Title: Rare Gifts, Chapter 8
Author: sharklady35
Word Count: 3,638
Rating: G
Characters: Jack Sparrow, James Norrington, the usual OFCs
Disclaimer: 'Pirates of the Caribbean' belongs to Disney
Summary: Jack, James, Mare and Lysee prepare to spend Christmas in a special locale. How many surprises are lurking around the place?

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5063338/8/

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ICanHasCheezburger/~3/cyPNS_pAamU/

http://icanhascheezburger.com/?p=219885

[Characters]: Ichimaru Gin, Hisagi Shuuhei, Kira Izuru and Tousen Kaname.
[Pairings]: Shuuhei/Kira; background Gin/Kira
[Summary]: The return of the traitor captains stirs emotions.
[Word Count]: ~1200 words
[Warnings]:  Angst
[Rating]: PG
 

Chapter 08

I need to take another reading break and finish writing something if I want to post it before the end of the year. Which I really, really do. But reading is so much easier! :/ Well, anyway, reading has prevailed over writing this week. Ah, well. :) I've got a few of the longer smutty_claus stories bookmarked, but here are some one-shots I've loved so far.

Throwdown by Anon (Harry/Tonks, NC-17: Tonks-lives!AU, 5K)
Voldemort had been a piece of cake compared to fighting a pretty girl.

PAIRING WIN! I was just talking to a friend about how we slashers love to keep canonically dead women dead and resurrect the men (which I do all the time myself, so no judgement there), but it's lovely to see the reverse for a change. Tonks survived the war, and several years later, she's Harry's physical combat instructor in Auror training. Winning set-up before I even tell you another word, right? :D They are each wonderfully characterised, and I especially love Harry's narrative voice as he tries to talk himself out of a raging crush on this 30-something family friend, mother of his godson, training superior, and overall super hot, fit, awesomesauce woman.

Ride the Drafts in Empty Bedrooms by Anon (Snape/Narcissa, NC-17, canon character death, implied infidelity, 3K)
Severus is well aware that some of his housemates tend to turn to the liquid comfort of Firewhisky and gin after being so totally rejected; it is now his turn to turn to the sweet assurances of liquid luck.

This is one of the only Snape het ships I can handle, and when it's done well, I really like it. I mean, HI, Unbreakable Vow, anyone? a;lksjf. This short fic does a nice job of switching between a school-age timeline and an HBP-era timeline, and I really like how the author characterises both Snape and Narcissa and develops the chemistry between them. I also really like the style of writing here; I can't really explain what's different about it, but it has a nice, fresh feel, with some well-placed parenthetical asides and streamed-in dialogue and oh, IDEK what I'm talking about. It works, though. :)

A Little Sideways by Anon (Cedric/Luna, NC-17: Cedric-lives!AU, 9K)
Cedric was never as dead as everyone thought. All he needed was one person to see him.

This one had me at the summary. :) It's a lovely, romantic tale about a boy who died and might have become a ghost (or might have come back, except no one can see him but Muggles), and a girl he used to know a little bit who spots him one day and slowly brings him back to life. Sort of. It's a universe only a character like Luna could make work, and the way it unfolds is nothing short of beautiful. I also decided it's part-meta on minor characters like these in general in fic: all it takes is for someone to 'see' them. ;)

Upon the Midnight Clear by Anon (Draco/Hermione, NC-17, 4K)
Years after the war, things have changed. Hermione meets Draco at a Christmas party and goes home with him to make a little music.

This might be a horrible, back-handed sort of compliment to give, but it took me a few tries to get into this one. First of all, unless you're one of maybe two authors I can name off the top of my head who excel ridiculously at it, I probably won't be on board for your first-person narration right off the bat. Second, I, ah, had some trouble with Hermione in the first few paragraphs. BUT! But! I was intrigued enough to keep reading, and by the time Draco enters the scene, I was completely hooked. A bitter, broken-hearted Hermione is actually pretty kick-ass by the time she loops her arm into Draco's at a Christmas party and starts chatting him up just to make a philandering Ron jealous. I was rooting for her the whole way. Draco, meanwhile, is quiet, charming, and there is a passage about his relationship with his son that melted me into a puddle of goo. It's a great set-up and has a lovely follow-through. If you're wary of first-person the way I am, I recommend plunging in and letting yourself sink into the POV. It's really nicely done.

Crumple-Horned Snorkacks (Fic):
• rancid_bean wrote as near as snow. Regulus buries his mother. (Regulus/Sirius, PG)
• Anonymous at hp_yule_balls wrote If music be the food of love, play on. There are only two people that know what split up the band. As they prepare for their Memorial Reunion concert, the two remember. (Orsino Thruston/Gideon Crumb [members of "The Weird Sisters"], R)
• fated_addiction wrote a wise man and his hand. we never remember the smaller stories of growing up. (James/Lily, PG)
• Anonymous at snapelyholidays wrote Through the Years. It takes years, but eventually Kingsley teaches Severus about the important things in life. (Severus/Kingsley, R)

Blibbering Humdingers (Art):
• Anonymous at daily_deviant drew Taste (Charlie/Kingsley, NC-17)
• katelinmr drew Christmas elf!Harry and Christmas elf!Scorpius (WS)
• Anonymous at smutty_claus drew Midnight Affair (Ginny/Blaise, R)
• of_paper_hearts drew Narcissa (WS)

Thestrals (Challenges, Communities, and Discussion):
• hp_toujours posted a mod apology.
• snegurochka_lee in hp_unfaithful posted a round-up of infidelity fics from anon fests.
• twoseekers is calling for banner submissions.
• Today's featured community is hp_girlslash!

Report:
If you have a link for us, feel free to e-mail us at quibbler.report@gmail.com or leave a comment to this post.

Hurrah!! So my camelotsolstice gift fic was posted earlier this week, and I didn't even realise because my flist-checking regularity has been simply atrocious lately, and BOTH the mods had to go and poke me towards it. xD

Oops.

However! It was a lovely read, once I got round to reading it. Solid characterisation, with a slow-build plot that takes the boys on an emotional journey that is multi-layered and fraught with angst for them both. It's magic reveal, which I am a HUGE fan of, and I think the author has dealt well with Merlin and Arthur's spectrum of feelings and attitudes. Also, a GREAT supporting cast, particularly Morgana. :D

And just so you know, there is a delightfully satisfying happy ending. :D

Go read! I hope you all enjoy. ^_^

Into Temptation (Merlin/Arthur, NC-17)

It's almost Christmas, as hard as that is to believe, and so here's my year-end fiction post, aka that stuff wot I wrote in 2009. There's not as much as last year, proving it's exactly as I thought all along: my life isn't calming down, it's just getting busier. :D


( Click here for the list! I tried to keep the excerpts PG-rated. I DID! )

And that's it! To all the people who read and commented, my profound thanks. Even a word or two means the world to me. To my betas, you have my endless love and devotion. *hearts*

Thank you for a fabulous year, and Happy Holidays to you all!

Fandom: The Chronicles of Narnia
Characters: Lucy
Rating: G

( Queen Lucy )

Pink's 25 Days of Sketches

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ICanHasCheezburger/~3/nFZUyeNjJs8/

http://icanhascheezburger.com/?p=220048

 Title: Under the Mistletoe – Home for Christmas
Pairings: Severus/Harry
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: AU after OoTP, mpreg, excessive fluff?!
Summary: Severus is late back from a potions conference. Will he make it back to spend Christmas with Harry and their son as well as receive Harry’s very special Christmas present?
Authors Note: Christmas giftfic for irockmysock  
Disclaimer: I don’t own any of the characters of Harry Potter – they all belong to J.K. Rowling. I just play with them and promise to return them in their original condition.


Under The Mistletoe - Home For Christmas