Tortall Shipping Braindump

I've finally reached the point where my ramblings about my different Tortall ships & prompts no longer fit within the ao3 exchange sign-up character limits, so here is a bunch of brain dump about the different Tortall ships and dynamics I request in exchanges. I will likely come back later to edit and reform this to be more visually appealing, but just wanted to get all my thoughts in one place for now.

Pairings listed alphabetically by first name.

Alanna/George/Jon/Thayet:

As feral as I am about the Jon/Alanna ship, I genuinely love them with their canon partners as well, and would be just as excited about receiving fanwork that features them with either/both of their spouses! I'm especially interested in explorations between the non-canonical pairs (George/Thayet, George/Jon, Alanna/Thayet, Alanna/Jon), since we don't get as many on-screen depictions of those ships than of the canon couples.

There's so few fanwork about these four together that I'm honestly open to anything you want to write. However, if you'd like more specific prompts, here are a couple that I've got for you

1. Getting Together: I'd love to see how these characters get together!
2. Slice of Life: How do they maintain strong relationships with each other despite their respective workloads? How do you see them balancing each other out? How each of them complement each other in unique ways? Not normally about kidfics, but I actually would be curious as to how their children get raised together! We see the kiddos all being very close in the Immortals - give me more of that!
3. Outsiders: Neither George nor Thayet grew up in Tortallan court, so I'd love read more about their experiences adapting as newcomers to Tortallan court. I'm also curious about how much is made known about George's background, and the story Jon & Alanna tell about who this rando is that Jon is suddenly ennobling and Alanna is marrying? (Lord Provost knows what George looks like, but I doubt that most nobles - other than those close to Jon & Alanna - know the exact nature of George's background. Otherwise, he'd be a pretty ineffectual spymaster.)
4. Thayet/Alanna/Jon-specific: What if Tortall were a land where the King had two "marriages" - one to his queen, and the other to his champion? What would that look like? Esp interested in the gender dynamics of this, if the champion has always been a man before this.
5. Thayet/Alanna Get-Together: I would also be VERY excited for a rom-com version of the above premise! After Alanna plays matchmaker for Jon & Thayet, it's now Jon's (& George's!) turn to play matchmaker for Alanna & Thayet. (And obviously, that includes them relentlessly teasing Alanna for her crush.) Please give me all of the adorable WLW/MLM solidarity here!
6. Alanna/Jon/George-specific: I normally do NOT enjoy canon-rehashing type fics, but I really would love something that delves into George's perspective as a commoner throughout the SotL series, getting to know and falling in love with two of the bluest blooded nobles in Tortall. One of the things I love most about Alanna/George is how he pulls her out of her upper-class snootiness, and I'd love to see that more explicitly portrayed. People with wealth & privilege - even the most well-meaning - often commit microaggressions, and I'm sure it was no different with Jon & Alanna in the beginning. How did George deal with that, as the one who was the oldest & expected to be the most mature of them, but also the only one of them who has actually experienced poverty? 
7. AU Setting - Werewolves, Shifters, and Pack Dynamics: This is pretty much a bulletproof concept for me, so feel free to go wild! Some of the things I especially like with this trope are animalistic tendencies (growling, cuddling, play fighting, predatory behavior), and loyalty to the pack (including protectiveness and possessiveness)! (However, dnw omegaverse)

Optional/Unconventional Formats Prompts For This Ship: 

• Meta About Something That Delighted You: This ship has permanent rent-free residency in my head, and I will take any thoughts you have on these four. This includes analysis, manifesto, whatever. Tell me what you think about them! Why do you like them? What do you see for them? Any and all fannish ramblings you have are welcomed here!
• In-Universe Media and Online - Mythology: What are the in-world myths that get told about these four, centuries in the future? How does Tortall reflect back on and remember their Mage-King, history's most beautiful Queen, the Lady Champion, and the Whisper Man, hundreds of years from now? What aspects get exaggerated, and what details are kept?
• In-Universe Personal Documents - Diary, Letters, Notes Taken by Characters: How do these four talk about the other in their personal writing? What are the subtle ways they demonstrate their mutual respect, even within their disagreements? Would love to see how they talk about their partners, either to themselves, to each other, or with people outside of their polycule! I'm pretty flexible here, so if you want to write a combination of formats (eg, combination of notes, letters, and diary entries), or switch between POV (eg, writing from all four characters), or whathaveyou, I'm down for any of that!
• In-Universe Professional and Academic Documents - Meeting Minutes, Mission Report, Mission Debrief/Transcript: Requesting these formats because I will never, ever, ever get over reading about these four working together and showing off their individual competency within their specific realms of expertise. Tell me about these four strategizing together, whether in a military or political context.
• In-Universe Publication - Gossip Column: The palace rumor mills' take on these four is a situation ripe for comedy! So many fun taboos to be outraged about, especially with how unconventional Alanna and Thayet are. Traditional gossip columns are always fun, but I'm also fine with whatever canon-compliant equivalent you want to come up with for this prompt, such as a series of gossipy conversations between nobles. What's the hot goss on these four??
• Style - List of Random Facts: Free space for anything you have to say about this ship! What are some headcanons you have?

 

Alanna/Jon:

Jon reached for her: there was a flash, and a tiny ball of reddish-purple fire leaped from his fingers to her own bloody ones. Gently he took her hand and kissed it. "We did it, King's Champion. Tortall is safe."

Jon/Alanna is the ship I will never get over. While Thayet and George are objectively the best partners for Jon and Alanna respectively, I just love the sparkling chemistry and dynamic between our king and his champion so much. Their banter is sheer delight, leading to some of my favorite verbal sparring in a series with a notoriously sharp-tongued protagonist.

Their canon adventures hit all my favorite (hurt/comfort) tropes: bedside vigil, predestined relationship, mutual protectiveness, battle couple, post-battle hurt/comfort, sworn fealty, silent communication from across the room, holding hair back hurt/comfort, big damn rescue with comfort, male handler/female fighter...they're literally legendary heroes together!

"I differ with you, Sir Dain," Jon was saying, a touch of amusement in his voice. "Even our pages and squires know how to handle a sword against a full knight. But since our honor and our teachers are in question, perhaps we must show you what a Tortallan can do."
Dan adjusted his sword belt. "Bring on your champion, Highness. I am sure I can prove Tusaine superiority over any man of your court." Jon glanced at Alanna, smiling ironically, and she immediately guessed what he had in mind. It would be a brilliant tactical stroke if I could pull it off, she thought. I'm an unblooded squire in Dain's eyes. At least, it would be a brilliant tactical stroke if I won.
She looked the Tusaine knight over. He was a head taller than she was, with broad shoulders and strong arms, but he was overconfident, and he had been drinking. She nodded to let Jonathan know she was game.
-In the Hands of the Goddess, chapter 2. (Click here for truly gorgeous illustration of this scene.)

Alanna's legacy is inextractably tied to Jon's. Fundamentally: Jon is the deuteragonist to the SOTL series. Alanna embodies her knighthood through her service to Jonathan; everything she does is to better Jon's rule. Their duties to their roles is what binds them (in a very literal sense, as the king and his champion) - but it's also what keeps them apart. 

They're both all-or-nothing people, who need to give 100% of themselves to the realm: if Alanna were queen, she would absolutely put everything she had into being the best queen possible. Despite that, she'll fundamental never be a good queen (it's clear that Alanna is only able to fulfill her duties as Champion because George takes over the domestic sphere of their household), and that is ultimately what doomed their romance. Alanna is every bit as high-minded as Jon when it comes to duty and their Code of Chivalry; and she knows just as he does that Jon must marry for duty, not for love:

"She thought of Jonathan. Marrying him wouldn't be so bad, someday, she realized. Yet that would be impossible; he had to marry for the good of Tortall. And she certainly didn't want to marry now; she had too much to do!" -Alanna during her meditation before her Ordeal, In the Hands of the Goddess, chapter 9.

I will be forever disappointed that all of the complex tension between duty and desire that stood in the way between them got reduced to communication breakdowns. How Jonathan behaved in the desert runs extremely contrary to how he behaved in the previous books - although there are times when he asserts himself over Alanna in the first two books, he has never made decisions for her outside of what was appropriate for their roles as knight & squire, or put pressure on their relationship.

Look at this scene, when Jon wants to take cue from Alanna (also quoting it because it's such a sweet scene - is there anything cuter than cuddling on horseback): 

"Why did you have to go there in the first place?"
"I wasn't useful where I was." She sighed gratefully, glad for his long arm around her. "Hm?" she murmured.
"I said, must you always be useful?"
"Yes."
They rode on silently for a few moments before Jon remarked thoughtfully, "Perhaps I could make myself useful there, too, instead of attending a lot of meetings where Roger makes the decisions and never asks how I feel. Think it's worth a try?"
Alanna yawned, half-turning so her head was tucked under Jonathan's chin. "Anything's worth a try." 
-In the Hands of the Goddess, chapter 5.

And when they go into battle for the first time, a few pages later: 

"He may even obey me, for a change."
A strong hand gripped her shoulder, and she looked up into Jonathan's worried face. "I guess I can't tell you the same, can I?" he whispered.
"The biggest attack this summer, and I'm supposed to hide in my tent?" she asked, astonished. "And me your squire? Are you out of your mind?"
Trumpets were blowing, telling them the enemy was there in force, but Jonathan still hesitated. His sapphire eyes were very bright. "Against one warrior I can't worry about you. You've proved you can handle yourself. But against an army-"
She covered his hand with hers. "I have my duty, Highness. And this is my home too. I'm trained to defend it, and defend it I will."
Jonathan sighed, putting on his helmet. "You know where to find me when you're armed."
-In the Hands of the Goddess, chapter 5

And right before she's about to fight Roger:

"Alan and I will be with you in a moment," Jonathan told the others. They took the hint and followed Timon out into the hall, closing the door behind them. Alanna looked at Jonathan and went into his arms, hugging him tightly.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, fighting back tears. "I know you love him; but I couldn't let it go on. He was killing your mother."
Jonathan held her close. "I love you more." His voice was breaking. "Don't let him kill you."
Alanna shook her head. "I don't plan to. Believe me, I don't."
-In the Hands of the Goddess, chapter 10

And when's about to leave Corus:

"Are you sure you won't change your mind?" Jonathan asked, taking her hand. The winter breeze whipped color into his cheeks, making his eyes seem bluer than ever. "I really feel I don't know 'Sir Alanna' at all."
Alanna smiled and shook her head, "I need to be alone; well, not exactly alone," she admitted, grinning at the bundled-up Coram. "I need to get away from Court for a while and just think." 
-In the Hands of the Goddess, epilogue. 

And look at the conversation they have about the future of their relationship, where he explicitly says he doesn't want to push her on the topic:

"You're very jealous for someone who isn't serious about me." She grinned.
Jonathan made her look at him. "I am serious, in my way," he said quietly. "But if I talked of love to you, you'd run off."
"Don't, Jonathan, please," she whispered. 
"See what I mean?" He yawned again. "Relax. I certainly can't talk about marriage in any case-"
"I don't want to talk about marriage!" she cried. "I don't want to talk about love, ei-"
Jonathan silenced her with a hand over her mouth. "I love you, Alanna," he said firmly. "Ignore it if you want to, but I do love you." 
-In the Hands of the Goddess, chapter 9

I'd love to see how things could have played out differently, or how they could've learned how to communicate better. Anything explores the pain/resentment that still lingers from their break-up and why their relationship failed the first time around, especially if there's a sense of "what's different this time around?" I think that Jon and Alanna hurting each other is inevitable, but I'd love to see how they come back from that hurt. 

I'd also love to see more explorations of Alanna's gender, especially in the context of their relationship! Jon accusing Alanna of being unfeminine contributed to their break-up, but I mean...when was that ever a previously a problem in their relationship? (Not going to lie, I would be over the moon to receive anything about Jon experiencing Gay Panic over his feelings for Alanna, and the gender fuckery that involves!)

One day, I'm going to write an essay about how Jon/Alanna stopped working as a couple the moment they tried to confine it within the boundaries of a heterosexual relationship. Their dynamic was forged in a deeply homosocial environment, and I'd love to see that queer tension played up in any fic! (And not just because I also find their divorce-core vibes hilarious.)

Please give me anything that centers these divorced workaholics! I'm open to any scenario you have in mind! What I care about most is having something that focuses on the strength of their bond, and how important they are to each other. 

If you're interested in more specific prompts, I've collected a (embarrassingly large) number of freeforms and prompts from requesting these two so often often. I'd be delighted to receive work featuring any of the prompts/freeforms mentioned below. 

• Canon Divergence - Never Broke Up: I am forever disappointed that all of the complex tension between duty and desire that stood in the way between them got reduced to communication breakdowns. I'd love to see how things could have played out differently, or how they could've learned how to communicate better. Anything explores the pain/resentment that still lingers from their break-up and why their relationship failed the first time around, especially if there's a sense of "what's different this time around?"
• Forced Proximity (Accidental Marriage, Soulbond, Soulmates, Etc): Similar to my interest in repairing their communication breakdown, I'm intrigued by Jon & Alanna being bound together through external forces, and being forced to work through their differences. (Also intrigued by how Tortall governance would be different if marriages were arranged through more supernatural means. Would it be more of a shitshow, or just the usual amount when it comes to nobles?)
• Gender: Part of Alanna's journey was accepting her womanhood, but what are other ways her gender might've manifested? What would Sir Alanna have been like? How much fun would Alanna have with being able to genderswap at will?
• Kink - Dom!Alanna/sub!Jon: I'm very into the idea of Jon as a closed sub. Alanna ordering her king to get on his knees? Alanna taking it out on his ass everything he's a prat? Yes please. (Would not say no to including Thayet in here, so they can mutually top Jon together.)
• Kink - Dom!Jon/sub!Alanna: Okay, so initially I was all about femdom!Alanna. Then I suddenly realized the magical, beautiful, revolutionary potential of bratty sub Alanna, and the game is forever changed. Hello, yes please daddy. (Wouldn't say no if you wanted to bring Thayet in here either, because apparently I'm just into dom!Thayet.)
• Kink - Mutual Doms/Switches: Jon & Alanna as Alanna as mutual doms who try out switching for the first time with each other is a super fun scenario to explore as well. Perhaps George is 100% a sub, and Alanna wants to explore her switch side? Or what if they co-dom George together? 
• Poly - Work Partnership Equivalent to Marriage: What if Tortall were a land where the King had two "marriages" - one to his queen, and the other to his champion? What would that look like? Esp interested in the gender dynamics of this, if the champion has always been a man before this. (Very down for Thayet/Alanna/Jon here!)
• Soulbonds: What if Alanna saving Jon from the sweating sickness led to a soulbond between them? How would that have changed the course of canon?
• Reuniting Decades Later: Please give me Alanna & Jon in their 40s/50s! What would it be like for them to come back together when they're older, and time has smoothed out some of the edges between them, as well as made some of the barriers between them moot? They have lived full lives since breaking up; what would it be like for them to learn who the other person is all over again? (However you want to address their canon relationships is fine, from off-screen deaths to background poly!)

Previous Freeforms I've Requested For This Ship, Grouped by Theme:

• Communication: talking things out; talking about everything except what needs to be talked about
• Gender: a character is transgender (nonbinary); Character Is Able To Genderswap At Will; correct gendering of a trans character results in relief of distress and/or gender euphoria; Nonconsensual Gender/Sex-Swap
• Hurt/Comfort - Jon Comforts Alanna: BAMF character A is hurt/sick and is still a BAMF, character B provides comfort anyway; Canon Event where character gets Hurt Instead Goes Better; Character A abandons plans in order to rescue Character B; Character A hides illness/injury perfectly but Character B can still tell; Character comforted after having mundanely terrible day where a thousand small things go wrong; Character is prickly and bad-tempered while recovering from hurt and comforter is chill about it; characters currently on the outs or in a fight having to take care of each other or work together; Characters live together while one recovers from hurt; Hurt A allows B to comfort them despite the fact that B hurt them in the past; Emotional Hurt/Comfort
• Kink - Dom!Alanna/sub!Jon: Character with weight of world on their shoulders enjoys being Dom's toy; Codependency - dom and sub are overly dependent on each other; BDSM AU - Character who presents as a dom is secretly a switch; Covert Public Kink; Dom Who Is Honored To Have Powerful/Skilled Sub's Submission; Dom being genuinely affectionate & loving while punishing sub; Dom heals sub with magic after punishment; Fight Sex - Sub deliberately lets themself get pinned and fucked; Fight Sex - Whoever wins spar doms; Chooses to ride loser; Orgasm Control - Dom Bottom telling Sub Top when to come inside them; Pegging - Dom pegs Sub; Scenario - Domming A Touch-Starved Sub; Size Difference - Smaller Person Tops Bigger Person; Submission as atonement or forgiveness; Submissive character is normally dominant in day-to-day life; Weapons Kink – Dom holds sword to subs throat and sub is (unexpectedly) into it; Scenario - Dom chains sub to throne
• Kink - Dom!Jon/sub!Alanna: Character with weight of world on their shoulders enjoys being Dom's toy; Codependency - dom and sub are overly dependent on each other; Covert Public Kink; Dom Who Is Honored To Have Powerful/Skilled Sub's Submission; Dom being genuinely affectionate & loving while punishing sub; Dom heals sub with magic after punishment; Fight Sex - Sub deliberately lets themself get pinned and fucked; Person everyone thinks is a dom is actually a sub; Scenario - Domming A Touch-Starved Sub; Submissive character is normally dominant in day-to-day life; Weapons Kink – Dom holds sword to subs throat and sub is (unexpectedly) into it; Scenario - Dom chains sub to throne
• Kink - Mutual Doms/Switches: Jon & Alanna as Alanna as mutual doms who try out switching for the first time with each other is a super fun scenario to explore as well. Perhaps George is 100% a sub, and Alanna wants to explore her switch side? Or what if they co-dom George together? (Previous freforms I've requested for this include: BDSM AU - Two doms in a secret relationship; BDSM AU - Character who presents as a dom is secretly a switch; Fight Sex - Continuing to playfully wrestle for dominance after sex starts; Person everyone thinks is a dom is actually a sub)
• Loyalty/Loyalty Kink: Torn between loyalties to a person and an ideal; Call off your dog; "my/your sword/gun/right hand"; my subordinate goes where I go; Loyalty so intense they commit crime/treason for the character they're loyal to without question; There is no limit to what A & B will do for each other; Nothing comes between them
• Marriage: Accidental marriage through unintentional magically binding action; Marriage Arranged Because of Matching Soulmarks; Couple Getting Married Is Scandalous to Polite Society
• Post-Canon: Characters reunite after canon estrangement; Characters reunite after canon estrangement (and then fuck); Ship gets back together after divorce/break-up; Romantic Reconciliation After Canon Break-Up; Characters Shown Still Happily Together as an Old/Older Couple
• Relationship Development: Anxiety over how to navigate boundaries of unestablished relationship; Two people who grew apart trying to get back to former closeness; Complicated relationships of love and loyalty and hurt and resentment; Relationship Study; Character A has been pining for B for a long time and B is now single
• Soulmates: Soulmates exist but are rare; Soulmates share a telepathic bond; Soulmates - socially inappropriate soulmate; Soulmates - one character rejects the idea of soulmates

Optional/Unconventional Formats Prompts For This Ship: 

• Art/Comics: I'd be beyond ecstatic to receive any art/comics of these two! If you want specific suggestions, I'd be super excited to receive illustrations of any of the canon scenes I've quoted above. (Except for the In the Hands of the Goddess epilogue, because them parting is a DNW!)
• Meta About Something That Delighted You: This ship has permanent rent-free residency in my head, and I will take any thoughts you have on these two. This includes analysis, manifesto, whatever. Tell me what you think about them! Why do you like them? What do you see for them? Any and all fannish ramblings you have are welcomed here!
• In-Universe Media and Online - Mythology: What are the in-world myths that get told about these two, centuries in the future? How does Tortall reflect back on and remember these two, hundreds of years from now? What aspects get exaggerated, and what details are kept?
• In-Universe Personal Documents - Diary, Letters, Notes Taken by Characters: How do Jon or Alanna talk about the other in their personal writing? How do they vent their frustrations? What are the subtle ways they demonstrate their mutual respect, even within their disagreements? Would love to see how they describe the other person, either to others or themselves. Or what about their correspondences to each other? What are those like? I'm pretty flexible here, so if you want to write a combination of formats (eg, both letters & diary entries), or go back and forth between POV (eg, entries from both Alanna & Jon's journals), or whathaveyou, I'm down for all of that!
• In-Universe Professional and Academic Documents - Meeting Minutes, Mission Report, Mission Debrief/Transcript: Requesting these formats because I'd love to read about these two working together and show off their mutual competency. Tell me about them strategizing and going into battle together! Show me their seamless collaboration!
• In-Universe Professional and Academic Documents - Medical Report: There's a law in Tortall that all members of the Royal Family need to be accompanied by a healer when they travel. Given that Alanna's role as Champion has her regularly by his side, my headcanon is that Alanna is pretty much the king's personal healer. So I'd love to see what her medical reports are like (especially with how much she hates paperwork). How good of a patient is Jon, after all these years? What are Alanna's bedside manners like with her liege?
• Style - List of Random Facts: Free space for anything you have to say about this ship! What are some headcanons you have

 

Alanna/Jon & Roger/Thom:

I've been into this series for 20+ years, and only just recently realized - after learning that Roger & Thom were sleeping together in the original book draft - that the Roger/Thom ship is supposed to be the dark parallel of the Jon/Alanna ship. /facepalm

I don't have anything particularly insightful here, other than that I'd love to read something that explicitly highlights the parallels and contrasts between these ships. 

If you're into interested in writing an AU, I would be thrilled about anything that sets Roger/Thom against Alanna/Jon. Serial killers & detectives? Superheroes and villains? Spies vs spies? Anything that pins those respective duos of geniuses against each other, anything that sets their moralities & loyalties at odds with each other. (And incestual undertones? Yes please!) 

Alanna/Great Mother Goddess/Jon:

Honestly, my desire for this ship stems purely out of a one-off comment TP makes about how Jon is "more Goddess than Mithros." From there, my brain just went wild with possibilities! What if Jon was one of the Goddess' Chosens as well? How would that have impacted things? We see in the Immortals Quartet and in the Trickster's Duet just how much gods meddle in the affairs of royalty (even if they're not technically supposed to). The Goddess likely has a vested interest in having Jon on the throne (over Roger, who doesn't seem to have much respect for the gods), so what other strings was she pulling behind the scenes? 

I'm open to all sorts of magical & mystical shenanigans here! A benevolent goddess meddling behind the scenes would be fun to read about, but as would something darker and more sinister. Secrecies and manipulation? The Goddess' interference with their lives running deeper than they know? Breeding kinks are usually Not My Thing, but given that birth is one of her domains, I would kind of love to see that here! A child of Conte royalty & Trebond magic would definitely help her maintain power, so how far would she go to make that happen? (Goddess-compelled dubcon? Um, YES PLEASE!)

Alanna/Jon/Thom:

I don't have any prompts here. I just really love the idea of Alanna and Jon trying to wrangle the feral goblin that is Thom. Alanna & Jon recognizing that Thom is "chaotic neutral" at BEST, and deciding to keep him close so that at least he's THEIR chaotic neutral mage. Or the chaos that is Thom and Jon trying to get along for Alanna's sake, because it's pretty funny that teen Alanna's two favorite people were both arrogant pricks. (I say in the most loving way possible.)

Alanna/Thayet:

"Can you manage a spoon?"
Alanna looked at a bowl of porridge dotted with dried fruit and cream. "I'll manage if it kills me."
Unfortunately, she couldn't handle a spoon. Thayet fed her, ignoring Alanna's protests.
-Lioness Rampant, chapter 4.

Within weeks of meeting her, Alanna falls for Thayet so hard that she tries to give Thayet her Jewel, her country, and her man. Come on. Alanna just sweeps Thayet off her feet and gives her a fairy-tale ending! I mean, a faraway knight comes from out of nowhere, whisks her away from her war-torn country, and takes her to a new home where she's made queen? How can Thayet not swoon over her lady knight?

"Before I met you, I thought the women of our class were useless....You and I come from overbred families, good as ornaments and nothing more. And you are far from useless."
Alanna blushed. "Thayet, you're flattering me. It was easier for me to rebel than stay and make something of myself. Why didn't I go to convent school and prove ladies are more than ornaments that way?"
-Lioness Rampant, chapter 4.

Thayet is very much Alanna's foil (the high-femme warrior she could've been), and I love that Thayet is the literally the first female friend Alanna has her age. I am HERE for Alanna discovering her WLW side through her friendship with Thayet, and the awkwardness of her first queer romance! Give me all the budding tension, that confusing ambiguity between friendship and romance, the "what does this MEAN???" of it all! (Bonus points for George & Jon laughing at her as they help her sort through it.)

 

George/Jon:

"Jonathan was his friend. They'd spent many good evenings together; they'd loved the same woman; they both knew what kingship meant. In some ways Jon was closer to him thant Alanna--she couldn't conceive the burdens of a king, and Jon had never known anything else."
-Lioness Rampant, chapter 5.

How is there not more George/Jon fic based on this quote alone? So much of the relationship they develop outside of Alanna happens off-screen, and I'd love to see that explored more! I mean, George takes Jon to meet his mother, for Mithro's sake! Given the failures of King Roald, Jon very likely turned to George for guidance and mentorship on how to be a good leader, and the quote alone shows how much George cares for Jon.

Also, my headcanon is that Jon's first time was with George, and that Jon & George were definitely fucking while Alanna was in Sarain, so feel free to explore that in more depth if you're interested! I do have a preference for sub!George, 

 

George/Thayet:

"George, this is Princess Thayet of Sarain, and her guard Buriram Tourakom."
"Don't bother," muttered Buri. George released Alanna to bow and kiss Thayet's hand. "He won't remember anyway."
George straightened and winked at the K'mir. "I'm awed Buriram Tourakom, but I'm rarely that awed."
-Lioness Rampant, chapter 6.

The George/Thayet relationship is the least developed between the Alanna/Jon/George/Thayet OT4, to the point where my pull-quote for them is about how George specifically isn't awed by Thayet. But I think that is such a strong foundation for their relationship, and knowing Thayet, the fact that he cared enough to remember Buri's name is probably the exact thing that wins her over. Here is a man who recognizes her as a person, not just a pretty face. There's fertile ground in how they're both royalty but lived in settings where they're not officially recognized as such, simultaneously legitimate and not legitimate depending on who gets asked. They're both new to Tortallan upper-class society, and I'd love to read more about their perspectives on what that's like.

In terms of the OT4, I very much see them as the flexible peacemakers of the quartet, compared to how headstrong & stubborn both Jon and Alanna are. Do they commiserate about how frustrating their respective spouses can be? Do they conspire to force Jon & Alanna to communicate when they're on the outs? Tell me about them!

 

George/Thom:

"George stared at Thom. If my lass had made no friends, only enemies, he thought, and if she’d been too frightened to let others know she was a human bein’, disguise and all, she might well have turned out like this young monster. He’s all brain and cynicism now, with no heart left to him."
-The Woman Who Rides Like A Man

Ahhh, this scene lives rent-free in my head and is the basis of my unabashed love for George/Thom. It's just SO RIPE with tension, and there's not nearly enough exploration of this dynamic! Is that really what Alanna would have turned out like? Can George help Thom find his heart again?

"If there's anyone you can ask--"
"No one. I made sure of that, didn't I? This will pass. I'll find a cure--something. I haven't looked in the right places."
George knew a dismissal when he heard it. He gathered up his cloak.
"Thank you." It was a whisper.
"I didn't nothin' to be thanked for this night," George said hastily. "Not for you, not for anyone."
"You listened, even though I've tried my best to discourage you."
-Lioness Rampant, chapter 5.

Aside from Alanna, George is the only person who cared enough - who knew enough about Thom - to reach out to try to save him, and I just. I WANT THAT FOR THOM SO BADLY. Poor Thom deserved so much better, even if he is a paranoid asshole.

I usually request George/Thom in conjunction with Jon/Alanna because after all, why not? Why shouldn't I shoehorn my OTP into literally everything? I'm interested in how they contrast against Jon/Alanna. George&Jon are foils for each other, as are Thom&Alanna, and in many ways, George/Thom are very much the darker halves of their respective coins. I'm interested in the interactions that can occur, especially because George/Thom don't abide by the Code of Chivalry the way knights do - how might that bring up tension between these two pairs?

Honestly, anything you want to write that features these two ships would be delightful by me. I just love the idea of these four interacting, and seeing what parallels could be explore.