Title: Kowalski is Bleeding
Author: Speranza
Fandom: Due South
Pairing: Ray Kowalski/Fraser
Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Established!Relationship, Romance
Rating: R
Word Count: ~39,000
Summary: Was it okay to fall crazy stupid in love with the ex-wife of the murdered guy who was your best friend’s partner and lover? I didn’t think there was any sort of greeting card out there for this one.
Why You Should Read This:
RayV is abruptly called back to Chicago when RayK is murdered. Everyone is convinced RayK is dead except Fraser, who has several reasonable observations to support his point. On the other hand, everyone else is convinced of RayK’s death – including RayK’s ex-wife, whom RayV falls for. RayV is torn between convincing Fraser to move on and supporting his best friend. Speranza is a talented author as many people in the SGA fandom know, and her Due South fics are no exception. It’s fascinating to see RayV’s perspective on RayK and his relationship with Fraser, as well as the mystery about RayK and his current state and whereabouts.
I’ve read this fic several times and I especially like the way it is told, with the text boxes that slowly bring the storylines together.
I really enjoyed that too 🙂 Some of my favorite moments come from the text boxes.
I’m really glad you recommended this wonderful fic that shows how much both Rays love Fraser and how much he loves both of them in return – and the friendship love with RayV isn’t less than the sexual/romantic love with RayK.
When I first started reading dS fanfiction, I kept finding F/K stories in which RayV didn’t seem to exist as Fraser’s best friend, or, even worse, stories that made RayV into an angry homophobe who didn’t want to be Fraser’s friend when he found out about Fraser’s relationship with RayK. Or stories that made Fraser into an obsessed person who rejected RayV’s friendship because he had RayK as his romantic/sexual partner, and rejected RayV, or didn’t even try to understand why RayV objected to the relationship and assure him that he was still “Benny,” his best friend. I hated these stories because I don’t like to see negative portrayals of RayV and the RayV-Fraser brushed aside, and I almost stopped reading dS fanfiction because of that. “Kowalski is Bleeding” convinced me to give the fandom another chance, and it’s one of the few F/K stories that I’ve really liked. Most F/K stories are too against canon for me, so I tend to avoid anything marked F/K now.
I haven’t come across many fics with homophobic!RayV – mostly because in the fics I’ve read, he’s mentioned but rarely appears. I did read one where RayV objected to RayK & Fraser’s relationship based on RayV’s Catholic upbringing, but in the end he was supportive in a “don’t give me details” way. I like RayV, and no matter his religious affiliation, I can’t see him ever tossing Fraser aside.
I do understand that circumstances mean that RayV can’t always show up – he’s undercover, and then post-COTW he’s in Florida with Stella. But that doesn’t mean he can’t be at least mentioned, and as Fraser’s best friend, he isn’t likely to be forgotten by Fraser.
I heard there were a lot of RayV vs RayK wars in the fandom :\ Even if you don’t ship it, you should at least treat the characters with respect. I hope I continue to avoid the fics you mentioned above.
tl;dr – I’M GLAD YOU LIKED MY REC 🙂
Actually, RayV in Florida with Stella post-COTW is purely an invention by fans – mostly F/K fans. You don’t have to believe that RayV married Stella, or was in a long-term relationship with her, and you don’t have to believe that RayV stayed in Florida permanently. Nor do you have to believe that Fraser and RayV stayed in Canada together permanently, or that they were even together in the first place. That, and RayV/Stella, would only be canon if a movie was made after “COTW” that showed them that way.
I really wish fans would understand what is canon and what is not, and realize that what they think happened isn’t what everyone else thinks.