The Dream Quest of Unknown Me

I realized I haven't added to my list of favorite BtVS fics in ages so here I go again. I usually don't like/remember drabbles or single stories - I love to be immersed in looong fics with many chapters but over the years I've read a handful of PWP stories that had something special in them that caused them to remain in my memory for all that time and here they are:

Wicked Games by Titti (S/A). This is a holdover from my days as a Spangel fan (I went from Spuffy to Spangel to Spander) and I still like it.

Happy Birthday, Wesley by Jessica Walter (S/A/W). Another Spangel fic, this one with Wesley added into the mix.

Hat Trick by SunnyD (S/X). This one is Spander and, in a variation of Chinese sweet and sour soup, is a sweet and squicky PWP.

Finally there's Raising the Stakes by Benaresq (S/X) that I could only find again by using the Wayback Machine. It contains one of the funniest lines ever: "My cock is stupid. It dated Cordelia. Please ignore anything it tries to contribute to this discussion."

 

If you love Xander, Sands Of Time by James Walkswithwind and wolfling is a fic for you. This is more than a Spander fic. It is a true Xander-coming-of-age fic unfolding in a long series divided into 7 stories so far. I believe this fic actually was begun very early into the run of BtVS possibly in the first season or very early in S2 as Spike, beautifully feral Spike, doesn't show up until midway through the second story. It also was probably one of the first stories to conclude that Xander lived in an abusive home--now a familiar theme.
In "Sands", when Xander is abused by his father, he finds refuge with Giles who eventually becomes his legal guardian. Spike also takes an interest in Xander and at length he and Xander become lovers. Giles finds out and puts an end to it or so he thinks. It's fun seeing how an unchipped Spike is partially tamed by Xander through love, confining his "meals" to bad guys. The series lightly parallels canon with bits of episodes like "Band Candy", "Graduation, "Pangs", "Hero" (Ats) and others happening in the background and sometimes affecting the storyline.
The relationship between the fatherly Giles and his adopted son is wonderful and includes his Giles relatives seen in a trip they take to England. Giles is the father Xander's never had and though Xander is a tiny bit attracted to Giles it's never acted upon (there is no daddy!kink). It goes truly AU after S3 as Xander, encouraged to do well in his studies by Giles, moves to LA to go to college. This is a Xander who matures and develops thanks to the support of his new father (and Spike) something that was never focused upon by ME. After reading this I thought it was a pity that ME never did anything similar but the show was titled Buffy and the other characters were incidental.
According to the website the series is a WIP with 7 completed stories. IMO I feel there should be one more story where Giles learns that Xander deceived him in resuming his relationship with Spike. After some initial anger Giles would come to see Spike's love for Xander and would finally accept him in Xander's life. Because the series was begun so early it has a different feel than other Spander stories written with the benefit of hindsight. It's witty and humorous and all in all a terrific fic.

ETA: "Sands of Time" is now complete

Amnesia!Spike by mahaliem is a very funny fic that begins in S6 with Spike being hit on the head while defending Dawn and developing amnesia. When he finds a lover's note in his crypt he realizes he has a secret lover and becomes determined to find out who it is, coming to the erroneous conclusion that it's Xander. This is my lol fic that I read when I need something to cheer me up. There's a running joke about "Gilligan's Island" and many other hilarious bits. It's not true Spander but at the end there are hints that the bois may actually be headed in that direction. A sweet silly yet nicely written fic.

Civilised Conversations by Melissa begins on the eve of the big battle in "Chosen" when Xander comes down to the basement to ask a favor of Spike--he wants to go for a walk. Together they make a tour of Sunnydale and of Xander's life. They flirt, they kiss, they have the talk that we all wished they could've had in canon. A beautiful, bittersweet fic full of insight into the characters.

Melissa has also written two sequels to CC. The first is And Afterwards Remember which goes AU early in AtS S5 when Xander is sent back in time to meet William in 1880 London to get some of William's blood for a re-corporealizing spell. They spend a lovely day together and, before they part, Xander tells William where to find him if he's ever in LA. In 2004 Spike re-corporealizes but, having forgotten Alexander, wonders why Xander's involved. Of course at the end Spike does fit the pieces together and goes to Xander or perhaps it's William going to Alexander.

The second is A Harsh Master, dealing with Xander's having to learn how to to deal with an over-protective vampire. They are both excellent reads though not quite memorable enough to join my top favorites--I'm so horribly picky.

In her "Waffle House" (http://sajinn.com/buffyficmain.html) sajinn sends Xander on a road trip sometime around S5. He has decided to go on another to make up for the one that stalled in Oxnard. After a year of roaming the country he ends up in Charleston and runs into ...Spike (I bet you guessed that), now chip-free. They get off to a bad start until Xander's employer, a grande old dame named Lavinia sort of plays matchmaker between her gardener and the Master of the city. There's a hilarious Pepe le Peu seduction scene that has Spike chasing Xander all over his mansion and ends in Xander's capitulation. Slowly, step by step, for over three years, a charming relationship builds and all is well until they return to California where expletive happens.
I always like Spander fics where the relationship is allowed to build, no jumping into bed at the first chance. Sajinn's AU unfolds elegantly with delightful bits like the cups of coffee in the morning, the pig and so on. Despite the angst towards the end it's full of humor. I'm so glad I decided to review it today since it gave me the excuse to re-read it for the umpteenth time. All in all a great tale unless you're a fan of Buffy Summers.

"Broken" by Kayla (http://www.geocities.com/btvsslash/kayla.html) is another Spander h/c fic that was among the earliest I read. It goes AU around "A New Man" as Spike finds Xander after he's been abused by his father, takes him to a clinic and informs the staff that he's claimed Xander becoming his nursevamp afterwards. After another attack by his father Spike removes Xander and takes him away. Eventually they run into Oz and they end up rooming together. Unfortunately Buffy misunderstands and thinking that the chip is out and that Spike has turned Xander goes hunting for him. Guess who prevails? There's angst of course but it's leavened with humor and some great OCs like Mel and Molly. It does say Finit though I think it's rather an abrupt ending and I can see where there could be more though I doubt that will ever happen so I enjoy what I have *secretly grumbles*
At her site http://www.geocities.com/kaylafic/stories/buffy/, Kayla writes that she's revising it but she hasn't gotten further than Parts 1 & 2 (out of 4) in over a year. The unrevised edition is at BTVSslash for the time being though that site hasn't been updated since 11/24/03 and I can't get any information about it either--grr argh--I so dislike the ephemerality of things on the web and of course authors who abandon their fics without warning.

Stranger Things by tolerik/Esmeralda is a very long series that veers off canon in the 4th season. In the first story "The Deal", Spike, in order to rescue Xander from becoming a demon sex toy, needs to prove his "claim" on the boy. Unable to be the one to penetrate a virgin Xander because of the possible pain setting off the chip, he must persuade and guide an astonished Xander to be the "doer" in front of his demon captors. In the next story, "The Arrangement" Spike and Xander decide that they have something real but the chip is an obstacle so Spike takes Xander to LA so Angel can "break him in" with Spike in attendance. Esmeralda stage manages the three of them beautifully and logically but of course Xander is Spike's and eventually he can claim his boi. In subsequent stories Doyle joins in the fun as Angel's companion and there is a time or two that it's the BtVS version of "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice". However the series is more than just PWP. There are major obstacles in the path to happiness like the return of the Initiative and Angelus.

Esmeralda is a very capable writer and her characters ring true even as they depart from canon into slashheaven. The first story "The Deal" was written in 2000 and since then this series has grown into 9 complete multi-chaptered stories and a 10th which is a WIP. It's up there with "Repossession" and "Quantum Xander I&II" in the length department. There are not many writers out there who have been writing as long as she has and is still producing fabulous fics. Go and enjoy.

jameschick's "Quantum Xander" (http://www.geocities.com/kiwileesa2000/jameschick) is a fascinating romp across parallel worlds with Xander finding and losing Spikes along the way. You see he made this wish, "I wish I knew how my life could have been, if I had made different choices." and we all know what happens when you make a wish in Sunnydale. It's a long tale (75 chapters) that takes a year's time to Xander though only 2 1/2 months to the Scoobies left behind and at the end he is mourning the loss of the Spike he loves but who is not the Spike of his own reality. However fear not for Jameschick has written a sequel "Quantum Xander II: In the Wake of the Curse" (65 chapters) where things become really complicated for our bois.
Jameschick is a talented writer and has written a remarkable saga. These are fun fics though there are dark moments and like Lay's potato chips, it's hard to eat (read) just one (chapter) so make sure you can block off enough time to read them.

Long Time Gone by yin_again is an incredibly well-written fic. It goes AU sometime in S7 as Xander leaves Sunnydale, disappearing for 8 years. In the interim he's become a man, a man with a mission as he returns to Sunnydale and to Spike for help. Slowly, step by step, their relationship grows as they overcome a few obstacles on their path to happiness. Yindagger's Xander is unforgettable--he's a man who has found happiness only to have had it snatched away in a cruel manner. With Spike's caring help he comes alive and is able to love again. It's h/c though the hurt is psychological not physical.
The Hour Series is the result of a challenge by estepheia where in order to make peace with Xander, (or at least a kind of ceasefire) Spike offers Xander an opportunity to get even: One hour of payback for past insults and Spike's involvement with Anya: "Sixty minutes. You say it - I do it. You dish it - I take it." Yin's Xander takes Spike up on his offer in a completely novel way--I didn't foresee that response. Yummy.
I'm often astonished by the quality of the writing in fandom. Some are actually published writers and others like Yin are attempting to turn pro. And of course there are others I think could be published if only their fics were original, het and not NC-17. In writing her original fiction Yin cut back on writing major fanfics. She has written ficlets set in the LTGverse and other things and I keep hoping she might one day give her LTGXander the child he deserves.
I'll keep reading whatever she chooses to write and maybe one day I'll go to a bookstore and see a mystery written by her. I wish her well in all her endeavors