All The Leaves Are Brown (Gen)

All The Leaves Are Brown by AvocadoLove
http://archiveofourown.org/works/1609838?view_full_work=true

Great story with an interesting premise, Tony raised by the Winter Soldier. I have not seen this before and the writer does an excellent job portraying Bucky as he slowly breaks his programing.  In this case the change is that the "accident" happens when Tony is four and he is actually in the car. When the Winter Soldier approaches the car to make sure the occupants are dead he realizes that Howard Stark is barely alive and in the backseat is a small boy screaming. Howard does not see his murderer through dying eyes he only sees an old ally and manages to say his last words. "Bucky, Get Tony....take care of my son."
For some reason the Winter Soldier hesitates then takes the boy with him reasoning that he could always kill him later. He takes Tony on a tour of the world as he avoids the press, police, his watchers and when Tony is six he finally manages to break his programming completely. He raises Tony as his son teaching he everything he needs to survive but he knows eventually he will have to tell him the truth. The time comes when Tony graduates college, after giving him an envelope with the truth he disappears years later something happens. Tony is kidnapped in Afghanistan and the Winter Soldier heads back. No one hurts his son and gets away with it. He will find him, he will find who did this and they will pay. He may be retired but he is still the most feared assassin in the world they have no idea who they have angered.

Syrgja (Loki/Natasha)

Syrgja by Lady Charity
https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8514738/1/Syrgja

Excellent story but I have to admit the torture scenes can be too graphic for some people. Luckily you can tell where there is a flashback.  The story take place three years after Avengers when Shield finds Thor and a broken Loki in a desolate area of Norway. Loki was captured by the Chitauri and kept prisoner for a 1000 years and Thanos is after him and the Gauntlet Gems. It takes all of Asgard and the Avengers to stop Thanos. But it takes someone special to save Loki.

Poor Loki, there is a lot of thumping on him. The author delights in everything looking better then bam another hit.  The description of war is brutal, heartbreaking, and somehow glorious. This is a story well worth rereading. Just a heads up there is a major character death but it fits so well in the story.

Blame it on the Vodka (Loki/Darcy)

Blame it on the Vodka by dhauren
http://archiveofourown.org/works/343868?view_full_work=true

Good story, funny as  hell in spots, in which Loki under the influence of a lot, lot of Vodka agrees with Darcy that dry spells (once that is explained to him) suck and he has been under a 300 year one. They break it together and the hilarity starts. There is a little angst, a little drama, a lot of romance, some fighting, humor out the kazoo and some lovely scenes between Darcy and Loki. Loki learns what it means to love a human woman and what it means to put someone first. Darcy is unbelievable she at one point declares war on Odin and calls him a rat bastard. Loki's minion (Stark) comes through for him and Darcy when they go to rescue him. All in all a good lighthearted look at a Loki/Darcy romance.

I am what I am (Xander/Faith/Buffy)

I Am What Am I by MMcGregor
http://www.tthfanfic.org/Story-16860/MMcGregor+I+Am+What+I+Am.htm

Great story I do love a good time travel and this is a good one. The story opens with him talking to his daughter as he is preparing to go back and do it all again in order to prevent one of the loves of his life from being ripped from heaven. He knows this is the right thing to do and not everything will go his away. He has to live with knowledge that his beloved daughter may not be born and that he will have to live over the worst times of his life but it is worth it to prevent the end of the world.

The author does a good job with the flashbacks so you get an idea of how he became the man known as Protector Harris and just how he became involved with Faith and Buffy. After he slips up he decides not to hide anything because it did not work well the first time so why repeat it. The author describes him well near the end:

He was Xander Harris. Sometimes that meant he was the Zeppo, an under-achieving do-gooder. Sometimes it meant he was Protector Harris, an over-achieving world leader. Sometimes it meant he was Teacher, who passed on years of knowledge and wisdom to others, so that the world might be better served. Sometimes he was Daddy, who cared for no one as much as his baby girl, who was more confident now than ever that he would one day see his daughter again.

Mithras Chronicles (Xander/Faith)

Mithras Chronicles

http://www.tthfanfic.org/wholestory.php?no=27633#chapter1 

Awesome story, with well written action scenes that are paced nicely throughout the story. The characters from the different fandoms are brought in carefully and believably.  And that is important because there are a lot of crossovers big and small too numerous to list. The author provides enough background with out turning it into a history lesson. The characterization is good while the plot has many twists and turns.

Xander decides to leave Sunnydale for good not just the summer and Faith goes with him. As usual trouble finds him and the adventure turns dangerous almost immediately then something weird even for him happens. Near death he meets with Mithras, a general from the war that drove the demons out, in his mind. Mithras was an Ascendant, a human that becomes a god because of great deeds. Leo, from Charmed describes the line of Mithras:
“Throughout history, many of the world’s greatest military figures were descendants of Mithras. Some like Darius the Great, Hannibal, Richard Lionheart, El Cid, and the Black Prince are revered and remembered to this day. Others have been forgotten. But at the start of the 15th Century, Mithras’ influence began to wane and he was soon forgotten, his line deemed unworthy.” Her boyfriend looked down at the unconscious body. “Until Xander.”
Now he is in for a wild ride as he needs to unite the various demon fighters and raise an army al the while avoiding those that want to take advantage or "guide him" in the proper direction. Luckily he has Faith, Tara and assorted heroes and anti-establishment types to give him a hand.

My Apologies

I apologize for the long break, December and January are not great months for me mentally and physically. Between the allergies and the arthritis it sucked.  I expected to slow down for that but I have no idea what happened to October and November. I will try not to have that happen again. So lets back into the groove because I did not stop reading and I have great stories lined up for you. So with a quick wave to my Guardian angels, Mom (Jovita Estrada), Dad (Ramon Estrada), Brother (Ronald Estrada) and Sister (Rosalinda Estrada) you are sorely missed, lets get started.