Proof that the remaining 10% is worth collecting all 99+ Number Cards for.
These are recommendations made by tropers for Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL fanfics, all of which have to be signed to stay on the page. After a few samples, you will be able to note the interests of the tropers recommending them, and judge whether you might be also interested in a certain 'fic.
No-name recommendations will be zappednote . Nobody would back up the rec. Discussion of the recommendation is welcome on the discussion page. As such discussion is important, do remember to add the discussion page to the watchlist, if need be.
Reviews of fics are encouraged, but if you choose to write one, please make it substantive, and give specific details about what you liked / disliked in the fic. If you want to give a fic a thumbs-up without writing a full review, you can add your troper handle to the Recommendations Line. Please refrain from posting "Comments" or Conversation in the Main Page though; that goes in the discussion page.
Recommendations Template
Title of the Fanfic by Author OR Fic Trope Page, by Author (Link)
- Recommended by: Troper Name
- Synopsis: What's the story about? Give here a brief summary of the plot. It would be also useful to point out in what moment of the series the story takes place. If it's a Gen Fic but it has some romantic elements, note here the characters involved too.
- Pairing(s): If it's a Shipping Fic, list here the pairings that feature in the fic (warn here if it's het, male slash or female slash). If it's a Gen Fic, remove this line. To tell the difference between the two, notice if the focus of the fic is on a romantic relationship or if it focuses on the other aspects of the story. In case of doubt, classify the story according to the genres it's been tagged: the Romance tag for Shipping, absence of that tag for Gen Fic.
- Tags: If any are known. This would be things like W.A.F.F., Lemon, Dark Fic, any known Crossovers etc.
Authors, and Websites
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Hitomi writes primarily sharkbait, but she also does tomo and decision and companion. Her fics range from coffee shop AU to medieval fantasies to canon angst. Her writing is beautiful and fluid, and it packs an emotional punch. Her Prisoners of Fate AU is especially good, with a gripping plot and perfect characterization, but everything she does is gold.
- Recommended by: Jason Lethe Grey & sharku
- Usagisquared is a 21yo woman living in Canada. Usagi writes crossovers. Like, a whole ton of crossovers. If there's any AU or otherwise she hasn't explored yet, then it's coming. Her icon is the Incubator for a reason. She is also an occasionally collaborator of the Zexalura AU, and a frequent artist - searching her tag
will prove that better than this description can, and will provide much needed visuals for her works.
penwalla (Dead Link)
- Recommended by: sharku
- Penwalla writes mostly sharkbait, and is in cahoots with Hitomi. She generally posts zexal fics that, while are about pairings, explore the depth of the relationship quite thoroughly and realistically. Her writing leaves almost nothing to be desired. Also she writes porn.
octomaidly (Dead Link)
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Octomaidly writes a myriad number of pairings and scenarios, with a tendency towards angst. Her greatest strength as an author is her description: she has a poetic grasp of figurative language and of emotion that makes even her shortest works incredibly powerful. And her characterization is both nuanced and distinct. She is also one of the few people in the fandom that writes sphereshipping (Mizael/Yuuma), so if that's your thing, she's a good place to start.
kiryume (Dead Link)
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Kiryume mostly writes oneshots, and she's out to break your heart. Her stories often begin simply and unfold into something more complex, and also more painful.
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Pyra is incredibly prolific, and she writes a wide variety of pairings and scenarios, including an au where Mizael is a cow, a stripper au, and a cop au that contains Takashi/Vector with Yaminoamber. Definitely worth checking out if you're looking for something you've never seen before.
Syzygy by Kiyuzanova
- Recommended by: Amaryl
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: When Byron returned, his memories never returned with him. AU.
- Comments: What really struck me with this story is that it appears to be simple at first glance but turned out to be otherwise. The use of first person's a little off putting to start with but that was redeemed well before I even read halfway in the form of a very convincing V.
- Tags: Alternate Universe, For Want Of A Nail
The Spiritless Key by Artemis Ignitan
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Status: Complete
- Synposis: A series of Kattobinguless!Yuuma drabbles, set in a world where Black Mist defeats Astral and is the one that appears out of Yuma's Key.
- Comments: It's short, but gripping. The author expands on the brief glimpse of Kattobinguless!Yuuma we get in canon and expands on it in distrubing and fascinating ways. What's great about it is the way it mirrors canon, so that it's not just character exploration, but a picture of how a Kattobinguless world might be. Also features a fantastic Black Mist.
Prisoners of Fate by rangerhitomi
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Status: Dormant; last updated September 2017
- Pairings: Kamishiro Ryouga/Tsukumo, Mizael Chris, Arclight/Tenjou Kaito
- Synopsis: Medieval AU. The Barians invade the Astral Kingdom, killing the king and queen and sending the survivors — Prince Astral, his bodyguard, and the Kamishiro twins — on the run. As the Barians conquer the continent, a game of politics and magic unfolds.
- Comments: If you don't read any other Zexal fanfiction, read this one. Political intrigue, magic, ruminations on the nature of fate, forbidden love — it's a thrilling read full of twists and turns and foreshadowing. Rangerhitomi builds an entire world for the reader, full of weighty history and connections, to powerful effect.
- Now has a tropes page.
Psych by iciiiing (Dead Link)
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Vanished from the internet. Please post a link if found.
- Synopsis: In a world filled with powerful weapons called Psychs, the most powerful of them all is the reality-warping Numeron Code. The Numbers Club, an organization out to hunt the Code down, is ruthless — so ruthless that they drag in Anna Kozuki, who doesn't know anything about Psychs, and who keeps running into this jerk...
- Comments: This AU is notable for two things: the author's style, which is clean and immersive, and for the way she utilizes Zexal's enormous cast in ways that you don't usually see in fic, including Mizael as Vector's kid brother and Anna and Kotori as sisters. Lots of characters who all feel distinct, more questions every chapter to keep you guessing, and rare pairings like kaito/kotori: it's great.
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: It's a Zexal high school AU, with Kaito, Ryoga, and Yuuma as Japanese-Americans in California.
- Comments: Adreus is really good at managing to draw a very realistic portrait of what these characters would be like if they were American teenagers without losing the charm of the original show, and her interpretation of Kaito is definitely worth reading here if you're a fan of him in particular.
Quasar by Kiyuzanova
- Recommended by: ayirun
- Status: Dormant
- Synopsis: In a world five years beyond canon, where quirks of fate entwine, everything has changed and nothing is the same. AU.
- Comments: Started a while before the plot of Zexal really kicked off, it takes its own spin on things due to a lot not being known at the time of the fic's publication; Kaito is initially aligned with Yuma and Astral, Ryoga is a transfer student from South Heartland, and the story is set in Neo Domino City, as well as a variety of other things. The technology aspect of the story is handled amazingly well, as well as the path the story takes. Currently incomplete and on a hiatus of unknown time.
The Ice Queen Cometh! by Nox Barian
- Recommended by: Very Melon
- Synopsis: In this Alternate Universe fanfic, Shark is the one burned alive by IV instead of Rio. This leaves Rio with the same thirst for revenge against IV that Shark possessed in canon. Rio is thus the new secondary protagonist alongside Yuma, collecting the Numbers XYZ monsters in the hope she'll be strong enough to defeat IV. The Barian Emperor Durbe, however, believes Rio is actually Merag, the Queen of the Barians and one of his two missing fellow Barian Emperors, so he sets out to see if this is true.
- Comments: Once I started reading this, I ended up disappointed that I ran out of new chapters to read. The dueling and plot are front and center, with the romance being used to enhance the plot instead of taking it over. The characterization is good, and in certain cases an improvement over the canon for certain characters, thought YMMV there. There are several changes to the canon of ZEXAL I didn't list because they'd be spoilers, but trust me when I say they shouldn't impeded your entertainment in any way. Also check out this Fanfiction's own personal TV Tropes Page here.
- Status: Dormant; last updated July 2018. Currently in the process of being rewritten as of July 2023.
Assemble! Yu-Tagonists by driftingstar
- Recommended by fsdfsdfsd
- Status: Dormant
- Synopsis: Crossover with all five Yugioh anime series. In which Atem has some doubts about the current team assignments. Secret agent AU. Drabble Collection.
Mother Knows Best by cutestscythe
- Recommended by ayirun
- Status: Dormant
- Synopsis: A group of mysterious transfer students triggers something in Shark's memories, and the whole cast becomes embroiled in their secrets.
- Comments: This is the fic that singlehandedly changed my mind about Original Characters and got me to ship kaito/ryoga. The plot is full of twists and turn. The Original Characters are so well drawn that I got as attached to them as I was to the canon characters, the canon characters are written perfectly, and the shipping is alternately cute, dramatic, and angsty by turns. The primary pairing is challenge, but there are side pairings galore. Reading feels like watching a version of the show for an older audience, and I mean that in the best way.
- Tags:
''Don'tDropYourArms (I'll Guide Your Heart) by octomaidly
- Recommended by ayirun
- Vanished from the internet. Please post a link if found.
- Synopsis: Bakery AU, featuring decision-shipping. Mizael rescues Durbe, and then Durbe rescues Mizael, and along the way they fall in love.
- Pairings: Mizael/Durbe
- Comments: This is one of the best decision-shopping fics there is. Octomaidly does a great job fleshing out the human versions of Durbe, Alit, and Mizael, giving them realistic details and nationalities and worries that elevate the whole story. It's sweetly romantic without feeling rushed, and although Alit isn't a part of the burgeoning romance, he never feels shoehorned in or like a third wheel in the narrative.
- Recommended by ayirun
- Status: Complete
- ''Synopsis: If there's nothing to remember, why are you suffering? Based on the fake summary spoilers where the Kamishiros were wiped from the universe.
- Pairings: Kotori/Rio
- Comments: It's hard to find fic about Kotori, and especially Kotori/Rio, so this one is a godsend. Sweet and painful.
You Suck Anyway by thugnasch
- Recommended by: Jason Lethe Grey
- Vanished from the internet. Please post a link if found.
- ‘’Synopsis:’’ ‘’He first notices it in the shower, washing off the grime from another day.’’ Mizael has no idea why that ‘’thing’’ between his legs acts like that when he thinks of Vector, but he is not sure he likes it. Vector, well, he’s Vector. A good read with a great take on both characters. It’s almost fluffy too, especially near the end. I’m especially fond of Vector being a cuddler. I never would have thought of that but strangely enough, it works.
- ‘’Pairing(s):’’ Vector/Mizael
- Recommended by: Jason Lethe Grey
- Status: Complete
- ‘’Synopsis:’’ A creepy, creepy little one-shot AU. After losing both his brothers in unstated circumstances, Thomas throws himself into making ball-jointed dolls for various customers. However, he makes two dolls for himself, a pair of twins he eventually names Rio and Ryouga. This is not a fic for the faint at heart, featuring psuedo-incest/twincest and, well, a very, very messed up guy getting himself off on his dolls. The smut isn’t too detailed, with most of the emphasis being on Thomas’ mindstate, but still not something you want to read around others. If you can handle the content, I think it’s worth reading just for
- ‘’Pairing(s):’’ Thomas/Rio, Thomas/Ryouga, Ryouga/Rio
Chris's Choice by KaibaGirl17
- Recommended by: Zexal Princess
- Status: Complete
- Synopsis: Chris Arclight has to choose which one of his brothers will go with him to Heartland Tower and which one will be sent to an orphanage. This sadistic choice forces Chris to choose his younger, more vulnerable brother Michael. Thomas is sent to an orphanage on the other side of the city where he faces abuse at the hands of a crazy woman.
- Pairings: No real pairings, just the brothers being sad and cute together.
- Comments: Kaiba Girl 17 writes other fanfics for the Arclight brothers, calling it her Arclight Angst. Some of her stuff gets pretty dark though, so if you feel like reading it fair warning keep a box of tissues on hand.
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