@a-ofspades sent: Plots Please! Absolutely!
[ from send me “plots please” . accepting ]
I feel I must apologize in advance because almost all of the following are very likely to be angsty at some point (they are strangely tragic together in the sense that there is ALWAYS some sort of obstacle to be conquered). But then again, I guess that is kind of our thing. 8D
AU. Melissa is married to a C-level employee of a financial conglomerate under investigation for fraud, which caused major losses to their clients; the death threats they have received from desperate customers led her husband to employ Alice as a bodyguard. While it appeared to be an excessive measure at the beginning, an actual attempt on the family's car during a day out showed that Alice's expertise was indeed necessary, particularly with Melissa and their son being untrained and easy marks. It soon becomes clear to Alice that Melissa never knew of her husband's deals behind the scenes, and the investigation demonstrates that saving his own skin (and bank account) is more important than his wife and kids. Alice, the ever-present soul in their lives, becomes more than an employee - a friend, a confidante, the salvation to a very lonely, trapped individual.
AU. Alice is the knight to an ambitious king, tasked to bring home the cursed princess from a distant land for a true love's kiss that would break the spell. Melissa, the princess put to sleep decades before, is supposed to marry the one who saves her. Only Alice's journey doesn't quite go the way it was expected, and she gets trapped in the castle with a ferocious dragon outside that she cannot hope to take on alone. Days go by as Alice lives at the castle, surviving on what was left behind and making do with her own skills, talking to the unconscious princess every day and not realizing that she ended up falling for her. One day, Alice kisses Melissa without thinking about consequences - and is very much startled by the princess reacting to it, freed from the curse... But not by her intended husband.
AU. In a world where Alice became 'Annie' and made a name for herself as a bounty hunter, Melissa runs a hotel that also doubles as the local saloon. Annie is in town when some outlaws take the saloon and the guests hostage, including the owner - and it's only after trying to bravely save Melissa that she realizes she was in league with them all along. In fact, the hotel owner goes out of her way to lure travelers to her place with the promise of the best lodgings in town, only to have them captured, stripped of all riches and fleeing away without coming back for their possessions, happy to be alive. It's a clear conflict of interest: Melissa is just as guilty as those firing the guns, but she surely is prettier than them - the trip to deliver Melissa to jail is bound to offer a lot of time for both of them to consider their options.
And since I am doing bonus rounds for everyone, how about Melissa being a witch to Alice's demon self? I unfortunately never watched Charmed (but I remember it being on TV!) but I do enjoy supernatural/fantasy spins and I would love for these shenanigans to happen - either with Alice being bound to Mel's wishes or the opposite - dealer's choice!
