schneefink

I should be writing my thesis instead of fic, but better than nothing?

Sufficiently Advanced Crystal Orbs, for nenya_kanadka
Steerswoman & surprise crossover, gen, 1.4k
Summary: Willam opens a wizard's chest and finds something unexpected.


Some fandom_stocking recs: ( Babylon 5, Leverage/BtVS, Hockey RPF, Star Wars:TFA )

There is currently a vidding love meme going on. You should go and tell vidders how great they are. I'm being reminded of many vids I love, I should rec more of them. To start with, 4:

Mad Max: Fury Road:
Na Na Na by violace
The aftermath is secondary.
I watched this vid maybe twenty times or more. (I also watched the MCR music video and then read some MCR fic.) It's a perfect fit for the movie.

Making Waves by niyalune
Can you hear my voice this time?
I found this one via a rec post by goodbyebird that I'm still making my way through (and I spent way too much time thinking about if I should put this one before or after "Na Na Na". I put it after because the other one has some of it in Immortan Joe's PoV, but it doesn't really matter.) They complement each other well, and both have that "fuck yeah"-feeling to go with the explosions.

Phil Kessel ft. Taylor Swift:
we are NEVER EVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER by pollyrepeat
To: Toronto
From: Phil Kessel
Like, ever. Great vid.

Phil Kessel Shakes It Off by whatajerkdragon
“(s)He doesn’t even go here.” Welcome to Pittsburgh, Phil!
PHIL KESSEL IS A PITTSBURGH PENGUIN. Fuck the Toronto media. Rumors say Jeff Zatkoff showed this vid to his teammates on the plane, that makes it even more hilarious.

I wanted to rec these for a while, and I'm procrastinating on other things. If you appreciate recs like this I'd love it if you could drop me a note, so that I know I'm not just doing these for myself :-)

No Word for This by Sonia_vice
Gabriel Landeskog/Danny Briére, 160k
Summary: They don't know what they're doing. But they're doing it anyway.
Why I love it: Every once in a while I complain that I want more hockey in hockey fics, and this series is a fantastic example of things I want more of. It's very clear that these characters are hockey players, and it's very grounded in the everyday reality of what that means, wins and losses and team and what the game means to them. And yet they're people at the same time: their private lives influence their professional lives and vice versa, and their different roles on the team affect their relationship. Both characters have their own issues to deal with, and sometimes they can share and help each other but sometimes they can't. I never would have thought of that pairing, and I'm not a big Avs fan, but the author does a great job selling me on a pairing that nobody thinks will work, even in the story, but somehow it does.
The author wrote the series during the season, following actual events, so the series also reflects how crazy a hockey season can be. There are many minor characters, family and team mostly, and I really like how they fit in. I like how the team is portrayed: it might be a kind of family, but that doesn't mean it's perfect.
To be honest I haven't reread the whole series since it was recently finished, because many chapters have a sort of grey mood, and in several it feels like the characters are struggling with something similar to depression which is sometimes hard for me to read. That's just another sign of how well it was done. The series doesn't have a perfect happy ending, but a hopeful conclusion, fitting with the tone of the story.

Hawks and Hands by Dira
Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski (main), 203k
Summary: Eighteen sex scenes strung together with angst and hockey.
Why I love it: A due South hockey AU that was recced to me several times before I finally read it (I kept putting it off because it starts with a funeral scene.) It does a great job with the hockey side of things, showing how it's an integral part of their lives, with games and bruises and team and supporting staff and all that comes with it. (With footnotes, even!) It was written about ten years ago, so I didn't even recognize the hockey characters, which I kind of liked.
I don't know dS, but all the characters were fully fleshed out and fit really well in their roles. Ben and Ray's relationship is great, how they both have their own issues but fit together well. The supporting cast was great as well, the Vecchios and Mark with two sides and coach Welsh and Hack and the rest of the team.
Midway through the story changes from a more hockey-focused one to a more crime-solving-focused one, but I liked that part too.

Make His Brown Eyes Blue by jezziejay
Patrick Kane/Jonathan Toews, 9k
Summary: Jonny's an FBI agent. Patrick's on the Most Wanted list. Occasionally they tie each other up and make out.
Why I love it: And now for something completely different! An AU with no hockey at all, sort of completely ridiculous. I'm not sure why this one grabbed me and I immediately put it on my "to rec" list, but it's a lot of fun.

All hockey vids by pollyrepeat
Why I love them: There are five of them so far (everybody wants, change-over, Pilgrim, Houdini, and absolution), all of them Pens-focused, and all of them are great. (Getting better, even, which makes me really look forward to the next ones.) Her notes to "everybody wants", which imo could apply to all of them, say this "ended up turning into Polly Has Too Many Protective Feelings Re: Multi-Millionaires Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin (I KNOW) and Will Fight You in the Street About Them", which is a feeling I know well and that she conveys perfectly. The vids also show how pretty hockey can be, and sometimes how brutal.