let's talk about bob/brian for a second

[harborshore]

See, here's the thing. You lot know I will read and write pretty much any pairing, up to and including Lyn-Z/Mac from Veronica Mars and Bob/Batman, right? But I have an OTP, I've come to realize that. An OTP that I can deviate from, sort of, if the story or the idea is compelling enough--emotions and relationships depend on the underlying characterization, after all, and I certainly don't loathe alternative pairings at all (Bob/Batman, for example). But ultimately, I find them so interesting together that I default to writing them when I can, and I love reading them, love it so much.



I've talked about the fact that I fell into bandom because of Lyn-Z, right? And the idea for a longer revolutionary AU that I couldn't ignore. But I don't think I've talked about how I first wrote fic too much. Wait For The Morning happened because I made an innocent remark in torakowalski's journal, the first time I talked to her, actually, about how Bob should kidnap Brian and take him on a roadtrip. She told me that was an excellent idea, and because she's been able to make me tell stories even before we knew each other, that was it.

50 comments or so later, we had to take it to email, because I realized I had an actual fic. Writing is never as easy as when I'm writing about the two of them, oh man. And what's in the story, the way Bob cares about Brian and Brian slowly realizes that he loves Bob, that's why I love writing them. Because they know each other so well, they can pull each other out of the worst of hells by yelling or not saying anything or by holding on. Because the tiniest comments ("Stop being such a goddamn idiot," or "Fuck you, asshole, you said you wouldn't do that any more," or "Shut up, Schechter," or even "I like you too") and the tiniest touches, they mean a hell of a whole lot more because they normally wouldn't say anything.

So that's a godsend for a writer, right? There is meaning in everything. Like this moment from my big bang:

Then Brian walks in, and the quiet is instantaneous, like someone flipped a switch. He looks even more frazzled than usual, ripping out his ear piece and saying “Mikey said--Mikey said to come back, because--” and then he sees Bob. For one second, Brian's face is completely, frighteningly open. “You fucking idiot,” he says, voice breaking. Lindsey wants to look away, but she can't; she gets it now, gets why he's been wound so tight she sometimes thought anything at all could make him snap.
.

And I wish I could take credit for that, but really, it's that dynamic, it's easy, so easy. And goddamn gorgeous, too. ♥

It works when they're girls, too: One More Time With Feeling was the easiest of all the ficlets I've written, and I want to turn it into a story--a canon-based girl!Bob/girl!Brian would work, right? Tora says it would and I tend to agree.

The canon is one of my favorite things about them (and I don't mean I think they're actually dating, obviously)--they've canonically known each other for a long time, having met way before MCR; Brian shaves Bob in LOTMS before the GoY video, which, JFC, that was ridiculously hot; every time Bob talks about Brian it's with this half-disgruntled, half-fond tone in his voice, and I love it lots. Also, individually, they tend to put themselves in danger, work way too fucking hard, be ridiculously competent, make a lot of snarky jokes and then manage this earnestness that is just too adorable for words.

So they're my favorites, most of all when you put them together. *beams*

And now for what I meant to do when I started writing this: torakowalski wrote me a telepathic Brian ficlet, and it is so exactly what I love that I don't even know what to say. Like this:

Eventually, Bob decides on what he wants to say. Brian keeps picking at his jeans and pretends to be surprised when Bob touches his elbow. “You want me to keep it a secret?” Bob asks. He doesn’t approve, but he’s willing to do it for Brian. Brian fights down a smile.

“Yeah,” Brian tells him. “I don’t like lying to the guys but I can’t do my job if everyone’s weird around me.”

“I’m not being weird around you,” Bob says.

Brian laughs. “You are totally being weird around me,” he says, letting himself relax just enough to nudge Bob’s shoe with the side of his boot.

Fuck off, Bob thinks loud and clear and obviously deliberate.

“You fuck off,” Brian says, nudging him again.

“That’s really weird,” Bob says and thinks in tandem (Brian suspects most people would be surprised at how rarely anyone thinks exactly the same words that come out of their mouths. Bob’s more honest than most at that though; it’s refreshing).

HEARTS IN MY EYES, YOU GUYS. I want her to write me Bob/Brian forever and ever. And ever. If you haven't read her big bang from last year, you should get on that--it's alwaysagirl where it means something, where Bry grows up in the scene and figures her shit out and falls in love, and it is perfect.

In other recs, also read graceoftheworld, who gets them so right. And secrethappiness. And anything else under my bob/brian tag. And then tell Mango to get on her space!au, because space mechanic Bob is one of my favoritest things.

But before you read them, you could tell me why you like Bob/Brian, or ask me questions about them--the girls or the revolutionaries or the canon!verse boys, or whatever. Or tell me about an AU that should exist. Come talk to me about them, basically. ♥

Comments

[soundslikej.livejournal.com]

Oh my god, yes, let's talk about them. The problem is, everytime I try to get into an actualfax discussion with aneli8 about why we ship them so hard, my comments rapidly devolve into flapping and keymashing and incoherence. But just, yes to ALL of this. I've signed up to write for Big Bang, and...while my story isn't exactly Bob/Brian, so much of it revolves around their relationship through the years, and their backstory, and their future, and just...I am so stupidly excited to write it, because I feel like I can picture the way their relationship might go in my head better than any other pairing in this fandom.

In conclusion, ♥ (and I am SO saving that telepathy fic to read when I get home. *__________________* )

ETA: also I would read all the Lyn-z/Mac in the WORLD, OMG. ♥_♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

torakowalski and I have a million email exchanges that go OMG THEY ARE SO GREAT. Basically. With some added ridiculous chatficcing (okay, a lot of ridiculous chatficcing). I don't follow anyone's twitter account in bandom, but I read Brian's every now and then, and he once posted this twitter messageabout how his wife was so loud in the morning, even though "he tries to be quiet." There was a follow-up about how he meant "she", but I was like, hey, so, I don't ship people in real life, but man, I wanted to write the story of that message SO BADLY.

And I am now seriously looking forward to your big bang, JFC. :DDDDDD You do write them really well, oh man, I want so many more stories about them from you. ♥ You get at that half-joking, half-fond thing I talked about here SO AWESOMELY.

They were a background pairing in my story last year (the sequel to the one quoted above and they will be again, it's not a pairing-centric series), and I swear half of the comments I got mentioned them, because I just--I can picture it, exactly as you said, and it makes me so happy to even write the shortest of moments for them together.

LOVE is right.

PS. Here's the one I wrote: Lyn-Z/Mac.

[soundslikej.livejournal.com]

yes! I remember him twittering that, and just being like *_________* because of COURSE Bob can't be quiet in the morning, he's kind of a big lumbering klutz. but Brian loves him anyway. <3

it's not actually Bob/Brian, I'll warn you, but it's a futurefic that ends up Bob/Brian/someone else, and the whole story is about how they get to that point, and backstory of the relationships between each pair in the group, and just. *happy place* I'm pretty excited about it, ngl. :D

and oooh, yay, I already have your recs post open in a tab at home, so now I'll be adding that to it. om nom nom Lyn-z/girls. \o/

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Yup! Though Bob got him back for that "wife" comment, he sure did. (I'm pretty sure he tied Brian to the bed and went down on him until he was pretty goddamn desperate, and then pulled off and walked away. Because you know they both pull shit like that.)

OH MAN. That sounds AWESOME. IL all slow fumblings into threesome-stories; there aren't nearly enough of them. *grins*

There's a Lyn-Z/girl!Bob in there tooooo. I keep making people write me Lyn-Z/girl!Spencer and other assorted pairings--there is a tragic lack of femmeslash in bandom. Hey, maybe that should be my prompts rule next time--request a femmeslash pairing! *ponders*

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

PS2. If you like Lyn-Z/girls and have at least a passing fondness for Gotham, you should read the snippet I recced in my last post before this one (the same one where I recced you), for it is GLORIOUS.