Been lurking for a long time but think it's time to put my hat in the ring :) Been reading lots of HR fics lately, and have come across several which are just amazing but don't get enough appreciation. Most of these will have fewer than 1k kudos on ao3 - time to share the good news!!
Controlled Contact Is Still Contact by @parcai - E/36k/Complete -Part Two of the ongoing Boys Will Be Boys series
I read this this morning and it inspired me to make this post. Shane's mind in this is a sight to behold. I love Shane's obsession, the way his mind works is really something to sink your teeth into. Cannot wait for the continuation of this.
show me how to be whole again by @rozanohwell - E/43k/WIP
Shane is seriously injured prior to winning his cups. Ilya loses it. Ilya is so cruel in this, but also so hurt. Their relationship is so tense and amazing. Every chapter of this I have no idea what is coming.
and we all fall down by lowkey_existential_despair E/14k/WIP - Part 3 of the ongoing two weddings and a scandal series
This may be cheating, as the first part is much more well known, but unless you were subscribed you wouldn't know that there was a continuation to this. Deals with the immediate ramifications of coming out as married after keeping it secret for 4 years. Completely divine. Read part one if you haven't already.
These Icy Waters by @jeejascoffee - E/34k/Complete
Nothing like I've ever read in this fandom. Magical realism, haunting and little bit of horror. Just amazing
they say it's my fault by Rizandace T/5k/Complete - Part Two of the ongoing all the things (they) said series
This one is hard to explain without giving too much away. Shane really manages everything so badly here, I feel like he is so realistic, he's just getting everything wrong. Part one is Rose POV, Part Two is Shane's.
Doses and Mimosas by Ziuzura E/50k/WIP
I'm not usually one for university aus but this one has entranced me. Shane is bloody mental in this I love it.
temporality/liminality by @hemipenia E/10k/Complete
Rose era narrative. I love seeing authors perspective of the inside of Shane's closet. This one in particular is fantastic.
mirage by ann_sable M/8k/Complete
I'm just going to put the summary to describe this. I can't describe it any better. Tastiest time loop in the world.
Ilya discovers that he can control time. Now he's on a quest to prevent his mother's suicide. Enter Shane Hollander. Enter Shane Hollander.
Enter Shane Hollander.
getting killed by a pretty good life by @blixabargelds E/9k/Complete
Different interpretations on Ilya's mental health are something I seriously love. This one might be the magnum opus for me.
I'm Just Happy You Still Call by @distractivate NR/16k/Complete
One of my absolute favourite Yuna fics. Her relationship with Shane is so nuanced and awesome in this. Yuna's identity is so wound up in Shane's I love the exploration of this here.
get gone by geniflux M/11k/Complete
Shane's various identity issues and lack of control over his own life come to a head. AMAZING!
gens du pays by khafre E/3k/WIP
Shane has a situationship with Sasha. There is so much character work crammed into this short fic. but their relationship, against all odds, works so well. Really interesting perspective.
Honourable Mentions - Ongoing WIPs with over 1k kudos that are beyond amazing.
Carrion Comfort by @stevesbootyshorts E/113k/WIP
I've been following this fic since maybe the third chapter? Has been one of my absolute favourites since the beginning. The character work, the tension and the frankly incredible descriptions of injury makes this just beyond amazing.
Progression by conturbat_me T/27k/WIP
Shane's parents disliking Ilya might be my favourite things ever. This one does it so well. Everything this author writes is gold.
on winning and losing (and ilya rozanov) by fingersfallingupwards - M/89k/WIP - Part 2 of the ongoing old man hollanov yaoi series
This series is just amazing. Very well known but Ilya's teenage son is maybe the best OC ever? Part two is a highlight, as we really experience Shane's trials and tribulations trying to manage his new relationship with his own personal challenges.
Hope You're Not Waiting For Me To Wait For You by Latigra Ongoing Series - E/159k/WIP
I've also been following this since maybe the second part? Quintessential Shane reading I'm afraid. There are chapters in this that I just come back to again and again and again. Most awesome side characters. It's like it's own universe.
More great fics beneath the cut! I had a much easier time making this list from my laptop. Do not recommend using a smartphone to format long tumblr posts.
I'm Just Happy You Still Call by @distractivate
This one hits the sweet spot for me on Yuna interpretations. It doesn't excuse her mistakes, but it also doesn't question her love for Shane and the close bond they share. I like that Ilya helps rebuild a gentle bridge between them after their fallout, all the more poignant because he knows how precious a mother-son relationship is. Just an excellent character fic on all accounts. Also check out Unlikely Animal Friends by this author to see Ilya being adorable with Orangutans and Shane being a coral nerd.
Hope You're Not Waiting for Me to Wait for You by Latigra
This one imagines a world wherein Shane is more like a Michael Jordan-type elite athlete and his teammates are more overtly misogynistic and sexist. This may not sound fun to you, and fair enough, but it's a fascinating, and frankly, hilarious take on the world of Game Changers. Shane is an insane, mildly egotistical, obsessive control freak who is impatient with everyone around him, and Ilya relishes every idiosyncrasy. It's a delight. There is angst too, watching Shane try to function in a world that isn't made for him, but my favorite bits are all about the dry humor of this asshole putting up with the losers on his hockey team. Go in with an open mind and you're in for a treat.
Glass Houses and Thrown Stones by Sporkess
This is a part of a larger series worth reading in its entirety, but this is my favorite entry. It ups the drama on how the Voyageurs treated Shane and the trauma he's dealing with in the aftermath. It features a supportive team of Centaurs and Ilya slowly learning how bad it was for his man in Montreal. Fantastic angst and hurt/comfort. Some good work on fan reactions and media as well.
Fledgling by Wintersbane
Ilya and Shane with a teenage daughter. The original teen character felt true-to-life, and Shane and Ilya are both well-written. They're very much a team as parents. You can feel the terror of letting your heart walk around outside of your body in their love for Sonya.
Limitations of the Current Model by HH_Arrow
CW: Eating Disorder
A take on Shane with an eating disorder that feels grounded in character and realism. You watch him justify and deny and slowly come to terms with it and what it's done to his life. It is angst, but it ends on hope.
strawberry toothpaste and all the ways to say i love you by dayfly
Reflections of parenthood from four different perspectives. Shane, Ilya, Yuna, and David. Excellent kidfic, sweet and introspective. The depth of character here is excellent.
Listen, I love kidfic, okay?! Fight me!
kept by @floormusic
A very tender fic in which Ilya is Shane's baby. I love the banter in this one, the rhythm of it. It's just so cozy, ike a cup of hot soup on a winter day.
the one hand rim-rocker by @tedyexe
Ilya gets fisted in this one. Yes, it's very hot, but it's not the biggest reason I love it. It's queer as hell and it features the kind of casual, funky intimacy of long-term partners. The way they coyly communicate about their desires while matter-of-factly attending to each other's bodies is delightful. I also like that their sexuality feels more fully rounded rather than narrowed down to specific roles.
Snapping Birch by thepolysyndetonaddictsupportgroup
It's a "Shane and Ilya are outed" fic and this time, it's David's phone being hacked. This one gets you in the details. The unsent emails, the short text messages, the videos. It's my favorite David fic even though it's not technically focused on him. Excellent storytelling through subtext. I also love the reactions from supportive players in the league. I've seen this one recced by others and rightfully so!
I had so much fun writing this rom-com version of them and I hope you enjoy it too!
Chapter 1 - Harold
Shane takes his job as a senior aquarist at Aquarium Métropolitain very seriously. Which is why he’s just as surprised as you are to find himself on his knees in front of Ilya Rozanov in the North Atlantic exhibit, the Russian’s broad shoulders leaning against a column of moon jellyfish drifting in a swirl of indigo blue.
It’s hard to think about anything with Ilya’s dick right there for the taking, but there is a little part of him thinking this is not what his boss meant when she told Shane to make sure the jellies were adjusting to their new home before he left for the day. At least the exhibit doesn’t have cameras installed yet.
“Is fine, Hollander.” Ilya’s fingers thread through his hair, squeezing gently until Shane focuses on him again. “They are jellyfish, yes? They can’t see.”
“Actually…” Shane says. And he hates that he is this person, especially that he is this person in this situation, but he is this person. “They can.”
And how did he find himself here, where he absolutely shouldn't be, concerned about all the wrong things, you ask? Well, it all started with a missing bed, a marriage of (in)convenience, and temporary custody of a crocodile an alligator named Chompy.
keep reading at
https://archiveofourown.org/works/85103436/chapters/224713286
I had so much fun writing this rom-com version of them and I hope you enjoy it too!
Chapter 1 - Harold
Shane takes his job as a senior aquarist at Aquarium Métropolitain very seriously. Which is why he’s just as surprised as you are to find himself on his knees in front of Ilya Rozanov in the North Atlantic exhibit, the Russian’s broad shoulders leaning against a column of moon jellyfish drifting in a swirl of indigo blue.
It’s hard to think about anything with Ilya’s dick right there for the taking, but there is a little part of him thinking this is not what his boss meant when she told Shane to make sure the jellies were adjusting to their new home before he left for the day. At least the exhibit doesn’t have cameras installed yet.
“Is fine, Hollander.” Ilya’s fingers thread through his hair, squeezing gently until Shane focuses on him again. “They are jellyfish, yes? They can’t see.”
“Actually…” Shane says. And he hates that he is this person, especially that he is this person in this situation, but he is this person. “They can.”
And how did he find himself here, where he absolutely shouldn't be, concerned about all the wrong things, you ask? Well, it all started with a missing bed, a marriage of (in)convenience, and temporary custody of a crocodile an alligator named Chompy.
keep reading at
https://archiveofourown.org/works/85103436/chapters/224713286
Yuna Hollander knows that it is normal for children to distance themselves from their parents as they approach adulthood. She expected it when Shane was a teenager, when he moved to Kingston for juniors, even later, when he moved to Montreal. When they stayed close, when he seemed happy to see them at his games, to have her managing his career, when he seemed not only to love them, but to still like having them around… When he invited her for dinner with his boyfriend and the four of them laughed until the summer sun dropped below the lake, she thought maybe this was one challenge of parenthood she would be spared. Which makes the day it finally happens all the harder to bear.
Or, Yuna Hollander and the joy and anguish of growing up.
Or, a not-so-short Yuna Hollander character study set between Heated Rivalry and The Long Game.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
if ao3 is still down in 7 hours time meet me at 40.73360° N, 74.00052° W and we will build a fire and host oral retellings of all of our favorite problematic fanfictions
As a married person I do need to tell you all that Shane and Ilya do weird shit all the time.
They routinely have entire conversations where Ilya is very softly smacking Shane's foot the entire time. Shane enjoys the percussive feedback.
Ilya mispronounces the word "Application" and they just sit there mutually whispering 'Aaap-li-caaa-shun' at each other for the next thirty seconds.
Ilya comes up behind Shane while he's trying to make a smoothie and says 'HELPING HANDS' and puts his arms under Shane's armpits.
Ilya sees Shane undressing in the bathroom and yells, "Take it all off!"
Shane carries Anya into the bedroom and holds her over Ilya's chest and moves her paws and says, "Papa it is me. Papa it has been an whole hour since I ate. Papa I am so hungry and sad." then drops her on his stomach.
Shane comes into the home office and grabs a pen off the desk and puts it against Ilya's cheek and says, "Any last words?" and Ilya says, "I wish I had eaten more dumplings."
Ilya spends an entire episode of House Hunters International with his hand down Shane's pants. It's not doing anything in there either it's just keeping warm.
Sometimes they are just mutually awake at three AM for No Reason and they go stand on the porch and stare at the empty street together.
Sometimes they are laying there playing footsie on the couch while on their phones (Parallel play) and Shane says, "Does your mouth ever do that squeezing thing. You know. When you eat." And Ilya says "Explain" and they spend the next ten minutes dissecting whether this is a Human Experience or a Shane Experience.
Sometimes Ilya will put his head on Shane's stomach and say, "Show me your boooones" and wait for Shane to lift his shirt so he can burrow under it.
I just think that we as a fandom need to embrace how Weird married people get about each other. From personal experience I am telling you it is SO FUN.
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