I said my last fics were all going to be post-Grave Danger. I lied, sue me.

Fandom: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Pairing: Nick Stokes/Greg Sanders, Nick Stokes/Greg Sanders/Sara Sidle friendship
Author on LJ: polymath_acuman
Author Website: Archived on What Makes The Desert Beautiful
Why this must be read:

The thing I love most about this story is the friendship between Greg, Nick and Sara. We saw a lot of flirting and friendship between Nick and Sara in the first three seasons, and it always made me happy to think about these two people being friendly outside of work. Here Sara brings a reluctant Nicky to a concert by a band called The Kumquats. It's from Nick's POV, and he starts out skeptical, but it works out.

I love the depiction of happy!lesbian!Sara (a fact which Nick completely misses), and how she and Greg have obviously been conspiring together. Plus, this is the sexy, flirting Greg that I know exists outside of the work environment, when he can make all of his joking innuendo serious without looking unprofessional.

( Sexy, flirting Greg )

The Kumquats

Fandom: QUEER AS FOLK US
Author on LJ: burnitbackwards
Author's Website: None, but all fic is listed in her memories.
Pairing: Brian/Justin
*Warnings*: AU, Major Character Death, Religious/Blasphemous Themes
Why this must be read:

This story is so many things - disturbing, heartbreaking, beautiful, and of course - blisteringly hot. Do heed the warnings and because of them: ( click here for the summary... )

With All The Saints He May Rejoice

Fandom: LotRiPS
Pairing: Billy/Dom
Author on lj: mijnfictie
Author website: None
Why this must be read:

It was quite difficult for me to pick just one of mijnfictie's fics to rec, because everything she writes is almost disarming in beauty and simplicity. I picked "Driving" because it gets right down to the point of Billy and Dom without a single wasted word.

"You could try," Dom said over the sound of a weather report, the car slowing to a stop.

"Try what?"

"Never mind."

The next sound Billy heard could have been a sigh or radio static.

Driving

Fandom: DUE SOUTH
Pairing: Fraser/Vecchio friendship
Author on LJ:
Author Website:
Why this must be read:

I like this story for two reasons. First, it shows a slight caring side to Thatcher that fics really never portray. Secondly, it shows a more emotionally loose Fraser than we on the show. This fic takes place after Buring Down the House and deals with Fraser losing his best friend.

"They replaced my partner, but could they replace my friend?"


A Growing Concern

Fandom: HARRY POTTER
Pairing: Hermione/Severus - Friendship, Companionship, UST
Author on LJ: Words Dismantled, Where Old Oblivions Gather
Author Website:
Why this must be read:

Chilling, Petulant, Melancholy, Uncomfortable, Brilliant, Resilient, Strange Symmetry. Words for the many moods and facets of Severus Snape and for Resmiranda's trilogy. For the end of the month and the onset of cold weather (for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere) I've decided to rec some stories which evoke the Harry Potter series' darker, creepier, more gruesome chords. At the opening of "Like Shadows on the Winter Sky" Voldemort discovers Snape's duplicity and attempts to personalize a punishment worse than death by magically blinding Snape, leaving him permanently dependant and unable to brew potions. While the magical world has few strategies for dealing with disability as all but the worst cases may be cured with potions and charms, muggle technology allows the blind broad freedom and independence. After stumbling upon the truth of Snape's predicament Hermione becomes determined to help him apply muggle methods to his situation.

Thus begins an inextricable intertwining of two lives through despair, war, the nature of magic, and the nature of the human spirit. Fighting Voldemort, and struggling to maintain their emotional autonomy, Hermione and Snape build toward a major metaphysical breakthrough which may turn the tide of battle, as well as personal breakthroughs, learning more about each other and themselves. Yet, entropy remains a constant, there is far to fall from the pinnacle of achievement, and the roots of depression and emptiness prove resistant to permanent eradication. An amazing ride through two relentlessly complex characters and the meaning and origins of magic.


Like Shadows on the Winter Sky

Sequels

Interlude: Dreary Hour

Door of the Morning