Buffy and Angel

Fade by Branwyn
After Buffy's death, Dawn begins to fade away from existence, until Ethan offers her an alternative. Branwyn captures the supernatural-as-metaphor-for-adolescence beautifully, in a tasty morsel of fic.

Nothing is Lost Save Honor by Lar
Riley fic might be the last thing you're into, but you should read this story if only because it explores Riley's descent into the seedy side of Sunnydale, an idea that made an appealing yet all too brief appearance on the show. The show was obviously limited in what it could televise, so it's great to read a story that extends the idea in a way that is logical and even inevitable.

Habits Real Girls Have by Ari
Dawn/Tara - Gorgeous, beautiful, surreal and strange. Ari remembers the oft forgotten fact that Dawn is The Key and speculates on how Dawn's origin might have had an impact on season 6 events. Well imagined and avoids being conclusive or absolute. A curious and intriguing story.

Sheep's Clothing by M Phoenix
Nina/Wesley-ish. A gorgeous story told from the point of view of Buffyverse's second favourite werewolf, Nina. The story is appealing not only for the unique Nina voice but for the outsider looking concept that provides an unusual vantage point from which to focus on Wesley's story. A lovely refrain for Nina and for the whole team.

Four Seasons Beyond Armageddon by International Princess
Buffy/Giles - at the end of the world, two empty people come together and then, inevitably, fall apart. Giles is unrecoverable and Buffy is confused. Sad and touching.

They Make Solitude And Call It Peace by Mosca
This is a lovely and believable Buffy/Willow, years down the road. Post-finale Buffy fic seem always a bit melancholy to me and this is no exception, but there's also quiet hopefulness about this story that I loved.

Christmas in Nairobi by Josey
Xander and Oz go Hemingway in Africa. Lean, terse, but not without warmth.

In the Business by Kindkit
Fed up with Sunnydale, newly-redemonized Anya takes a road trip to L.A. and meets up with a certain angry physicist... Anya/Fred sounds implausible, but it works here (and how!), not because of the pairing necessarily, but because what this piece has to say about vengeance in Whedonverse. The Anya voice here is marvellous.

Amazon by Loligo
So, Faith happened to be dimension-hopping one day, and kind of ended up running smack into a pack of superheroes... This short Buffy/Justice League crossover is an absolute delight, with more hilarious dialog than you could shake a stick at. I gotta confess, I sort of wished Faith would never leave.

Second Hand by Kita
"Right, there it is; Spike's fucking mission, his sole purpose as sole survivor. Spike the vampire bard, keeper of handed down tales no one else wants." Kita can write Spike like no one else, and he's lean and bitter and haunted here, picking up pieces after "Not Fade Away". It's rich with evocative imagery and thematic parallels, and the scenes between Connor and Spike are acute with the sense of loss.

In the Bleak Midwinter by Annakovsky
Another lovely Christmas story from Annakovsky, this time, with Dawn and Xander post-"Chosen". I particularly like the Dawn characterization here, who is a confused mix of adolescent longing and precocious maturity.

Things Left Undone by minnow
A collection of loosely-connected vignettes that give life to the aftermath of "Not Fade Away", each wonderful in a startlingly unexpected way.

The Rapturous End by Annakovsky
This is set in the same universe as huzzlewhat's "Seeing Africa", with a grown-up and world-weary Xander and a Buffy with insights borne out of the strength of her experience. Oh, and there is an apocalypse, too, but not the kind you'd expect. The story has a sort of quiet, measured distance to it, and a marvellously eerie atmosphere.

Dig for Victory by nostalgia
A gem of a slayer-fic, set in Blitz-plagued London. Nos' original characters are given vivid life by her writing, which is sparse and sharp.

Theses on a Philosophy of Power by glossolalia
Another slayer-fic, set during the Bolshevik Revolution, and... holy cow. This is immensely powerful and disturbing as hell. There is a certain frightening inexorability to it.

Phrase and Fable by dodyskin
I am not a Spike/Xander fan *at all*, but this story is just too inventive in its language and imagery, and ingenious in the use of Xander's unconscious, to not rec. Highly reminiscent of "Restless" in the best ways, Xander dreams, and the resultant story is a delirious barrage of imagery that makes the best kind of dream-sense.

Title by dodyskin
A story that muses on the sons Angel never had/could have had on the occasion of Conor's birth. Very cool and very clever. It breaks your heart over and over.

Pricking the Scars by glossolalia
Lilah and Wesley are in hell and yet they still somehow find a way to haunt Faith. A story with all the right demonic tones - disturbing and despairing.

Ogden Nash Blues by Anne Hedonia
Spike/Tara - Spike gets a lucky kitten and finds the closest thing to an expert to help him deal with it. Really good Tara characterisation but it's the possitively shining portrait of Spike that is the real appeal. Just a gorgeous read.

Axis Mundi by Sophia Jirafe
A twisty-turny story about Willow and Giles in England. Willow is a spider spinning the web of her own reality. A beautiful depiction of sadness and despair and a very deep love.

rough replacement by august
Shivery and gorgeous and bleak and elegant and oh my. I'm running out of adjectives. It's Buffy and Giles at the end of the world, and there's such heartstopping inevitability about how these come together.

Five New York Minutes (That Never Were) by nwhepcat
Nwhepcat takes you out for a ride on this terrific collection of twisty AUs. At turns strange, clever, ominous, and exhilarating, each of the stories is a gem.

Skin Deep by Doyle
Oooh. An *excellent* slice of darkness, featuring S7 Spike and Xander. Believable, shivery, subtext-y goodness.  

it rains when she arrives by august
If ever August turns her attention to your fandom you should deliver up a virgin sacrifice to whichever deities sent her your way. In the BtVS fandom she's turned her attention to the complex relationship between Giles and Buffy and it is beautiful and provocative and a sheer pleasure to read.

A pretty young girl in boots on his floor by august
August's second contribution to BtVS fanfiction is a marvelously layered Faith/ Giles story. This Giles is a fallen angel, fallible and dark. The perfect story for those of you who like your Giles complex and full of mystery.

The Four Dreams Of Charles Gunn by Kate Bolin
In this story the truth is crazier than the dreams - and the dreams are crazy. A twist on the " 5 Things" theme in that the dreams go *wrong* at the end as dreams do. These dreams breaks my heart.

Half to Fall by Branwyn
If you're feeling like a little Wesley sexual intrigue (and who doesn't?) this is the story for you! And the language here is used expertly. I'm particularly fond of Ethan's musings on Watchers and their relationships with slayers. Very thought provoking and evocative. And particularly insightful.

The Sky Has Claws by Kyra Cullinan
The dark and doom is evident in every line of this story. A seriously dark twist on events - and completely credible. And you just can't beat a good
apocalypse.

Complexity by Viola
Going with the apocalypse theme, this makes Connor the last man left standing. The tone isn't heavy at all but somehow just a little sad and the characters, what there is of them, are well drawn. And it's great to see Connor drawn as such a sympathetic character.

Contrite Spirits by Lizbeth Marcs
Awesome Xander fic. Xander and Faith, two years post-Chosen, on a visit to Quebec to pick up a Slayer. Xander learns a lot about Faith, and faith, and himself in the bargain. Just well-written, beautifully characterized, and thought-inspiring.

A Few Things Anya Knows (The Billy Pilgrim Remix) by Hepcat
A gorgeous story of how Anya deals with change, with life, with love and with death. A celebration of life in the face of death, and yes, sometimes beautiful does mean red, wrinkled and squalling. I like the structure, the why the story, like Billy Pilgrim, is unstuck in time, moving back and forth between now, then, and later. Jossed by Chosen, of course, but still, a beautiful story of love and hope.

Keeping in Touch (the Two Times Two Remix) by Sängerin
Another post-series AU, this one positing Giles and Xander as the only survivors, it tracks Giles' path through the new Watchers' Council hierarchy and through him we follow Xander's progress around the world, until they meet again. Understated, poignant and nicely in character.

Lessons in Cool: That Music Thing by dessert_first and tesla321
Oz offers to teach Xander a few chords. Hottest fic I've read in *ages*. Jesus. Oz and Xander and wanting and not settling and learning they're more the same than different. And hot. Did I mention the hot?

Silver Apples of the Moon by Sarah
At LAX, the slayerettes (and the slayers) part. Xander is the last to leave; Xander is the one who is left. Beautiful, in character, bittersweet. A lovely story. 

Lighter by Scy
A sheer delight to read. The pairing is made not only feasible but poetic. A sample: "Oz let the boy have his diagonals." It's lines like this that make Scy's writing such a treat.

What Guile Is This?: A Luddite's Love Story by glossolalia
A fucking extraordinary story. Deeply disturbing in all the right ways. This story weaves desire, love, loss and loss of control into one feeling. None of it is right, but it's all very real. 

Second Self by Anna S.
What do you do when the war is over? The relationship is kind of incidental and integral at the same time. It's has an ease to it that makes you gloss over it like it's unimportant and yet the ease of it is the truly important thing. 

Simpler Wishes by Minnow
What this is lacking in size, it makes up for in power.  It's like a kick to the gut, dark and utterly perfect. 

Eclipsed the Moon by Kyra Cullinan
Set in season 2 of the Wishverse, Willow decides to take what she wants, and even as a vampire, what Willow wants is Xander. The language is sensuous, hot and believable, and so is the Willow characterization.

A Good Man by huzzlewhat
AU to Bargaining. Xander does what he has to do, and fix what none of the others are strong enough to fix. Sharp, fast and heartbreaking, like a knife to the heart.

Pretty Rad by Glossolalia
Guh. Xander makes it up to Oz, sometime post-Lovers Walk. There's cross-dressing and hot hot boysex in the library cage. And she manages to keep them in character. Pretty rad, indeed.

Seeing Africa by huzzlewhat
Beautiful story about Xander's time in Africa, searching for Slayers. Subtle, quiet, nails Xander's voice. The prose is lovely - clear and sharp and evocative. I can see the people, the bright sunlight, Xander with his tan and his jeep, driving dusty roads, telling stories and trying to find slayers, ostensibly, but his feet and his place in the world, really.

The Weary World Rejoicing by Annakovsky
In the first winter after Buffy died fighting a hellgod and the world fell into darkness, Xander waits for his friend to come home. At turns elegiac and hopeful, this may be the best Buffyverse Christmas story I've ever read. 

Theurgy by Jintian
Faith and Buffy in an alternative season 6, stripped to their essences. Plausible, dark, bleak and beautiful, with the writing that bleeds.

Disneyland by Christina Kamnikar
This story takes off immediately after "Chosen", with our ragtag gang of survivors on the road, mourning, rejoicing, and planning their future. It's a deft exploration of the emotional follow-through of the finale, with great character voices all around. 

So Let Us Melt by Kyra Cullinan
A believable future Dawn-fic, years post-"Chosen". Quiet and poignant. 

Winnifred In Fine Print by Brighid
I don't think I’ve ever recc'd a poem here before, but this particular poem packs more punch than most Fred stories I've read. Wow. (Spoilers for "A Hole In the World")

No Such Roses by Voleuse
A *really* effective piece. The two stories affect are woven together with an almost cinematic feel. A thought provoking piece.

The Winter to Pass by Kyra Cullinan
I love a good apocalytic tone in a story and here it works to perfection - a Giles/ Oz piece set in the Wish-verse so it could hardly be anything else.

As Flame to Smoke by Shrift
A story that is as provocative as it is evocative. Shrift works that very fine line between torture and pleasure and provides much to think about in the process. A truly intriguing story.

Girl With a Samurai Sword by Jennifer Oksana
Cordelia and Lilah and everything that is different and similar about them. Beautiful and surreal and ethereal and generally a striking tale. There's just something about swords...

Winter Night Phantom by Jennifer Oksana
The haunting of Wesley is perhaps the most poignant moment in Angel since the show's inception and Jenny O just moves with the theme - perfectly in tune, never breaking rhythm. Pour yourself a glass of wine and relish in how good it feels to hurt.

Doll Parts by Scy
This writing is so beautiful it makes me want to cry - largely because I don't know how she does it and I *really* want to! It meanders all over the place but it's worth the wander.

The Loving Dead by Wiseacress
"Two years since the world fell through its own floor, and only now is he catching glimpses." This is an exquisitely-written almost-ghost-story about Xander that's chockful of quiet sorrow and loneliness rather than terror. Wiseacress deftly mixes the eerie and the mundane, and the effect is like a slow-building elegiac sigh, melancholy, moving, and layered.

Legend by Marcus L. Rowland
::blinks:: I don't think I've read quite anything like this before. On the surface, it's about how the legend of the slayer comes to be perceived over generations, but the structure of the story is a hell of a clever conceit, and it works on a number of different levels. Brilliant.

Parallel Lives by Roseveare
What a fabulous story. Roseveare throws us into an unfamiliar world and leaves us to figure out what exactly has happened, with hints strewn along the way like breadcrumbs. Despite the unconventional setting, the characterizations and the dialogue are note-perfect, and the ending packs quite a punch.

Down Through the Morning by Kyra Cullinan
I've long had an evil little weakness for Tara/Oz, and Kyra fulfills it beautifully in this sad, well-constructed, beautifully written AU.

Exactly How It Never Was by Elizabeth
Faith muses on Buffy and and their shared history.

Esperanza by Silvia
A story of Xander over the years, about waiting, and hope. The voice meanders beautifully in a stream-of-consciousness fashion, and the ending is unexpectedly moving.

William the Bloody Useless and the Beaker of Doom by Roseveare
Post-chip, pre-Scooby Spike, whilst spazzing about to get his rocks back, runs into a certain someone at a ritual of something-or-the-other and....needless to say, wacky hijinks ensue. With a dead-on, hilarious Spike voice, this is an all-around delight. Go forth and read. And cackle.

The Dead Church by Julie Fortune
This sequel to Julie's "Slightly Darker than Black" and "Burn" has thrilling Wesley and Justine characterizations, gorgeous language, and an exploration of Cordelia's demonic side that rings truer than anything we've seen on screen. It's pitch dark, but dark with a purpose. And did I mention the kick-ass Wes characterization?

She Dreams In Red by hold_that_thought
A genuinely creepy little fic of what it meant to be Cordelia-who-wasn't through and after her mystical pregnancy.

Komm Zu Mir by Kyra Cullinan
So dark. So many undercurrents, so many things leftover and so many things that just seem inevitable. ME couldn't have (wouldn't have) done it better.

Volcanoes Melt You Down by Winter Baby
Wow. Shake you up, turn you upside down, kick you in the stomach, and leave you bleeding stuff! Fucked up Willow is delicious. And the complexity of attraction... Ow! Ow! Yup, loved this a lot.

Five Ways Of Becoming Someone Else by Kyra Cullinan
I'm beginning to think the "Five Things" challenge is one of the best things that have happened to fandom. Of all the excellent stories to come out of it, this is one of the finest I've read, a shivery, drop-dead gorgeous series of stories of the Willow-that-never-was. Astonishingly good.

32 Short Fics About Xander Harris by nwhepcat
32 drabbles, each a snapshot of Xandery goodness, from Welcome to the Hellmouth to Cleveland.

Spring Cleaning by Amy
Sequel to Decisions, Revisions, Reversals (recced previously) – Faith and Dawn tackle cleaning out the attic at the Summers house. They sort through old things, and their own feelings toward Buffy, and hers toward them. Plus, gratuitous Barbie torture! Wonderful story.

Jimmy Olsen by s.a.
Xander's life, via pastry. Oh-so-heartbreaking and a perfect summation of Xander.

Last Call by Queen Mab
Anya and Spike have a drink before the war. Spare and to the point and just right.

They Live In This World by Michelle K.
Wes/ Faith fic is damned appealing. And this is a story that captures everything that's so damned appealing about it. They're sad people with broken lives and they come together like that. And this story has a wonderful intensity that makes you ache inside. Ooooh yes.

se7en by Jennifer-Oksana
Ah, the many faces of Lilah Morgan. Lilah/everyone is alluring but it's the Wesley and Lilah in hell that is so unbearably gorgeous you'll cry.

In Plain Sight by Elizabeth
"He's a perfect simpering confection of a boy, all good grades and polite conversation and slouchy striped bright shirts." What if the spell at the end of "Home" didn't quite work the way Angel had hoped?

Tomb of the Unknowns by Sophia Prester
Xander still visits Buffy's grave, in memory of all those who have died and haven't come back. Beautiful elegy for the dead of seven seasons' worth of the show.

No Oceans Left by Melymbrosia
Although this story is a remix, it can stand on its own as a fully realized look at the character of Justine. Beautiful, sharp writing and just the right amount of pain.

Thousand Yard Stare by Sophia Jirafe
A sharp character vignette of a nameless potential. Sophia manages to hint at a rich backstory for the character with only a few lines of dialogue.

Five Things That Never Happened To Spike by Kita
Holy mother of God, this is gorgeous. A dreamlike quintet of Spike's past and future, including Spike's own "Restless".

Zig Zag Girls by Scynneh
I think it's the image of blackberry lipstick that got me on this story. Scynneh's fic is lyrical and meandering and she makes this unlikely pairing - Willow/ Faith - not only believable but beautiful.

Kitchen by Jennifer Oksana
There seems to be an abundance of really great girlslash coming out of the Buffy camp at the moment, and Jenny O. is leading the way. This has a lovely, lost feel to it. A future that may or may not or might never happen. A dream-like style. Short and effective.

Without by Firecracker
Another Faith fic, and the unlikely pairing of Faith and Giles. Perfectly Faith and perfect Giles and it's
a story that sets you thinking. I love the Firecracker gives Giles that darkness that comes out in the show from time to time.

A Stitch in Time by Yahtzee and Rheanna
Yahtzee and Rheanna score again. A long, luxurious and thrilling ride across time.

Revenant by Jennifer-Oksana
Where else would Lilah go? Plausible, sad and creepy as hell. Spoilers for "Calvary".

Light Walks by Sheila
What happens to people without destiny when the lights go out? A chilling little gem.

Chiaroscuro by Luna
A sharply-imagined tale of Anya through the ages, with gorgeous, lyrical prose.

Decisions, Revisions, Reversals by Amy
Dawn and Faith and The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock. Amy gets the characters right -- Dawn's longing for a normal life, Faith's longing to be forgiven (but still on her own terms).

Blueberry Syrup is a Crime Against Nature and, by the way, Thanks for Saving the World by Maddog
Xander and Giles chat, post-Grave. Very sweet and loving and just a wonderful little fic.

Come the Day by Kyra Cullinan.
Anya tries to readjust to being a demon, and it's not working out. Poignant and pitch perfect. Spoilers for Beneath You.

Wishing to Be Snow by Jenny-O
A perfect Cordelia voice. Cordelia tries to figure out how to fix what's been broken, and how she let romance get in the way of love.

Here Comes a Candle by Wiseacress
"They found him in September...."  A perfectly-formed gem of Halloween horror drenched in atmosphere and dread. Don't read this late at night, kids. Trust me.

Myth and Shadow Plays by C.L. Kamnikar
Spike was a poet after all, bloody awful or not. About madness and Shakespeare, always a good combination.

With the Lights Out, It's Less Dangerous by Sophia Jirafe
Willow and Giles, together yet apart; painful and wrong, but lovely in its way.

Return by Roseveare
Oh, this story just wrecked me. About two damaged souls finding each other in the ruins, with utterly believable Faith and Wesley characterizations and prose beautiful enough to make you weep.

Seven People in Search of Dreamland by Jennifer Oksana
The characterisations in this are so appealing. Jenny O gives a dimension to the Angel crew that is credible and endearing. And the whole story has a dream like quality that leaves a lingering impression.

All I Need by Not Jenny
NJ captures that tight-rope walking feeling where it seems like every character is about to fall off. The Scoobies cope and NJ wanders from fighter to fighter.

Ein Sof (Endless) by Kate Bolin
Beautiful mythological explanation for Dawn.

Human by insomnitic
Beautiful meditation on what it means to be human, by the Slayerette who knows best.

Equation by Elizabeth
Lindsey seeks his place in Angel's little "family." Just stunning. Implied slash.

Traded by Scynneh
I'm always at a loss to describe Scynneh's style - but it's so captivating. Here she delves into the Buffy/Spike relationship looking at it and all the ways it could be, might be, perhaps is. This is Buffy through distorted mirrors. Dreamlike and powerful.

"You, Me and Shania Twain" by Hostile Seventeen
Written in the form of a dead letter from Faith to Buffy, with a wonderful Faith voice. The odd narrative technique gives this short piece an interesting and refreshing sense of rhythm.

Runaway Trains at 3 A.M by Christina Kamnikar
This is an utterly charming Buffy/Smallville cross-over, where teenage runaways Dawn and Clark meet and bond in a bus-station in Nowheresville, USA, in an innocent quiksilver friendship. The story brims with sparkling dialog and genuine warmth for this pair of otherwordly misfits. A joy to read.  Its sequel, "Lines of Communication" is just as lovely.

Glorified Sea Monkey by Twinkledru J
Buffy talks to God, via Alan Rickman.  Something of a Dogma crossover.

Willpower by Flywoman
A beautiful fic that goes where the show didn't regarding Willow's addiction.

-Plex by Spyke Raven
Wishverse fic.  Partially about Riley, partially about others.  Angst, slash and a very dark place in general.

Warmth by Te
Willow and Xander in the aftermath of "Two to Go/Grave." It's Xander and Willow as we know and love them best. Just a little... sadder and more mature.

Displaced by Jennifer Oksana
Jenny O turns out such consistently good work so it's often difficult to distinguish one of her stories above the others. I chose to do so with this one because I've seen a thousand dreams sequences and very few of them work. This one does. And perhaps the only way to really understand the Wesley/ Fred/ Gunn love triangle is in a dream. It's irresistible.

Truly, and Forever by Melymbrosia
This story is an unsettling combination of love, obsession, and devotion, with a sucker punch for an ending.  Melymbrosia doesn't write nearly enough, so once you're done shivering go and encourage her with feedback.

Incursion by Rachel Anton
Rachel Anton decides Willow and Spike should sit down and play poker together. She's right, they should. I love this for the extraordinary character insight and the cutting dialogue. It's class all the way through.

(sex) on a beach, with sharks by Not Jenny
No doubt inspired by a grand tradition of dark angst writers who are out to fuck me up for life, Not Jenny brings the Faith/Buffy pairing to an intensity that we all know is possibly but we're sometimes not willing to acknowledge. Short and very, very pointed.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in Mazatlan by Christina Kamnikar
A remarkably clear-eyed post-"Grave" Jonathan vignette, steeped in regret and quiet desperation. Just lovely.  One of those stories that make me go, "As far as I am concerned, this story is canon."

Hoop Screams by Yahtzee
The Fang Gang meets the Lakers. You'll laugh, you'll cry (from laughing too hard), and then you'll snark some more until you burst an internal organ or two. It'll be worth it, because this is going to be the funniest damn thing you'll have read all year.

Maternity by Melymbrosia
You know, sometimes, less IS more. This Darla-vignette set during "Lullaby", for example. Go read it to see how a story can rip your heart out in less than 300 words.

All Your Tomorrows by Jennifer-Oksana
That rare thing  - a 2nd person fic I liked, about Giles/Anya and how it might actually work.

A Cross to Bear by s.a.
A lovely look at Buffy's collection of crosses, and what they mean.

Reconciliation by Jennifer-Oksana
This is an epic ride, and Jenny O takes us all the way and back again. The fate of the scoobies and AI is all in the balance and Cordy's just the gal to sort them out. Wonder what's gonna happen to the gang in twenty years? The answers are here. It's a gripping tale and the characters are all their loveable old selves.

Girl With Kaleidoscope Eyes by Kyra Cullinan
This is beautiful. And has a feeling of inevitability about it. Tara's a whisper and a shadow and Willow just wants to keep her around. Sad and haunting and a lovely read.

Slightly Darker Than Black and Burn by Julie Fortune
Deliciously dark, but dark with purpose, these stories are stunning in their plausibility. Wesley, Cordelian and Angel as they could have been - nay, should have been, at the end of S3.

The Uninvited Guest by Yahtzee
A haunting AU crossover, in which Yahtzee manipulates POV like a master puppeteer.  Everyone thinks they know the truth; everyone is wrong about something.  But not necessarily what we think.

Ripcord by Lise Williams
Riley returns to Sunnydale. The world is ending.

Whereas the Body by Teanna
Teanna freestyles in a way that most of us just dream about. Great Tara fic has abounded since her untimely death on the show - which gives you an indication of the strength of her character. This is no exception. Poetic and edgy.