster it goes through. Exercise. Food. You could sleep and let it pass without feeling it. What would you like to do," he asked, trying to stay tense and not reach out mentally to try and feel that connection. He was rather eager just to feel it, to pull it into him. To feel that vivacious nature that was all Eames.

[freebaseforger]

"So some novels and books got it right then," he asked, then finished the thought, "that's a surprise." Clarkie brought a hand up to his mouth to bite on his cuticle. The action was pure impulse when he didn't have much else to occupy his hands or mouth when he had a lot on his mind. It helped him think. In this case, it helped him think of what Arthur was saying and what it meant to him in the long term.

He nodded. There was a part of him, that curious part of him, that wanted to reach out and feel the connection, feel that bond with the point man. He could... it was like he could almost taste it right there in the back of his mind. But he resisted for the time being and brought his hand back down to his side.

"All of that and more," he said, looking at Arthur. "Other than the blood, I haven't eaten anything in two... three days? And you -- are you...?" Hungry? Needing anything? Not that Clarkie could exactly offer up anything since Arthur had to basically feed him in order to survive the night.

[tnioprorrim]

Arthur chuckled at that. "Honestly, if you parse them together, knowing what to look for, each of them get a little bit right. Some about the legends, others about how feeding works, or what effects us the most. Just depends on which you look at." He smiled softly, gesturing at his hand. "You shouldn't harm yourself like that," he noted, knowing that with all he's been through it was a lot to ask.

"Eames." he sighed, shaking his head. "We need to get you food. Now. You'll need it for the blood loss," he pointed out, ignoring how it was that he needed to feed more as well. He hadn't planned on needing to give anything to another, after all.

[freebaseforger]

"Think after everything we have been through, my cuticle is the least of my worries," he said, sliding his thumb over the pink skin. He didn't intend for it to come out snippy but there was perhaps an edge to his words.

Clarkie exhaled heavily and lifted his hand again to run over his neck. "Thank you -- for getting me out of there." And he meant to and honestly, he couldn't be sure he had thanked Arthur. He was sure he had but he couldn't be one hundred percent positive.

"We'll need to get you something as well," he said, brooking no further argument, looking at him seriously. "Doubt you planned on giving me any." If he had to (or Arthur wanted to), Clarkie would offer some of his own once he knew it would be okay to and that he'd have enough to give.

[tnioprorrim]

"Your health is my top concern," he argued, not willing to let this go. "And not only out of a fear of you dying with my blood in your system." That though was a terror that he was working hard to hide. He couldn't handle the thought of Eames turning, of being responsible for turning him.

"You're welcome but you don't have to thank me," he assured him. "I just knew I had to get you out of there. It was us both or neither," he assured him. That had never been an option not to save his life.

"I'm not worried about me right now," he said, even if he was weaker than he should be and taking chances as he pushed himself. "I'm not entirely depleted," he added, judicious, saying it carefully for Eames' sake.

[freebaseforger]

Clarkie watched the point man for a long moment before he nodded his head a little. "Then let's both agree that the both of us need some food and/or some rest." Where they would get food looking like they did and without a means of transportation was anyone's guess but it was still at the top of their list of things they needed.

He was still a little shocked that Arthur had come back for him when the man had proven that he could have gotten out and away from that place in a short amount of time and without anyone the wiser.

"You may not be entirely depleted but you are not at full strength either, I gather."

In his own way, it showed that regardless of Arthur's placement on the supernatural (Christ) sliding scale, Clarkie was still worried about Arthur.

[tnioprorrim]

Despite himself, Arthur smiled. He knew it was admitting to a lot to tell Clarkie what he was about to say. It gave the other man an opening against him, and yet he felt it was something that perhaps Clarkie needed to know.

"I'm very rarely ever at full strength, Eames. I don't take chances in harming others. Not in that way." Not even those he knew might well be worthy of him draining them completely. "I shall look into making sure that I'm well. Any place we go to find you food, I'm sure I can find a way for myself to feed."

He winced at saying it that way. "Thank you for caring though."

[freebaseforger]

He watched Arthur's expressions as he spoke and tilted his head a little. "Be that as it may, I would say you're even less than where you usually are if you had to give me some," he said. Clarkie nodded and straightened up away from the wall. "I'd offer you some of mine, after I ate, if I thought you would take it."

Clarkie blinked before his lips curled up. "You're welcome. It's nothing less than what you did for me back there."

He looked around the house for a moment before looking at the other man. "So, we have a choice. We can either wait a little longer before leaving again, find food and clothes and leave this place...," he paused and considered the options he was voicing. "... Sun? Should we wait until night fall or make our move in a few hours..."

Truth was, after everything that they had been through, Clarkie preferred getting as far away from that place as possible. Already he could feel the tall tale urge to leave, to be running. Preferably with Arthur until they were in the clear, at least.

[tnioprorrim]

"I'll do my best to keep myself up to speed without risking you," he said at length, giving a nod. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate the offer so much as he worried about the change in their relationship already. Eames knew what Arthur was but it wasn't the same as living with it, seeing what he could do and the kind of monster he was now. He'd been the same monster before but it wasn't the same as seeing it.

"Let's see if there's clothes here, anything that can help and then go from there," he said, nodding. He didn't want to stay still any longer than they had to either. "I can handle indirect sunlight for an indefinite amount of time. It's weakening but not killing. Even direct sunlight takes quite a bit of time to kill me," he admitted softly, glancing down and then back up at Eames. "We're safe leaving, I'll just have to compensate for it."

Which was another reason he didn't want to think about feeding on Eames.

[freebaseforger]

Clarkie nodded. "I don't think we're going to find much here but it's worth looking," he said and lifted a hand to squeeze Arthur's shoulder with before moving toward the stairs. At this point, mostly anything would be better than what either of them had on.

The house was just like any other on the block and would be the perfect home for any new family moving up in the world. It was likewise perfect for them because it wouldn't stand out like a sore thumb.

"Compensate for it," he asked, raising an eyebrow at him, curious what that meant.

[tnioprorrim]

It was a simple touch and yet it stopped Arthur in his tracks. He wasn't used to having anyone offering him comfort, to be there for him as more than a colleague and yet there was that touch that made him smile. Taking a breath and straightening his shoulders, he moved through the house, looking for anything that could be helpful for them.

He paused though, looking to Eames. "I can handle sunlight in small amounts, the muted the better. Tinted windows. Clouds. Anything of the sort. But it takes its toll on me and uses up my energy stores faster than if I stay out of it." Energy stores being a nice way of saying stolen blood.

[freebaseforger]

With his back turned, he had missed that resulting smile but had he caught it, he might have been smug that he could make Arthur smile like that.

As Clarkie did with everything else (ie: a person's mannerisms, speech patterns, slang and posture), Clarkie filed that information away under the mental file dedicated solely to Arthur. Which was growing ever bigger, especially tonight.

He nodded. "That makes sense," he said after a moment of considering that. "We'll have to make sure we steal a car with tinted windows." Or hope that it's cloudy.

[tnioprorrim]

This was more than anyone living, and not living as a vampire, knew about Arthur. The last he'd trusted with all of this was gone, passed years before, and he felt like he was taking such a chance sharing this now with Eames.

He glanced at Clarkie, considering him for a long moment. "You're handling this much better than I might have thought you would."

[freebaseforger]

"It's the exhaustion," Clarkie said, looking through empty drawers of one of the bedrooms. Though, that wasn't it, not really. Considering how much he hadn't slept and hadn't really eaten, aside from what Arthur had given him, he felt aware and sound of mind.

It was probably because, he understood having a life that he kept hidden from most of society. Even if his was not of the supernatural kind and the underground illegal kind.

It was possible (but probably a little unlikely) that by the time he had enough sleep, he wouldn't be taking it nearly as well. But even so, Arthur had saved his life and Clarkie didn't take something like that lightly.

"I know a little bit about having a more secret life outside of the dream community," he said, taking a moment to look at Arthur.

[tnioprorrim]

"Sure. I'm certain that is it," he said with a nod, turning to look at the other man. "I'm sure it's purely about exhaustion. What else could it be," he asked, as if he didn't know exactly what it could be and what it might be about. They both knew exactly what it was about. Arthur and his blood.

Yet even the honesty made things easier than he might have thought. He was being open about who and what he was. He was sharing this with another. Suddenly the world wasn't nearly as hollow, nearly as dark despite knowing it changed nothing of him living in shadows and darkness.

"Well, I'm willing to listen," he said, giving him a half smile. "But I won't ask. If and when you're willing to talk about it, you will. Or you'll be forced into it. That said, I feel almost glad I was forced into it," he admitted.

[freebaseforger]

Clarkie's mouth quirked up at Arthur's dry response. There was no use in denying it. They both knew exactly what it was about and it was telling that neither of them were exactly denying it.

"I'm surprised you haven't figured me out yet, darling," he said, turning to look at the point man and studying him silently for a moment.

There would come a day where Clarkie would feel right enough to tell Arthur. It wasn't something life altering like knowing your co-worker was a vampire of course. But it was something that needed to be kept on the quiet side if only because of his sake. His lips curled up when Arthur admitted that he almost felt glad that he told him.

"I appreciate it, Arthur." And that was the truth of it. He did appreciate what Arthur had done for him.

[tnioprorrim]

"You appreciate I'm not pressuring you or that I shared," he asked, nearly smiling in that small, enigmatic way he had that really was a full smile for him. Yet he knew none of this was easy. That didn't make it worse though

Opening a drawer, he found a small envelope in the bottom drawer, tape sticking to it like it had fallen off the drawer bottom above it. "What is th..." The words failed as he dropped out the contents on top of the dresser. A handful of gold kugerrands fell out. "Oh. Well," he muttered, blinking at them.

[freebaseforger]

"Can't it be both," he asked with an arched eyebrow. He liked that look on Arthur though, knowing it was as good as a full smile for the point man and glad he could put that look in his face.

He walked over, his eyebrows shooting up. "Well then - looks like we have ourselves a little getaway fund, doesn't it?" No one could ever accuse Clarkie being an upstanding man. When you were where they were, you took every opportunity you could get your hands onto. Even if that meant stealing some already more than likely stolen gold South African coins.

[tnioprorrim]

"The truth is, right now, it can be whatever you want it to be," he admitted, though his attention was still on the envelope, peering within to see if there was a hint or any trace of where it had come from. He couldn't help but wonder about their hosts and what this meant.

"Glad to know someone is looking out for us, though I think that definitely says we need to get out of here sooner than later," he said with a snort. "Given eventually whoever thinks they own these comes looking for them. I'm thinking we steal another car, get as far as we can and then get a flight out. Sound good?"

[freebaseforger]

Clarkie took the envelope from him and slid the coins back inside before tucking it into his pocket. He wasn't going to question the coins or their hosts for that matter. Considering they both had left all their things back at the hotel they had been working out of for weeks, a bit of coin like this was helpful.

"Let's not waste any time then, yeah? There's a couple of good options just waiting outside - we can find clothing and food along the way out of the country."

Likewise, they could clean up in the bathroom of some place as well since the likely hood of this place having any running water was slim to none. "Either a flight out of the country or a train, either would work."

[tnioprorrim]

Between the two of them, they would definitely know others that would trade them cash for the coins, and it would mean plane tickets and all the items they might need to get home. Or, at the very least, out of the country.

"Sounds like a plan. Do you know someone that can change the coins to tickets, or should I make a call or two," he asked, knowing it wouldn't be easy but they could definitely make it happen. "Let's find a car and the nearest station," he said, knowing the longer they went, the weaker he would feel.