Teen Wolf art: Lydia Martin

[pentapus]

So I started watching Teen Wolf. This picture is Lydia Martin. She screams a lot and is my favorite. She has lots of personality, is super smart, and is very self-interested (as opposed to a protagonist who's limited plotwise to Doing the Right Thing, i.e. Scott and Allison), and gets to do eerie creepy things that freak her out. She is oodles of fun to watch.

Please give me recs! Tell me where the hangouts and challenges are! Though I've heard this is a one pairing fandom - Y/N? Maybe I can bribe people for Lydia fic? Ooh, how about team fic?! There's got to be that, right?

I hear fandom has a lot of Derek. My favorite part of Derek Hale is his total failure at life and leadership. (He hopes all his pack babies' problems can be solved by TRYING HARDER or CARING MORE - and he's wrong and there are consequences. I ♥ consequences.) I am making a wild assumption that fic!Derek will be... competent and/or smooth, even, and that will make me sad. So sad. :(

Also, I WANT LYDIA. And yes, Lydia/Stiles. Or Lydia/anyone. And teamfic. And world building. Tell me -- is there hope?!

Comments

[monanotlisa]

Hmm, there is not much Lydia-centric fic (although verity just compiled a rec list, if you want that). On AO3 I bookmarked these:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/770928

https://archiveofourown.org/works/578952

Shippy, both -- had some genfic I adored, but can't find it. Try Verity above, though, and musesfool.

(Also, just loooookathem: http://monanotlisa.tumblr.com/post/56255364382/a-queen-and-her-knight

[califmole]

An Algorithm for Mistakes is one of my favorite Lydia fics, though fair warning it's not exclusively Lydia/Stiles. http://archiveofourown.org/works/565679

[goodgriefcharlie]

Teen Wolf is pretty overwhelmingly Derek/Stiles, but there is definitely a decent amount of gen and rarepairs if you go digging! You are in luck, though, as there is TONS of packfic (although not as much gen packfic, alas), probably because as the show gets darker and angstier, the fandom creates reacts by creating more and more happy found family fics to compensate. And fear not, there's plenty of fic where Derek is not smooth at all. In fact, somebody came up with Failwolf Friday just to celebrate all the ways poor Derek fails at life! :)

From what I can tell, most TW stuff happens on tumblr, but there are a few challenges on LJ: some big bangs (teenwolfbigbang, not to be confused with teenwolf_bb, and there's a Derek/Stiles one too), a reversebang, and a few fests ( TW Heat Wave, a summer prompt fest; TW Fall Harvest, which still has open artist sign ups at the moment; and TW Holidays, the end of year fic exchange.)

The vast majority of fic is posted to AO3 or on tumblr, and tumblr is also the home for a lot of fanart. (At least, as far as I know; I am not an artist, so perhaps there are other hangouts too? But I definitely see a ton of art cross my dash, so it'd be a good place to start.)

Lydia-centric fic recs:

Orthopedic Bodyswap by Betty. Super cute Derek and Lydia bodyswap fic. Gen; 650 words.
You Are Here by Verity. Lydia and Stiles are home from college for Christmas break. Lots of family and pack feels. Gen with a focus on Lydia & Stiles's friendship, but there are several background pairings referenced; 17k words.
Lotus Eater by Cheesewithmy. Lydia hadn’t exactly been holding out for this all to turn out to be a hilarious misunderstanding, but it would have been nice to be wrong. Or: The one where Lydia gets a first-hand look at the pack's innermost desires. Gen with background pairings; 5600 words.
Damnatio Memoriae by Cheesewithmy. People start disappearing, and Lydia is the only one who notices. Gen, but does have Peter creeping on Lydia a few times; 11k words. Also note the tags -- Cheesewithmy does really fabulous suspense/horror, but she doesn't pull any punches, so make sure that's something you're okay with first!
The Inside Job by Alocalband. Lydia wakes up as Alpha and takes to it like she takes to everything. Perfectly. Allison/Lydia, Derek/Stiles; 11k words, post-S1.
Compound a Compound by scoutshonor. Everyone knows that Stiles Stilinski has had a crush on Lydia Martin since the third grade. Stiles/Lydia, 5000 words; warning for dubcon or noncon, depending on how you draw that line. This one is really very good, but it's also kind of a hard read? Probably not for you if you want to stick to fluff or happier things. In this, Lydia starts dating Stiles post-S2, but she does it for not the best of reasons and it's not a healthy relationship. The fic really explores the influence of rape culture and problems that come from giving consent when you don't actually know what it is you want, and does it all in a nuanced and thought-provoking way.
Filthy Perfect by theaeblackthorn. Powerless. That's how Lydia feels when the dust finally settles. Lydia/Stiles, Lydia/Derek, Lydia/Stiles/Derek; 14k words; post-S2. After Jackson leaves, Lydia turns to Stiles, looking for an easy relationship to help restore her sense of power and self-worth. When she notices that Derek also is interested in Stiles, she realizes she can use it as leverage to fix things up in the pack. She didn't expect to have all these feeling about it though. Warning for infidelity, as Lydia starts sleeping with Derek without telling Stiles about it, but despite that, it all ends in a happy poly relationship.

(Also, I second the rec for An Algorithm of Mistakes; it's a very good look at Lydia going to college and confronting the fact that she's fallible and human like everybody else.)

These ones aren't Lydia-centric, but I still really love how they show her friendships with Stiles, Allison, and/or Danny:

Stutter and Shake by zosofi. The likelihood of a major quake of magnitude 7.5 or greater hitting California in the next thirty years is 46 percent. Beacon Hills gets hit by a major earthquake and Team Human (Allison, Lydia, and Stiles) have to get themselves out of danger in the aftermath. Marked as Scott/Allison and Stiles/Derek, but it's really gen focused; 9000 words; maybe a warning for blood/injuries, just in case.
will to follow through by owlpostagain. “It depends entirely on how you look at it, I guess,” Stiles shrugs. “On the one hand, instant healing and the apparently inherited ability to pull off leather at all times. On the other, serious attitude problems and a suspicious disappearance of eyebrows.” “Even Derek’s?” Danny snorts, “that’s a lot of eyebrow to lose.” Derek/Stiles; 42k words; post-S2. I really love how Stiles's relationship with Lydia evolves from objectified crush to genuine friendship.
Next Thursday by wldnst. In which Stiles Stilinski has a werewolf for a best friend, a support group for that, hot chocolate with Lydia Martin and Danny Mahealani every Thursday evening, and an extremely anticlimactic coming out experience. Stiles/Danny; 18k words; post-S2.

TW fandom is filled with packfic, but these are my favorites:

Beyond the Call of Family and Duty by Welfycat. When Sheriff Stilinski learns about his son's double life as a human member of the local werewolf pack, he also learns that families are made when they're least expected. Gen, 25k words, post-S2 canon AU.
Stilinski's Home for Wayward Wolves by owlpostagain. Or, in which Stiles Stilinski moves to Beacon Hills for his junior year of high school and accidentally adopts a pack of teenage werewolves. Derek/Stiles, 35k words, canon AU.
(Sacred) In the Ordinary by idyll. The Pack, after college, graduate school and the starting of careers, comes back to Beacon Hills. Nothing's gotten less complicated after all this time. Derek/Stiles, with other background pairings; 79k words; canon AU written post-S1; future fic; warning for child harm (not abuse). This is probably my favorite pack-centric fic in all of fandom and never fails to leave me melting into a puddle of happiness by the end. (Lydia is an amazingly talented mathematician, ad she has a very tight relationship with Stiles and Danny that's a delight to read. The fic also features Derek as a grumpy artist who hilariously became a cult hit in the art world and now has to deal with hipsters wanting to buy his stuff.)

For your earnest!but!awkward!Derek needs, here's the Failwolf Friday tag on AO3 and my pinboard tag as well. Some highlights:

Bogarted by HalfFizzbin. Alternate Title: "Dick Failwolf, Private Eye."(Or, Derek's hit with a Film Noir curse, which forces him to narrate his own life in luridly-detailed prose.) Derek/Stiles, 3000 words.
Brutalist Masterpieces by Febricant. It figures the day Derek finally decides to face the do-it-yourself furniture is the day he breaks the only necessary tool. Gen, 1500 words.
and you're behind the steering wheel by magneticwave. Normally, Laura is perfectly willing to delicately coach her baby brother through the endless labyrinth of his emotional manpain, but Laura’s dissertation is due in two days and she just flat out doesn’t have the time. Derek/Stiles, 2200 words; AU future fic.

Also, since I know you were in Stargate fandom, maybe you'd like some fusion/crossover fics?

Show You What All That Howl Is For by skoosiepants. “This is a terrible idea,” Stiles tells the room again. “You’ll all be sorry when Derek pushes me off a cliff.” Derek/Stiles; 15k words. Skoosie also describes it as "Teen Wolf/SGA team-fic, with Lydia being awesome," which makes it seem right up your alley!
come on stranger by moirariordan. Evil robots, basically. Sometimes Stiles regrets signing that nondisclosure agreement. Derek/Stiles; 17k words; fusion with SG1.

Art recs:

Lydia, after her 3x09 encounter with the darach. Gorgeous.

Lydia and Erica, cuddled together.

Some good Allison and Lydia together: Queen Lydia and her loyal knight, an archery lesson and two badass ladies.

Lydia and Stiles being magic bros. Allison and Stiles being detectives together. Allison and Stiles as middle schoolers (a pic which inspired Verity to write her Tween Wolf verse, which is amazing, if still a WIP). Lydia, Allison, and Stiles as characters for a TW inspired video game.

Derek and the grumpy cat. Derek making a pie. Derek with his mother when he was a little kid. Derek and Laura snuggling with Talia. Derek with Laura and Cora, pre-fire. Derek hugging Cora after finding out she's alive. Two Derek portraits, here and here. Scott and Stiles trying to cheer Derek up. The downside to having eyes that glow in the dark.

If you're looking for adorable!Derek, then tokarodragon has a lot that might work for you: Derek as the Big Bad Wolf, Stiles interrupting Derek while he's reading, the pack sleeping in a laundry pile, dog jokes, and a silly documentary. She also drew this more pensive one of Derek at his wall of windows.

Kendrawcandraw has some comics poking fun at S3, and Protagonistes joins the fun too.

And finally, enjoy an Lydia/Allison vid by Adrienne that is fun and upbeat and adorable!

And wow, sorry, I got a little over-enthusiastic. Hope you find something you like! :)

[intermezzo]

OMG you're watching TW! *iz excited*

Well, I spend way too much time on tumblr. The tw fandom as I know it is mostly on tumblr as well. THat and on Ao3. IDEK where to even start reccing stuff bth, esp fics.

There's a pretty big main pairing, it's true, but that's NOT only what you can find. There are many many multishippers and while some pairings may be rar-ish you can find things that are just right for your. I swear! You just have to fill your dash with awesome people and you'll be fine. ;)

Allydia is pretty big. I love Allison a lot (s3 omg. I'm dying!) and I honestly can't tell if I like her or Lydia better. Or...gah, all the women ♥_♥

Btw, you may want to start from Jen's rec page. Scroll down aaaaall the way down and you'll find recs by pairings. Her taste is usually great so you can't go wrong with her fics (heads up! as far as her recs go? I've only checked the stereky ones). I usually read non Sterek-y fics that show up on my dash which is, like, every day. so there's that?

Btw, tw has awesome fanartists and graphics makers. And honestly? There are lots of things you may enjoy. Here, look at my allydia tag cos it's the least spoilery allydia (yes, it's Sterek-oriented. I'm sorryyyyyy. But). Gah, I can't find the person who was talking about all the lydia pairings just *yesterday*. Just my luck.

And fics. Ohmygod. Are you ready for pack!feels and puppy!piles? Because those? Are things that happen regularly. SO MANY GREAT FICS.

Oh man, I just checked the people I follow and I've JUST realized they usually don't have character-centric blogs so I'm out of luck there as well. Sorry. I'm not much help. I say if you find someone you like on tumblr check if they have a follow forever page or a blog roll. That's how I did it and somehow I ended up with a great dash.

AND NO OMG YOU DO NOT KNOW ABOUT FAILWOLF FRIDAYS. OMG! One of the biggest thing in fandom? Is failwolf!Derek. Actually there's a whole movement about it? Just...gah, check the tags "failwolf" and "failwolf friday" adn oh god! Julie/Halffizzbin hooked me up and I can't go back now. I have NO REGRETS!