J2 Recs

[pslasher]

This here's for thalialunacy  who is starting on the J2 journey.  And anyone else who likes Jensen/Jared.  OMG it kind of snowballed into this huge thing too.  Also, this fandom is HUGE so please feel free to comment with important things I've missed here.

FIC

First off: communities. 

padacklesrps   This is a community for fans of Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles together romantically.
jsquared_rps   LJ fic community for Jensen Ackles/Jared Padalecki fic. 
sawedoff_recs   Recs for SPN and RPS, search the tags to find J2.
spn_j2_bigbang   Check the individual year listings for J2 links.
The Jensen/Jared tag on the AO3.  Click the Bookmarks tab in the upper right corner for bookmarked and recced fics.

Apparently I pretty much have AU links also, but there are a few non-AU fics at the end of the list.  At least with AU fics you have less chance of being spoiled for the show.

There's a Piece of a Puzzle Known As Life by strippedpink : NC-17, underage (making out and a handjob, I think), angst, UST
Innocent high school Jared and confused college boy Jensen.  It's coming out and growing up and UST all rolled up into one.

Who We Were When by finn21 : NC-17, underage again
This is another 'High school Jared and college boy Jensen' fic, and it also uses the growing up and coming out themes really well.

If I recall correctly, you mentioned a Conflict of Interests by strippedpink : NC-17

The first rule of gaming is, you never fall for the competition. Jensen designs video games, Jared is a reporter for a magazine. They meet and fall at a gaming convention, and the angst ensues.
I really like the creativity in this one.

God Loveth His Children by mystic_reader : NC-17, Religious themes, language
When faith and obligation meet the renewal of old sins, two Mormon missionaries must decide if it’s worth losing everything they’ve ever known for a chance at love.
This one is for your religion kink - but have tissues handy, it'll tear at your heart.  Also make sure you have your speakers on when you click the webpage, and watch the trailer it's really well done.  The soundtrack is superb too. 
ETA:  This story deals with homophobia in a religious setting, of the "You're going to Hell because you're gay" and family fighting about having a gay child variety.  Watching the story trailer will give you a good idea of the plotline.  I just wanted to make sure people knew what they were in for before reading, as it may be a very sensitive subject for some.

Monogatari by danny: NC-17, Samurai AU
This story has an amazing amount of detail on Japanese culture and is a wonderfully richly created universe.

Down at our Rendezvous by Zooey_Glass: NC17, threesome with Jared/Sandy/Jensen
It takes Sandy a moment to even register that there's a problem with what she's seeing.
Sandy finds Jared and Jensen kissing and thinks she's lost Jared.  You know how I love a good threesome!  This one isn't an AU.

Kripke's Evil Knows No Bounds (unless you count the handcuffs) by Zooey_Glass: NC-17, handcuffs
Kripke reckons that the show needs a bit more levity, that Sam and Dean's relationship needs to have a bit of dumbass brother stuff as well as the patented Winchester angst. Maybe he's right, but for fuck's sake, does the prank have to involve handcuffs?
A little something to spice up filming. ;)  The prequel revolves around spanking and I know you aren't wild about spanking, but this one stands on it's own.

PODFIC

The J2 tag at the Audiofic Archive hosted by jinjurly .
The SPN RPF tag at amplificathon 
The SPN tag at podslash : you'll have to sort through the entries to get to the J2, it's not tagged separately from the FPS.

As always, almost all links posted to the audiofic archive are available in m4b format, and sometimes others.  Click on the reader, writer or pairing tag to search for the format you want.  Also all the posts give a link back to the written story.

Hangin' on the Telephone by veronamay  read by juice817 : NC-17, phone sex
Lets start the podfics off with smokin' hot phone sex, shall we?  Because Jensen's voice over your telephone would be incredible.  Plus, sweet shy Jared is fantastic here.

Common Knowledge by elucreh  read by juice817 : NC-17, Meta fic about SPN and fangirls
Jared, your fangirls. Fangirls, I believe you already know Jared. Better than he knows himself. 
*g* If you liked reading it you'll love hearing it!

QueensGuard by aramuin  read by pandarus  (aka FayJay) and a whole lot of other readers in small parts throughout the story: PG-13, aliens and dragons

It's been nearly three years since the war against the alien race known as the Others changed the world and nearly four months since they were beaten back by Earth's natural superweapons, the dragons. Jared's looking forward to reconnecting with his best friend and picking up life where he left off. It doesn't seem much to ask but after three years, how much has really changed? And are the secrets Jensen's hiding better left alone?

This is an amazing story, and an amazing podfic with so many different readers.  It is AU in the sense that there's an alien invasion and dragons, but Jensen and Jared are still themselves and the show still exists.  As far as I recall there are no specific spoilers for the show, beyond maybe the existence of Misha in the show.  (ETA: actually, there are moderate spoilers for the series)  It's such a great fantasy story.

Someone You Might Have Been by fleshflutter  read by pandarus : NC-17
A J2 AU in which Jared is a secret agent and Jensen is his handler/support tech.
Fleshflutter didn't put any warnings at the beginning, but for those who really want them check out the beginning of her post here.  This story is amazing, with layers that get peeled back with each chapter.  I really love how she developed the characters and the universe she put them into - it's detailed and rich.  I practically wanted to cry that it was over.

Nosce Te Ipsum by rei_c  read by podcath : PG-13, Historical AU
This is another amazing historical AU with a detailed and interesting version of the past, this time set in a Roman Empire that never fell.  The setting is hot and exotic and strangely modern.  There are depictions of a society where prostitution is accepted in a religious sense.  Except it's not exactly prostitution in the way it usually is.  I don't know where you stand on that idea, but this one isn't heavy the way some are.

The Last of the Romantics by balefully  read by pandarus : NC-17
Jared is the son of the Ackles family's chauffeur, and has been in love with Sandra, the Ackles's adopted daughter, all his life. He goes to London to find himself, and comes back a changed man. Sandra falls in love with him at long last, threatening her financially advantageous engagement to Jeffrey Dean Morgan, the heir of Morgan Industries. Jensen, her older brother and the CEO of the Ackles Corporation, must devise a plan to keep Sandra and Jared apart so his carefully plotted merger can go through as intended. His own machinations backfire, however, as he learns the meaning of love, selflessness, and what it's like to truly need someone else.
This one is an AU based on the movie Sabrina and is extremely schmoopy.  I love it.

FANVIDS

OK, so both of these contain some behind-the-scenes shots from various episodes but I'm pretty sure none of them are spoilery.  Just the Impala and various outdoor scenes that don't really say anything about the plots.  BUT you should watch them anyway!!  So you can have a face to put on the J2 to separate them from Sam and Dean.  And to see a ton of Jensen's eyecrinkles up close - you know you want to.

Move Down to Me by secretlytodream  and
Settle Down Inside My Love also by secretlytodream 
Fun, light, so much touching and laughing.  SOOOOOOO cute and so much fun!  Both of these have similar editing and tone, but there are some different clips in both.





And check my Jensen/Jared tag or my delicous for a few more podfic and fic recs.



ETA: It figures that I make a massive J2 recpost and two days later find one of the most amazing stories I've ever read.  *shakes head*  So here's the addendum to that post:

The Doors of Time by felisblanco : NC-17 (second part), magic, music and angst
It’s not like he doesn’t try to fit in and make friends, he really does. It just seems like nothing he does is good enough for them. If he smiles they blink. If he speaks they stare. And whenever they see him coming they get this panicked look in their eyes like they want to run away and they don’t even know why.
Jensen knows why. It’s the same thing that makes his dad worry and his mom cry. That makes Nana tell his parents he’s going to Hell, not even caring that he can hear her.
It’s what makes him ‘weird’.
One of the most vivid, lyrical and emotional fics I've ever read.  The words just flowed and built worlds around Jensen and Jared that felt so tangible and personal.  She weaves piano music into the story through the words and by interspersing song files through the fic and I really, really loved that.  It gave a whole other aspect to the story than you usually get.  This story made me cry several times, and that's pretty unusual for me.  She created characters that I felt so invested in and wanted so badly to be happy.  It went beyond my desire for them to have a romantic relationship, I needed for them to be ok just on a basic level.  The music also really affected me.  It felt like the songs she picked distilled the emotions from the story and pierced my heart with them, amplifying the joy and grief alike.  By the end I felt wrung out emotionally in all the best ways that fic can cause.  This fic comes highly recced by me.
Note: There is also a video for this fic which I don't think is linked in the masterpost linked above.  It's The Doors of Time by Ketch2510.  (Link goes to YouTube)

ETA 2: Spoilers for Someone You Might Have Been and The Doors of Time in the comments!!

Comments

[thalialunacy.livejournal.com]

OKAY.

So, this is awesome. Really and truly awesome, that you did this for me. I cannot thank you enough.

I didn't make it through all the fic yet; my goal was to read it allll then leave a massive comment but real life is a bitch and I've been knitting as much as possible and yeah. So. I'm saving the rest on my to read tag on delicious and someday will get around to them, lol. Andy by 'the rest' I mean pretty much only the samurai one and the one you edited in. Oh and Nosce. And now I've read most of them so long ago I don't remember which ones I liked lol. But it's safe to say I enjoyed reading them. Queensguard is the one that sticks out, but partially because you're not the only one that rec'd it, lol.

And I know I said I'd explain why I was disappointed by the agent/handler one. And this is a complaint I have about good romance novels, so clearly the story is a high caliber of writing, professional-grade. That's not the issue. The issue is something I'm really picky about - pacing/structure; in that instance in particular, denouement. That story spent what, 10 HOURS punching the reader in the gut REPEATEDLY, then it was a four minute happy ending? No. Not gonna do it. An author rips my heart out, they need to do more than just tape it up and yell "ALL BETTER!" Unless it's high art and you're trying to make a moral point (Great Gatsby, Hey Nostradamus, the list is long), which this story (and the romance novels that do this too) was not. There's nothing wrong with not being high art; you know I'm not a literary snob (I'd rather read a romance novel than Great Gatsby, tbh). But seriously, that story fucked me and then didn't have the courtesy to do more than leave the money on the nightstand.

ANYWAYS. THE VIDEOS. I WAS SAVING THEM, NGL, BUT I COULDN'T RESIST AND EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE HANG ON I'LL BE DONE SQUEEING IN A COUPLE OF DAYS. FOR REALS. WHAT. THOSE CRAZY KIDS.

You are awesome. Thank you. ♥ ♥ ♥

[pslasher.livejournal.com]

*g* You're welcome!

No worries, I know it's a lot to get through. I'm so glad you enjoyed them!

Lol, at first I thought you'd be disappointed with the missionary fic. I was worried it may have had negative memories or something.

I see what you're saying about the Agent/Handler one. I haven't read to much pro romance fiction (even though that's what I write, pretty much), but I can see how a person wouldn't like getting jerked about like that. I get that it's a structure issue, and one that many won't like. Personally, I was wound so tight by the end of the fic that I was quite relieved to get a happy ending. Despite being quick, I felt it was realistic enough to be believable, plus it supported the idea that no one else knew the deaths were faked. It worked for me.

I think you'll like The Doors of Time better. It's got just as much angst, but the ending gets resolved much slower.

AREN'T THOSE VIDS THE MOST ADORABLE THING EVER? I'm so glad you watched them! Just, seriously, they are fantastic. The boys are fantastic. And they gave me something to go on for understanding the pairing/characters better before I ever saw the show, so they have a little place in my J2 heart.