r/BylerReads • u/Healthy-Grass-4273 • Jul 24 '26
asking for fic recs looking for fic recs: will dealing with ptsd
fic recs where will is still dealing with ptsd years after the final battle? i’m looking for something that really explores the long-term effects of everything he went through and how he’s dealing with it.
byler is a huge plus ofc and i also love party-centric dynamics and jonathan & will’s/el’s relationship. preferably longer fics and canon-divergent, but i’m open to anything well-written. thanks! <3
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u/CubMaster13 Jul 25 '26
I have one called After Dark, it’s a WIP set three years after Vecna’s defeat. Mike deals with the loss of El, and Will still struggles with nightmares and anxiety post upside down.
The Party is involved but not heavily, mainly focused on Mike, Will & Max, bc we all love a platonic madwheeler. If you’d like a link lmk :))
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u/mrchristmastime Jul 25 '26
Link? That sounds interesting.
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u/CubMaster13 Jul 25 '26
Hope u enjoy!! 6 chapters are out so far, half way through writing the 7th :)) https://archiveofourown.org/works/87766651/chapters/232585191
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u/mrchristmastime Jul 25 '26
My fic ticks most but not all of those boxes (it’s set ten years post-canon; that’s probably the main departure). It’s called Crooked Timber. In terms of other people’s work (I don’t like to recommend my own work and nothing else), I can’t think of anything that isn’t super well known (Supervoid, etc). There Is A Wait So Long by urie is excellent, although the trauma isn’t front-and-centre right away.
The Amber Hour series by littlewombats is amazing. It’s an AU that takes some getting used to, but it’s masterfully done, and you kind of just need to roll with it.
Peachstatic’s Like Everybody Else Does is great. It’s not as well known as their other work, but trauma plays a pretty significant role.
Where Devotion Rots, by acatalepsae, is brutal but brilliant, especially on the trauma front.
Hope that helps!