Subscriptions are coming-in-2010 feature of the Archive of Our Own, so eventually I will be able to do this kind of thing automagically. However, for the nonce, I continue to hand-code recs posts, with love and care and the deep desire to get more people reading awesome fic.
Halves, by vensre. Merlin. Merlin Emrys/Arthur Pendragon. Rated teen and up, no archive warnings apply. “Arthur has what Merlin was looking for.”
“If you try to make me some kind of joke knight, or saddle me with land somehow, there are going to be consequences you won’t like.”
Arthur gave him the You Ruin All My Fun face.
This is the story where Arthur and Merlin are so in love. No, wait, that’s the entire fandom. This is the story where Arthur and Merlin get married in a small private traditional ceremony. No, really. No, really! (The Dragon is going to fall off a rock laughing when he finds out. \o/)
An Anatomy of the World, by yunitsa. Swordspoint. Alec Campion/Richard St. Vier. Rated teen and up, no archive warnings apply. “On a cold autumn night in Riverside, Richard St. Vier takes home a stray.”
“Oh, good,” the youth answered with equanimity, taking the stool beside his. “Because I am entirely out of money. Will you buy me a drink?”
I’m a little scared by how much this reads like Kushner wrote it. Lush, gorgeous sentences, with brittleness lurking just behind the punctuation. (Spoilers for Swordspoint.)
Naturalistic Observation, by perspi. House, M.D. Greg House, James Wilson, Lisa Cuddy. Rated teen and up, no archive warnings apply. “This is the story of how the head of Oncology came to occupy an office next to the Department of Diagnostics.”
“I would like to request an office transfer. As soon as possible.”
“You’ve only been in your new office two weeks,” Cuddy points out, even though she probably should have seen this coming. “After the negotiations—”
Dr. Adams raises both hands in a gesture of supplication. “No, no, see, I appreciate that you got me into one of the non-glass offices. My clients appreciate the privacy.” He finally slumps a little into the chair and says, “I just don’t think it’s possible to practice psychiatry with Dr. House as a neighbor.”
Wherein House wears leather chaps, Cuddy takes photographs, and Wilson is sneakier than she gives him credit for. (I don’t understand why these people keep underestimating each other! Just assume that nuclear war is about to break out and you should be okay, right?)
Teaching the Indie Kids to Joust Again, by Aja. Merlin RPF. Merlin Emrys/ Arthur Pendragon, Bradley James/Colin Morgan. Rated mature, no archive warnings apply. “If the Mountain will not go to the sea then the river must bring them together.”
BE IT HITHERTO KNOWN THAT PRINCE ARTHUR OF CAMELOT HAS BEEN CLIMBING HIS MANSERVANT’S BEANSTALK FOR GOING ON, LIKE, THREE HOURS, AND HAST FOUND IT TO BE NOT ALL THAT UNPLEASANT, MAYBE EVEN SOMETHING TO TRY AGAIN LATER WHEN HIS HANDS AREN’T QUITE SO CHAFED FROM ALL THE GRIPPING.
Let me put it this way: I have caught myself, more than once, looking for the .avi file of the episode laid out in this fic. No, it is not an episode tag. It, in fact, does not exist. My brain is convinced it does; that is how well this fic taps into the heart and soul of Merlin.
GO READ EVERYTHING. And leave feedback! The Archive is a little sparse for feedbacked fic at the moment!
