[ Avatar, Bleach, CCS, FFVII, G-SEED, KH, Tenipuri ]
Notes: Many of these icons are making me laugh. Every time I see #13, I laugh like an idiot. #16 hit me just right, too, though.
Series:
Avatar: The Last Airbender - 10 Fanfics
Bleach - 1 Fanfic
Cardcaptor Sakura - 1 Fanfic
Final Fantasy VII - 1 Fanfic
Gundam SEED - 1 Fanfic
Kingdom Hearts - 4 Fanfics
Prince of Tennis - 2 Fanfics
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Fool Me Twice by kokiri85 - It's not even three hundred words, but it's a really lovely piece on one reason Zuko keeps believing what Azula tells him. It's not hammering the point too hard, instead it presents this almost but not quite understated view of Zuko and why he believes his lying sister. And I just. Oh, Zuko. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - untitled by jessieheart - I, um. I have my favorite pairings with Avatar and I tend to be a pretty boring shipper most of the time. But I have this weakness for the brother/sister pairings in Avatar--I don't want to see them done a lot, just... there's a sense I get once in awhile. So when a fic plays with the Sokka/Katara sense I have, doesn't flinch away from that they're brother and sister and that it's kinda really really wrong... well, I had to read. And I enjoyed it enough to rec. I'm still not that fond of the 1sentence format, I think this would have worked better in a different style, but that's not the fic's fault. (Sokka/Katara.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - untitled by squarewhore and melospiza - I've seen this fanart on deviantART, but stumbling over the short fic that goes with it, I had to rec it properly. Because, while I normally prefer something more socially inept and dorky for these two, a hot kiss is a hot kiss. The writing is lovely and there's a lovely intensity to both characters and the dramatic quality of the moment is well done. I enjoyed this a lot. (Zuko/Mai.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Take this job and shove it by Sophia P - I might not have given a fic about the cabbage merchant a chance, but I adore this author's work in other fandoms, so I trusted that she'd write something worthy of the potential of such an idea. I did not expect to hit one particular line and start laughing so hard I couldn't stop for a good thirty seconds. I love, love that she kept the feel of the recurring joke in the series, managed to keep the humor that made him such a great running bit, yet still managed to give a little bit of depth to the character. Even the details of when he got to Ba Sing Se were utterly fabulous, there's a level of world-detail that makes it so easy to picture. And the ending is perfect and makes a person feel totally warm and fuzzy just like any good, positive, upbeat Avatar fic ending should. FANTASTIC. (No real warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Tell me 'bout the ocean moving in slow motion by Sophia P - Omg, Katara fic! Katara and water-bending and gorgeous, gorgeous characterization and richness of detail about the world and beautiful imagery that works with water so very well. Even the mood of the fic has the temperment of water--calm most of the time, peaceful and gentle, but with the rage of a storm when it's stirred up; this fits together with the end of the first season so incredibly well that I'm kinda floored. Even Katara's conversation with Pakku is pitch-perfect, both for the themes of waterbending and for them as characters as well, I came away from this fic loving both of them so intensely. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - She dreams in color by Sophia P - With every fic I read by the author, I become more and more in love with the fandom and have the sneaking suspicion that she's spoiling me for the rest of it. But it's hard to care when this is such a brilliant, perfect Toph fic, so spot on in both characterization and the use of her earthbending, the little details of the world that make it such an interesting one. It's a great read to see the insights into Toph's character, the way her family treated her, the way she has a sense of "white" and what that means to her, and how she became the person she is when we met her. Amazing fic. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - still flying by Sophia P - There is good Momo fic in existance. Somehow, this seems almost boggling to me, despite that the author is tremendously talented at exploring aspects of the series like this. And I just... I'm unable to come up with words to describe how well-written this is, how perfectly it captures a POV from Momo's perspective, not too sentient/intelligent but not too dumb, either; it's just... so Momo. And how he looks at his old troop, what he remembers and what he doesn't, what he feels for his new "troop", and how... a;lkfal;sflakjsdflkjs I give up. Keyboard mashing in love for this fic omg. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Ephemera by may_flyer - Until I read this short fic, I never gave much thought to the idea of Mai fighting against the Blue Spirit and now I think that might just be the hottest thing I've come across all day. This piece isn't really about that, it's more about the brief meeting between them, almost more about their passing each other by, the way they're both nearly ghosts in the night as life goes on around them. Very cool, but also completely hot... shut up, I know that was lame, I didn't intend for it. (Zuko/Mai in a very roundabout way.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Adversary by may_flyer - Very short little fic about a potential future showdown between Aang and the Fire Lord, written so that you can get a very clean grasp of the weight of such an encounter, the weight of what being that Avatar means when Aang finally gets there. The Ozai perspective is really well-done, it doesn't stray too far from what precious little we know about him, but also doesn't feel glossed over, either. Just the right tone and pacing for this piece. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Fortune Favors the Bold by may_flyer - You know how, everyone once in awhile, there's a fic that comes along that's like it could have been an episode with the way it slips between the frames of canon so perfectly? The way it has a story to tell, the way it reveals bits and pieces about the characters and their motivations and their relationships, the way it is delightful fun? Well, yes. That's what this fic is. You would be incredibly hard-pressed to convince me that this trip of Iroh and Zuko's to Aunt Wu's fortunetelling village wasn't canon, because it just fits so damn well. It's brilliantly written, the characterization is top-notch all around, there are even moments that sent me into absolute fits of laughter because I could see that so perfectly. Zuko is brilliant in this fic, all too serious for a boy his age and still such an incredible dork. Iroh is brilliant and good-natured and his relationship with Wu is something you'll never be able to convince me didn't happen exactly like that. Even if they're older and not as pretty anymore, this was gorgeous. And totally worth the abuse I'm giving the italics tag. The hints of Zuko's fortune being told, the little insights you get into everyone, the way it just... it felt like an episode. I know that's easy praise to throw out, but I really felt like this fic had a solidity that so few in the fandom have. And I still have fits of laughter every time I think of Zuko on that roof. That was the best moment in Avatarfic ever. (Some Iroh/Wu, but it's not really the point.)
- Bleach - extreme sports by incandescens - This is such a short piece, but it's so... it's so insanely perfect for the House Shiba that I had to rec it properly. Lawn croquet at the House Shiba and it's just as awesome as the premise would indicate. I flap my hands and complain that more people don't write them. ♥ (No warnings/pairings.)
- Cardcaptor Sakura - House of Cards by Aishuu - Aww, this was very sweet. There's something almost simple about the story, a peaceful quality even when Yukito is a bit out of sorts, something that's very much what I associate with the manga itself. I really like the little details put into this, the idea of touching on Yukito and his affinity for cards, a way to touch on Yukito and Yue without being heavy-handed about it. Very nice. (Touya/Yukito.)
- Final Fantasy VII - Another Round by Sister Coyote - I only stumbled over this one randomly, I was clicking links on ff_press and seeing if any of the Cloud/Tifa ones caught my attention and somehow this one jumped out at me right away. There's a quiet peacefulness to the Tifa POV here, the way it's low-key and almost but not quite laid back, the way it's simple even when nothing's really simple even after AC, the way the author is really, really great with the understated tone to the fic, all of it is lovely. It's such a simple thing, Tifa tending to the bar, watching people come and go, thinking about who's there, who's not there, who will be there, there's a sense of... not quite family, but whatever it is that that cast of characters has, especially viewed through Tifa's eyes. Lovely. Oh, and I may or may not have melted into a giant puddle of goo over the way Cloud/Tifa was written here. Shut up. (Cloud/Tifa.)
- Gundam SEED - Lady in Waiting by Aishuu - Oh, what a gorgeous Cagalli fic, one of the few that I've really been impressed with in this fandom. (Not that I look all that often, mind. I usually rely on recognizing authors from other fandoms.) It's jus so... it's a simple character piece, Cagalli reading the list of casualties and thinking about how she doesn't want to see her loved ones' names on the list, how she feels so far away from them now, but it's the little touches that create such a big impact. The detail with her ring, her ridiculous promises as long as they'll be okay, the way she still does her job, it's all fantastic. (Implications of Ashuran/Cagalli, but that's not the whole point.)
- Kingdom Hearts - Kiss by Carolyn F. - [Note: There are faint spoilers for KHII, avoid if you really don't want to know anything and have been able to remain unspoiled so far.] I've kind of been wanting Riku/Kairi fic for awhile, ever since I went back to play KHI properly and Riku was a little weirdly obsessive over her. I never really did much about it (me = lazy) but I was poking around for some fic recs tonight and happened to stumble over this piece. It's almost a simple fic, the focus is (as the title would suggest) on kissing as set through Kairi's eyes, how it doesn't seem like such a big deal when some other boy kisses her, but then when Riku kisses her, she gets it. It could have been too over the top, but somehow the author makes it work, makes the kiss feel truly full of emotion, makes the chemistry between the two of them work. The setting she puts them in, one that mirrors the emotions tumbling around inside them without having to point this out, I just got it, was fabulous. I think I loved the fic just as much for the way it was a good kiss as much as I loved it for being good Riku/Kairi fic. (Riku/Kairi.)
- Kingdom Hearts - On Disloyalty And Forgiveness by reversedhymnal - [Note: There will be spoilers for KHII in this fic.] After having read the previous Riku/Kairi fic, clearly I needed more. And this is pretty much exactly what I was looking for out of the fandom with this pairing--set post-KHII where Riku and Kairi need to use Belle and Beast's library, it's this fantastic blend of Riku dealing with the Princesses and what happened in the game and his own guilt and their forgiveness/not forgiveness and everything that's just beautifully in character. Kairi is exactly why I adored her so much, her upbeat nature, her refusal to be left behind, her gentleness and forgiveness when it comes to Riku, the way she knows him so well, but also doesn't intrude too much or drag him down, it was perfect. Both in a gen sense and in a budding shipper sense. Even the tone of the fic was so much like the game itself--I keep expecting to be bored by this, to find it too cutesy or too childish or trying too hard, but something magical happens when I sit down to read it. The background details are wonderfully done, the whole fic has a very... weighted sense, I suppose I would call it, something that isn't just pure fluff while still maintaining the positive nature of the game. It's painful at times, but things find a way to work out. I loved this. I suspect this fic deserves a more coherent rec, but, shut up, I'm a little too fangirly right now. (Riku/Kairi implications, Riku/Sora/Kairi implications if you want to see them.)
- Kingdom Hearts - Juxtapose by Tammaiya - I'm not sure how I managed to miss this fic the first time around... perhaps I hadn't yet fallen into the black hole that is KH yet. But I was browsing around for KH fic to read and saw that I hadn't yet recommended this and decided to amend that. It's sort of a simple concept (Riku's mind likes to think about hypotheticals. He finds this rather depressing.) but Riku's not one to let it stay that simple, not with where he is after KHI and CoM, the author playing on that really, really well. All these half-memories, things that may or may not be true anymore, half-formed fantasies of how things might have been different, how he might have done things better, all of them swirl around in Riku's head, each one of them hurting him because he hates himself a little more for being so stupid, for having darkness in him. The writing is nicely understated about it, though, so I don't feel like a hammer was beating on my head to get the imagery in, instead it winds up feeling so very... Riku. Insightful, poignant, and bittersweet. Just as Rikufic should be. (Riku/Sora.)
- Kingdom Hearts - eventually (it'll be all right) by reversedhymnal - [Note: There are spoilers for KHII in this fic.] This is the other Riku/Kairi (that's part of a Riku/Sora/Kairi ot3 more than just Riku/Kairi) from the author, this one set towards the end of KHII where Kairi sees Riku again for the first time. I continue to be utterly taken by this author's Kairi, she's such a strong and fierce character without making her too perfect or too sweet; instead, she is simply insightful and understanding and loves her friends dearly. The Riku/Kairi side of the triangle is done beautifully here, the right balance between not forgetting Sora and not focusing on him too much, it's about these two, yet not to the exclusion of the rest of the world. The way Kairi just immediately knows it's Riku, the way she understands what he's thinking and refuses to let him go or do anything stupid again, it's perfect and exactly why I wanted to read about this pairing. ♥ (Riku/Kairi implications, Riku/Sora/Kairi implications if you want to see them.)
- Prince of Tennis - Sidelines by Aishuu - I've always sort of liked the idea of Sakaki and Hanamura, but I never really sought much out because I doubted I'd find much. Then I was combing around Aishuu's archives for stuff of hers that I'd missed and saw she'd written this and I had to read. And, yikes, this was perfect for them. The flirtation and control they both show, the way it's played out through watching their best students play each other, the way Sakaki's characterization is just so spot on. I could easily picture the two of them, I could easily see each and every one of these thoughts in his head. And it's so fascinating to watch them under Aishuu's hand. I would totally encourage more of this if I thought I could get away with it. XD (Sakaki/Hanamura.)
- Prince of Tennis - On the Naughty List by Aishuu - Now this was just fun. I agree with Aishuu that I could see Tezuka as the type to border on OCD with the whole organized list making thing, especially the way it's written here. I love the way Tezuka and Fuji interact here, their relationship is such an odd one, but somehow it works for them both, neither of them loses what makes them themselves. Toss in good writing and sparkling characterization and this is why I still can't leave the damn fandom quite yet. :P (Tezuka/Fuji.)
NEW GOAL: 76
Series:
Avatar: The Last Airbender - 10 Fanfics
Bleach - 1 Fanfic
Cardcaptor Sakura - 1 Fanfic
Final Fantasy VII - 1 Fanfic
Gundam SEED - 1 Fanfic
Kingdom Hearts - 4 Fanfics
Prince of Tennis - 2 Fanfics
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Fool Me Twice by kokiri85 - It's not even three hundred words, but it's a really lovely piece on one reason Zuko keeps believing what Azula tells him. It's not hammering the point too hard, instead it presents this almost but not quite understated view of Zuko and why he believes his lying sister. And I just. Oh, Zuko. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - untitled by jessieheart - I, um. I have my favorite pairings with Avatar and I tend to be a pretty boring shipper most of the time. But I have this weakness for the brother/sister pairings in Avatar--I don't want to see them done a lot, just... there's a sense I get once in awhile. So when a fic plays with the Sokka/Katara sense I have, doesn't flinch away from that they're brother and sister and that it's kinda really really wrong... well, I had to read. And I enjoyed it enough to rec. I'm still not that fond of the 1sentence format, I think this would have worked better in a different style, but that's not the fic's fault. (Sokka/Katara.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - untitled by squarewhore and melospiza - I've seen this fanart on deviantART, but stumbling over the short fic that goes with it, I had to rec it properly. Because, while I normally prefer something more socially inept and dorky for these two, a hot kiss is a hot kiss. The writing is lovely and there's a lovely intensity to both characters and the dramatic quality of the moment is well done. I enjoyed this a lot. (Zuko/Mai.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Take this job and shove it by Sophia P - I might not have given a fic about the cabbage merchant a chance, but I adore this author's work in other fandoms, so I trusted that she'd write something worthy of the potential of such an idea. I did not expect to hit one particular line and start laughing so hard I couldn't stop for a good thirty seconds. I love, love that she kept the feel of the recurring joke in the series, managed to keep the humor that made him such a great running bit, yet still managed to give a little bit of depth to the character. Even the details of when he got to Ba Sing Se were utterly fabulous, there's a level of world-detail that makes it so easy to picture. And the ending is perfect and makes a person feel totally warm and fuzzy just like any good, positive, upbeat Avatar fic ending should. FANTASTIC. (No real warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Tell me 'bout the ocean moving in slow motion by Sophia P - Omg, Katara fic! Katara and water-bending and gorgeous, gorgeous characterization and richness of detail about the world and beautiful imagery that works with water so very well. Even the mood of the fic has the temperment of water--calm most of the time, peaceful and gentle, but with the rage of a storm when it's stirred up; this fits together with the end of the first season so incredibly well that I'm kinda floored. Even Katara's conversation with Pakku is pitch-perfect, both for the themes of waterbending and for them as characters as well, I came away from this fic loving both of them so intensely. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - She dreams in color by Sophia P - With every fic I read by the author, I become more and more in love with the fandom and have the sneaking suspicion that she's spoiling me for the rest of it. But it's hard to care when this is such a brilliant, perfect Toph fic, so spot on in both characterization and the use of her earthbending, the little details of the world that make it such an interesting one. It's a great read to see the insights into Toph's character, the way her family treated her, the way she has a sense of "white" and what that means to her, and how she became the person she is when we met her. Amazing fic. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - still flying by Sophia P - There is good Momo fic in existance. Somehow, this seems almost boggling to me, despite that the author is tremendously talented at exploring aspects of the series like this. And I just... I'm unable to come up with words to describe how well-written this is, how perfectly it captures a POV from Momo's perspective, not too sentient/intelligent but not too dumb, either; it's just... so Momo. And how he looks at his old troop, what he remembers and what he doesn't, what he feels for his new "troop", and how... a;lkfal;sflakjsdflkjs I give up. Keyboard mashing in love for this fic omg. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Ephemera by may_flyer - Until I read this short fic, I never gave much thought to the idea of Mai fighting against the Blue Spirit and now I think that might just be the hottest thing I've come across all day. This piece isn't really about that, it's more about the brief meeting between them, almost more about their passing each other by, the way they're both nearly ghosts in the night as life goes on around them. Very cool, but also completely hot... shut up, I know that was lame, I didn't intend for it. (Zuko/Mai in a very roundabout way.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Adversary by may_flyer - Very short little fic about a potential future showdown between Aang and the Fire Lord, written so that you can get a very clean grasp of the weight of such an encounter, the weight of what being that Avatar means when Aang finally gets there. The Ozai perspective is really well-done, it doesn't stray too far from what precious little we know about him, but also doesn't feel glossed over, either. Just the right tone and pacing for this piece. (No warnings/pairings.)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender - Fortune Favors the Bold by may_flyer - You know how, everyone once in awhile, there's a fic that comes along that's like it could have been an episode with the way it slips between the frames of canon so perfectly? The way it has a story to tell, the way it reveals bits and pieces about the characters and their motivations and their relationships, the way it is delightful fun? Well, yes. That's what this fic is. You would be incredibly hard-pressed to convince me that this trip of Iroh and Zuko's to Aunt Wu's fortunetelling village wasn't canon, because it just fits so damn well. It's brilliantly written, the characterization is top-notch all around, there are even moments that sent me into absolute fits of laughter because I could see that so perfectly. Zuko is brilliant in this fic, all too serious for a boy his age and still such an incredible dork. Iroh is brilliant and good-natured and his relationship with Wu is something you'll never be able to convince me didn't happen exactly like that. Even if they're older and not as pretty anymore, this was gorgeous. And totally worth the abuse I'm giving the italics tag. The hints of Zuko's fortune being told, the little insights you get into everyone, the way it just... it felt like an episode. I know that's easy praise to throw out, but I really felt like this fic had a solidity that so few in the fandom have. And I still have fits of laughter every time I think of Zuko on that roof. That was the best moment in Avatarfic ever. (Some Iroh/Wu, but it's not really the point.)
- Bleach - extreme sports by incandescens - This is such a short piece, but it's so... it's so insanely perfect for the House Shiba that I had to rec it properly. Lawn croquet at the House Shiba and it's just as awesome as the premise would indicate. I flap my hands and complain that more people don't write them. ♥ (No warnings/pairings.)
- Cardcaptor Sakura - House of Cards by Aishuu - Aww, this was very sweet. There's something almost simple about the story, a peaceful quality even when Yukito is a bit out of sorts, something that's very much what I associate with the manga itself. I really like the little details put into this, the idea of touching on Yukito and his affinity for cards, a way to touch on Yukito and Yue without being heavy-handed about it. Very nice. (Touya/Yukito.)
- Final Fantasy VII - Another Round by Sister Coyote - I only stumbled over this one randomly, I was clicking links on ff_press and seeing if any of the Cloud/Tifa ones caught my attention and somehow this one jumped out at me right away. There's a quiet peacefulness to the Tifa POV here, the way it's low-key and almost but not quite laid back, the way it's simple even when nothing's really simple even after AC, the way the author is really, really great with the understated tone to the fic, all of it is lovely. It's such a simple thing, Tifa tending to the bar, watching people come and go, thinking about who's there, who's not there, who will be there, there's a sense of... not quite family, but whatever it is that that cast of characters has, especially viewed through Tifa's eyes. Lovely. Oh, and I may or may not have melted into a giant puddle of goo over the way Cloud/Tifa was written here. Shut up. (Cloud/Tifa.)
- Gundam SEED - Lady in Waiting by Aishuu - Oh, what a gorgeous Cagalli fic, one of the few that I've really been impressed with in this fandom. (Not that I look all that often, mind. I usually rely on recognizing authors from other fandoms.) It's jus so... it's a simple character piece, Cagalli reading the list of casualties and thinking about how she doesn't want to see her loved ones' names on the list, how she feels so far away from them now, but it's the little touches that create such a big impact. The detail with her ring, her ridiculous promises as long as they'll be okay, the way she still does her job, it's all fantastic. (Implications of Ashuran/Cagalli, but that's not the whole point.)
- Kingdom Hearts - Kiss by Carolyn F. - [Note: There are faint spoilers for KHII, avoid if you really don't want to know anything and have been able to remain unspoiled so far.] I've kind of been wanting Riku/Kairi fic for awhile, ever since I went back to play KHI properly and Riku was a little weirdly obsessive over her. I never really did much about it (me = lazy) but I was poking around for some fic recs tonight and happened to stumble over this piece. It's almost a simple fic, the focus is (as the title would suggest) on kissing as set through Kairi's eyes, how it doesn't seem like such a big deal when some other boy kisses her, but then when Riku kisses her, she gets it. It could have been too over the top, but somehow the author makes it work, makes the kiss feel truly full of emotion, makes the chemistry between the two of them work. The setting she puts them in, one that mirrors the emotions tumbling around inside them without having to point this out, I just got it, was fabulous. I think I loved the fic just as much for the way it was a good kiss as much as I loved it for being good Riku/Kairi fic. (Riku/Kairi.)
- Kingdom Hearts - On Disloyalty And Forgiveness by reversedhymnal - [Note: There will be spoilers for KHII in this fic.] After having read the previous Riku/Kairi fic, clearly I needed more. And this is pretty much exactly what I was looking for out of the fandom with this pairing--set post-KHII where Riku and Kairi need to use Belle and Beast's library, it's this fantastic blend of Riku dealing with the Princesses and what happened in the game and his own guilt and their forgiveness/not forgiveness and everything that's just beautifully in character. Kairi is exactly why I adored her so much, her upbeat nature, her refusal to be left behind, her gentleness and forgiveness when it comes to Riku, the way she knows him so well, but also doesn't intrude too much or drag him down, it was perfect. Both in a gen sense and in a budding shipper sense. Even the tone of the fic was so much like the game itself--I keep expecting to be bored by this, to find it too cutesy or too childish or trying too hard, but something magical happens when I sit down to read it. The background details are wonderfully done, the whole fic has a very... weighted sense, I suppose I would call it, something that isn't just pure fluff while still maintaining the positive nature of the game. It's painful at times, but things find a way to work out. I loved this. I suspect this fic deserves a more coherent rec, but, shut up, I'm a little too fangirly right now. (Riku/Kairi implications, Riku/Sora/Kairi implications if you want to see them.)
- Kingdom Hearts - Juxtapose by Tammaiya - I'm not sure how I managed to miss this fic the first time around... perhaps I hadn't yet fallen into the black hole that is KH yet. But I was browsing around for KH fic to read and saw that I hadn't yet recommended this and decided to amend that. It's sort of a simple concept (Riku's mind likes to think about hypotheticals. He finds this rather depressing.) but Riku's not one to let it stay that simple, not with where he is after KHI and CoM, the author playing on that really, really well. All these half-memories, things that may or may not be true anymore, half-formed fantasies of how things might have been different, how he might have done things better, all of them swirl around in Riku's head, each one of them hurting him because he hates himself a little more for being so stupid, for having darkness in him. The writing is nicely understated about it, though, so I don't feel like a hammer was beating on my head to get the imagery in, instead it winds up feeling so very... Riku. Insightful, poignant, and bittersweet. Just as Rikufic should be. (Riku/Sora.)
- Kingdom Hearts - eventually (it'll be all right) by reversedhymnal - [Note: There are spoilers for KHII in this fic.] This is the other Riku/Kairi (that's part of a Riku/Sora/Kairi ot3 more than just Riku/Kairi) from the author, this one set towards the end of KHII where Kairi sees Riku again for the first time. I continue to be utterly taken by this author's Kairi, she's such a strong and fierce character without making her too perfect or too sweet; instead, she is simply insightful and understanding and loves her friends dearly. The Riku/Kairi side of the triangle is done beautifully here, the right balance between not forgetting Sora and not focusing on him too much, it's about these two, yet not to the exclusion of the rest of the world. The way Kairi just immediately knows it's Riku, the way she understands what he's thinking and refuses to let him go or do anything stupid again, it's perfect and exactly why I wanted to read about this pairing. ♥ (Riku/Kairi implications, Riku/Sora/Kairi implications if you want to see them.)
- Prince of Tennis - Sidelines by Aishuu - I've always sort of liked the idea of Sakaki and Hanamura, but I never really sought much out because I doubted I'd find much. Then I was combing around Aishuu's archives for stuff of hers that I'd missed and saw she'd written this and I had to read. And, yikes, this was perfect for them. The flirtation and control they both show, the way it's played out through watching their best students play each other, the way Sakaki's characterization is just so spot on. I could easily picture the two of them, I could easily see each and every one of these thoughts in his head. And it's so fascinating to watch them under Aishuu's hand. I would totally encourage more of this if I thought I could get away with it. XD (Sakaki/Hanamura.)
- Prince of Tennis - On the Naughty List by Aishuu - Now this was just fun. I agree with Aishuu that I could see Tezuka as the type to border on OCD with the whole organized list making thing, especially the way it's written here. I love the way Tezuka and Fuji interact here, their relationship is such an odd one, but somehow it works for them both, neither of them loses what makes them themselves. Toss in good writing and sparkling characterization and this is why I still can't leave the damn fandom quite yet. :P (Tezuka/Fuji.)
NEW GOAL: 76