Title: With Six You Get Eggroll
Fandom: due South
Pairing: RayK/Fraser, RayV/Stella
Categories: Slash, romance, kids, post-series
Length: Long (31,000 words)
Warnings: Kissing. That's as heavy as it gets.

Author on LJ: cesperanza
Author on AO3: Speranza
Author Website: Speranza's Fiction

Summary:
Ray burst out laughing. "Benny! You've developed a sense of humor!"

"Yes, Ray." Fraser lowered the gun and showed him an amused look. "Six immaculate conceptions will do that to you."

Review:
I'm running late, so you're getting another one of my old favourites. This time it's a Speranza story that is unaccountably not yet listed; unaccountably because it's by far my favourite of hers.

The basic premise is that things happened a little differently at the end of the series finale. If you cast your minds back, you may recall that the Vecchios headed south to run a bowling alley, Huey and Dewey opened a comedy club, Welsh stayed behind his desk, Thatcher became a Canadian intelligence operative, Turnbull ran for public office, Ray and Fraser went off in search of Franklin's Hand, and Francesca had six immaculate conceptions. In this slightly alternate universe, everyone swaps. Now the Duck Boys have the bowling alley, Frannie is Chicago's favourite comedienne, Meg stays at the Consulate, Turnbull of all people becomes the spy, and Welsh is the one running for Mayor. Ray and Stella decide on a Canadian adventure honeymoon, and stop off at a certain log cabin on their way out. Where they find that Fraser and Kowalsky have adopted. Six times, because "With six you get eggroll."

The writing is beautifully lyrical, and puts you at your ease despite the general air of chaos that surrounds any well-grounded due South story. And with six kids of widely varying ages, there is plenty of chaos. The kids all have different problems, some more than others, and Ray and Benton have to act as a team to deal with them. This isn't a perfect family, not by any stretch of the imagination, and the story doesn't try to disguise that. It feels real, in that way that good fiction makes you want to believe in the characters despite, or perhaps because of, their faults.

And that's it. There's no great plot, just a slice of family life. Quirky family, but could a due South family be anything else? It's still one of the most loving and inspiring stories I've read, so it's my pleasure to pass it on to you now.

With Size You Get Eggroll: illustrated version or text only.