FIC: Loserville by Shrift (NC17)

[flyingtapes.livejournal.com]

Title: Loserville
Fandom: BtVS
Pairing: Spike/Xander
Author on LJ: shrift
Author Website: Shrift's Fan Fiction
Why this must be read:

And Xander left for his second eight-hour shift of the day secure in the knowledge that his best friends were still his best friends, and that even if all wasn't exactly right with the world, things could definitely be worse. Apocalyptically worse, for example.

Of course, what he forgot was that working sixty to eighty minimum wage slave hours a week didn't leave a guy with an astounding amount of free time or energy. Two weeks passed in a haze of serving up pies and scraping gum from theater seats, with Xander falling into bed whenever he had a few spare hours to sleep, too tired to care that Spike was lounging on his couch, watching TV and yelling about somebody named Timmy. Xander was barely home enough to notice that the biteless wonder hadn't made like a tree, and since Anya hadn't exactly been thrilled with his new schedule, she had been withholding sexual favors in protest.

Season four Xander is, quite frankly, one of the most depressing things I've ever seen. So many of my friends have gone through that struggle, of not wanting to go to college but not having anything else they're particularly interested in doing. But the world doesn't seem to be very well equipped for those who aren't in or out of college, and this story illustrates this nicely--which, while not it's intention, surely endears it more to me.

It's a story of how Spike and Xander get together, with excellent Xander characterization, witty banter, and some hot sex. Also, it's kinda long, which is nice on those days when you want some Spike/Xander but don't want to brave the world of "pet" and "my undead vampire lover."



Loserville