We're a Storm in Somebody Else's Teacup
| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | We're a Storm in Somebody Else's Teacup |
| Author(s): | paperclipbitch |
| Date(s): | 12 January 2009 - 26 February 2009 |
| Length: | 87,410 words, 11:11:25 hours |
| Genre: | slash fanfiction |
| Fandom: | Merlin |
| External Links: | We're A Storm In Somebody Else's Teacup (Livejournal) We're A Storm In Somebody Else's Teacup (mp3 & audiobook) |
 cover by revolutionaryjo | |
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We're a Storm in Somebody Else's Teacup is a Merlin/Arthur modern AU by paperclipbitch (87,410 words). It won the Spring 2009 Merlin/Arthur Fanfic Awards in the categories Action/Adventure Fic, Lancelot Characterisation, Morgana Characterisation, Nimueh Characterisation and was a runner-up in the categories Overall Fic, Chapter Fic and Alternate Universe Fic.
Summary: "When Merlin tells his best friend Gwen about his magic powers, she makes him go to a support group for people with powers. There he meets Morgana, and starts a chain reaction of events and meetings that will change everything forever. Featuring obnoxious Arthur, pretty, pretty Lancelot, kind and wonderful Gwen... psychotic Nimueh (naturally), the whole gang really."[1]
twilight_angel podficced the story[2] for the amplificathon podbang 2009 and jinjurly turned it into an audibook. The podfic is 11:11:25 hours long and both mp3 and audiobook are available at the Audiofic Archive.
Recs and Reviews
"Total Epic adventure in the grandest sense. It's a modern AU but steeped in Magic and has a real 'Camelot' feel to it, if that makes any sense to you. Merlin is a paper-pusher, Arthur is a corporate exec, but the story takes place outside of the office. It is driven by Merlin and Morgana's friendship and how together they bring all the cast of characters that we know and love together for love and magic and drama and destiny. Lovely fic."[3]
This fic, combined with Defenders of the Realm made me realize that I adore modern AUs where magic still exsists. This one is particularly awesome, where Merlin meets Morgana in a support group for people with super powers.[4]
The One Featuring an Uther Pendragon Who Is Clearly Closely Related to Lionel Luthor, and, Wow, Isn't That a Terrifying Crossover Waiting to Happen? We're a Storm in Somebody Else's Teacup, by paperclipbitch. Merlin, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon.
So, I know that all of Merlin fandom was a squee about this story, but I found it totally randomly. I saw the link from the Merlin newsletter while I was looking for stories to Kindle, clicked through, and saw this line:
Merlin meets Morgana Le Fay at a support group for People With Freaky Unnatural Powers.
And I thought, yeah, I'd like to read that.
This turned out to be one of my more fortunate snap decisions, because this is - I don't know how to describe it, even. It's utterly addicting - I read it on my Kindle while the earthling was nursing, and I found myself desperately hoping he would eat for just a few more minutes, because I had to know what happened next. (I think, if I'd been reading this as it was posted, the wait would have killed me.) I was entirely caught up! I cared immensely about these characters and their lives and their decisions and their hair and their coffee table books!
It was a total immersion story experience. I loved it.
This was one of the earliest stories I read in the fandom, and I'm just lucky that it didn't set my expectations so high that I spent the next month reading Merlin stories with an expression of spoiled disappointment on my face.
Anyway. This is a modern Merlin AU. (Side note: why do modern Merlin AUs so frequently feature a Merlin hitting the coffee so hard you expect his eyebrows to zing off his face? Is this canon or something? I mean, they have tomatoes. I guess they could have coffee. Although that's veering perilously close to, like, Post-It notes and Gaius as a first generation hacker with punch cards and - wait. Is there a Merlin hacker AU? If not, why not?) There are powers! There is drama! There are action sequences and love scenes! But that's all beside the point. The fact is, each sentence is laced with undetectable but extremely savory and instantly addictive glee. Read it.[5]
There are not enough good things in the English language to say about this fic. It's epically long, plotty, and wonderful. It's funny, and heartbreaking at the same time. The characters are so perfectly themselves, it is so well written that you will literally bite your nails down in aprehension (my thumb nail will never be the same) and it all fits so well together at the end. Seriously, don't just take my word for it. Go read![6]
Why do I recommend this with the fierceness of the fierce? Because once I started, I couldn't stop. Because I was on the edge of my seat, wanting desperately to know what would happen next. Because I love Gwen more than words can say. And because I love how they all banded together. Because you can see how these four grow as people. Because I love that everything doesn't turn out alright. Because even with freaky Abnormal Abilities and probably imaginary unicorns and dragons and everything thrown in, it still felt so real and so touching. An instant rec. Make sure you have time to read it, though. It's long and you won't want to stop. This is one of the best fics I've read in a fandom with a lot of excellent fics.[7]
References
- ^ shiny_starlight. We're A Storm in Somebody Else's Teacup by paperclipbitch, in: camelot_recs, 24 February 2009. (Accessed 22 August 2010)
- ^ twilight_angel. Now it really IS beginning to look a lot like Christmas!, 23 December 2009. (Accessed 22 August 2010)
- ^ marguerite_26. Modern AU Arthur/Merlin Recs. (Accessed 30 December 2010)
- ^ paraka. Merlin Fic Recs, 29 March 2009. (Accessed 02 May 2012)
- ^ rec by thefourthvine at Eight Days of Happiness: Alternate Universes, May 9, 2009
- ^ "We're A Storm in Somebody Else's Teacup by paperclipbitch, post at camelot_recs". Archived from the original on 201-12-25.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archivedate=(help) - ^ "REC: We're A Storm In Somebody Else's Teacup by paperclipbitch". Archived from the original on 2023-03-10.