some fic recs, mostly HP

Corridors of Power by blythely - Harry Potter - Harry/Draco
To the casual observer (Draco always sat himself discreetly at the back of the chamber amongst a bevy of greyhairs he privately called the Dozy Earls; casual observers were not so much of an occurrence, snoring was) the Viscount Northallerton sat listening attentively to the debates, chin propped on his palm, occasionally taking a salient note and nodding in agreement with points of discussion. Glamours were good like that.
I read this in one glorious sitting last night, and it did nothing to lessen my current obsession with the wizarding/Muggle parallels and crossovers. Basically: Harry is a British MP. Draco is a member of the House of Lords. Snark, flirting, political gameplaying, magical hijinks in the depths of Westminster and attempts to rig the Oxford-Cambridge boat race ensue. What really makes this fic is the way the magical and non-magical worlds are cunningly integrated, and also the hilarious and educational footnotes (courtesy of Blaise Zabini). There is also an epilogue (not linked to from the final chapter) here.

Quality of Mercy by mistful - Harry Potter - many pairings, but none as a focus
He knew Snape was lying. He just didn’t know why, and he felt like an animal at bay in this dingy little room, an ancient green lamp casting pale light on faded wallpaper, Snape standing over him like a vampire and Malfoy leaning against the wall as if being thrown against it was all part of their precious plan.
This is long. And awesome. And unfinished, but Maya does tend to finish things eventually :D Narcissa Malfoy makes a deal with Harry, and Draco comes to stay at the Burrow. This is plotty and funny and unapologetically strong in its portrayal of war and mistrust and family. I want to hug every single character.

Ouroborus by tkp - Harry Potter - gen
There is a sense of right to this thought, too. History repeats, but never quite the same way. You are not your father. Nor is Albus you (as far as you can tell). There might be similarities, but you are your own people. You can make the future different; you can choose.
This is a creepy and yet very plausible look at the epilogue of DH in light of the events of the past. History is a snake swallowing its own tail. Everything repeats.

credo ut intelligam by fryadvocate - Supernatural - Dean gen
Sam always changed every other ending in Dean's life, but here Dean could control what part Sam altered. In one word, he could make all of his sentences about Dean instead of about 'Dean and Sam.' With one suffix, Dean could cut Sam out of all of his stories.
This is like. I don't know. It's an extended metaphor about Latin grammar of all the strange things and yet it's also an absolutely perfect and heartbreaking study of Dean and how he fits into his own family and his own life. Fry writes this fandom so well.

foiled again

I am of the opinion that my hair is looking hot at the moment, but attempts to take an illustrative photo were highly unsuccessful. It's not fair. I'm kinda pretty in real life, you guys! I am! And at the moment my hair is a nice brownish colour and there are a couple of fringey bits that hang down near my eyes when the rest of it is in a ponytail and it looks nice, I just happen to be ridiculously unphotogenic.

And then my camera battery died, a silent but eloquent statement from my pixelated technology informing me that I may as well give it all up as a bad job.

So I am drinking a G&T, poking idly at the document currently housing a few aborted paragraphs belonging to my hpmugglestudies fic, and listening to the 300 soundtrack (something that I must remember not to do under the influence of even teensy amounts of alcohol ever again because the gestalt of the experience is bordering on surreal).