We Can't Rewind, We've Gone Too Far

Next year I may deliberately plan to only reread from December to February. Things are starting to feel much less like I'm fighting my way through molasses.

Recent: As well as fanfiction, The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor was very well done and exactly what it wanted to be.

Read Statistics Without Tears: An Introduction for Non-Mathematicians by Derek Rowntree, very much recommended if that's what you want, I actually wanted combinatorics. And a little more math rather than mindset.

I also read a couple chapters of Georgette Heyer's The Corinthian to check voice for the Hell of the Ball, but didn't really feel the need to keep going. I don't have any nostalgia associated with Heyer so I tend to notice her flaws more than, say, Christie's.

Current: Almost done D&D's Worlds & Realms. I suspect I would find Mordenkainen a lot more irritating if I had not first been exposed to Tasha's Cauldron of Everything. Also Jeannie Lin's novella Capturing the Silken Thief.

Started listening to Re: Carmilla, which is a really good performance. Every time I forget just how soon and how hard Le Fanu goes on the lesbianism.

Future: After Re: Carmilla finishes I will reread this lovely (dark dark dark) fic that breathedout wrote for me for Yuletide 8 years ago.

A bunch of holds on books I started in January and didn't finish are going to come in sometime in April, so we'll see if those do better without the SAD. Hopefully they'll come in before the advance polls, which I will be working.

trickortreatex fics are revealed! I got three delightful little treats. Two of them are sweet fluffy Dimension 20 fic, and the other one is ... not. All are recommended.

Advisor's Advice, Dimension 20: A Court of Fey and Flowers, 572 words: Between running their respective Courts Andhera and Binx have been busy! When they plan to meet at the next Bloom starting soon, Andhera seeks advice from Advisor.

Cheerful Contentment, Dimension 20: A Court of Fey and Flowers, 300 words: Binx works on a project and then has tea with Andhera.

Ritual, The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen, 300 words: Before the little creek was where Helen told her to stop.

ETA: Another one! Come to Me, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, 200 words: The hour is late...

Title: Giving off Sparks
Wordcount: 982 words
Fandom: Marvel Something-or-Other
Rating: T
Relationships: James “Bucky” Barnes & Clint Barton
Characters: Clint Barton, James “Bucky” Barnes
Warnings/Enticements: Alternate Universe - Vampires, Angst, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Hopeful Ending
Summary:
“Are you here to kill me?”
“You know I’m not.”
“Can’t blame a guy for hoping.”

So here’s my trickortreatex fic!

I got two gifts this year: Curd-Cutting by Fioment, which is an excellent exploration of an incident in Colin Provolone’s personal history with the Bulbian Church.

And venus febriculosa by summerstudie, which is a Carmilla fic which I also love and recommend, but it’s dark somnophilia from the rapist’s PoV, so don’t click unless you want that.

Ficlets so far for Whumptober 2021 and Comfortween Rerun. AO3 versions have generally been slightly edited.

1st: Every Claim You Stake
Wandavision, Agatha Harkness & Wanda Maximoff, warnings for lots of Wandavision spoilers and the kind of themes you’d expect if you’ve watched Wandavision. On Tumblr | On AO3

3rd: slut pride
Definitely not actually whump. Clint/Natasha/Bucky, about as E-rated as you can get in less than 60 words. On Tumblr

5th: Trading In
Now with actual whump! Clint & Natasha, pre-canon, broken nose and first aid. On Tumblr | On AO3

11th: (not) Waving
Clint/Bucky, nightmares, warnings for drowning, torture, and standard Winter Soldier backstory, but everyone’s safe now. On Tumblr | On AO3

17th: Don't Move
The Old Guard, Andy/Quynh, graphic depictions of severe injury, canon typical character death. On Tumblr | On AO3

Title: The Darkest Gates to the Abyss
Rating: T
Universe: Agent Carter
Character(s): Peggy Carter, Dottie Underwood
Summary: The Red Room changes people.
Warnings/Enticements: Kidnapping, Bondage, Lesbians, Vampires
Word Count: 100
Author's Note: Apparently there are very strict parameters on how I write Dottie/Peggy.

On AO3

Also, if you like Clint and/or Natasha you may wish to keep an eye on this thread tomorrow night.

So my Yuletide gift was The Spirit of Enquiry, and it is by breathedout, who I already knew was amazing but this further confirms it.

[incomprehensible fangirling deleted]

I wrote Les Femmes Acharnées, which is based on this painting (that’s all you need to know, that’s the canon). It is a spy AU, you will like it.

And The Adventure of the Speaking Spectre, which is Great Mouse Detective casefic, with ghosts! Well, maybe ghosts.

Which in terms of wordcount is actually the most I've ever done for Yuletide.

And I have basically been doing nothing but reading Yuletide fic and seeing family this week, so that’s been pretty good.

Okay, so my Yuletide presents were The Adventure of the Great Heart by donutsweeper and The Red-Furred League by Rosencrantz (Great Mouse Detective) and The First Goblin Market by Neshnyt_Jackalsson and Hellspawn by sweetcarolanne and Tantalus by El Staplador (Goblin Market) and yes, I got five gifts and they are all wonderful and I am ridiculously lucky.

And I wrote:

Title: From the Presence of the Sun for kitsunealyc
Author: Violsva
Fandom: Midsummer Night's Dream, Greek Mythology
Rating: M
Warnings/Enticements: Infidelity, Fairies
Word Count: 1827
Summary: They ring the world, and decide their politics and goals behind the lesser shorter lives of men, and interfere when it suits them, and laugh at rules, and make their own; and every act of theirs is known by its reflection in the lives of those they scorn and taunt and swive.

And

Title: Come Through Stone Walls for breathedout
Author: Violsva
Fandom: Carmilla (the book)
Rating: E
Warnings/Enticements: This is actually just 1800 words of slightly creepy lesbian porn
Word Count: 1806
Summary: I saw, or fancied I saw, the room and its furniture just as I had seen it last, except that it was very dark, and I saw something moving round the foot of the bed, which at first I could not accurately distinguish.

And drabbles in The Circle of Magic, Goblin Market, Pride (Steph + Joe), Othello, Pride again (Cliff), and Carmilla (the show).

And also I've been writing drabbles all month - Carmilla (Laura and LaFontaine), Carmilla (The Dean), and BBC Sherlock, but specifically verymorstan's threesome semi-AU.

Wow, that was a lot of links.