Rec-cember Day 15: Firefly
Dec. 15th, 2025 10:44 pmA quick one, because tonight I'm shattered. In the unlikely event someone isn't familiar with the show or the movie, Fanlore has a good rundown.
My main ship back then was Mal/River (now that I'm older I'm slightly squicked by the age difference though River is so much more powerful that Mal that this redresses the balance a little), so my recs reflect this. Also, Firefly seems to be the little black dress of crossovers, as it goes well with any fandom. I remember reading loads of very fun crossovers, unfortunately I had only a handful saved in my bookmarks.
No Power In the 'Verse by vialethe. 24K words. Mal/River. Having no choice but to feel, River cherishes all the more deeply the ability to act. If only she knew what action to take." A believable and gorgeously written take on this unlikely pairing. Very good River voice, which must be a bitch to get right.
I Fall by Kass. Mal/River. River knows what she wants. Probably the first story that made me fall for this pairing. It's adorable how persistent River has to be and how flustered Mal is.
Whiskey and Wry by musesfool Mal/River. There's a difference between what a man wants and what he knows is right. Exquisite yearning, lovely character voices.
Good Luck Charms by Nary. Pre-series Wash/Zoe. Lovely backstory for one of the best married couples in TV.
And Then It Went all F*ing Stargate by indyhat. Firefly/Generation Kill. Gen. Spot-on character voices. Hilarious.
The Pitt
never waste a Friday night by morphosynctactic. Trinity/Whitaker. Don't hit the back button! I know they have siblings vibes. Yet this works. It's tremendously in character. And hot. And sweet. And hilarious. You would think that sleeping with Trinity Santos (who isn't actually that into him) would rip Dennis' self-esteem to shreds. But it turns out that when she texts him "i thought your dick was going to be kind of weird but it’s pretty solid” and "your fingerblasting is adequate" he knows that's the truth and nothing but the truth.
[ SECRET POST #6919 ]
Dec. 15th, 2025 03:43 pm⌈ Secret Post #6919 ⌋
Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.
01.

( More! )
Notes:
Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 47 secrets from Secret Submission Post #988.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
The January Meme Strikes Back
Dec. 15th, 2025 07:17 pmThey will probably be brief, or not, depending on the subject. Also, I reserve the right to decline prompts that I don't feel equipped to meet.
Topics: you can get an idea from my tags/from the stuff I usually ramble about/from things you maybe wish I talked about more but don't. Also, please feel free to check out the 2025 meme, the 2024 meme, the 2023 January meme, the2022 January meme, the 2021 January Meme, the January Meme: 2020 Edition, the 2019 one, the 2018 meme, the 2017 edition , and the 2016 January meme to see which topics I've written about in past years.
January 1 -
January 2 - Five places everyone should visit in Germany (
January 3 - Which incarnations of the Doctor would get on best with which Starfleet Captains of Star Trek? (
January 4 -
January 5 -
January 6 -
January 7 -
January 8 -
January 9 -
January 10 -
January 11 -
January 12 -
January 13 -
January 14 -
January 15 -
January 16 -
January 17 -
January 18 -
January 19 -
January 20 -
January 21 -
January 22 -
January 23 -
January 24 -
January 25 -
January 26 -
January 27 -
January 28 -
January 29 -
January 30 -
January 31 -
A few of my favourite Christmas songs
Dec. 15th, 2025 03:56 pmThis is the Swedish version of O Holy Night Jussi Björling is considered one of the best opera singers Sweden has ever produced.
( Read more... )
Mon nouveau fandom - Bungou Stray Dogs
Dec. 15th, 2025 02:47 pmEst-ce que je trouve que c'est objectivement bon ? Malheureusement je n'en suis pas certaine. ^^ Mais il y a des bonnes choses dedans, et il y a des choses faites pour moi dedans !

Alors, de quoi ça parle ? Bungou Stray Dogs
* Est une série de super-pouvoirs (j'aime les séries de super-pouvoirs) où tous les personnages ont des noms d'auteurs classiques (fin du 19e-début du 20e), et où leurs super-pouvoirs sont inspirés par le titre d'une de leurs oeuvres (seulement le titre, même si le scénario influence sur la personnalité du personnage). Par exemple, John Steinbeck a un pouvoir qui s'appelle "Les raisins de la colère" qui lui permet de contrôler les plantes. Comme 75% des personnages sont japonais, cela montre à chaque page que je ne connais rien en littérature classique japonaise, mais qu'est-ce que ça donne envie d'en lire !
* Leurs vêtements sont tellement cool. Je plaisante souvent que c'est la seule série de super-pouvoirs que je connais où les personnages sont bien habillés :D
* Dans la saison 1, les héros sont une agence de détectives basée à Yokohama, et l'ennemi principal est établi comme la mafia locale. Dans toutes les autres saisons, les héros passent leur temps à s'allier avec la mafia, souvent contre leur gré, contre des méchants plus dangereux. Vous n'avez pas idée à quel point c'est un de mes tropes préférés et à quel point il est satisfaisant ici.
* Les personnages ont aussi tous des problèmes et des traumatismes divers et variés, ce qui fait qu'on ne s'y attache pas toujours au premier abord mais une fois qu'on est dedans, ils sont d'autant plus savoureux.
* En particulier l'auteur adore écrire des obsessions pas vraiment shippy mais pas 100% gen aussi, qui sont totalement ce que j'aime, et il les écrit pareil en m/f et en m/m (j'ai eu plusieurs moments où je réalisais que non, un ship m/f n'étais pas caoniquement romantique, après que l'auteur sort des tropes semblables en m/m) et c'est très réjouissant. Pas de f/f, malheureusement. L'état des auteures femmes en littérature classique peut être assez dramatique.
Sinon, pourquoi je ne dis pas que je recommande :
* Certains personnages au début sont assez caricaturaux. J'aurais aimé pouvoir dire que quand on revoit, on se rend compte que ce n'était qu'une impression, que la profondeur était déjà là, mais cachée, mais en fait pas tant que ça. J'aurais aimé que les pulsions suicidaires de Dazai ne soient pas traitées comme une grosse blaque au début, je pourrais me passer des blagues d'inceste et de pédophilie, et... vous voyez l'idée. Je ne dis pas que ce n'est pas drôle, il y a des blagues qui marchent totalement sur moi ! Mais pas toutes, loin de là !
* L'auteur adore faire des confrontations entre personnages super-intelligents, et parfois ça marche ! Aussi, j'adore les façons créatives dont ils peuvent utiliser leurs pouvoirs parfois ! Mais parfois aussi beaucoup moins, un "ha ha j'avais prévu que tu allais faire ça - oui mais moi aussi j'avais prévu" qui ne sort de nulle part.
* Et puis il y a un méchant dans un arc récent que j'ai trouvé ennuyeux, j'étais très déçue.
Détails techniques :
* Il y a un manga en cours, qui fait 27 tomes, mais (je cite la personne qui me l'a recommandé) si on ne lit que le manga il est recommandé de lire aussi les romans qui se passent dans le même monde, qui apportent des éléments de background importants.
* On peut voir l'anime à la place (5 saisons, en cours) ! Les génériques de début sont super, et il adapte trois des romans importants (peut-être plus dans le futur) et a un film original, mais aussi il y a des répliques qu'il coupe et c'est dommage.
* Ca semble un fouillis infâme ? Ca l'est. Ca m'a découragée pendant un moment. Mais heureusement je suis à fond et rien ne m'empêche de lire le manga et regarder l'anime. Je suis en train de lire les romans qui n'ont pas été adaptés dans l'anime en ce moment même ^^;;
Shipping !
* Il y a plein d'options de shipping, mais mon histoire personnelle consiste à passer les deux premières saisons de l'anime à être là "arrêtez de faire des génériques de fin comme si c'était un maudit triangle amoureux gay, c'est une série de super-pouvoirs".
Et puis
Arrivée à la saison 3
"Oh non je shippe ce maudit triangle amoureux gay très fort, pas vrai ?"
( Plus de détails sous le cut )
The Endie Awards 2025 - TTRPG I have enjoyed & New Year Resolution
Dec. 15th, 2025 06:55 pmSuperhero DIY Award:
See Issue X is a solo superhero RPG that emulate superhero comics. It uses playing cards to help generate characters and plot prompts. The mechanic is kind of complicated - I was confused how to deal with discarded cards at first. However, it provides a clear act structure and freedom for you to decide what prompts to use/ignore. I have generated my environmentalist Aquawoman superheroine who fights to protect the ocean and enjoyed the twists.
One More Tea Award
Last Tea Shop Complete is a solo RPG that you run a tea shop on the border of the living and the dead. The recently deceased visit for one last hot drink before their long journey into the Great Beyond. It's very reflective and meditative. It's fun to generate the vistors, and decide what tea to serve them (with different story effects).
Reincarnated as the Unlovable Villainess?! is a solo RPG that you are isekaied as the doomed villain protagonist in an otome game. I really like it. It's short but has a good balance of strategy elements (to survive to the end) and journalling elements. It's both a love letter to the genre and an enjoyable game.
New Year Resolution
I have just bought For Small Creatures Such As We, a 256 page solo ttrpg about a space ship captain and their alien crews. It's more structured and detailed than the above titles, but I hope I can start a game soon.
Short TV show review: Andor
Dec. 14th, 2025 11:11 pmRec-cember Day 13 : Suits
Dec. 14th, 2025 10:47 pmThis is not a fandom I was much obsessed with. The tv show was all right, in its early seasons at least, eminently watchable. Not something I've ever wished to revisit. However I remember enjoying some of the fic back in the day.
Only one has withstood the test of time. needs must by thatotherperv. 98K Harvey/Mike. Extremely explicit. When Grammy needs an upgrade in care, Mike knows that the usual one-off gig as a paid submissive won't be enough. He takes a job he's been refusing for a while - a long-term, full-time contract. He expects his client to be a sadistic asshole. He expects not to like it. He's wrong on both counts. It's an AU where Mike is a prostitute. Dom/sub. Now, BDSM is totally not my cup of tea, but this fic does such a great job of explaining this dynamic that I could totally see the appeal. Also, everything is perfectly in character. And there's lots of plot (the first two seasons are basically re-written, IIRC). And emotional growth. Plus, it comes in podfic form too, read by the crazily-talented
dodificus. I lost count of how many times I listened to this story and every damn time it grabs me by the throat and never lets me go for the whole 11 hours of it.
I quite like Donna/Harvey as a pairing, unfortunately it was never very popular in the fandom. I remember being so happy when I found this little gem: Happy To See Me by Zinnith (I originally had bookmarked on LJ, just to give you an idea of how old some of my fic recs are; it was easy enough to track down in the Ao3 too, though). Great character voices and lovely, lyrical prose.
The Pitt
One of the aspects that made the previous Dom/sub story work for me was how explicit and detailed the kink negotiation was. That reminded me of an excellent fic that hinges on that very concept in this fandom: Red Light, Green Light by avocadomoon. Now, it's avocadomoon, the BNF author for Kingdon, so I don't think I have to say more. Her fic are consistently the ones with the highest number of hits on the Ao3 for a reason. Anyway, for my DW friends who are not into the Pitt, this story features Mel and Langdon becoming friends-with-benefits. I'm making this sound boring. It's so much fun. I always giggle when I re-read certain parts.
[ SECRET POST #6918 ]
Dec. 14th, 2025 03:56 pm⌈ Secret Post #6918 ⌋
Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.
01.

( More! )
Notes:
Secrets Left to Post: 03 pages, 58 secrets from Secret Submission Post #988.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
Rec-cember Day 12: Winter's Orbit by Everina Maxwell
Dec. 14th, 2025 06:18 pmThis is a sci-fi romance? Space opera, I think, technically. I know, it sounds weird as a combo, but it totally works. One of my all-time favourite m/m romance books. It's not a big surprise, when you learn it started out as original fanfiction on the Ao3. I'd actually read it back then and liked it. When it was published I bought it just because I was happy to be able to support one fanfic writer, thinking I wouldn't get much out of the book since I'd already read it...Boy, was I wrong. The worldbuilding had been increased a lot, adding a lot of politics. well, intergalactic, alien politics, but still messy human politics at its core. And I adore politics when it is a) fictional b) integral to the plot c) well-written. ANyway, at its core it's a tropetastic love story, (arranged marriage!There was only one sleeping bag! Grump/sunshine pairing). I adore these two characters. Blurb from GoodReads
While the Iskat Empire has long dominated the system through treaties and political alliances, several planets, including Thea, have begun to chafe under Iskat's rule. When tragedy befalls Imperial Prince Taam, his Thean widower, Jainan, is rushed into an arranged marriage with Taam's cousin, the disreputable Kiem, in a bid to keep the rising hostilities between the two worlds under control.
But when it comes to light that Prince Taam's death may not have been an accident, and that Jainan himself may be a suspect, the unlikely pair must overcome their misgivings and learn to trust one another as they navigate the perils of the Iskat court, try to solve a murder, and prevent an interplanetary war... all while dealing with their growing feelings for each other.
Is the new Prince Kiem Here To Stay?. 1.6K. Exclusive interview by Hani Sereson Jainan/Kiem. Outsider's POV. This is written as a newspaper article (by a canon journalist). Soooo IC and a lot of fun. It's a perfect epilogue, imho.
And Indeed There Will Be Time. 5.4K words. Jaina/Kiem, explicit. a little of what happened in those three days after they were rescued from the mountains. The sex scenes in the books are fade-to-black, so this awesome fic author took it upon themselves to give us some hot smut that can slot perfectly into canon. :D
The Pitt
Let Me by baeksoolatte. 6k words. Mateo Diaz/Cassie McKay, explicit.
“I heard from Dana,” Cassie says after a beat, voice light but with an edge like she’s tossing a grenade wrapped in ribbon. “Apparently Victoria Javadi has a crush on you.”
Mateo groans. “Jesus.”
“She says you don’t date coworkers.”
“I don’t,” he says, glancing at her. “But if I were going to… date one…”
Cassie looks at him sidelong, smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I know.” She doesn’t say no. She never says no. “Mateo, it’s not a good idea.”
This my faveourite rarepair in the fandom. There are 9, NINE stories in the tag at the Ao3. I weep. This pairing has so much potential! Age gap. Hot, jaded older woman, super hot younger man. They are friends in canon. This fic explores the potential between them so beautifully. Gah. I want more!!Christmas recipes
Dec. 14th, 2025 05:43 pmGlögg is a Swedish mulled wine that has been drunk since at least the Middle Ages. The word comes from the older glödg, which simply means heated. Nowadays it is traditionally served in December. Though you can buy it readymade, I always make my own, as I find the bought stuff too sweet.
½ bottle brandy
1 bottle red wine
1 bottle port wine (I use the cheapest possible of all three bottles of alcohol, as the spices dominate the flavour.)
25 grams of whole cinnamon
10 grams of whole cardamon seeds
10 grams of whole cloves
300 grams granulated sugar
15 centiliters of water
Lightly crush the whole spices and mix with the brandy After 1-3 days, strain and mix the brandy with the red wine and the port wine. Dissolve the sugar in the water on low heat, and add to the alcohol. Now it’s done, and just needs to be bottled. Will keep for several years.
Serve heated in small cups with whole almonds and raisins. Usually with gingerbread cookies and ”lussekatter” (saffron buns) to eat with it. In Sweden you can buy special cups for it, but cups meant for Turkish coffee are the perfect size.
The discarded spices can be re-used in a simmer pot.
You can play around with the recipe, and add other spices. This year I added two star anises and two tonka beans, some black pepper and allspice. Vanilla bean and dried orange peel can also be added. And you can use any sugar you like, this year it was a mix of rock sugar and some tonka-infused sugar.

Gingerbread
Mix together:
150 grams softened butter
2 ½ dl sugar
Add
½ dl golden golden syrup
1 dl cold water
Mix together in another bowl
8 dl white flour
1 tbl ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cardamon
1 tsp ground clove
1 ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
Slowly as the flour mix to the wet ingredients until a dough is formed. Cover the bowl and let it rest in the fridge overnight, at least for 12 hours. Remove about an hour before you plan to bake. Roll out very thinly, like 2-3 mm and cut out with cookie cutters. Heat the oven to 175C and bake for 6-7 minutes.
If you wish you can decorate with frosting. The traditional shapes of the cookie cutters are hearts, men, women, pigs and billy goats, but whatever shape you want is fine. I have collected a lot over the years, but my favorites are a pig and a man cutter that once belonged to one of my great-grandmothers, so it’s over a 100 years old.
TIP: These cookies are a hassle to move to the baking sheet as they are so thin. So I roll out the dough directly on a silicone baking mat so I don’t have to move them.

Knäck (Christmas Butterscotch)
This is a traditional Christmas candy. “Knäck” translates to crack, and beware, these are delicious, but can be hard on the teeth and fillings.
You need equal parts of double cream, golden syrup (or treacle) and sugar. I usually use 2 dl of each. Pour into a pot and heat until boiling, while constantly stirring. Adjust the heat so it doesn’t boil over and continue to stir. Cook until 126-130C, or until a drop of the mixtures, dripped into cold water, is easily formed into a ball. Traditionally poured into small (like 1,5-2 cm across) fluted paper cups.
It’s very popular to add chopped blanched almonds as the last step before pouring, though personally I don’t care for that. But for the amount above, you would need about ⅔ dl unchopped almonds.

[livre] Le mouton d'Arüth
Dec. 14th, 2025 12:15 pmAuteure : Jade Michelon
Langue : français
Type : album illustré
Genre : fantasy
1ère parution : 2024
Édition : n/a
Format : 35 pages

(acheté au Festival Harajuku en septembre dernier ; apparemment c'est un projet de fin d'études d'illustration ?)
Le petit Arüth reçoit de sa maman une statuette de mouton et s'en fait un ami imaginaire. Jusqu'au jour où le mouton prend corps l'emmène à l'aventure...
Graphiquement c'est très, très joli ! mais la narration ne fonctionne pas très bien, entre une erreur de temps, quelques fautes d'orthographe et un vocabulaire pas exactement adapté... mais comme l'intérêt ici ce sont les illustrations ça fait la job ?
Cute, pretty kiddie book about a young boy and a magical sheep.
Wake up, Dead Man! (Film Review)
Dec. 14th, 2025 10:02 am( Vague spoilers have to offer from their own free will in order for it to mean something )