History FanFic / HookerVerse

An alternate universe series created by emeriin (although other authors enjoy playing in it and the KinkMeme has contributed considerably), this universe sees the ThatGuyWithTheGlasses and ChannelAwesome team as owners, employees and patrons of a seedy club in an even seedier world.

The timeline can be found [[http://emeriin.livejournal.com/112329.html here]] and the masterlist can be found [[http://emeriin.livejournal.com/75055.html#cutid2 here]].

!!Tropes in the ''[=HookerVerse=]'' series include:
* AccidentalNightmareFuel: Critic's SanitySlippage and the weaving of being praised for being a good patient and a good whore in "The Sun Dies In Your Arms" probably wasn't meant to be as scary as it came off as.
* AesopAmnesia: While Critic is in the hospital, Harvey tried ''really'' hard to make him understand that he doesn't have to act like the world is against him. Between then and the club is foggy, but we're to assume he didn't take that to heart.
* AlternateUniverse: Because there's no ThatGuyWithTheGlasses site in this world (or TheSpoonyExperiment or TheCinemaSnob etc.), the Nerd has to have a rivalry with TheIrateGamer. AAAAAAH!
* AnachronicOrder: For example, origin stories for the Chick, Marz and Critic were done ''way'' after we had got to know all their issues in the present. Luckily, the timeline and masterlist helps things from getting too confusing.
* ArcWords: Pretending, hiding and unreliable perceptions of people are all big themes here.
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: In "The Real Green Thing Will Come", Harvey asks Critic if he has a death wish. He can't answer, but we all know the answer is [[DeathSeeker yes]].
* AuthorAppeal: Fem!dom, curvy women with long hair, public sex and high-heeled boots.
* BadBoss: Played straight with Goggles's boss, a sexist bastard who gets MarzGurl into prostituting herself. It's hinted that he would have done the same thing to Goggles if she had turned up to defend her job instead.
* BadDreams: A common theme. And understandable, given the circumstances.
* BedlamHouse: Averted with the hospital Critic and Penny goes to. It's a nice place that wants to help. (We're sure that not ''all'' the patients are stubborn jackasses though.)
* BeYourself: Subverted. Snob tells Critic he doesn't want him to act like a stepford bimbo but when it looks like this is the message, he tells him to put on a different act because hookers acting normally makes them look like freaks. Lampshaded by the Critic himself.
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted. All of the hookers get bruises and wounds that stay for a while, and Angry Joe gets a half-Chelsea grin.
* BiTheWay: The majority of the characters, whether they like it or not.
* BlackComedy: For all the verse's "GrimDark" reputation, there's plenty of this around.
* BreakTheCutie
* BreadEggsMilkSquick: In "These Boots Are Made For...", the Critic asks 'you' what you want him to do. After two fairly normal examples (oral and bending over), he mentions getting a swirly and then giving oral. Ew.
* TheCityNarrows: The only time police are mentioned is when Critic panics about how he can't go out in his work clothes because he'll get arrested.
* CloudCuckooLander: Chester A. Bum!
* ContrivedCoincidence: Yes, everyone lives in Chicago and meets each other eventually. Just go with it.
* ConvenientlyCommonKink: Averted. Not all the customers are into the soft stuff, and Mary has one who was into watersports. Not that this is a ''bad'' thing, she was just squicked out.
* CoolOldGuy: Oh Harvey, why so awesome?
* CrapsackWorld
* CruelToBeKind: The Chick's punishment of Penny. She could have easily got Michaud to throw her out but she stuck with a whipping. As we all know, though, That Other Girl doesn't take this well.
* ADayInTheLimelight: rachelleneveu's ''the stars have all faded here'' looks at the AU through Stacey's eyes.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Is there ''anyone'' with a nice backstory?
* DeadpanSnarker: You really thought this was going to go?
* DisgustingPublicToilet: There hasn't been a nice one yet, even in the club.
* DisposableSexWorker: Deconstructed. The outside world wouldn't care if any of them got hurt or killed, but we would. Hammered home with TheReveal of what Ask That Guy and Sage do for a living.
** Played straight with Shelly, one of the workers at the club before the main cast came in. All we know of her is that she killed herself with coke and vodka when she got a positive pregnancy test.
* DoubleStandard: (in-verse) The girls get at least some form of protection while they're in the club, while Benzaie, Y, and especially Linkara and Critic are pretty much ignored.
* DrugsAreBad: They're the cause of most of Linkara's problems.
* DysfunctionJunction
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Cherry Lipgloss was the first fic in the verse and you'll notice it was a lot lighter, with dark bits creeping through the shiny pretty instead of the other way round.
** In the second fic, "Taking What You Deserve", Mechakara came into the verse and tortured Linkara. That's not in canon anymore because robots and world-hopping would kinda clash with the down-to-earth, "gritty" feel.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: [=LordKat=] will smuggle in weapons, drugs and alcohol for Sage, but he will ''not'' take part in the sex trafficking.
* EverybodyHasLotsOfSex: Wouldn't be a Hooker AU without it.
* EverythingsCuterWithKittens: Chester gives Mary a kitten he got out of his coat pocket.
* EverybodySmokes: It's usually a way to calm themselves down.
* FanDisservice: While the first fic's description of Critic's outfit of make-up, thigh-high boots, corset and mini-skirt (along with the tie, hat and jacket) was EatingTheEyeCandy, later fics give the impression that he's supposed to look seriously trashy.
** Not just the Critic's clothes. It's kinda hard to enjoy the pretty boys and girls when you learn that they often go without food for a long time due to lack of money.
** Before Linkara and Spoony have anonymous sex, much detail is given to the diseased, dirty surroundings before we get to any good stuff. Gee, thanks for that.
* FatBastard: Mr. Scholl is described as a "fat, tall man wearing one of those shirts with the loosened tie you always saw fat, sweaty business men wear".
* FanService: The original point of this AU. It's somewhat expanded beyond that, now.
* FetishFuel: ''Filled'' with it.
* FetishFuelStationAttendant: Your favorite characters ([[FetishFuel/ThatGuyWithTheGlasses who]] [[FetishFuel/AtopTheFourthWall aren't]] [[FetishFuel/TheNostalgiaChick so]] [[FetishFuel/MarzGurl bad]] [[FetishFuel/TheNostalgiaCritic themselves]])... '''as hookers'''!
* FoeYay: Pretty much every relationship Michaud has.
* {{Futureshadowing}}: "even when we are nothing left" is filled to the brim with this, nearly all of them soul-breaking.
--> ''He was even used to some of them looking at him as if just by doing so, he'd act like a complete whore for them.''
--> ''and then his thoughts moved to the big brother that left. The brat in him hoped he was dead. The little brother hoped he was happy.''
--> ''The other man pouted. "Not yet... but there's a heirachy and I bet the boss is a total pussy. You'll be a trophy wife in no time."''
--> ''He had to laugh at Ask That Guy's twisted brand of optimism. "And I get to have lots of sex to help you out? You better make this worth my while."''
--> ''Ask That Guy petted him on the head while taking out a mouth-wateringly big amount of cash from his pocket. "You really are going to be good at this."''
* GenreShift: As lampshaded on the notes on "There'll Be Peace When You Are Done", who thought a Hooker!Verse that started out to be to be purely {{fanservice}} would end up talking about faith in a fair, well thought out manner?
* GetOut: Goggles to Marz when she disappoints her for the last time, said in a TranquilFury way.
* GreenEyedMonster: Oy vey... Ask That Guy hates Chick for taking his only constant away from him, Paw resents Benzaie for getting most of Donna's attention, Michaud can't stand Critic because Chick actually cares about him, Joe treats Mary like a doll others can only play with sometimes and Critic hates practically anyone who Chick and Linkara get close to.
* GreyAndGreyMorality: The key word for this verse is "complicated".
* HappilyEverAfter: Benzaie gets to go home with Suede, has no problems in doing so and his worries that his boyfriend will think any less of him are unfounded. Even though Donna has a breakdown after he leaves, it still counts.
* HeroicBSOD: More and more as time goes on...
* HeterosexualLifePartners: Ellis and Michaud. And you should know by now that it's not exactly a positive example.
** Lucy and Stacey are best friends and they've had no romantic feelings towards each other... yet.
* HisStoryRepeatsItself: Very often. Two examples that stand out are Chick seeing her past relationship with Nella in Critic/Ask That Guy and Critic taking a suicidal Penny to the same hospital he was at when he was DrivenToSuicide.
* HoYay: Pretty much the mission statement of the AU.
** And, when you bring in Random Number Generator assisted drabbles, things get even more confusing.
* HypocrisyNod: Marz is more than aware of her still-remaining drug problems and how she comes down hard on Linkara for his.
* IfYouEverDoAnythingToHurtHer: [[TeamMom Liz]] gives this warning to Joe about Mary.
* InnocentInaccurate: Chester, occasionally. He's blissfully unaware of what all the "nice people" do for a living.
* {{Jerkass}}: Mr. Scholl and the Distressed Watcher.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Most notably the Nostalgia Chick (who genuinely cares for the Critic and has great affection for Film Brain), MarzGurl (who [[spoiler: rescued Linkara and took him in, as well as taking him out for his birthday]]) and Michaud (who not only likes children but also may or may not [[spoiler: be in love with Chick]]).
* LampshadeHanging: "Make Yourself The Hero" takes the usual Linkara/Insano hero/villain dynamic and twists it into something both depressing and funny.
* LesYay: The ladies get just as much love between themselves.
* LighterAndSofter: The KinkMeme spawned a spin-off of this verse that made the Secret Treehouse hookers and the TGWTG people customers. For now, it's fun, lovingly self-indulgent, cracky relief that serves as like an antidote to the original that can at times get so heavy. ([[TropesAreNotBad They are of course both awesome.]])
* LiteraryAllusionTitle: Most of the titles are lines from poetry.
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: It's more or less a given that every character from ThatGuyWithTheGlasses exists in this universe somewhere, and the only reason they haven't appeared yet is because nobody has yet thought of a way to include them.
* LoveHurts: You could do an ''essay'' on how destructive the relationships in this verse are.
* MakingLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces: Thus far we have had: At an airport, in a bathroom (twice), behind a dumpster, on a stage, in an office, in a car, in an alley...while in all probability sex does take place on beds in this universe, the majority of on-screen sex seems to take place anywhere but.
* TheMasochismTango: The Chick/Nella relationship. Both were bitchy, both were horrid to each other [[hottip:*: Yes, Chick is the victim in this instance but it's clear she didn't make anything easier]] and to be honest, Nella leaving was a cruel blessing.
* MenAreTheExpendableGender: Averted. Although the main author clearly loves fem!dom, the girls go through just as much horror, danger and humiliation as the boys do.
* MindScrew: The whole That Other Girl/Penny/Critic/Chick mess.
* MoralityPet: Chester gives the club-people someone to look after.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: Both MarzGurl and FilmBrain have killed people, both by accident, and both have felt utterly horrid afterward.]]
* {{Nakama}}: A screwed up, messy nakama is still a nakama.
* NeverMyFault: Critic is slightly ''too'' into painting himself as the victim.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: When Critic is at the hospital and "doing well", Ask That Guy visits, they have an argument about money and [[DrivenToSuicide bad things happen]].
* NoNameGiven: Done intentionally for the hookers when it's from a customer's POV. ''They don't care enough to ask''.
* OnlySaneMan: [=JewWario=], Cinema Snob and Harvey Finevoice seem to be the only conveyors of consistent sense in this world. Harvey tries to remind his patients that acting they're the victim isn't doing them any favors and the other two are in the character sheet.
* PlatonicProstitution: Chick and Film Brain, while she's still in that job.
* {{Original Character}}s: [[BrokenBird Penny]] and [[MagnificentBitch That Other Girl]] (expies from another fanfic), [[LovableLibby Donna]], [[CuteBookworm Stacey]], [[DefrostingIceQueen Mary]], [[TeamMom Liz]] and [[TheLadette Lucy]].
** There are also a few original characters that help move the plot along by being assholes. It still works though.
* OutOfGenreExperience: For emeriin's birthday, a Humor/Fluff fic called 'Eye of the Storm' was written where Michaud is absolutely adorable through and through.
* RapeIsOkayWhenItsFemaleOnFemale and RapeIsOkayWhenItsFemaleOnMale: Both averted. That Other Girl raping, torturing and generally mindfucking the Critic and the Chick (and Penny too) is her being a CompleteMonster, not an AbusivelySexyWoman.
* RedLightDistrict: The pitiful version.
* RescueRomance: Both Chick/Critic and MarzGurl[=/=]Linkara start out this way, albeit in an incredibly cynical fashion.
* RevengeByProxy: Whenever Ask That Guy gets in trouble, Critic is the one who suffers.
* SanitySlippage: Um, hospital? If one of your patients panic about "being thrown away" when it's time to leave, you might wanna keep him around for longer.
* SexForServices: It's implied this is how Linkara got started. But replace services for drugs.
* SlasherSmile: The fuckhead that holds a knife to the Chick and assaults her has one of these.
* {{Streetwalker}}: Linkara and Critic are at the very bottom of the club's power chain, and could be kicked out at any point.
** Which is partly the reason why Marz and Chick are looking after Linkara and Critic, respectively. They know what it's like to be on street corners.
* TakahashiCouple: Michaud and Chick are quite possibly one of the most messed up examples. Both have admitted to utterly despising the other. When confronted with the possibility of being in love with one another, both work very hard to change the subject.
* {{Twincest}}: Critic/Ask That Guy are the horribly fucked up, self-destructive kind, naturally.
* ViewersAreGeniuses: The verse just keeps getting more and more layered as time goes on, and as it's getting so huge (the second most done series has ''seventy nine'' less fics), you have to store a lot of facts in your brain to get full understanding.
* TheWindyCity: Poor Chicago gets picked on quite a lot.
* WhatTheHellHero: Film Brain ''eviscerates'' Nella for leaving the Chick alone and depressed.
* WhatYouAreInTheDark: MarzGurl whores herself out to save her girlfriend's job and doesn't tell her.
* WorldOfWoobie
* WrongSideOfTheTracks: Spoony ends up here when he meets Linkara for the first time.

* DespairEventHorizon: Nella has clearly crossed it in "take me back to that red mouth".

* StalkerWithACrush: Nella has a few aspects of this for the Chick once she leaves her. Popping in every once in a while is great, but the person usually has to know about it.

* SympathyForTheDevil: Okay, calling her the devil might be harsh even if you're a rabid Chick fan, but seeing Nella break down to Film Brain about why she had to leave makes you feel for her.

* AManIsNotAVirgin: Averted with Film Brain. His friends want him to get laid, but he doesn't care and would rather be a gentleman.

* EvilIsCool: See, here's the thing; while Penny is an interesting, sympathetic character, her other personality is a sick, sadistic bitch who manages to out-evil ''Bennett The Sage''. Who would you rather read about? The girl who's always crying, or the one who has everyone wrapped her little finger?

* LadyDrunk: The Chick is an old-before-her-time example.

* UnableToCry: Chick still being Chick, she'd much rather drinking than crying.

* BadBoss: Played straight with Goggles's boss, a sexist bastard who gets MarzGurl into prostituting herself. It's hinted that he would have done the same thing to Goggles if she had turned up to defend her job herself.

* ArcWords: Pretending, hiding and perceptions of people are all big themes here.

* GreyAndGreyMortality: The key word for this verse is "complicated".

* JadeColoredGlasses: When we (and Spoony) first meet Linkara (um, [[AnachronicOrder you know what I mean]], he looks tougher and more world-weary than he actually is. When he's at the club, he's been beaten down both literally and metaphorically.

* KnightInSourArmor: Linkara. He does bad things to survive and he doesn't have much hope, but he still tries so hard for the people he cares about.

* OnlySaneMan: [=JewWario=], Cinema Snob and Harvey Finevoice seem to be the only conveyors of consistent sense in this world. Snob calls Critic out on pretending to be a "stepford bimbo" (and pretending is a ''big'' theme in this verse), Harvey tries to remind his patients that acting they're the victim isn't doing them any favors and Wario gets irritated by the club-people's refusal to admit that they care for each other.
* {{Original Character}}s: Penny and That Other Girl (expies from another fanfic), Donna, Stacey, Mary, Liz and Lucy.

* SexForServices: It's implied this is how Linkara got started. Replace services for drugs.

* WrongSideOfTheTrack: Spoony ends up here when he meets Linkara for the first time.

* WhatYouAreInTheDark: MarzGurl whores herself out to save her girlfriend's job and doesn't tell her.

* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted. All of the hookers get bruises and wounds that stay for a while, and Angry Joe gets a half glasgow grin.

* OutOfGenreExperience: For emeriin's birthday, a Humor/Fluff fic called 'Eye of the Storm' was written. At time of edit it's relation to canon is currently up for debate.

* {{Twincest}}: Critic/Ask That Guy, naturally.

* WhatYouAreInTheDark: MarzGurl whores herself out to save her girlfriend's job and doesn't tell her.
* WeaponOfChoice: Nella had a hammer and a crowbar handy for whenever someone hurt the Chick.

* BadBoss: Both played straight and averted with Michaud; he treats the girls ''horribly'' but, when push comes to shove, he really does care about them.
** Played straight with Goggles's boss, a sexist bastard who gets MarzGurl into prostituting herself. It's hinted that he would have done the same thing to Goggles if she had turned up to defend her job herself.

* BoisterousBruiser: Both Lucy and Angry Joe fall under this banner.

* CatchPhrase: Ellis' is 'It's bad for business'.

* FalseFriend: The Other Girl in a nutshell. Penny herself, on the other hand, is actually quite lovely.

* KickTheDog: Ask That Guy delights in telling Critic that nice bartender in the bar he knows is the [[spoiler: older brother who abandoned the family]].
** Nella sending the Chick out to be a whore... on cold nights and locking the door behind her so she can't get back in.

* LoveMartyr: The Chick was still grateful for Nella.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: The Nella/Chick dynamic was still at its heart the Chick being nasty to Nella, but this time Nella pushed back and the Chick was the one becoming the victim.

* TakeThatScrappy: The guy that convinces Ask That Guy to use Critic as a hooker? The Distressed Watcher. As it stands as the least reviewed fic, it might have worked too well.

* TearJerker: Seeing the Chick/Nella relationship break down [[http://keevacaereni.livejournal.com/44813.html?thread=115213#t115213 over the course of a drabble]].

* DisgustingPublicToilets: There hasn't been a nice one yet, even in the club.

* PublicDisgustingToilets: There hasn't been a nice one yet, even in the club.

* PublicDisgustingToilet: It's been implied many a time.

* WhatYouAreInTheDark: MarzGurl whores herself out to save her girlfriend's job and doesn't tell her.

* CrowningMomentOfAwesome: Angry Joe gets one when he goes and brutally assaults a customer who often injures and bruises the girls of the bar.
* CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming: A surprising number, all things considered. In particular, the Critic's relationship with the Nerd, and how it is one of the brighter spots of hope within the whole AU.

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: Ellis is often described as being the only person Michaud trusts. Of course, this all becomes quite odd when you consider his release from the company in August 2010...
** Also, an OC named Liz was written into the story well before Linkara's RealLife girlfriend Liz began appearing in his videos.

* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: That Other Girl getting off on torturing and killing everyone in the club.

* JerkassWoobie: It seems to be a trend with the characters that you can feel sorry for them and disgusted at the same time.

* TearJerker: Don't ArchiveBinge this verse without breaks. You'll feel like killing yourself afterward.
** [[spoiler: When Nerd and Critic have angsty goodbye sex at the airport.]]
** [[spoiler: Chick's reaction when she's found out that Nella has left her.]]

* TheWoobie: Everybody, to a lesser or greater extent.

* LighterAndSofter: The KinkMeme spawned a spin-off of this verse that made the Secret Treehouse hookers and the TGWTG customers. For now, it's fun, lovingly self-indulgent, cracky relief that serves as like an antidote to the original that can at times get so heavy. ([[TropesAreNotBad They are of course both awesome.]])

** FanDisservice: While the first fic's description of Critic's outfit of make-up, thigh-high boots, corset and mini-skirt (along with the tie, hat and jacket) was EatingTheEyeCandy, later fics give the impression that he's supposed to look seriously trashy.

* TearJerker: [[spoiler: When Nerd and Critic have angsty goodbye sex at the airport.]]

* GreenEyedMonster: Oy vey... Ask That Guy hates Chick for taking his only constant away from him, Paw resents Benzaie for getting most of Donna's attention, Michaud can't stand Critic because Chick actually cares about him, Joe treats Mary like a doll others can only play with sometimes, Critic hates practically anyone who Chick and Linkara get close to.