Please join us in welcoming Tiffany to the Smarty Pants stage! Tiffany is a recent college grad learning to live in “the real world.” She’s currently working that 9-to-5 because a girl’s gotta eat, and doing freelance work on the side. She thinks she’s the black Jessica Darling and loves all things YA. She’s also a screenwriter and hopes to write the GREAT coming-of-age movie. Her adult bevvie of choice is a whiskey sour.
Everyone can pretty much agree that the best parts of most YA novels are the relationships between the protagonist and the romantic partner. Couples like Jessica Darling and Marcus Flutie, Katniss and Peeta, inspire so much fan loyalty and obsession that it’s hard to imagine one without the other. But let’s do that. Let’s break these epic couplings and play with a bit of fan fiction cross-novel pairings. Obviously, none of these pairings could happen because of the rules of each individual novels but we’re going to ignore that for a moment. I decided to pair together eighteen characters from different genres and novels to create alternative pairings.
Tris from Divergent & Alex from Delirium
Both Tris and Alex live in the not so distant future, so they’ve already got that in common. But more than that, Tris needs someone who encourages her to be brave and teaches her how to love—Alex is that guy. He’s more easy-going than Four ever was but he’s just as passionate about fighting for what he believes in. And since Tris is sexually repressed, who better than a love crusader to get her to open up?
Annabeth from Percy Jackson series & Thomas from The Maze Runner series
Annabeth is that girl who will always challenge you and that’s exactly what Thomas needs. He also needs a girl who’s just as smart, if not smarter, than him. Annabeth’s interest in architecture and her quick problem-solving skills would come in handy in the maze.
Mia Thermoplis from The Princess Diaries & Prince Maxon from The Selection series
Mia is more than a handful and she’s not the classic princess but if her and Maxon got together, the people would surely love her. She’s obsessed with all things pop culture, so she’d be a good contestant on Maxon’s The Bachelor style dating show. Maxon and Mia both want to do the right thing for their countries, so having another person who understands and shares the burden makes ruling a bit easier.
Charlie from The Perks of Being a Wallflower & Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter series
I’m already in love with this coupling. Both characters are slightly weird, introverted, and misunderstood. At their cores, they are both pure, good people. They see and understand more than anyone gives them credit for. If they got together, they would be that couple who could communicate with looks and silences more than their words.
Jessica Darling from Sloppy Firsts & Will Herondale from The Infernal Devices series
Jessica thinks everyone around her sucks, as does Will. They both see themselves as outsiders amongst their group of friends and family but neither could be more wrong. Their union would make for a sassy pairing with lots of banter and neither one of them willing to admit their feelings. And Will’s world of shadow hunting would add excitement to her New Jersey suburban life.
Katniss from The Hunger Games & Cedric Diggory from the Harry Potter series
Cedric would be a great match for Katniss. They are both born leaders, athletes, and so brave. Neither was afraid to sacrifice themselves for the good of others as Katniss did for her sister, and eventually her whole country, and Cedric did for the world of wizards. And if you’re imagining the actors who play them, I wouldn’t mind seeing JLaw and RPatz as romantic leads.
Adrian from the Vampire Academy series & Gemma Doyle from A Great and Terrible Beauty
Couldn’t you just see Adrian as an 18th century rogue? The descriptions of his looks and nonchalant attitude would fit in perfectly to Gemma’s world. She’s understood for her powers as a witch, and he struggles with his gift of spirit in addition to his vampirism. They would be able to understand one another’s struggles and he would show her not to be so afraid of what others think.
Augustus Waters from The Fault in Our Stars & Aimee Finicky from The Spectacular Now
Aimee is that girl you want to shake to make her realize that she is a good, interesting person worthy of love. Augustus would be able to offer that to her in a way that isn’t so destructive. He’d make her see the beauty in life and give her the opportunity to find her own voice. He’s the kind of first love a girl like Aimee deserves.
Marcus Flutie from Sloppy Firsts & A from Everyday
This would be the most bizarre pairing, so I’m going to need for you to go with me for a moment. At his core, Marcus is the most zen, understanding guy who ever existed. He sees past all the high school BS as does A. Since A is neither male nor female, neither straight nor gay, A would be attracted to Marcus’s sense of self, creativity and open-mindedness. Marcus would like not knowing what to expect the next time he sees A and he would be the best suited for seeing beyond appearances.
What would be your ideal YA crossover romance? Let your fangirl flag fly in the comments!
