Of Monsters by Jibrailis (PG-13)

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Fandom: INCEPTION
Title: Of Monsters
Pairing: Gen with nebulous Yusuf/Mal
Length: 7,787
Author on LJ: jibrailis
Author Website: author's works on AO3
Why this must be read: In my first rec, I talked about how I like to tell people how transformative Inception fandom is, how it reshapes the world of canon and does all kinds of incredible things with the moral themes of the story. This fic is one of the most amazing examples of how well Inception canon lends itself to the creation of something totally new and phenomenal while still building on the source material. Taking Inception canon, with its mythical and morally grey subject matter, Jibrailis weaves an alternative mythos about Yusuf, an ancient supernatural dream-eater, and Mal, a shade who is made entirely of dreams.

In this fic, Yusuf is truly a supernatural being; he's amoral and opportunistic, and nothing like the typical jovial sidekick fandom often likes to write him as. But he is completely fascinating and fully realized, and so is the story Jibrailis tells: how every dream tastes different, how Yusuf's canonical dream den is his personal buffet, how Yusuf knows what love is, but also knows so much more. The world through Yusuf's pov is detached and disturbing but always lonely; and when Mal disrupts his life, the results are electric and inevitable and unforgettable.

"You may well be the first of your kind," Yusuf tells her. "So anything that I say or think is strictly experimental. But I assure you, I am the oldest being in this city, quite likely the oldest in this country, possibly even the entire continent. If anyone can help you figure out your situation, it's me."

"What do you want in return?" Mal asks.

"Consider it satisfying a scientific curiosity," he says.

"It can't be as simple as that."

"The world is simple," Yusuf says. "We eat, we drink, we fuck, and then we go to sleep." He watches the movement of her eyes, and notices how she keeps on looking back at the dreamers. He realizes after a few minutes of observation that it's not disgust at all that she feels. "You are hungry," he says, not a question.

"Is that what you call it, this heaviness in my stomach?" she says. "Is that what hunger feels like?" She turns to him. Her eyes are hollow, but they are not empty.

Yusuf smiles. "Let me show you."

He moves towards his dreamers, beckoning for her to follow. There are rows of them, sprawled across beds and couches, sheets tangled in limbs. He walks past Elisabet and touches her on the forehead — perhaps it is only his imagination, but she seems to smile. He goes to Chibuzo, one of his more placid dreamers, and kneels beside him, unhooking the vial that ends in a clear plastic tube. The vial is undistilled, but Chibuzo's dreams are rarely dangerous. He hands it to Mal and says, "Drink."

"I was always told not to take candy from strangers," she says. "But what do I have to lose?"

Of Monsters