TwilightPegasus
Since: Apr, 2019
#2: Jun 6th 2019 at 5:12:17 AM
I've mostly read fan fics for the Tales of Zestiria fandom, though I am trying to read fan fics for other games in the series as well. But I remember reading one extremely well written fic on Archive Of Our Own called Love Feels Like Home. It's a Modern AU focusing on Sorey moving to Elysia after his mother is killed by a drunk driver. He spends the summer adjusting to his new surroundings, getting to know his grandfather and other people in the neighborhood, meets Mikleo and falls in love, so on and so forth. But there's a bit of a twist here: Sorey is made autistic in this fic. Better yet, his disability is treated very sensitively, and written very well, and he's not written to be a cringey Rain Man stereotype. The story is very engaging and sweet, though extremely sad in the beginning, Sorey is much more three-dimensional and well rounded here than he is in the game, and more realistically flawed, surprisingly, and the romance is very sweet and progresses in an organic manner. I want to make a page for it here, though I can't put the link here because my computer's being sucky at the moment. But it's still so good!
Edited by TwilightPegasus on Jun 7th 2019 at 7:58:18 AM
#3: Jun 6th 2019 at 8:22:32 AM
Oh nice, someone posted here!
I've seen that one around, but haven't read it. Glad to hear it's good. Might have to take a look sometime.
Also, the list I said I'd make in the first post was getting really long and complicated, and writing up actual descriptions for all of them was taking forever, especially since I kept finding new ones. That's basically why I stopped working on it.
I think I'll just post links at this point. Still going to sort them by game, and maybe make comments on a few of them, but otherwise I'll just leave them here and let other people decide whether it's their thing or not.
Edited by SapphireBlue on Jun 6th 2019 at 8:26:11 AM
#4: Jun 6th 2019 at 10:43:32 AM
OK, here's the list of personal recommendations. Sorry for the double post, but this thing's massive and it doesn't make sense to edit it into the last post.
I kept the descriptions I already wrote, but didn't write too many new ones. Originally I got up to the Zestiria section before getting tired, so the fics for it and Berseria don't have descriptions. Same with the Legendia fics (since they were added late), and some of the ones for other games, but I didn't write any for those two. I still wanted to leave the links, so if you're interested, it's worth clicking them to see if they're your thing.
They're not in any particular order besides being sorted by game, and some are definitely better than others, but I liked all of them. Having a description doesn't necessarily mean I liked it better than the ones that don't - like I said, it's a timing thing, not a quality thing.
Symphonia/Dot NW
- Diminishing Hourglass
(one-shot, Sheena/Zelos if you want it to be)
- Long one-shot. This one’s about Sheena and Zelos meeting and getting to know each other pre-game.
- A Deeper Way (one-shot)
- Postgame thing where Lloyd finds out more about his mother from some of the people who knew her.
- New Reality (chaptered, ongoing, leaning towards OC/Zelos but takes a long time to get there)
- We’ve already got this on our recommendations page, and it has its own page on the wiki), but I still want to mention it. This is the best self-insert fic I’ve ever read, hands-down, and one of only a few that I can honestly say are good. The writing is great, and the insert character is interesting and likeable enough to make the fic seem less like wish-fulfillment than it probably should. It helps that the author views her as an OC based on herself, rather than actually being her. I mean yeah, that’s what self-insert characters are to begin with, but it takes a certain level of self-awareness and healthy detachment to actually treat one that way. She certainly doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to her insert character, either – she goes through about as much crap as some of the canon characters. The implications of the insert character being from another world – especially one that doesn’t work the same way as the game’s setting – are dealt with in some very creative ways, and there are enough original bits and differences from canon that it doesn’t feel entirely like a retread.
- Dad by Any Other Name (chaptered, complete)
- A "Five Things" Fic. Spans most of the game, and the last chapter is post-game.
- Fathers (one-shot)
- Pretty much just Dirk and Kratos talking about Lloyd.
- Doggone Sidequest (chaptered, complete, Lloyd/Colette)
- Cute, humorous thing about Colette dragging Lloyd and Zelos along to look for a lost dog. It only has three chapters, so it’s not a very long read. The romance is there, but it’s not the focus.
- Through Clear Air, We Soar (one-shot, Lloyd/Colette)
- No Other Place (one-shot)
- Still (one-shot)
- Heartbeats (chaptered, complete)
- Trust (one-shot)
- When the World Stops Looking (one-shot, Colette/Zelos)
Legendia
- An Unmarked Set (one-shot)
- Cumin (one-shot)
Abyss
- Promises and a Bath (one-shot)
- Involves Guy and Luke talking at the Keterburg spa at some point towards the end of the game. Starts out light, but gets kinda angsty towards the end.
- Interim (chaptered, complete)
- Relatively short story that involves the main cast over the few years between the ending and the epilogue, and how they cope with what happened.
- Those Without Pasts (one-shot, Luke/Tear)
- Postgame thing that involves Luke and Tear visiting a city founded by replicas. There are one or two details that I didn’t like, but mostly it's a nice bit of writing.
- A Choice and a Promise (one-shot, Guy/Natalia)
- Fairly short postgame one-shot centered around Natalia. The author apparently wanted to write a second part, but this was posted in 2012 and there’s no sign of it, so I’m calling it a one-shot despite not being marked as complete.
- Reflections (chaptered, complete, several pairings but mostly Luke/Tear and Asch/Natalia)
- This is another one that has both a recommendation and a page on this site, so its kinda redundant for me to mention it. It really is excellent, though. It’s a canon-divergent AU where Asch goes back home after Luke is born and stays there, with the two being more or less raised as siblings from that point on. It’s really long, the writing is fantastic, and there are more than enough things changed from canon to make it feel like its own thing.
- Crossed Flags (one-shot, Luke/Tear and Asch/Natalia are mentioned)
- Another post-ending-pre-epilogue thing, but this one has to do with Luke and Asch. I’ve seen several similar fics out there (there's at least one other one on this list), but this is one of my favorite takes on it.
- How Far (chaptered, incomplete, Guy/Natalia)
- Postgame fic that starts with Natalia asking Guy to marry her. Things get a lot more complicated from there. This is the fic that sold me on the two of them as a couple, or at least the possibility of it. It’s quite well-written, and spends a lot of time exploring the political implications that something like this would involve. Updates extremely slowly (the last chapter was posted over a year ago, and the one before it took almost two years to be posted) but hopefully it’s not dead yet.
- Convergence (chaptered, incomplete, Luke/Tear and Asch/Natalia are mentioned)
- Another post-ending-pre-epilogue fic. This one has Luke come back in Asch’s body shortly after the ending, with the idea being that he spent those few years trying to find out why. The chapters alternate between being about him and focusing on the other characters. It updates very slowly, and it’s been a long time since the last update (using the fanfic rec page standards, it’d be dormant by now). It’s not that far in, but I’m impressed so far, and I’m hoping for more of it eventually.
- The Worthless Treasure (chaptered, complete)
- A canon-divergent AU where Sync is taken prisoner instead of falling into the core. I’ve seen a lot of fics attempt to redeem Sync (an alarming number of which involve pairing him off with poorly-written OCs and acting like that'd fix everything), but this is one of the few good ones I’ve read. The main draw is that it manages to make the premise believable – which, for someone like him, means a very long and painful process with a lot of ups and downs involved.
- I’m Alright If You’re Alright (one-shot)
- Long one-shot, almost entirely pre-game, centered around Guy and his relationship with Luke. It’s a really interesting look into Guy as a character.
- acquired taste (one-shot)
- Funny. Cute. Not much else to say since it’s really short.
- This is Our Get-Along Mushroom (one-shot, slight Asch/Natalia)
- Red (chaptered, ongoing)
- Whatever Lies Beyond This Morning (is a little later on) (chaptered, complete)
Vesperia
- So Once Was I (chaptered, complete)
- Postgame. Brave Vesperia takes on a job involving an old mansion that’s supposedly haunted. Turns out there’s a lot more truth to that than expected. As the premise would suggest, it has a strong supernatural bent, and later on it mixes in some interesting bits of Yuri’s past.
- Under the Ice (one-shot, Yuri/Flynn)
- Modern AU where Yuri and Flynn get stuck in the wilderness in the winter. Very emotional. That’s about all I can say without spoiling it. I’m not usually one for A Us that aren’t tied to the canon setting, but this one made a strong impression on me.
- Into the Den (one-shot)
- Fairly short one-shot, presumably postgame. Written in second person from the perspective of an unnamed character looking to hire Brave Vesperia. I thought it did a nice job showing the group from an outside perspective and illustrating the kind of impression they might make.
- Call (and Response) (one-shot, a little bit of Judith/Rita in the background)
- Judith-centric fic where her antennae get cut off in a battle, which also breaks her connection to Ba’ul. She doesn’t take it well at all. Angsty, but has a lot of really sweet moments.
- Tales of the Campfire (chaptered, unfinished)
- Kinda hard to describe this one, but it takes place in the last third of the game, and it’s mostly about Raven and Estelle. Chapters are really long, so don’t expect a quick read. Updates slowly.
- Fever (one-shot)
- Bite-sized fic about Raven keeping an eye on Karol when he’s sick. Not much to say since it’s so short, but it’s cute.
- i.o.u. (chaptered, complete)
- Another mid-game fic centered around Estelle and Raven. Thematically speaking, it’s got a few things in common with Tales of the Campfire, but it’s a lot shorter and more focused, and it handles the topic differently.
- Cracked Mirror (one-shot)
- Crystallizations of the Past (chaptered, ongoing)
- The Aftermath (one-shot)
- A New World (one-shot, Rita/Estelle)
- Fair Use is Fair Play(chaptered, complete, Rita/Estelle)
- Delivery (one-shot)
Graces
- Gift (chaptered, complete)
- Fairly short chaptered story (4 chapters and less than 6,000 words) set sometime post Lineage and Legacies. Sophie has a birthday party, gets a gift that no one recognizes, and tries to find out who sent it to her. Cute and enjoyable, and the characterization is good.
- Mending Socks (one-shot)
- An exploration of Asbel and Cheria’s dynamics from the latter’s perspective, at some point during the game. Her childhood crush on him is mentioned, but the fic itself isn’t romantic. Honestly, I feel like their relationship in the game itself – in both the romantic and platonic aspects – was underdeveloped, and the way they’re written here feels like it’s got more depth to it than in most of the game. I definitely appreciated that.
- Conversations and Duality (chaptered, complete)
- …This author has a lot of good Graces stuff, OK? Companion fics that both take place throughout L&L. They center around specific characters and their respective relationships with Lambda – Sophie in Conversations, and Asbel in Duality. Very well-written, and does a good job handling the characters.
- Her Life in Numbers (chaptered, complete, Hubert/Pascal)
- Centers around Pascal joining Hubert in an investigation he’s been assigned to. It’s an interesting mix of drama, romance, and character study, and it works pretty well. The author’s take on Pascal’s character might not be for everyone – it’s written under the assumption that a lot of her wacky personality is an act – but in this case, I feel like it gives her some extra depth that makes the story work better.
- Human Vices (one-shot)
- A very silly one-shot involving Asbel, Lambda, and bubble baths.
- Full Circle (chaptered, unfinished, Asbel/Cheria and Hubert/Pascal in the background)
- “Unfinished” is technically correct, but all that’s left is an epilogue that’s been in limbo for over three years. It wasn’t left on a cliffhanger or anything, so it works fine as is. It’s a long, dramatic, post L&L fic where Asbel comes down with a sudden and mysterious illness, and the rest of the group tries to figure out what’s happening to him.
- Chamomile (one-shot)
- Hubert and his mother have tea together shortly before the end of the main game. Short but sweet, and a nice bit of interaction between two characters that barely have any screentime together in the game itself.
- A Taste of Home (one-shot)
- A Foolish Sentimentality (one-shot)
- Everlasting (one-shot, Asbel/Cheria)
- Roots of Promise (chaptered, ongoing)
Xillia/Xillia 2
- Secret (one-shot)
- Involves Elle and takes place after Xillia 2’s canon ending. Extremely short, but likely to tug at your heartstrings regardless.
- tears and joy (one-shot)
- Xillia 2 fic involving Ludger and Julius, but it takes place after the neutral ending, not the bad one. Doesn’t make sense? That’s the point. Can’t say any more without spoiling it.
- the last seven days in the life of Ludger Kresnik (chaptered, complete, hints of Jude/Ludger)
- Follows Ludger during the leadup to the canon ending, under the premise that time runs differently in Canaan and the group spent several outside days plotting their course before actually getting to the end. Mainly focuses on Ludger grieving over Julius, and Fractured Milla to a lesser extent. It’s beautifully written, but it’s about as heartwrenching as you’d expect.
- four and a half seconds (one-shot)
- Not sure when this takes place, but I think it's sometime after Xillia 1. Best way to sum it up is that Leia and Jude’s parents are not as forgiving towards Alvin as their kids.
- Lab Rats (chaptered, ongoing)
- Well-written self-insert fic. Title isn’t too indicative of the whole fic, just the beginning. I don’t read self-inserts unless they’re competently written, and this one’s good so far. Worth noting that it’s written without the insert character knowing anything about the game, so that means it sidesteps the secret-keeping stuff that these sort of fics tend to have.
Zestiria
- for Sorey, when he wakes (one-shot, Sorey/Mikleo)
- dreaming (one-shot, Sorey/Mikleo)
- Tabula Rasa (one-shot, Sorey/Mikleo)
- An Exercise in Proximity (one-shot, Sorey/Mikleo)
- The Answer (chaptered, complete, Alisha/Rose)
- Mourning (one-shot)
- Five-Hundred-Years-Ago Yesterday (one-shot, Sorey/Mikleo)
- A Work of Progress (chaptered, ongoing but hasn’t updated in a long time)
- Hold What You Love Tight in Your Hand, Never Let it Go (one-shot)
- Renew (one-shot, Sorey/Mikleo is mentioned)
- venus, goddess of love and beauty (one-shot, Lailah/Zaveid)
- The Last Lesson (one-shot)
- callisto (one-shot)
- Only Human (one-shot, slight Lailah/Rose)
- Watch The Time Go (one-shot)
- Trade Winds (one-shot, mentions of Dezel/Rose)
- Trust Fall (chaptered, ongoing)
Berseria
- Castles in the Sand (one-shot)
- Give Me Strength, Before You Break Me Into Nothing (one-shot)
- Underneath (one-shot)
- Even in Sadness, Hope Springs to Life (one-shot)
- an island of virtue in this sea of wickedness (one-shot)
- The Bewildering Habits of Pirates (one-shot)
- First Letter (one-shot)
- Suppression (one-shot)
- castles made of glass (one-shot)
- Selfish Souls (one-shot, Velvet/Niko)
Crossovers
- an ancient song (Xillia 2/Pokémon fusion. Chaptered, complete)
- One-shot colllection. Basically Xillia 2 but with Pokémon. Better than it sounds, and I’m a sucker for Pokémon fusion fics done well.
- From far away (Zestiria with characters appearing from Symphonia/Abyss/Vesperia/Xillia, one-shot, a little Sorey/Mikleo at the end)
- The writing in this one is kinda awkward at times, which if I'm remembering right, is because the author isn’t a native English speaker. I liked the concept enough to appreciate it.
- The Worst Kept Secret (Abyss/Fullmetal Alchemist fusion, one-shot, Jade/Peony)
- This one’s silly, but amusing. Inspired by another set of fics that I haven’t read, so I can’t say anything about that.
- Promised Land (Abyss/Xillia 2, chaptered, complete, Jade/Peony in some of the sidestories)
- The link is to the main fic, but it currently has one set of side chapters and two one-shots attached to it. Very well-written, and comes with illustrations, but the particular combination of games should give you a sense of what you’re getting into in terms of tone. I was kinda wary of it at the start for that reason, but it’s really good and it won me over pretty quickly. Sounds like there’s a sequel planned at some point.
- You Will Know Our Names (Symphonia/Xenoblade 2 fusion, chaptered, complete)
- Another fic that’s part of a series – this one’s the first. Series includes several one-shots and at least one other complete fic. Pairings vary, but they’re not really the main focus. Seemed like a weird combination, and it kinda is, but the author makes it work.
- The page after the last page (Zestiria/Berseria, chaptered, ongoing)
Edited by SapphireBlue on Jun 9th 2019 at 6:45:44 AM
TwilightPegasus
Since: Apr, 2019
#5: Jun 6th 2019 at 11:57:36 AM
Sure! That's cool! Take your time. There's no rush.
Finally made a page for my favorite Zesty fic, Love Feels Like Home. Gonna add more to it when I can.
Edited by TwilightPegasus on Jun 7th 2019 at 8:52:58 AM
Total posts: 5
I don't think there's a fanfic thread for the Tales Series yet. Anyone interested? I know there are quite a few fans of the series around here, but I'm not sure how many are interested in fanfics, so I guess we'll see how it goes.
I have a ton of recommendations across multiple games, but I'm still putting together a list, so I'm not ready to share them yet. Depending on how long it takes, I'll either edit this post or make another one. Feel free to share any favorites you might have in the meantime.
Edited by SapphireBlue on Oct 5th 2018 at 10:44:18 AM