+ Tried to be helpful with my mom's sink and borked the whole thing. Got new parts today, which the guy behind the counter picked out, and they did not fit one another :/

+ Wheel of Time is getting shiny leather editions, with new art and everything. Inside me there are two wolves, one is cheering and one is clutching a wallet while weeping.

+ Another Star Wars rec, you say? Well, there's so many movies and shows now! I'm still counting it as a win multi-fandom wise, just you try and stop me.

Rogue One
wrong place, wrong time by hellotailor (5,404 words).
How my space husbands met 😊

The man called Chirrut smiled a smile that Baze would later learn to recognize as bad news. 'Hypothetically,' he said, leaning forward. 'If someone were to suggest hijacking this vessel and getting everyone out of here, would you help to remove the guards on this patrol level?'

Baze fumbled the tie he was using to fasten his hair, snapping it against his knuckles. 'No! Do I seem crazy to you? Just sit tight for another few hours, then you can get lost in the connection point at Mataou like everyone else in this shithole.'

'That was my original plan, but this ship is no longer bound for Mataou.'

Baze looked up sharply. Chirrut's face was serene, almost amiable. Very possibly the serenity of a madman. 'What?'

Chirrut shrugged. 'We should have passed through an Imperial blockade this morning, but the engine sounds never changed. They're taking us somewhere else, probably outside the sector.'

Listening to the implacable certainty in Chirrut's tone, Baze was caught between two warring instincts: his automatic distrust of strangers spouting paranoid bullshit, and his decade-long belief in the Empire's ability to fuck him over at every available opportunity.

+ mosfilm has uploaded the entirety of Andrey Tarkovsky's filmography, I'll certainly be taking a look.

+ My birthday is Dec 24th, and I'm sorely tempted to make a birthday wish that we get the tag rec or recs to show up top on the Latest Things page on that day. Rec lists were such a wonderful tool for finding stuff!

...but then I'd have to wrangle together a themed rec list myself as well, and I'm already on the line for Rec-Cember (though technically only until the 24th, no need for daily posts during Yuletide reveals imo).

+ icons is hosting a Friending Meme.

+ Today is a fun one!

Baldur's Gate 3
Shar's Blessing Upon Ye by ushauz (11,269 words).
After Shadowheart lets her parents go to be with Selune and to truly free herself of Shar's curse, Shar decides to punish her and all her friends too by one last burst of amnesia. Thankfully this is an experienced group of adventurers who can react to new, interesting problems with logical and rational thinking. (honestly, how could I outdo that intro?)

His tongue touched the tip of a fang.

This really was a strange group, wasn’t it?

And then Blade froze, shock still, barely breathing.

“Everything okay?” Karlach asked, and Blade put a finger to his lips.

After a moment, hesitantly, he reached up and plucked the stone eyeball from his head, which wasn’t nearly as unsettling as it probably should have been. Like his fingers just dug in there and plucked it out with a pop, and He did not think this was weird in the slightest.

Blade then tossed the eye down the hall.

“Everything good?” Karlach asked.

“Yeah my eye started talking to me,” Blade said. “And I didn’t like it.”


(I still haven't finished the game, shhh don't tattle)

+ Wheel of Time has a poster! Air date will be announced this Saturday! (is the horniest of shows gonna drive thru this Moiraine/Rand thing for me? jfc they just might. the mind boggles.)

+ Wildlife Photographer of the Year's People's Choice 2024 are up. Some really cool shots!

+ European Federation of Journalists to stop posting content on X.

I followed the South Korean mess a couple of days ago on BlueSky; felt so nice to have a calm and linear timeline of events, with some solid reporting happening.

(Aaand now they've removed the time stamps on tweets. Truly unrivaled self-sabotage.)

+ 20 Astonishing Indie Games To Play Or Wishlist Immediately. I hadn't heard of most of these myself, and I tend to have my ear to the ground. I already nabbed the Write Warz demo.

+ New French Guidelines Recommend Trans Youth Care, Denounce "Wait-And-See" Approach.

+Biden bars new ‘forever chemicals’ from expedited approval . Any bit of a guard railing they can get in there.

+ Things are not boding well for this Rec-Cember either, le sigh. Today the house was crowded by not one but two sick kids. At this rate, it'll be a miracle if I don't get sick again. And then my mom with the tv blaring nearly the whole day, meaning I get no reading done. Oh well. I'll keep on until I run out ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
reminder to Self: you picked a 150k beast to read tho dumdum

Stranger Things
one of those new wave boys by glorious_spoon (2,510).
Had me at buddy roadtrip.

“That’s like two hours from now, plenty of time to nap,” Steve decides, kicking off his shoes and falling backward against the mattress. It creaks ominously beneath him, but the bedspread doesn't smell like anything worse than bleach and stale cigarettes. He shoves his hair out of his face, closes his eyes, hears Robin snort out loud. “Wake me up when it’s time to go.”

“You’re unbelievable,” Robin sighs, but it sounds amused. Possibly even fond.

Steve sticks his thumb up without opening his eyes. “I think you mean charming and generous, and oh, also, thank you, Steve, for giving me a ride at ass o’clock in the morning, something like that.”

Chronicles of Riddick Series
a constellation of dark, new stars by howlingmoonrise (10,038 words).
I love the world in this, and my what a satisfying conclusion!

He opens his eyes, only to close them again. Instinct, of course. It’s a painful thing. Usually.

Because the world is bright.

Bright, and foreign, he thinks, as he opens them again, as he pushes himself past the screaming in his head telling him to look away, that the light burns, that there will be nothing but agony in looking into anything lighter than twilight. In the planets he’s visited, the galaxies he’s run through, there have been plenty of strange sights - near-invisible fauna, gravity-defying constructions, rainfall of diamonds or glass - but the strangeness does not come from things unusual.

No. It looks familiar. Familiar, in the way of a forgotten dream, or a hallucinated vision when fever or poison hits and things are at their worst. Familiar in a way that tells him this is not a place he’s ever been in.

“Might as well get walking,” he tells himself.

So he does.

+ Presents are now wrapped and under the tree, and yesterday we got a giant gingerbread heart to hang up on the wall, decorated by my nephew. Ever so often the scent wafts over to me in the couch, and you get a face full every time you walk in and out of the living room. Ten out of ten.

+ Norway finally vetoed the sea-mining proposals - at least for the next two years - thanks to the party I vote for putting their foot down and refusing to cooperate on the budget if that didn't happen.

+ Bumblebee population increases 116 times over in 'remarkable' Scotland rewilding project.

+ Sapphic Stocking Stuffers and The Fifteenth (2024) and Final Annual Femslash Kink Meme have opened.

+ First crossover rec for the year :D

Killing Eve/Leverage
The Rose City Job by zozo (2226 words).

“Mr. Dillon, I’m Eve Polastri of MI6. This is my associate, Oksana Astankova.”

“A pleasure to meet you both, though these are grim circumstances indeed. And on that topic: this is our head of internal security, Nicholas Courtney.”

Courtney is a compact man, almost stocky, standing between Eve and Villanelle in height. He nods at them politely when his name is mentioned. His unshaven face and messy ponytail say “chill intellectual,” but the way he holds his body, keeps his eyes constantly scanning the room from behind wire-framed glasses—all of that says “ex–Special Forces.”

Next to Eve, Villanelle goes very, very still.

Nabbed from rionaleheart
TV questions: pick five TV shows you like (in no particular order) and answer the following questions. Don’t cheat!

1. Interview With The vampire
2. Wheel of Time
3. Sarah Connor Chronicles
4. Yellowjackets
5. The Mandalorian

( Me and by goldfish brain having to scroll up to see what fandom each number is for every single question. )

+ Random icon button gave me a Star Wars icon, so that's today's fic pick for #Rec-Cember!

Star Wars
when you lay me down you'll only bury bones by onespaceace (18,959 words)
AU where Mando couldn't save Grogu at the Seeing Stone (Chapter 14: The Tragedy). This grabbed me beginning to end, both the POVs and the character interactions were *chef's kiss*

Luke jerks awake with a gasp, and immediately gags.

Artoo whistles a question behind him, but he can't give a better answer than the groan behind his clenched teeth. He shuts his eyes and swallows hard a few times until he's sure he isn't about to throw up in his lap.

There isn't much recorded about Force visions anymore - at least, not anywhere that Luke has looked - but he knows that what he saw wasn't a dream. Not really. Shaking, he presses a hand to his throat, running his fingertips over the unmarked skin there, where he swears he can still feel the impossible heat of blaster fire. There's no way of knowing if what he saw has already come to pass, but there's a twisting deep in his gut that tells him they're too late. He can't tell if it's the Force reaching out to him, or simply his own fears, but the cry for help that echoed across the galaxy to him had jolted him from meditation hours ago. There is every chance the child is long gone; their Mandalorian defender long dead.

But Luke, for all his faults, has never learnt to quit while he's ahead. Until he reaches Tython, until he finds the child, there's still a hope that he can't quite abandon.

+ My nephew turned 7 yesterday. I'm still knocked ass flat from my cold, so couldn't attend, but I did do my very best at being an awesome auntie ;)
( Pardon the half-scalped Pika lol. )

+ When we were taking out the Christmas decorations, I entertained myself by giving my mom's ornaments an impromptu photo shoot. I figured I could make some Christmas icons, which reminded me why I don't make stock icons. ( hashtag I Tried part two. )

+ First new treatment for asthma attacks in 50 years.
After 28 days, respiratory symptoms of cough, wheeze, breathlessness and sputum were found to be better with benralizumab. After ninety days, there were four times fewer people in the benralizumab group that failed treatment compared to standard of care with prednisolone.

Treatment with the benralizumab injection took longer to fail, meaning fewer episodes to see a doctor or go to hospital. There was also an improvement in the quality of life for people with asthma and COPD.

+ Notre Dame Cathedral unveils its new interior 5 years after devastating fire.

+ Advent of Joy is a free calendar that gives you one small self-care or kind task to do daily.


Advent of Joy
Have fun this season by completing daily acts of kindness and self-care.


+ Why orcas wear dead salmon as 'hats' remains a mystery, scientists say.
In what may seem like a call-back to 1980s whale culture, a resident orca off the coast of Washington state was recently spotted sporting a dead salmon on its head.

The phenomenon was first documented in 1987 when whales from three separate pods were seen wearing salmon on their heads, like a human wears a hat.

I mean, that's delightfully weird!

+ Both fandomtrees and holiday_wishes are running again this year ♥ Speaking of the latter, was one wish by kingstoken that folks check out the two free Star Trek Spock/McCoy zines they've been involved with: SFW issue 1 and NSFW issue 2.

+ I'm making a second run at Rec-cember this year. Unlikely I'm getting tripped up by slow to non-existent internet, but the only room with a livable temperature at my mom's is the living room, where the TV is on constantly, making it tricky for me to read anything at all. Time will tell. I do at least have some saved up!

So, rec numero uno...

Star Trek TNG
Sail On, Sail On, O Mighty Ship of State by romanathethird (7337 words)
Like, that delightful Fall thought of throwing yourself into a giant pile of leaves and rolling around? But the leaves are democracy. That's it, that's the fic.

One further thing, Picard,” Goldacre said. “Your list of non-citizens resident on the Enterprise to be added to the electoral register – the thirty-two people you mentioned.”

“Yes, ma’am?” Picard asked.

“I noticed that Commander Data was on that list.”

Picard took a deep breath. “Commander Data may be wrongfully denied full citizenship of the Federation,” he said, “but as a sentient being ordinarily resident in Federation territory – in this instance, aboard the Enterprise – he has the right to vote. I have submitted his details for registration on that basis.”

“I’m not sure the courts would agree with that assessment,” Goldacre said.

“I have defended Commander Data’s rights in a court of law before,” Picard replied. “I am quite content to do it again if the circumstances require.”

+ Starting this off with some fic recs, and OMG this first one!!

The Duchess of Caladan by maplemood
It had been storming when she arrived on Caladan. Docking was delayed—another bad omen for Irulan to ignore—and by the time she stepped down the ramp, wrapped in a sealskin cloak doing very little to keep out the wet, her hand tucked dutifully into the crook of the Duke’s elbow, all she wanted was a bed in an empty and silent room. Irulan was lagged-out and jittery, stretched thin with antifatigue pills. Once more she’d had to rely on the old B.G. exercises to make it through.

“My many thanks.” The traditional response to the House welcome came automatically. What followed was more difficult. The words were her own, but they’d been considered and planned beforehand, and there was no point to them if this wasn’t obvious.

You must be seen to be calculating, holding plans within plans. If you are not, if the Duke and his household do not recognize you as a threat, they will turn to the larger threat behind you.

This must not happen.

Irulan swallowed. “My many thanks for your beautiful welcome. Truly. I will try—” a pause, slightly too polished; she faltered, molding it into a stammer. “—I’ll try to live up to the trust you’ve placed in me, though I know that trust is, perhaps, not freely given, and that is understandable. On my honor, I’ll do nothing to discredit yours.”

The Lady Jessica stepped forward. Like Irulan, she spoke carefully, her voice neither cold nor warm. “House Atreides freely accepts honor freely given.”

Ego-likenesses of Bene Gesserit Sisters were rarely permitted. Irulan had never seen a likeness of the Duke’s concubine, but familiarity lurked in the set of her mouth, the poised watchfulness she projected; she had the look of the sternest of Irulan’s tutors, women who’d been trained well and hard.

So hard that the woman managed to stand perfectly tall and upright, though drenching, gusting winds billowed her cloak and skirts. Irulan grew suddenly aware of the fractional slump of her own shoulders. A defensive stance, indrawn.

“And faith?” she said, straightening.

The Lady Jessica’s mouth twitched. “You’ve been briefed, and you know your history. There’s no true faith that House Atreides has yet betrayed.”

AU where Irulan is wed to Duke Leto, and the changes that follow. The repressive nature of the world, the dialogue, SO GOOD.


( As it was written: more recs this way. )


+ Dune part 2 screencaps are up at spankulert.

+ There are several books in the Dune verse, and Children of Dune - the third one - comes to a bonkers/SPOILER revelation. sabotabby has generously gathered a list of book covers and ranked them for us. Go, behold.

+ Sixteen icons H E R E.




Did I giggle and kick my feet whenever I dug up a post on Dreamwidth? Why yes, yes I did.

stonepicnicking_okapi asked me five questions. I'm running the meme here.

1. What's the best thing about Dreamwidth?
ooh that's a tough one to pick! I'll mention three features: a lack of any kind of algorithm, zero ads or selling our data, and their dedication to avoiding takedowns and censorship. I feel safe building my online home here, without the fear of the rug getting pulled out from under me suddenly or slowly, bit by bit through enshittification.

2. What song, regardless of where or how you hear it, makes you smile and/or sing along?
Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves is a safe bet, though that would probably change if I listened to the radio much at all. Just a scourge of repeat songs around here. Starships by Nicki Minaj, for entirely vid-induced reasons. Many thanks to bironic for creating a kernel of joy I just carry around with me everywhere (though The Greatest is a close second).

3. What language(s) do you speak? What language(s) do you WISH you spoke (and why)?
I speak Norwegian and English. I wish I spoke Spanish; forever cranky it wasn't offered at school and I got stuck with French. My brain doesn't get along with it at all, and that's where I stalled.

4. Do you think people make their own luck?
People do make their own luck by trying for stuff, and not accepting defeat in advance, yes. But in the end there's a lot we have no control or influence over, and it's down to the luck of the draw.

5. What's the last fannish item you purchased and/or were gifted by someone?
hmm... Do books count? *g*

I'm actually not sure. Once I sated my immediate "omg I can afford fannish stuff and I can find it??" urge, I've mostly just wished for stuff for Christmas. I think the last thing I bought was a Batman Returns Catwoman statue, being lucky enough to come across it at 40% off (basically covering the shipping costs lol).

Yeah, it's either that or the Buffy edition of Unmatched.

I was lucky enough to win tafadhali in the Women's Place vid auction, it was just posted and IS BANANAS GOOD. Stop, drop, and watch immediately.

Immaculate vibes.

I used to do big rec posts all the time... These aren't new, as I've put them up on the community one by one over time, but I wanted them here too. Starting with what has been my favorite OFMD fic so far:

Thus Have I Had Thee, as a Dream Doth Flatter (31313 words) by DaraOakwise
Chapters: 8/8
Fandom: Our Flag Means Death (TV)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Blackbeard | Edward Teach/Stede Bonnet, Black Pete/Lucius Spriggs, Oluwande Boodhari/Jim Jimenez
Characters: Stede Bonnet, Blackbeard | Edward Teach, Black Pete (Our Flag Means Death), Lucius Spriggs, Oluwande Boodhari, Wee John Feeney, Roach (Our Flag Means Death), The Swede (Our Flag Means Death), Spanish Jackie (Our Flag Means Death), Jim Jimenez, Frenchie (Our Flag Means Death), Fang (Our Flag Means Death), Buttons (Our Flag Means Death)
Additional Tags: post season one, Eventual fix it, Competent Stede Bonnet, Time skips between fluffy retirement and fighting to get back together, maybe not fluffy retirement but tender and gentle, and ending, Canon-Typical Violence, chapter 6 contains a brief depiction of sexual violence, and suicidal thoughts

“I suppose I could just chuck them over,” Wee John offered.

“That’s a lot of work for you, and makes you vulnerable, Wee John,” Stede said. “Grab a … there’s one. A dock and boarding plank,” Stede said, snagging a piece of wood off the deck. He stuffed it under a gap in the rail. “Wee John, if you could put your foot on the end nearest us to balance it out … perfect.” He patted the board. “Now, Captain Williams, if you could please just hop up there on the plank.”

“Fuck you,” Williams spat.

“Those emotions are valid, Captain Williams. It’s important to feel what you feel,” Stede said cheerfully.

“You don’t want to bottle that up,” the Swede said, nodding sagely.

“No,” Stede answered. “It’s very destructive. That said, Captain, I am going to need you to step up and then off the end of the plank. And then,” he turned slightly toward the rest of the captured crew. “We will get the rest of you off as quickly and efficiently as possible. Tallest to shortest, do you think?” At their murderous looks he waved a hand. “No, I agree, I don’t think it matters much either. Now Captain, if you please?”

“Do you think I should hold a sword in my hand?” Wee John asked. “You know, just in case he tries to come back aboard?”

“Oh, excellent idea Wee John. Top shelf brainstorming there.”

“It just came to me,” Wee John said proudly, and took the sword that Roach handed him.

OH MY HEART. The crew interaction in this! Stede leaning fully into piracy! Jackie! How Ed and Stede got back together! And oh, the time we get with them in the future. I loved this so much.
(also, I was so very ready for a fic where they fish Lucius out of the water and then don't immediately go running back to Ed? Like, he tried murdering your friend, maybe act like it *firm nod*.)
( Read more... )

That was more than I remembered making :D btw others rec stuff too, so ourflagmeansgay is a good place to be ;)

+ Just signed up for fandomgiftbasket. It closes tonight!

+ Yellowjackets fanart recs posted, and also I posted about wanting an Annihilation AU bc that would be the stufff.

+ Affiliated disneyplusshows with tv_talk, asked if the community would be open to organized re-watches. Could be a good place to tackle TSCC if so.

+ Signed up to cover episode three and four at tar_valon's Wheel of Time season one (re)watch.
Episode 1 starts July 31st, come by and join in!

(Thanks to linky for keeping me on my toes 😘)

+ I didn't go into much detail on the Observer on board this trip and his political screed, but of course a remark on how George Santos would be a great president was in there. Twitter has kindly informed me he's in federal custody, charged on a 13-count indictment, including 7 counts of wire fraud, 3 counts of money laundering, 1 count of theft of public funds, and 2 counts of making materially false statements to the House of Representatives.

I should rub this in his face, Y/Y? :DDD

+ An account named bigolas dickolas wrote a random tweet about how Amal El-Mohtar's This Is How You Lose The Time War is super good and you should buy it. Tweet took off, and I believe it's now #3 on Amazon? Amazing.

I hope she thanks bigolas dickolas in her next book without context 🙏

+ The DLC for Horizon Forbidden West is giving some VERY fine fanart, bless.

eta + Lovely to see actors out and about supporting the Writer's Strike. ✊✊✊

Not able to open yt while at work, but I can rec this one spectacular vidlet by velmorfilm. The editing is bonkers good.

laurel to the rescue though, with a whole playlist of recs.

May the 4th be with you!

And that’s it, no more buffers for me. Will Rec-cember now collapse in on itself? Tune in tomorrow to find out!

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
Rec-cember Day 11

Supernatural
laying on of hands. by outpastthemoat (4950 words). I'm doing 31 fandoms, you knew this was coming *g*
There was once a time when Castiel was so filled with the grace that he carried in the blood beneath the skin of his palms that all that was needed to heal a wound or ease a grief had been the touch of his hand.

He has healed the blind. He has stood in the middle of a market in Jerusalem and spread his hands. The devout have flocked to him, lured by the promise of miracles. The disbelieving have come to him, willing and desperate. He has touched the faces of the blind, saying, Look, now, and sightless children have opened eyes cast in faces still wet with the tears of their mothers, and they have seen.

Nora is not blind. She notices the field dressing on his arm as soon as she starts the morning shift. "What happened, Steve?" she asks. "You didn't have this on last night."

He shrugs. This injury is nothing he can explain to Nora's satisfaction. He says, "I fell." That much is true. He adds, "I landed badly." He thinks that this has proven to be true as well.

Nora comes over to where he is standing in aisle three, restocking cans of cat food. She reaches out with her hand, and Castiel stares at her with bemusement until she pauses and asks, "Can I take a look?"

He nods, and she places her hand very gently on his arm, touching the splint Dean had purchased for him at Walgreen's, the gauze that Dean had wrapped around his palm in the parking lot after walking out of the store armed with a plastic bag filled with antiseptic and bandages. She touches his unbandaged fingers, and he winces. His fingers have swollen overnight. He's finding it difficult to move them back and forth the way Dean had asked him to the night before.

+ Dad's deciding when we go home on Monday. I'm really really hoping for the 19th or 20th 🙏🙏🙏🙏 I wanna baaaake and wrap presents prettily and use my NEOM holiday oils.

+ Also, I made biscotti today for the first time! Cardamom flavored (freshly ground cardamom) and almond. People seem to like them. Maybe I'll try a gf recipe when I get home. Biscotti and a cup of tea seems such a great combo.

+ icontalking is hosting a Winter Wishlist event. Now's your time to manifest some pretty squares!

+ oh noes I'm down to one buffer rec (and it's the rec of shaaaame). But oh well. Maybe I'll manage Murderbot on Monday. Tomorrow is looking busy.

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
Rec-cember Day 10

Ancillary Justice series by Ann Leckie.
Essential Parts by venndaai (2624 words). WHELP. That's my Ancillary Justice feels resurrected on the spot. And I remember so little! Time for a reread next year *firm nod*
So diplomatic talks began, at the newly built Ghost System Station, and almost immediately broke down, once Tsur Anaander made her initial demands.

+ Becoming increasingly clear that my bank has not issued a replacement card for the one that's out of date. And now having vague memories of them pulling this shit last time too. Gonna have to make an angry phone call. Also have a package my brother's gf has to pick up for me, and I was expecting she'd have my id in hand. Doubly annoyed rn.

+ Crossposting today's rec to the_old_guard, so that's today's Community Thursday taken care of.

+ On the subject: did ya know Community is finally getting that movie? Admittedly less hyped about that now, but fingers crossed it's not terrible? 🤷🏻‍♀️ (I just kinda fell out of love when Troy left)

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
Rec-cember Day 8

The Old Guard
Until the Sky Runs Out by aeli_kindara (4778 words). Multi-POV glimpses of the Old Guard throughout time, focused on the aftermath of the movie.
Andy sat them down. “What we always do. There are slave rebellions brewing in Brazil; there’s a six-year-old emperor who might do some good someday. If he can survive his regents. This fucked-up world needs us. It’s time to stop fucking around.”

So they did. Mostly.

It still took her a while to believe her own bullshit. The better part of two hundred years. It took the aid of an enemy, and a bullet from a friend, and the faith of a girl who could have left them all behind.

Immortal or not, Nile said, you made a promise.

Grow old enough, Andy’s learned, and you just might find the war that feels like peace.

Internet still terrible. Weather still bad. No bad fishery because, hah, the weather is so bad we can’t even make the attempt atm. Day long poker tournaments going on in the mess hall. [insert grumpiness here]

Couldn’t load AO3 most of yesterday, and not this morning either. Now left with one buffer rec. at least I made it past one week? And I’ll fail due to circumstances outside my control? 🫠

People are doing the December Talking Meme, but I know I won’t be able to stick to any kind of schedule for that. But hey, you got a question? Feel free to ask in the comments.

Hmm. I miss having a mood theme.

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
Rec-cember Day 7

Steerswomen series by Rosemary Kirstein.
Nights of Yes or No by pendrecarc (4473 words). There's sadly not a whole lot of fic for the books, but this is an absolute gem.
She felt Bel at her elbow, was surprised when the Outskirter said, “You use our constellations.”

“Yours?” Rowan had discussed navigation by the stars with Kammeryn, and he'd been unfamiliar with the concept. Rowan had always thought the figures existed to make orientation easier.

“Einar’s,” Bel said. “He showed us their shapes, taught us their names. I’ve never seen them drawn before.” She touched the page, warrior’s hands gentle and sure. “The Lion, the Sisters, the Serpent, Pegasis.” Her finger paused in the northwest.

“What did you call it?” Henra asked.

“Pegasis, here.” She indicated three stars in an elongated triangle, the horse’s body. “The wings outstretched, just like the drawing.” Two stars for the tip of each wing, another for the head.

“We call it the Winged Horse. I’ve never heard that word. What does it mean?”

“It means these stars.”

“How is it spelled?”

“He didn’t write them down,” Bel said, with a show of patience that made Rowan smile.

Hooo boy is the weather bad. And today I'm cleaning bathrooms. Pray for my knees 🙏

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
Rec-cember Day 6

Venom
this ain't gonna feel like a love tap by suzukiblu (4258 words). Not really a porn person, but this is such well done alien porn. It's a journey. And the voices are fantastic.
“I really did think he was dead at first,” Eddie says. “The fire--there was so much fire.”

“I know,” Anne says. “I saw.”

“Yeah.” Eddie looks at the salad tongs he’s still holding. He hasn’t touched the salad.

“You can be honest with us, you know,” Anne says.

“I know,” Eddie lies. Venom is one thing. There’s other stuff he can never say to them. Ever.

I don’t see why not, Venom says, like he knows anything about human relationships. Look who’s talking.

Eddie ignores him. He doesn’t want to have even half of this conversation where Anne and Dan can hear it. That’s just asking for trouble. He puts salad on his plate and eats it. Venom complains about the lack of steak like they didn’t already inhale a porterhouse. Eddie eats a vengeful grape tomato.

“Are you two eating okay?” Dan asks. “I know your diet is pretty specialized.”

“You’re making us sound pregnant, man,” Eddie says. The waiter, of course, chooses this moment to appear. Eddie has become mostly invulnerable to embarrassment, at least in front of strangers, but that’s still a bit awkward.

+ Internet is aaaagonizingly slow. And considering bad weather is heading our way and looks to be sticking around at least for the next week, plus that usually means even less fish? Well. I doubt it'll be an improvement on the trip so far, where I haven't even been able to load my mail for large portions of the day. This to say: Rec-cember may not be feasible, as loading Ao3 isn't even possible during those times.
(I've been making these in the morning, and it's now almost 5 because I haven't managed earlier, ugh)

+ but hey, gwyn did mention that she's done this exact thing before; it originated on lj and went by "Thirty-One Flavours". That's cute! *tucks in back pocket*

+ On the topic of challenges, colls is doing Fannish Fifty next yeah, which looks to be a heck of a good fannish time.

What are you fannish about?
♥ Movies?
♥ Hedgehogs?
♥ Baking?
♥ Fictional characters?

Why not post about all of them this year? This is a challenge to make fifty posts about fannish things. They can be whatever kind of posts you’d like - movie reviews, fannish recs, a story about meeting a fellow fan, the time you tried to bake a cake in the shape of a spaceship… anything!
The challenge runs for a year, so a pace of one post per week would get you to the finish line with a couple of weeks to spare.

Go check it out! *casually nudges the concept of picspams and canon primers your way*

+ rarefemslashexchange has opened for signups, and elasticella is hosting Sapphic Stocking Stuffers again.

+ One episode into The English, and I am not adverse to the vibe. (also, Emily Blunt ❤️❤️❤️ you back that horse right up ❤️❤️❤️)

❄️ ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
Rec-cember Day 5

Star Wars
Coincidences by outpastthemoat (3825 words). A post-trilogy story. Han watches as Luke begins to train Leia.
There is more to this galaxy than what he can percieve, Han knows, there is more to the universe that he has managed to parse so far. He grew up on the streets of Corellia, he has heard the stories of white spectres with black eyes that follow strangers on back to their homes, of thin voices that cry near the lakeshores at night.

Corellia is a world haunted by ghosts. And Han has lived a life that makes him susceptible to being haunted.

So he is not altogether surprised to hear a familiar voice in his ear, not so very long after its owner left life behind and stepped into death like walking through a doorway.

Hello there.