LINKDING

Summary: <blockquote>The gang finds out that everyone has kissed Lan Wangji except for Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian has a meltdown about it and then fixes the problem as quickly and thoroughly as he possibly can.</blockquote> ➤ modern AU wangxian fic wherein wwx finds out that lwj has kissed all of their friends except him ➤ obviously he immediately goes insane about this ➤ I'm very charmed that this is a "mutual pining" trope fic wherein the two of them never doubt for even a moment that they are each other's most important person ➤ the writing is extremely funny. such good comedy bits overlapping with the genuine emotions in ways that make both parts better! ➤ 31k words in length

Summary: <blockquote>With the Immortal Alliance Conference looming ever closer, Binghe finds his Shizun acting strangely, intent on telling him a series of tales with some lessons hidden within that he struggles to interpret. Tales of heroes doomed to an ill fate, of enchanted silence, of love, of kind demons, and demonic realms. The only thing Binghe is sure of is that his Shizun is secretly pleading for understanding and help. And he hopes maybe also… true love?</blockquote> ➤ an au where sqq does his best to communicate to lbh prior to the Immortal Alliance Conference, despite having his words held back by the system; so he tells a series of meaningful stories and hopes lbh will draw the right conclusions ➤ the fic is from lbh's pov and I love how earnestly and carefully he tries to put together the clues sqq is giving him! the CONCLUSIONS he draws!! ➤ I screamed internally with delight at multiple points while reading the fic. it's such a delightful read! ➤ 32k words in length

<blockquote>I'm gonna be honest, I haven't actually seen 'Free Guy'. This was mostly inspired by the trailer, so familiarity with the film is definitely not required.</blockquote> ➤ the immersive virtual reality video game one where luo binghe is a surprisingly engaging npc part two: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17041973/chapters/87835618 part three: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17041973/chapters/108442480

<blockquote>Alternatively the 'Game of Thrones' AU? Wherein Shen Jiu is the bastard son of the lauded Shen family.</blockquote> ➤ part 2 at https://archiveofourown.org/works/17041973/chapters/108442984

<blockquote>In the end, the decision was easy. "I've come to tell you I have accepted a position at Yiling University." Qingheng-jun's attention drifted back to his phone. "Not very prestigious is it?” "I am taking the professorship. I am also taking the boys." After the death of their mother, Lan Qiren removes his nephews from Cloud Recesses to Yiling.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Jingyan falls in love with Xiao Shu in the spring. Hopefully he'll get his man by winter. A "Marquis Xie's Chiyan-Meiling Plot Fails" AU. (The working summary of this travesty was "Xiao Shu channels Art of War to get Xia Jiang. Jingyan channels Art of War to get Xiao Shu", but a more accurate summary would be "Xiao Shu channels Art of War to get both Xia Jiang and Jingyan, and Jingyan has no brains".)</blockquote> ➤ canon divergence au where the chiyan plot fails, and wow this vision of what a young and unembittered Lin Shu is like is incredible

<blockquote>"Pop some bread in the toaster for me?” Wei Ying asks. Lan Zhan has one, a chrome thing with dials and buttons. A pause. “This isn’t a relationship,” Lan Zhan says. Wei Ying blinks. It’s such an incongruous thing to say. At first his brain says, that must be code. It’s almost like listening to two spies talk in a drama. The handler would say something like ‘the duck swims at midnight,’ and the spy would say, ‘purple is the loveliest colour’ and they’d both nod to each other and know that the prime minister was about to be assassinated, or something. That’s all he can think of, at first. Because of course this isn’t a relationship? This was a fun night. So Lan Zhan must be saying this for a reason. There’s some response he’s supposed to make now, but he’s lost the script if he ever had it. “Okay…” he says. Then it clicks. Lan Zhan means: you should leave. / Maybe Wei Ying shouldn't have hooked up with his hot neighbour two days into his exchange semester, but everyone makes choices in life.</blockquote> ➤ I loved the way the friendships and family were integrated into this fic, and the beef been jyl & lxc over their brothers was perfect and beautiful, and the way wwx got hung up on toast as a metaphor is perfectly integrated

<blockquote>Seven Necessities. Seven Tenths Full. What makes a meal, and what makes a family.</blockquote> ➤ A story told through encounters with food. Suffused with deep feelings, both the pleasure and the pain and the longing (both for what cannot be and for what, in the end, can be). It's beautiful.

<blockquote>So there was this jar, and it had so much peanut butter still in it, and when his fox nose scented it and didn’t catch any poison or spoilage, what was he supposed to do? Not avail himself of this gift? No. He shoved his delicate little snout right in there and got to licking, but, you know… Elegantly. Definitely not snarfing and making horrible little fox sounds and rolling around on the ground while he went ham on the jar. Sure, he had to work a little bit to get at the last of it, but anything good is worth working for, right? So finally, triumphant, no longer starving, and maybe a little thirsty now from eating half a cup of peanut butter in about two minutes, he’d tried to remove his head from the jar. Operative word tried. Or: Wei Ying gets stuck. Lan Zhan helps.</blockquote>

<blockquote>"Ah! I know!" Wei Ying pointed at the pretty young master. "If I agree to help you in the fight against Wen Ruohan, then you have to give me your firstborn child." The young man's eyes grew wide. For a moment, he seemed wholly taken aback. Then his expression hardened and he nodded. "I cannot create life by myself. If the Yiling Patriarch wishes to claim my child, he must first help me conceive." (In which the "terrifying" Yiling Patriarch strikes a bargain, and winds up in over his head.)</blockquote>

<blockquote>Wen Qing kills Wen Ruohan right after Lotus Pier burns. Five years later, Yunmeng Jiang offers an alliance to Sect Leader Wen, contingent upon marriage to a suitable disciple. Luo Qingyang, despite her better judgment, agrees to be that disciple.</blockquote>

<blockquote>In which Lan Qiren and Jin Guangshao are conspicuously terrible, Lan Wangji decides to fake-date Wei Wuxian about it, and literally no braincells are consulted.</blockquote>

<blockquote>“We're fleeing Radch space. Of course we’re fleeing Radch space, I refused an order and you...” She paused. Then, very clearly and feelingly, she said, “Fuck.” Sometimes the path of justice and beneficence is clear. Sometimes you have to make your own.</blockquote> ➤ (tag: "imagine if the dumbest and most lovestruck segment of One Esk ran away with Awn and had a picnic")

<blockquote>After John's ignominious departure from the Air Force he rents a beach cottage in Oregon, a quiet place to work on his PTSD and figure out what's next in his life. But after he finds a journal left by the previous occupant, John develops an irrational connection to Rodney McKay. When Rodney shows up on his doorstep after having been missing for two years and dealing with his own trauma, can they co-exist at the cottage?</blockquote>

<blockquote>In which Laurent runs away from Arles, hides out in Vask, encounters some goats, tries to regain his throne, and is wooed by the prince of Akielos, not precisely in that order.</blockquote>

<blockquote>"No, see, we've all been trained a certain way. The training system is traditional; it's centuries old. Nobody taught you. You ballist like it's got nothing to do with war at all." A sleepy, extraordinary smile crawls over Victor's face. "Nobody else does it like that. That's why we're going to win."</blockquote> ➤ I don't know if it quite works for me as a YoI fic, but as an origfic it's GREAT, I adore the worldbuilding, I would read more set in this world! (and in fact can and have, the sequel is Gravity, ft. arranged marriage for Otabek and Yuri P.!)

<blockquote>In a world where a certain submarine never arrives, Burt Gurney and Hobie Doyle play a cat-and-mouse game.</blockquote> ➤ charming

<blockquote>After seven years training as Qui-Gon's Padawan, Anakin finally has questions that his Master can't answer. A specialist in force-user initiation and the erotic mysteries might be just what Anakin needs--but Kenobi is almost too good at his job.</blockquote> ➤ I appreciate this fic's dedication towards Anakin making exactly the kinds of TERRIBLE choices Anakin would make given the situation

<blockquote>Obi-Wan didn't become Qui-Gon Jinn's apprentice, and Ben didn't exile himself to Tatooine. On Bandomeer the two meet.</blockquote> ➤ marked as a wip and hasn't updated in a year, but it feels like a good ending place to me so it doesn't read like a wip. ➤ This fic is a lovely look at how being part of the Agricorps instead of the Jedi Order can actually be a /good/ thing

<blockquote>It's bad luck to have a dragon aboard a ship, and this tiny black creature can't be natural at all. Slowed by a gale and bad-luck, the Reliant mutinies and puts Laurence and Temeraire alone on the Amitié. The journey back to England is difficult, and on the way Laurence accidentally finds himself leading a small fleet of fighting ships. As one does.</blockquote> ➤ I have no idea how plausible any of this is but oh my god I AM SO DELIGHTED ➤ Sequel: The Battle of Dover

<blockquote>Obi-Wan dies, wakes up and decides to live a whole different life.</blockquote> ➤ Really enjoyed this variation on the theme (the standard theme of Obi-Wan traveling back in time to attempt to fix everything). ➤ But all the super long fic I've been reading has spoiled me, and this fic feels like it ends far too soon.

<blockquote>Directed-verse Gen Kill. Because conversations with surexit result in things like this.</blockquote>

<blockquote>As a /supervillain /supercriminal contract worker with a morality deficit, Clint Barton leads a glamorous life. You know, stolen cars, dangerous women, a really confusing relationship with a meddling do-gooder, the works. It's pretty awesome. Except for, uh, medical bills, the mob, and being on the run all the time. That part isn't all that awesome. (A supervillain AU where Clint shoots arrows at people and gets beat up a lot. So, not really that much of an AU.)</blockquote>

<blockquote>When Marius Pontmercy is accused of attempted murder, it's up to Jean Valjean to prove the young man's innocence. To do so, however, he will have to confront his past as well as the man prosecuting the case, Javert.</blockquote>

<blockquote>There are certain truths that are universal, though Javert has to learn that they are not quite what he thought. And so, when Valjean stops him from jumping, he finds that his life must be built anew.</blockquote> ➤ (...I will not lie, my fave part of this fic is the subplot about Montparnasse. I just find him so interesting! The other stuff is good too though.)

<blockquote>Dr. Marcus Aquila is one of the new cardiology residents at the hospital. Esca Mac Cunoval, RN, is one of the experienced floor nurses. They do not develop a good working relationship.</blockquote>

<blockquote>War looms on the horizon as Marcus' homeland of Etruria is faced with the unreasoning demands of the Gauls, a vicious, deadly foe. Young and lonely, Marcus begins a tentative friendship -- a friendship that could become something more -- with Esca, a prince of the Gauls. But the differences of the two nations cannot be ignored, and both Marcus and Esca must choose between the needs of their peoples and the desires of their hearts.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Javert calls what he thinks is Valjean's bluff about needing three days to find the child Cosette and intercede for her. The Inspector comes along for the ride -- and gets much more than he bargained for, in the process.</blockquote> ➤ I don't believe a word of this but I enjoyed it anyways. I'm terribly afraid my entire stay in Les Mis fandom will be full of reading fics I don't agree with....

<blockquote>Jim Kirk, a man of long drives and large personality, stumbles into a career in the PGA Tour. Fame, fortune and notoriety await him as Jim collects national media attention, groupies, a new best friend, the ire of the first lady of pro golf, and also, maybe, the love of his life.</blockquote>

<blockquote>“Mum, the fact that Lydia was the first of us to end up barefoot and pregnant is honestly a source of continual surprise to me.” // As it turns out, Mary Bennet’s internal checklist to Being a Good Person—go to medical school; join Médecins Sans Frontières; save lives—is a somewhat oversimplification of matters.</blockquote> ➤ Yep, modern-AU Mary Bennet/Henry Crawford, and it is GLORIOUS.