Fandom: STARGATE SG1
Pairing: Cameron Mitchell/Teal'c
Length: between short and medium.
Author on LJ: ivorygates
Author Website: two gates of sleep
Why this must be read:
A fabulous story of Cameron sliding through realities. The sense of disconnect, of disorientation was jarring, leaving me just as confused and as scared as Cam. I love the way the different realities superimposed themselves in Cam's mind, how he had to keep reminding himself of what was, his sense of losing himself, of how blurred his lines became, especially with Daniel. The ending just gave me chills. And the colloquialisms were spot on.

gigerisgod wrote an excellent follow up, Prism, that played off that thing with Daniel in the original really well. A perfect fit.

The Colors of That Piece of Time

Fandom: DC COMICS
Characters: Lois Lane, Tim Drake
Pairing: Lois/Clark (mentioned but not the focus)
Length: ~5300
Author on LJ: None found
Author Website: on FF.Net
Why this must be read:

I love Lois-- love, love, love her, abrasiveness and all. While I see a lot of Smallville fics using her unique traits well, I rarely see it in comicverse fics. Maybe I just hang around the wrong crowd. ;) Morgan Lewis writes a tough, smart Lois who can still comfort Tim Drake, psychosomatically exhausted after everything he's gone through with War Games, Titans of Tomorrow and Identity Crisis.

( An excerpt )

Consolation by Default

Fandom: BABYLON 5
Pairing: canon pairings, mostly Londo/Timov
Length: Short to medium
Author on LJ: selenak
Author Website: Selena's stories at Fanfiction.net
Why this must be read:

Timov is one of the most fascinating and underutilized guest characters ever to grace Babylon 5. Bright, sharp-tongued and direct, she may not be the love of Londo Mollari's life, but of his three wives, she is the one he chooses to keep, because, as he says, "With you, I always know where I stand." Selena does an amazing job here of showing Timov's life beyond the scope of the episode: her wedding, her marriage, and her perspective on her husband, who is destined for great and terrible things.

Naturally, Londo couldn't do her the favour of being engaged in any disreputable activities, which would have helped her righteous indignation to no end. No, instead she found him barefoot, in one of the fountains, letting the sun shine on his face in one of the lesser courtyards.

"Timov," he said, noticing her, and not sounding hostile, only amused. "And here I was just thinking the day needed some excitement. What can I do for you, my dove?"

She opened her mouth to shout at him, still buoyed up by the momentum of her quarrel with Daggair, but no word came out. Instead, she found herself looking at him. His haircrest was in disorder, as it was quite often these days. His waistcoat was a bit too tight; absently, she noticed he had started to gain weight. And he was standing there in the middle of a fountain, which should have made him look ridiculous. Instead, it made him look absurdly young.

What a waste, Timov suddenly thought, and didn't quite know what she meant. What a waste.

Not in Words

Getting a very late start, for which I apologize! I just moved across the country to start grad school, and my computer didn't follow me to Colorado, so things have been a little nuts.

Fandom: BABYLON 5
Pairing: None
Length: Medium
Author Website: Enemies and Allies Archive
Why this must be read:

On the Brakiri Day of the Dead, most of the ambassadorial wing fell within the bounds of "Brakiri" space. We know what Lennier and Londo experienced that night, and that G'Kar fled his quarters for the safety of C&C. But what happened to Vir? Who paid him a visit that night?

Cartagia set the glass down on the counter, straightening up and folding his arms, his smooth face set in a petulant scowl. "You simply don't *understand*, Cotto. And believe me, I am *trying* to be patient with your stupidity. It isn't easy."

These last words sounded so much like something his uncle would say that he began to relax, just a fraction. Only for a second, before Cartagia was in his face, leaning over him, so close Vir could smell the liquor on his breath. "Do you know the penalty for your crimes? Do you know what I would have done to you, if my guards had not been such incompetent fools? You and that drunken imbecile Mollari, you would have *envied* that thrice-damned Narn his fate, before I was done with you!" His voice had risen to a shout, spit flying from his mouth.Vir stood frozen, trying not to hyperventilate. "Every inch of skin flayed from your bodies! Your fingers cut off, one by one, then your arms ... your ears ... your eyes! I would have taken *great* pleasure in seeing how long it took you to die, prolonged your suffering for weeks, months even. And then I would have had you castrated, and strangled with your own organs!" He brought one hand down on the edge of the table with a bang, and Vir jumped as he spun away, walking toward the counter.

The pounding of Vir's hearts seemed loud in the sudden silence, as Cartagia poured himself another glass of brivari and downed half of it in one gulp. Then he turned, and held the bottle out toward his stunned host. "Another drink?"

Strange Meeting

Fandom: BABYLON 5
Pairing: None
Length: Short
Author on LJ: andrastewhite
Author Website: Blue Shades
Why this must be read:

The Episode War Prayer gave us our first real look into what daily life is like for Centauri, what is expected of them, what they are and are nor allowed to want. Here, Londo has a quiet, illuminating talk with Vir in the aftermath of the episode.

"No doubt they will have plenty of time to contemplate their decision," Londo said, shaking his head. "I suppose it is too much to hope that Kiron will have obtained some common sense and changed his mind by the time his Ascension Day arrives." The boy, at least, might still salvage his reputation, although there was little hope that a noble girl who had tried to elope with her beloved could do the same.

"He has already gone against the wishes of his family and run away from home," Vir replied as the transport tube doors slid shut at their ride back to Green Sector began. "Why would he abandon Aria after he's already risked so much?"

Why indeed. Londo Mollari knew all too well that decisions made in the haste of youth could soon be repented. "As he grows older, he may come to see that it is a mistake to blend love with marriage - one might as well mix the finest brivari with lamp oil. But I take it you also believe such nonsense?"

Vir hesitated, but only for a moment. He had been growing bolder about expressing his opinions of late - Londo did not yet know how he felt about that. "I do. When I marry, I want it to be for love. Career and reputation aren't everything."

"I see," said Londo. "Then perhaps you would care to explain to me just why it is that your young friends arrived on the station asking after someone by the name of Ambassador Cotto?"

Moral

Title: Presences, by Selena
Pairing: None beyond mentions of canon pairings
Author on LJ: selenak
Author Website: Selena's stories on Fanfiction.net
Why this must be read:

This is one of those ideas that begs to be written: Londo Mollari meets each of the Endless at different moments in his life.

Suddenly, he wondered whether a Keeper would have been waiting for Cartagia if the mad Emperor had not been... removed first. Whether he could wish that thing even on Cartagia, whom he had hated.

"He was one of mine," said a young female voice, "but I didn't like him very much."

Londo looked up in disbelief. Nobody should have been able to get past the guards, and certainly not the person he saw. It was a young girl, so young, in fact, that she had not yet shaved her head. Her wild, red hair was unbraided and uncovered. She wore a tattered dress that could have been beautiful once upon a time, but now looked as if it had been stitched together out of a thousand silken rags. She sat on the desk where the heads had rested, revealing legs covered by stockings that were full of holes and stitches as well. Her eyes wandered vaguely around the room before settling on him again, and he noticed they were of two different colours, one green and one blue.

She clapped her hands together and beamed at him. "I knew I'd get to play with you, too. All the others did. Have you seen my doggie?"

Presences

I apologize profusely for posting this after crossover day, but I simply didn't have computer access on the 15th.

Fandom: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
Pairing: Gen
Length: 8 K
Author on LJ: sophia_helix
Author Website: Account at the Buffy Fiction Archive;
Livejournal Memories
Why this must be read: I swear, for such a large fandom and for such a popular character, there is a dearth of good Oz fic. This is one of the few stories I've read about our favorite laconic guitar-playing werewolf that I actually liked--and it's not 100% Oz-centric. It is actually a Giles-Oz friendship fic, written for The Back In the Day Ficathon.

A Crossing by Water in Winter

Fandom: FIREFLY
Pairing: Mal/Simon
Length: 16k
Author on LJ: blackeyedgirl
Author Website: BlackEyedGirl's Fanfictions
Why this must be read: I think this was one of the first slash stories I ever read. No joke. I had never been exposed to fanfiction at all until Firefly, and it took a while for me to discover slash. And I was very fortunate to find this one first, because it still stands up.

The character voices are all spot on here, and I absolutely love this Mal. Simon might be just a leeeetle wimpy, but blackeyedgirl manages to pull off his sarcastic tone perfectly, which can be hard to do for a lot of writers. Including me. *g*

None So Blind

FANDOM: THE X-FILES
PAIRING: Mulder/Scully
LENGTH: One-shot
AUTHOR ON LJ: colebaltblue
AUTHOR WEBSITE: Fanfic tag on LJ
WHY THIS MUST BE READ: Harking back to season 7, this post-ep employs a much more in-character look at what might have happened after that first kiss in the episode "Millennium." It's short and to the point - Scully does her doctor bit, Mulder needs to be taken care of, and we get a glimpse of everyone's favorite ouroburos.

This particular vignette does reference the episode in question heavily, but it isn't necessary to have seen it to understand what's happening here. It's very much a look into what it might have been like post-case for our Dynamic Duo many times, with the freedom of season 7 to top it off.

In the midst of many heavy, dire things happening, this sweet glimpse into the very beginning of Mulder and Scully's romantic relationship is just what the doctor ordered.

Millennium Post-Ep

Fandom: THE X-FILES
Pairing: Mulder/Scully
Length: One-shot
Author on LJ: goddesspharo
Author Website: Fanfic tag on LJ
Why this must be read: Remember how we keep saying that the debut of the second X-Files movie brought a lot of new authors to the fandom? goddesspharo is well-versed in many fandoms, but this was her first story in The X-Files. It takes place post-series (and pre-movie, without spoilers), and is written in small snapshots. Small moments between Mulder and Scully, glimpses into their world that fit within canon perfectly.

What I love best about this one is the rhythm. It's a piece that alternates between light, wry humor and tension you can cut with a knife. The author made Mulder and Scully her own, too, without taking them too far outside the creator's world. That's the mark of great fanfic characterization, if you ask me.

The whole thing is fairly short, so I'm afraid an excerpt would ruin your experience. In the meantime, go check it out:

Deadweight on Velveteen

Fandom: BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
Pairing: Kara/Anders
Length: 1000+
Author on LJ: lyssie 
Author website: BSG fic tag on her lj
Why this must be read:

Sam Anders was one of those characters that I automatically hated at first, simply because I was a fan of Kara and Lee.  At first I was just annoyed because Lee was So Sad and Sam was just The Obstacle To Their Love.  Then I wondered why he was being such a little bitch and letting Kara use him as her whipping boy post New Caprica, then I just felt bad for him during the Quado'Doom.  But then they turned him into a Cylon and sent him on the Demetrius and he was the only one who really  understood how to react to Kara and tried to help his crazy bitch wife on her crazy bitch mission of Crazy.  And I sat up and said, Hey, who is this Samuel T. Anders guy, anyway?

This fic is an exploration of Sam's "awakening" as a Cylon and of his relationship with Kara while onboard Demetrius.  Sam has lately struck me as pragmatic and practical; even when he knew his wife was cheating on him, when he found out what he was, he didn't go off in a corner and drink himself into a stupor or anything but simply kept on living the best that he knew how.  That's the tone that lyssie strikes in this fic, and it plays just right.  Sam's a little bit sad, a little bit depressed, a little bit angry, and then the ending, which I won't spoil but which totally made the fic for me.   I'm such a sucker for the great one-or-two line ending that pacts an emotional punch.  Hee.

Devil Never Met