Freedom in High Fidelity (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sperrywink) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
crack_van2006-02-14 11:48 am
sperrywink) wrote in crack_van2006-02-14 11:48 am
Open Season by Wesley's Girl (NC-17)
Fandom: ANGEL
Pairing: Wesley Wyndham-Pryce / Francis Alan Doyle
Author on LJ:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
wesleysgirl
Author Website: Adds Mystery
Why this must be read:
As the author summary says, this is a S3 AU in which the AI team brings Doyle back from the dead to take the visions back from Cordelia.
The author does a fantastic job of showing how bringing Doyle back into the mix so much later highlights how circumstances have changed, how the relationships have changed, but also how the gang's love for each other will make them resist their growth in favor of being what they were to each other when Doyle was alive the first time. Luckily for everyone, Doyle finds Wesley's home a nice retreat from his changed friends and Wesley's appeal grows as Doyle finds his place in the new gang. I have an unholy fondness for Wesley/Doyle stories and this is one of the best, but it also does a great job of exploring who the season 3 gang are and how they aren't who they were when Doyle was alive.
"He's really here," Angel said to Wesley. "You did it."
Wesley ducked his head slightly. "No, we all did it. I may have performed the spell, but you and Cordelia were both instrumental in its success, not to mention Gunn and Fred's -- "
"Geez, Wesley, would it kill you to take a compliment for once?" Cordelia's tone of voice was as familiar to Doyle as his own, and the sound of it threatened to bring tears to his eyes.
Angel's hand came up and cupped the side of his face, briefly. "Maybe you should sit back down," he said.
The three of them moved back to the couch and Angel pushed him down onto the cushions. Cordelia sat next to him and took his hand again immediately; Doyle wasn't sure if it was because she wanted to, or because she could tell that he needed the comfort. Suddenly it was so much *more* than he needed that he was overwhelmed; he clutched at her hand and glanced up at Angel, trying to still the trembling that had started somewhere inside his chest and was spreading outward.
"Hey," Angel said, and sat down next to him, patting his shoulder awkwardly. "Take it easy. It's a big shock, coming back -- I know. But it'll be okay."
Cordelia soothed him with gentle touches, her fingertips running over the back of his hand. Doyle blinked furiously, stubbornly fighting back the tears, and his gaze fell on a pile of books across the room. They were haphazardly piled, slips of paper sticking out of several of them. A pen was balanced on top of the pile. It was all too normal. Too real. He leaned forward and hid his face in his hands as the trembling took over.
Open Season
Pairing: Wesley Wyndham-Pryce / Francis Alan Doyle
Author on LJ:
wesleysgirlAuthor Website: Adds Mystery
Why this must be read:
As the author summary says, this is a S3 AU in which the AI team brings Doyle back from the dead to take the visions back from Cordelia.
The author does a fantastic job of showing how bringing Doyle back into the mix so much later highlights how circumstances have changed, how the relationships have changed, but also how the gang's love for each other will make them resist their growth in favor of being what they were to each other when Doyle was alive the first time. Luckily for everyone, Doyle finds Wesley's home a nice retreat from his changed friends and Wesley's appeal grows as Doyle finds his place in the new gang. I have an unholy fondness for Wesley/Doyle stories and this is one of the best, but it also does a great job of exploring who the season 3 gang are and how they aren't who they were when Doyle was alive.
"He's really here," Angel said to Wesley. "You did it."
Wesley ducked his head slightly. "No, we all did it. I may have performed the spell, but you and Cordelia were both instrumental in its success, not to mention Gunn and Fred's -- "
"Geez, Wesley, would it kill you to take a compliment for once?" Cordelia's tone of voice was as familiar to Doyle as his own, and the sound of it threatened to bring tears to his eyes.
Angel's hand came up and cupped the side of his face, briefly. "Maybe you should sit back down," he said.
The three of them moved back to the couch and Angel pushed him down onto the cushions. Cordelia sat next to him and took his hand again immediately; Doyle wasn't sure if it was because she wanted to, or because she could tell that he needed the comfort. Suddenly it was so much *more* than he needed that he was overwhelmed; he clutched at her hand and glanced up at Angel, trying to still the trembling that had started somewhere inside his chest and was spreading outward.
"Hey," Angel said, and sat down next to him, patting his shoulder awkwardly. "Take it easy. It's a big shock, coming back -- I know. But it'll be okay."
Cordelia soothed him with gentle touches, her fingertips running over the back of his hand. Doyle blinked furiously, stubbornly fighting back the tears, and his gaze fell on a pile of books across the room. They were haphazardly piled, slips of paper sticking out of several of them. A pen was balanced on top of the pile. It was all too normal. Too real. He leaned forward and hid his face in his hands as the trembling took over.
Open Season