{"@attributes":{"version":"2.0"},"channel":{"title":"The Garden of Sastra","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/","description":"The Garden of Sastra - LiveJournal.com","lastBuildDate":"Tue, 20 Oct 2015 02:31:39 GMT","generator":"LiveJournal \/ LiveJournal.com","copyright":"NOINDEX","image":{"url":"https:\/\/l-userpic.livejournal.com\/124486064\/733652","title":"The Garden of Sastra","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/","width":"100","height":"100"},"item":[{"guid":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125576.html","pubDate":"Tue, 20 Oct 2015 02:31:39 GMT","title":"EEEEEEE STAR WARS!!","author":"chaneen","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125576.html","description":"So, apparently, as decided at <\/a>wincon<\/b><\/a><\/span> over the weekend, we're going to try the whole actually-posting-on-LJ\/DW thing? A renaissance, maybe? To that end, I'm totes coming back soon with an entry about my NYCC\/Wincon vacation, but I need<\/em> to sleep, so here's the new Star Wars: The Force Awakens<\/em> trailer:



It looks AMAAAAAAAAAZING!!

This entry was originally posted at http:\/\/chaneen.dreamwidth.org\/323616.html<\/a>. Comment wherever you'd like!<\/span>","comments":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125576.html?view=comments#comments","category":["star wars","life"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125423.html","pubDate":"Sat, 10 Jan 2015 00:26:31 GMT","title":"Friday Recs: Week One","author":"chaneen","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125423.html","description":"Going to be trying a new thing! Since I have been severely remiss in rec'ing things (and adding them to my pinboard at all, shh), I'm going to try to do a weekly recs post, every Friday. This will include everything I read since the previous Friday, as well as anything else I saw during that week that I feel like sharing (so, occasionally you'll see some vids). Bonus section at the end for things I've reread, but never rec'd in a weekly post before!

Since this week's post is tiny anyway, I went back to January 1st. Recs are alphabetical by author.

MCU<\/b>

The Story of Our Life by 74days [Steve\/Bucky | PG-13 | 5,028 words]<\/b><\/a>
Single dads Steve and Bucky both take their daughters to a concert where they end up seated in the same row. Steve and Bucky's kids become immediate best friends. Oh jeeze this is too cute.

\"S'cuse me.\" She said, pointing to the seat beside him. \"Is that 56HH?\"

\"Yeah,\" Steve said, hauling his coat and the bag of crap he'd spent too much money on. \"Sorry, let me just move this.\"

\"Sorry.\" A male voice said, and Steve turned to see a dark headed man, not too much smaller than him, carrying a bag much like the one he was gripping. His full attention was on not trampling the people he had to squeeze past, and Steve was able to check him out. Not that he was checking him out, or anything. He was just\u2026 you know\u2026 looking. It wasn't even like he was looking for\u2026 he was just\u2026 damn but Hot Dad was\u2026 hot.

Not that Steve was checking him out. Because that was inappropriate. No ring on his finger though. If he was noticing that. Which he wasn't.<\/i>


nothing goes over his head by fmo [Steve\/Bucky | PG | 1,494 words]<\/b><\/a>
Bucky wakes up a little disoriented after a mission, but otherwise okay. Then Steve starts giving him weird looks, and Bucky thinks he might be missing something. Hee, this is perfect! I feel like this reaction is 100% something Bucky would do.

And Steve is right here, napping, with his head on his arm on Bucky's bed. No visible hurts to Steve's arm or his dear idiot face, Bucky notes with relief, and Steve's sleeping comfortably; the fight must have ended soon after Bucky went down, or else the shield just did its job and protected Captain America. Bucky ought to let Steve sleep, but he can't help himself\u2014it helps to hear Steve's voice, see the look in his eyes\u2014so he gives Steve's arm a nudge. Steve wakes up fast, startling like a cat and then immediately frowning in worry at Bucky.

\"I'm fine, buddy,\" Bucky says\u2014hoarsely--and squeezes Steve's fingers gently in reassurance. It's pretty much true, though; just one more nap and the super-serum will take care of the aches he's feeling now.

Steve frowns at Bucky anyway, eyes big with concern, and Bucky twines his hand with Steve's before he drops off again.<\/i>


The Amazing Adventures of Bucky Barnes by nouvellenouveau [Steve\/Bucky | PG | 11,403 words]<\/b><\/a>
Steve writes and illustrates the Amazing Adventures, a series of children's books about superheroes. When Bucky's daughter asks for a signed copy of the newest book for her birthday, Bucky ends up with more than just a great birthday present. This is adorable and sweet, with great characterization and a great Bucky POV. I love the throughline of the definitions, especially in a story about books. Really nicely-done slow build of a relationship between Bucky and Steve, and a great fusion with canon.

\"Hey Dad?\"

\"Hmm?\"

\"I've decided what I want for my ninth birthday.\"

Bucky looks at his daughter. She is sitting up in bed in her pale nightgown that Jim's wife hand-made for her last birthday with a determined pout. In moments like this she looks very much like her mother, with her bright fire hair and her green eyes and her unyielding stubbornness. Bucky adopts a serious expression to match her own.

\"And what is that?\"

\"I'd like a signed copy of the next Amazing Adventures book.\"

He is, unsurprisingly, unsurprised.

\"We'll see,\" he says instead, and they leave it at that. Both of them know what we'll see means.

we'll see (w\u0113ll\u2022s\u0113) v. -- though potentially unattainable, I will do the best I can for you and then some, because you are the bright point in my world<\/blockquote>
Nat, who speaks Bucky's language like no one else does except maybe her mom, says, \"Goodnight, Dad.\"

\"Night, sunshine,\" he says, and he turns out the lights on his way out.<\/i>


Auld Acquaintance by triedunture [Steve\/Bucky | NC-17 | 5,810 words]<\/b><\/a>
Steve is transformed back into his pre-serum state while on the hunt for the Winter Soldier on New Year's Eve. This is just lovely. Bittersweet and hopeful and hot as hell.

Steve wonders what the spell would've done had it found its rightful target. Maybe turn Bucky back into...into who he'd been before? But that's not how people work, Steve thinks. He examines his tiny, goosebumped arms. Well, nothing's working correctly today.<\/i>


Reread of the Week<\/b>

Hotel Service by Odsbodkins [Steve\/Bucky | NC-17 | 5,477 words]<\/b><\/a>
Steve is a businessman and Bucky is the desk clerk at the hotel he always stays at when he's in New York. This is so great. Flirty and bantery with some hot hot sex and nicely developing feelings between the two of them.

He takes any excuse to go to New York, attending meetings in person that he could easily video conference. He tells everyone that it's because he grew up there, and he's found he misses the place. He doesn't tell anyone that he's got the stupidest crush he's had since he was a teenager.<\/i><\/a>","comments":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125423.html?view=comments#comments","category":["recs. fic recs","steve\/bucky","friday recs","mcu"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125026.html","pubDate":"Wed, 31 Dec 2014 19:18:06 GMT","title":"Yuletide Recs, Part II","author":"chaneen","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125026.html","description":"Yuletide recs part two! I haven't gotten a chance to read everything I downloaded (or gotten through the last few letters of the alphabet, but this will be my last batch before reveals. More to come this weekend! Again, here's my Yuletide 2014 tag on pinboard<\/strong><\/a>, so you can see anything new as it's added.

These are alphabetical order by fandom, then title. Author names will be added after reveals.

A-Babies vs X-Babies<\/strong>

Bucky Bear and Pizza Dog (Together, They Fight Crime) [Gen | PG | 1,146 words] <\/strong><\/a>
What if Bucky Bear was a robotic teddy bear designed by Stark Industries? When Bucky Bear gets separated from Steve, he'll have to go up against the Tracksuit Mafia before he can find his way back. He finds some help from an unexpectedly furry source. This is so cute I cannot even.
Attempting to evade dog.

Situation: In mouth of dog. Attempting to move. No movement to extricate from jaws is possible.
No power for deterrent.

Analysis: Being held in dog\u2019s jaws with care, therefore being carried somewhere intentionally.
Analysis: Good dog gives likelihood of good owner.
Analysis: Possibility that being carried somewhere where a person will attempt to make contact with Steve\u2019s mother.

Remain immobile. If dog\u2019s owner does not contact Steve\u2019s mother, then wait for opportunity to escape. <\/em><\/blockquote>

The Breakfast Club<\/strong>

been down that road before [Gen | PG-13 | 4,838 words]<\/strong><\/a>
Brian attends his 25 year high school reunion, and runs into some old friends. I just loved this. I loved all of the comparisons between being in the gym for prom vs being there for the reunion, and just the backstory of how Brian got from high school to now. But my favorite thing is the small moments between Brian and Claire and Brian and John and how you can tell that, unlike the acquaintances Brian can barely do small talk with, those relationships are real despite years apart. Just wonderful.
\"She didn't even graduate with us,\" one griped. \"She was in <\/em>Night School.\"

He turned to see where they were looking and found an unmistakable head of red hair.

\"Excuse me,\" he said, but Charlie Novak had already trapped someone else into his dissection of the Bears' offensive line, so Brian just walked over to tap Claire on the shoulder.

Claire looked back at him for a moment, blank and vaguely confused, but then she looked down at his nametag and her eyes went wide. She covered her gasp with her hands, and then flung her arms out to hug him, all before Brian recovered from that first uneasy swoop of having been forgotten. \"Oh my God, look at you!\" she cooed. It wasn't far off from how everyone else had reacted to him, but something about how Claire said it reminded him of his favorite aunt. <\/em><\/blockquote>

Big Bri's House [Bender\/Brian | PG-13 | 2,410 words] <\/strong><\/a>
They don't all magically become BFFs after that weekend, but some things do change for the better. In which Brian gets an after school job, some friends, and starts hanging out with John Bender. Funny, with great character voices.
\"I'm here to get you out of the house.\"

\"Why would I want to get out of the house? It's really chilly out, if you haven't noticed. Also, I have to work tomorrow.\" The room was freezing, and Brian noticed his window was cracked halfway open. So that explained how Bender had appeared out of nowhere.

\"Because it's...Friday night?\"

\"I have to work tomorrow,\" Brian repeated, but he wasn't due in until 9:30 to open and Bender was standing there making simultaneous masturbatory motions with both hands and Brian knew his argument was weak. He checked his watch. \"It's eleven-thirty. My parents aren't going to let me leave now. Maybe if I'd gone out earlier...\"

\"Your parents won't know, because we're gonna go out this window,\" Bender explained patiently, shoving a thumb over his shoulder at the curtains fluttering in the breeze. \"You live in the basement and you never sneak out of the house?\"

\"I sneak out,\" Brian protested.

\"Get a coat,\" Bender said, flipping hair out of his eyes. \"Come on.\"

\"I sneak out constantly,\" Brian muttered, pulling the new suede jacket Allison had talked him into out of his closet. But he listened to Bender's whispered instructions about walking on the bark and not the rocks when they get over the threshold, because actually, no, he'd never sneaked out. <\/em><\/blockquote>

Push<\/strong>

birds of paradise [Nick\/Cassie | R | 9,347 words] <\/strong><\/a>
Set several years after the events of the film, after Nick and Cassie go on the run together, after he leaves and gets taken by Division. He may have broken her heart but she'll always rescue him. Great use of flashbacks and non-linear timeline to show us their lives after the end of the film. Achy and hopeful in the best ways.
(\"They catch me when I'm twenty-six,\" Cassie tells him one night after she's ducked under his covers, huddled into the small space he makes for her on his bed. She's still shaking a bit, though he tries to calm it with his hands. \"I think it's the second time. They've started branding us.\")

Cassie has her own room, but she ends up sleeping in his more often than not; they've gotten used to shared space, and there's something about waking up to see Cassie that eases the panic he has naturally come to have when waking.

Nick's also gotten used to her warmth and her breath in a way that he actively chooses to ignore because the idea of what's growing between them has begun to scare the shit out of him. She'll always be the girl with terrible hair choices who had too much bravado for a thirteen year old, but there's moments that summer when she's sitting in her striped bikini on their small, broken deck playing sudoku where he forgets that she's not his, that she shouldn't be sleeping in his bed and living in his heart this way.

That the way he's been looking at and feeling about her is <\/em>dangerous.<\/blockquote>

Red Dwarf<\/strong>

Alternate Universe [Lister\/Rimmer | PG-13 | 1,745 words] <\/strong><\/a>
Five AU tropes they never did on Red Dwarf and one they sort of did. All of these are hilarious and perfect, but I think I like the soulmates ones the best.
\"Kryten, he's my smegging soulmate, all right? He doesn't know it, or he pretends he doesn't, but I know it. Of course we're smegging saving his life.\"

Lister groaned at the look on Kryten's immobile face. \"I know. I know! What does it say about me that my pre-destined perfect match is some pissy bureaucratic coward who'd sell out his own country for a promotion and throw in his grandmother for a pat on the back?\"

\"Actually, sir,\" said Kryten, \"I was wondering what it says about <\/em>him.\"<\/em><\/blockquote><\/a>

[Crossposted to tumblr<\/a>.]","comments":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/125026.html?view=comments#comments","category":["recs","yuletide","yuletide 2014"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/124907.html","pubDate":"Tue, 30 Dec 2014 05:36:20 GMT","title":"Yuletide 2014 Recs, Part I","author":"chaneen","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/124907.html","description":"First batch of Yuletide recs! I'm frankly shocked that I managed recs, let alone before reveals. I'm hoping to get through at least the majority of the rest of the stuff I put on my kindle to read and have another batch out on Wednesday. We'll see how that goes, though. Here's my Yuletide 2014 tag on pinboard<\/b><\/a>, so you can see anything new as it's added.

These are alphabetical order by fandom, then title. Author names will be added after reveals.

13 Going On 30<\/b>

So Ahead of Yourself [Matt\/Jenna | PG-13 | 4,534 words]<\/b><\/a>
Five parties Matt and Jenna ditched over the course of their relationship. A great look at Jenna, and her relationship with Matt from age 13, past the end of the film. I love that their time apart allows us to see the two of them as individuals, not just as parts of a relationship. Just lovely.

\"It was really dumb,\" he began. \"We were so close, and I had this idea, that, that because we were so committed -\"

\"It's okay,\" she interrupted, too embarrassed to let him finish. \"I know I was a little \u2013 clingy. Back then.\"

\"No, no, no, I mean, yeah, a little, but I thought you were gonna do such great things, and I was just gonna \u2013 you know, hold you back.\" He squinted off into the distance. \"I mean, I meant what I said about us making sure of what we wanted before jumping into things, but it was also my inferiority complex talking. Which was stupid, because who really knows the future. Where we'd be today. I'm sorry, I guess is what I'm trying to say.\"

She reached over to grasp his arm and squeeze reassuringly. \"It's okay. It turned out okay.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

21 Jump Street<\/b>

21 Spa Street [Jenko\/Schmidt | NC-17 | 7,697 words]<\/b><\/a>
Schmidt and Jenko go undercover in a day spa to bust up a drug ring. Hilarious and full of the hallmarks of the films without being cliche. Really nicely done.

There was a religious print on the wall in the employee break room. \"Oh, cool!\" Schmidt said. \"I missed Korean Jesus!\"

Jenko laughed. \"Korean Jesus rocked.\"

\"Vietnamese Jesus is so much less approachable,\" Schmidt complained. \"He's, like, more formal or something.\"

\"It's the swag,\" Jenko said wisely.<\/i><\/blockquote>
Another Round Of Shots [Jenko\/Schmidt | NC-17 | 3,234 words]<\/b><\/a>
A game of Truth or Dare somehow leads to Schmidt sucking Jenko's dick. This is hot and hilarious and totally in character. So great!

\"Do we really need that much beer for just the three of us?\"

And stupid, blond Zook actually and seriously ruffles Schmidt's hair, like he's some sort of kid--and considering how much older he is than Zook, Schmidt feels really annoyed about that--and says, \"What's the matter, can't keep up?\"

And so naturally, Schmidt immediately sets about trying to give himself alcohol poisoning.

The game of Truth or Dare is just a very logical continuation of the evening's events, really.<\/i><\/blockquote>

A-Babies VS. X-Babies<\/b>

When There's Someone By My Side to Sing Along [Gen | PG | 1,870 words]<\/b><\/a>
Steve takes Bucky Bear to school. Bucky Bear is nervous at first, but he makes some new friends. This is adorable and fits perfectly into this universe, and the references to 616 canon events, translated into this verse, fill my heart with joy.

\"But Steve loves me,\" Bucky Bear replied softly.

\"Sure,\" Private Bear agreed, \"He loves you, but he's still a kid. And kids aren't always careful with their toys.\"

\"Yeah, after all, you were stolen by that Summers boy, Bucky,\" Sergeant Bear chimed in, joining the others around Bucky Bear. \"Steve couldn't protect you from what happened. He got you back safe and sound, but anything could have happened to you while the X-Kids held you hostage. Just promise us you'll be careful, Bucky Bear.\"

\"We don't mean to frighten you,\" General Bear said gently, \"We just want you to come back in one piece. You're one of us, Bucky Bear. And that means something.\"

\"Yes, Sir,\" Bucky agreed. \"I'll be careful, I promise.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

The Bourne Legacy<\/b>

Transitional [Aaron\/Marta | PG-13 | 2,420 words]<\/b><\/a>
Aaron and Marta get lost for a while. A really lovely post-movie fic, with some great insight into the characters, especially Marta, and how Aaron sees her.

This time last year Marta was using drugs and reagents and chemicals that cost a thousand dollars a milligram with barely a thought. Now she doesn't even have reliable access to penicillin.

Aaron strokes her back and comforts her and doesn't judge her for the person she used to be, or how hard it's hitting her that she doesn't have those resources anymore. He knows what it's like to have the tools you need to survive taken from you.<\/i><\/blockquote>

The Breakfast Club<\/b>

The World Starts at Sunrise [Gen | PG-13 | 7,576 words]<\/b><\/a>
When Bender's ride out of Shermer and back to his life in Portland falls through, he looks up Allison. They end up taking a road trip together. This is really fantastic. The initial stilted conversations and silences between Bender and Allison feel so true to what it's like to be with friend you didn't know well after a long time apart, and I love how that slowly develops into something more real, and how they eventually learn how to be open with one another.

\"But you didn't answer my question, what were you doing over here. I didn't think you even lived in Shermer anymore.\"

\"I don't. I had to come back for... for something. I'm heading back to Seattle as soon as I can. I just need to rustle up a ride. That's what I was doing tonight. Meeting with a dude who was looking for a ride share.\"

\"Yeah? You ever done those before? I always wondered.\"

\"A few times. This time was a bust. Dude didn't even show up. Or maybe he did, took one look at me and bailed.\"

Allison looked at him. \"Yeah. Probably.\" But she was smiling.

John had forgotten how easy it was with her. They had been friends once, for a while. He couldn't remember why they stopped. It wasn't because they didn't like each other, didn't have things in common. It was just how things went. You made friends that you saw in a certain place for a certain time and when those places change and the time is up, you move on and people fade. Everyone does. He could count on one hand the people he still talked to from high school.<\/i><\/blockquote>

Captain America RPF<\/b>

Stealing Lightning [Chris\/Sebastian | NC-17 | 3,264 words]<\/b><\/a>
With a couple of days off from shooting Captain America 3, Chris and Sebastian go back to Sebastian's hotel room to hang out, and one thing leads to another. Great character voices, funny, and hot as hell.

\"The internet tells me that you are lined up to star in a pretentious period piece with the lovely Ben Whishaw,\" Sebastian said, scrolling through his news feeds. \"And that you're in talks to star in a romance with Jessica Biel.\"

\"Nope and nope,\" Chris said. \"Anything in there about how no one has offered me a job in months?\"

\"Too boring. If there's no news, people make shit up.\"

\"Aw, sometimes they get things right. The internet knew I was doing Captain America before I had persuaded myself to say yes.\"

\"Yeah, well, parts of the internet also think you're a deviant multiple goatfucker-\"

\"Ugh, I would never fuck more than one goat at a time, why does no one respect my need for monogamy?\"

\"-- who should step aside and let Mackie take over as Captain America.\"

Chris shrugged. \"If the suit fits that fine, fine body,\" he said. Sebastian thought about Anthony's broad shoulders, and then he grinned, and Chris grinned back.<\/i><\/blockquote>

Celebrity RPF<\/b>

Winner Takes All [Gen (Ben Affleck\/Matt Damon) | PG-13 | 3,804 words]<\/b><\/a>
Matt and Ben play gay chicken with the media. This is hilarious and bantery and basically perfect. I love their friendship a whole lot.

\"Bienvenido,\" Ben says grandly, handing over a mug brimming with spiked eggnog. \"Feliz navidad. Joyeux, er... Christmas. Mele kalikimaka. And so on and so forth.\"

\"That's very inclusive of you, thanks,\" Matt says, straightening out his antlers for him. \"Am I late? Did I miss the carols 'round the piano?\"

\"There is no piano this year. Sold it and rented Moby for the night. He's doing techno Christmas covers, hope you're okay with that.\"

\"Yeah, of course, what's Christmas Eve without a few beatboxing wisemen?\" Matt takes a sip of the eggnog and makes a face. It's mostly just rum. \"And the paparazzi?\"

\"Nowhere on the premises,\" Ben says, and holds up his pinky like he's making a promise. \"I sent them to Kimmel's house instead.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

Daria<\/b>

SickSadWorld.com [Gen | PG | 1,244 words]<\/b><\/a>
In 2001, Daria and Jane learn Sick Sad World is going off the air. A great little coda to the series that follows Daria and Jane to college, and beyond.

\"What's going on? Did Bush do something stupid and unconstitutional?\"

\"What? No, Sick Sad World is going off the air in January!\"

Sitting up and rubbing her face, Daria felt seriously conflicted. On the one hand, given that the US had just experienced a jarring blow to its collective unconscious, losing one's cool over a TV show's cancellation was way out of proportion.

On the other hand, it was Sick Sad World.<\/i><\/blockquote>

Dracula\/Spiders Georg Meme<\/b>

We Shall Never Lack the Means of Life [Gen | PG |1,844 words]<\/b><\/a>
Renfield travels to Germany to seek out a man who is said to consume thousands of arachnids each day for sustenance. This is Dracula crossed over with the Spiders Georg meme and it is amazing<\/i>.

\"Might I beg your company, that you will come into my cave and dine with me? Never before have I met another who shares my appreciation for <\/i>Arachnida as sustenance. I am, you see, something of, how do you say? \u2014The term in <\/i>Hochdeutsch would be <\/i>ein Sonderfall.\"

\"An outlier,\" Renfield translated.

\"Yes,\" said Georg; \"an outlier.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

Gone Home<\/b>

Southbound [Sam\/Lonnie | PG-13 | 1,569 words]<\/b><\/a>
Sam and Lonnie, after. A perfect coda to the events of the game, with wonderful character voices (the Sam POV feels just like one of her diary entries), and a beginning to the happiness that Sam and Lonnie deserve. Just lovely.

You know how sometimes when you're standing somewhere really high up, like a bridge or the top of a cliff, you get a feeling like <\/i>I wonder what would happen if I jumped? Not a bad feeling -- a feeling like, <\/i>wow, that would be wild? And even though you know you wouldn't really do it, you can picture yourself climbing over the safety railing? And it feels like if you jumped, you'd fly?

I'm in the car with Lonnie, and we're heading south on I-5. We've just hit the California border. And I feel like I'm flying.<\/i><\/blockquote>

Good Will Hunting<\/b>

The Wildest Dreams of Wild Men [Will\/Chuckie | R | 7,604 words]<\/b><\/a>
Two years later, Will comes back from California, and though he's changed, Southie is basically the same. This is absolutely what would happen after the film. All of the character voices are so spot on (I could hear them saying this dialogue!), and everything about this reads as inevitable and exactly right. If you've seen this movie, you owe it to yourself to read this. Highly recommended.

[Note:<\/b> I read it on the plane trip back from my parents' house, and literally the first thing I did when I had internet access afterwards (at the rail stop at the airport, even!) was comment on this and tell the author how amazing it was. Then I went home and watched the movie. Seriously, don't miss this one.]

\"What the fuck are you doing here?\" Chuckie says, not moving from the doorway, more curious than rude, but still pretty fucking rude, too. That's Chuckie, anyway.

\"Christmas caroling,\" Will says, deadpan. \"What's your favorite? I'll try to do it justice.\"

\"What the fuck are you doing here?\" Chuckie repeats, dragging his hand through his hair like that'll fully wake him up. Like Will will up and disappear when his eyes adjust to the light.

\"You look like a Rudolph guy. Am I right, are you a Rudolph guy?\"

\"Jesus Christ, get in here,\" Chuckie says, and steps aside to let him through. Will pulls the door shut behind him, glad for the blast of warmth, glad Chuckie's mom is still apparently paying the heating bill. The place hasn't changed much, but then, besides the shadow of scruff on his chin, Chuckie hasn't changed much either.<\/i><\/blockquote>

How to Get Away With Murder<\/b>

Don't Stop, Make It Pop [Asher\/Connor | NC-17 | 3,837 words]<\/b><\/a>
Connor and Asher go undercover in a gay club to get some info for Annalise's latest case. A great use of this trope, with a perfect Asher voice (so, just as smarmy and annoying as he is on the show). Really fun and funny.

\"I'm ten times better than either of those dorks,\" Asher said. \"I'll prove it. I'll be a better gay than even you. And you're an actual gay!\"

Connor laughed dismissively. \"Calling yourself a gay makes me doubt that.\"

\"Oh yeah?\" Asher challenged. \"Well, put your money where your mouth is.\"

Now Connor looked interested. \"How much?\"

Asher shrugged. He wasn't good at guessing how much money poor people bet on things. \"A thousand bucks?\" he tried.

\"A thousand\u2013 wait, you know what? I'm so confident that this is easy money that I'll take that bet. A thousand dollars that says you're going to fail so hard at this assignment that I'll literally be laughing all the way to the bank.\"

\"Your mom's laughing all the way to the bank,\" Asher said, but he stuck out his hand.

They shook on it, and then Asher turned to go back inside. Freezing his ass off out here seemed counterproductive. Had to keep it all warmed up for later, right?<\/i><\/blockquote>
Time Bring Back to Time [Connor\/Oliver | PG-13 | 4,879 words]<\/b><\/a>
When Oliver is in an accident, Connor pretends to be his boyfriend so he can get in to see him at the hospital. When Oliver has trouble remembering recent events (including who the hell Connor is in the first place) because of the accident, Connor keeps pretending. This strikes the exact right balance between sweetness and angst in their relationship, and is pretty much exactly what I wanted when I read this summary. (Also, amnesia fic, which I am a sucker for, every time!)

Dr. Ramirez frowns and examines the bump on Oliver's head and makes noises about memory loss not being uncommon after a head trauma, and Oliver's obviously barely listening to him. His eyes are still on Connor and Connor is choking on his own words because Dr. Ramirez is still there and he can't tell the truth because the only reason anybody let him into the hospital in the first place is because they thought he was Oliver's boyfriend.

Besides, who tells someone with amnesia that the only person waiting for them to wake up in the hospital is their fuck buddy? Connor is an asshole and he knows it, but he still has better manners than to kick a guy while he's down.

But Oliver is still waiting and now Dr. Ramirez is glancing at Connor, noticing the silence, starting to frown as Connor takes too long to answer. There's only one choice, and Connor makes himself do it: he smiles, sits on the edge of the bed, and says, \"Well, we're sort of seeing each other.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

How to Get Away With Murder\/Gilmore Girls<\/b>

take what you need & be on your way [Gen | PG | 2,384 words]<\/b><\/a>
Bonnie Winterbottom will do whatever it takes to get what she wants. Even completely leaving behind her old life and name. Wherein Bonnie is Paris Geller, and everything about this is perfect. I especially love that even though she drops basically everything to do with her old life, including her family, she still maintains that relationship with Rory.

She paused because she didn't know how to explain it out loud. Maybe it was just a silly whim, but it felt right. Being Paris Geller had served its purpose, but the name wasn't who she was. She barely knew the two people who gave it to her, and all they ever gave her was a home and a full bank account. It was just a name, it wasn't who she was or who she wanted to be anymore.

\"It's just a thing I need to do.\"

Rory kind of frowned at her. \"You know there was never anything wrong with Paris Geller.\"

Paris smiled just slightly because it was a very Rory thing to say and it was why she was keeping Rory in her life whether she was called Bonnie or Paris or anything else. \"I know.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

The Losers\/Marvel Cinematic Universe<\/b>

Just My Type [Gen | PG | 1,485 words]<\/b><\/a>
Hilarious and perfectly in character story where Jensen and Steve swap universes, and it's discovered that they both have a type. I just want to draw hearts around all of this.

The guy's name is Jake Jensen and he's a motormouth ringer for Steve from another dimension. Hopefully the same one where Loki sent Steve.

Correction. Make that a <\/i>snarky motormouth ringer for Steve from another dimension.

And, it<\/i> was exactly what it looked like. A guy with a present for his niece's birthday. Her soccer team is the Petunias, and anytime he's in country he never misses a game. He was getting ready for her team birthday party when Loki kidnapped him.

He glomps onto Bucky as soon as Stark gives him the run of the floors where people's quarters are located, because \"You have that silent but deadly with a gun more than a mile away vibe.\" And, \"I kind of have a thing for your type.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

Original Fiction [Glittering Cloud by Imogen Heap \u2013 Song]<\/b>

A Terrible Weakness [Original Fic, Gen | PG | 1,247 words]<\/b><\/a>
A fascinating little slice of superhero urban fantasy based on Glittering Cloud by Imogen Heap. Great world building for such a small story.

\"Please tell me I didn't hurt anyone,\" Paladin says, her voice tiny even to her own ears.

Overseer turns on the television screen that is the wall opposite Paladin's bed.

Paladin is all over the news. There are BREAKING NEWS rolling texts at the bottom of screens showing her blackout at the interview and artists' impressions showing her face -- her true face and her civilian one and she looks so much better in those sketches that the human wreck she feels like -- and the debris of what used to be the studio and and and

\"Turn it off,\" Paladin says. Then, louder, \"Turn it off!\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

Political Animals<\/b>

Throw Your Dreams [Agent Clark\/TJ | R | 5,016 words]<\/b><\/a>
After TJ starts to get his life back on track, he and Agent Clark enter into a relationship. Neither of them is sure where it's going, but TJ knows he doesn't want it to stop. Ugh, this is so good. I absolutely believe that TJ needs a relationship in which the other person puts him first and takes care of his needs, and this is that in a nutshell. A wonderfully drawn, perfectly paced, slow build that I only wish were longer because I didn't want it to end.

TJ shrugs. \"Pretty sure I make things more difficult than they need to be.\"

Clark shakes his head, frowning ever so slightly. \"You're not a bad kid. You've never been a bad kid. You just wanted to be the most important thing to someone, and that wasn't how your family worked.\"

\"Selfish kid,\" TJ points out. \"I mean, I wanted to be more important than international geopolitics.\"

Gently, Clark tells him, \"All kids are selfish. It's their right.\"

The words are a balm. He's had shrinks say them before, but shrinks are supposed to say things like that. To get away from how much that makes him want to cry, he says, \"Getting a little cold out here.\"

Clark smiles, more a quirking of his lips than anything, and says, \"Keep walking.\"<\/i><\/blockquote>

Political Animals\/Marvel Cinematic Universe<\/b>

Hell of A Good Universe Next Door (Let's Go) [Steve Rogers\/TJ Hammond | NC-17 | 8,094 words]<\/b><\/a>
Really fantastic Political Animals\/MCU crossover. TJ meets Steve at a party and makes it his mission to get to know him better, but things keep getting in the way. Great characterization; TJ may look like Bucky, but he's clearly not, and Steve clearly knows that and wants him for himself. I loved this a lot.

Steve looked back, with those same haunted eyes as on the previous occasions, only now something else was mixed in with that. Like Steve had finally learned how to look at TJ instead of right through him, into something painful and far away.

\"Who do I look like?' asked TJ bluntly.

\"My best friend,\" said Steve after a long moment when only wind howled outside. \"He died in the war.\"

Well, this explained everything. TJ seriously had the worst luck ever when it came to crushing on guys. If it wasn't a wife, then it was a dead friend. That's what Nana had always said: lucky in cards, unlucky in love, you little shit. Trouble was, TJ was also crap at poker.<\/i><\/blockquote>

The Princess Bride<\/b>

Unemployed in Greenland [Gen | PG | 2,598 words]<\/b><\/a>
How Inigo and Vizzini came to acquire a giant. This is great! Witty and sharp and very much in keeping with the tone of the book and the film.

It began with a mermaid, which in Inigo's experience was true of about 85% of all stories worth telling. When they met the mermaid, Inigo and Vizzini were on their way back to Guilder after a stint of espionage in Nova Scotia, taking passage on a Viking longboat. Inigo liked the Vikings very much. They made fun of Vizzini behind his back, and they were generous with their mead.

\"Oh look,\" Inigo said, \"a mermaid!\" He pointed over the railing at a young lady bobbing in the icy northern sea about fifty feet from the ship. She waved, so Inigo waved back. His father had taught him always to be polite with new people. \"Hello, mermaid!\"

\"What have I told you about hallucinations?\" Vizzini said impatiently, not looking up from the little book he was reading, which was titled <\/i>How to Double-Cross Anybody and Get Away With It: A Definitive Guide to Consequence-Free Treachery.

\"That they are not real,\" Inigo agreed. \"However, I am barely even a little bit drunk, so I think perhaps I am really seeing a mermaid.\"<\/i><\/blockquote><\/a>","comments":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/124907.html?view=comments#comments","category":["recs","yuletide","yuletide 2014"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/124663.html","pubDate":"Mon, 01 Dec 2014 21:13:35 GMT","title":"Wincon 2015 - Help Us Have Our 10th Anniversary Con!","author":"chaneen","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/124663.html","description":"I have been severely slacking in updating LJ at all this year; sorry guys! I check my flist every couple of days, so I've been reading all of your entries (and commenting sometimes? we all know how terrible I am at comments), but most of my fandoming has been taking place on twitter<\/strong><\/a> and tumblr<\/strong><\/a> this year, and I haven't usually had the energy to write lengthy entries about what's going on with me. If you're on twitter and\/or tumblr, you should come say 'hi!', though, for sure. Especially if you had as many feelings about Captain America: The Winter Soldier<\/em> as I did, because I am always up for flailing ridiculously about Bucky Barnes. :D

I am here for an actual reason, though! Which is basically to beg you for your help. \/o\\



As many of you know, I go to <\/a>wincon<\/b><\/a><\/span> every year. It's my favorite time of year because I get to see and hang out with people I know from the internet, and meet new people who I will then go on to stalk on the internet (in a totally not-creepy-at-all way, I swear)! Getting to talk fannish things in person is seriously the most amazing thing ever<\/em>, and it's why I kept going to Wincon when it was still Winchestercon, even though I wasn't in the SPN fandom anymore. (In case you didn't know, Wincon used to be a Supernatural con, but switched to multifandom in 2010, and we have had a huge variety of panels and activities in a wide variety of fandoms for the last 5 cons.)

We've typically had about ~100 attendees per year, but that size is just not sustainable for us anymore. As you know, cons are expensive<\/em>. The less people that attend, the more expensive they are. Our tickets are usually in the $100-$115 range, and so a lot of people who would probably have an amazing time don't come, because they can't afford it. And we want everyone who is interested in a fans-only fancon to come and (hopefully) have a great time!

So, for 2015, we are trying to make the con more affordable (and get even more people to come, because seriously it is the most fun and even more people means even more awesomeness!), so we want to grow to 250-300 attendees. This would allow us to offer the weekend pass for $55 (or $65 if you want to attend Winprom, our Saturday night dance party). But we can't do it without you! We're running an Indiegogo campaign to raise money to finance the con for 2015, which you can check out right here<\/strong><\/a>. We're trying to raise $15,000 by January 4th, but if we don't fully fund the Indiegogo, we won't get any of the money, and we won't be having Wincon 2015. Or any other Wincon.

Basically, it boils down to this: if we can't fund Wincon through this Indiegogo, there will be no more Wincon. 2014 will have been our last con.<\/strong>

It honestly makes me want to cry just thinking about the con ending, because I've had some of the most fun in my life at Wincon over the years. I knew literally no one before my first con (LA in 2007), and I am really shy meeting people in person, but I met a lot of great people over that weekend that I still hang out with to this day. The atmosphere is so welcoming every year, and you can participate in as much or as little as you want to, which is awesome for those times when you just want to hermit, rather than having a lot of social interaction. Plus, I've gotten to visit a whole bunch of places I wouldn't normally go, since we hold the con in a different city every year. 2015 is scheduled for Pittsburgh, at a gorgeous<\/em> hotel that's right downtown and close to a bunch of cool stuff.

I could write another few thousand words about why I love Wincon so much, so feel free to ask me anything about the con if you're interested. I would love for you to check out the Indiegogo and buy a ticket for Wincon 2015, or buy one of the awesome perks we have for sale (art commissions, knitting, fancraft-y things, etc. -- more will be going up tomorrow, actually!). Or even donate a few bucks out of the goodness of your heart, to keep a long-running fan con going into its 10th Anniversary (and beyond, hopefully).

Any help that you guys would be willing to give would be much appreciated. Signal boosting online, telling your RL friends, donations, anything. I love you all and would love to meet every one of you next October. ♥♥♥

[eta:]<\/strong> I crossposted this to tumblr here<\/strong><\/a>, if you want to reblog.[\/eta]<\/strong>","comments":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/124663.html?view=comments#comments","category":["wincon","shameless begging"]},{"guid":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/123700.html","pubDate":"Mon, 05 May 2014 20:24:22 GMT","title":"MCU Timeline for the Origin of The Winter Soldier","author":"chaneen","link":"https:\/\/chaneen.livejournal.com\/123700.html","description":"I've seen a lot of posts going around about the Winter Soldier, and there is so much conflicting information about when he was created, who created him, who he worked for, etc. that I decided to build a timeline of events to work out answers to these questions. Everything has been fact checked as much as humanly possible with sources from Captain America: The First Avenger<\/em> (CATFA) and Captain America: The Winter Soldier<\/em> (CATWS), along with some RL sources regarding the timeline for WWII. Hopefully some of you will find this useful.

Needless to say, this post contains massive spoilers for CATWS.

First, I'm going to talk about my theories about the creation of the Winter Soldier in the MCU, and debunk some of the stuff I've seen going around, like the persistent theory that Arnim Zola created the Winter Soldier. The actual timeline is at the end of this post.

Please keep in mind that a lot of this is conjecture, but I've backed that up with facts as much as possible. The timeline itself only contains information that can be backed up by canon.


After the Fall: Bucky Becomes the Winter Soldier and Zola joins S.H.I.E.L.D.<\/u><\/strong><\/font>
In the last third of CATFA, Bucky falls from the train and is presumed dead. Zola is taken into SSR custody and questioned by Colonel Phillips. He reveals Schmidt's plan of total destruction, which is to go into effect in two days. Steve et. al. confront Schmidt and stop his dastardly schemes, and then Steve crashes Schmidt's plane into the ice. I could talk for thousands of words about Steve's mindset after losing his best friend and only family, and how heartbreaking it is that he barely lasts a week after Bucky's death before going to his own, but that's another post entirely. This one is about the Winter Soldier.

In the comics, the Russians find Bucky's body. His dead body. They manage to revive his corpse (by attempting to revive him as though he had just died, cause that<\/em> would totally work), albeit with no memory of who he used to be. Then, they use their technology to make him into the perfect operative, giving him fluency in languages, weapons training, any other skill sets or information that he will need to complete his next mission.

The MCU is telling a different story, though. Based on the Soldier's flashbacks (which I will dissect below), you could make the argument that whatever Zola did to him after the 107th was captured at Azzano kept him alive after his fall, albeit probably barely alive (or mostly dead, if you prefer). He was found by someone, experimented on, and turned into their perfect operative. You can make a strong case for him being found by the Russians (we'll get to that).

He strongly associates Zola with his transformation into the Winter Soldier (or at least with the experimentation done on him by his new masters), so at the very least, we can say he was definitely experimented on after Azzano. Whether it was something that resulted in him surviving the fall, or just the same type of torture he endured at the hands of the people who made him into the Soldier, we don't know for sure.

I don't believe that the \"Sergeant Barnes...the procedure has already started\" voiceover in the flashback was from the period immediately after he was found by whoever-it-was that found him. Zola was simply not available to do any experiments on anyone for at least six months after Bucky's death.

[As a side note, despite the date of death in the Smithsonian exhibit, I have to fanwank it as being in 1945, since Steve dies in '45, and there is no way that the events between Bucky's fall and Steve's plane crash are longer than a week's worth of time. Either it's 1945, or that was the worst Christmas\/New Years ever<\/em>].

To quote the wikipedia article on Operation Paperclip<\/a>:

Operation Paperclip was the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) program used to recruit the scientists of Nazi Germany for employment by the United States in the aftermath of World War II. It was conducted by the Joint Intelligence Objectives Agency (JIOA), and in the context of the burgeoning Cold War. One purpose of Operation Paperclip was to deny German scientific expertise and knowledge to the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, as well as inhibiting post-war Germany from redeveloping its military research capabilities.

Although the JIOA's recruitment of German scientists began after the Allied victory in Europe on May 8, 1945, U.S. President Harry Truman did not formally order the execution of Operation Paperclip until August 1945.<\/em><\/blockquote>Presumably, the Operation Paperclip in the MCU had a similar timeline. Until we hear otherwise, I'm going to take the leap and say it's the same timeline. So, Zola was captured by the SSR at some point in early 1945, and recruited to the newly-formed S.H.I.E.L.D. sometime between May and September of 1945, being kept as a POW until then. We don't know anything about what his activities were during his time with S.H.I.E.L.D., other than that he began planting the seeds of HYDRA right away. It is unlikely that they allowed him to go off on his own to do anything, let alone meet with shady people in other countries who were in possession of technology that would lead to the Winter Soldier's creation.<\/a>


The Winter Soldier's Flashback and Creation<\/u><\/strong><\/font>
First, a breakdown of the scenes in the flashback: