November 2021 Fanfic Recs

[forestsofpine]

Here are some of the fics I enjoyed in November:

MDZS/CQL Fanfic Recs

The End of Winter, Lan Xichen/Song Lan, 5k, teen

Courier road trips aren't Song Lan's or Lan Xichen's favorite part of their jobs at the art museum, but they both think the trips are tolerable if they go together.

That is, until a snowstorm starts while they're on the interstate.

Exposure Therapy, Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, 14k, explicit

Wei Ying clambered up from the floor, put the joint on the corner of the night stand, announced, “Exposure therapy,” and got into Lan Zhan’s bed.
*
Lan Zhan doesn't like to be touched, Wei Ying likes to touch.

苦盡甘來 | Happiness and Safety, Lan Xichen/Wen Zhuliu, 16k, explicit

Zhao Zhuliu ignores the choked sound that Lan Qiren makes behind him, and looks up at the boy, considering the question. “Your mother would want you to be happy. And to be safe.”

“And will I be, Zhao-xiansheng?”

Zhao Zhuliu smiles, a tiny laugh escaping him. “I’m no fortune-teller, Lan-gongzi. I can only promise to keep you safe. Happiness is never guaranteed.”

or, Zhao Zhuliu gets a new name, home, a husband, and happiness, but not without some hiccups along the way.

The Lost Cause, gen (with a bit of pre-relationship Xiyao), 18k, teen

AU in which Nie Huaisang and Jin Guangyao work together to take down Jin Guangshan from the beginning.

Or: the story in which Nie Huaisang just wants to paint fans and feed birds and he doesn't understand why this is so much to ask.

what builds a house, Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, 45k, teen

Two children, Meng Shi decides, cannot possibly be that much more work than one.

On the run from the Jin, Meng Shi encounters another young boy in need of love, a family and a home.

wouldn't trade you for anything, Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, 11k, explicit

There can't really be any reason Wei Ying would have to consummate his arranged marriage on the first night, right?

Right?!

These next two are both modern cultivation AUs and I added them to my Wangxian Modern With Magic fic recs post. Check it out for similar fics!

i really want to know (who are you), Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, 19k, mature

The problem with CT Wei was, lamentably, not incompetence. Incompetence was a failing no one at the Gusu Bureau of Cultivation could forgive. Had he been incompetent, he would have already been dismissed from his position. No, the problem with CT Wei was far worse: he was friendly.
***
There's a new forensic cultivator in the GBC.

Lan Wangji is unimpressed.

like a movie scene, Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, 9k, unrated (but contains explicit sex)

“Uh, I...” Wei Ying said. She looked down at the rowing machine’s handles, then back to her gym crush. “How is it supposed to -?”

Her gym crush’s lips thinned for a second. Like it was annoying to her to have to explain the shit she’d gone out of her way to say. Or like she saw right through Wei Ying and her extremely obvious effort to keep her talking.

“Hold the handles, not the cables,” Wei Ying’s gym crush said.

Wei Ying tilted her head, feeling her ponytail sweep across her arched back, and asked, “... show me?”

While exploring MDZS rarepair tags some more, I stumbled on this trio of of semi-connected Nie Mingjue-focused genderswap modern with magic AU fics and read them all in one day. 2/3 are also omegaverse with alpha female!NMJ.

From the authors' notes, my understanding is that plonk wrote "good friends" inspired by something in one of 74243's fics, then phnelt wrote "My Lights Stay Up" inspired by the past Nie Mingjue/Mo Xuanyu in "good friends", then plonk remixed "My Lights Stay Up" into "all our friends", combining it with elements of "good friends". None of the three fics are set in the same continuity, but all share elements and all are fun reads. Fandom's culture of collaborative creativity at work!

good friends, Nie Mingjue/Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian, 11k, explicit

“I could invite her over for when the game’s done,” Nie Mingjue offers.

Lan Zhan hums consideringly.

They do that sometimes. Take omegas down together.

My Lights Stay Up, Nie Mingjue/Mo Xuanyu with past NieYao, 4k, teen

She could meet Mo Xuanyu’s sister, become a person that Mo Xuanyu’s sister could remember and ask about over a video call. “That Nie Mingjue, are you still seeing her?” and Mo Xuanyu could answer. Nie Mingjue could become a part of Mo Xuanyu’s life.

all our friends, Nie Mingjue/Mo Xuanyu with past NieYao, 11k, unrated

The crowd on this trip includes Nie Mingjue’s best friend, her once-frenemy-turned-girlfriend-turned-ex-turned-ex-and-acquaintance-slash-friend-ish, and two very good sex friends, one of whom is the little sister of the aforementioned best friend and probably Nie Mingjue’s other best friend, not to mention the other friends and acquaintances trickling in and out. Even if Mo Xuanyu and Meng Yao had nothing to do with each other, it would be stupid to add another layer of complication to that by making moves on Mo Xuanyu.

Good Omens Fanfic Recs

Anthony J. Crowley, Retired Demon and Airbnb Superhost, gen, 3k, general audiences

What are you supposed to do when you've been fired from your sweet job in Hell for thwarting the schemes of Satan, you've got a swanky flat in Mayfair, and you're looking for an excuse to spend all your time in someone else's bookshop? Obviously, you turn to the dubious world of short-term vacation rentals.

The resulting Airbnb property has been variously described as "an instagram trap," "a vampire den but make it botanical," and "the weirdest bed and breakfast in the shared history of beds and breakfasting."

Happy reading!