General agreement with all of the above. Especially such mutations as
Spike/Xander, or Angel/Xander. Now, Kittens, regardless of your personal feelings about said characters...let's keep these things in the realm of psuedo-possibility.
I, personally, enjoy writing W/T fic not only because I love the characters, separately and as a couple, but because their relationship lends itself to so many story possibilities. I think that's why so many people wrote B/W fics years ago -- it didn't seem too unnatural, given their relationship on the show. I have to admit to not being turned off or disgusted by some of these stories in those years before W/T. (Nowadays, yeah, 'what were they thinking?', but everybody has 20/20 hindsight).
I have been thinking of writing a sort of prequel to my story "Four Months After," taking place in that period where Willow is missing and off on her presumed magical bender. During this time, Tara has moved back in with Buffy and Dawn. Buffy is somewhat jealous of Tara's relationship with Dawn; partly, this is because she's in the midst of her post-mortem depression.
Slowly, she and Tara draw closer together -- though they never actually do anything really...icky. Because I just don't see that happening. (Even so, I was not planning on posting this here -- probably on Unintentional Tears.) But they do become good friends, and who doesn't like to read stories about that? I'll take a story that makes you feel good over "smut" any day.
(Well, almost any day).
(Five days a week).
(Alright, three days a week!
)
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"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."