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Yeah, I think I'm just going to spam you all with other people's awesome fic this week, as that's how I'm procrastinating on my own submissions. Cool? Cool.

Doctor Who:
The Kleptomaniac Time Traveller's Club, by netgirl_y2k [Romana, Christina, G]
“A quick word of advice, if you ever find yourself travelling the universe with a kleptomaniac keep a close eye on any valuables.”

There's nothing in that header that is not fantastic, am I right? This is so much fun, and as I said to netgirl_y2k, a spin-off I totally want to watch.

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A couple of things from lgbtfest:

Harry Potter:
Live Every Day, by mindabbles. [Alice/various, R]
There are all kinds of families. She knows that better than most. Sometimes it is love that ties them together, and sometimes it's comfort or needing each other. Sometimes it's music and stories shared around a fire.

I want to say all sorts of intelligent things about this story, but I haven't quite found the words yet. It's gorgeous, and a brilliant example of something that's completely canon-compliant but doesn't fit the standard backstory we assign these characters.

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Leverage:
The Epiphany Job, by shrift. [Alec/Eliot, PG-13]
"When he rolled out of bed that afternoon, heated up some Philly Steak & Cheese Hot Pockets for breakfast, and then went to the office, Alec Hardison was not expecting to experience a paradigm shift."

The characterisation in this makes me wriggle with glee. \o/

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You know, I'm pretty sure I had no intention whatsoever of getting into another fandom. I mean, I watched Leverage and loved it and everything, but the fic just had to go and be amazing, didn't it? Sigh. My life, so hard. *g*

(On that note - guys, seriously, watch Leverage. It's about hot thieves who steal things for Great Justice and it has teeeeam and multi-shipping and I am so in love with Parker and Eliot and Alec I can't even tell you.)

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Moar Leverage recs:

Faint Heart Never Won Fair Lady, by hackthis. [Parker/Maggie, Alec/Eliot, PG-13]
"I called her on her cell phone and said I thought her hair was shiny, and she smelled nice, and did she want to have dinner sometime?"

Working Without a Net, by facetofcathy. [Alec/Eliot, Adult]
When they're not off on a job, Eliot and Parker drop by a lot, and by some secret code or psychic connection or the alignment of the stars, usually at about the same time.

The Way to a Man's Heart, by merle_p. [Alec/Eliot, R]
(or: Five times Eliot Spencer cooked for Alec Hardison)

Courtship, by with_a_kay [Alec/Parker, PG]
He brings her flowers. No boy has ever brought her flowers before.

It's All So Clear to Me Now, by fools_game. [Alec/Eliot, Nate/Sophie, PG]
Parker sees more than some people think.

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I need a Leverage icon.

sambethe has my undying gratitude for bringing this GEM of a fic to my attention. It is the story of my heart, my dreams, my soul! It's fall-over-laughing funny! Omg yes.

It’s Not A Déjà-vu, It’s The Time Warp by pforte
Merlin/Torchwood/Harry Potter ; Merlin/Arthur, Jack/Ianto, Remus/Sirius ; R

"We’re secondary characters in a children’s fantasy series. Remus doesn’t like the name but we’re calling this little group PISSA. Means Popular and Ill-treated Slash Ships Anonymous."

"A self-help group for the unluckily slashed," Remus added helpfully.

If you're a fan of any of the three ships featured here, you'll love this. If you're a fan/familiar with all three, it's like hitting the Jackpot of Awesome. pforte nails it - the fanon cliches, the ridiculousness, the way all three ships are exactly the same when it comes to badfic, and the whole thing is so wry and well-done and comedy gold. Merlin gets possessed by a self-insert! Sirius is made to kiss girls! Jack's tired of re-enacting bad gay porn! Ahahahaha, pforte wins everything, the end.

I am looking at the final episodes of SGA. They are looking at me. I am not sure who will win. I am contemplating just watching Vegas now. I am contemplating just watching the finale now. I am contemplating speeding through all four of them this evening. Oh, show, what am I to do with you? Well, hopefully sit down and really write some fic about it at some point. ... which would sort of require me being caught up on all the canon first. Right then.

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They are spreading like a disease around the internet at the moment, and I must ask, what is with the horrible, horrible Eleventh Doctor manips? (Well, that's a question for the ages: what is with horribly-done manipulated photography, at all, ever.) I say this with no bias against particular ships or anything, because sweet lord they are not limited to one ship, more is the pity. Personally I am not the greatest fan of manips in general, but hey, I'm often impressed with how well they're done and in those instances they do me the kindness of not burning my eyes. (Petty complaint is petty.)

Anyway, you know the times really are changing when there's an Eleventh Doctor section on Teaspoon, gosh. 'But wait!' I hear you say. 'How can there be Eleven fic? There can't be good Eleven fic, surely? How would you even write it?' And mostly I would be inclined to agree. But the last question is answered if you are paperclipbitch, and you write No Straight And Narrow, and then you win the internet. Thus, rec!

No Straight And Narrow by paperclipbitch
Eleven; Donna, Lucy, Sarah Jane, Martha, Jack ; PG ; 5000 words
The Doctor isn’t entirely sure who he is, but he does know who he was.

This wins both for the author's take on what Eleven might be like (to which my response is YES PLZ Moffat are you listening?) and also for his interactions with old acquaintances, which are thoughtful, apt, funny, and often a little heartbreaking.

So, um, yes. Despite my very best intentions I ended up writing Merlin finale!fic last night. Oh dear. But dipping into a new fandom is always fun, and I shall answer comments soon!

(I know I keep promising it, but really, promo post coming soon. I actually don't have time to screencap and so on right now.)

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Onto content that is not (entirely) Merlin related! I'm constructing a vid playlist for when I go home, because it is traditional that I inflict a few fanvids on my dad every time I go back. Playing vids to people is one of my favourite things to do, when they're sufficiently geeky in a non-fandom way that I think they'd appreciate them. But it's really an art form, and my selections for offline friends has always been a bit hit and miss.

( wow, this got long )

The list as it now stands:

To Touch The Face Of God by destina (fandom: space!)

I have no idea why I haven't shown him this already. It's gorgeous and incredibly easy to watch, and a must-see for anyone interested in space, which we both certainly are.

Meet the Doctor by humansrsuperior (fandom: Doctor Who)

Well this is just adorable. It's short and fun and I always love what humansrsuperior does with sound and dialogue.

Shine by humansrsuperior (fandom: Doctor Who)

To my embarrassment, my dad is a big fan of Take That's comeback stuff. (I mean, I quite like it, but really now.) And this is the sort of vid that actively invites you to appreciate the clips in their original context as it pulls out all sorts of moments from the programme.

OMG! by obsessive24 (fandom: Doctor Who)

Ahahaha, okay, I only found this vid quite recently and it is so, so hilarious and the editing is incredible! You can't possibly like the programme and not love this, I swear.

Destiny Calling by charmax (multfandom: superheroes)

We watch a lot of superhero films, my dad and I, and dude. This vid has The Incredibles. Instant win!

Run For Your Life by hollywoodgrrl (fandom: Ashes To Ashes)

hollywoodgrrl strikes again with the mash-up and fantastic editing to match!

-- I did say this post wasn't going to be entirely Merlin-free, didn't I? And lo and behold, my parents have been watching the programme. Needless to say I am pleased by this turn of events!

Beverly Hills by giandujakiss (fandom: Merlin)

This is the perfect introduction to the show, and it's breezy and witty and lots and lots of fun. Beverly Hills! That's where Merlin wants to be! :D

Red by obsessive24 (fandom: Merlin)

a;lsdkja, this just got posted this morning and IT'S AMAZING. Beautifully put together, and my dad's a big Elbow fan, I think he'll get a kick out of this.

And then, as he'll no doubt ask, I'll dig out a vid or two of mine as well. I was on holiday with the family when I made 'Love Is All You Need', and he got quite into the whole concept of editing video and how it worked. I'm not sure if he'll really get 'The Book Of Love' or 'Tristan' otherwise I'd probably show him those, but I do think that he'll like 'Butterflies and Hurricanes' and it's a good demonstration of the fact my editing abilities have progressed since I started, hurrah!

-- Happy, happy birthday to snegurochka_lee for yesterday, elvenkitty for today and nk_aeode for tomorrow! ♥ ♥ ♥ I hope you all celebrate wonderfully.

-- I forgot to mention before, I'm reccing on calufrax all this week, a great community that highlights Whoniverse stories hosted on Teaspooon.

-- I'm working on too many things with not enough time, what else is new, and I do wish I could just sit down and take something right the way through the end as opposed to continually tacking small bits onto about half a dozen projects.

-- Said flitting around probably explains why more SGA fic decided to write itself last night:

The Twilight & The Peace
Stargate: Atlantis ; John/Rodney ; 1100 words ; a snippet of the far future for mcsmooch
"You're a sentimental old fool, you do know that?"

I LOVE THIS ICON SO MUCH. Thank you, jhava, who also has STILL MOAR con photos over this way. :D

Oh, and while I'm here I might as well: copperbadge has done it again!

Not What You're Thinking, by sam_storyteller
PG-13, Jack/Ianto, Gwen, Tosh
Gwen can't help but ask. Ianto can't quite resist telling.

This is possibly the most plausible hide-and-seek explanation fic I've seen. Also with bonus stopwatches! And it made me howl with laughter too, so.

Also, he has started a new serial - The Theory Of Two Centres - which I am very excited about. May the blessings be bountiful on him and all those other prolific and talented souls.

Posted In September:

Late Bloom
Harry Potter ; Remus/Sirius ; PG-13 ; 10,000 words ; AU
Sirius, the dutiful eldest son of the mighty Black family, has almost entirely lost his own hopes and dreams. An unexpected meeting with a long-forgotten friend might just change everything.

I Heard A Whisper (The Way I Might Have Been)
Torchwood (& Doctor Who) ; Jack/Ianto ; PG-13 ; 10,000 words ; spoilers through 'Journey's End'
The whole world's in danger, if Ianto's to believe the bloke who's showed up claiming to be his time-travelling parallel universe boyfriend. It's the start of a funny old week.

The Alien-Fighters' Social Club
Torchwood/Stargate: Atlantis ; Team Torchwood & Team Sheppard ; PG-13 ; 2500 words
Sheppard and his team were to stay based with Torchwood Three until such a time as the Daedalus was in orbit. A chance to improve inter-organisational relations, apparently.

The Light In My Eyes Is Strange
Doctor Who ; Rose, Jack ; PG ; 1000 words ; 'Journey's End' missing scene
Rose knows the answer and it makes it hard to ask. "What have I done to you?"

Tristan, a Jack vid

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I didn't get as many things finished off this month as I would have liked, which leaves me with a lot to attempt to rattle off before I am engulfed by NaNo. Top of the list are the sequel to 'Late Bloom' and the Ianto inna TARDIS (working title) story for cherryfeather.

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And now, some recs. Because I always get excited when I find interesting or unusual Torchwood fic. (One of these days, when I've decided I definitely have the time, I want to look into starting up a sort of Torchwood version of quibbler_report.)

Call Me On Your Wedding Day, We'll Grow Flowers In The Morgue, by paperclipbitch
Torchwood, PG-13, Owen/Katie, Ianto/Lisa, Katie/Lisa
“We’re aftershocks.”

This is so perfectly Torchwood - odd, morbid, a little unsettling, and just very tragic. In which Owen and Ianto are left behind, and Jack is distant, and Katie and Lisa are just... elsewhere.


The Five Greatest Deaths of Jack Harkness' Life (Sort Of), by shadowsaine
Torchwood, PG-13, Jack/Ianto, Jack/others
Jack has done this dozens of times, every one different, every one the same. Except this time.

In which Jack tells stories. It's Jack/Ianto as a framing device, but really this is about Jack, his life and his many, many deaths, from the absurd to the heroic. It's also desperately sad by the end, you have been warned.


Flowers For His Mother, by happi_feet
Torchwood, G, Jack
"A stranger rolls into a small town on the Boeshane peninsula, and while his clothing and accent are strange he knows things most offworlders don't know, like how to perform the intricate tea ritual and all the old songs..."

In which Jack goes home. The writing of this is beautiful.


The Sins Of Adam, part one and part two, by neadods
Doctor Who, PG-13, Nine, Jack, Rose
So - what would the Doctor make of having Captain Jack running around his TARDIS, especially so soon after what happened with Adam in The Long Game?

The Doctor is perfect in this -- Nine! I miss you! -- and it's exactly the kind of thing glossed over by canon but perfect for fanfic. It's clever and funny and says an awful lot about the developing dynamic of the original OT3. neadods has got me pretty much convinced this must have happened.

Warm and very belated birthday wishes to the folks I've missed recently: happy birthday, oddsbobs, ponkie, ladylai, fauxkaren, mindabbles, la_onza, out_there, _emeraldgreen and snorkackcatcher! I hope all of you had wonderful days. ♥ ♥ ♥

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Rec! My story at dw_cross has been posted, and it is fantastic.

No Such Gorram Thing, by anonymous at dw_cross, PG-13, Doctor Who/Firefly.

In which the crew of Serenity variously encounter a strange man with a blue box. Funny, ingenious, and sometimes not a little gut-wrenching, this is a perfect meshing of two canons with bang-on insights into the characters from both shows.

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The masterlist for Round Two of the rs_games is up! Authors stay anonymous until the 21st, and I know I have some catch-up reading to do before then. I really want to talk about my story, actually. *sits on hands*

HBP delayed until summer '09, oh noes! I'm not really invested in the films per se, but they're a lot of fun through the visor of fandom, and something to get HP fandom buzzing a little post-series. Mind you, having it in the summer is no bad thing in my book - plenty of time for multiple viewings and inappropriate amusement. (Ah, the OotP film, in the Summer of Potter, watching it on the IMAX screen with bruadar and laughing way too much at Aberforth and the goats, good times.)

Speaking of HP, I just found a whole bunch of ficbits written for hogwarts_elite contests, some of which are probably worth posting. I should get on that.

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I'm very excited about the Torchwood radio play, now confirmed for broadcast on September 10th as Radio 4's Afternoon Play (hahahaha what will the Radio 4 crowd make of it?). Written by Joseph Lidster, previously seen writing 'A Day In The Death', and perhaps more importantly, a writer for Big Finish, I am hopeful this will be good! The link also provides information on how to listen to it if you're outside the UK.

The title of the miniseries they're doing next year has also been announced: 'Children of Earth', whatever that might mean. So there really is going to be a five-part honest to goodness plot, what show am I watching again? *g* I'm really interested to see what it's like with the new format, yet simultaneously sadfacing about British telly's continued aversion to lengthy shows. *sigh* It's a long time to 2010!

And lastly, I am so pleased the Who vid lovefest that I posted yesterday seems to be spreading the warm fuzzies out a little. This was the aim! I love my show and its immense amount of hugging.

And lo, the Doctor Who post-finale creative explosion! Marvellous. A couple of recs below the spoiler cut, plus a brief chat on why I'm reading some types of stories much more readily than others.

( 4x13 spoilers! )

And thus a half-year of delightful Whoverse goodness comes to an end. *sadface* But! There is something to keep me occupied! Adventures in the Big Gay Multiverse Space Opera can continue apace what with SGA coming back on air tonight, so that's something. It does amuse me how you have Torchwood, which is actually really gay, Doctor Who, which is also pretty gay, and then Atlantis, which is incredibly gay by accident. And I have new evidence for this! For those playing along at home, the premier for Season Five has been touted via a lot of very bad, no good photo-shopped publicity shots, but this latest one, seen via sheafrotherdon, has found a new level of unintentional hilarity.

( seriously, who makes this stuff? no spoilers. )

Whee, I'm having a blast at Remix. So much shiny and win! More batches of links forthcoming, but here's three really fabulous Doctor Who stories I've read so far.

Hello, Doctor (My Old Friend Remix)
PG-13; ensemble cast
Remix of shaggydogstail's Hello, Doctor
The Doctor's view of the prank calls.

The original is terribly amusing, and this is fantastic as well as the Doctor calls around old friends and acquaintances trying to get to the bottom of whoever keeps prank calling him. Very nicely done.

Going Home (The Return of Return to Gallifrey Remix)
PG; The Doctor, others
Remix of nopejr's Return
I bring life, Rose says and Jack last gasps in reverse and far away, too far away for the imagination to encompass, Gallifrey coalesces in the darkness. The Doctor, racked by regeneration, mistakes the change for part of his own.

This is very cool, with paradoxes and Time Lords and plottiness, oh my!

The Boy Who Killed Time (The Last Love Song Remix)
PG; The Doctor, Martha, others
Remix of netgirl_y2k's The Boy Who Killed Time
There are ghosts in the TARDIS, and music in the corridors.

This is amazing. I'm not sure I can really do justice to it, but it's haunting and extremely well told. The Doctor and Martha travel around the universe while things begin to unravel around them.