Just like any other recs page. Multi-fandom, your mileage may vary, etc. Updated whenever the urge strikes instead of on a regular basis. Title inspired by the X-Files episode "Bad Blood", in which Mulder and Scully tell different versions of the same story.

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July 18, 2003

All over the board I go! Harry Potter, Buffy, Angel, X-Files, Lone Gunmen, and Dead Like Me, in no specific order. Some of the stories recced here will contain HEAVY spoilers for Order of the Phoenix. Enjoy!

Nova by Beth/CG (HP/Sandman) - Post-OotP, short, and lyrical. It's the inevitable crossover, but it works, and the main character sounds like the between-the-lines version of himself.

Five Ways of Becoming Someone Else by Kyra Cullinan (BtVS) - Five Willows that never were, but that somehow are, all the same. Kyra takes ideas that almost were and runs with them, makes the reader believe in each Willow so completely as to feel them. I had to read this again immediately after finishing it, because it's that good.

Music From a Farther Room by Kyra Cullinan (BtVS) - No matter your Willow ship, Kyra treats it with understanding and unrelenting truth in this short look at three very different love affairs. Oz and Tara and Kennedy, in succession, the whys and the hows and the canon. I felt more sympathy for Willow here than I had in awhile.

Laughter by Jack Ichijouji (HP) - As I read this story, I cried for the first and maybe only time over the Death in OotP. The voices are right and the words prick at that loss like a child scraping off the first scab on a wound. After this, Harry can move on, and maybe so can readers.

Empty Frames by Jedi Boadicea (HP) - Post-OotP again, but from the point of view of one of the new characters. An outsider's look, in a way, of the events of that fateful chapter. New voices abound - a primer in how a fanfiction writer could tackle the minor characters for whom we have little but a physical description.

A Tiger by the Tail by Viola (HP) - Dark H/G! The way it really should be, actually, a mite twisted and not altogether smooth. Take fanon and canon, shake, don't stir, and throw in a little of that grown-up reality missing from so much H/G fanfic. It makes complete sense this way.

Reality and Other Virtues by Minim Calibre (Angel) - I don't have a link for this yet, but I thought I'd rec it now anyway. Wesley is wrestling with his moral dilemma, and is given some advice from an unlikely source. Minim did a FABULOUS job with Wes. The guest character in this piece is David Nabbit (remember him?). I really enjoyed reading this one.

Take My Breath Away by Jennifer-Oksana (Angel/XF) - Crossover girl slash? Why, yes, featuring two of fandoms best canonically straight gals! Lilah Morgan and Dana Scully, in college. This is a pretty, sexy, fun little romp.

We Don't Talk by Simon Field (BtVS) - And another on the list of stories-that-even-your-mom-is-reccing. But that just proves that you can trust that it's a good read. Buffy and Willow don't really talk anymore, and Willow decides to find out why. Not only plausible, but fun to boot. It's written entirely in dialogue, which Simon pulls off, and every line is in character. Well done.

Trivial Things by winter baby (XF) - Diana's left Mulder, and now she has to deal with it. I really loved this piece. It's rich with detail and reality, and the insight winter baby shows is just wonderful.

Johnny Bravo and the Nagel Woman by Vesper (LGM) - Jimmy Bond and Yves Adele Harlow, an unlikely pair that works anyway, star in this character piece. I can't say no to a story that promises a popcorn fight! Yves tries to puzzle Jimmy out, which is great to read. I love that they live on in fanfiction that's so well written.

Of Frogs and Carrots by Princess Twilite (Dead Like Me) - I haven't seen the show yet, but the title of this one sparked my curiousity. When a story works, without prior knowledge of the characters, it's worth mentioning. Besides, now I *really* want to see the show.

Thestrals by Trin (HP) - A short, descriptive piece about the mysterious creatures introduced in the latest book. Very dark, and the length gives it a feeling of fleeting immediacy. It works because it is so rich with imagery.

Interlude: Xander by Alanna (BtVS) - An interlude in a larger WIP that stands well on its own. Alanna claims that she doesn't know Xander well, but the story tells her readers differently. This is Xander, on his own, post-"Chosen", living his life and, in a way, moving on. Incredibly in-character.

Thousand Yard Stare by Sophia Jirafe (BtVS) - See, the Potentials in season seven were usually kind of dull, because they had little or no individual personality. Sophia's one of the people who fixed that. In this story, an unnamed Potential has recently arrived, and is observing her strange surroundings and all these new people. Excellent read.

Devil In Disguise by Frohike (XF) - This just made me laugh! Mulder has a dream. Pendrell makes an appearance. It's brain candy, but in that good way.

Boy, Interrupted by Anne Hedonia (HP) - The sequel to Anne's Sheep's Clothing. Hermione finds out something about Harry the hard way. It's tough, and it works. Hermione is wonderfully in character, and so is Harry. Written before OotP, so contains no spoilers, but when I read both of these again for this update, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Anne's take on the characters works even better in light of the new canon.