Rec: Original Fic
Title: The Heart May be Tiny but the World's Enormous
Author: ladysisyphus
Pairing: M/M
Summary: Gong Ji just wanted to steal a goat. He certainly wasn't intending to meet the goat's owner, but months later and he's still living with Din.
The figure holding the lantern cleared its throat, and as Gong Ji's eyes adjusted, he could see that it was a man wearing loose pants and nothing else, holding a baby-sized bundle to his chest with his other arm; the bundle seemed to be making the sniffling noise, and Gong Ji, not known far and wide for being the sharpest sword in the armory, was still able to put two and two together there. "What are you doing?" asked the man, who seemed less angry and more honestly curious.
"Stealing your goat," answered Gong Ji, who'd been beaten at the tender age of three for being a terrible liar, and had thus resolved never to bother doing it again. He tugged at the goat, who balked and gnawed at the rope, so he prodded the beast's belly with his toes. "Stubborn animal." The goat just glared at him.
"Is that so," said the man in the doorway, and it wasn't a question. The light shifted as he reached up to hang the lantern on a thin iron hook by the door. "What are you going to do with it?"
Bracing for a little more leverage, Gong Ji managed with the last of his strength to convince the goat to its feet. "Eat it," he said, pulling the beast in the direction of back down the road, hoping that his hunger gave him that look he'd seen desperate men have about them when they had nothing left to lose.
Original fic is one of those things that has to come highly recommended for me to attempt reading it on the internet. Generally I find it's of a lower quality to a great deal of published work and, let's be honest, there's a whole bunch of books waiting at my local library that are just crying out to be read. I tell you this so you know that when I say this is amazing, I really mean it.
This is a love story. But it's a love story set in a small town in an unknown, war ravaged land and one which takes place during a time when conflicts are started by Kings and paid for by peasants. Beautifully told, and drawing heavily from a history of Eastern Asia, it is easily one of the best original fics I've ever read on the internet. Bar none. It is well told, and has some of the best character's I've ever seen take life in an online work; characters who are very much a part of what makes this story so brilliant. There is Gong Ji, a terrible liar and a bad thief with a warm heart; and Din, a sad and lonely man left widowed with a young child and more lost than he would ever admit. But most importantly, there is the baby Yi, who often steals the story by being a bundle of adorable.
All in all this fic drew me in from the first word, and didn't let me go until the last. It's not terribly long (perhaps 20k, so novella length?) but it is just as good, if not better, than a great deal of published work.
(Also, anyone who has any knowledge of Avatar:The Last Airbender may be interested to know that this fic, according to the author, may - or may not - be the epic love story of Jet's Two Gay Dads. It's not necessary to know this is order to enjoy the story, but... it is interesting to know all the same :D)
Author: ladysisyphus
Pairing: M/M
Summary: Gong Ji just wanted to steal a goat. He certainly wasn't intending to meet the goat's owner, but months later and he's still living with Din.
The figure holding the lantern cleared its throat, and as Gong Ji's eyes adjusted, he could see that it was a man wearing loose pants and nothing else, holding a baby-sized bundle to his chest with his other arm; the bundle seemed to be making the sniffling noise, and Gong Ji, not known far and wide for being the sharpest sword in the armory, was still able to put two and two together there. "What are you doing?" asked the man, who seemed less angry and more honestly curious.
"Stealing your goat," answered Gong Ji, who'd been beaten at the tender age of three for being a terrible liar, and had thus resolved never to bother doing it again. He tugged at the goat, who balked and gnawed at the rope, so he prodded the beast's belly with his toes. "Stubborn animal." The goat just glared at him.
"Is that so," said the man in the doorway, and it wasn't a question. The light shifted as he reached up to hang the lantern on a thin iron hook by the door. "What are you going to do with it?"
Bracing for a little more leverage, Gong Ji managed with the last of his strength to convince the goat to its feet. "Eat it," he said, pulling the beast in the direction of back down the road, hoping that his hunger gave him that look he'd seen desperate men have about them when they had nothing left to lose.
Original fic is one of those things that has to come highly recommended for me to attempt reading it on the internet. Generally I find it's of a lower quality to a great deal of published work and, let's be honest, there's a whole bunch of books waiting at my local library that are just crying out to be read. I tell you this so you know that when I say this is amazing, I really mean it.
This is a love story. But it's a love story set in a small town in an unknown, war ravaged land and one which takes place during a time when conflicts are started by Kings and paid for by peasants. Beautifully told, and drawing heavily from a history of Eastern Asia, it is easily one of the best original fics I've ever read on the internet. Bar none. It is well told, and has some of the best character's I've ever seen take life in an online work; characters who are very much a part of what makes this story so brilliant. There is Gong Ji, a terrible liar and a bad thief with a warm heart; and Din, a sad and lonely man left widowed with a young child and more lost than he would ever admit. But most importantly, there is the baby Yi, who often steals the story by being a bundle of adorable.
All in all this fic drew me in from the first word, and didn't let me go until the last. It's not terribly long (perhaps 20k, so novella length?) but it is just as good, if not better, than a great deal of published work.
(Also, anyone who has any knowledge of Avatar:The Last Airbender may be interested to know that this fic, according to the author, may - or may not - be the epic love story of Jet's Two Gay Dads. It's not necessary to know this is order to enjoy the story, but... it is interesting to know all the same :D)