I've been thinking a lot about soulmate AUs, so...
● Jamjar style. Characters are brought into whatever kind of setting we want and are revealed to be able to find their soulmate here. Chaos ensues. We could absolutely play this straight by slapping any two characters together and dealing with the fallout (characters from the same canon who shouldn't/can't be soulmates, characters who hate each other, characters who were in love but wouldn't express it, etc) or we could go with the idea that characters just straight up reject their soulmate and end up with someone else, etc. A jamjar could add some interesting dynamics to characters from the same canon, or could just be a good background for characters from a different one. Other things to consider: it's a dating gameshow thing where the goal is to find your soulmate and then you win, etc!!
● Enemies/rivals-to-soulmates. Characters who strongly dislike/hate each other end up being revealed as soulmates. Whoops?? How the hell did fate/whatever manage to get this so wrong?? Once again, playing it straight or just having it a hurdle to overcome is fun, but you know I love some enemies-to-lovers.
● The world/society really loves soulmates. In fact, they love them so much that it's considered taboo to not end up with your soulmate, regardless of how compatible the two of you really are. Cue shenanigans that happen in response to some really weird/bad/stupid matchups. I'll admit I was specifically thinking 3H with this one because of how damn funny this would be coupled with the huge emphasis on Crests and nobility and the like and how that would play into various characters' relationships. Another thing to consider: characters who are soulmates need to IMMEDIATELY get married. Kind of like a horrible mashup between "waking up married" and "arranged marriage" and ultimately ends in stupidity.
● For whatever reason, characters A and B are faking that they're soulmates. They have absolutely everyone fooled believing this. Character C then ends up accidentally finding out that they're B's soulmate. Cue C freaking out about this/wondering how the hell this is possible while B is just like really. I was imagining Hubert and Edelgard for pretending to be soulmates (so as to keep people from trying to mess with their plans/determining if they're soulmates with Edelgard) but really the idea is just super funny.
● Here's a list of some soulmate AUs. These are mostly "how you find your soulmate/how they're connected to you", but some of these could be fun to expand on. "Every time your soulmate lies, their words are written on you." Holy shit please imagine how funny that would be. I also like the idea of gaining access to some sort of power or something (either from the soulmate or because of the soulmate bond) but idk what exactly to do with that. This could even lead into "using your soulmate for their power but trying not to fall in love" which could be fun!!
● And here's some more! In particular I like "You have a tattoo that changes color depending on what your soulmate is feeling." or "You share a dream with your soulmate when you’re both asleep." (Please imagine someone occasionally having nightmares that are not their own, but are their soulmate's!!) "Everyone has a journal that allows them to write back and forth with their soulmate." or "You will receive the same injuries as your soulmate (unless deadly)." or "You cannot feel pain until you meet/touch your soulmate." though this last one probably needs to be combined with something else to actually find your soulmate, lmao. Lots of good stuff to explore in both these links!
● Wait, I found another one. "Your clock is a countdown of how long you and your soulmate have left to find each other or else you both will die because the universe is sadistic af—and if you find your soulmate you get to live longer." This one would be really fun for those characters who don't want to find their soulmates under most circumstances, lmao. Alternatively, "You can choose to take the pain of your soulmate away. Like if they’re sick or even if they just have a paper cut, you can choose to transfer the pain/sickness to yourself instead and they’ll heal." Also this one, "The Red String of Fate exists, and only some people have the ability to see the strings, and these people can actually cut strings and knot other people’s strings in to alter the soulmate laws. Your best friend’s wedding is tomorrow and they know you can see the string. They ask you to help them defy the laws of the universe and help them be with the person they love even though they know that’s not their soulmate. You know they love each other so much so you help them, even though the person your best friend’s marrying/your best friend is your soulmate." Hahaha what the fuck.
● Reincarnation/timeloops. Basically characters find their soulmate, but for whatever reason, they just cannot be together in this life. One/both of them die (the one who lives gets to live out the rest of their life without their soulmate!!) and eventually they're reborn/things are reset. If reincarnation, this could be in another world/set [x years] in the future/etc and they slowly regain their memories of their past life - if timeloops, then maybe they slowly regain memories of the previous cycle(s). Either way, the point is to try to change things so that maybe this time you can get a happy ending. Yet again I'm thinking about 3H and the war is a great backdrop for this, so that could be fun!!
● For whatever reason, a character simply does not have a soulmate. This would probably work best in a world where soulmates are easier to find (I.E. having a name/mark in a certain place on your skin, etc.) So they're aware they don't have one, but why the hell aren't they allowed to find love, etc. Just dealing with the fallout of that could be fun! Also something something denying the system by falling in love with someone who isn't your soulmate something.
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● Jamjar style. Characters are brought into whatever kind of setting we want and are revealed to be able to find their soulmate here. Chaos ensues. We could absolutely play this straight by slapping any two characters together and dealing with the fallout (characters from the same canon who shouldn't/can't be soulmates, characters who hate each other, characters who were in love but wouldn't express it, etc) or we could go with the idea that characters just straight up reject their soulmate and end up with someone else, etc. A jamjar could add some interesting dynamics to characters from the same canon, or could just be a good background for characters from a different one. Other things to consider: it's a dating gameshow thing where the goal is to find your soulmate and then you win, etc!!
● Enemies/rivals-to-soulmates. Characters who strongly dislike/hate each other end up being revealed as soulmates. Whoops?? How the hell did fate/whatever manage to get this so wrong?? Once again, playing it straight or just having it a hurdle to overcome is fun, but you know I love some enemies-to-lovers.
● The world/society really loves soulmates. In fact, they love them so much that it's considered taboo to not end up with your soulmate, regardless of how compatible the two of you really are. Cue shenanigans that happen in response to some really weird/bad/stupid matchups. I'll admit I was specifically thinking 3H with this one because of how damn funny this would be coupled with the huge emphasis on Crests and nobility and the like and how that would play into various characters' relationships. Another thing to consider: characters who are soulmates need to IMMEDIATELY get married. Kind of like a horrible mashup between "waking up married" and "arranged marriage" and ultimately ends in stupidity.
● For whatever reason, characters A and B are faking that they're soulmates. They have absolutely everyone fooled believing this. Character C then ends up accidentally finding out that they're B's soulmate. Cue C freaking out about this/wondering how the hell this is possible while B is just like really. I was imagining Hubert and Edelgard for pretending to be soulmates (so as to keep people from trying to mess with their plans/determining if they're soulmates with Edelgard) but really the idea is just super funny.
● Here's a list of some soulmate AUs. These are mostly "how you find your soulmate/how they're connected to you", but some of these could be fun to expand on. "Every time your soulmate lies, their words are written on you." Holy shit please imagine how funny that would be. I also like the idea of gaining access to some sort of power or something (either from the soulmate or because of the soulmate bond) but idk what exactly to do with that. This could even lead into "using your soulmate for their power but trying not to fall in love" which could be fun!!
● And here's some more! In particular I like "You have a tattoo that changes color depending on what your soulmate is feeling." or "You share a dream with your soulmate when you’re both asleep." (Please imagine someone occasionally having nightmares that are not their own, but are their soulmate's!!) "Everyone has a journal that allows them to write back and forth with their soulmate." or "You will receive the same injuries as your soulmate (unless deadly)." or "You cannot feel pain until you meet/touch your soulmate." though this last one probably needs to be combined with something else to actually find your soulmate, lmao. Lots of good stuff to explore in both these links!
● Wait, I found another one. "Your clock is a countdown of how long you and your soulmate have left to find each other or else you both will die because the universe is sadistic af—and if you find your soulmate you get to live longer." This one would be really fun for those characters who don't want to find their soulmates under most circumstances, lmao. Alternatively, "You can choose to take the pain of your soulmate away. Like if they’re sick or even if they just have a paper cut, you can choose to transfer the pain/sickness to yourself instead and they’ll heal." Also this one, "The Red String of Fate exists, and only some people have the ability to see the strings, and these people can actually cut strings and knot other people’s strings in to alter the soulmate laws. Your best friend’s wedding is tomorrow and they know you can see the string. They ask you to help them defy the laws of the universe and help them be with the person they love even though they know that’s not their soulmate. You know they love each other so much so you help them, even though the person your best friend’s marrying/your best friend is your soulmate." Hahaha what the fuck.
● Reincarnation/timeloops. Basically characters find their soulmate, but for whatever reason, they just cannot be together in this life. One/both of them die (the one who lives gets to live out the rest of their life without their soulmate!!) and eventually they're reborn/things are reset. If reincarnation, this could be in another world/set [x years] in the future/etc and they slowly regain their memories of their past life - if timeloops, then maybe they slowly regain memories of the previous cycle(s). Either way, the point is to try to change things so that maybe this time you can get a happy ending. Yet again I'm thinking about 3H and the war is a great backdrop for this, so that could be fun!!
● For whatever reason, a character simply does not have a soulmate. This would probably work best in a world where soulmates are easier to find (I.E. having a name/mark in a certain place on your skin, etc.) So they're aware they don't have one, but why the hell aren't they allowed to find love, etc. Just dealing with the fallout of that could be fun! Also something something denying the system by falling in love with someone who isn't your soulmate something.