Fandom: NCIS
Pairing: Abigail Scuito/Timothy McGee and Leroy Jethro Gibbs/Donald 'Ducky' Mallard
Author on LJ: sageharper
Author Website: Spectrum Headquarters

Why this must be read:

Happy Birthday Miss Sciuto has achieved something I never thought possible: a fanfic story featuring a young child that I thoroughly enjoyed. It is the prologue/introduction/conclusion (don't laugh it is possible) to a series Sage is writing for the 20_est_relships challenge, thus if you enjoy this story, there are several more to read and many more to which you can look forward.

Abby and McGee have a daughter, except it isn't quite as simple as that, and the whole team (including Tobias Fornell and Emily, his daughter) are at Gibbs and Ducky's house celebrating Lola's birthday. Although it is an Abby/McGee, Gibbs/Ducky story, it's also essentially a team story, and Sage keeps the characters very much in character, even those who only have a few lines. As I said to Sage when she posted it, 'seriously, there is so much to love about this, and nothing not to love', and I stand by that. It's het, it's slash, it's romantic comedy at it's best, and you can see it unfold in front of you. There are some priceless very in character lines and a warm, feeling of true, deep and lasting affection between the entire team. And something really important - Lola is 'real', she's a person and she isn't perfect.

( Extract )

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Happy Birthday Miss Scuito

Fandom: DOCTOR WHO
Pairing: none
Author on LJ: n/a
Author Website: She has some stories at FanFiction.Net and also A Teaspoon and an Open Mind

Why this must be read: It's a great adventure that would have made a fine televised serial. Patrice has written a number of similarly structured stories, all of which (so far, anyway) feature the Fifth Doctor with various combinations of companions. This particular one includes Tegan and Turlough. The three land on a seemingly peaceful planet, but soon encounter trouble. The characterization of Tegan, who has an especially prominent role, stands out.



Last Resort

Fandom: STARSKY AND HUTCH
Pairing: Starsky/Hutch
Author on LJ: librathree
Author Website: Starsky and Hutch Slash Fansite

Why this must be read:

This is simply a really good story. It's an interesting case file and a journey of discovery. Librathree has a deft touch, describing the power of Starsky and Hutch's relationship with small gestures.

Five minutes later – Hutch winced mentally at the image of the rental tux scattered like shrapnel around the bedroom – Starsky returned to the window seat, clad in grey sweatpants and a dark blue t-shirt with a rip next to the pocket. He settled in next to Hutch again, despite the lack of space, unceremoniously bumping his partner over with his hip, and put his bare feet up on the cushions.

“Am I in your way?” Hutch said archly, scooting closer to the window to make room.

“Nah,” Starsky said, snuggling down. “I do my best thinkin’ in your pocket.”

Hutch turned his face toward the cold glass to hide his smile.

Dumping Delores

Fandom: SUPERNATURAL
Pairing: Gen (John centric)
Author on LJ: marinarusalka
Author Website: marinafrants.com
Why this must be read:

Papa Winchester is one of those characters we don't know much about at all. No, really, we don't. Whatever we do know is what the boys tell us, and let's face it, they're not exactly unbiased. As a result, there have been many different takes on John. Is he a bad father? An alcoholic? A saint? How did he get into hunting? How did he cope with Mary's death outside of picking up hunting? Etc. This fic spans the 18 years between Mary's death and Sam's leaving for Stanford, all from John's point of view. It's only one take on the character, sure, but it just rings... real. We see John losing it, being a mess, picking himself up, failing, surviving, loving his kids, fucking up again, being stubborn... mostly, we see him being human and as such far from perfect. He is neither the complete asshole we may have initially thought he was from Sam's recounting of their relationship, nor the flawless military general Dean sometimes seems to think he was. It's a beautiful take on a very interesting character that we didn't get to see enough of on the show, and a very touching look at what may have happened between Mary's death and the pilot. Definitely a must read.

A Life Less Ordinary