The most impressive thing about this fic is the way Kiku's deafness is handled. While it does give Kiku some understandable trouble in class and with others, it ultimately isn't portrayed as a crippling disability or something that he should be pitied for, but simply something he learned to adapt to and while it does cause initial communication problems with Herakles, they're quickly resolved and their relationship isn't one based on pity or a "poor deaf boy is helped by superior hearing guy" plot but an equal one based on mutual respect and interests. In fact, you could remove the "deafness" aspect from this fic entirely and it would still be worth reading just for the sweet, genuine and very IC relationship between Kiku and Herakles (and Kiku's sheer Adorkableness as he begins to realize the depth of his feelings for Herakles...). The only major drawback of this fic is its slow update rate, but quality trumps quantity any day.
FanficRecs Comment by Solandra
The most impressive thing about this fic is the way Kiku's deafness is handled. While it does give Kiku some understandable trouble in class and with others, it ultimately isn't portrayed as a crippling disability or something that he should be pitied for, but simply something he learned to adapt to and while it does cause initial communication problems with Herakles, they're quickly resolved and their relationship isn't one based on pity or a "poor deaf boy is helped by superior hearing guy" plot but an equal one based on mutual respect and interests. In fact, you could remove the "deafness" aspect from this fic entirely and it would still be worth reading just for the sweet, genuine and very IC relationship between Kiku and Herakles (and Kiku's sheer Adorkableness as he begins to realize the depth of his feelings for Herakles...). The only major drawback of this fic is its slow update rate, but quality trumps quantity any day.