Ten years of reccing: April 2011-March 2012
Welcome to the sixth installment of my tenth anniversary reccing posts! Follow the tag if you've missed the previous entries. And yes, I am deluded enough to fantasize that I'll finish these by the end of the month...
Lots of Daniel here, natch, and a nice amount of Jonas, too. It's getting harder and harder to avoid multiple recs of the same author.
Whom the Gods Would Destroy, by Graculus. This is a fascinating AU scenario that focuses on the sequence of two S3 episodes and gives a fabulous might-have-been.
From the original rec:
Here's a neat little AU twist on Legacy: what if Teal'c never got close enough to Daniel for the Goa'uld-killer to transfer, and Daniel ended up under Kasuf's care on Abydos instead?
Oh, if only! I always love Abydos, so for me this is just fantastic.
“Danyel is unwell?” Kasuf asked, after the formal greetings had been exchanged and they’d accepted his hospitality.
“Yes.” Kind of. He wasn’t sure how to explain. “He’s been sick for a few weeks. He sees things that aren’t there, he becomes upset…”
“His heart is disturbed.” Kasuf’s voice was calm, calmer than Jack had expected.
“His heart?”
“At the continued loss of Sha’re.” It was clearly obvious to Kasuf that it should be so, obvious enough that his tone was one of puzzlement that he should have to explain. “And he would come home now?”
“I think he should.” Jack didn’t want to explain where the subject of their conversation was now, or the reasons why he hadn’t been able to discuss his plan with Daniel, but he’d never considered the possibility that Daniel might refuse.
Kasuf nodded. “We will prepare for his return,” he said. “Danyel has been sorely missed.”
They're waiting all the same, with their flashlights and their semaphores, by Beanpot. Because SG-1 doesn't leave anyone behind if they can help it.
From the original rec:
This fic draws you in deeply, as we follow Sam and Teal'c always searching, always hoping for a glimpse of Jonas in the aftermath of Langara's fall in S10. Nobody left behind includes Jonas, too, and Sam and Teal'c never stop trying to find him -- even after the aching breaking point, and even when hope seems lost.
No matter how little you like Jonas (and I know I despise the Kelownans in general), Langara didn't deserve to be thrown away like that, and I'd like to believe that the team never stopped looking.
For a second, she had been sure it was Jonas, and now she thought that maybe - just maybe - he was out there and not among the fallen.
Elementariness, by Kellifer. Gorgeous Jack and Daniel friendship and characterization!
From the original rec:
Snapshots of a friendship: attitudes and reactions might change over the years, but the closeness and understanding between Jack and Daniel remains. Poignant and beautiful by turns, with lovely cameos from Sam and Teal'c and Janet and Cassie, and so perfectly them.
I love the way these short, sharp glimpses paint a picture of a glorious whole.
"You're not ruined. You're just a little dented."
Now is the Winter, by Vixys (rated 15 by author). This is a powerful, bleak fic, and a good look at life under the Ori... and Jonas Quinn's convictions.
From the original rec:
This story will dig at you, until you are aching together with Jonas and shivering in the cold. Hope and despair, driven determination, utilizing the knowledge he gained through SG-1 as well as the bitter remnants of Nirrti's manipulations -- this is Jonas Quinn, very bloody but definitely unbowed, struggling for freedom for his people.
This is long and satisfying and intense, and a very absorbing read.
Word spreads of a man who blazes in his disbelief, and has not been struck down.
The Circumference of Darkness, by Dani the Girl. I always enjoy Cam's outsider perspective of SG-1, when the heroes he once worshiped are suddenly human, with faults of their own.
From the original rec:
This fic, told from Mitchell's POV, offers a superb insight into Daniel, his time with the Ancients, and his reaction and advice regarding Khalek. This is the kind of characterization that slots so neatly into canon that it clicks and becomes a kind of canon of your own. Thoughtful Cam, sharp Daniel -- all good.
I can hear their voices in the dialogue, which is always a good thing!
Daniel laughs softly as they sit. "You'd think that the whole ascended descended thing would hit the limit for people being weirded out by me, but I guess not."
These Are Gold, by Izhilzha. Intelligent, thoughtful Cassie!
From the original rec:
This is a beautifully adult look at Cassie during that nebulous time between S8 and S9. A visit from Jack and Sam turns into self-examination of loss, choice, courage, and persistence. I love how Cassie knows only what she should and her own insights into the people both she and SG-1 have grown to be.
Friendship and trust and reality, all in one wonderful package.
“How come Daniel didn’t come with you guys?”
“He’s . . .uh . . . busy.” Jack flipped a hand towards the sky, which was rapidly deepening to black. A single point of light glinted; one of Sol’s planets, or maybe a satellite, Cassie thought. “Translating some writing on rocks, if you can believe it.”
“Of course he is.” Cassie glanced around and dropped her voice. “What about Teal’c?”
Jack snorted. “He’s got himself a nice, thankless job, trying to help his people figure out what to do with their new-found freedom.”
That single sentence held more than she’d thought would happen in a lifetime. Questions swarmed through her mind, all backed by memories of a proud Jaffa warrior-turned-babysitter, telling her stories about how his people would one day be free of their false gods. How? Was there a revolution? Who died? Who lived? Are the Goa’uld all dead?
She couldn’t ask, because he couldn’t answer. Not most of those questions, anyway. “That’s cool,” was all she could trust herself to say. The squeeze of his hand on her shoulder told her that Jack understood the rest.
Bead Sutra, by Magistrate. I love just about everything Magistrate writes, from full-length novels to shorter stories. I chose to feature this fabulous series, which uses a common thread to weave superb characterization and incredible understanding into a marvelous whole.
From the original rec:
Tied together by an alien string of wooden beads, Magistrate traces through reactions -- Jack flailing at Daniel's non-presence in the aftermath of Unnatural Selection, Jack and Sam trying not to talk about hurtful truths in a parking lot after Full Circle, and Sam trying to reconnect with not!Daniel (aka Arrom) during Fallen. While each of these stories is marvelously complete on their own, you will savor the richness of the underlying theme that connects all three. Wonderful stuff!
Another story was added to the series since I first made that rec, and I love every bit of this. Savor this series in depth.
He doesn't have to explain his decisions, even on days like this - and there are a surprising number of days like this. He and Daniel always seemed to find themselves on opposite sides of some gulf or other when Replicators were involved, and Jack was always shooting someone to kill or disable, or screaming through a headpiece to cut losses and let things go. It isn't just the alien elements he's willing to write off as an acceptable loss, and he wonders if Daniel ever quite realized that. Though it probably wouldn't have made a difference.
"...or it just means that you're an all-powerful higher being with way better things to be doing with your time," he mutters, and stands to leave.
At the door, before opening it, he pauses.
"It was what had to be done," he says.
He takes the handle of the door and is just turning it, pushing the door aside, when there's the soft slide of wood against metal and something hits the floor.
In Its Truest Form, by Stringertheory. A love letter to team.
From the original rec:
This fic personifies teamy goodness in all its glory, as Stringertheory treats us to various moments throughout the years when the team is there for one another.
Happy but not cloying, moving but not maudlin -- this series of snapshots is perfectly right.
Stringertheory is another author I've recced so often, it was hard to choose just one!
It was the first all-male civilization they had encountered. The leader, Hatako, seemed very open to trade and relations. He showed particular interest in Sam - far too much interest. And he wasn't the only one. The openly hungry way he stared at her made her skin crawl, but she forced herself to stare back blandly.
Soon, she found herself staring at a broad back clad in a black shirt. She blinked in confusion and tilted her gaze upwards until she saw the back of Teal'c's head. He had stepped in front of her, effectively cutting off Hatako's view. Sam sensed Daniel and the colonel step closer to her on either side, essentially surrounding her with a wall of male protection.
Their concern was sweet, and it warmed her to see them step into the line of fire, as it were. In fact, she was pleased enough about it that she never brought up the fact that she had to pull Colonel O'Neill from the mob at least once, or that she was the one who hauled Daniel through the gate during their escape.
Instead, she just smiled innocently during the debriefing and told General Hammond that the boys had saved her.
Sound, by Cyren. Jonas Quinn and Dr. MacKenzie: two characters that many people love to hate. So what happens when they're written as real people?
From the original rec:
Short, honest, and hurting, as Dr. MacKenzie helps Jonas recognize the nature of PTSD and the painful memories of the events of Meridian.
I love fics that recognize that Jonas acted as an untrained civilian in a crisis, and not out of cowardice. (And that recognize that MacKenzie has to be good at his job, or he wouldn't have been part of the SGC for at least seven years!) Very real, and very good.
It's nice to think that SGC personnel can get real support when they need it.
"Someone was using one of your smaller handguns..."
"The Beretta."
"That one," Jonas said. "Yeah. I don't ... I don't know what happened."
MacKenzie consulted his notes and looked at Jonas over the rims of his glasses. "Major Carter says you stopped and flung yourself against the wall before sinking to the ground, visibly shaken and unable to speak for several minutes."
"Oh. Yes, that happened."
The Stars Up Above You Feel Wrong, by Dragojustine. The Jack and Daniel friendship I love so much!
From the original rec:
This is beautiful, thoughtful, intense. It shows Jack's intelligence and Daniel's recognition of it, wordless communication and depth of understanding, all against the background of a maybe-possibly apocalypse that they can't do anything about.
This is so them, written with deft prose and aching characterization. Read this one and savor.
This is the friendship that first drew me to SG-1.
"Orion's belt," Jack said, and let his arm drop back down to the grass.
"Huh," Daniel said, lifting his head. "Spread out like that?"
"Trick of perspective in three dimensions. Constellations aren't groups."
Again that shadowy peripheral-vision nod. "So how did you figure that out?"
Jack jerked his thumb over his shoulder at the dark building behind him. "Our buddies are very keen to know where their new allies live. Carter was helping them correlate their star charts to ours. Lots of complicated software."
"Which you watched avidly while pretending not to understand any of it."
Daniel had had his number for a long time. It was worth letting the pretense slip here, to distract them both.
I wrote 21 stories in 2011 - less than in 2010, but longer ones for a greater wordcount. Here are links to three of them, one humorous and two dramatic:
For All Your Beauty Needs. Sam and her boys, on a matriarchal planet that's not as much fun as it ought to be. Teal'c pwnage, Daniel eyelash fluttering, and Sam stalking Jack with a powder puff. No, not crackfic!
Pawns' Promotion. My first non-canon AU story! The NID think Sam and Sha're would make fine experimental subjects. Sam and Sha're have other ideas.
Canis Major. Teal'c and Daniel friendship, with an unusual native who needs convincing that "Jaffa" does not always equal "evil."
Remember, I welcome more gen recs in the comments, whether it's another author's story or your own.
Lots of Daniel here, natch, and a nice amount of Jonas, too. It's getting harder and harder to avoid multiple recs of the same author.
Whom the Gods Would Destroy, by Graculus. This is a fascinating AU scenario that focuses on the sequence of two S3 episodes and gives a fabulous might-have-been.
From the original rec:
Here's a neat little AU twist on Legacy: what if Teal'c never got close enough to Daniel for the Goa'uld-killer to transfer, and Daniel ended up under Kasuf's care on Abydos instead?
Oh, if only! I always love Abydos, so for me this is just fantastic.
“Danyel is unwell?” Kasuf asked, after the formal greetings had been exchanged and they’d accepted his hospitality.
“Yes.” Kind of. He wasn’t sure how to explain. “He’s been sick for a few weeks. He sees things that aren’t there, he becomes upset…”
“His heart is disturbed.” Kasuf’s voice was calm, calmer than Jack had expected.
“His heart?”
“At the continued loss of Sha’re.” It was clearly obvious to Kasuf that it should be so, obvious enough that his tone was one of puzzlement that he should have to explain. “And he would come home now?”
“I think he should.” Jack didn’t want to explain where the subject of their conversation was now, or the reasons why he hadn’t been able to discuss his plan with Daniel, but he’d never considered the possibility that Daniel might refuse.
Kasuf nodded. “We will prepare for his return,” he said. “Danyel has been sorely missed.”
They're waiting all the same, with their flashlights and their semaphores, by Beanpot. Because SG-1 doesn't leave anyone behind if they can help it.
From the original rec:
This fic draws you in deeply, as we follow Sam and Teal'c always searching, always hoping for a glimpse of Jonas in the aftermath of Langara's fall in S10. Nobody left behind includes Jonas, too, and Sam and Teal'c never stop trying to find him -- even after the aching breaking point, and even when hope seems lost.
No matter how little you like Jonas (and I know I despise the Kelownans in general), Langara didn't deserve to be thrown away like that, and I'd like to believe that the team never stopped looking.
For a second, she had been sure it was Jonas, and now she thought that maybe - just maybe - he was out there and not among the fallen.
Elementariness, by Kellifer. Gorgeous Jack and Daniel friendship and characterization!
From the original rec:
Snapshots of a friendship: attitudes and reactions might change over the years, but the closeness and understanding between Jack and Daniel remains. Poignant and beautiful by turns, with lovely cameos from Sam and Teal'c and Janet and Cassie, and so perfectly them.
I love the way these short, sharp glimpses paint a picture of a glorious whole.
"You're not ruined. You're just a little dented."
Now is the Winter, by Vixys (rated 15 by author). This is a powerful, bleak fic, and a good look at life under the Ori... and Jonas Quinn's convictions.
From the original rec:
This story will dig at you, until you are aching together with Jonas and shivering in the cold. Hope and despair, driven determination, utilizing the knowledge he gained through SG-1 as well as the bitter remnants of Nirrti's manipulations -- this is Jonas Quinn, very bloody but definitely unbowed, struggling for freedom for his people.
This is long and satisfying and intense, and a very absorbing read.
Word spreads of a man who blazes in his disbelief, and has not been struck down.
The Circumference of Darkness, by Dani the Girl. I always enjoy Cam's outsider perspective of SG-1, when the heroes he once worshiped are suddenly human, with faults of their own.
From the original rec:
This fic, told from Mitchell's POV, offers a superb insight into Daniel, his time with the Ancients, and his reaction and advice regarding Khalek. This is the kind of characterization that slots so neatly into canon that it clicks and becomes a kind of canon of your own. Thoughtful Cam, sharp Daniel -- all good.
I can hear their voices in the dialogue, which is always a good thing!
Daniel laughs softly as they sit. "You'd think that the whole ascended descended thing would hit the limit for people being weirded out by me, but I guess not."
These Are Gold, by Izhilzha. Intelligent, thoughtful Cassie!
From the original rec:
This is a beautifully adult look at Cassie during that nebulous time between S8 and S9. A visit from Jack and Sam turns into self-examination of loss, choice, courage, and persistence. I love how Cassie knows only what she should and her own insights into the people both she and SG-1 have grown to be.
Friendship and trust and reality, all in one wonderful package.
“How come Daniel didn’t come with you guys?”
“He’s . . .uh . . . busy.” Jack flipped a hand towards the sky, which was rapidly deepening to black. A single point of light glinted; one of Sol’s planets, or maybe a satellite, Cassie thought. “Translating some writing on rocks, if you can believe it.”
“Of course he is.” Cassie glanced around and dropped her voice. “What about Teal’c?”
Jack snorted. “He’s got himself a nice, thankless job, trying to help his people figure out what to do with their new-found freedom.”
That single sentence held more than she’d thought would happen in a lifetime. Questions swarmed through her mind, all backed by memories of a proud Jaffa warrior-turned-babysitter, telling her stories about how his people would one day be free of their false gods. How? Was there a revolution? Who died? Who lived? Are the Goa’uld all dead?
She couldn’t ask, because he couldn’t answer. Not most of those questions, anyway. “That’s cool,” was all she could trust herself to say. The squeeze of his hand on her shoulder told her that Jack understood the rest.
Bead Sutra, by Magistrate. I love just about everything Magistrate writes, from full-length novels to shorter stories. I chose to feature this fabulous series, which uses a common thread to weave superb characterization and incredible understanding into a marvelous whole.
From the original rec:
Tied together by an alien string of wooden beads, Magistrate traces through reactions -- Jack flailing at Daniel's non-presence in the aftermath of Unnatural Selection, Jack and Sam trying not to talk about hurtful truths in a parking lot after Full Circle, and Sam trying to reconnect with not!Daniel (aka Arrom) during Fallen. While each of these stories is marvelously complete on their own, you will savor the richness of the underlying theme that connects all three. Wonderful stuff!
Another story was added to the series since I first made that rec, and I love every bit of this. Savor this series in depth.
He doesn't have to explain his decisions, even on days like this - and there are a surprising number of days like this. He and Daniel always seemed to find themselves on opposite sides of some gulf or other when Replicators were involved, and Jack was always shooting someone to kill or disable, or screaming through a headpiece to cut losses and let things go. It isn't just the alien elements he's willing to write off as an acceptable loss, and he wonders if Daniel ever quite realized that. Though it probably wouldn't have made a difference.
"...or it just means that you're an all-powerful higher being with way better things to be doing with your time," he mutters, and stands to leave.
At the door, before opening it, he pauses.
"It was what had to be done," he says.
He takes the handle of the door and is just turning it, pushing the door aside, when there's the soft slide of wood against metal and something hits the floor.
In Its Truest Form, by Stringertheory. A love letter to team.
From the original rec:
This fic personifies teamy goodness in all its glory, as Stringertheory treats us to various moments throughout the years when the team is there for one another.
Happy but not cloying, moving but not maudlin -- this series of snapshots is perfectly right.
Stringertheory is another author I've recced so often, it was hard to choose just one!
It was the first all-male civilization they had encountered. The leader, Hatako, seemed very open to trade and relations. He showed particular interest in Sam - far too much interest. And he wasn't the only one. The openly hungry way he stared at her made her skin crawl, but she forced herself to stare back blandly.
Soon, she found herself staring at a broad back clad in a black shirt. She blinked in confusion and tilted her gaze upwards until she saw the back of Teal'c's head. He had stepped in front of her, effectively cutting off Hatako's view. Sam sensed Daniel and the colonel step closer to her on either side, essentially surrounding her with a wall of male protection.
Their concern was sweet, and it warmed her to see them step into the line of fire, as it were. In fact, she was pleased enough about it that she never brought up the fact that she had to pull Colonel O'Neill from the mob at least once, or that she was the one who hauled Daniel through the gate during their escape.
Instead, she just smiled innocently during the debriefing and told General Hammond that the boys had saved her.
Sound, by Cyren. Jonas Quinn and Dr. MacKenzie: two characters that many people love to hate. So what happens when they're written as real people?
From the original rec:
Short, honest, and hurting, as Dr. MacKenzie helps Jonas recognize the nature of PTSD and the painful memories of the events of Meridian.
I love fics that recognize that Jonas acted as an untrained civilian in a crisis, and not out of cowardice. (And that recognize that MacKenzie has to be good at his job, or he wouldn't have been part of the SGC for at least seven years!) Very real, and very good.
It's nice to think that SGC personnel can get real support when they need it.
"Someone was using one of your smaller handguns..."
"The Beretta."
"That one," Jonas said. "Yeah. I don't ... I don't know what happened."
MacKenzie consulted his notes and looked at Jonas over the rims of his glasses. "Major Carter says you stopped and flung yourself against the wall before sinking to the ground, visibly shaken and unable to speak for several minutes."
"Oh. Yes, that happened."
The Stars Up Above You Feel Wrong, by Dragojustine. The Jack and Daniel friendship I love so much!
From the original rec:
This is beautiful, thoughtful, intense. It shows Jack's intelligence and Daniel's recognition of it, wordless communication and depth of understanding, all against the background of a maybe-possibly apocalypse that they can't do anything about.
This is so them, written with deft prose and aching characterization. Read this one and savor.
This is the friendship that first drew me to SG-1.
"Orion's belt," Jack said, and let his arm drop back down to the grass.
"Huh," Daniel said, lifting his head. "Spread out like that?"
"Trick of perspective in three dimensions. Constellations aren't groups."
Again that shadowy peripheral-vision nod. "So how did you figure that out?"
Jack jerked his thumb over his shoulder at the dark building behind him. "Our buddies are very keen to know where their new allies live. Carter was helping them correlate their star charts to ours. Lots of complicated software."
"Which you watched avidly while pretending not to understand any of it."
Daniel had had his number for a long time. It was worth letting the pretense slip here, to distract them both.
I wrote 21 stories in 2011 - less than in 2010, but longer ones for a greater wordcount. Here are links to three of them, one humorous and two dramatic:
For All Your Beauty Needs. Sam and her boys, on a matriarchal planet that's not as much fun as it ought to be. Teal'c pwnage, Daniel eyelash fluttering, and Sam stalking Jack with a powder puff. No, not crackfic!
Pawns' Promotion. My first non-canon AU story! The NID think Sam and Sha're would make fine experimental subjects. Sam and Sha're have other ideas.
Canis Major. Teal'c and Daniel friendship, with an unusual native who needs convincing that "Jaffa" does not always equal "evil."
Remember, I welcome more gen recs in the comments, whether it's another author's story or your own.