Okay, okay...i give! :)

[tabaqui]

Not like i've been bombarded with requests but... A couple of you tagged me, and a couple more of you asked outright - 'Tabaqui, are you gonna do the five favorite fics meme?'

And, you know what? Yeah, i am. Heh.

So, i don't have the 'official' wording to paste in, but basically it's the five fics that *i* like the most, regardless of how 'good' they are or anything else. So...here we go. I'll cut for the flist...



Credence. One of the very first chaptered fics i ever wrote. A fic where Spike was 'evil' and Xander was lost and Oz was hunting for a cure. Why do i like it? I guess because this is *my* Spike. The Spike i would refine and hone and work on for the next couple of years. The Spike who could torture and kill and cheat and *love*, without a soul and without a qualm. And a Xander who got to keep that edge, that bit of wildness. This fic, after much consideration, is to be considered complete. Yes. Finally. :)

Babylon. Apoco!fic. Something i love to read *if* it's not too hopeless and horrible. I loved writing this. I loved making the world 'after' - i loved plotting how things *worked* in this world. How people and demons lived, how they adapted to this new world. I loved writing Spike adapting, and Xander, and i loved making them slowly, carefully, *fall* in love.

Darling Buds of May. I think this'll surprise people, but i *like* this fic. I like being in Dawn's head, i like her flawed logic that makes what she's doing okay, i like that i wrote Spike and Buffy as together and it *worked*, in my head and in the fic. I just...like this. :)

Bloody Odin!. Yes, it's a bit derivative. Yes, it's silly. But! I love to read funny stories. I love a fic or a book where you actually giggle out loud. I never, ever, thought i could write anything like that. At all. But i did it, and it's *good*, at least to me, and it makes me laugh when i re-read it. I'm so glad i just went for it. Of course, most of the credit goes to reremouse for encouraging me and prodding me on. Thanks, bay-bee.

And, last but not least... This is my all-time favorite thing i wrote. I loved the idea before i even got started on it. I loved how it *worked*, i loved how i felt writing it, and i loved how it still feels. Everything about this fic makes me happy, and yes it's schmoopy and heavy with book and music references and maybe just...'not good' but it's perfect to me, and makes me feel like i really do have the ability to do this stuff. Letters

So, there you go. My top five favorite fics. :) Truth be told, i really love 'Bao Bei' and 'Scaling Heaven' and 'Sanguine' that i wrote for SPN...but five is enough, don't you think?

I'm sure i had other things to put in here, but my brain has blanked, heh. *loves*

Comments

[yourlibrarian]

Heh, I was curious about Darling Buds, went to read it, started thinking it was a little familiar near the end and -- yep, had read it before and didn't even remeber!

I'm just starting to watch SPN so I may have to go back and read your SPN fics sometime.

[tabaqui]

It's pretty old, yeah.

I'd be delighted if you read over my SPN things...
:)

[moimoietmoi.livejournal.com]

"Letters" is one of my favorite S/X fics! I don't know how many times I've read it! :)

[tabaqui]

Thank you!
Yeah, i just...it feels so egotistical but it *works* and it's good and it's just...
Yeah.
:)

[sweptawaybayou.livejournal.com]

Yay!!

Finally!

*adds to bookmarks*

I love rereading your fic. All of it. So very inspirational and absolutely incredible. And your Spike, oh. YES.

*smooches*
**luffs**

[tabaqui]

*luffs*
*smooches back*
Thank you thank you.
:)

I love that icon.

[kitty-poker1.livejournal.com]

Yep, that'll do very nicely, thank you. *g* You know I don't read your SPN fic and you know why - not logical, but there you go - but your Spander is way up there in the all-time favs. Letters flows so beautifully and seems so real, it's hard to remember it's a fic and not an episode. *hugs*

[tabaqui]

Thanks!
I know 'Letters' isn't perfect but it just...i dunno. It's *my* story so much more than any other story i've written, however weird that sounds.

And uh, no, i don't mean that i'm Spike or anything. Heh.

[kitty-poker1.livejournal.com]

*g* I get it. My favourite of my fics is crap. Really, it is. But I love it. It's exactly what I want for my boys. It's the only one I re-read through the cringing.

[tabaqui]

Heeee.
Yeah. I ultimately want my boys to be happy, damnit. Screw eternal angst!

:)

[kitty-poker1.livejournal.com]

Ack! I was just trying to find a way to back-pedal madly and explain that in no way do I consider any of your fic crap. I should have known you'd get it.

Eternal angst is so overrated. Happy boys makes for happy and no bad there. *g*

[tabaqui]

Heeeeee!
Oh, dude, i totally didn't think that for even a second. And hey - *my* first fics are pretty crappy, too, but the effort involved in editing them...omg.

Couldn't go there.

Yeah - happy is good, good is happy - something like that.
Yay, happy endings!
:)

[kaydee23.livejournal.com]

I need to read Bloody Odin! I haven't read that one. I think you posted that when my computer died and I gave up the internet for a while. Something to look forward too.

I have 3 of yours I haven't read. Yay. I have so much to look forward too.

[tabaqui]

Wheeeee, yay!
I look forward to your reaction!
:)

[riani1.livejournal.com]

Ah, Credence. One that lives on my hard drive, along with Letters.

I'm going to have to re-read Babylon to make sure it's the one I think it is, but I have to go make dinner.

[tabaqui]

*snuggles you*
That just makes me happy.
:)

[riani1.livejournal.com]

Personally, I've fallen in deep love with "Brothers In Arms," possibly above Letters. I think it's the violence and desperation.

And--deep breath--a Supernatural storyline just popped into my head, but I don't have the voices clear enough in my head yet to try it. I have a hard time getting stories for the boys because their job is never over and their world is so narrow--but I haven't seen any of S2 yet. We'll see.

[tabaqui]

Yes, i like that one too... I'm not as fond of the very last chapter as i could be, but...yeah. Thanks.

Ooh, really? SPN? That's spiff.
And yeah, you need to watch season two - interesting developments!

[soraidh.livejournal.com]

Oh I love Letters. That's one of my favorite pieces of Spander fic. I haven't read Bloody Odin yet though I need to. And I can't remember if I've read Credence or not. Must remedy that.

[tabaqui]

Thank you!
I think you'll like the others, too.

While I've read and enjoyed all these.....

[lunabee34.livejournal.com]

I have a lot of fondness for Letters as well. Not only was it one of the first pieces of fanfic I read, it also was the inaugural fic for club_joss and one of our most interesting and successful discussions.

Babylon also remains one of my alltime favorite fics. You make the world end so good, darling. So so hurty good.

Re: While I've read and enjoyed all these.....

[tabaqui]

Ooh, i'd forgotten about that!
Thanks, bay-bee.
:)

[katekat]

oh YAY! I'm so glad you did this - not only does it give me an opportunity to reread things of yours that i love, but it's always fun to find out what you like out of the things you've written.

and since i don't think i've ever actually commented to many of these because they were long finished when I actually found your writing (since i came quite late through the most backward way possible - from club_joss)... just a few quick words...

Babylon: I love how much you put into the landscape details at the beginning of the fic - so many of the post-end of the world fics I've read forget that it's a whole new look, and a whole new feeling, that can be conveyed with ones' surroundings. You don't forget, you make me feel it. The fact that it's from Spike's perspective - the smells, the sounds, the way he lost his jacket - they're all wonderful world building that just makes 'em yummy.

The only memorial he knows to make for the last heroes of the world.

Such a beautiful way for Spike (and later for Xander too) to remember in the only thing he can be sure he'll take with him. I know a lot of your fics have Spike marking his skin in one way or another and I love that (and this) because it seems like immortals would want some way to take memories with them in some immutable way - something that can't be removed or stolen or lost. Love that.

"Yeah?" Spike asked, and Xander's smile faded, then - went to something solemn and intense and young, again. So very, very vulnerable and open and Spike felt that look like a fist to his gut.

That, oh that line. It's that kind of tenderness that seems to occur so sweetly in the best Spike/Xander. Practically wordless moments of adoration - Spike loving Xander not only for what and who he is but who he was and who he can become.

ok, got a little wordy there. But I do love Babylon, and wanted to thank you for it.

*runs off to read the other 4!*

[tabaqui]

Oh, wow, thank you!
:)

I enjoy worldbuilding so much that it's actually quite surprising that *all* my fics aren't apocolyptic or something! To me it's just - *essential* that what is around the characters is described and noticed at least a *little*. It has so much impact on what they do and how they do it and how they feel. Or maybe that's just me. Heh.

I got to build a whole new 'future' world in Scaling Heaven, too, and that was immensely fun.

I guess my own tattoos lead me to the conclusion that someone like Spike or Xander would want some sort of permanent mark of what they've been through and survived.

And hey - the Spander is just...well, two ultra-loyal, loving guys finally find true love? It's just chock-full of possibilities.

Thank you so much!

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

I love 'Letters', it is one of the SX fic that captures essential elements of what I love in both characters. Also, it has balance - the acknowledgment of potential by both of them, at the beginning, with the recognition that they both had growing and mending to do (which needed to be done alone) so that when they came together, they did so strong in themselves and equal. It is a lovely story.
But there is another of yours which I also love, for the same sort of reasons, at the 'opposite' end of the scale - 'Sweeter Far Than Flowing Honey' is demon-Spike at his best, scheming, imaginative, resourceful (and successful), while Xander is lost and longing and frustrated. Much as I love strong-Xander, I also love lost-Xander. And this story, from the truly imaginative way Spike finds a meal at the start, to Xander's vague memories of loving red hair at the end, is one of those stories where I actually cheer the 'evil' on.

[tabaqui]

Thank you!

You know, i almost put 'Sweeter Far' up there. I love that fic, too. I *love* a capable Spike who has a work-around or three for that stupid chip - i mean, *i*, as a writer, figured out several, so...yeah, he would too.

Yeah, sometimes it's good when 'evil' wins. Heh.

[niccy07.livejournal.com]

I'm a little sad that Credence is considered complete. I was really hoping to read more. Still, I'm glad that you went right out and said it. What irritates me more is when fics are put one extended WIP, with no clear statement on whether there are plans to continue it. Ahh but that fic will always have a special place in my heart. I think this was the first really long S/X fic that I read that not only gave me a good sourse for fics, but also access to many other great authors.

[tabaqui]

Thank you!

I simply have nothing left to *say* in the 'Credence' verse. They love, they trust - Xander *wants* to be there, Spike wants him...it's just...over.

I know several people wanted some kind of 'revenge' scene and they wanted Oz to come back but... To me those scenes would just be boring. Repetitious. And Oz simply isn't coming back. He can't deal with the human world right now - maybe not for a long time.

It just feels right for it to be over. I'm glad it helped you find more stories and more authors. :)

[sufie58.livejournal.com]

Have just re-read Letters - lovely fic. I love the way the story just seems to flow and that they both go off and deal independently, before they come together at the end. Thank you.

[tabaqui]

Thank you so much! 'Flow' seems to be the word most people associate with Letters and that's really cool.
:)

[(Anonymous)]

For almost any writer, five is enough. For you? I couldn't stop at five... Glad to see "Sweeter far..." got a mention, since I adore it. But you know another of my favorites is "Compass Rose". Great story, wonderful Dru, hot hot hot, and Vamp!Xander by the end. What's not to love? Also, I heart "Dogs of War" for it's extremely capable, all-grown-up, war-weary but still a tender-vittle Xander. (and no, I don't mind Riley dying a gruesome death or two).

Also, cough...Changes...cough. God I love that story. LOVE IT. Xander is a fine, fine man, and Spike is... SPike. I cry at Buffy's funeral. I cry when she's resurrected. When Spike goes off with the Sidhe... OK, so I run around with a button that says "angst me, baby". Still LOVE IT.

[tabaqui]

Oh, thank you so much!

You know, Compass Rose was a lot of fun to write. I *adore* Dru, and loved writing her - thinking up a spell for her and how her own 'skewed view' would fix Spike's problem in an unusual way.

And yeah, Dogs of War...it makes me feel guilty when i didn't include some stories - i don't want to hurt their feelings! *pets it*. Heh. Another instance where i got to world-build, and that's always a blast.

Ohhh, you know...Changes... I do *love* it, but not so much for the writing. I love that it was the first long fanfic i wrote and that i did it *well*, you know? And that i commited to a chapter a week and *wrote* a chapter a week, and that it was fairly logical and didn't drop any stitches and... And i love that people love it, you know? I re-read it and see the places it needs editing more than anything but it always makes me happy to hear that it's someone's 'reread' fic or 'comfort fic' or something.

Thank you so much!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_beetle_/]

Ah, my favorite of these is "Letters". On my hard drive. It made me fall in love with Seattle, though "Credence" and "Under The Mountain" (god, your titles rock) definitely helped the lurve along.

As for SPN--it's a toss up between "Red Shoes" and "Sanguine". I know, two totally different fics, with two totally different emotional weights, but there you go.

I totally wanna read "Bloody Odin" again. Luggage was so friggin cute :D

[tabaqui]

Wheeeeeeee!
I love those stories, too. Five was *too few*!!
:)

Man, BO makes me so pleased - i did funny! Wheeeee!
*smoooch*

[bendtothesun.livejournal.com]

Oh I love it my favorite writers do this meme. I'm always fascinated to know what people think of their own writing, why they love/hate it and what worked for them, ect. And I'm going to completely talk your ear off about your fics now so be forewarned. *grin*

I have to say I have such a love for Babylon. I'm such a *freak* for post-apoco fics and the worlds that are created out of that one event. This one was just so perfect to me, it's the one I compare to all others. You created such a vivid, wonderful world that I feel in love with it. There are so many bits I could go on about but I'm always going to carry with me the scene where Spike's bartering with the Russian rat demon and the subsequent eating of the food and tea. Odd scene to love out of all of them but it just represented... everything that I loved about that world. Oh and I will always remember this as the story that made me want to eat watermelon tourmaline.

Credence - Just... utter Spike perfection. I can't even add anything just that this is the story I go to when I need my Spike fix. He's everything I want from Spike and everything I didn't realized I wanted until I read this story. Oh and Watership Down and fur-lined gloves *heart*.

Scaling Heaven - Another automatic favorite of mine, me being the *huge* sci-fi fanatic that I am. You created such an awesome world there and it was at war and there was Spike being all captain-y and Xander being all useful. It was ever so much fun. And I was right there with Xander at the end with the 'OMG SHIPS!'.

Dogs Of War - This was the first ever that I read and I've been captivated with it ever since. I just can't express how much I love this fic. Words utterly fail me. It's just... wow.

As If We Should Forget We Have No Hands - This one got me for the imagery. From the title to 'folded up like a cheap Chinese fan' (the phrase that always comes to mind first when I think of this fic) to Xander in his 'cell' with the dragon back mountains and the gold sky to them destroying the tea to Xander under the bed and Spike crawling after him to Spike doing *voodoo* and the giving for recieving rule. I could see every single scene you wrote in my head and it was breathtaking.

Letters - I love Letters for how focused it is on Spike. I'm not sure but I think this is one of the only ones where you write almost soley from Spike's P.O.V. and it was absolutely fascinating. I loved the letters and the tattoo parlor and Spike settling into a new phase in his life. It was about time he got a chance to rest.

*blush* right so, I've babbled on long enough but I figured this was the place to gush at you. Anyway I think I've fan-girled enough for one post. *grin*

[tabaqui]

Ooh, wow, thank you thank you! So much! :)

I can't even respond since it would be a big list of 'oh, yes, i liked that part too!' Heh.

You absolutely made my day.
*smoooch*

[twisted-reach.livejournal.com]

Damn, if there's not one there I hadn't read before!

Credence

I've read it now though and can I say thanks for it getting me through a cr*ppy week at work!
Loved your OCs, they're always so vivid.

[tabaqui]

Hehe. Cool! And thank you!

Man, looking over that story, i *really* need to reformat! Sheesh.
:)