Hawks and Hands

Fraser/Kowalski Fanfiction
Title:	Hawks and Hands
Author(s):	Dira Sudis
Date(s):
Length:	202,967 words
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	due South
External Links:	at AO3
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Hawks and Hands is a Fraser/RayK Bayliss/Kowalski story by Dira Sudis.

It was podficced in 2008 by issaro (26 hours long!).

cover art by Heuradys

Reactions and Reviews

Does "eighteen sex scenes strung together with angst and hockey" sound good to you? If so, that's why it must be read. (And note that there are six other fics that Dira has written in this same 'verse, and they are listed at the end of this fic.)

Can a hometown boy with wrecked hands and a short fuse, and a guy from the Arctic Circle who's considered a great player but a poor teammate, lead the Chicago Blackhawks to victory, solve a murder, and find true love?

You should know that I have no interest in hockey and my knowledge of the sport is limited to the fact that it takes place on ice and occasionally the players stop the game for a fistfight. Despite that fact, I enjoyed every moment of this hockey AU, which says a lot about how well written it is.

Fraser is a potential star for the Chicago Blackhawks, but he's having a tough time settling in with his teammates and it's hurting everyone's playing. Ray is a washed-up player with anger management problems who has gotten into so many fights that his hands are literally falling apart. They meet at a funeral and immediately click, causing Welsh (the manager of the Blackhawks) to offer Ray one last season of hockey, as long as he promises to avoid any fighting. Of course, Ray takes the job.

Let's start with the characters. Everyone's well done, especially Fraser, Ray, and Welsh, but the characterization of Fraser is downright impressive. After all, an undersexed, barely competent with women Fraser doesn't make sense when Fraser's a big name hockey star in a society where professional athletes are expected to indulge in every vice possible. Dira does a fantastic job of turning Fraser into a sexual being while giving him an emotional aloofness that feels very reminiscent of canon!Fraser. In fact, I think her version is closer to canon than many of the fics where Fraser's depicted as a man who has only had sex once in his life. There's also a fantastic cameo by Francesca, playing a sports reporter with a genuine love of hockey.

Nearly as great as the fabulous characterization is the universe itself. The world of professional sports is a high-stress one, and between the constant games and practices, the long months spent on the road, and the constant fear of permanent injury, you have an endless source of tension. Add in Fraser's social awkwardness, Ray's internal conflict regarding his feelings for Fraser, and a gaggle of team rivalries, and you have enough plot twists and confrontations for a dozen fanfics (which, at 1.2 M, this story pretty much is). And I could rave about the writing itself for a whole 'nother paragraph, but suffice to say that it's beautifully written.

All in all, a brilliant, addictive fic and, best of all, it'll take you a week to read!

This is what an AU should do. Take characters that you know and love and tweak the holy shit out of them into something different and just as marvelous. Before I read this fic, I hated hockey with a passion. By the end of it, I had learned a whole lot about hockey and even more about Fraser and Ray. It is, IMO, the most perfect example of what makes a successful AU successful. I loved it.

The author summarizes this whopping 1,152k AU fic as “18 sex scenes strung together with angst and hockey,” then warns, “Management is not responsible for lost sleep or productivity. No lifeguards on duty. Read at own risk.”

I’m awed by the amount of work Dira put into this story. For the benefit of people like yours truly whose knowledge of the sport is nil, she’s written a detailed and entertaining “Hockey Primer.” (Even if you know the sport you should still it check out, if only for the pictures of players losing their jerseys while fighting.) Furthermore, the story itself is footnoted, so you can find out what the Quebecois means, see why Fraser would appear to be a likely candidate for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, and read about the hair-raising auto accident involving real-life hockey players that inspired part of the story.

But I’m not recommending this because it’s educational; I’m reccing it because it’s a smart, sad, hot, suspenseful, funny, satisfying read. Dira has taken the characters we love and placed them in a new context, preserving their personalities even as she rewrites their pasts. Several key events from the series have been worked in, some with fiendishly clever twists. And while I’m not a professional athlete, I think Dira’s done a hell of a job imagining what it’s like: the claustrophobia and camaraderie of life on the road, the good and bad sportsmanship, the pains and joys of playing a game for a living.

Can a hometown boy with wrecked hands and a short fuse, and a guy from the Arctic Circle who’s considered a great player but a poor teammate, lead the Chicago Blackhawks to victory, solve a murder, and find true love? Read and see.

This is the Hockey AU. I'm not sure if that really counts as a crossover, but I generally hate crossovers, so sue me *g* If you are a due South type of person, and you typically shy away from AUs, you must immediately devote several days of your life to this story. It’s amazingly complex, huge in scope, and about two very excellent things in the world, due South and HOCKEY. Basically, Ray is a journeyman forward who thinks his career is over, and Fraser is a solid defenseman just traded to Chicago from Edmonton. Much drama ensues, Smithbauer makes a number appearances, Ray and Fraser have lots and lots of really amazing sex. I avoided this fic for a long time because the premise kind of scared me off, but I couldn’t stop reading for about three days once I started. You will not be disappointed. This is one of the essential stories of the fandom.

I love well-written AUs (ARs), but it has to be down right. DEpends on the fandom, too. Some characters are so well-drawn in canon that you recognize their personalities even if most of the details have changed. I am thinking in particular about the due South hockey AU by Dira Sudis (dsudis), Hawks and Hands. Ray and Fraser are the same people as in canon, but they never went into law enforcement. However, there's the mystery of Fraser's father's death that has to be taken care of still, because even a hockey-playing Fraser would want that to be reslved. So the canon Vecchio makes an appearance, and there's canon-type police action along with the hockey and sex.

(You do notice that I am trying to tempt you into reading that, don't you? *g*)

I looked at Hawks and Hands right after it was posted, and again today. I know she's a good author and I was really impressed with the length (and the primer and footnotes!), and I did read the first 75K or so. However, I just don't care about pro hockey players - so by extension I don't care about their relationship or what kind of sex they're having.

Ray and Fraser are the same people as in canon, but they never went into law enforcement.

I've only scratched the surface of that story so obviously I'm not qualified to comment on it, but with Fraser especially I wonder if he could really be the same person if he didn't go into law enforcement. I think his job is integral to his being, almost as much as the Northwest Territories are. (Hmm, now I'm thinking of the arguments Speranza made in Eight Sessions that Fraser became a Mountie because he had little choice - but much as I love that story, I don't buy that explanation.)

I might have to go read the remaining 1MB+ so I can discuss this more knowledgeably! (Couldn't you have picked a shorter AU to mention?) *g*

This is huge and I love it to bitty bitty bits. Ray and Fraser are professional hockey players. I don’t think I need to say much more, do I? Clocking it at around 200,000 words, be sure to clear your plate. Even if you aren’t too familiar with hockey, it comes with a guide, so don’t worry. There’s an option of reading it split into four parts instead of in one giant file. I suggest reading it in parts so you have good stopping places for things like eating.

Inspired Fanworks

• So here are three scenes from what is possibly my all-time favorite due South fan fiction, ^{Archived version} by spacetimeconundrum