'"Oh god, please tell me you’re not Hydra," said Clint, because he was entirely done with this whole thing now.'
Soulmate AUs are a popular type of AU in fanfiction - I tend to avoid them because they're often exclusionary of Asexual/Aromantic people.
This week's fic isn't - which is why I'm recc'ing it! 😉
(Fangirling notes:
AU = Alternate Universe.
Soulmate AU = an AU where soulmates are not only a scientific/social truth, but are often enshrined in law, visible as soulmates to others, etc. There's a lot of variation that fic authors can play with!)
Each fic has its own rules when it comes to Soulmate AUs - so long as you accept that, and go along with the ride, you'll be fine.
But if you must have some rules before-hand, then for this fic, the basic set-up is that soulmates a) hear a chime when they first meet, b) sync-up heartbeats and sleep rhythms, and c) can heal each other's physical injuries
(The Aro/Ace inclusion here is vague but present - not all soulmates are romantic and/or sexual. It's explained late on in the fic that a lot of soulmates are platonic, and never have a physical/romantic relationship.)
So this is an MCU fic which has the 'rare pair' of Bucky Barnes (The Winter Soldier) and Clint Barton (Hawkeye.)
And Clint is deaf! *punches air*
(Clint is canonically deaf in the comics, but this gets erased in the films, so I love it when a fic uses it. #DisabilityRepresentationForTheWin!)
(Fangirling notes:
MCU = Marvel movies, i.e. The Avengers etc.
Rare pair/rare pairing = a romantic and/or sexual relationship which there are a comparatively small number of fics for.
Canonically/canon = the 'official' stuff that happens in the comics/TV series/books/whatever.)
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| Via Giphy |
I really enjoyed this fic - which is about Clint and Bucky going undercover in the army and having an enemies-to-lovers storyline along the way.
It's not perfect though - it makes use of racial slurs regarding Latinx people, and Homophobic slurs, etc.
Fanfiction is a fairly anonymous medium, so I have no idea if the fic author has the right to reclaim these words as a member of the affected groups or not.
But regardless, I know it'll upset and hurt some people, so this is your warning.
Speaking of Content Warnings, here's a handy-dandy list:
- racism
- Homophobia
- workplace bullying
- facist terrorist group working within the US military
- general violence
- blood and injuries
References to:
- torture
- memory loss
- mind control
- sexy-times
- child abuse (physical, possible emotional)
...I think that's everything, but as always, be careful dearest nerdlets!
This week's fic, then, is:
Be All You Can Be by flawedamythyst
Are you a fan of Soulmate AUs?
Do you have a fave rare pairing?
Talk to me! 😎💬
Related Reading:
Sharing and commenting always makes me smile dearest nerdlets! 😁
I didn't know Hawkeye is deaf! See, this is why it is so important for movies to not erase canon. Because people like me, who don't really read the comics but watch the movies, are missing out on important representation.
ReplyDeleteClint Barton in the comics has hearing aids and speaks in ASL sometimes. The comics have done some *excellent* work around Clint's representation, (since 2012, when they decided to bring back his deafness - he'd previously been deaf from the early 80s to the late 90s, but then comics shenanigans 'cured' him,) but so far the MCU has just point-blank erased rep. that was already present in the comics. Like, argh!
DeleteA lot of people think that his character in the new video game has hearing aids though, so maybe the tide is turning... :)