Ye Newe Yuletide Recse Poste
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This holiday has been busy as fuck (and also inclement), but neither rain nor sleet nor in-laws nor Megabus shall keep me from reccing the stories I enjoyed the most! A lot of the super-popular ones are absent from this list, and I'll admit that this year Puel and I have kind of an agenda for promoting anime and video-game fandoms, which have gone largely unrecced thus far, but this is a pretty comprehensive list of the things I have read and enjoyed so far! My gifts are asterixed, and mixed in with the recs because frankly they're so awesome I would rec them even if I hadn't received them!
Ten recs in the following fandoms: Erekos, Fate/Zero and Fate/stay night, Juuni Kokki (Twelve Kingdoms), Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica, Moses und Aron, The Muppet Show, Stick It.
Erekos (A.M. Tuomala)
**Kalathykoi, in which Loukaros fucks with Erlen. This was a treat for me, and exactly what I wanted, and written in the beautifully lyrical language of the gods in this canon. And of course then Erlen gets fried. Best read when it's not raining. After all, Loukaros never misses save by choice.
What Can't Be Helped, in which no, the kitten is not saved from the tree, and it is gut-wrenching. Oh, Achane and Shabane, I feel both of your pain, so acutely. This reads like a missing anecdote from an early chapter of the book, seriously. GOOD PASTICHE. Best read with someone nearby to hold your hand afterward. And if you have a sister, call her.
Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night
Far-Distant Shores, in which Saber and Irisviel talk about Guinivere, FINALLY, in about the only missed opportunity for Saber in Fate/Zero. Seriously, that canon is packed tight, but this author wrote something that Urobuchi neglected--Kiritsugu is having Saber's dreams, and the parallels of his circumstances to Saber's is making him precisely as uncomfortable as he deserves. Also Saber and Iri are such wonderful company for one another and that shines through beautifully here. Best read with a little Tennyson and an eye for symbolism.
A Practical Application of Low Thaumaturgy On Fabrics, in which Waver and Rider make him some pants. Because Iskander the Fucking Fabulous, unlike Gondor, needs pants. Best read without...oh you get the idea.
Juuni Kokki (Twelve Kingdoms)
Left the Nest, in which Enki brings Rakushun's mother to En. I love it when peripheral characters who have a lot to say to each other but don't talk in-canon are measured against each other in fic, and I love the quiet, even, pastoral tone of this encounter. That's not to say it's fluff, because it's more than that: it's a reminder that the affairs of the Twelve Kingdoms don't just affect the royals and their Kirin, but the concerns of the common people are just as worthy of consideration, and Enki is the perfect courier for that particular mission because of his past. Best read with a nice juicy peach somewhere to hand.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica
The City of Witches, in which OH HOMURA SWEETIE. Her devotion is so real in this fic, and so almost-ancient for how many times has it been, and the language surrounding it is beautiful. The weight of being the survivor, the rememberer, is palpable here, and the author captured both the despair and hope of the canon. Best read with a little love in your heart.
gaudium in veritate, in which Witches. Some evil witches. Which is ridiculous, 'cause Kyuubey is a dickbag and he preys on prepubescent girls and they're just in a special time of life which isn't evil really I'll be over here. Best read with SPOILERS.
Moses und Aron (Schoenberg)
Interactive Complexity as Indigenous to Human Systems, in which the most pretentious man in the world of modern music basically wrote Bible fanfic instead. I would be a bad composer if I didn't rec this. Seriously, they'd take away my badge and my baton or something. Like the author said in the tags, I'm not even sure if knowing canon will help, but FOR FUCK'S SAKE, IT'S A SCHOENBERG COFFEESHOP AU. Best read atonally.
The Muppet Show
**The Muppet Show Yuletide 2012 Reunion!, in which The Muppets Take Multimedia. This was my giftfic and I am so, so fucking thrilled with it, you have no idea. It has sketch comedy and classic episode riffs and special guest stars and a really heartwarming frame story and is just what I hoped for from that prompt. Read it and be nostalgic. Read it and be happy. Just read it. But watch out for Rickrolls.
Stick It
The Genesis of Cool, in which Frank and Poot are Frank and Poot. They're such dorky hosers that I just want to take them home and feed them Mountain Dew until they crash in a pile of unwashed exxxtreme bikers and zany schemes. Teenage boys are occasionally adorable. Best read with appreciation therein.
Also, if you want to rec me something (especially in a game or anime fandom I might have overlooked), feel free to do so in the comments! I might make a second post, or forward them on to Puel for hers if she'd like them too!
This holiday has been busy as fuck (and also inclement), but neither rain nor sleet nor in-laws nor Megabus shall keep me from reccing the stories I enjoyed the most! A lot of the super-popular ones are absent from this list, and I'll admit that this year Puel and I have kind of an agenda for promoting anime and video-game fandoms, which have gone largely unrecced thus far, but this is a pretty comprehensive list of the things I have read and enjoyed so far! My gifts are asterixed, and mixed in with the recs because frankly they're so awesome I would rec them even if I hadn't received them!
Ten recs in the following fandoms: Erekos, Fate/Zero and Fate/stay night, Juuni Kokki (Twelve Kingdoms), Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica, Moses und Aron, The Muppet Show, Stick It.
Erekos (A.M. Tuomala)
**Kalathykoi, in which Loukaros fucks with Erlen. This was a treat for me, and exactly what I wanted, and written in the beautifully lyrical language of the gods in this canon. And of course then Erlen gets fried. Best read when it's not raining. After all, Loukaros never misses save by choice.
What Can't Be Helped, in which no, the kitten is not saved from the tree, and it is gut-wrenching. Oh, Achane and Shabane, I feel both of your pain, so acutely. This reads like a missing anecdote from an early chapter of the book, seriously. GOOD PASTICHE. Best read with someone nearby to hold your hand afterward. And if you have a sister, call her.
Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night
Far-Distant Shores, in which Saber and Irisviel talk about Guinivere, FINALLY, in about the only missed opportunity for Saber in Fate/Zero. Seriously, that canon is packed tight, but this author wrote something that Urobuchi neglected--Kiritsugu is having Saber's dreams, and the parallels of his circumstances to Saber's is making him precisely as uncomfortable as he deserves. Also Saber and Iri are such wonderful company for one another and that shines through beautifully here. Best read with a little Tennyson and an eye for symbolism.
A Practical Application of Low Thaumaturgy On Fabrics, in which Waver and Rider make him some pants. Because Iskander the Fucking Fabulous, unlike Gondor, needs pants. Best read without...oh you get the idea.
Juuni Kokki (Twelve Kingdoms)
Left the Nest, in which Enki brings Rakushun's mother to En. I love it when peripheral characters who have a lot to say to each other but don't talk in-canon are measured against each other in fic, and I love the quiet, even, pastoral tone of this encounter. That's not to say it's fluff, because it's more than that: it's a reminder that the affairs of the Twelve Kingdoms don't just affect the royals and their Kirin, but the concerns of the common people are just as worthy of consideration, and Enki is the perfect courier for that particular mission because of his past. Best read with a nice juicy peach somewhere to hand.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica
The City of Witches, in which OH HOMURA SWEETIE. Her devotion is so real in this fic, and so almost-ancient for how many times has it been, and the language surrounding it is beautiful. The weight of being the survivor, the rememberer, is palpable here, and the author captured both the despair and hope of the canon. Best read with a little love in your heart.
gaudium in veritate, in which Witches. Some evil witches. Which is ridiculous, 'cause Kyuubey is a dickbag and he preys on prepubescent girls and they're just in a special time of life which isn't evil really I'll be over here. Best read with SPOILERS.
Moses und Aron (Schoenberg)
Interactive Complexity as Indigenous to Human Systems, in which the most pretentious man in the world of modern music basically wrote Bible fanfic instead. I would be a bad composer if I didn't rec this. Seriously, they'd take away my badge and my baton or something. Like the author said in the tags, I'm not even sure if knowing canon will help, but FOR FUCK'S SAKE, IT'S A SCHOENBERG COFFEESHOP AU. Best read atonally.
The Muppet Show
**The Muppet Show Yuletide 2012 Reunion!, in which The Muppets Take Multimedia. This was my giftfic and I am so, so fucking thrilled with it, you have no idea. It has sketch comedy and classic episode riffs and special guest stars and a really heartwarming frame story and is just what I hoped for from that prompt. Read it and be nostalgic. Read it and be happy. Just read it. But watch out for Rickrolls.
Stick It
The Genesis of Cool, in which Frank and Poot are Frank and Poot. They're such dorky hosers that I just want to take them home and feed them Mountain Dew until they crash in a pile of unwashed exxxtreme bikers and zany schemes. Teenage boys are occasionally adorable. Best read with appreciation therein.
Also, if you want to rec me something (especially in a game or anime fandom I might have overlooked), feel free to do so in the comments! I might make a second post, or forward them on to Puel for hers if she'd like them too!