#FicRecFebruary no.1: The things gege does for his San Lang, by Anonymous.

#TGCF, #hualian, postcanon, #eggPreg, #monsterfucking

You know Hua Cheng's silver butterflies? They don't just appear out of nowhere. Xie Lian offers to help him out.

Yes, this is porn, but I love this fic's elaboration of Hua Cheng's powers: it's fascinating and feels very continuous with canon. Great monster-form for Hua Cheng too!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/26791114

#FicRecFebruary no.2: Three Swords Bàoshān Sànrén Brings Home With Her (And One She Never Will), by HerenorThereNearnorFar

#mdzs, #gen

Reflections on Baoshan Sanren's life and those of her students, through the histories of their swords and how they were named. The lyricism of this fic veils the vicious regret of Baoshan Sanren's experiences with the world, and the resignation with which she lives with it. Beautiful, sharp, and absolute catnip for me.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24036508

I'm going to try not to post the same fandom twice in a row, but that might not work out, since Mo Dao Zu Shi ate my life and has only let a couple of bone-crumbs fall from its maw ever since I first read it. :)

Edit: Forest reminded me that I wanted to keep this simple! So, no arbitrary extra restrictions. 😅

#FicRecFebruary no.3: Found Wanting, by sugar_shoal

#mdzs, #gen (but also tagged 'Ambiguous Relationships'), postcanon, Yunmeng Shuangjie Reconciliation

Wei Wuxian tries to find something he can still offer to Jiang Cheng and the new Lotus Pier. Even if he's not needed, and not "wanted" exactly, could there still be a space for him there?

sugar_shoal fits so much detail and conjures so much life and longing in under 1700 words, it's wonderful. 💜

https://archiveofourown.org/works/42235377

#FicRecFebruary no.4: topology in the absence of suffering, by nevertheless

#svsss, #ShenJiu / #TianlangJun

Tianlang-jun, ex-Demon Emperor, hires the spiky Head Disciple of Qing Jing Peak to educate his son. Over seven years, Shen Jiu's payment transforms them both.

This fic is sublime: gory, erotic, metaphysical, laced with every kind of pain and damn funny to boot. There's a consensual blood eagle! 😍 Do read the tags: if they sound up your alley, you will love this.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/41738379

#FicRecFebruary no.5: 年年有虞 | Sweet, but not too sweet, by frostferox

#mdzs, #modernAU, #gen, #JiangCheng, #YuZiyuan

Jiang Cheng's class is having a bake sale. His jiejie's too busy to help him make something 'normal', like brownies - but his mom offers to bake niangao with him.

This is a tender slice-of-life about family and being Chinese-American. It's full of warmth and tiny details drawn from life, and it's lodged in my heart since it was posted last CNY.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36978307

#FicRecFebruary no.6: i will open you wherever you feel you are poor or thin, by theleakypen

#mdzs, #NieMingjue / #SongLan / #WenNing, polyamory, kissing, fierce corpses

This piece is so emotionally resonant and deeply coloured in my mind, I can't quite believe it's just 275 words long. Three lovers in the dark, with their bodies and the trauma they hold and each other.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/44136957

#FicRecFebruary no.7: Flight of Geese, by Betty

#mdzs, #JiangYanli / #JinZixuan, #JiangCheng / Jin Zixuan, grief, hurt/comfort, polyamory

Jin Zixuan comforts both Jiang siblings after Wei Wuxian's death. A beautiful short piece about making it through grief together, whatever shape that 'together' takes.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/43214587

#FicRecFebruary no.8: buried in venice, by misspickman

#mdzs, #songxuexiao, modern AU, messy relationships, vampires!

I am super picky about vampire AUs, so please believe me when I say this is a great one. The secrets and identity issues inherent in vampirism mesh great with songxuexiao, and there are a couple of really fun twists here (including my niche favourite vampire characteristic!).

https://archiveofourown.org/works/35673475

#FicRecFebruary no.9: The golden robe., by orange_crushed

#SHL, #XieWang / #YeBaiyi, canon divergence but essentially post-canon

This week I had the joy of telling my friend that yexie is a ship, and that she should start off by reading everything orange_crushed has written for them. 😄 The golden robe imagines that Xie Wang really does become emperor at the end of SHL—it’s emotionally deep and very plotty, and might be my favourite fic of 2022. 🧡

https://archiveofourown.org/works/39091983/chapters/97792569

#FicRecFebruary no.10: On the Senseless Movements of Animals, by bottlecapmermaid

#TGCF, #wulian, background #beefleaf, bdsm AU, deeply fucked up <3

I’m not sure why TGCF is getting my fuckiest recs this month! I read this whole 17k fic in one go when it was published, standing up half naked in a hotel bathroom at 2am. It’s bloody and psychologically bruising, like Book 4 fic ought to be, and I love it. He Xuan is also terrific here! And Wuming has a one-eyed cat. :)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/38045110

#FicRecFebruary no.11: You are What You Eat, by LesbianLazerOwl

#MDZS, #niecest, canon divergence, cannibalism, demonic cultivation

Nie Huaisang puts his considerable, if hidden, research skills to work finding a way to prevent his da-ge’s qi deviations. It turns out he’s only too happy to pay the price.

Owl has written such a great NHS voice here! Like him, this fic is relentless, sensual and troublingly gorgeous

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36951430

#FicRecFebruary no.12: picking up the feathers (that will lead me to you), by merelydovely

#MDZS, #wangxian, modern AU

This is a high-school reunion AU, but more than that, it’s a case fic: why is everyone treating Wei Ying’s old friend Lan Zhan like dirt? Wei Ying is going to fix this! By faking that they’re in love!

The tension here is masterful, and the adaptation of canon events is hands down one of my favourites.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/30427158

#FicRecFebruary no.13: love if you want it, by adarksweetness

#mdzs, post-canon, Qin Su Lives, #JiangCheng / #NieHuaisang / #QinSu

Qin Su survives, and finds out who she might be if not Jin-furen, and finds friendship and love and a future for herself. The relationships in this fic develop beautifully and believably, not just the romantic ones. It’s a balm to the soul!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/35193010

#FicRecFebruary no.14: Ciphertext, by Khashana

#mdzs, #wangxian, modern AU, casefic with a twist

Wei Ying has gone missing from his student flat, leaving his phone, some books, and a mysterious note. It’s down to his friends to find out what’s going on.

Every chapter of this fic has an actual cipher for readers to solve! It’s complete and will be posting one chapter weekly—but I got to Brit-pick it, so I can assure you that this is good story and a fun mystery. 🕵️🎶👨🏻‍❤️‍💋‍👨🏻

https://archiveofourown.org/works/45109375/chapters/113477641

#FicRecFebruary no.15: A Pavlovian Approach to Honesty, by Stratisphyre

#mdzs, #3zun, modern AU with cultivation, getting together

Meng Yao feels really surprisingly good about being under this truth spell!

This is a great fic with the web of background relationships I love to see in AUs, featuring Meng Yao whose secrets have walled him off from his morally-upright sworn brothers, Nie Mingjue learning some harsh truths fast, and Lan Xichen handling two crises at once.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/36963787

#FicRecFebruary no.16: silver clouds, grey linings (series) by magspie and sarah worm

#TGCF, post-canon, #hualian, #beefleaf, #fengqing

A rollicking post-canon series, featuring all the ships above but also a lot of friendship time and character development. Possibly my favourite post-canon beefleaf!

https://archiveofourown.org/series/2337308

#FicRecFebruary no.17: reclaim the rising (series) by curiositykilled

#TGCF, canon-compliant, #hualian and others, character studies

A gorgeously-written look at various parts of canon—the first fic looks at Xie Lian's relationship with death, the second is about Hua Cheng making his way through the world after Mount Tonglu, and the rest is just as captivating.

https://archiveofourown.org/series/2103366

#FicRecFebruary no.18: rare as the glimmer, by Euphorion

#TGCF, modern AU, genderbend + lots of gender in general

Retired boxer Xie Lian meets clearly-a-mafiosa Hua Cheng, amongst a bright ensemble cast. There's a very good beefleaf here, and a good Quan Yizhen, too. (I often don’t like fics with lots of gender, but this one worked really well for me.)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33335158

#FicRecFebruary no.19: Northern Lights, by calypsio

#SEVENTEEN, #RPF, #wonhui, future fic, break-up

I know extremely little about SEVENTEEN, but I love Ally's prose here and the descriptions the aurora and of loving across languages.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/42686289

#FicRecFebruary no.20: Entanglement, by westiec

#SVSSS, #LiuQingge / #ZhuzhiLang, sex pollen

Hi, hello, did you know I love rarepairs? Zhuzhi lang is so bright and cheerful and just a little bit odd, here, and Liu Qingge comes to realise* just how lucky he is there was a heavenly snake demon around when he needed one. A delightful little piece!

* hehehe

https://archiveofourown.org/works/45333559

#FicRecFebruary no.21: citrus & woodsmoke, by alone_ghost

#MDZS, canon-compliant backstory, #YuZiyuan &/ #WenZhuliu

An imagining of how Yu Ziyuan and Wen Zhuliu might have known one another that is so specific and somehow almost dream-logical, while capturing the essence of these two distinctive characters, that it feels all the more true for being so surprising. Beautifully written, with a stinging last line.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31014347

#FicRecFebruary no.22: Sisi, Nie Huaisang, and the Great Comet of the Second Year of Ningkang, by huanglaoshu

#MDZS, post-canon, #NieHuaisang / #Sisi

Sisi and Nie Huaisang watch a broom star (彗星 huixing) from the roof of the Unclean Realm. The quietest of romance: love as infodumping and love as asking somebody to infodump at you. Plus: the FOOTNOTES, oh my gosh, the footnotes! ☄️

https://archiveofourown.org/works/45241837

#FicRecFebruary no.23: Use Once and Destroy, by catchmeifyoucreon

#CQL, canon-compliant, #WenZhuliu / #XueYang, good heavens do read the tags

Wen-era Xue Yang looks at Wen Zhuliu and sees someone who could really fuck him up. Wen Zhuliu has no interest in that, until it turns out he does.

(Yes it's porn but) I love fic that delves into WZL's core-melting abilities in a new context, and this is a technicolor exploration of just what they might be like, on both sides.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/31053200/chapters/76713143

#FicRecFebruary no.24: Brave of Heart and Strong of Arm, by Stultiloquentia

#MDZS, #gen, #YunmengShuangjie

Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian, and the canoe they built together as juniors. Lyrical, boisterous, melancholy and hopeful; plus, you will totally learn how to build a boat!

This is one of my all-time favourite MDZS fics—please give yourself the treat of reading it.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33459688

#FicRecFebruary no.25: Black Honey on my Table, by Grizmelder

#MDZS, modern AU, #wangxian

Wei Wuxian, fine art restorer, has a new client. Lan Wangji, musician, has an heirloom portrait with a mysterious history. The restoration process is a satisfyingly detailed backbone to this fic, but never feels forced; wangxian's emotional connection builds to a perfect conclusion. A beautiful fic!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/44517490