denotes art!Final Fantasy VII Recs
I played FFVII way back in 1999, so it's been quite a long time for me. However, I'm just now diving in to the fandom, which is pretty huge, surprisingly. I tend to really prefer original game canon, because all this new stuff is pretty but doesn't really do much for me. It sort of feels tacked on (which it is) and there's a whole lot of problems (which I learned was called retconning—who says you can't learn from fandom?) that bug me a lot. So while Compilation pieces might wander into this section a lot of the time it's going to be material meant to be read in original game canon only—AU to Compilation work.
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But That Was In Another Country (5) by spiderflower
Do I even need to rec this? I mean, I'm pretty sure most people have found it and fallen in love with it already if they're going to. I'm a slave to this author's clear, amusing prose, and I love her Yuffie even though I sometimes wonder how much of my love for Yuffie comes from what I remember from canon and what I remember from her writing. This is one of those rare stories that's in first person and I don't get pinged out ever, which is saying something since I dislike most first-person, original, fannish, or other types of writing. This is actually a Kingdom Hearts story, too, crossed with Final Fantasy VII, but it's mostly still got the VII vibe going on. I've been following since the beginning, and this is chapter five, and the more I read the more I love it. (Yuffie, Vincent, cast)
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Outmoded by delladella
I simply love her phrasing, her word choices. I love that instead of exploring a relationship between Cloud and Zack that's all about sex, this piece focuses on other emotions and does such an excellent job of catching those. The jealousy, the resentment, how it's looking up but only to take what Zack has. To be Zack—not to be with him. It's different than what I usually see from fandom and really good. (Cloud, Zack/Aeris)
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A Study in BS by memlu
So, the fact that memlu takes these characters and writes them like Turks instead of writing them fucking everything that moves appeals to me on so many levels. THIS IS WHAT I WANT FROM MY TURK FIC. This partnership and how they operate and the way Reno is just fabulous and Rude is fabulous and how the subject matter is just so appropriate. Perhaps I should simply italicize this entire rec to express my love for it. ♥ (Reno, Rude)
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God Among the Specimens by delladella
I was lucky enough to be told that it was my influence that caused this story to be inflicted upon fandom at large. I'm not sure if it was meant as a compliment, but I'm going to take it that way because hey, if I can take at least partial credit for the amount of fabulous material this story contains, I'm doing it. I will ride coattails forever with no shame at all. I first saw this story when it was posted in a feedback community and I spent at least an hour going, "Why am I reading Final Fantasy VII fic and LIKING IT?"
I mean, I look at what the outset gives us: Cloud is a botanist.
A botanist.
That alone should win this some points, because I pictured Cloud doing a lot of things post-game. Crazy chocobo farmer? Check. Barret's love slave? Check. In a mental facility? Check. Botanist? Wait. But surprisingly, it works, and it works well, and not just because of how wonderfully the author sews that into her narrative, even early on. It's like watching a character redefining themselves, except they're batshit crazy to us.
What I like the most is that the puzzle pieces aren't all there. It's a bunch of teasing. Basically, Della is a cock tease. Or, at least, the fanfiction version of one. This story is like meta, though, so I can't even begrudge the fact that the plot makes my eyeballs sweat as I add up the pieces. The whole world—and I don't say this lightly—is real. That's saying something, since when I think of the worlds given to me by S-E, the ones I cared about the most, the world of FFVII would be it. It's three-dimensional, it's dark, it's a mess and this story not only doesn't forget that, it takes it and makes it better. This story with all it's darkness and twists and turns is what I wanted from Advent Children and didn't get when I finally got around to watching it. That's almost blasphemy, I guess. I liked it, but it was missing the depth of world the game had. I don't miss that world when I read this story; I feel like I'm there. I also have a fondness for stories that explore the relationship between Tifa and Cloud and Cloud and the rest of the group, which this story does so very well. I mean, I tend to have romantic versions about happy endings for characters, but it's not very realistic.
All that said, I have to say that this story isn't an easy read and it's not something someone could pop up and read on a lunch break. I don't mean that to be an anti-rec at all, because if anything, I think to make the reader believe, to accomplish our investment the world, it can't be easy, because these lives and what they're experiencing isn't easy. The author packs so much into her words that everything means something. There is no dead air, no wasted space. Admittedly, the style might not be for everyone. It's very poetic, and not straightforward at all. Some people will likely go into this thinking it's just another fic to read, but no. This is something that will take effort and concentration. I said once that not all fanfiction needs to be like a snack. Some can be full meals. This story is a five course dinner at the expensive restaurant where a piece of chicken costs 26$. I couldn't even afford to stare at the restaurant this would be served at if it was food; my wallet would collapse in on itself.
Seriously, I wish more FFVII stories could be like this. Clearly Della really wants me to take off all my clothes and throw myself at her to make her continue writing it. Clearly. (Ensemble)
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How to Succeed in Sexual Blackmail Without Really Trying by thorne_scratch
Every time I think about this story I think I have it confused with a story from the SGA fandom, because titles like this really smack of questionable McKay/Sheppard fic. And the more I think about it, the more my brain tries to say, "Well, if you think about it, Sheppard COULD— and the more I have to go STOP STOP STOP, except vocally, making anyone in the room with me look at me strangely.
So I'm the last person in fandom to read this story; what else is new. Someone recced it somewhere and I was sucked in, even though I tend to gen Cloud post-game in my head because he's crazy, or make him Barret's love slave (SEE ABOVE). This surprisingly, worked, even with the Reno/Cloud premise. The timing and the comedy was the best; there's not too much deep here, which makes it an easy, fun read. Reno is fabulous and usually I get annoyed when some fan artists make him out to be a huge clown, but this story manages to err on the line between making him humorous and a joke.
It's got an Advent Children base, which helped me going in, since I tend to read OGC and AC fic with different perspectives. There's hints of depth toward the end, sneaky jabs at the heart, which really sealed it for me, but I won't spoil it on the EXTREMELY SLIM chance someone trips across this that hasn't read it. (Cloud/Reno)
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Tastes Like Green by spiderflower
jwefqw;dcqahlvwd;wed. That is my response to this story. What do I like about it? What don't I like about it—that's the question. It is everything I want in my Yuffie/Vincent fic and it's somehow possible when reading this to laugh and tear up in sadness at the same time, it's just so rich with characterization, both Yuffie and Vincent. Yuffie is everywhere and Vincent is quiet in his emo way and they play off each other so amazingly well. The author doesn't make it easy for them, it's realistic. They aren't perfect, they both have faults that surface and they don't fit together just quite right but they still have this amazing chemistry that they both keep running away from. I would end up quoting this entire piece if I wanted to pick my favorite parts. How Yuffie interprets Vincent's revelations about himself and how they try to have this normal, mundane conversations when there is so much seriousness under then. And oh god, Yuffie's antics, and Vincent and his reactions—really, really amazing. Also, the fact that this story is hot and it's not even porn? Yeah, that, it seals it for me. Plus: the ending, oh my god. Stories like these are what really make the pairing work for me. (Yuffie/Vincent)
