flickering fannish thoughts

A. So I was thinking about AUs, earlier, for some reason. And the thing about AUs is that they really come down to basically, how much you can change while still keeping the characters, still keeping the core important stuff. Which led me to the conclusion that I really can't imagine how someone would manage to do a decent story where Fraser's mother had never died, or died when he was much older. Presumably it might be possibly, with a good enough writer, but -- man. Who the hell would Fraser be, then?

B. I suspect the reasons I find the early Willow/Xander stuff kind of yicky are pretty much the same as the yickiness I got from Clark/Chloe. The "girl pining hopelessly for her best guy friend, who is completely oblivious and wanting other girls" squicks me out SO MUCH. It makes me horribly embarrassed for the girl, and damn annoyed with her at the same time. And, really, my desired outcome for that scenario is always going to be "girl gets over him and finds guy who likes her from beginning" and never, ever going to be "guy friend comes to his sense and they get together." Ick ick ick.

C. Can any of you Buffy type people point me to some stories? I'm interested in knowing if there's anything taking place in Buffy's high school years, but with Dawn included. So far I've seen a couple things of fox1013's, and basingstoke's Big Rock Candy Mountain, but I'd be interested in seeing more.

Buffy! Giles! *Waaaaaaaaaah*!

Buffy: You must be so disappointed in me.
Giles: No. No, I'm not.
Buffy: This is all my fault.
Giles: I don't believe it is. Do you want me to wag my finger at you and tell you that you acted rashly? You did, and I can... I know that you loved him. And he has proven more than once that he loved you. You couldn't have known what would happen. The coming months are going to be hard, I suspect, on all of us. But if it's guilt you're looking for, Buffy, I'm not your man. All you will get from me is my support. And my respect.

Excuse me while I go to the corner and sniffle like a giant baby, okay?

*sniffle* Stupid Innocence.