shadowscast

The last time I posted a chapter of That Good Night, I said that I hoped to update again in less than a year. I am happy to say that I have met that goal! Yippee! (Keeping the bar just high enough that I can comfortably walk under it.)

Thanks as always to yourlibrarian—beta-reader extraordinaire—and also to any readers out there who haven't given up on me yet!

( Previously in the Fragments-verse.... )


And now, the new chapter!

Title: That Good Night (part 13 of ?)
Rating: NC-17 (barely)
Pairing: Spike/Xander, ensemble
Summary: A couple of years post-NFA, Spike is human, and it isn’t working out so well. He and Xander are currently in Sao Paulo, where Willow has just had a baby and a new vampire problem is looming.
Warnings: This story will get dark at times. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).
Disclaimer: They're not mine, and I'm not making any money.


( Chapter 13 )

So, wow, it's been over a year since I last posted a chapter of this story. You could be forgiven for thinking this was an abandoned WIP. But no! It's aliiiiiiive!!!

Thanks, yourlibrarian, for your prompt beta-reading and infinite patience!

Title: That Good Night (part 12 of ?)
Rating: NC-17 (barely)
Pairing: Spike/Xander, ensemble
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after Before the Time of Dawn.
Summary: A couple of years post-NFA, Spike is human, and it isn’t working out so well. He and Xander are currently in Sao Paulo, where Willow has just had a baby and a new vampire problem is looming.
Warnings: This story will get dark at times. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

Previous chapters [here].

This update is about 2000 words; the total length now stands at about 40,000.

If you’d like email notification of updates, please let me know either in comments or by email at shadowscast at yahoo dot com.

I hope to bring you the next chapter in less than a year! (Woohoo, setting the bar nice and low!)

( Chapter 12 )

Hello out there! It's been a month and a half since I last posted any fic. Sometimes, you know, the story flows quickly and easily. Other times, not so much. Also real life has been full of interesting distractions, such as finding out that I'm pregnant (it was planned, but is nevertheless rather startling and strange!). Anyway! Finally I have a chapter ready to go. Thanks, as always, to yourlibrarian for beta-reading and for all her help along the way.

The details:

Title: That Good Night (part 11 of ?)
Rating: NC-17 (barely)
Pairing: Spike/Xander, ensemble
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after Before the Time of Dawn.
Summary: A couple of years post-NFA, Spike is human, and it isn’t working out so well. He and Xander are currently in Sao Paulo, where Willow has just had a baby and a new vampire problem is looming.
Warnings: This story will get dark at times. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 3600 words; the total length now stands at about 38,200.

If you’d like email notification of updates, please let me know either in comments or by email at shadowscast at yahoo dot com.

Previous parts are [here].

( Chapter 11 )

Hello, world! Believe it or not, I have another chapter done already. And this one actually has Spike and Xander in it!

Thanks to yourlibrarian, as usual, for beta-reading, idea-sharing, and for making writing fun.

By the way, do you remember five months ago when I posted a teaser for an upcoming chapter of “That Good Night”? Yeah, this is finally that chapter!

Oh, and one other announcement: by reader request, I'm starting an email list to let people know when I update. If you'd like to be on the list, please let me know either in comments or by email at shadowscast at yahoo dot com.

Anyway, here are the story details:

Title: That Good Night (part 10 of ?)
Rating: NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after Before the Time of Dawn. This story is set a couple of years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. He and Xander are currently in Sao Paulo, where Willow has just had a baby and a new vampire problem is looming.
Warnings: My posting schedule will probably continue to be erratic! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 3700 words; the total length now stands at about 34,400.

Previous parts are [here].

I haven't prepared a new "Previously in the Fragments!Verse" summary for today, but since I just posted last week, hopefully you remember what's going on!

( Chapter 10 )

Hey, everybody! Remember the Fragments-verse? Where Spike turned human after NFA, and now he's dating Xander and working for the Watchers' Council? And currently they're in Sao Paulo, visiting Willow? It's been—dear Lord—five months since I last posted a chapter. So it's understandable if you don't remember! But this story is very much still alive, and it's back to being my top writing priority, and hey, I've finally finished another chapter! As always, I am grateful to yourlibrarian for beta-reading, encouragement, help with the sticky bits, and lots of fun chat along the way!

(By the way, when I checked to see when my last update had been, I realized that I never responded to most of the feedback on that chapter. I humbly apologize! I love comments very much, and certainly meant to answer them all. And I will—even if it is embarrassingly late, now!)


The details:

Title: That Good Night (part 9 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after Before the Time of Dawn. This story is set a couple of years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, Willow has just had a baby; Xander and Spike have traveled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy.
Warnings: My posting schedule will probably continue to be erratic! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 5000 words; the total length now stands at about 30,700.

Previous parts are [here].

In case you need to refresh your memory: ( Previously in the Fragments!verse... )

( Chapter 9 )

It's 3 a.m. and I have a chapter for you!

Why yes, my sleep schedule is completely out of whack. But hey, it's a lovely hour for posting fic!

Thanks, as always, to yourlibrarian for beta-reading and more.


The details:

Title: That Good Night (part 8 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, Willow has just had a baby; Xander and Spike have traveled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy.
Warnings: My posting schedule will probably continue to be erratic! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 3400 words; the total length now stands at about 25,700.

Previous parts are [here].

In case you need to refresh your memory: ( Previously in the Fragments!verse... )

( Chapter 8 )

Right now I'm on vacation—so I have another chapter written already! Woohoo!

I apologize for being slow in answering comments to chapter 6. Please be assured, I appreciate the comments very much! I love feedback! I've just been in frenzied chapter-writing mode, which left me without time to answer the comments. But I will, I promise, and soon!

Thanks to yourlibrarian for beta-reading, and lots of fun plot discussions.

The details:

Title: That Good Night (part 7 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, Willow has just had a baby; Xander and Spike have traveled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy.
Warnings: My posting schedule will probably continue to be erratic! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 4300 words; the total length now stands at about 22,300.

Previous parts are [here].

Oh, and now that this story is getting fairly long, I'm going to start doing a recap to accompany each chapter. You can skip it if you remember everything that's happened so far (or if you feel like rereading the chapters themselves!). So, here you go...

( Previously in the Fragments!verse... )

( Chapter 7 )

I just had an awesome fun day hanging out with soft_princess. Hooray for Writercon bringing me together with a fellow fanfic writer in my very own city!

And now: an update! Woohoo!

I want to thank yourlibrarian for not only beta-reading this part, but becoming a true co-conspirator; she's letting me bounce all sorts of ideas off her, and generally run on and on, and she's given me some pretty awesome ideas of her own!

Here's the story info:

Title: That Good Night (part 6 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, Willow has just had a baby; Xander and Spike have traveled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy.
Warnings: My posting schedule will probably continue to be erratic! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 2600 words; the total length now stands at about 18,000.

Previous parts are [here].

Oh, and now that this story is getting fairly long, I'm going to start doing a recap to accompany each chapter. You can skip it if you remember everything that's happened so far (or if you feel like rereading the chapters themselves!). So, here you go...

( Previously in the Fragments!verse... )

( Chapter 6 )

I've got another "That Good Night" update ready for your reading pleasure! You'll note that the time lapse between updates is getting shorter and shorter. Um, don't expect that trend to continue! (I may or may not manage to get another update done before Writercon; it'll be exams and term-ending stuff next week, so I'll be busy.)

Once again, I thank yourlibrarian for her thorough, insightful beta reading, and speakr2customrs for the fine-tuning and Brit-picking.

The details:

Title: That Good Night (part 5 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Xander and Spike (who's human now) are in Sao Paulo visiting Willow, who's just had a baby. Buffy's in town for the same reason. Awkwardness is sure to ensue.
Warnings: My posting is highly erratic! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 4800 words. Yup, it's a substantial one. And action-packed! The total length now stands at about 15,500.

Previous parts are [here].

( Chapter 5 )

Just two weeks between chapters this time (as opposed to two and a half months, last time!)—I think I'm back on track. Yay!

I'd like to thank yourlibrarian for her thoughtful, helpful, and very prompt beta reading, and speakr2customrs for helping me again with fine-tuning Spike's voice.

The standard details:

Title: That Good Night (part 4 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, there's some excitement and distress about Willow giving birth; Xander and Spike have travelled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy. In this chapter, Spike and Buffy go on patrol together.
Warnings: As I said before, this thing is going to be posted very slowly! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 2200 words; the total length now stands at about 10,700.

Previous parts are [here].

( Chapter Four )

Here we go, finally! It's been two and a half months since the last update—eeek. I'm terribly sorry, and I'll try very hard not to let that happen again!

I'd like to thank yourlibrarian for beta reading the chapter, and speakr2customrs for dialect-checking and one little pun. And also, I'd like to thank in advance everyone who hasn't given up on this story after I disappeared for two and a half months!

Okay, now the details:

Title: That Good Night (part 3 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, Willow has just given birth; Xander and Spike have traveled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy.
Warnings: As you've no doubt noticed, I'm not writing this very quickly! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, ask me privately).

This update is about 2400 words; the total length now stands at about 8400.

Previous parts are [here].

( Chapter Three )

I have another chapter ready to go; yay!

I'd like to thank yourlibrarian, who provided not only a helpful and insightful beta reading of this chapter, but also some really great back-and-forth brainstorming about long term stuff. She's smart and fun to work with!

By the way, I'm now ready to give spoilers about where this is headed to those who are sufficiently worried by my ambiguous maybe-character-death warning. If you want such information, let me know and I will contact you privately (I'd rather not post spoilers for the general public!)

Okay, general info:

Title: That Good Night (part 2 of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Continuity info: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, fitting in immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." This story is set a couple years post-NFA.
Summary: Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, there's some excitement and distress about Willow giving birth; Xander and Spike have travelled to Sao Paulo to see her, and so has Buffy.
Warnings: As I said before, this thing is going to be posted very slowly! If that's going to frustrate you hugely, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, I'd rather not say what comes of it (though if you're terribly worried, see above regarding asking me!).

This update is about 3100 words; the total length now stands at about 6000.

Previous parts are [here].

( Chapter Two )

Remember how I said that the bit I'd posted before wasn't the whole first chapter? Here's the rest of the first chapter.

I have a beta reader now, the fantastic and wonderful yourlibrarian. Yay! But I'm afraid that the pace at which this story comes out will continue to be very slow: probably one post every couple weeks, but I can't even guarantee that.

Needless to say, I'm tremendously grateful for all the support and feedback I got for the first post!

So here's the next bit....

Title: That Good Night (part 1b of ?)
Rating: Still not sure. Definitely R; may go to NC-17.
Summary: This is the sixth story in the Fragments 'verse, set immediately after "Before the Time of Dawn." Spike is human and he's having problems. Meanwhile, Willow is giving birth and everyone's worried about her.
Warnings: As I said before, this thing is going to be posted very slowly! If that's going to frustrate you terribly, you should probably wait until it's complete. Also, it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'm not prepared to say what comes of it.

This update is about 1400 words; the total length now stands at about 2900.

Continued from [here]:
Before Xander had any time at all to process the implications, Buffy was ducking under the cordon containing her line, dragging her absurdly large wheeled suitcase across the intervening linoleum and throwing her arms around Xander in a bone-crunching hug.

( And now, the rest of chapter one! )

I've been working insane hours for the past couple months, and this week I've had insomnia on top of that. And yet, this week I've also started writing again. It feels good. It feels like I've reclaimed something important.

I finally managed to start the next Fragments story, which I'd been totally blocked on since finishing "Before the Dawn of Time." It feels like it's really happening this time (there have been multiple false starts which have never made it off my hard drive).

I know I shouldn't post this yet. It's the start of a long story and I'm not 100% sure where it's going. It's 1500 words written in a state of total exhaustion, un-betaed, and I can't guarantee that all the sentences start and end in the same dimension, if you know what I mean. It's not even a chapter—it ends at an okay place, I think, but it's not a chapter ending (the scene continues after what I've written here).

But I have to put it on my LJ anyway, 'cause that's my only way to back it up in case of disastrous computer failure. And, well, I could put it in a private post, but, uh ... man, I've been feeling so cut off from fandom for the past few months. So I justify this to myself, saying: my LJ is like a workshop! It doesn't have to be polished until I post to communities/my web page! ... Speaking of which, anyone willing to beta read future bits?

Anyway, here's the info:

Title: That Good Night
Rating: Who knows? Maybe NC-17, maybe just R. Probably not PG.
Summary: Another addition to the Fragments 'verse; immediate sequel to "Before the Time of Dawn." A year or more post-NFA, Spike and Xander are together and working for the Watchers' Council. Spike is human, and it's causing him some problems.
Warnings: Important! First of all, given my RL situation there's a higher-than-average probability that I'll go weeks and weeks without updating. Also, as I said, this is a first draft. So, if those things turn you off, you should definitely just wait until it's done and on my website; I'll post when that's the case, don't worry! Also: it's going to be dark. Possibly kinda depressing. Definitely angsty, h/c with lots of hurt. Character death will most definitely be threatened, and I'm not prepared to say what comes of it.

ETA: Now I have a beta (yourlibrarian), so my chances of making this work just went up!

( Part One )