charles can astral project. he's had this ability since childhood but doesn't do it often. and so, it's 2021. seb has left ferrari and is at aston martin now. and one day, seb is changing in his driver's room, and suddenly a hazy form of charles is there, looking around, like, "huh. this room is bigger than i thought." and seb is understandably freaked out (and half undressed, if you so wish) because what is charles doing here and how did he get in here and what in the world is happening! and charles just shrugs, like, "sometimes i leave my body," like it makes complete sense.
charles continues to astral project at random intervals over the course of the season, significantly more frequently than he ever has and always to seb's location--in the aston martin garage, at the aston martin factory, in seb's hotel room, in his home kitchen. seb gets used to it and is actually very curious about how charles can do this and ~why. charles never questioned it, never cared to know.
what charles does think about is if seb only sees him as an ex-teammate, if they're even friends, if he hates him and blames him for losing his ferrari seat, if he's intruding on seb's life by showing up like this completely uninvited. maybe a plot point is when charles stops believing he means something to seb, he stops being able to astral project to seb's location.
but the defining moment of this whole thing is when seb is on one of his curious streaks and asks where else charles has astral projected to before, charles shrugs, and says, "only home."
oh, you guys actually want my half-baked sebchal plots? 😈
f1 wip amnesty #1: sebchal office au
in my original, original corporate office au idea, seb and charles work for an athletic apparel company. they can be in any department, but i was thinking more sales or marketing. (lewis is in this ficverse, and he's definitely in design.) basically, charles' internship becomes a full time position, and he's assigned to work under seb in the italy office. at this point, seb has a set way of doing things that works for him, but his sales have been down from previous years. charles and seb work very closely together, and charles learns a ton from seb. but it should not go unstated that charles also brings a lot to the table, especially by maximizing the use of social media. and yeah, they argue sometimes and are competitive, but charles has so much respect for seb, and if he blushes at seb's stupid jokes, can listen to him go on and on during otherwise boring meetings, and if something inside of charles twists when seb praises his work, well, so long as he doesn't make a fool of himself at the company's holiday party, everything will be just fine. but then the bombshell drops: seb is being forced to transfer to the uk office, and charles will take his position as team lead next year. cue the fun angst, misunderstandings, and guilt.
Pre-war Hollywood, they’re playing in a spy\noir, cat and mouse. Sebastian’s established, Charles is on his way up. They don’t talk much outside of acting.
My thoughts on this: I thought this was really nice actually but I don't have the energy to do all the research necessary and while it is true that some Germans experienced discrimination I'm not sure about the level of discrimination. Dietrich became wildly popular at this time, Lake while not German found her choice of roles dwindling.
If I were to write it I'd just explain his lack of roles as coming down to a change in fashion; people want different types of actors.
Sebastian’s made his career off playing Europeans and slightly antagonistic characters.
Sebastian is already well-known. He’s cordial but not very friendly, professional. He’s not eager to make accommodations to Charles and when they rehearse scenes they sometimes have a different idea about what direction to take things in. Usually they go Sebastian’s way. He’s number 1. He only likes to be filmed from certain angles, sometimes they fight over the light.
A bull is accidentally released onto their set. Charles pushes Sebastian and they both go into the pool, away from the bull. After that he warms up to him and is willing to help him practise his lines and invites him to his home.
He lives in the most beautiful one, high up in the Hollywood Hills, where some smaller silent films had been filmed in the past. You can still see a few strange things in it, like a small theatre. With a backstage. They wander through it, Sebastian showing him how there is a trapdoor, and some ropes where you can lift the curtains and bring them back down. Standing on stage. Standing backstage which is small and cramped. ‘I liked to read my scripts here sometimes. It’s a bit stuffy, but I worked as a stagehand when I was getting my start. Brings back a lot of memories.’
It was owned by an eccentric. It’s status and history is something Sebastian is very proud of. The first time Charles goes to the house he’s enchanted. You can see all of Seb’s stuff, German books and beautiful clothes.
As filming progresses, Seb’s lines are drastically reduced, Charles becomes the lead.
He visits the house again, and it’s almost empty, Sebastian is preparing to move back to Germany, to kickstart a career there. “I really don’t want to be reduced to playing Nazis.” (This happened to Veronica Lake and it killed her career)
While Charles tries to persuade him to stay he ends up going to Berlin. Years later Charles is filming in France and makes a trip to Berlin and runs into him at a theatre.
They act together in a few things. But they’re at different stages in their careers now.
By now the noir spy thriller was released and it’s really quite single-dimensional.
In the 1970s a film maker discovers all the cut footage and wants to restore the original version of their work and meets them both. The first film is a story about one spy hunting another. But it’s obvious that the hunter has met the hunted at some point and there’s something between them. The revised work is that story.
Partly, I don’t have the energy to do research and generally I have no time to actually write the thing.
ETA. The theme is, making money off being foreign/european in Hollywood, until it appears that your identity is not so profitable or becomes unfashionable. By the time they meet again in Berlin, they’re in way different stages in their career, where Leclerc is like Alain Delon type figure, in the lucrative French film scene. And Sebastian’s habituated to living in East Germany, and despite his lost stardom has ended up enjoying a different kind of artistic freedom.
Below are the notes I had for it
Sebastian has snuck into a location where he’s not supposed to be, and is picking a lock.
Charles surprises him.
They are rival spies.
I think I want to write another one first, about people working on movie sets. From Charles’ POV. They’re playing in a spy\noir, cat and mouse. Sebastian’s established, Charles is on his way up. They don’t talk much outside of acting.
Charles is most fascinated by Sebastian’s house. He lives in the most beautiful one, high up in the Hollywood Hills, where some smaller silent films had been filmed in the past. You can still see a few strange things in it, like a small theatre. With a backstage. They wander through it, Sebastian showing him how there is a trapdoor, and some ropes where you can lift the curtains and bring them back down. Standin on stage. Standing backstage which is small and cramped. ‘I liked to read my scripts here sometimes. It’s a bit stuffy, but I worked as a stagehand when I was getting my start. Brings back a lot of memories.’
It was owned by an eccentric. It’s status and history is something Sebastian is very proud of. The first time Charles goes to the house he’s enchanted. You can see all of Seb’s stuff, German books and beautiful clothes.
Eventually, he goes there and it’s bare, Seb’s been packing to move out. He wants to sell it.
--------
‘So are we rehearsing for something now? I don’t know anything about this. I was--’
‘I know. A model.’
‘But i am a serious actor now!’
‘I know you are.’ A lot of producers think a beautiful person should be on screen because they’re all just pictures. But that’s not true. And you’re more than that. Don’t waste it.
During WW1, German Americans were often seen as having dual loyalties.
Sebastian was born in 1917. His parents had changed their name to Miller. He speaks German, but not in public. His brother does not. Charles finds this out only when they get closer. (or should I just say, he has a german name and performed under it, as things get more heated, closer to america joining WW2, his lines are drastically reduced, Charles becomes the lead. His part is cut). When Charles is invited to his home, after saving him from the bull, he finds that Sebastian’s beautiful home is almost empty. There are mannequins wearing his old costumes, like ghosts. And there are suitcases and boxes. ‘Are you leaving?’
He is selling the valuable items, and getting ready to move to a smaller place. The costumes are the last remaining parts of the decoration. He’s thinking of giving them away to his friends.
It’s getting harder for me to get work. Soon it will be (acting) Nazis or nothing. I don’t want it to end this way and I don’t want to be remembered like this.
Are you going back to Germany? There’s no way you can go. It’s held by the third reich.
Why not? Let me tell you, from one immigrant to another, you will never belong here.
He’s very embittered. He ends up going back to East Germany. Leclerc 5 years later, filming in France makes a trip to Berlin and runs into him at a theatre.
They act together in a few things. But they’re at different stages in their careers now.
Years later in the 1970s a film maker wants to restore the original version of their work and meets them both. The first film is a story about one spy hunting another. But it’s obvious that the hunter has met the hunted at some point and there’s something between them. The revised work is that story.
Charles Leclerc rising actor in Hollywood who moved to Paris to continue acting. Occasionally acted in American films. Think Alain Delon.
Max, the bull, was supposed to burst in on another film set, but was released onto theirs accidentally.
Charles goes back home every night and thinks about what they said to each other, on set, with someone else’s words. (I wrote this thinking the film was as romance between the two leads. But now I’m not sure, it’s going to be really historical). Do they practice their lines? Charles has a romantic interest, seb reads her lines?
Sebastian is already well-known. He’s cordial but not very friendly, professional. He’s not eager to make accommodations to Charles and when they rehearse scenes they sometimes have a different idea about what direction to take things in. Usually they go Sebastian’s way. He’s number 1. He only likes to be filmed from certain angles, sometimes they fight over the light.
The bull. Charles is quick thinking and pushes them both into the pool.
--
All alone most of the time in his big house. Walking down the sweeping staircases to make scrambled eggs in the middle of the night. Baking bread on Sundays.
He’s imperious, insecure, mercurial and redeemable.
Narrow shoulders. All my costumes are tailored to extend the shoulder.
Sebchal are accidental gay activists. Shenanigans ensue. One day, when I was thinking about Seb’s 2020 Gaymet and Charles’s Sebmet, this just dropped in my head. What if people interpreted them both as activism, and with Charles’s very specific helmet, what if this leads to some sort of fake dating idea. Including embedded images from social media that show how the audience is interpreting their actions. Full excerpt can be found on DreamWidth, the fake Tweets I made for this can be found below.
for @crumbsfortherats‘s WIP amnesty, I’m putting out five of my beloved stories that I couldn’t finish for a myriad of reasons 😅
Since it turned out to be a lot, I’m putting all of the prompts under the read-more. You can see the full prompt and excerpt on the masterlist post on Dreamwidth, along with others’!
WIP Amnesty #1: Sebchal - Unsent Text Messages
Inspired by theunsentproject. Throughout the 2019-2020 seasons, Charles writes some messages to Sebastian but never quite sends them, always saving them to his drafts. The messages start from the first time Sebastian gives Charles his number to their post Abu Dhabi 2020 helmet exchange, where basically Charles pours his heart out and confesses his feelings. The kicker is one night, Charles accidentally sends all of his drafts to Sebastian.
I was thinking about writing the fic in a text-message format a la theunsentproject back then, and because Sebastian is that analog babe, maybe he could write his feelings back to Charles with a paper letter.
(excerpt on Dreamdwith)
WIP Amnesty #2: Sebchal - Jazz Musician/Store Clerk Non-Famous AU
Charles is a store clerk trying to get a handle on the music scene, and Sebastian is a big hotshot jazz musician who just arrived in town. Seb just came into town and went into Charles’s store, except boom, Charles doesn’t recognize him. They have a conversation that turns into an argument as Charles thinks that jazz is boring, yet Sebastian has that jazz is love, jazz is life mindset. They part ways in not an amicable way.
The next day, Charles goes to a jazz club (maybe he was dared by Pierre or Alex, idk) and sees Sebastian on stage, and panics because oh no, this was the man he talked with yesterday.
I mostly only had the setting and the cute first-meeting in mind. They were going to go on cute dates where Sebastian shows Charles on a cute musical journey. Also because I’m a Chalex-er at heart, I wanted Charles to have just broken up with Alex and he’s still trying to move on from Alex. To add drama, Charles’s bestest friend Pierre is now fooling around with Alex, so he has to deal with that too. lol. I was thinking of making it into a story that’s not just about jazz and music, but also friendships, family, and personality growth.
(excerpt on Tumblr, Dreamwidth)
WIP Amnesty #3: Sebchal - Ad executive AU
Inspired by Mad Men because I love that show to death. Charles is a househusband who’s unhappily married to an ad executive (the who is not that important, but I was thinking of Max lmao, so let’s just say that it’s him for example). One day, Charles’s partner needs him for a business dinner where everyone brings their partners in. So there, Max’s co-workers and clients all bring their respective SOs, except one charming German who says that he’s recently divorced. He and Charles end up talking all night, forgetting about the business meeting in the first place. Chemistry strikes, and Charles has a profound realization about how he doesn't want to end up unhappy and bitter. He comes home with Sebastian on his mind.
Charles has an accident/surgery that causes him to have temporary amnesia. (The surgery could be really not that serious, as long as Charles gets hooked on the good drugs!) He sees Sebastian and is basically stuck in that 2017-hero-worship era when he sees him, not remembering that Sebastian is his husband. Sebastian has a lot of fun with Charles in this state, teasing him, and telling Charles all about his husband, while Charles seethes in jealousy because Seb has a husband that’s not him!!! This story is basically lots of fluff.
(excerpt on Dreamwidth)
WIP Amnesty #5: Sebchal + Max - Dynamics study
Seb and Charles are in an established relationship. One day, Seb asks Charles about if something had ever happened with him and Max. Charles says truthfully that no, but because after Sebastian asks him, now he can’t actually stop thinking about it. Then, after a meeting of chance with Max, and some arrangement to their schedules, well... ╮(╯_╰)╭
This was written way back in my exploring-Lestappen days. I don’t really vibe with them anymore, but I’ve written too much about this for it to be just put aside 🤪
Cult!AU, Charles as the cult leader and Seb as the journalist trying to get his story down without being taken in by him. I’d imagined this as a bunch of interviews comprising the story but then realized I’m not that good at writing dialogue lol. I know I already got gifted a great fic about this with a sex cult but I’m still daydreaming of a “normal” cult too so here it is xD
Also, this entire idea was inspired by SKYND’s Jim Jones, so that’s the vibe I keep envisioning.
An excerpt:
‘Are you recording this?’
‘I could be, if you want.’
Sebastian closes his notebook, fishes the tape recorder out of his bag.
‘No, it’s better if you don’t.’ There’s a smile playing around the corners of Charles Leclerc’s mouth. It doesn’t reach his eyes. It would have creeped Sebastian out more if it had.
He slips the recorder back out of sight, sits back up and opens his notebook.
‘So, where to start…’
It doesn’t seem like Leclerc is feeling particularly talkative, which is fine. This isn’t his first rodeo.
‘Only twenty three and already the de facto leader of (Ferrari-ology, idk man). You seem to be working hard on reforming the group. Can you tell me how you decided that this was what you were wanting to do?’
Leclerc looks at his nails, runs a hand through his hair. His nails are the one part of him that doesn’t look impeccable, bitten to the quick. Sebastian scribbles down a quick note, leans back in his chair.
‘I didn’t decide. There was no other way. Someone had to lead the horse back to water and, well, I knew from a very young age that that was me.’
Vans Warped Tour AU, Sebchal endgame. They’re in two different bands and as the tour progresses they failboat their way together.
The main idea behind this was to put Sebchal in a bandom setting and see how they get on in that kind of world. The bands I’d envisioned were as follows:
Seb (drums), Daniel (guitar), Jenson (vocals), Valtteri (bass), Checo (keyboard)
Charles (vocals), Alex (guitar), George (drums)
As for the plot, honestly I mainly have the setting bouncing around in my head but I had a murder mystery surrounding this that might spark your interest.
Murder mystery
Band members keep getting killed. The main public thinks it’s some sort of marketing stunt to get some all-star band together. Sebchal are the ones who eventually find the first body (maybe the third disappearance?)
The killer: Daniel (?), using drumsticks and microphone cords and guitar/bass strings and whatever instrumental is nearby that’s convenient. He kills his victims because he wants the glory they got that he never had and maybe all the people are instrumental for their bands or at least look that way
The first three murders are done with drumming supplies, implicating Seb because it’s the brand he’s famous for using. Charles knows it wasn’t Seb because they found the third body together (maybe the second?) but no one believes him (maybe they assume he doesn’t want to put someone he looks up to in jail?).
Eventually Daniel is caught when he tries to murder someone but fails to finish the job.
