Hikago, the old standby love

[shinra_lackey]

I'm avoiding working on my Spirited Away recs as you can probably tell. Sorry, but some older Hikago recs, since I still have some that I still haven't got around to recommending.

Rivals or Not by issen4 (oneshot, crossover, HnG/PoT, gen)
Sounds from Afternoon Go Games by tarigwaemir (oneshot, gen)
Shaped Lives by aishuu (oneshot, AkiHika)
Ramen to Go by Nudd (series, complete, AkiHika)
Driven by murinae (oneshot, crossover, HnG/Death Note)

Rivals or Not by issen4 (oneshot, crossover, HnG/PoT, gen) It may seem odd to recommend one of Luce's older fics here after I've already gushed about how much I love all her more recent Hikago work, but this fic still deserves a nod. Here we have Momo and Kaidoh from Tenipuri meeting Hikaru and Touya on the street tennis courts talking about their rivalry. What I really loved about this fic was the nonchalant way in which Touya and Hikaru share their rivalry with others. Luce has their thoughts on the subject down and I love seeing how she made the two boys look to the the Seigaku players.

Sounds from Afternoon Go Games by tarigwaemir (oneshot, gen) SUMMARY: Literally what the title says, in other words, a "soundtrack" of Hikaru and Akira playing at Touya Kouyo's /go/ salon. These scenes just move me even after multiple readings. They're serious and look into the future of Hikago fitting what I hope would happen between Touya and Hikaru that they just play go against each other for the rest of their lives. However, Sounds still keeps my inner fangirl happy.

My favorite lines:

"Father's returned from his overseas tour." /Pachi/. "Really? That's great! I'd like to play against him again." /Pachi/. "I thought you hated losing." /Pachi/. "I only hate losing against you." /Pachi/. "So why do you come everyday?" /Pachi/. "In the hopes of winning just one more time." /Pachi/.

Shaped Lives by aishuu (oneshot, AkiHika) Yep, you're all sick of me recommending all of Aishuu's fic. I'm sorry. No, not really. A character piece told from Hikaru's point of view on go, Sai, and how Touya Akira fits into it all. What I really like about aishuu's fic here is how she understands that Touya is the one who knows the most about Hikaru and Sai's connection. While other go players might suspect that Hikaru and Sai are connected or the same player, Touya is the only person who might figure out that Sai and Hikaru are two separate people who inhabited Hikaru's body. Back to the fic. Great writing like you would expect from aishuu, I definitely recommend this fic if you happened to missi t first time around.

Ramen to Go by Nudd (series, complete, AkiHika) An amusing series, a little cliche and mindless, but a fun bit of fluff while you're reading it.

Driven by murinae (oneshot, crossover, HnG/Death Note) An extremely well written Hikago/Death Note crossover. In a cafe, Waya and Shindou catch Raito's attention. Why do you have to read this? It's the perfect blend of Hikago and Death Note. All the characters are just them, Hikaru, Waya, Raito, and Ryuuku, that you can imagine this scene happening in either world. Furthermore, I love murinae's Hikaru and his take on the Hand of God and go in general. Her descriptions remind me of the scene in the manga where Hikaru is at the go tournament against Kaio and he's talking about go as the universe. Excellent description and dialog.

A link to Gwen Stefani's "Harajuku Girls" from her new CD, Love, Angel, Music, Baby: http://s16.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=312U3T2A5OFS21MB7U1903OBZX It's an...interesting song. Mini-challenge to anyone interested in writing a fic/draw fanart for it? As a present for considering it, here's the rest of the album, which is similarly interesting: http://s11.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=15B3JURJNOIRU25R463EUGAOKL