Unfit for Society Recs

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Big Damn Heroes by Damkianna
Eeeeeee! Avatar mashed up with Firefly! Katara's ship Appa rarely takes on passengers, but when Zuko, Iroh, and Yue come aboard, things get exciting. Shiny!

Blade, Brush, Tile by recessional
Really nice look at the Royal Family and Mai through Piandao's eyes.

Evidence by lizbee
Fire Lady Mai as a badass ninja spy. ♥

The Finest Feeling by bowdlerized
"Love is a very powerful emotion. Real love--like your mother's love for you, or yours for her--is the finest feeling. But it comes at a cost: the price we pay for that joy is the pain we feel when we are separated from the people we love.

"It is a hard lesson to learn when you are young," he continues, more softly, "but better to learn it now than when you are an old man like your uncle."

Zuko stands and begins to pace around the edge of the pond. "I know it hurts. Everyone knows that. But knowing it doesn't help anything."

"You are right, Prince Zuko. But I'm afraid I don't have any better wisdom to offer you in this situation."

"It's okay," he says, "I didn't really expect any." The beginning of Iroh and Zuko's beautiful friendship. *sniffle*

Four inventions Sokka never built (and one he did) by sholio
Hee! I love inventor Sokka and his belief in science and this story is so perfectly in character. *heart*

The Good Life by such_heights
Really lovely, understated Toph/Katara story. Katara's no mother hen, not really, and she'd never ask Toph to stay, but she's glad she can provide a base for her, for whenever she wants it. And she hopes, quietly, that one day Toph might consider it to be a home.

No One Asks About the Scars by voleuse
The first time they met another air bender, the earth whispered under Toph's feet. Her feet stuttered still while she wondered what it meant, and then she realized it was Aang's heart, pulsing joy to the rock beneath them. Lovely, achy story of Aang and Toph traveling together after the war is over, and finding a home in each other.

Of the Fruit (and not the Flower) by recessional
Azula, afterwards, slowly finding a way to live in the world. The wings are small, but I know, suddenly, that dragons don't fly by wings. Those are only for direction. Dragons fly by existing. Dragons fly because fire leaps at the sky.

Remnants in the Mist by recessional
♥APPA♥ Um, if I need to say more than that, this story deals with something I always wished would happen on the show but didn't. *happy sigh*

Something Built To Last by such_heights
Lovely, meditative look at Toph as she helps rebuild the Earth Kingdom after the war.

Three Conversations by troisroyaumes
Mai learns some of the subtler, less enjoyable responsibilities that go along with being the Fire Lady. Nicely done.

"Mother, I put up with being a pawn for Father's career, but I am not going to do it for everyone else as well."

Her mother gave her a quelling glance and held the earring box out to her. "Mai, don't you understand? This is power. Do you think I've been taking you with me to meet with all the families of consequence in Caldera so that you could enjoy the free pastries?"

Mai blinked. "I thought...I thought you were just...gossiping."

~*~

Star Trek Reboot

All-Time Favorite by mardia
McCoy decides to stop pining and make some other friends. Kirk is oblivious until he's not. Aw, boys. *heart*

With All My Crooked Heart by igrockspock
Gaila/Uhura/language=OT3. This is a wonderful little story in which Gaila tells Uhura that the slaves of Orion have their own language.
"Please comment on the following lines of poetry: I long for scenes where man has never trod; A place where woman never smil'd or wept."

"Why is it always the men who are doing and the women who are feeling?" she snaps. "When I explore space, I'm going to smile and tread."

And all the men who see me will weep with longing, she adds in her head. Even the anatomically incompatible ones.

Heel Turn by brownbetty
Sulu takes up knitting, which slowly drives Kirk crazy. Adorable and hilarious. I love stories where people are unexpected knitters and this is a gem of the genre.

~*~

Fringe

Singular at the same time by monanotlisa
Utterly lovely Astrid/Olivia.

~*~

The Middleman

Camping with Zombies by hyacinthian
"Why is it," Wendy says, trying to find the power button to switch it off, "that no matter where you go, even the far reaches of the galaxy, somehow, a society will find a way to make really annoying pop music?"

He gives her one of those smiles she sometimes finds patronizing. "The universe works in mysterious ways, Dubbie." Wendy and the Middleman get trapped in a warehouse by zombies (they're actually aliens, but whatever, they're totally zombies), and they do it! Wendy and the Middleman, I mean. Not the zombies. That would be gross. Adorable and hot, with a great Wendy voice.

~*~

The West Wing

The cosmos owns our luck by gabolange
"Write a book people will read," CJ tells him.

"Not likely," Toby says.

"People used to listen to your speeches."

"Because I didn't deliver them." [...] "And how do you propose I start?" he asks, clearly too tired to argue.

"Use your words," CJ says. "They are no more or less beautiful if you direct them to our children. You're not saying you care less if you speak in public libraries or college campuses or shitty bookstores." Beautiful story about CJ and Toby keeping in touch after the series. Have tissues handy.

~*~