laceblade

Rec at least three fanworks that you didn’t create.

These are recent-ish fics in my current fandom. To find out the fandom and the relationships, you'll have to follow the links, and also be logged into your AO3 account.* This is because the fandom is an RPF one, and we do not want these things to be searchable.

Between the Thought and the Action by littlemousling and moogle62
28k, sudden joint telepathy

if everything happens that can't be undone by longnationalnightmare and oops_ohdear
45k, regency au

But if I know you, I know what you'll do by hopefor46
9.7k, fairy tale au that's a remix of a fic that I wrote!


*If you don't have an AO3 account and would like one, let me know. I have some extra invites. Even if you don't write or post fic, accounts are helpful for bookmarking your faves and marking fics to read later. And, in cases like this one, reading fic that has been locked to the archive.

I only have one WIP, so these are all from A Song Is a Weapon. There's a lot of middle between what I've fleshed out & these scenes, so still a little sketchy.
littlebutfierce, the tag is for introducing me to the song in #3, :)

1) Rachel assessed herself coldly in the mirror. She looked too peaked; she pushed her fingertips into her cheeks, massaging tiny circles to push some color there.

Who knew that a theatrical education would have practical applications in espionage? I should write a thesis about this.


2) Her fingers hit some low notes on the electronic keyboard. Simple - he knew she didn’t play much.

“All my life, I’ve been fighting a war…” her voice started out like it always did, clear, sweetly cutting the air with pure, full notes.

Her voice lifted higher.

“My heart jumps around when I’m alluded to.
This will not do.”

Puck new they’d all been scared - for a long time - but all he could think about was how Rachel had had the fear first, and worst - but her entire tone shifted, to anger.

“’Cause I was raised up to be admired
To be noticed.”

Her anger was about her loss, then. Of a meticulously planned future to which she’d devoted the last decade of her life.

Could she ever do this?

Would her bitterness allow her to slip into other personas, to ignore herself for the sake of their missions?

Rachel turned toward him then, as if reading his thoughts. Her smile was warm and infectious as she went on.

“It’s a switch flipped,
It’s a pill tipped back
It’s a moon eclipse.
And I can tell you that when the lights come on I’ll be ready for this.”

She went to another verse, and her voice was full and strong.

Puck hadn’t exactly forgotten what it was like to listen to Rachel Berry sing, but remembering was so different than being right in front of her.


3) “I’ve been thinking a lot about faith,” says Rachel. “But before you get upset, Kurt,” she holds her hand up as if to silence him, even though he hadn’t said anything. He lifted his eyebrows, waiting for her to continue. “This is a little different, though. And…I think you’ll like it especially, because you’re my Glenda,” she said.

She took a deep breath and rested her fingers on the piano. Her posture’s always good, but on the bench it’s perfect.

“Well I’m off to see the wizard,
With his curtain and his crown,
But my hands are not trembling,
And my head it is not bowed.
All I’m asking is that you show me something real…”

Her voice trembles a bit, and Kurt feels as though no one else is really breathing. When she sings, “All I’m looking for is someone to walk with me,” and reaches her hand toward him, he smiles and takes her hand, swinging them back and forth while she continues. He almost can’t believe how much her writing has improved - they’ve all matured over the past few months, but being able to articulate something this meaningful and… sad, is truly surprising.

Maybe it’s easier to write when you have something to say.

Rosemary and Rue - I got this from the library because I've been following Seanan McGuire on Twitter for a while & find her pretty cool. I'd bounced off of Feed a while ago, but thought I'd try this urban fantasy series. It reminds me of Kitty Norville in how in the first book, the protagonist is bucking away from the abusive paranormal situation she's been in for a while.
This one's a little different, though, because the protagonist spent 14 years as a koi, in a pond. Random, lol. I plan to read more!

March Story, vol. 1 - This was okay?! Paranormal stuff happening in what they call the 18th century but I'm pretty sure is the 19th, Europe. Very pretty art. Interesting thing with gender that I hadn't seen coming. It's a pity there only seems to be one volume out in English so far.

One Piece, vols. 13-15 - I found the first two volumes really boring. But now that Nami's sick & they're in a snow area trying to find the doctor, I'm finding it really interesting?! I like Vivi even though she's probably temporary. I like that Nami's illness shows how absolutely essential she is to the crew. I think in the first two volumes contained in this omnibus, I was having my typical shounen feelings - annoyed by neverending fights. UGH.

The Lives of Christopher Chant - I liked this WAY MORE than Charmed Life. Christopher is a much more interesting protagonist, and the I found the plot & world-building in this book to be much more fascinating, and I usually don't care about world-building so that's saying a lot.

The insights into everyone who becomes a character in Charmed Life are fascinating, and now I just want to reread certain parts of Charmed Life to see those characters later on. I really love Christopher, & plan to reread this book in the future.

I LOVED the Goddess/Millie. It's so important to me that she found a life she wanted to emulate through books, and let her fictional heroine guide her own actions in a time of crisis - staying loyal to her friends because that's what Millie would do - genius! So special.

Nineteen Seventy-Nine by blamebrampton - The last year of Regulus Black's life, which I really, really liked. Even while getting in with the Death Eaters, Regulus checks in on Sirius to make sure he's okay. He accidentally bumps into Lily Potter, with whom he forges an unlikely friendship. This shows Regulus getting deeper & deeper into the Death Eater group, even while questioning some of their methods. His compromises & eventual inability to compromise are fascinating to watch. I appreciate the way that Lucius Malfoy tries to mentor him, too. I'm still looking forward to reading more HP fic by this author.
I think that reading Rowling's latest Cormoran Strike novel has made me really, really long for her to write some adult Harry Potter books, which is why I'm trying to fill the hole with politically intelligent fanfiction.

are you two years ago by timorous_scribe - Reuniting a little threesome called the Unholy Trinity for some Toxic performance practice and one last sleepover before they have to return to their big kid lives (and all the issues that go with) at MIT, New York, and Yale.

i just can't shake this feeling (that i'm nothing in your eyes) by ratherembarrassing - Santana Lopez. When asked whether they each thought the other would end up at this point, both of them answered decisively. “Of course.”
post-Frenemies fic that's everything I wanted & didn't get from the show.

Here Comes Trouble (Or: the One Where Santana Takes Over Glee Club) by lookninjas The first thing she does is to put the picture of Finn back in the choir room where it belongs.
The second thing she does is to look right in his vacant, grinning face and say very firmly, “Just so we’re clear? I’m not doing this for you.”

The Way We Were by crossfirehurricane - An au where Lyanna Stark marries Rhaegar Targaryen & they live as king & queen in King's Landing. I like that neither Rhaegar nor Lyanna are saints, but this was more something for me to read while also gaming. I like the premise of the au.

Kingdom by the Sea by crossfirehurricane - An au where Lyanna Stark marries Robert Baratheon. Same as above - didn't really like the writing, but like the premise. I need Game of Thrones aus, I think. There are so many possibilities!

Buffy Season 10 #1 (New Rules part one) - Nice reminder of where we've been, plus a new mystery to figure out. Really enjoying the return of [spoiler].

Hawkeye - I'm caught up (unless another one came out today?) but don't have anything to say about these. REALLY enjoyed the trippy Christmas cartoon commentary issue.

Ms. Marvel #2, Captain Marvel #1, Lois Lane #1 one-shot - I liked all of these!

Spider-Woman, Agent of SWORD - I borrowed this from someone in comics club. I had no familiarity with Jessica Drew except that she sometimes shows up in Captain Marvel as a friend of Carol. Despite my lack of familiarity, this was fan-fucking-tastic. I really loved it.

Sarah Canary - I got about 120 pages in before going up. I gave zero fucks about the characters it what was going on :/

Boxers and Saints - These were really great, an appreciated as I'd previously had zero familiarity with the Boxer Rebellion.

Princeless: Get Over Yourself - I still like this story, although I don't feel the same glee as I did over the first volume. I'm happy to keep reading the collected volumes from the library, but I won't be adding this to my pull list.

Story of a Girl - I devoured this. I love Zarr's writing, and it's interesting to see how class plays a role in both this story (where the protagonist comes from a working class family) and the other book I've read by her (where the family is filthy rich).

Revival volume 2: Live Like You Mean It - I think I'm not feeling this series. There's a lot of gore, and this volume introduces way more problems while not solving any raised in the first. I think I'm also not into zombies unless it's an au Glee fic ^^;

An Everlasting Meal: Cooking With Economy and Grace - This is the first book about food that I've read in years that didn't make me feel anxious. As someone with a restricted diet, Adler's suggestions (& variations on suggestions) were easy to take as they applied, & ignore when they didn't. I don't know yet if this will change the way I cook or prepare food for myself, but it could, and I'd like to buy it.

ATLA: The Rift, #1 - Start of a new trilogy by GLL. I've liked all of his comics so far, and this one is no different. It's the exact tone of the show. Toph & Aang clash about their conflicting attitudes toward culture, & it's tied to how the world is trying to move forward after the defeat of Fire Lord Ozai.

I spent time sympathizing with Aang who's trying to reestablished Air nomad practices, but Toph has a good point when she notes that not everybody's past is idyllic as his, & some people can only live by pushing the past firmly behind them. Unfortunately for Toph, she won't have a choice.

Ancillary Justice - I liked this, but perhaps not as much as others in my circle. I liked what it did with gender, liked a glimpse at what long-game politics look like, liked how complicated it was. Didn't really care for the writing :/

Currently Reading
The Twelve Kingdoms: Sea of Shadow by Fuyumi Ono - I've been aware of the Twelve Kingdoms anime for years. Back in my semester of Anime Club as a college freshman, this was one of the three shows airing. Steph and I hated it, regularly heckling it under our breath & talking about how much we couldn't stand the protagonist & more especially one of her companions. To be fair, we did miss at least the first two episodes, I think.
I actually really love the book. Getting inside of Yoko's head makes up for a lot of what's just whining in the show.
Yoko gets transported from her high school to another world by a mysterious dude with golden hair named Keiki. They get separated pretty early on, & all she has is a sword, a demon attached to her that allows her to fight extremely well with the weapon, & a jewel that heals her.
She gets taken in by some humans a few times, but gets betrayed by them every time.
I just reached the part where she met the rat, Rakushun.

I'm looking forward to reading more of these, even though I know Tokyopop only released 4 of the volumes, & I've heard that the translation/editing for the 4th volume is abysmal. I'm assuming there are translations of these online - anyone have a link?! ;)


Completed
maybe one day a plane will bring me home by astano - The first five times Santana visits New York.

A Scheme, Starring Rachel Berry, with Music and Lyrics by Rachel Berry (and Sam Evans) by ellydash - Rachel’s running after Finn. Sam’s running after Quinn. Eventually, they realize they’re running side by side. Season 2. I read a small blurb on Tumblr recently related to writing, where the mark of good fanfiction especially is that for every line of dialogue, you can't imagine anyone else saying except for the character who's saying it. ellydash is really good at that. Every single character feels spot-on, even/especially those who don't have big parts in the story.
I want to write like that.
& of course I'd now like to read this author's entire Glee backlog.

There's so much good Glee fanfiction I haven't read yet. :*) And due to that, I fell down a rabbit hole of ellydash's backlog & also ratherembarrassing's Pezberry reclist.

All My Loving For Someone Who's Loving Me by ellydash - Mercedes/Brittany/Santana - A Troubletones rehearsal at Santana’s house doesn't go exactly as planned.

Make Me Feel the Same by gilligankane - Pezberry written after episode 1.15. "She finds out about Finn and Santana through Tina who found out from Mercedes who got it from Kurt who was talking to Brittany who mentioned it in the first place." (I THINK THIS MIGHT BE THE FIRST PEZBERRY EVER WRITTEN?!)

Apologies by insaneantics21 - During 2x12. Santana & Rachel apologize to one another for the shitty things they've said to each other.

i seem incapable of titling things when drunk by lynnearlington - spoilers for 2x18, "stop acting like you aren't hot, it's pissing me off"
bandage and the blade by ellydash - It’s so much easier, in the end, for Emma to blame everything on Will. This focuses on Emma's anxiety & struggles with OCD.
Saga #x

Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson - As with The Midnight Robber, I really love the politics & the world that Hopkinson has set up - in this case a dystopian Toronto where Ti-Jeanne's grandmother's herbal skills are valued, whereas before they were a thing the family couldn't talk about. But I wish there was more about the society/etc., and that it was a longer story. Instead, it's pretty focused on Ti-Jeanne's journey. While I appreciate that she's a protagonist who made mistakes but remained sympathetic, I overall felt a little "meh" about this & rated it 3/5 stars.

Very! Very! Sweet, volumes 4-6 - Still loving this story - the clothes that Be-Ri wears (it seems rare that a heroine in manga/manhwa wears baggy clothing that's still cute/etc.?!), her developing relationship with her love interest, & just everything else.

Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion by Elizabeth Cline - Some of the blurbs on the book describe this as being the "Omnivore's Dilemma" for the fashion industry, & that's sort of true. Cline looks into the outsourcing of the production of garments, & also the race to use as cheap of labor as possible with no thought as to either the quality of the final product nor the lives of the people working to make the clothing.
Some of the things Cline talks about are familiar: Women bragging to one another about how little money they spent on clothing; having no idea which fabrics are "good" (raises hand); etc. While I've never watched clothing "haul" videos on YouTube, I watch makeup ones semi-frequently, so I knew what she was talking about.
Some of the things she discusses are unfamiliar: While I mainly shop at places like Penney's, Gap, & Kohl's, Cline talks about buying garments that are only meant to last "3 washes" or so, & talks about throwing her clothes away. I think maybe this happens more often with stuff from Charlotte Russe or Forever 21 (none of which make clothing in my size), so I'm not sure what's up with the discrepancy. I wear clothing for years, & if something only last me 3 wears, I would be pissed.
Anyway, I gave this not that great of a grade because I found it pretty repetitive and not instructive in the end. She has a final chapter on how people should learn basic sewing techniques, buy a few higher quality items that will last longer, & familiarize themselves with their local tailors. These all seem like good ideas, but I still have no idea where to buy "good quality" clothing or how to go about recognizing "good" clothing.
I have a hard enough time finding clothing that fits me & drapes well on my body shape.
Still, I could learn how to repair ripped seams, or patch holes to make "weekend jeans," or a few things like that.
She did mention people like the blogger behind Refashionista, a woman who takes old/out-of-date clothing from resale shops & remakes them into modern/solid clothes to wear at a much cheaper price. It's a neat blog, but I'm not willing to invest that much time into it, I don't think.
As sort of a coda, I also listened to a Planet Money podcast about a family working in a clothing factory in Bangladesh.

• What are you currently reading?
Ash: The Secret History by Mary Gentle - I got this from work's library! It's the all-in-one tome, so a little too big for me to lug back & forth from work :/ I'm almost halfway through, which I think means I've read most of Carthage Ascendant. I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH?!?!


• What did you recently finish reading?
the numbness or the pain (so intense to feel) by only_because3 - Glee fic set after Finn's upcoming death (which will happen in episode 3, as Cory Monteith died), trying to explain why Quinn wouldn't attend the funeral. (It was revealed that Dianna Agron who plays her won't be in the episode/wasn't asked to be in the episode.) This is the only fic I've read so far incorporating Finn's death, & it's because it was written by an author I trust. Short, pretty good. I miss reading Glee fic, & I should read more.

Gwen Ifill book on race in politics - I ended up liking this quite a bit, although I don't have anything more to say about it than I said last week.

Basara, volumes 22-24 - I'm circling toward the end and it's pretty good?! I think I'll probably be adding this to my list of all-time favorite manga. I just hope that I can find copies of the series eventually, & buy them for myself. I assume they're all out of print -_-
The plot/etc. is dropping off a little bit for me - the intense one-on-one battles that are all happening simultaneously can be a little ugh. BUT the artwork has really stepped up its game these past few volumes. So it's a wash.

Cross Game, volumes 4 & 5 (as released in the US) - This series is picking up a little bit for me. The baseball annoys me less, mostly because those scenes go really fast! And the relationships between the various characters are becoming more interesting, especially Aoba & Kitamura. Still, I feel like this series would be much more interesting to me if Aoba were the protagonist instead of Kitamura. The occasional pantyshots continue to telegraph to me, "This story is not meant for you!"
I love the background art in this series, & also the wordless panels and pages. Scenes change by showing the readers what life in this part of the city is like, by reminding characters of Wakaba, etc. I do really like the way the manga-ka tells the story. You can definitely tell he's been doing it for a long time.


• What do you think you’ll read next?
Not sure! I'm a little stressed out at the moment, so I could see myself turning to something for comfort. But probably mostly things I've still got checked out from the library. I'll also be rereading Saga for beer_marmalade.

• What are you currently reading?
I've still been carrying around Of Love and Other Demons by Gabriel García Márquez. idk. I don't really like it? But I keep reading it? It's a thing that's been happening, I think mostly because I'm too distracted to commit to anything else.

• What did you recently finish reading?
UMM SO I STARTED READING FALL OUT BOY FIC & IT IS were_duck's FAULT.

I read this Fall Out Boy primer. THE PICTURES OF PETE WENTZ'S DOG ARE THE BEST but also everything omggggg

Also this Pete & Patrick picspam.

Cross-Country by inlovewithnight - MY FIRST BANDOM FIC. Regarding the 10-year friendship of Andy & Pete. <3 <3 <3 I always feel this huge attachment to drummers b/c they're overlooked & also b/c I played drums & still incessantly tap things.

So, So Fucked by reni_days - Pete/PStump. Pete accidentally "outs" himself and Patrick on Good Morning America. Only problem? They're not gay. What now?
UGGGHHHH SO MANY FEELINGS JFC, this is the one I capslocked about on Twitter.

(I've Loved) Everything About You That Hurts by reni_days - There are parts of Pete that will always belong to Patrick. Set when the band was on hiatus.

This Seed Burst and Grown by Sena - Nobody's in a band, but Pete and Patrick meet in the Chicago music scene, anyway. Patrick's sixteen and mostly innocent and kind of confused and Pete's older and cooler and fucked up in ways that just make Patrick like him more. (NSFW)

run for ur life & take all that u can. xo. by lalejandra - SO IN THIS ONE THEY ARE WEREWOLVES?! Also bonus were_duck cameo that made me really excited.

Document by azurejay - The one where Patrick is not a girl.
This is my hands-down favorite fic in the fandom so far. Everybody felt so real, & I spent time hating everyone but just UGH SO GOOD.
Trigger warning for attempted suicide. I ah, really would have appreciated a warning for that :(

rather fight with you by longtime_lurker - Pete/Patrick outside the van. I liked this but also felt uncomfortable the whole time BECAUSE ANDY AND JOE WERE IN THE VAN?!

Chord Change by giddygeek

Patricksitting (call it a love song) by adellyna - So Pete looks after Patrick while Patrick's parents are out of town. Underage. Unf. OMG going to look for the link, I realized this is three parts SO THERE'S MORE!! /deep cackle/

• What do you think you’ll read next?
Well, if the past two days are any indication, about a billion WisCon emails.

• What are you currently reading?
Wild Ones manga series by Kiyo Fujiwara (more below) and Glee fanfiction. It's been a weird week. I haven't been able to put my brain into "read" mode, really.

• What did you recently finish reading?
Wild Ones, volume 1, by Kiyo Fujiwara. I'm reading these thanks to the library. This series is about a 15-year-old high school girl named Sachie, whose mom has died, so she goes to live with her grandpa. Hilariously, her grandpa is the head of a yakuza gang, so Sachie's living with a house full of tough guys.
A boy her age named Rakuto lives there, & is assigned to protect Sachie. Thus far, this is a story about paternalism that makes me feel really yucky. Rakuto follows Sachie everywhere and intimidates all other men who try to talk to her/make friends with her. He repeats ad nauseum that it's his goal in life to protect her and to be "the only one by her side."
Why am I still reading it? 1) Sachie has expressed a few times that she wants people to like her for HER, & not for being the granddaughter of a member of the yakuza. 2) There have been a few flashes of total BAMF-like assertion from Sachie, where she takes control of a situation, sets her teeth, & shouts commands. LIKE A FUTURE YAKUZA BOSS?! idk. It's enough for me to flip through for now, anyway.

I still feel like I "miss" manga but mostly read crap manga lately. Maybe I need to do some rereads, or get through things on my shelves I haven't gone all the way through yet (Angel Sanctuary, Fruits Basket, etc).


Having it All (Bringing Love Together Remix) by wintercreek - Rachel/Jesse/Quinn - The old Jesse St. James would have looked around himself and wondered who would believe, when the authorized biography and the many unauthorized biographies came out, that this was his beautiful life.

It Would Take an Eternity (to Break Us) by nightshifted - AU for s4 and beyond. Kurt, Rachel, Finn, & Santana living in a loft in NYC together. I loved everyone's chapters, but especially Kurt's and Santana's because the things bothering them felt SO REAL. Spoiler that Kurt's chapter involves him actually calling out Santana for continuing to call him "Lady Hummel." Basically perfect. Santana's chapter is like my GPOYest of GPOYs ever experienced in fic ;____;

• What do you think you’ll read next?
idk. I bought A Stranger in Olondria Friday at Sofia's book launch (the author is in my book club & is awesome!). So possibly that. But the things causing my brain to not focus on books very well aren't changing soon, so it might just be more comics & fic for a while.

• What are you currently reading?
Nada. I finished IBTTRY (described below) on my bus ride home from work.

• What did you recently finish reading?
Hawkeye #8 &9: Still a knockout series.

Young Avengers #3: I think I'm going to remove this from my pull-list. It's fine, but it's definitely not good enough/entertaining enough for me to be buying it in single-issue format.

I've Been Trying to Reach You by thememoriesfire - This is the 25-chapter AU fic I've been reading for some time now. After getting pregnant & having her baby, Quinn Fabray becomes a "loser," & transfers to Carmel High School. Rachel Berry is co-captain of Vocal Adrenaline there, & also the most popular girl in school.
Quinn starts a band with Sam, Puck, Santana, and Blaine. Everyone from the show is in this fic, even Holly Holiday and Shelby and etc. Obviously, due to the AU-ness of the fic, people's personalities & defining features are changed.
I remain impressed by how well thememoriesfire can handle so many characters, so many issues PER character, how her plots are complicated & her endings are EARNED, & there are still moments of humor throughout.
As with wintercreek, it's really nice to read a fic by an author who is clearly just as in love with music as her characters are.
This is a fic I'll come back to reread over and over and over again, just like Eyes Closed to Fingers Crossed & Assured of Certain Certainties.
The plot-twist in chapter 22 was totally unexpected for me, even though it was foreshadowed a lot.
I just...OMG. Even if you're not familiar with Glee canon, I know that a lot of people in the same boat who love her stuff.
I'll be thinking about this for days. I know that her outline for the planned sequel is available on the tumfslove dropbox, so I'll probably be reading that all evening.
I've put it on my list of recommended Glee fic in the Faberry section, which is a pretty short list! Believable Faberry is hard to find, imo.

• What do you think you’ll read next?
I'm still feeling rebellious about book club obligations, so I'll likely be reading more comics & fanfiction, although maybe some shorter fics because longer ones like IBTTRY can be a little emotionally draining, ^^;;