Let's chat about h/c today!

[frith_in_thorns]

To go with naye's lovely post about comfort tropes, tell me your favourite kinds of hurt for your fictional characters! Do you have ones you like to read but not write, or vice versa? Are there some you will read endlessly in any fandom you're in? Are there some h/c tropes you can bash out a 2k oneshot for at the drop of a hat?

Also, do you find you're equal-opportunity with your hurt, or do you hoard it all for one particular character or character archetype?

I'll start, and say that I'm really into hurt resulting in altered-state, as provided by many things but especially concussion/drugged/fever etc. It's something I find endlessly enjoyable to write -- the vulnerability caused by the skewed perspective, and how that plays out in character interactions, but also I... just like... the hurt bit itself *gg* And currently I have a definite Thing for Shen Wei magically exhausting himself and coughing blood and stumbling in a floppy way and having to be supported by Zhao Yunlan. (I don't suppose this is a revelation to anyone. But I'm so glad to know that I'm not alone!)

Anyway, please share your own likes! And recs!

(This is a positivity-only post. Very uninterested in hearing how h/c is OOC or a moral failing or how some people write it badly or whatever, thanks.)

Comments

[naye]

I'm always so impressed when others can rattle of tropes, because my id likes to keep things really private? To the point where I will know something I love when I see it, but if it's not right in front of me I might not even remember that it's a thing I adore.

That said, I am right there with you when it comes to the altered state! Anything from sleep deprivation to drugs. Nightmares are fantastic. Waking up not knowing what's real, needing comfort but being afraid to trust.

In general, I like those kind of effects that linger after the hurt is done? Not because I want the character to stay hurt, but when something leaves traces - alters a character's behavior, so that they might be skittish, or very tightly controlled. (This then takes lots of loving patience to sort out and then then you get that moment of catharsis when they are back to being relaxed and trusting again! Yay!)

Panic attacks. Panic attacks are so good to me. Either as part of comfort, where they can break down safely and someone can help them through it, or as panic attacks they're having to manage because everything is terrible and they're trying so hard to keep it together because it's too dangerous not to.

Panic attack recs for Guardian:
If Life Was A Movie We'd Have A Better Soundtrack by galaxysoup
Deep Waters Closing Over Our Heads by xparrot

Both are long (gorgeous & fantastic) fics where the panic attack is just one scene, but in both cases those scenes made a huge impression on me.

Um. Also imprisonment usually gives me aspects of altered states together with the long-term effects so yes. Definitely a thing I will read. (Honestly just being held captive is enough "hurt" for me, though this can work to various degrees with all sorts of other kind of hurts.)

Looking at my poor neglected h/c bingo for inspiration, "accepting injury to protect someone else" is one of my bulletproof h/c tropes. (I don't have any recs off the top of my head for Guardian other than OH WAIT: CANON. But I would like recs? ♥)

And going back to the general meta of h/c, I would love to have something I can bash out a 2k oneshot for at the drop of a hat, but alas. I usually have more of a struggle accessing that sweet spot of "I really like this a LOT" and "it's totally okay to write what you like". IDK getting to that point is a work in progress?

Finally: I'm the ultimate in equal-opportunity hurt? I have written numerous fics where characters either trade off being hurt (not just figuratively, because this is Guardian, so...), or where one character has to watch another be hurt. Which then hurts them both! (I did mention the bulletproof narrative kink right?)

Which I think makes me a minority, because I am as invested in Shen Wei flopping prettily as the next fan, but I also do love trying to crack Zhao Yunlan's knowingly casual composure. :D

[anotherslashfan]

I'm kind of into the seemingly life-altering kind of hurt? The one that will transform the character, be it because they lose their home (or the idea of their home), them having to deal with a mental affliction/illness, a drastic alteration of their bodies... that sort of thing. And I want the comfort to be all about acceptance of their new selves by others - so that they in turn can grow into themselves again. It's probably because of my own history with depression that I find this kind of story incredibly cathartic. I can only go for stories like these every once in a while, though.

[sheron]

I love:

- Panic attacks! Especially with competent characters who have to keep up a front and look like they're totally Fine (tm) it just gets me every time

- Migraines (being taken care of with a migraine is something I don't actually want in RL, because I just want to sleep it off, but in fic it really works for me when the character is looked after, very quietly, by someone they love)

- Hypothermia (CUDDLING!)

- Serious injury (i.e. gunshot, stab wound) and then the care-taker is the one that's freaking out while the comfortee is trying to be strong through incredible pain (yes please)

- Altered state stuff (i.e. the person is hallucinating but won't admit it/tries to act normal. In general, trying to act normal works for me)

- Someone falling down in a cave and having to make their way out (except in cases where claustrophobia gets really vividly described, then I can get a little twitchy)

- Recovery from noncon (mostly emotional)

- Sickfic in an established relationship, or if it's not established then ALL the awkwardness of the "would they want me to do this?" type and "I don't know what I'm doing!!" from the caretaker (In general I tend to love the reversal of the caretaker freaking out XD )

- In long fic, I will always enjoy any kind of "they're lost in the wilderness and thus steadily accumulating injuries that all culminate in a serious situation"

- Every other kind of h/c :D It's hard to go wrong!

[clevermanka]

Bring me alllllllllll the emotional trauma! Bodily trauma is...fine? It's fine! I mean, I'm not going to kick it out of bed for eating crackers, but emotional pain is my #1 reading jam.

That said, I'm very much enjoying writing ZYL in some serious physical shit with Ghost Story.

I can't fall down the rabbit hole of thinking of fics to rec right now (I still have to get some writing done today before dinner), but...has everyone seen sisabet's vid On the Prowl? (warnings for everything, esp. after the 1:30 mark)

[xparrot]

Altered states are probably my favorite, I love drugs (...that is a completely inaccurate statement when taken out of context but anyway), also feverish deliriums, concussions. I love the characters trying to hide it and also when they're so confused they don't know what's fully going on but are doing their best to power through.

One of my favorite tropes for h/c overall is presumed dead -- I can't take real deathfics, but the emotional agony of a character believing they're lost someone, and then the catharsis of return -- and often some physical h/c thrown in there too, depending on how the 'death' went down -- it gets to me.

Also, characters covering up how hurt they are (whatever the cause of the hurt) -- maybe especially when they're hiding it even from themselves, so they think they're doing okay and then they stagger and have to reach out to catch themselves...

[no_detective]

oooooh! (how did i miss naye's post? i need to find more time for dw...)

i find altered states really appealing too, although i have to be careful bc unstable experience of reality can sometimes touch upon a (triggery for me) experience of certain types of mental illness. but fever is great, and so are drugs. while i'm open to alternatives, i generally find it easier to read h/c when the hurt is temporary and doesn't have long-term effects (other than scars - i do enjoy scars).

re: pain, it can be a very useful tool for unsettling characters who need to be, well, disrupted in a specific way so that they can reevaluate their situation/strength/life choices etc - and all the more so when they seek it out, consciously or not. for example, it was SUCH a pleasure to watch chris pine's kirk get his ass kicked a bunch of times in the star trek reboot because he, uh, really knows how to take a beating - in so many ways. :D

btw, while the show has left me with a super intense need for shen wei h/c (emphasis on "c" lol), the seeking-out-pain thing is what makes zhao yunlan a good candidate too in my head. maybe it's part of his whole danger kink package (as someone brilliantly called it on twitter recently). i'm also 100% down when it falls under the "this might help people/shen wei, so of course i'll willingly throw myself into pain" setup.

i think the further the type of pain is from my personal experience, the more likely i am to go along with it & be able to enjoy its description in fic (and fever can be kind of enjoyable? idk, that may be just me). so bullet wounds and stab wounds and magical injuries - sure! but headaches and sleep deprivation - no thanks. too real!

[sholio]

WOOHOO H/C, I've been looking forward to contributing to this post all day when my daily writing was done. XD

Altered states is a big one for me too -- concussions especially, because the dazed/woozy/out of it aspect also goes along with splitting headaches and the other person worrying that there's real, lasting damage. But also drugs, fevers, hypothermia, poison ... anything that makes them dizzy and floppy and unable to walk about without help. ♥

Presumed dead is another huge one for me; it's got all the desperate angst and worry plus a basically instant recovery period once the person turns out not to be dead -- I mean, depending on what's wrong with them, but it usually means you can get instant emotional comfort for the person who thought they were dead plus the presumed-dead person realizing how much they're loved. (Or 20 chapters of avoiding talking about it, depending ...)

Shooting/stabbing/drowning -- really any kind of acute, don't-die-on-me!! h/c also Does Things to me. I recently discovered altitude sickness is tailor-made for h/c and yet, no one ever writes it! But it combines woozy/sick with the possibility of escalating to lethality before anyone can do anything about it (so, desperate worry gets in there) but is also quickly and easily treatable with the right supplies.

I also really like scenarios where they're stranded far from help, or have to get out of a difficult situation where no help is coming, and particularly if both people are hurt in different ways and have to rely on each other. I'm fond of prisoner/torture scenarios, characters trapped places, that kind of thing.

I've also noticed an increasing fondness recently for emotional h/c. I mean, I've always liked it, but I don't think I ever realized it's actually a really big happy button for me until recently -- characters being comforted after nightmares, phobias, or panic attacks; characters being able to talk about their trauma with each other and feeling safe with someone else; hugging/touching for people who aren't used to it; emotional comfort for the person who was distressed in a presumed-dead scenario ...

This is a lovely topic, and very inspiring for Whumptober; thank you for bringing it up! ♥

[schneefink]

I consider myself a big fan of h/c, and yet I found both this and the "favorite comfort" posts unexpectedly difficult. Favorite kinds? Idk, I think it depends? On the characters, the world, and my mood, mostly. Hmm. I think in general I tend more towards emotional pain. I find myself surprisingly uninterested in examining my preferences further. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Though, reading through other comments, one trope that I really love in almost every case is "presumed dead." Mmmyes.

[qikiqtarjuaq]

I like emotional hurt - with my favorites being temporarily unrequited love, fear/terror of losing someone, or just going through something harrowing/traumatic. Nightmares are a favorite of mine. Illusions/nightmare traps where someone lives through their worst nightmares, gets trapped in fantasies they can't have... I really wish we got more from the Nightmare Master against Shen Wei or Zhao Yunlan!

This matches well with my preference for comfort offering safety, reassurance, and a chance for characters to allow themselves to be vulnerable. To show that they're afraid, and know that the other person can be trusted with that vulnerability and whose presence can make that fear go away. Praise kink, touch, voice kink, and other cuddly comforts work really well for me here.

[indywind]

Here via sholio. Her recent Whumptober prompt ficlets, plus discussion of when a creator sets up the ingredients for really satisfying H/c, but then --because their goal was something else--the setup doesn't pay off, got me thinking about exactly what I'm looking for under the h/c trope umbrella.

I'm super into a particular constellation of psych/emotional hurt -- where a generally competent, self-reliant character is overwhelmed by combined physical and psych/emotional damage beyond their usually high ability to cope. So they are both dealing with whatever the situation is, and dealing with whatever they feel about needing help/caretaking, their own vulnerability, being afraid, struggling with trust and trying to keep what control they can, that sort of thing. Tough person who never does this sort of thing breaking down enough to cry or admit vulnerability is my catnip.

I'm not really interested in any particular kinds of physical hurts for their own sakes, but for what they do to and reveal about the characters (which I think is more to do with how the author handles it than anything). But because I'm looking for characters with high coping thresholds being overwhelmed, usually minor/moderate hurts with predictable recovery don't hit the spot for me --unless they touch a nerve or trip a trigger particular to that character or interpersonal dynamic, then I am SO IN. On the flip side, I also don't usually care about even really major hurts that are just plain painful and distressing for anybody and comfort/care is SOP.

I don't necessarily want to keep all the hurt for a particular character or type, but I favor different kinds of hurt for different kinds of characters. I'm not much interested in ones who are easily hurt, comfortable being vulnerable and trusting others, and readily and effectively seek help/comfort, just that doesn't create any of the emotional conflict and resolution I'm after. (My feelings are deeply conflicted about reckless, self-harming, or self-sabotaging characters who keep getting hurt intentionally or not, because it's the only way they know to obtain care--that dynamic can be right in the sweet spot of emotional h/c for me, or it can cross the line into a major squick, especially if the hurting character doesn't care if they hurt others.)

The payoff I'm looking for (the parallel to the orgasm in porn or the mutual love relationship in a romance or the defeating the enemy or achieving the quest in adventure) is overcoming the obstacles--practical and psych/emotional--to finally be vulnerable and receive comfort/care in a relationship of trust.


Some recs elsethread.