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Fancake is a multifandom thematic recommendation community where all members are welcome to post recs, and fanworks of all shapes and sizes are accepted. Check out our community guidelines for the details.

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Please proceed with caution as recs will inevitably contain adult material, spoilers, and Things You May Not Like.

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kingstoken

Fandom: Our Flag Means Death
Pairings/Characters: Izzy/Ed, Izzy/Ed/Stede
Rating: E
Length: 31,803 words
Creator Links: redshift
Theme: Unreliable narrator

Summary: Izzy has spent years at Edward's side. The occasional petal here and there, the intermittent rasp that makes itself a permanent home in the hollows of his throat, the cough that comes and goes; it's all worth it, to be the person Ed turns to. It's a price he pays willingly.

Now, though. Now, Izzy knows what love looks like on Edward Teach, and it is soft and sweet and open and nothing like what Izzy has ever been able to give. Izzy's place is at Edward's side, and it's killing him.

That's okay. He's always wanted to die for something that matters.

Reccer's Notes: Izzy has hanakaki disease, and I love how the author writes it likes it's an almost chronic illness. Izzy is an unreliable narrator in how he thinks about Ed and Stede and their motivations. We as the reader can tell by their actions that their intentions are not what Izzy probably thinks, but Izzy's thought's are very much coloured by the experience he is going through and he's not seeing things for how they truly are, and of course he refuses to talk to Ed about his feelings and what going on, which only makes everything worse.

One note, this is canon-divergent after season one.

Fanwork Links: AO3

full_metal_ox

Fandom: Navy Seal Copypasta (Internet meme): Navy Seal Copypasta - The Musical, by Copypasta Sings.
Pairings/Characters: Self-insert OC.
Rating: Teen and Up
Length: 287 words; 3:52
Content Notes: Unreality, stalking threats, death threats, Critical Research Failure (U.S. military), Lyrical Dissonance, macho edgelordship, profanity. The archived original 4chan forum discussion under the OP link gets even nastier.

Creator Links: Copypasta Sings:

copypastasings7991; the OP, for obvious reasons, remains ultra-classified.

Theme: Unreliable Narrator, Filk, Music, Non-AO3 Works, Social Media

Reccer's Notes: This trash-talking ßadass Boast by a Master of Gorilla (sic) Warfare and Top Army Sniper of the Navy SEALs has inspired a zillion adaptations and memetic mutations; dramatic readings have tended to the most gravelly depths-of-the-scrotum basso the speaker can muster.

Copypasta Sings takes it in a diametrically opposite direction, setting the lyrics to a sensitive singer-songwriter acoustic ballad.

Fanwork Links: Navy Seal Copypasta - The Musical: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsZMbs5PC64

Current Music: Implicit in the subject.

sasheneskywalker

Fandom: Batman - All Media Types
Pairings/Characters: Jason Todd/Bruce Wayne
Rating: Mature
Length: 11,401 words
Creator Links:

gatheringwool
Theme: unreliable narrator

Summary: Jason always knew everyone would flip out when they found out about him and Bruce.

He just always assumed it would be more along the lines of Jason, you dirty whore you. Not whatever the hell this was.

Reccer's Notes: The best example of the "unreliable narrator" tag I've ever seen. Bruce's actions are unequivocally terrible, but because the fic is told from Jason's perspective and Jason genuinely doesn't believe there's anything wrong with their relationship you start questioning your own judgment too. Chilling. Absolutely amazing, but chilling.

Content Notes: discussion of past underage sex (adult with a child), rape/non-con, sexual abuse, incest

Fanwork Links: (you kept me like a secret) i kept you like an oath

runpunkrun

'Unreliable Narrator, at Fancake' added to a collage made from the ripped up page of a book, the strips imperfectly pieced back together.

Our theme for July is unreliable narrator!

An unreliable narrator is one you just can't trust—or shouldn't—whether you know it or not. They may be lying (to the text or to themselves), purposely withholding information, or just not in a position to fully appreciate the situation they're in because of a limited perspective, such as with child, animal, or object narrators.

The tag for this round is: theme: unreliable narrator

If you're just joining us, be sure to check out our policy on content notes. Content notes aren't required, but they're nice to include in your recs, especially if a fanwork has untagged content that readers may wish to know about in advance. For this particular theme, consider including notes for things like gaslighting or unreality (like Tumblr's fake Martin Scorsese movie, Goncharov).

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mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov
Rating: Gen
Length: 2917
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: glittercity on AO3
Themes: Just like canon, LGBTQ+ canon characters, Hurt/comfort, Humor, In vino veritas

Summary: “Ilya?” Shane said in that same dreamy, loopy voice as that morning. Ilya exhaled in a rush.
“Shane,” he said, and wanted to sag against the glass with relief. “What happened? Is something wrong?”
“Not! Any moooooooore.”
Ilya swallowed. Shane hadn’t gotten any quieter in the past seven hours.
“Why are you calling me? You need to be resting,” he said, and it sounded softer than he’d meant it to.
“I forgot to tell you something. Important.”
“You should not be telling me anything, you should be—”
“My cottage has really good water pressure,” Shane announced.
Ilya stared out the window while a small plane taxied past.
“What?”
——————
Shane's cottage has a lot of amenities, and he needs to tell Ilya about all of them.

Reccer's Notes: This is a lovely, funny fic giving us more of "loopy on the good drugs" Shane from canon, after he takes the hit on the ice and is briefly in the hospital. Shane high on pain meds is adorable and Glittercity gives us more, as Shane tries to impress on Ilya how wonderful his cottage is, in the hope of persuading him to visit. Short, sweet and a favourite.

Fanwork Links: The same number of stars everywhere, and there's a podfic by jennisaisquoi

full_metal_ox

Fandom: Master Li and Number Ten Ox - Barry Hughart
Pairings/Characters: Gen; Master Li, Number Ten Ox
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 322
Content Notes: No AO3 Warnings Apply
Creator Links: (AO3)

Gryphonrhi; (Dreamwidth)

rhi; (Tumblr)

gryphonrhi

Theme: Just Like Canon, Book Fandoms, Old Fandoms, Small Fandoms

Summary: On the possible origin of a proverb…

Author’s Notes: For Sleeps With Coyotes.
Disclaimers: Barry Hughart wrote these wonderful characters. I'm only borrowing them briefly. No infringement intended, no moneys made. Written for Sleeps With Coyotes; she'd had a lousy day.
Rated: G.

…Master Li & Number Ten Ox are from The Bridge of Birds, The Story of the Stone, and Eight Skilled Gentlemen, or, in omnibus (and illustrated by Kaja Foglio), The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox. The omnibus is consistently on my 'top ten books' list, and I cannot recommend them highly enough, although finding them is a quest in and of itself.
Yes, there is a cloud dragon in Chinese myth. No, actually, I'm not sure they have silver scales.

Really. Go read the books. ;->

Reccer's Notes: This gorgeous illo-op of a vignette, written for the prompt “silver”, could easily serve as a prologue to one of Master Li and Number Ten Ox’s picaresque Wuxia detective adventures in an Ancient China That Never Was; Gryphonrhi nails the fairytale logic and Ox’s earnest and eloquent narrative voice.

Fanwork Links: Broken Silver Linings, by

Gryphonrhi for Sleeps With Coyotes: https://archiveofourown.org/works/62486

full_metal_ox

Fandom: Mo Dao Zu Shi
Pairings/Characters: Past (and future) Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 484 characters (Chinese); 563 words (English)
Content Notes: Major Character Death (canon, temporary), Angst, Epistolary, Poetry, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Mourning, Written in Chinese
Language: 中文-吴语 (original); English (translation)
Creator Links:
Lan Wangji: Unfortunately, their Baidu profile has gone 404.
zenzenzense: (AO3): zenzenzense(rebirth9981)

Theme: Just Like Canon, Canon LGBTQ+ Characters, Fandom Classics, Non-AO3 Works, Pining

Summary: Lan Wangji mourns his lost Wei Ying, in gentlemanly and poetic fashion.

Creator Notes:
Lan Wangji: (cut for length): ( Continue. )

zenzenzense: Translation (or butchering session as I would call it) of a certain fanfic... Lan WangJi writes a letter to Wei WuXian while drunk sometime in the thirteen years during which he's gone. The original Chinese version is highly poetic and uses a lot of difficult language; I tried to keep some of that in the translated version; not sure if it worked out or not. Only angst. No fluff. You have very much been warned...

Reccer's Notes: This 2016 Baidu fic by “Lan Wangji”(a Chinese ground-floor fan who got to claim a prime pseudonym!), translated into English by zenzenzense, is historically important as the origin of the Thirteen Years of Inquiry: a plausible trope that swiftly disseminated into not only the fandom but subsequent adaptations.

Fanwork Links:
Archive.today: https://archive.ph/Q2WZH
Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20221113075541/https://archive.ph/Q2WZH
English translation: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16172624

Current Mood: tired

swingandswirl

Fandom: Numb3rs
Pairings/Characters: Ian Edgerton, Numb3rs team
Rating: Teen and Up Audiences
Length: 2343 words
Creator Links: Ao3 profile
Theme: Just Like Canon

Summary: Sometimes, even a minute dose is too much.

Reccer's Notes: Rhi writes one of the best Ians out there. This fic feels like a case the team worked off-screen, and it's fun to see the bad guy get his.

Fanwork Links: The Shrine Of Your Lies

mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, Yuna Hollander/David Hollander
Rating: Gen
Length: 4585
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: the anon of "Home Economics" on AO3
Themes: Just like canon, Family, Missing scene, Domestic, Canon LGBTQ+ characters

Summary: They’d considered it—Shane being gay. It’d been an option. But Ilya Rozanov and the way Shane looks at him like he’s the love of his life has blindsided them. Blindsided both of them, and there’s almost nothing Yuna likes less than being blindsided.

She’s not mad, David wants to say. We’re so proud of you. We’re so happy for you. We just didn’t know.

Somehow we missed it, you falling in love.

or, what David Hollander and Ilya Rozanov talk about while Shane and Yuna are outside in episode six.

Reccer's Notes: This is anon's take on what Ilya and David Hollander talked about when Shane was outside with his mother, in episode 6 (The Cottage). There's actually not much dialogue--it's from David's POV and is largely about him coming to terms with the revelations, wondering about Ilya, and musing about Shane across the years. Imagery about hockey--one of the few things David has in common with Ilya--is woven through the story which is a lovely meditation and character study. Very much worth reading.

Fanwork Links: last one to leave the bleachers every time, and SD Ryan recorded it as a podfic

22degreehalo

Fandom: Scum Villain's Self-Saving System
Pairings/Characters: Luo Binghe/Shen Qingqiu
Rating: M
Length: 44,611
Creator Links:

voxnoxsox
Theme: Just Like Canon, Forced Proximity, Humor, Identity Porn, Inept In Love, Just Plain Fun, Trope Subversion & Inversion, Underloved Fanworks

Summary: “What exactly was the array meant to do?” Shen Qingqiu asked. “And what does it have to do with Binghe?” Binghe was in the Abyss, and he wouldn’t leave it for another two years. He definitely hadn’t been whisked away mid-Abyss arc to the far eastern end of the human realms, which is where Ming Yueji had told him they were.
“Don’t you know?” Ming Yueji said, surprised. “I mean, we’re in the same fic, right?”
“...What,” Shen Qingqiu said.
Ming Yueji looked at his face and winced. “The brightest blossoms bloom latest? You know…?”
Shen Qingqiu did not want to know. “We are in,” he said, enunciating every word very clearly, “Proud Immortal Demon Way.”

Reccer's Notes: Absolute perfection of a 'pile a bunch of characters together in an awkward situation and watch the misunderstandings pile up like a house of cards until it all explodes into pure comedy' fic <3333 The OCs work perfectly as foils to Shen Qingqiu (he gets a new transmigrator buddy!! who is concerningly uninterested in the precise details of the fanfiction her System is making her carry out), and the depiction of his unreliable narration (Binghe keeps shaking and going glassy due to onsets of qi deviations [crying] which Shen Qingqiu needs to fix by passing him qi through his back [hugging him]) is so very perfectly true to the original canon :'D

Fanwork Links: The brightest blossoms bloom latest

mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Genfic. Background pairings: Yuna Hollander/David Hollander, Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov. Plus the Metros, the Raiders, and Coach LeClaire
Rating: Teen
Length: 12,731
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: everythingsflux on AO3
Themes: Just like canon, Family, Crack treated seriously, Humor, Competence, Genfic

Summary: The NHL keeps a Central Registry of every team’s Emergency Backup Goaltender, or EBUG, an individual who must be prepared to play for either the home or visiting team should both goalies be taken out of commission. When the Registry was digitized in the mid 90’s a clerical error was made, and David Hollander has remained on file as Montreal’s EBUG. When Boston plays a preseason game in Montreal at the beginning of the 2017/2018 season, both of their goalies are taken out and David Hollander suddenly finds himself in the net in Boston black and yellow.

Reccer's Notes: Okay, so you might be wondering how a Genfic tagged as "crack treated seriously" could be "just like canon", but listen. The characterisations are great, and it's a fun story, and to me, it reads as a weird sidebar that really could have happened, but they couldn't quite fit it into the books or the show. It's funny, sweet, and surprisingly gripping. An excellent read or listen!

Fanwork Links: The Pride of McGill....David Hollander
And there's an excellent podfic by DiabolicalWordreader

runpunkrun

Fandom: Stranger Things
Pairings/Characters: Robin Buckley & Mike Wheeler
Rating: Teen
Length: 3,407 words
Creator Link:

ottermo
Theme: Just Like Canon, Canon LGBTQ+ Characters, Gen

Summary: Robin and Mike have a talk.

It's tough when someone you love falls in love with you.

Reccer's Notes: Robinnnnnnnnn. Also Miiiiike. This is such a sweet conversation. These two barely—if ever?—talked in canon, but I feel like if they had, if Mike had asked Robin for help, it would have gone just like this. It's part of a series, but can totally be read alone.

Fanwork Link: the same boat

runpunkrun

Photograph of a mix tape. Just Like Canon, A Fancake Mix 2026 is written on the cassette's label alongside some heart doodles.

runpunkrun

Poll #34738 round 188 theme poll

This poll is closed.
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: Just the Poll Creator, participants: 91

Pick the next theme of fancake:

Fannish Non-Fiction
21 (23.1%)

In Denial
30 (33.0%)

Unreliable Narrator
40 (44.0%)

mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Ilya Rozanov & Scott Hunter (background Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, Scott Hunter/Kip Grady)
Rating: Teen
Length: 2426
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: milominderbinder on AO3
Themes: Just like canon, Canon LGBTQ+ characters, Missing scene, Friendship

Summary: "I did. After MLH awards, in June. Oh, I did not tell him about Shane and me. But what he did, it was important. It changed things. For me, at least - maybe for us."

On the night of the MLH awards, Ilya corners Scott Hunter on a quiet balcony.

Reccer's Notes: A nice missing scene that fills out the brief mention in canon. Ilya has a quiet word with Scott Hunter - seems like it would be the start of their friendship. Very much 'just like canon', and with great characterisation.

Fanwork Links: nobody knows (and nobody gives a damn, either way)

mific

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters/Pairings: John Sheppard/Rodney McKay, Ronon Dex, Elizabeth Weir, Carson Beckett, Miller, et al
Rating: Gen
Length: 00:03:45
Content Notes: no AO3-type warnings. Rapid cuts, flashing lights esp. at 3 min mark, canon-typical violence.
Creator Links: randommindtime on YouTube, and on AO3. The song's by Tom Odell.
Themes: Just like canon, Action/adventure, Families of choice, Friendship, Teams

Summary: "I guess that's love. I can't pretend. I can't pretend."

Reccer's Notes: This is one of the best of randommindtimes' fanvids, and it's about the intense connection between John and Rodney in canon, through all their dramas, losses and vicissitudes. It doesn't matter if they're very close friends, or lovers - the intensity's the same and both are natural extensions of canon. It's a powerful distillation of the show - one of my favourites, and very much worth watching.

Fanwork Links: Can't Pretend on AO3, and Can't Pretend on YT

susieboo

Fandom: Hatchetfield
Pairings/Characters: Wilbur Cross/Charlotte Sweetly, mentioned Charlotte/Ted and Zoey/Sam
Rating: Mature
Length: 2,150 words
Creator Links: AO3 profile.
Theme: just like canon

Summary: The Honey Festival is supposed to be the best night of the year in Hatchetfield. Unfortunately for Charlotte Sweetly, her husband ditched her, Ted Spankoffski left with another woman, and Bill delivered some bad news. Her night just kept getting worse—and then it got weird. After all, the Honey Festival is a time when things from the Black and White can walk the streets of Hatchetfield, and Wiley's got plans of his own.

Reccer's Notes: Charlotte is a thoroughly underutilized character in the Hatchetfield canon, and this fic reads exactly like how a Charlotte-centric episode of Nightmare Time might play out - down to using the script formatting. This has also really gotten me interested in Charlotte/Wiley as a pairing.

Fanwork Link: AO3

(Please add the Hatchetfield fandom tag! Thank you!)

bluerosekatie

Fandom: Keeper of the Lost Cities
Pairings/Characters: Fitz Vacker, Sophie Foster, Keefe Sencen, Biana Vacker, Dex Dizznee, Maruca Chebota, Wylie Endal, Marella Redek, Tam Song, and Linh Song
Rating: Teen
Length: 366,049 Words
Creator Links: bookwyrminspiration on Ao3
Theme:
Just Like Canon (Featured), Epic Works, Gen, Friendship, Wings, AU: Fork in the Road
Summary:
When the world begins to crawl with unnaturally made monsters, the Keeper crew continue to fight like they always have. But a wrench is thrown in those plans when they themselves become less than human.
Reccer's Notes:
Although this is a complete AU in that it's a wingfic, the author's writing style is very familiar to canon and I genuinely mix up scenes from this fic with canon because I love it so much! The focus on the friendship dynamics between all the crew is excellent.
Fanwork Links:
Shattered Upside Down on Ao3

bluerosekatie

Fandom: Minecraft: Story Mode
Pairings/Characters: Male Jesse & Petra
Rating: Gen
Length: 1,521 words
Creator Links: Pinky G. Rocket on Ao3
Theme:
Just Like Canon (Featured), Gen Works, Friendship
Summary:
As Jesse and Petra go on new adventures throughout the world and visit new lands, they come across a village- but not with the usual inhabitants that they've come to expect from villages and towns. But even in these new lands, remnants of a crisis one thought long past linger.
Reccer's Notes:
A super sweet little oneshot that incorporates a fun Minecraft mod and newer Minecraft versions near-seamlessly into a continuation of the main characters' adventures. Fits into post-canon and has callbacks to the first season.
Fanwork Links:
Sproing! on Ao3

bluerosekatie

Fandom: Tron (Movies)
Pairings/Characters: Rinzler & OCs, Sam Flynn/Quorra in the background
Rating: Teen
Length: 71,293 words
Creator Links: badgerwitch on Ao3
Theme:
Just Like Canon (Featured), Robots Androids & AI, Science Fiction, Alternate Universe: Fork in the Road
Summary:
Their entire world lay subject to Kevin Flynn's rules, except for the Sea of Simulation. There, there are no boundaries to the outside laws of the modern, connected world. ...Rinzler isn't done just yet. Post-Legacy. Unfinished.
Reccer's Notes:
A story starting off from the ending of Tron: Legacy, which follows Rinzler journeying across networks and being discovered by some human hackers in the process. Serves as an alternate canon continuation with a great premise and some fun Sam/Quorra in the background near the end. Although this fic is marked as complete, it is abandoned/discontinued, so if you hate cliffhangers, be warned.
Fanwork Links:
Outer Limits on Ao3

bluerosekatie

Fandom: Mega Man (Cartoon 1994)
Pairings/Characters: Mega Man & Roll & Dr. Light, Dr. Wily & Proto Man
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 4,075 words
Creator Links: jackalopez on Ao3
Theme:
Just Like Canon (featured), Science Fiction, Robots Androids & AI, Gen, Siblings
Summary:
Mega Man and his sister, Roll, face their toughest enemy yet! And it just so happens to be… Mega Man?!
Reccer's Notes:
A fun genfic recreating the canon's monster-of-the-week episode structure, including a cameo from another classic Rockman character, the Copy Robot. Super canon-accurate and an enjoyable read!
Fanwork Links:
Double Trouble on Ao3

bluerosekatie

Fandom: The Protomen
Pairings/Characters: Megaman & Protoman & Thomas Light
Rating: Unrated, estimate Teen
Length: 3,997 words
Creator Links: N/A, Author is anonymous
Theme:
Featured (Just Like Canon), Gateway Fanworks, Old Fandoms, Siblings, Robots Androids and AI, Science Fiction
Summary:
A spotlight thrums to life, its beam illuminating a bare-bones stage.
Reccer's Notes:
A script format retelling of Act 1 of the Protomen as a stage play, packed with references to the Orestia and Act 2 of The Protomen. Deals heavily with themes of generational trauma, cyclical revenge, and family issues, while following the canon story. As heartbreaking and beautiful, if not more, than the original album, plus, there's a great video podfic version also available on the Archive!
Fanwork Links:
How to Draw a Circle on Ao3

kingstoken

Fandom: Star Trek: TOS
Pairings/Characters: McCoy & Spock & Kirk
Rating: T
Length: 152,048 words
Creator Links: PSW
Theme: just like canon

Summary: McCoy's transport is destroyed in what appears to be a containment field explosion, leaving no known survivors. The truth, however, is not so simple as that ...

Reccer's Notes: McCoy is kidnapped by non-Federation aliens that force him to work for them in a medical capacity treating other kidnapped individuals. Meanwhile Kirk and Spock think McCoy has been killed in an explosion. I think this fits the "just like canon" theme because the quality, plot, and the writing of this fic is as good as any Trek tie-in novel, and may in fact be better. There is a quite a bit of hurt!Bones in this as he struggles to survive and try to escape the situation he is in. At the same time Spock and Kirk are trying their best to deal with their grief over the loss of their friend, and not always doing that in the healthiest of ways. All while there is a greater plot about these new aliens and what they are trying to achieve, and some original characters that I really enjoyed.

Fanwork Links: AO3

runpunkrun

Fandom: Stranger Things
Pairings/Characters: Ensemble gen, with a focus on Steve Harrington
Rating: Teen
Length: 180,411 words
Creator Link:

MrsEvadneCake
Theme: Just Like Canon, Gen, Epic Works

Summary:

Doom comes to Hawkins, Indiana. Population est. 30,000.

It's cold, that's all, and the breeze is kicking up. That's why Steve feels the chill go up his spine like someone dropped an ice-cube down his back.

"Why wouldn't I be real, El?"

"The Aboleth got you."

Reccer's Notes: This fic is just like a season of the show, with a new big bad and EVERYBODY (from S2) in it, the voices expertly rendered, and the story well told. Highly recommended.

Fanwork Link: In A Strange Land

runpunkrun

Our theme for June is just like canon!

The tag for this round is: theme: just like canon

If you're just joining us, be sure to check out our policy on content notes. Content notes aren't required, but they're nice to include in your recs, especially if a fanwork has untagged content that readers may wish to know about in advance.

( Rules! )

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( Promote this round! )

Reblog on Tumblr | Reskeet on Bluesky | Retoot on Mastodon

full_metal_ox

(The full title is too verbose for DW’s header limit.)

Fandom: “Subways Of Your Mind”, AKA “The Most Mysterious Song On The Internet” (FEX song); Lostwave
Pairings/Characters: Gen; invitation to the audience.
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 3:16
Content Notes: No AO3 Warnings Apply; the song was identified and claimed in 2024; role-playing unreality galore in the comments.
Creator Links: (YouTube):

hailey-ks7mg

Theme: Journey & Travel, Fanvid, Folklore & Fairytales, Gen, Non-AO3 Works, Research, Social Media

Summary: if you don’t know the song in this video it’s known as “the most mysterious song on the internet”. It’s a new wave/post punk song that was originally played on a german radio station between 1982-1984. no one knows it’s name or who created it, leading to a several year search for it’s origins that inspired me to make this edit.

i recommend watching whang’s videos on the subject if you want to learn more :)
• The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet - Tales From the Internet
• The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet UPDATE

driving ambiance + footage is of the autobahn motorway in germany and is from the channel rarbi.art
https://www.youtube.com/user/rarbiart/

note: this video was made for creative purposes only. all music and images belongs to the original creators. no copyright infringement intended.

Reccer's Notes: Commenter

dj-ov2it’s summary:

People think of this as a meme but keep in mind. One singular day in early 80s northern germany, a couple thousand people were listening to this song and of those, a whole lot might have been driving a car. This exact video - albeit in an abstract sense - has HAPPENED before and those people are mostly still very much alive. Hell, my close relatives might be some of them.

Fanwork Links: the most mysterious song on the internet but it's playing on your car radio in 1980s germany, by hailey.

Current Mood: wanderlustful.
Current Location: under a summer moon.
Current Music: Implicit in the subject.

sasheneskywalker

Fandom: Merlin
Pairings/Characters: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon, Leon & Arthur Pendragon, Morgana & Arthur Pendragon, minor Elyan/Gwaine, minor Gwen/Morgana
Rating: Mature
Length: 148,000 words
Creator Links:

queerofthedagger

Personaje
Theme: journey & travel, slow burn, road trips, hurt/comfort, fix-it, friends to lovers, angst (with a happy ending)

Summary: Arthur has always had distant dreams of leaving Camelot. They were never more than a wistful fantasy, at least once he grew up.

Finding out about Merlin’s magic changes everything though, and not only because Arthur would do more to keep Merlin safe than he cares to admit. What follows are secrets upon secrets, allowing the dreams to slip back in as all his father’s lies unravel around him. Slowly but surely, Camelot feels less like a home and more like a gilded cage, and Arthur isn’t so certain anymore whether he’s the right person to carry this legacy. If he even wants to.

One final secret, one opportunity, and suddenly the dreams aren’t mere dreams anymore. Merlin wouldn’t be Merlin if he didn’t follow wherever Arthur goes, and as they try to outrun Uther’s manhunt for them, they have to learn to live a life that’s about more than duty, other’s expectations, and a destiny that has never once cared for them.

Or: Arthur long since expected that one day, he might have to flee Camelot with Merlin. He just never thought that he would be the reason.

Reccer's Notes: Fantastic fic about Merlin and Arthur traveling the world together, having adventures, helping people, being general badasses, and falling in love. I love the way Merlin and Arthur’s relationship develops throughout the story <3

Content Notes: canon-typical violence

Fanwork Links: We Can Always Run

mific

Fandom: due South
Characters/Pairings: Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski, Ray Vecchio/Stella, Benton Fraser/Ray Kowalski/Ray Vecchio
Rating: Explicit
Length: 9254
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: china_shop on AO3
Themes: Journey and Travel, Road trips, Polyamory, Action/Adventure, First time, Friends to lovers, Post-canon

Summary: Fraser finds a 1971 green Buick Riviera in Ottawa, and takes Ray Kowalski and Diefenbaker on a road trip to Florida to deliver it to Ray Vecchio.

Reccer's Notes: A rollicking tale, interestingly structured in a series of 1st person POVs moving from Ben to Ray K to Ray V. They each elaborate on different aspects of the action plot (which involves a road trip to drive the Riv from Canada down to Florida), and on the developing relationships between Ben, Ray and Ray, the Rays often dissing each other and cutting in to say "what he didn't tell you was this..."
It's fun, interesting, with great characterisation, and the non-linear structure absolutely works. During all the drama, Stella quietly breaks up with Ray V in a believable, no-fault way, and it ends happily with Ben, Ray and Ray working things out together. Excellent reading!

Fanwork Links: About a Riv

mific

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters/Pairings: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard, Walter Harriman
Rating: Gen
Length: 1000
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: Punk on AO3
Themes: Journey and Travel, Roadtrips, Established relationship, Friendship

Summary: The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step of getting Rodney McKay in the damn car.

Reccer's Notes: A fun short fic (exactly 1000 words as it was written for the "pic for 1000" challenge) where they're back on Earth and John drags Rodney away from Science for a road trip. Lovely banter and companionship, and Rodney being very Rodney. Note that if you open 'reader view' in the AO3 post you can see the prompt picture :D

Fanwork Links: Pictures from a Moving Car on AO3
Podfic read by Punk on the Audiofic Archive

birdylion

Language: German

Fandom: Lord of the Rings
Pairings/Characters: original hobbit characters, cameo of elven characters
Rating: Teen and Up Audiences
Length: 50k words
Creator Links: Ithrenwen
Theme: Journey and Travel, Pre-Canon, Backstory

Summary:
"In den ältesten Erzählungen finden sich Andeutungen, daß sie einst in den oberen Tälern des Anduin gehaust haben mußten, zwischen den Ausläufern des Großen Grünwaldes und dem Nebelgebirge. Die Gründe, warum sie später das schwierige und gefährliche Wagnis unternahmen, über das Gebirge nach Eriador zu ziehen, sind nicht mehr bekannt. Ihre eigenen Berichte erwähnen, daß sich die Menschen vermehrt hätten und ein Schatten auf den Wald gefallen ist, so daß er sich verdüsterte, und sein neuer Name war Düsterwald." (J.R.R. Tolkien, Herr der Ringe, Einführung: Über Hobbits)

Reccer's Notes: Die Geschichte beschreibt die Wanderung der Hobbits über das Nebelgebirge, die im Intro von HdR nur erwähnt ist, und deren mögliche Hintergründe. Der Fokus liegt dabei sehr stark auf der Reise und ihren Gefahren und Schwierigkeiten, denen diese Gruppe von Hobbits dabei ausgesetzt war.

English description, for the curious: The story describes how a group of hobbits made their way from the upper valleys of the Anduin, where they lived in earlier times, over the Misty Mountains. The story focuses on the travel itself and its dangers to which which this group of hobbits were subject.

Content Notes: depictions of violence and fighting, character death

Fanwork Links: "Die Wanderung" on fanfiktion.de

@runpunkrun Could you maybe add the tag "language: deutsch"?

mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, OMC
Rating: Explicit
Length: 10,048
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: LavenderProse on AO3
Themes: Journey and travel, Mutual pining, Established relationship, Huddling for warmth, Missing scenes

Summary: He crowds Shane into the hood of the car, hands up under his shirt and jacket again. October is getting cold; nights are getting colder. The places where Ilya is touching him are the only parts of Shane’s body that are warm right now. Maybe that’s why he wraps his arms around Ilya’s neck and clings to him, though he doesn’t necessarily surprise himself with it. They don’t even kiss for a moment. Ilya busies himself breathing into the crook of Shane’s neck, trying to regain control. Shane opens his eyes and gazes over Ilya’s shoulder at the dark field and realizes that an utterly foreign feeling has risen up in him. It’s Ilya’s broad shoulders and beautiful hair between Shane and the world and he feels — small. Protected.
“Oh my God,” Shane whispers, completely ashamed of the feeling and hungry for it. It curls warm in his stomach. His toes arch inside his shoes. Something about being so close to this man, something about Ilya putting himself between Shane and — the world. Whatever lurks in the deep night. It’s a feeling like a ghost, something that Shane isn’t allowed to look directly at except for moments like these. Quiet and dark.

Shane, Ilya, Vermont. Meeting in the middle.

Reccer's Notes: This is set during the episode four montage of hook-ups, with Shane and Ilya driving some distance (and in Shane's case, crossing a national border) to meet up a couple of times in Vermont, midway between Montreal and Boston. At this stage they still haven't admitted their feelings, but the logistics, and an unexpected interruption, lead to them spending more time together than usual. Excellent writing, amusing and poignant, with lovely intimacy and hotness. Great sense of place in both locations where they meet (surprisingly outdoorsy for city-boy Ilya, especially given the weather). Recommended!

Fanwork Links: I Was Raised Out in the Cold

mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, Scott Hunter/Kip Grady, Cliff Marleau, Eric Bennett, Carter Vaughn, Yuna Hollander, David Hollander, Greg Huff, JJ Boizeau, Hayden Pike, Jackie Pike, Gloria Grey, Svetlana Vetrova
Rating: Teen
Length: 6606
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: Cricket_Writes on AO3
Themes: Journeys and Travel, Road Trips, Friendship, Teams, Families of choice, AU: Fork in the road, Pining

Summary: “Holy shit,” Carter says from the stall next to Scott, also staring at his phone. “Did you all see about Rozanov and Hollander?” The way Vaughan says it, it doesn’t sound like good news. Carter thrusts his phone in Scott’s face, and he takes it, pulls it back so the headline will focus. HOCKEY STARS CAUGHT IN STEAMY AFFAIR, the headline proclaims, and Scott skims through it quickly. Rozanov and Hollander, years—years?!—worth of videos and photos leaked. Scott is in an NHL locker room, watching his worst nightmare happen to someone else. Holy shit.

Reccer's Notes: This is a reversal of canon, as Shane and Ilya are outed much earlier and that kick-starts Scott into coming out and resolving things with Kip. After the public outing, Scott, Carter and Eric embark on a long (there and back) road trip from New York to Shane and Ilya's very suddenly organised wedding in Montreal. It's a lovely fic told from Scott's POV, in which Shane and Ilya are crucial but largely in the background, and are overwhelmed by the support of their friends, teams, and family, while Scott finally gathers the courage to love Kip openly.

Fanwork Links: Scott Hunter's Life-Changing Road Trip

full_metal_ox

Fandom: Mo Dao Zu Shi
Pairings/Characters: M/M; Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji/Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 57 words; 26:47
Content Notes: No AO3 Warnings Apply; winter weather as relentless atmosphere and adversary; public transportation as a liminal zone; possible unreality—the situation is open to interpretation.
Creator Tags:
Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Podfic, Podfic Length: 20-30 Minutes, Audio Format: MP3, Audio Format: Streaming, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending
Creator Links: (AO3)

flamingwell, (Tumblr)

flamingwell
Theme: Journey & Travel, Hurt/Comfort, Inspired Work, Modern AU, Non-Fic Recs: Fanart, Non-Fic Recs: Podfics

(Image description (Cut for length): ( Continue. )

Summary: When he came to, the bus was on the freeway. The windows were dewed with drops of melted snow that shone with captured light. Outside, traffic was at a standstill. Dingy slush covered the roads, gradually accumulating as snow drifted down from the woolen sky, the flakes picked out in sharp contrast where they plunged into the light of streetlamps and headlights. Wei WuXian laughed softly to see it. When he turned away from the window, he saw that the beautiful man from earlier was still sitting next to him, watching him with an expression that might, optimistically, be called inquisitive.

“The snow,” Wei WuXian said, gesturing outside. “It looks like champagne bubbles, only going the wrong way.” He laughed again, and rubbed his head. “Have you ever felt drunk, but been pretty sure you weren't drinking? Haha, no, never mind me. I'm just tired.” He rubbed a hand over his face, wanting desperately to sleep.

Podfic of Night Bus by Suspicious_Popsicle.

Author’s Notes: (Cut for length): ( Continue. )

Reccer's Notes: Suspicious_Popsicle’s tale of an encounter between a sore-pressed traveler and a mysterious benefactor in an isolated and enveloping environment, with the ambiguity of possible supernature in play and a twist ending that leaves room for continuing speculation, has many of the elements of a classic Old-Time Radio drama, in the fashion of Quiet, Please or Lights Out!

flamingwell understood the assignment. Her delicate and hushed narrative voice is a perfect vehicle for the subject, animated by Wei Wuxian’s nervous chatter—gradually devolving from restless to febrile to fading—and punctuated by Lan Wangji’s dark temple-bell solemnity.

Fanwork Links: [Podfic] Night Bus, by

flamingwell: https://archiveofourown.org/works/77059901
Collections:
Mic-bearing Podtriarchs
Voiceteam Mystery Box 2025

birdylion

Fandom: Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, The Silmarillion
Pairings/Characters: Belladonna Took
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 11440 words
Creator Links:

Thimblerig
Theme: Journey & Travel, Action/Adventure, Backstory, Epistolary, Female Characters, Gen, Pre-Canon

Summary:
Gandalf exclaimed once: 'That I should live to be 'Good morninged' by a son of Belladonna Took!' Bilbo's mum has a story to tell and this is it. Holidays by the Sea, Elves, and much Falling in the Water.

Reccer's Notes:
This is such a lovely story about Belladonna Took, an adventurous hobbit herself. We read/hear it as she writes it down while pregnant with Bilbo, and she tells the story of a journey she took when she was younger and "less respectable". It's an action adventure and quite fun to read and listen to, a really nice background for her.

Fanwork Links: My Adventure, by Belladonna Baggins nee Took on ao3
Podfic of My Adventure, by Belladonna Baggins nee Took read by the author

birdylion

Fandom: Lord of the Rings
Pairings/Characters: Boromir; Faramir, Aragorn, OCs
Rating: Teen and Up Audiences
Length: 95,516 words
Creator Links:

Scribbler
Theme: Journey & Travel
Previously recommended by

beatrice_otter for the themes pre-AO3, fixit AU, plotty fic, novel-length, family (link to rec)

Summary:
Against all odds, Boromir survives Amon Hen. Ashamed and filled with remorse, he goes on a quest for redemption. Bound by his promise to a sick man, Faramir keeps the secret of his brother's survival. But as secrets are wont to do, the truth comes out eventually and Aragorn journeys north to bring Gondor's prodigal son home.

Reccer's Notes:
Although previously recommended for other themes, this fic is perfect for Journey and Travel as we follow Boromir's travels through Gondor and beyond while he tries to regain the honor he feels he lost on Amon Hên. Again and again he meets new people and sees how the war impacted their lives.
The story encapsulates the aspect of "wandering" that first drew me to LotR: how immediate the surroundings are when you're out by yourself, how much shelter and food matter for this kind of travel, or weather and season. The story spans over a few years, during which he sometimes stays in a place for a few months, often out of necessity. I love how the story shows the physicality of Middle Earth, so to speak. You can feel the distances.

Content Notes

Among other things, this story contains
- canon-typical violence
- death of a beloved pet

Fanwork Links: The Long Road Home on ao3

mific

Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Characters/Pairings: John Sheppard/Rodney McKay
Rating: Teen
Length: 5473
Content Notes: no AO3 warnings apply
Creator Links: trinityofone on AO3
Themes: Journeys and Travel, Road trips, First time, Friends to lovers, Pining

Summary: “Don’t be silly,” John says. “You’re Bob and I’m Bing; now get in the car and let’s go find ourselves a Dorothy.”

Reccer's Notes: A classic road trip fic, with John and Rodney meandering across the USA toward California. Eventually, after some pining on John's part, the inevitable happens and the trip becomes a metaphor for them wandering towards each other.

Fanwork Links: Looking for Lamour

full_metal_ox

Fandom: Mo Dao Zu Shi
Pairings/Characters: M/M; Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji/Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 3,343
Content Notes: No AO3 Warnings Apply; winter weather as relentless atmosphere and adversary; public transportation as a liminal zone; possible unreality—the situation is open to interpretation.
Creator Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting
Creator Links: (AO3–locked)

Suspicious_Popsicle, (Dreamwidth)

suspicious_popsicle,(Tumblr-locked)

suspiciouspopsicle

Theme: Journey & Travel, Hurt/Comfort, Modern AU

Summary: When he came to, the bus was on the freeway. The windows were dewed with drops of melted snow that shone with captured light. Outside, traffic was at a standstill. Dingy slush covered the roads, gradually accumulating as snow drifted down from the woolen sky, the flakes picked out in sharp contrast where they plunged into the light of streetlamps and headlights. Wei WuXian laughed softly to see it. When he turned away from the window, he saw that the beautiful man from earlier was still sitting next to him, watching him with an expression that might, optimistically, be called inquisitive.

“The snow,” Wei WuXian said, gesturing outside. “It looks like champagne bubbles, only going the wrong way.” He laughed again, and rubbed his head. “Have you ever felt drunk, but been pretty sure you weren't drinking? Haha, no, never mind me. I'm just tired.” He rubbed a hand over his face, wanting desperately to sleep.

Author’s Notes: For firesonic152.
For my friend, who got stuck on a bus and sent me photos. XD

(See the end of the work for other works inspired by this one.)

Reccer's Notes: A modern AU account of a snowy night when Lan Wangji serves as Public Transit Guardian Angel to an exhausted, dissociating, and hypothermic Wei Wuxian—who has been in far more trouble than he realizes.

(Until the summer of 2023, shanks’ mare and Dayton, Ohio’s city bus system were my primary modes of transportation. This hazy grey winter ghost-story-or-is-it? is anchored in Suspicious_Popsicle’s concrete lived-in detail, nailing the experience of looping interminably around just to shelter from the elements, waiting for the next opportunity for a stop or transfer (better hope you have at least a day pass and a sympathetic driver, and that you don’t drowse off again!) And of trudging wearily forward through the hostile frigid weather in sodden Vimes’ Boots! Boots! Boots!

Suffice to say that the idea of rescue by a steadfast, devoted, and ethereally handsome Saint Bernard held a profound appeal.)

(This hits similar narrative pressure points to

willowcatkin’s Guardian fic The White Umbrella, recced here.)

Fanwork Links: (AO3-locked): Night Bus, by

Suspicious_Popsicle : https://archiveofourown.org/works/16792465
Collections: fics that cured ser’s depression
Inspired Works:
Little Talks, by

firesonic152.
[Podfic] Night Bus, by

flamingwell.

sasheneskywalker

Fandom: Bungou Stray Dogs
Pairings/Characters: Dazai Osamu/Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Dazai Osamu & Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Length: 57,127 words
Creator Links:

valleykey
Theme: journey & travel, trans & non-binary characters, ambiguous relationships, non-sexual intimacy, road trips, hurt/comfort

Summary: Fyodor’s weak heart thuds violently within its cage of flesh and bone, ba-thump. Dazai’s knife kisses cold on the skin of their throat. They swallow, and the bob of their Adam’s apple against it draws blood.

“Alright,” Fyodor decides, “let’s find a way to die.”

// In the Decay’s aftermath, Fyodor and Dazai quietly slip through the cracks, and set on a journey.

Reccer's Notes: After Fyodor’s defeat, Dazai agrees to a double suicide instead of killing him and the two set off on an unexpected road trip. It’s a fantastic exploration of Dazai and Fyodor’s characters and their relationship. The themes of recovery, philosophy, religion, disability, gender, mental health issues, codependency, and intimacy are handled beautifully, and the writing is absolutely gorgeous <3

Content Notes: suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, self harm, right to suicide stuff, progressive & disabling genetic condition, religious elements, codependency, more detailed content notes in the author's notes

Fanwork Links: tell me we do not live in vain

birdylion

Fandom: Schitt's Creek
Pairings/Characters: David Rose/Patrick Brewer
Rating: Mature
Length: 30758 words, 2:56h podfic
Creator Links: written by

MoreHuman, podfic available by

Amanita_Fierce
Theme: Journey & Travel, Canon LGBTQ+ characters, AU

Summary:
It’s an attractive thought, that changing your life could be as easy as doing a hard thing.

Instead of moving to Schitt’s Creek, Patrick decides to hike fifteen hundred miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, through the wilderness, alone. He ends up meeting someone else with something to prove.

Reccer's Notes:
This someone, obviously, being David Rose. The story has them meeting while both solo-hiking the PCT and running into each other again and again. The "Journey and Travel" part is not just a backdrop for a different first meeting and getting together. Instead, the difficulties they face on their journey feel true to my experience of long distance hiking in spirit if not in detail, loving and awe-inspiring descriptions of the landscape included.

The fic also inspired a very well produced podfic that is 100% worth listening to if you like podfics.

Fanwork Links: Fifteen Hundred Miles on ao3
podfic of Fifteen Hundred Miles on ao3

runpunkrun

Photograph of things you might take with you, or pick up, on a trip, with added text: Journey & Travel, at Fancake. Items are neatly arranged on a rustic wooden table or door and photographed from above: hat, knapsack, barn coat, worn boots, folding knife, sunglasses, bottle, magnifying glass, as well as various maps, notebooks, pine cones, cameras, lenses, and rolls of 35mm film.

runpunkrun

Poll #34603 round 187 theme poll

This poll is closed.
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: Just the Poll Creator, participants: 105

Pick the next theme of fancake:

Just Like Canon
42 (40.0%)

Power Dynamics
38 (36.2%)

Whump
25 (23.8%)

mific

Fandom: Heated Rivalry
Characters/Pairings: Shane Hollander/Ilya Rozanov, Hayden Pike, Wyatt Hayes
Rating: Explicit
Length: 7060
Content Notes: Underage, as both Shane and Ilya are seventeen.
Creator Links: toomuchplor on AO3
Themes: Journey and travel, Forced proximity, First time, AU: Fork in the road

Summary: Regina to Edmonton was nine hours by bus if the weather was decent; it took a bit longer if — for example — your bus lost power on Highway 11 just past Dundurn, Saskatchewan.

Team buses, night drives, and one way things might have started differently.

Reccer's Notes:
This is a lovely story about Shane and Ilya as teens, just after the first World Juniors Cup, being forced into proximity on a long nighttime bus ride. The inevitable happens, and it kick-starts their relationship and their friendship at a much earlier stage, allowing them to rewrite the MLH's narrative. Told from Shane's pov, with wonderful characterisation and details.

Fanwork Links: Torture Me (With All I’ve Wanted)
Podfic read by mific

sasheneskywalker

Fandom: Batman - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Pairings/Characters: James "Bucky" Barnes/Jason Todd
Rating: Explicit
Length: 77,145 words
Creator Links:

there_must_be_a_lock
Theme: journey & travel, crossovers/fusions, crossover pairings, slow burn, angst with a happy ending

Summary: Bucky’s been running for a week when the supposedly-untraceable burner phone he stole from a Hydra warehouse starts ringing. He’s in a gas station bathroom off a remote highway close to the Croatian border, getting ready to bleach his hair; the ringtone bounces shrilly off the bare tiles and makes his jaw clench tight.

[Or: the one where Bucky is hired to train Jason, and he ends up learning a thing or two himself.]

Reccer's Notes: One of the best DC/MCU crossover fics I've ever read. I love how the fic explores Jason's and Bucky's perspectives on love, sex, romance, intimacy, trauma, and relationships <3

Content Notes: discussion of past suicidal thoughts, discussion of past underage sex work, allusions to past torture and present canon-typical violence

Fanwork Links: If It's A Highway

kingstoken

Fandom: Doctor Who
Pairings/Characters: Twelve/Missy (but also Doctor/Master generally)
Rating: Not Rated
Length: 121,404 words
Creator Links: yonderdarling
Theme: Journey & Travel, getting back together

Summary: "He's sitting in a cafe in Vichy France (he was aiming for 2042) and waiting for his lunch when Missy plops down in the chair opposite him." This is an idea they've had before, it's just the first time they've both been able to consider it. The Doctor and Missy try travelling together.

Reccer's Notes: After Twelve loses Clara, Twelve and Missy try travelling together through space and time. Reading Missy and Twelve together in the TARDIS is a delight. However, the fic digs into the complicated nature of their relationship, gives them a rather tragic backstory, and focuses how they deal with things as they start falling into a romantic relationship and the consequences of that.

Fanwork Links: AO3

zorbo_jorks

Fandom: Gorillaz (Virtual Band)
Pairings/Characters: Murdoc Niccals/Stuart "2D" Pot, Various OCs, Hannibal Niccals, Noodle, Russel Hobbs
Rating: Explicit
Length: 298,396 words (26 Chapters)
Creator Links: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sonatas/pseuds/sonatas
Theme: journey & travel

Summary: When a phone call informing him of his father’s death sends him on an unexpected and unwanted trip back to his childhood home, Murdoc finds himself confronted with more questions about his origins than he ever could have anticipated. Who knew a couple of shoe boxes, left to gather dust in his father’s closet, could contain such heart-wrenching secrets. And why is 2D so invested? Post-canon. 2Doc.

Reccer's Notes: I have just recently started peeking into this fandom, and did not realize that this is one of the Big Fics for the pairing until after I finished it, but it's so earned! The story pulled me along the whole way: imagine a world-wide road trip where every party is kind of miserable, and there are occult curses and ghosts chasing them the whole time! Great world-building and mystery elements too, and pique character work and dramatic tension!
There is a lot of fanart embedded throughout, as well, which is such a treat!

Content Notes: violence & injury, drug abuse, addiction, and grief, and past child abuse, CSA and adult SA

Fanwork Links: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11767422/chapters/26527818

writtenwordsaloud

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel
Pairings/Characters: Valentino & Velvette & Vox, Valentino/Vox
Rating: M
Length: 7634
Creator Link: auxkabel (cablecurrent)
Theme: journey & travel

Summary: Some people lose their heads. Vox loses his body. It’s a sex thing.

Or: while Vox is busy making sure Valentino Day goes smoothly, his meatsuit departs on an epic journey across the Pentagram. Now it’s up to Valentino, Velvet and Vox’s head to find the damn thing before something bad happens to it.

Reccer's Notes: Can't usually find much travelling with Sinners in Hazbin, but it definitely counts when some Overlords have to go around on foot to find someone body.

For after reading

First of all, Val being angry that he can't find Vox's body instead of concerned brings me great joy. As if Vox did it all on purpose.

I have to think about all the other reasons (other than Alastor) that Vox would have for letting his body do whatever it wants when his consciousness appears to remain with his body at all times. Does he get to choose where his mind stays? In which case, the body that "wines and dines" Val is only less important because Vox's consciousness isn't in it.

And we know Vox would love Val even as a worm. He would hate loving him as a worm, but he would.

Velvette shaming Val is so tasty. Shaming Vox? Yes, of course. But fixing Val with the disappointed look is so much funnier in this context.

I'm so freaking happy Charlie's first reaction was that Vox's body was a Dullahan. There is a version of this fic where Angel wasn't around to inform them it was Vox, leaving Charlie and Vaggie to go on an adventure to find a head and making it even harder for the Vees to find him.

The goat demon is a freaking boss. Risking talking back to the Vees, considering he actually knows that's who he is talking to. What a hero. Who else of his level could get Val to kiss them?

And I'm glad Maggot Mary seems to have what she wants in order. Her body really does seem like one of the worst punishments Hell could have provided someone. How often does she die and have to reconstitute? I want to know what her guard dogs are like.

So many people might construe calling someone's body "our things" as dehumanizing, but considering it's Velvette saying it Vox indeed has the money on the mark. It's her attempt at being flippant while she indeed cares about him. After all, why would Velvette have bothered putting this much time in otherwise? Even with putting out fires.

In the end, of course Charlie lets him keep the nightgown so he doesn't have to go home nude. And Velvette doesn't bother to give him another outfit to wear. Going for takeout and straight home is such a boon for Vox as well. You know if Velvette wasn't busy she would have wanted to spend some time threatening Vox with having him go into a restaurant like this.

I love to consider what S2 would have been like if this had happened first: because Alastor then wouldn't have Vox to fall upon to get him out of his deal with Rosie, Vox couldn't insult the hotel while convincing people to rise up against Heaven, and it would have been perhaps a somewhat more lighthearted comedy before Vox blew a hole in Heaven.

Fanwork link: Put Your Head On My Shoulder

dickinsons

Fandom: Downton Abbey
Pairings/Characters: Thomas Barrow/Jimmy Kent, Lady Anstruther, OCs
Rating:T
Length: 79,395
Creator Links: Laramie, LinkWorshiper (AO3)
Theme: journey & travel

Summary: Though Jimmy Kent has found success and fortune since moving on from Downton, he has never been able to forgive Lady Anstruther for the troubles she's caused him in the past. Motivated by a burning desire for revenge, Jimmy takes action - and enlists the help of the one person he's ever trusted. Naturally that person is Thomas Barrow.

Reccer's Notes: This fic has romance, a revenge plot, and mystery fiction elements, all while the characters travel to China. It's a really fun read.

Fanwork Links: Slow Boat to China

full_metal_ox

Fandom: “The Last Saskatchewan Pirate” (Arrogant Worms song; Captain Tractor cover)
Pairings/Characters: Gen; OCs of assorted genders.
Rating: General Audiences
Length: 4:13
Content Notes: The OP identifies the song as by the Arrogant Worms—who originated it, but the version used here is Captain Tractor’s cover.
Creator Links: (YouTube):

vinnyreid

Theme: Journey & Travel, Fanvid, Just Plain Fun, Kidfic (child performers), Old Fandoms, Pre-AO3 Works

Summary: This is a video that I made with some of the students from the youth group back in April 2003. Its pretty cheezy, but we had lots of fun making it and still get a laugh out of watching it. Hope you enjoy it too. The song is "The Last Saskatchewan Pirate" by the Arrogant Worms.

Watch on YouTube

Reccer's Notes: This is an exercise in how to make a killer fanvid on a backyard budget—propelled by the sheer exuberant glee of the kid pirates running amuck and by the masterfully edited nonstop action—Benny Hillesque chase scenes, sword fights, and Scooby Dooby Doors. (Note in particular the inventive use of camera angles and farm and playground architecture to create the impression that they actually have a ship.)

Things I Learned in the process of fact-checking this post: “The Last Saskatchewan Pirate” has become such an anthem for Saskatchewanians (and Canadians in general) that it’s taught in grade-school music classes! (It’s also a compelling fantasy to lots of non-Canadian dwellers in regions marked by farming and economic disgruntlement; The Longest Johns (of viral “Wellerman” fame) have localized it accordingly.)

I would have added “a large local body of water”, but it turns out that part of the regional in-joke is that Regina (“Regina’s mighty shores”), the provincial capitol, is in a landlocked part of Saskatchewan; the Jolly Roger is a legendary dive bar there.

Reid doesn’t specify the affiliation of the youth group, but the censorship of the word “damn” leads me to suspect a church.

Fanwork Links: The Last Saskatchewan Pirate (fanvid), by Kevin Reid and his youth group: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHAl1tWvvPA

Current Location: Chalchiuhtlicueyecatl‘s mighty shores.
Current Music: Implicit in the subject.

vamp_ress

Fandom: The Lord of the Rings RPF
Pairings/Characters: Viggo Mortensen/Orlando Bloom
Rating: Explicit
Length: 30.000 words
Creator Links: lennongirl on AO3
Theme: Journey & Travel

Summary: AU: Orlando and Viggo meet in Spain under strange circumstances and travel through Europe together in Viggo's truck, getting to know each other and themselves.

Reccer's Notes: This is an old comfort fic that I used to read and re-read all the time back in the day. It's 30.000 words of both road trip and falling in love and that combination is simply too charming for its own good. You'll get to see quite a bit of Europe in the story as this starts out in Spain and and ends in Denmark. And to keep readers in the know there's a map of the characters' journey/progress at the end of each chapter. This story is fluffy and romantic and adventurous - simply the best combination of all the ingredients!

Fanwork Links: The Journey is the Destination on AO3

runpunkrun

Our theme for May is journey & travel!

The tag for this round is: theme: journey & travel

If you're just joining us, be sure to check out our policy on content notes. Content notes aren't required, but they're nice to include in your recs, especially if a fanwork has untagged content that readers may wish to know about in advance.

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