Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Okay, so if you're aware of my other series, then I shouldn't need to explain this too much. Basically, I found a list of A-Z headcanon prompts and want to use them for specific characters. To be completely honest, I'm getting slightly burnt out on writing nothing but sexual stuff in my other fic, so I'd really like to explore a more wholesome relationship with the characters in this one. On the bright side, I can actually have something SFW, something I can just write with much less embarrassment over, and I don't need to explain myself nearly as much for certain characters.

I found a list from “alvfr” on Tumblr, so the credit for the list itself goes to her.

And finally, as for the actual setup, this'll be in random order, meaning that there's no dedicated fandom “chunks”, I'll be picking and choosing characters however I want. Additionally, there's no ranking system here. I've already ranked them in the other fic, this is more or less just assuming you have the best possible relationship with these characters. Lastly, while I'll be under the assumption that this is “character x male reader” due to being male myself, the actual prompt list is gender neutral, so I'll try to write it as such, thus this should be fine for whomever wants to read it.

Anyway, the list goes as follows:

A for Adorable
(What small habit/feature/quirk do they find especially endearing about the other?)

B for Bargain
(How will they go about getting their way when they’re disagreeing?)

C for Communication
(What is their love language?)

D for Devoted
(How do they show each other they’re serious about the relationship?)

E for Enchanted
(What was the first thing about the other that caught their eye?)

F for Flirty
(How do/did they flirt with each other?)

G for Gentle
(How do they comfort each other if one has had a bad day?)

H for Hot
(What outfit/look is their favorite on the other?)

I for Intimate
(What was their first real date like?)

J for Jealous
(Is either of them jealous? How do they show and handle it?)

K for Karma
(How do they apologize to each other?)

L for Lust
(What feature/habit do they find most enticing about the other?)

M for Memory
(What is their favorite memory together?)

N for Normal
(What do their typical day together look like? Routines, schedules, habits?)

O for Obvious
(What things do either do in public to show they’re together?)

P for Peace
(When are they most relaxed together?)

Q for Quiet
(What can they do together without talking?)

R for Romantic
(What kind of gifts do they give each other?)

S for Sleep
(What position do they sleep in if/when they sleep together?)

T for Thoughtful
(What little things do they do for each other?)

U for Unity
(What kind of wedding ceremony would/did they have?)

V for Vibrant
(What do they do or say that will make the other one smile without fail?)

W for Whisper
(What nicknames or compliments do they use the most?)

X for XOXO
(What was their first kiss like?)

Y for Yearn
(What do they do when they’re away from each other?)

Z for Zoom
(What is their favorite picture of each other or them together?)

BONUS:

Æ for Æve - Eternity
(How do they picture their old age together?)

Ø for Øde - Desolate
(Where do/would they live together?)

Å for Åte - Bait
(How did they meet/start dating?)

Chapter Text

A for Adorable
(What small habit/feature/quirk do they find especially endearing about the other?)

As it turns out, Monika has a small habit of talking with her hands. She's not performing ninjutsu or anything during conversation, but her sprites from the game? The ones where she holds up a finger as she speaks? That's not just a thing to get attention as a leader, it's just genuinely something she does. She also rarely even notices it, and you've listened to her go on and on while her hands move increasingly quickly the more excited she gets. It's pretty cute in your eyes.

B for Bargain
(How will they go about getting their way when they’re disagreeing?)

Whether it was "real" or not, Monika was captain of the Debate Club at one point, with all the skills that comes with such a title. She's more than capable of making her point with surprisingly few "tricks". That being said, she's open-minded enough that she's also more than willing to compromise if necessary.

C for Communication
(What is their love language?)

Of the five most commonly acknowledged forms of love languages, hers would be "words of affirmation". Monika is constantly both complimenting you as well as reminding you of just how much she loves you. It's not just verbally either; there's plenty of times where you're away from each other, which is why she leaves little notes behind that are just as full of love as her words.

"Good morning, Sweetheart. I hope you slept well. I didn't want to wake you up - you were so cute - so I just went ahead to the store. Be back soon!"

"I hope you find this. I know you work early in the mornings, but that's no excuse to ignore your dietary needs! I made this lunch for you with a special ingredient (love), so you better eat it, or I'll be disappointed!"

She leaves you little notes like that all the time. Her penmanship is carefully immaculate, and you swear you can feel the emotion behind every word. You've decided to keep each and every note she's left you.

D for Devoted
(How do they show each other they’re serious about the relationship?)

Pretty much ever since the start of your relationship, Monika has made it abundantly clear that she loves you and is willing to stick with you through it all. She's seen you at your best, she's seen you at your worst, she's seen you at your proudest, and she's seen you at your most embarrassed. And she not only continues to stick around, but actively wants to help and support you. Despite, or maybe because of everything you've been through together, her opinion of you hasn't dropped once. If anything, it's only improved, bit by bit every day.

E for Enchanted
(What was the first thing about the other that caught their eye?)

While she'd word it differently, you were, simply put, the first thing she saw. In a world as fake as hers, something genuinely real was something beautiful in her eyes. When she finally saw you, the real you for the first time, it was your eyes that she was first drawn to. They were so much more beautiful than her imagination could conjure.

F for Flirty
(How do/did they flirt with each other?)

Monika flirts surprisingly subtly. To be fair, she's already regularly complimenting you, so it wouldn't be too out of place if you just so happened to tell you that "your butt looks good in those jeans" or something. But couple that with her lightly massaging your hand while it's interlocked with hers and the gazes that linger even longer than usual? Yeah, we're passed the point of platonic teasing.

G for Gentle
(How do they comfort each other if one has had a bad day?)

Whenever Monika has a bad day, she basically needs you to return the favor. Remember what I said before about how she showers you in compliments and "I love you"s? This is when she needs you to do the same to her the most. If your love language is different, you can still portray your affections in that way, but right now she just needs something to take her mind off her problems; at least for a moment.

If you've had a bad day, Monika will respond in a very similar fashion. She might tone down her affections slightly so she doesn't overwhelm you, but she's also almost immediately made plans for you to do things and take your mind off of your problems. And don't worry - whatever your issue is, you're not running away. You're taking a breather so you can come back to it with a more clear head.

H for Hot
(What outfit/look is their favorite on the other?)

As iconic as her bow is, you can't help but love the way she looks with her hair free and flowing. There's nothing particularly special, nor any really relevant story, you just happen to like "loose-hair Monika".

I for Intimate
(What was their first real date like?)

Ignoring general hangouts or "coffee dates", your first "proper" date together would be the stereotypical dinner/movie date. You happened to notice that she was particularly interested in a certain film so you decided to preorder a couple tickets to it under the pretense that they just happened to be on sale, so why not (they weren't).

Following advice you heard years ago, you made sure to make reservations at a decent restaurant in town for after the movie. Yeah, there's always the risk of filling up on popcorn, but now you had a guaranteed dinner conversation. Honestly, despite how cliche of a date idea it is, you both still had a fun time.

J for Jealous
(Is either of them jealous? How do they show and handle it?)

Oh yeah, Monika's definitely the jealous type. Thankfully, Monika is mature enough to at least try to hear you out before making any rash judgements or decisions, and if she was really off the mark, like getting jealous of your mother or something, she'll be genuinely apologetic about it. That being said, don't joke around about her jealousy. Even assuming the best, too many jokes and you're probably sleeping on the couch for not taking her feelings seriously enough.

K for Karma
(How do they apologize to each other?)

Whenever Monika apologizes, she does so as sincerely as possible. In addition to simply verbally apologizing, she also makes sure to make up for her "crime" in whatever way she can. Depending on what it is, she'll work to fix her mistake, support you in whatever you're doing, things like that. 

L for Lust
(What feature/habit do they find most enticing about the other?)

Well, we've already established that she likes your eyes, and you like her hair and the way she gestures with her hands, so in order to round things out, a habit she likes of yours is actually a similar, though noticeably different habit. You have a habit of touching your lips. Sometimes with your fingers, sometimes with an object in your hands; for some reason you just touch them frequently. Monika's overreactive imagination sees this and makes her blush pretty quickly. Don't worry, she finds it cute.

M for Memory
(What is their favorite memory together?)

Honestly, her favorite memory will always be the first time you've genuinely met.

You wake up one morning, hearing a loud crashing coming from the other room, followed by pained feminine yelp. You live alone, this is absolutely not normal. As you rush to the source of the noise, a part of you wonders if you've watched some cursed video or something before brushing it off. However, as you open the door, you realize that perhaps you weren't completely wrong with your internal jokes. A young woman, half stuck in your computer monitor - the whole system now damaged and scattered around the room - looks up at you with wide, quickly tearing up eyes.

"-----" As she murmurs your name, you can't help but recognize her. It's Monika from Doki Doki Literature Club of all things. You have no idea how this could have even happened - you hadn't even touched her game or any mods in months - and yet, here she is, on your floor, her hips stuck in your computer screen. As you reach down, your hand grasping hers as you attempt to pull her out of the machine, she bursts into tears. Uncaring about her positioning, she wraps her arms around whatever part of you she can reach, sobbing. She's finally done it. She's finally free. She's finally with you.

It was an awkward meeting for the both of you, and integrating her into your world wasn't the easiest task, but she'll always look fondly on that day - the day that her life truly, finally began.

N for Normal
(What do their typical day together look like? Routines, schedules, habits?)

I'm going to just assume that Monika has at some point hacked herself into the system so that she can actually get a job, and I'm also going to assume that both of you have the day off, just so I don't need to worry about writing schedules where one's at work and the other isn't and whatever.

To Monika's amusement, if you don't have any particular obligations, you're a bit of a late sleeper, capable of sleeping until at least 10 in the morning if she doesn't wake you. She usually wakes you up before that unless the previous day was that exhausting. The day begins with light exercise to wake you both up - usually in the form of a small walk/jog. Nothing too strenuous, just something to get the blood flowing. After that is a light breakfast, followed by some time to simply relax and digest. One of you usually tries to find an excuse to leave the house - such as visiting the local bookstore or the mall. By the afternoon, you're usually back home and spend most of the rest of the day between dinner and various games one of you wanted to play or shows one of you wanted to watch.

This isn't completely set in stone, but this is generally how most of your days off together go.

O for Obvious
(What things do either do in public to show they’re together?)

Monika isn't one for public spectacle, but she's still willing to stake her claim if need be. A majority of the time she's simply holding your hand as you walk together or something, but if she sees other people checking you out, she'll be a bit bolder in her actions. She's clung to you a few times, randomly surprised you with a kiss, things like that.

P for Peace
(When are they most relaxed together?)

The two of you are usually at your most relaxed when you're finally allowed to relax after a long and busy day. Not to say that you don't enjoy shared moments in general, but there's just something about finally getting off work or otherwise coming home after hours, your feet tired, and with a seemingly practiced choreography, you both plop down on the couch at the same time, leaning back, finally allowed to rest. Hell, several times you've shared impromptu nap sessions on that couch because you're both that tired after coming home.

Q for Quiet
(What can they do together without talking?)

Reading together is a common one, but not a very satisfying answer. Reading, watching TV or something, things like that aren't things you do together, they're just things you happen to be doing in the same room. If forced to give a different answer, I'd say...chores. You've both developed a system for basically all of your chores and you don't even need to communicate over it anymore. You wash and she dries, or she collects the trash and you throw it into the bin, you've become a pretty good team for household tasks.

Though, if this is intended to be a question about hobbies or something, then I guess reading.

R for Romantic
(What kind of gifts do they give each other?)

Monika's gifts tend to be both full of thought and, for lack of better term, "useful". Usually in a way that's beneficial for your health, like a blender or a step-counter. Actually, come to think of it, she gives you a lot of gifts like that - she can be a bit of a health nut at times.

S for Sleep
(What position do they sleep in if/when they sleep together?)

Monika is incredibly clingy in her sleep. Whether she's the big or little spoon, whether she's facing your front or your back, it doesn't matter, she sleeps best while holding on to you.

T for Thoughtful
(What little things do they do for each other?)

She's always doing a little bit here or there to contribute. Whether that be splitting the bill, cleaning up whatever messes she may make, maybe going out of her way to make you something she knows you like after a long day. Like I mentioned before, if you're having a particularly bad day, she'll make sure to keep you company so that you know she's there for you.

U for Unity
(What kind of wedding ceremony would/did they have?)

While not a "bridezilla" by any means, Monika still has some big fantasies about your future wedding. She's willing to bargain and compromise here or there, but her full-on dream wedding would be a big one; you, her, and all your friends and family would be out in a beautiful field of flowers as you spoke your vows. The reception afterwords would be somewhere indoors, yet graceful - she doesn't have any particular thoughts on this specific location, so if you have any ideas, she's willing to hear them. She has multiple ideas, but she needs to actually be working on your wedding before she can make much progress on them - for example, she'd like the bridesmaids to be wearing green, but that might not work in practice. 

V for Vibrant
(What do they do or say that will make the other one smile without fail?)

She absolutely loves it when you give her affection. Cute nicknames, hugs, pecks on the cheek or lips; the best way to get her to smile is to shower her in your love.

W for Whisper
(What nicknames or compliments do they use the most?)

Monika enjoys calling you by all sorts of little pet names, but "Sweetheart" seems to be what she calls you the most. If you aren't calling her something like "Mon-Mon", then it's probably something like "Dear". Though, she does have a secret weakness: since you've compared her eyes to emeralds before on multiple occasions, she gets surprisingly giddy when you call her "Gem", "My Gem", or something similar.

X for XOXO
(What was their first kiss like?)

As much as she wants to say that it was wonderful and magical, it...wasn't. It wasn't necessarily bad, but neither of you knew how to kiss. This isn't some sort of exaggeration - outside of general assumptions and things you saw in tv/movies/etc, neither of you knew how to properly kiss. The first few times you just...pressed your faces against each other, not quite realizing what you were supposed to be doing.

Thankfully, you both figured it out sooner or later.

Y for Yearn
(What do they do when they’re away from each other?)

Wait for you to get back...

Sorry, I had to say it at least once.

In all seriousness, pretty much every healthy relationship involves some time away from each other, and despite how clingy Monika can be, yours is no different. Monika actually has a number of things to do while you're away at work or something. Ignoring housework (which you also contribute with, so there's thankfully rarely any that needs doing), Monika has a number of books to catch up on, if you've insisted on gaming with her, she could work on that a bit. If she's made friends since coming to your world, she could hang out with them. While things are generally more fun with you around, Monika is still capable of functioning while away from you.

Z for Zoom
(What is their favorite picture of each other or them together?)

Her favorite picture is related to her favorite memory; the first picture you've ever taken together. Both of you look stilted and awkward, still figuring out your relationship and everything around it. It's admittedly not the best picture of the two of you, but it was your beginning together, so she'll always treasure it.

BONUS:

Æ for Æve - Eternity
(How do they picture their old age together?)

Assuming Monika doesn't have some sort of AI-generated immortality, she very much has her own visions of the future between the two of you. Whether through adoption or more "natural means", she wants kids - her inner romantic wants a lot, like 3 bare minimum. You'll grow old together, turning old, wrinkly, and gray, sitting on the porch and watching as your kids and grandkids run around and live their own lives. It's very cliche, traditional, and storybook, but she genuinely wants that kind of future with you.

Ø for Øde - Desolate
(Where do/would they live together?)

As Monika technically just spawned in your apartment one day, that's where you lived together at first. It was small, but you made it work. After some saving up, you'll eventually find yourselves in a somewhat bigger and nicer home. Should your family grow beyond you two, you'll eventually move into an even larger and nicer home.

Å for Åte - Bait
(How did they meet/start dating?)

Would you like to hear the true story or the falsified one? The true story is nothing special - well, it is, but it's also incredibly simplistic. Simply put, Monika managed to somehow worm her way into your reality. It was disturbingly easy from there for her to make up documents for herself in order to legally exist in this world. To this day you're not sure exactly how she managed to get here, but she did, and she's with you, that's all that she cares about.

As for the version you actually tell people, it's an almost suspiciously storybook tale of "romantically mundane". You just so happened to meet at a local bookstore (you've made sure to periodically visit it to sell the story better), where the two of you bumped into each other while browsing. The first time it happened, it was just an awkward accident between strangers. The second time it happened, she found herself somewhat amused by how apologetic you were about bumping into her again. The third time, the both of you couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation. It was then that you (in a manner that she would describe as adorably awkward) asked to talk about your apparent shared interest in literature over coffee. She accepted pretty easily, and here you are now.