Hieroglyfics Recs

Kowalski and Vecchio get stuck in an elevator. I’ve found it hard to read Ray/Ray lately, because one Ray is always Ray and the other is Kowalski or Vecchio, which irritates and confuses me. But this story is in first person, and that neatly sidesteps the problem - plus, when POV-Ray thinks of himself, it is as ‘Vecchio’, and Kowalski calls him Vecchio, and, I dunno, it just works for me. Plus, slyly funny and hot like burning.

Brideshead Revisited, Charles/Sebastian, NC17. Charles gets drunk with Sebastian, and falls. Fabulously in-character and with the feel of genuine Waugh. And the fact that I am, of course, picturing the young Jeremy Irons and Anthony Andrews as they were in the miniseries doesn’t hurt.

Sharpe/The Prophecy crossover, Lucifer/Sharpe. In India, Sharpe (and this is bookverse Sharpe, pre-movie-series) encounters a stranger. I have not seen The Prophecy, in which Lucifer is played by (as you might guess) Viggo Mortensen, but the Devil is recognizably enough the Devil that I didn’t need to. And I am entirely in love with this story, from the younger, more venial Sharpe (I recall reading somewhere a quote about Bean playing great villains, and that Sharpe is a villain that happens to be one of the heroes) to the casual and tiny reveals of the Devil’s identity that speak to the reader but that Sharpe doesn’t recognize. (I adore the unreliable narrator aspect of this, the complicity of the reader in the underlying truths of the story that are hidden from the narrator!) Fabulous.

HP/Sherlock Holmes, gen. Hogwarts Headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black sends for Sherlock Holmes to solve the mystery of the disappearance of an important artifact. This story is told in the style of Arthur Conan Doyle, through the narration of Watson, and it’s done very well here, perfectly canonical-feeling. The merging of the worlds was very well done; I particularly liked Holmes’s distrust of the wizarding world, the reason for which is slowly revealed through a clever backstory. I think perhaps it’s because in HP canon we see the world of magic through the eyes of a child who is discovering its wonders, and of course, it’s magic, yay! to most of us, so the jaundiced eye is a fresh perspective.

HP/Hamlet crossover, gen. When Severus Snape finishes at Hogwarts, Dumbledore sends him to do a research fellowship with one Doctor Faustus, who is perfecting the Plothole-Plugging Potion. Severus drinks a test version and is sent whirling into the 16th century, where he lands on Rosencrantz just as he and Guildenstern are about to go to Elsinore. He puts on Rosencrantz’s doublet and hose, travels to Denmark, and the rest is history Hamlet. Or rather, Hamlet as it would have happened had an irascible young wizard with a talent for potions stepped in. Which is awesome.

Stephen has arranged for a source to stay at a gentleman’s club that caters to a particular sort of gentleman, with particular tastes; Jack, unknowing, follows him there. Possibly this is the Age of Sail version of the “undercover in a gay bar” trope, but it is handled so deftly and sensitively here that it seems completely in keeping with canon. Jack’s utter obliviousness is just wonderful.

A lovely, slow and stately portrait of Jack and Stephen growing old together. The language is beautiful, subtly weaving together the threads of their interactions with their families, old friends, and each other until the picture emerges.

Big Eden vid, Henry/Dean, Henry/Pike. This vid follows Henry as he moves from his New York life, to Big Eden and his relationships there: with his grandfather, with Dean, with the people of Big Eden, and ultimately with Pike. I particularly like how each section is self-contained in the narrative but follows from the previous bit and leads into the next logically and coherently.

Hot Fuzz, Nick/Danny. A sweet and hot little story in which Nick accidentally learns something about Danny - and then learns something about himself.

This story feels exactly like canon, except for the zombies, and I can’t believe I actually wrote that sentence in a rec. No, seriously. It was originally written as a series of comments to the anonymous Aubreyad Kink Meme, and with the author’s permission, I collated it into a single file, which is linked above. And it rocks utterly. It is the story of a plague that comes to London, and of sailing ships, and of politics, and how Jack and Stephen’s friendship is sorely tested by difficult times; it is magnificent, and you should read it. There are clever references to canon and to other sources (I detected a Shackleton homage, and I am sure there are others.) And there are zombies.

Aubrey and Maturin gen, crossover-fusion with Temeraire, short story. Captain Aubrey and Dr. Maturin meet Captain Laurence and Temeraire. I love the way this is written, which seems very true to both sources, although I suppose that in a true crossed-over world, Jack and Stephen would already be somewhat familiar with dragons and their riders.

Aubrey/Maturin: The aftermath of Stephen’s escape from prison and torture in H.M.S. Surprise. The one that started it all, for me! Gorgeous writing, hot and sweet.

Aubrey/Maturin, G to PG, can be read as slash or gen. Alas, my very favorite writer in this fandom vanished a few years ago. Her stories all begin with a short quote from canon, but were I left on my own I wouldn’t be able to tell where O’Brian’s words end and hers begin, so perfect is her voice. I adore her writing to tiny little bits. I especially love Sealegs, Unkindest Cut, At Dawn, and Blue Devils, but really, all these are wonderful.

Sharpe’s a hero. The music would be a little jarring were it not for the sad truth that the battle scenes in the series are all set to really inappropriate music, la la la. The clips are nicely chosen and it’s actually cut to the beat, unlike 99% of the junk I watched on YouTube while searching for Sharpe vids.

Sharpe/Diego Alatriste, crossover-ish, NC17, short story. A wounded Sharpe takes refuge in a castle haunted by Viggo Mortensen a 17th-century Spanish captain. It’s a clever crossover idea, and hey, a little ghost rimming never goes amiss.

Sharpe/Aragorn, with a tiny bit of Aragorn/Boromir: Sharpe and Aragorn get lost in their respective forests and bump into each other. This is my favorite type of crossover, in which the actor-identity connects the characters, and it is beautifully written.

Sharpe/OMC. Sharpe brings some keepsakes from India to a jewelry buyer who is clearly modeled after Viggo Mortensen. Ahem. Okay, PWP-ish, but nicely written and hot. There is also a sequel.

Geoffrey gen (as per the author; I read it as implied Geoffrey/Ellen). Geoffrey’s madness from the inside out. In this case, his madness is directing Tom Stoppard’s The Invention of Love, and if I knew this play, I am sure I would have gotten even more out of this story. As it is, there are all sorts of wonderful wry bits of metaphor and in-joke that even a dullard like me noticed. I thought it particularly brilliant to use Cheryl, the stage manager from Theatre Sans Argent in the first episode, as the grounding center of reality here.

Geoffrey/Ellen. Ellen returns to New Burbage, gets coaxed into doing Romeo and Juliet, and meets Geoffrey. What makes this work for me is the level of detail; it’s not just about the characters’ interactions, it is about their lives, and it all rings true, from the theatrical to the mundane. Ellen is totally spot on, and Geoffrey and Oliver ain’t bad either - I could hear them in my head while reading.

Post Dead Men Don’t Throw Rice, Fraser goes back to the Borderlands…and into the Underworld, and Ray has to follow and bring him back. Yep, it’s Orpheus, dS style, and although it started a little slow, by the time the boat named “Charon” shows up on a body of water that is not, after all, Lake Michigan, I was hooked. Yeah, I’ve got a thing for afterlife fic - what of it? I did not buy all of the characterization details, but the retelling of the myth was awesome, and the translation of the underworld’s features and denizens into Ray’s interpretation was fabulous and spot-on.

Boromir gen. The perfect combination of music, lyrics, and clips to tell Boromir’s story. Waaah.

Faramir visits the tomb of the Stewards and has…an experience. This is a great gen ghost story, and although it makes more sense if you have read the historical appendices to LotR, that’s not altogether necessary. The ending made me a little weepy. I listened to the audiofic as excellently read by Greylin.

Gen. Faramir and Arwen play chess. I particularly liked the choices made for the names of the pieces in Middle-earth. I listened to the audiofic and the reader, Greylin, was a large part of my enjoyment.

Boromir gen (Boromir/OFC, but that’s not the point). Twenty years later, Gimli and Legolas uncover a secret. This is a “Boromir survives” story handled with grace and thoughtfulness, and with an interesting twist.

Sharpe/Teresa. Okay, this is my true OTP in this fandom. I adore Teresa, the commander of the Spanish guerillas; she is tough and smart and strong and not beautiful in a conventional sense. This vid spoils her arc, but it’s not exactly a surprise in the movies.

Sharpe/Leroy, Harper/Sharpe. Sharpe is in Leroy’s tent, and Harper is jealous. This writer has a whole series of Sharpe/Harper, but oddly I like this one best, and choose to interpret the Harper/Sharpe as unrequited rather than as present but over; I think that although I love the idea of Sharpe/Harper I have a hard time making a requited, active relationship fit into the series.

Sharpe/Harper. Sharpe’s ill, and Harper tends to him; and if in a fever dream Sharpe happens to think the warm body against him is a woman’s, well, Harper will take what he can get.

Stella and Diefenbaker gen. I laughed out loud at the punchline!

Kowalski comes back from Canada and gets partnered with Vecchio; then Fraser returns to Chicago. I liked the narrative voice, and the use of metaphor, and the understated bits where you just see their understanding of each other. I love OT3 but have a hard time buying it; this, I buy.

3:10 to Yuma, Charlie Prince backstory and how he met Wade. I love the narrative voice, which fits the source so well. A splendid imagining of the most intriguing minor character in the film, and a great Wade as well.

One bit pinged me oddly: the use of the phrasing, “you’re not the boss of me” which — I thought — is contemporary usage. But according to Language Log it dates back to at least 1883, so it’s not a stretch to imagine it here!

Ray and Fraser as ELVES! Heeeeee!

due South/Good Omens. Fraser literally has a demon on his shoulder - Crowley. Fortunately Aziraphale is there as well. The writing is right out of Good Omens, but the device of Fraser talking to a supernal being and Ray thinking he’s talking to him is right out of due South (or at least dS fanfiction). Lovely dialogue and a sweet ending.

Boromir gen - well, actually this vignette-y story is Boromir/The One Ring, I guess. Beautiful and poignant and exactly as long as it needs to be.

Perhaps this is AU, perhaps it just supposes that the narrator of the books (and movies; this is blond movie-Legolas) was led astray by certain assumptions. Whichever it is, I adore this Gimli, who also appears in the not-quite-as-good but still worthwhile Keeping Secrets (kind of a prequel, but both stories can be read independently). I will say no more so as to preserve your delight!

Original character slash. I know! Not even about the characters you know! And it’s in present tense, to boot. So the fact I’m reccing it must mean it’s extraordinary, and it is. It’s about the men charged with lighting the beacons to call for Rohan’s aid to Gondor: who they are, why they are there, and how the events of RotK affect them (and vice versa).

Jack/Stephen. This is my favorite type of story in this fandom: a missing scene which expands on the innuendo of the text (in this case, a discussion about the Sultan and his “Ganymede” in The Thirteen Gun Salute) but never takes it too far. Excellent character voices.

Sharpe/Harper, on watch at Christmastime; and you know, there were two similar stories in last year’s Yuletide, and I didn’t like either of them half as much as this gentle and understated story. The character voices are perfect and the language is so very evocative.

Sean/Viggo, serial novella. [The link goes to her fic list in lj memories] I guess this is a slow WIP, but I would consider it complete at part 11, with everything after that lagniappe or sequel - at least, in its current form. During the filming, the whole cast is touchy-feely except for Sean, who here is borderline homophobic and uncomfortable with the flying innuendo; gradually he realizes that Viggo is coming on to him, and even more gradually he realizes that he’s wanted that all along. I am a big fan of the slow build of sexual tension, and this story delivers. Sean’s slow transformation from denial to open desire is delicious and very, very sexy. A few missteps grated on me, but they were overwhelmed by the consistent, entertaining ensemble characterization (I love Ian in particular), the men that never failed to be manly (except for Orlando, who makes an adorable 14-year-old girl), and the exceptional HOT.

Legolas comes to terms with his desire. Book canon, so we have dark-haired Legolas, and the Fellowship’s visit to Lothlorien in exquisite, luminous detail. I think it’s always a challenge for an author to convincingly show a character’s growing desire for a character who is not conventionally attractive; it’s easier to imagine the dwarf falling for the elf than the other way around. This story, with its subtle and gentle tension, makes a believer of me.

Faced with possible death, Gimli considers mortality. Movie canon, written with the elegance and beauty of the books. The sensuality of the language enhances the sensuality of the story.

Orlando/everybody. This story takes the “fandom slut” cliche and turns it on its head. Orlando serenely moves throughout the cast, using his unique gift - his ability to love, and to inspire love - to make each person more whole and complete, to heal their wounds both physical and psychological. It’s not so much an “Orlando fucks everybody” story as an “Orlando loves everybody” story, and that emotional dimension is what elevates it above other stories of this type.

Viggo/Sean Bean. I wasn’t particularly interested in Orlando Bloom when I started reading in the fandom; this story, told from his perspective (and oh, how I love stories about relationships told from a third-party POV!) is one of the things that has changed my mind. Slowly, bit by bit, Orlando puts the pieces together and sees the strong, deep feelings that run between Viggo and Sean. It’s subtle and well-paced, and the external POV allows the men’s motives and feelings to remain obscure, only hinted at, which is what I crave for this particular relationship. Best of all are the Tempest references scattered throughout, never gratuitous, always perfectly fitting.

It’s hard to summarize this without giving away too much (and unfortunately the author’s summary errs, I think, on the side of not saying anything at all), but: it’s about perception and reality, identity and appearance, which are themes that I love writing and reading about. This was a Team Whimsy entry for the second DS Match, so you can expect magical realism rather than conventional truth. This elegant story takes canon and turns it sideways; the language and the structure work together to create a very believable and compelling world. And I was a little teary at the end.

Fraser/RayK and Fraser/OMC. The author’s summary says it all: Fraser, growing old. This Fraser is retired from the RCMP, and his relationship with Ray is in the past; one of the things I like about this story is that it doesn’t explicitly detail what happened, whether Ray died or they broke up or what, but it clearly devastated Fraser at the time - and just as clearly he has moved on, and this is what he has moved on to. Gentle and luminous, and Luzula’s knowledge of the far north shows in her evocation of the landscape and the authentic details of life in the far north. Because Fraser is so much about the land, formed by it, maybe, this works beautifully to limn him from a different perspective than most stories.

Boromir and Pippin gen. Maybe I like this because I have Boromir’s tortured thoughts in my head from just watching the movie; he sees what is to come, and he wants to stand against it, but feels inadequate and lost, knowing its power. Or maybe it’s just because even with unwashed hair, Sean Bean is adorable, and the idea of him feeling all protective of the hobbits turns my insides to goo.

Aragorn/Legolas. A little vignette that reminds me, maybe, of the John and Ronon dynamic I wrote about in Alpha Males. Guys. You know.

Gen Gimli and Legolas, but you may be forgiven (at least by me) for thinking of this as pre-slash, la la la. Even if Gimli still has that crush on Galadriel.

Legolas/Gimli by one of my favorite writers. Beautiful and very, very hot.

Frodo/Sam. Frodo’s a virgin, and the Ring plans to exploit this - so Sam is pressed into duty to, er, educate Mr. Frodo. Yeah. Written deftly and lightly, with great good humor and quite a bit of affection. Even if hobbitsex doesn’t appeal to you, this is worth reading for the amusement value.

Slap Shot 2/RPF, Palmberg/Nos4a2no9 (the fanfic writer) Um. I have a real kink for crossovers between FPF and RPF. And the meta here is a lovely twist: we usually imagine ourselves meeting the characters we like, don’t we!