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crack_van2005-01-07 12:11 am
zulu.livejournal.com) wrote in crack_van2005-01-07 12:11 am
Entry tags:
"Brave Eyes", by psimetis (Rating: NC-17)
Fandom: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
Pairing: Tara/Vamp!Willow, some Vamp!Willow/Puppy!Angel, mentions of Buffy/Faith.
Author on LJ:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
psimetis
Author Website: Master Willow
Why this must be read:
I started off the month with two shorter recs, one angsty and one sweet, so today I think I'll give you something different again: long, plotty, character-driven darkfic.
I don't often read darkfic, and I'm not really a fan of Tara/Willow pairings in general. Also, this story has several of what you might consider to be vampire cliches: healing saliva, the family-tree type sire/childe relationships, and yes, even the word "childer" (which I normally loathe with the burning passion of a thousand suns). So when I tell you that I was utterly and totally drawn into this story, you must understand that it wasn't despite these elements, but rather because they were done well.
In short, "Brave Eyes" is, for me, the quintessential Wishverse story.
Set after Doppelgangland, but in a slight AU where neither Vamp!Willow nor UberSlayer!Buffy bit the big one, "Brave Eyes" is set around Tara's arrival in Sunnydale. She's been called by the leader of her coven to help watch the Hellmouth because the Slayer is out of control. One night, she's attacked by a vampire--three guesses who, and the first two don't count--and the rest, as they say, is destiny.
psimetis has taken the Wishverse and made it her own. There are a million tiny, significant details that work to show that this Wishverse is complete unto itself, with little need to reference our more familiar Buffyverse. The relationships between Vamp!Willow and Puppy!Angel, between Tara and Vamp!Willow, and especially the antagonism between Tara and UberSlayer!Buffy, are all beautifully rendered. Each character (and there are many, because Amy, Michael, Jonathan, Andrew, Jenny, and Anya all play important parts) is present and recognizable, if somewhat altered by the Wishverse backstory. They are each true to the traits we know them to have, while at the same time subtly new.
Probably what I love most about this story is how, once the characters have been chased up a tree by rabid Dobermans,psimetis delights in throwing rocks at them. Bad things happen. The situations get worse, and worse, and just when you think there's room for recovery--more bad things happen.
And yet.
And yet, even though this Wishverse is rough and hard and mean and "red in tooth and claw", at the same time everybody has a chance. They all make mistakes, often horrible ones, but in the end there is hope. Maybe. Unless more mistakes are made. And you know that even when the fic's over, these people are going to continue with their fractured, messy lives. Maybe they'll be healed--but maybe they won't.
Willow liked it in her witch’s comfortable, dorm room. There was warmth, there was stuff to read, and there was safety. It certainly beat having to hide in a rundown, abandoned house where the scary Slayer could easily find her, especially in her sleep. The witch’s dorm room was a much appreciated safe haven in Willow’s current unlife.
She was also liking the magic thing, which felt more substantial and satisfying than forming gangs and taking over clubs, like her last attempt in that alternative world she got dragged into. Willow’s brief foray into conquest and domination nearly ended with that reality’s Slayer practically staking her in the back. If it hadn’t been for her fuzzy other self, Willow would have been dust. Witnessing Xander and the Master become dust under the stake of the scarier version of that other world Slayer had certainly given Willow sober pause. She might be a very young vampire, but she could learn from her experiences. World domination was really not an easy game.
One thing she did learn in the other world, which was certainly intriguing, rather than plain sobering, was the fact that her fuzzy other self had been into magic, and if Fuzzy could do it, then Willow could too.
So the vampire contented herself with her new existence as a magic learner, snacked on the occasional student, snacked especially on her pretty witch, had lots of nice ‘play times’ with said pretty witch, and basically ignored the new, evil-come-latelys making their noisy splashes in what was once her town.
Willow really had better things to do.
Brave Eyes
Pairing: Tara/Vamp!Willow, some Vamp!Willow/Puppy!Angel, mentions of Buffy/Faith.
Author on LJ:
psimetisAuthor Website: Master Willow
Why this must be read:
I started off the month with two shorter recs, one angsty and one sweet, so today I think I'll give you something different again: long, plotty, character-driven darkfic.
I don't often read darkfic, and I'm not really a fan of Tara/Willow pairings in general. Also, this story has several of what you might consider to be vampire cliches: healing saliva, the family-tree type sire/childe relationships, and yes, even the word "childer" (which I normally loathe with the burning passion of a thousand suns). So when I tell you that I was utterly and totally drawn into this story, you must understand that it wasn't despite these elements, but rather because they were done well.
In short, "Brave Eyes" is, for me, the quintessential Wishverse story.
Set after Doppelgangland, but in a slight AU where neither Vamp!Willow nor UberSlayer!Buffy bit the big one, "Brave Eyes" is set around Tara's arrival in Sunnydale. She's been called by the leader of her coven to help watch the Hellmouth because the Slayer is out of control. One night, she's attacked by a vampire--three guesses who, and the first two don't count--and the rest, as they say, is destiny.
psimetis has taken the Wishverse and made it her own. There are a million tiny, significant details that work to show that this Wishverse is complete unto itself, with little need to reference our more familiar Buffyverse. The relationships between Vamp!Willow and Puppy!Angel, between Tara and Vamp!Willow, and especially the antagonism between Tara and UberSlayer!Buffy, are all beautifully rendered. Each character (and there are many, because Amy, Michael, Jonathan, Andrew, Jenny, and Anya all play important parts) is present and recognizable, if somewhat altered by the Wishverse backstory. They are each true to the traits we know them to have, while at the same time subtly new.Probably what I love most about this story is how, once the characters have been chased up a tree by rabid Dobermans,
psimetis delights in throwing rocks at them. Bad things happen. The situations get worse, and worse, and just when you think there's room for recovery--more bad things happen.And yet.
And yet, even though this Wishverse is rough and hard and mean and "red in tooth and claw", at the same time everybody has a chance. They all make mistakes, often horrible ones, but in the end there is hope. Maybe. Unless more mistakes are made. And you know that even when the fic's over, these people are going to continue with their fractured, messy lives. Maybe they'll be healed--but maybe they won't.
She was also liking the magic thing, which felt more substantial and satisfying than forming gangs and taking over clubs, like her last attempt in that alternative world she got dragged into. Willow’s brief foray into conquest and domination nearly ended with that reality’s Slayer practically staking her in the back. If it hadn’t been for her fuzzy other self, Willow would have been dust. Witnessing Xander and the Master become dust under the stake of the scarier version of that other world Slayer had certainly given Willow sober pause. She might be a very young vampire, but she could learn from her experiences. World domination was really not an easy game.
One thing she did learn in the other world, which was certainly intriguing, rather than plain sobering, was the fact that her fuzzy other self had been into magic, and if Fuzzy could do it, then Willow could too.
So the vampire contented herself with her new existence as a magic learner, snacked on the occasional student, snacked especially on her pretty witch, had lots of nice ‘play times’ with said pretty witch, and basically ignored the new, evil-come-latelys making their noisy splashes in what was once her town.
Willow really had better things to do.
Brave Eyes
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