Marvel Fic Recs
I promised someone Marvel fic recs. Okay, Bucky recs. :) But I can throw in something else as well, when we're at it already.
Main criterion I was supposed to focus on is postWS-but-efficient!Buck, that is a highly functioning one rather than a brain-dead, infantile, fandomized mess. Still, for obvious reasons it's never going to be a binary either/or matter, and at least for me, everything depends on the given author's literary skill and style. So, overall it's more a list of 'well written' than 'specifically themed'. I'm not promising all of these are equal in quality, not to mention they vary a lot in style, ideas and mood, but I can at least assure all of them are on a level higher than mediocre, with at least a few reaching 'brilliant'.
Ordered by wordcount (not like it's really the most important measure, but for the sake of neutral listing; also, this should prevent the beginning of the list from monopolizing the attention).
The Real World: Bed Stuy by jendavis
~143,000; R; Bucky/Clint
author's summary: This is the true story of two strangers, tasked to live in an apartment building, get their shit together, and have their lives (probably) monitored by Natasha and Steve, to find out what happens when people try to stop being agents and assets, and start getting real.
my two cents: Fraction&Aja-verse Clint, not MCU; Bucky in pieces and not really self-reliant, but recovering. It has some action plot, but remains mostly on the psychology side, with the feel of a slow paced novel. Besides a professional-level writing style, the fic's greatest merit is its take on deaf!Clint, not just checking off the trope, but actually working it into the plot and doing a thorough job on various aspects of it. For one, hardly anyone in fics I've met takes into consideration what an inner ear damage and thus messed balance mean for an archer. Or, on the other hand, what a guy can learn when others think he can't hear them. And before all, how does Clint feel about all this.
Long Way Home by morningwar
~102,000; R; Gen
author's summary: You can't choose what you want to remember, and you can't choose what you want to forget. The Asset learns this the hard way. Meanwhile, Steve tries desperately to get his best friend back. Nothing goes according to plan. Sam tags along because Steve doesn't understand the concept of self preservation. Also because nobody says no to Captain America, even if he's actually kind of an asshole once you get to know him. Set after Captain America: The Winter Soldier, with references to events that happened in Iron Man 3.
my two cents: A tear-jerker, seriously. Bucky in a version heavily messed, struggling for independence and failing, though more for physical than psychological reasons (which involves non-canon but canon-compliant details on Hydra's serum; it's one of fics with ideas). Also, somewhat confused about his loyalties, which is not unique but still uncommon.
Sticks and Strings and Christmas Things by PhoukasPenmanship
~66,300; R; Bucky/Clint
author's summary: 12 connecting vignettes for the "12 Days of Winterhawk" prompt challenge.
my two cents: Fraction&Aja-verse Clint, and his POV. Bucky in the mostly human, self-reliant ghost-that-walks-by-himself version.
i need a forest fire by tomorrowsrain
~65,800; PG-13; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: ”The past beats inside me like a second heart. These fragments I have shored against my ruins.” In which Tony Stark makes a reckless decision, becomes a wanted fugitive, goes on the run with the former Winter Soldier, and learns how to forgive. For his part, Bucky Barnes is just trying to hold himself together. AU, post-Civil War. (sequel of sorts to après nous le déluge, but can be read alone)
my two cents: Tony forced by circumstances to cooperate with Bucky, so exactly what he needs to get his priorities straight. Switching POV. A fic relatively heavy on combat action, not like it lacks other things.
All the Soldiers Say by lusilly
~64,700; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: After the massive fallout of Civil War, Steve and his team retreat to a secret base. Bucky is with them, and they aren't completely sure what to do with him, to be honest; they can't risk him on missions, not really, until he beats the trigger words conditioned into his brain. Nat has an idea. It all goes pretty much OK, until Steve gets a late-night drunk dial from Tony.
my two cents: A not so often thing: fic whose strongest point is the plot on the level of small details. As in: they aren't put in there just so and forgotten, but come back later to fall on their places in the whole image. Some of said plot is a mystery investigation, which I appreciated a lot (hey, giving his skills and area of expertise, Bucky it the right guy for deducing events from crime sites). It's mostly compliant with CW, but fixes the whole aftermath (yup, Tony). It also has maybe the rarest of rarities (meaning, I don't know about any other case), Natasha getting mislead by her own overconfidence in a quite funny way. *g*
This, You Protect by owlet
~64,300; PG-13; Gen (later in the series going into Steve/Bucky)
author's summary: The mission resets abruptly, from objective: kill to objective: protect
my two cents: This is not a fic. This is the fic. It always comes to my mind as first to recommend, and I'd put it on every rec list until y'all develop a nervous twitch and allergy. Or, preferably, get infected as well. I was skeptic about it for long time, and kept circling it, squinting suspiciously. Finally I decided to give it a try longer than one page, and I've been doomed from then on. It has a very uncommon way of mixing humorous with serious, where Buck starts as the extremely machine-like Asset with a computer-ish split personality and, though gradually regaining humanity, stays severely messed to the end, while in spite of that being all the time highly operative and entirely independent. This is a Buck who doesn't mope, though saying he knows no self-pity couldn't be further from the truth! *g* He complains as if he tried to live up to his age, but more with wry grumpiness than angst and mostly focused on everyday annoyances the world throws his way, not on everything that's wrong with himself and his past. In fact, he's barely aware of the latter, stumbling on it only occasionally, but whoa! what scenes it makes then! And since the reader is aware of it all the time, and since it's Bucky POV, the result is in equal degrees hilarious and heartbreaking, both in best of ways. Give it a chance, even if it doesn't feel like your thing at first. Oh, and don't let the title mislead you, it's 3rd person narration.
The fic is listed as first in a series, but it's better to start from the chronologically earlier fourth one: Truth, Justice and the Cheating Cheater Way. It doesn't spoil anything and it pays to know it before This, You Protect. Also, it's short, so you can test the author first on it. However, mind that Bucky's voice is significantly different in both fics, which I consider a literary achievement anyway.
Chyetirye by SkyisGray
~48,900; NC-17; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Even the strongest personalities, when subjected to great physical, emotional, and sexual abuses, can splinter, or dissociate. Bucky Barnes lives a nightmare after falling from a train and being recovered by Hydra. His mind deals with the trauma by splintering into the soldier, the prisoner, the patriot, and the assassin. Years later, they team up to save Steve Rogers.
my two cents: Another fic with ideas, this time mostly on the psychology side. Where other fics play only a little with the split personality trope, this one has it for its basis and builds a whole fic-verse on it to such degree that the result might be considered AU, even though it's almost perfectly canon-compliant, just uses very uncommon in the fandom interpretations of canon data, which makes it AU fanon in a way. It's also in the realm of exploring rather than comforting fics, so it's not really your thing if you want fluff. Still, it's very much worth giving it a chance. It's most gruesome in the first half, and overall it could qualify as not bad sci-fi, had it been an original work. As for technicalities, unlike what you could think, it has no switching POV (at least in the first part of the series), staying all the time with Bucky actual, the original one. And it's Bucky who has held on to sanity by going - by outside standards - insane, with an outcome that puts him in the human & efficient sort and makes the fic much less confusing and more enjoyable than you could expect from such an idea. Let's just say that Buck do an excellent team work. ;)
I consider the whole series another the fic on my private list, and though I'm glad it's completed, I truly regret it's probably not going to get sequels. It has a huge potential, especially for long, intricate plots, switching POVs and additions of new characters used for outsider POV.
Thermotemporal Equations by Blinky the Tree Frog
~48,100; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: Bucky Barnes is used to strange happenings; his time with the Howling Commandos has guaranteed that. He's therefore not totally thrown off balance when he wakes up in an extraordinary tower in a seemingly impossible year. He can’t help but be worried though, no matter how much reassurance he's getting from Steve and his new team.
my two cents: Time travel with Bucky & the WS encounter, where the latter has very angst-inducing ideas and the former gets to make decisions, which for any Bucky fic is a sure way to earn points in my book. TFA!Bucky POV.
Dead Man Running by onethingconstant
~43,500; PG-13, Gen
author's summary: On the run from Hydra and haunted by his shattered memories, Bucky must choose between his will to survive and his love for a friend he can barely remember. And as he fights for his life against rogue terror cells, well-meaning superheroes, and his own programming, he must determine once and for all whether he can once again become what he most wants to be... Human. He tells his story in his own words.
my two cents: A rarity for its 1st person narration. Bucky in a version somewhat unstable and troubled, with a little bit of split personality again for companion, but far from robotic. Actually he's closer here to his comic verse self than MCU one. A small bonus I appreciated a lot: on his way he spares a moment to make sure the fate of Renata, Pierce's housekeeper, will get an investigation and she won't be forgotten.
Strays by snarklyboojum
~33,500; PG-13; mostly Gen with a little of Steve/Bucky
author's summary: After finding himself alone for the first time in decades, the Winter Soldier learns how to be a person again. Mostly through caring for an orphaned kitten, countless rounds of YouTube roulette, and stalking Captain America. Or: Bucky Barnes, accidental millennial.
my two cents: It has a cat in it and is illustrated. ^^ And is much better written and less detached from reality than you could assume. ;)
Wing and a Prayer by Sholio
~32,200; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: Bucky and Sam fall out of a HYDRA plane into the Canadian wilderness. Nothing like a hundred-mile walk to civilization while severely injured and being hunted by HYDRA, right?
my two cents: Action piece, through and through. Sam's POV, and well observant one. Bucky on the human-and-friendly-but-creepy side.
Living On My Own by rekishi
~26,100; R; Gen with mentions of Steve/Bucky
author's summary: James Barnes is back in the world and finds that not only has there been 1) an alien invasion, but 2) Howard Stark had a kid. One that dispenses unsolicited life advice, no less. Oh, and 3) Captain America is alive again, after getting himself killed by his own recklessness in a move so stupid only Steve could have come up with it. In which James learns to do laundry, turns into an accidental neighborhood vigilante and makes Tony Stark a happy grease monkey, all while he figures out where to stake his claim.
my two cents: Bucky on the “almost okay” end of the spectrum, and the fic itself among more plotty ones.
Memory by emilyenrose
~23,900; PG-13; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: He remembered nothing. After the first few weeks, he asked to be called James.
my two cents: Time travel with a body swap. Steve POV in a humorless, dry-but-tense style. Technically a hurt-comfort, though somewhat heavier on hurting than comforting side.
Against the Odds by JayRain
~14,400; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: “I don’t know what’s going to happen to you, Sergeant Barnes,” the little man says. “That’s why we call it an experiment.” Bucky never expected to survive the war. Somehow, he keeps beating the odds stacked against him. But then he starts changing: small, subtle changes only he can notice, but they're there and he's not sure what to make of it, and even more, if he should worry.
my two cents: TFA!Buck, not post-WS, and more on angsty than funny side. For its decent quality this fic gets unfairly little appreciation.
Clint Barton Did Nothing To Deserve This by inkdust and logophile
~12,400; PG-13; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Clint had never met the Winter Soldier. Clint was really okay with that.
my two cents: No one ever said Bucky is a saint... *g*
In the Crosshairs by withasideofangst
~12,300; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: Three days after Steve Rogers is released from the hospital after being found on the shores of the Potomac River, the first HYDRA agents try to kill him in his apartment. On the sixth attempt, Bucky, still working his way out of HYDRA's programming, has to get involved. That's not the only time the ex-Winter Soldier has to save the life of an Avenger. Then, not ready to be seen by any of them yet, he kind of starts haunting the Tower. There are accidents and gifts and prank wars involved.
my two cents: Just for the fun of it. ^^ And glitter.
Cards on the Table (We're Both Showing Hearts) by freedomfry
~11,800; R; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Tony wants the Winter Soldier to listen to better music. Steve wants Bucky, period. Sam wants everyone to stop actively driving him nuts for One Damn Minute.
my two cents: A classic Tower fic in the first half and fluffy Stucky in the second. One of those you laugh over from the first paragraphs, and being one of the finest examples of the kind, regardless of a fandom. “Goddamn tragedy”? What is tragedy, Tony, is that this author hasn't written more. Yet? ^^
The Smithsonian Guard by galerian_ash
~9,000; G; mostly Gen with a little of Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Bucky makes a friend.
my two cents: You know which guard. Your address if you're in need of some happy-ever-after, nostalgic but still diabetes-inducing fluff.
For These I Watch Tonight by leupagus
~2,000; G; Gen
author's summary: This is not a story about a cow.
my two cents: TFA setting, Peggy POV. It has the feel of a sketch for something bigger rather than already a complete fic, in spite of technically being one. Still, it easily bests most of longer pieces with its crisp-witty style, and somehow manages to paint hilarious pictures and rich characterizations in very few words.
And to pretend it's not all about Bucky...
The Son of Man by copperbadge
~36,400; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: JARVIS did not want to be a real boy. He was quite happy being a building.
my two cents: It plays with body dysmorphia/dysphoria that has absolutely nothing to do with gender, and you have no freakin' idea how refreshing this makes it. Regardless of that, the world needs more JARVIS fics. Okay, I need... Bucky gets a brief mention at the end.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can comment also in Disqus, here.
It's okay to comment in whatever language fits you best, as long as I get it. Don't mind the entry's language.
Można komentować w języku, który najbardziej ci odpowiada, o ile go zrozumiem. Nie przejmuj się językiem notki.
Main criterion I was supposed to focus on is postWS-but-efficient!Buck, that is a highly functioning one rather than a brain-dead, infantile, fandomized mess. Still, for obvious reasons it's never going to be a binary either/or matter, and at least for me, everything depends on the given author's literary skill and style. So, overall it's more a list of 'well written' than 'specifically themed'. I'm not promising all of these are equal in quality, not to mention they vary a lot in style, ideas and mood, but I can at least assure all of them are on a level higher than mediocre, with at least a few reaching 'brilliant'.
Ordered by wordcount (not like it's really the most important measure, but for the sake of neutral listing; also, this should prevent the beginning of the list from monopolizing the attention).
The Real World: Bed Stuy by jendavis
~143,000; R; Bucky/Clint
author's summary: This is the true story of two strangers, tasked to live in an apartment building, get their shit together, and have their lives (probably) monitored by Natasha and Steve, to find out what happens when people try to stop being agents and assets, and start getting real.
my two cents: Fraction&Aja-verse Clint, not MCU; Bucky in pieces and not really self-reliant, but recovering. It has some action plot, but remains mostly on the psychology side, with the feel of a slow paced novel. Besides a professional-level writing style, the fic's greatest merit is its take on deaf!Clint, not just checking off the trope, but actually working it into the plot and doing a thorough job on various aspects of it. For one, hardly anyone in fics I've met takes into consideration what an inner ear damage and thus messed balance mean for an archer. Or, on the other hand, what a guy can learn when others think he can't hear them. And before all, how does Clint feel about all this.
Long Way Home by morningwar
~102,000; R; Gen
author's summary: You can't choose what you want to remember, and you can't choose what you want to forget. The Asset learns this the hard way. Meanwhile, Steve tries desperately to get his best friend back. Nothing goes according to plan. Sam tags along because Steve doesn't understand the concept of self preservation. Also because nobody says no to Captain America, even if he's actually kind of an asshole once you get to know him. Set after Captain America: The Winter Soldier, with references to events that happened in Iron Man 3.
my two cents: A tear-jerker, seriously. Bucky in a version heavily messed, struggling for independence and failing, though more for physical than psychological reasons (which involves non-canon but canon-compliant details on Hydra's serum; it's one of fics with ideas). Also, somewhat confused about his loyalties, which is not unique but still uncommon.
Sticks and Strings and Christmas Things by PhoukasPenmanship
~66,300; R; Bucky/Clint
author's summary: 12 connecting vignettes for the "12 Days of Winterhawk" prompt challenge.
my two cents: Fraction&Aja-verse Clint, and his POV. Bucky in the mostly human, self-reliant ghost-that-walks-by-himself version.
i need a forest fire by tomorrowsrain
~65,800; PG-13; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: ”The past beats inside me like a second heart. These fragments I have shored against my ruins.” In which Tony Stark makes a reckless decision, becomes a wanted fugitive, goes on the run with the former Winter Soldier, and learns how to forgive. For his part, Bucky Barnes is just trying to hold himself together. AU, post-Civil War. (sequel of sorts to après nous le déluge, but can be read alone)
my two cents: Tony forced by circumstances to cooperate with Bucky, so exactly what he needs to get his priorities straight. Switching POV. A fic relatively heavy on combat action, not like it lacks other things.
All the Soldiers Say by lusilly
~64,700; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: After the massive fallout of Civil War, Steve and his team retreat to a secret base. Bucky is with them, and they aren't completely sure what to do with him, to be honest; they can't risk him on missions, not really, until he beats the trigger words conditioned into his brain. Nat has an idea. It all goes pretty much OK, until Steve gets a late-night drunk dial from Tony.
my two cents: A not so often thing: fic whose strongest point is the plot on the level of small details. As in: they aren't put in there just so and forgotten, but come back later to fall on their places in the whole image. Some of said plot is a mystery investigation, which I appreciated a lot (hey, giving his skills and area of expertise, Bucky it the right guy for deducing events from crime sites). It's mostly compliant with CW, but fixes the whole aftermath (yup, Tony). It also has maybe the rarest of rarities (meaning, I don't know about any other case), Natasha getting mislead by her own overconfidence in a quite funny way. *g*
This, You Protect by owlet
~64,300; PG-13; Gen (later in the series going into Steve/Bucky)
author's summary: The mission resets abruptly, from objective: kill to objective: protect
my two cents: This is not a fic. This is the fic. It always comes to my mind as first to recommend, and I'd put it on every rec list until y'all develop a nervous twitch and allergy. Or, preferably, get infected as well. I was skeptic about it for long time, and kept circling it, squinting suspiciously. Finally I decided to give it a try longer than one page, and I've been doomed from then on. It has a very uncommon way of mixing humorous with serious, where Buck starts as the extremely machine-like Asset with a computer-ish split personality and, though gradually regaining humanity, stays severely messed to the end, while in spite of that being all the time highly operative and entirely independent. This is a Buck who doesn't mope, though saying he knows no self-pity couldn't be further from the truth! *g* He complains as if he tried to live up to his age, but more with wry grumpiness than angst and mostly focused on everyday annoyances the world throws his way, not on everything that's wrong with himself and his past. In fact, he's barely aware of the latter, stumbling on it only occasionally, but whoa! what scenes it makes then! And since the reader is aware of it all the time, and since it's Bucky POV, the result is in equal degrees hilarious and heartbreaking, both in best of ways. Give it a chance, even if it doesn't feel like your thing at first. Oh, and don't let the title mislead you, it's 3rd person narration.
The fic is listed as first in a series, but it's better to start from the chronologically earlier fourth one: Truth, Justice and the Cheating Cheater Way. It doesn't spoil anything and it pays to know it before This, You Protect. Also, it's short, so you can test the author first on it. However, mind that Bucky's voice is significantly different in both fics, which I consider a literary achievement anyway.
Chyetirye by SkyisGray
~48,900; NC-17; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Even the strongest personalities, when subjected to great physical, emotional, and sexual abuses, can splinter, or dissociate. Bucky Barnes lives a nightmare after falling from a train and being recovered by Hydra. His mind deals with the trauma by splintering into the soldier, the prisoner, the patriot, and the assassin. Years later, they team up to save Steve Rogers.
my two cents: Another fic with ideas, this time mostly on the psychology side. Where other fics play only a little with the split personality trope, this one has it for its basis and builds a whole fic-verse on it to such degree that the result might be considered AU, even though it's almost perfectly canon-compliant, just uses very uncommon in the fandom interpretations of canon data, which makes it AU fanon in a way. It's also in the realm of exploring rather than comforting fics, so it's not really your thing if you want fluff. Still, it's very much worth giving it a chance. It's most gruesome in the first half, and overall it could qualify as not bad sci-fi, had it been an original work. As for technicalities, unlike what you could think, it has no switching POV (at least in the first part of the series), staying all the time with Bucky actual, the original one. And it's Bucky who has held on to sanity by going - by outside standards - insane, with an outcome that puts him in the human & efficient sort and makes the fic much less confusing and more enjoyable than you could expect from such an idea. Let's just say that Buck do an excellent team work. ;)
I consider the whole series another the fic on my private list, and though I'm glad it's completed, I truly regret it's probably not going to get sequels. It has a huge potential, especially for long, intricate plots, switching POVs and additions of new characters used for outsider POV.
Thermotemporal Equations by Blinky the Tree Frog
~48,100; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: Bucky Barnes is used to strange happenings; his time with the Howling Commandos has guaranteed that. He's therefore not totally thrown off balance when he wakes up in an extraordinary tower in a seemingly impossible year. He can’t help but be worried though, no matter how much reassurance he's getting from Steve and his new team.
my two cents: Time travel with Bucky & the WS encounter, where the latter has very angst-inducing ideas and the former gets to make decisions, which for any Bucky fic is a sure way to earn points in my book. TFA!Bucky POV.
Dead Man Running by onethingconstant
~43,500; PG-13, Gen
author's summary: On the run from Hydra and haunted by his shattered memories, Bucky must choose between his will to survive and his love for a friend he can barely remember. And as he fights for his life against rogue terror cells, well-meaning superheroes, and his own programming, he must determine once and for all whether he can once again become what he most wants to be... Human. He tells his story in his own words.
my two cents: A rarity for its 1st person narration. Bucky in a version somewhat unstable and troubled, with a little bit of split personality again for companion, but far from robotic. Actually he's closer here to his comic verse self than MCU one. A small bonus I appreciated a lot: on his way he spares a moment to make sure the fate of Renata, Pierce's housekeeper, will get an investigation and she won't be forgotten.
Strays by snarklyboojum
~33,500; PG-13; mostly Gen with a little of Steve/Bucky
author's summary: After finding himself alone for the first time in decades, the Winter Soldier learns how to be a person again. Mostly through caring for an orphaned kitten, countless rounds of YouTube roulette, and stalking Captain America. Or: Bucky Barnes, accidental millennial.
my two cents: It has a cat in it and is illustrated. ^^ And is much better written and less detached from reality than you could assume. ;)
Wing and a Prayer by Sholio
~32,200; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: Bucky and Sam fall out of a HYDRA plane into the Canadian wilderness. Nothing like a hundred-mile walk to civilization while severely injured and being hunted by HYDRA, right?
my two cents: Action piece, through and through. Sam's POV, and well observant one. Bucky on the human-and-friendly-but-creepy side.
Living On My Own by rekishi
~26,100; R; Gen with mentions of Steve/Bucky
author's summary: James Barnes is back in the world and finds that not only has there been 1) an alien invasion, but 2) Howard Stark had a kid. One that dispenses unsolicited life advice, no less. Oh, and 3) Captain America is alive again, after getting himself killed by his own recklessness in a move so stupid only Steve could have come up with it. In which James learns to do laundry, turns into an accidental neighborhood vigilante and makes Tony Stark a happy grease monkey, all while he figures out where to stake his claim.
my two cents: Bucky on the “almost okay” end of the spectrum, and the fic itself among more plotty ones.
Memory by emilyenrose
~23,900; PG-13; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: He remembered nothing. After the first few weeks, he asked to be called James.
my two cents: Time travel with a body swap. Steve POV in a humorless, dry-but-tense style. Technically a hurt-comfort, though somewhat heavier on hurting than comforting side.
Against the Odds by JayRain
~14,400; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: “I don’t know what’s going to happen to you, Sergeant Barnes,” the little man says. “That’s why we call it an experiment.” Bucky never expected to survive the war. Somehow, he keeps beating the odds stacked against him. But then he starts changing: small, subtle changes only he can notice, but they're there and he's not sure what to make of it, and even more, if he should worry.
my two cents: TFA!Buck, not post-WS, and more on angsty than funny side. For its decent quality this fic gets unfairly little appreciation.
Clint Barton Did Nothing To Deserve This by inkdust and logophile
~12,400; PG-13; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Clint had never met the Winter Soldier. Clint was really okay with that.
my two cents: No one ever said Bucky is a saint... *g*
In the Crosshairs by withasideofangst
~12,300; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: Three days after Steve Rogers is released from the hospital after being found on the shores of the Potomac River, the first HYDRA agents try to kill him in his apartment. On the sixth attempt, Bucky, still working his way out of HYDRA's programming, has to get involved. That's not the only time the ex-Winter Soldier has to save the life of an Avenger. Then, not ready to be seen by any of them yet, he kind of starts haunting the Tower. There are accidents and gifts and prank wars involved.
my two cents: Just for the fun of it. ^^ And glitter.
Cards on the Table (We're Both Showing Hearts) by freedomfry
~11,800; R; Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Tony wants the Winter Soldier to listen to better music. Steve wants Bucky, period. Sam wants everyone to stop actively driving him nuts for One Damn Minute.
my two cents: A classic Tower fic in the first half and fluffy Stucky in the second. One of those you laugh over from the first paragraphs, and being one of the finest examples of the kind, regardless of a fandom. “Goddamn tragedy”? What is tragedy, Tony, is that this author hasn't written more. Yet? ^^
The Smithsonian Guard by galerian_ash
~9,000; G; mostly Gen with a little of Steve/Bucky
author's summary: Bucky makes a friend.
my two cents: You know which guard. Your address if you're in need of some happy-ever-after, nostalgic but still diabetes-inducing fluff.
For These I Watch Tonight by leupagus
~2,000; G; Gen
author's summary: This is not a story about a cow.
my two cents: TFA setting, Peggy POV. It has the feel of a sketch for something bigger rather than already a complete fic, in spite of technically being one. Still, it easily bests most of longer pieces with its crisp-witty style, and somehow manages to paint hilarious pictures and rich characterizations in very few words.
And to pretend it's not all about Bucky...
The Son of Man by copperbadge
~36,400; PG-13; Gen
author's summary: JARVIS did not want to be a real boy. He was quite happy being a building.
my two cents: It plays with body dysmorphia/dysphoria that has absolutely nothing to do with gender, and you have no freakin' idea how refreshing this makes it. Regardless of that, the world needs more JARVIS fics. Okay, I need... Bucky gets a brief mention at the end.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can comment also in Disqus, here.
It's okay to comment in whatever language fits you best, as long as I get it. Don't mind the entry's language.
Można komentować w języku, który najbardziej ci odpowiada, o ile go zrozumiem. Nie przejmuj się językiem notki.