Fandom: Angel
Pairing: Angel/Spike
Length: 2478 words
Author on LJ: girlpire
Author Website: just her LJ
Warnings: Masturbation, exhibitionism/voyeurism, slight masochism
Why this must be read: During the ghostly!Spike days of fifth season AtS, Angel finds that it's bizarrely reassuring to have someone watching him, even, and perhaps especially, if that someone is Spike. I like the spare, pensive quality with which girlpire imbues Angel's POV in this story; she writes his existence with a hollow sort of echo to it that's quite striking and very effective at communicating Angel's loneliness at this point in his character arc. Part of the method she uses to manage this is the delicious way the lines Angel doesn't say mean more than those he does. Restraint is one of the harder skills to master as a writer; it's very tempting to go full speed ahead in one's zeal to sway the audience. That's why it impresses me that girlpire uses just exactly the right level of restraint, saying just enough to sketch the emotions she wants to evoke, but not so much that she renders them garishly blatant. The end result is wonderfully subtle, quietly sad, and just exactly right. Plus, there's a sense of 'you can't always get what you want...but if you try, sometimes you just might find you get what you need' to the ending that I find narratively interesting and very satisfying.

Something Like Comfort

Fandom: NCIS
Pairing: Abigail Sciuto/Timothy/McGee
Length: 1,531
Author on LJ: stardustofsongs
Author Website: None of which I am aware
Why this must be read:

Abby/McGee are my het OTP, so a van drive by me would not be complete without a rec for them.

Taisa (Stardustofsongs) is a new to me writer and I do hope there will be more Abby/McGee stories from her soon as she really captures this wonderful couple so well.

It's Valentine's Day week and much to the chagrin of McGee and Abby, the director sends McGee out of town on assignment. Fortunately the lovers don't let a small thing like that stop them from showing one another their love.

The story is fun, romantic, sweet, loving, tender and very much in character. You can clearly see and believe this is what they would do for one another. It's a feel good factor story that really should be read by anyone who even only likes Abby/McGee.

( Extract )

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Four Times McGee Surprised Abby (And Two Times He Didn't)

Fandom: MERLIN
Pairing: Merlin/Arthur
Length: 12,300 words
Author on LJ: flamebyrd
Author Website: http://random.fangirling.net/
Why this must be read:

Some AUs are not particularly obvious. I admit, when I first saw this summary pop up on my f-list, I was skeptical. Then I read it. As it turns out? This AU is completely necessary to the continuation of life on this planet. No lie. (Well, okay, maybe a minor exaggeration.) It's a Merlin space AU. And what flamebyrd has done with it is pretty amazing. The ways the characters and the elements of the Merlin canon have been mapped onto this new universe are totally believable and, most of all, really fun. Merlin belongs in space, and flamebyrd will make you believe it.

The Stars With You (Anytime)

WARNING FOR REAL PERSON SLASH

Apologies for this being late - RL has been hell this week...

Fandom: THE MIGHTY BOOSH
Pairing: Howard Moon/Vince Noir, Julian Barratt/Noel Fielding
Length: 1500 approx
Author on LJ:smaych

Why this must be read:
This is one of those stories in which Howard/Vince and Julian/Noel cannot be divorced from each other. The relationships intermingle.

I love this story. I love the way the writer has written the scenes parallel to one another - so that when something happens in the 'real' universe we get a peek into what is happening in the 'boosh' universe. The idea of Julian and Noel role playing as Howard and Vince is sweet and kind of eerie. They hide behind their own creations, or, at least Julian does. So here we have a little slice of angst for you all.

The Game

Fandom: HEROES
Pairing: Claire/Niki
Length: ~8300
Author on LJ: sasskitten
Author Website: sasskittenfics
Why this must be read: Because the characters intersect with each other in so many combinations that it's really kinda interesting to throw together two who haven't met. In another take on the Five Years Gone AU Niki survives Kirby Plaza due to Claire's intervention, they flee to Vegas, hide and - isolated - start to heal and rebuild.

Both characters are well shown in their different shellshocked reactions an there's a real feeling for the practicalities of their life without their support networks. There's a steady build to their closeness and relationship, as much as it's slow and tinted with melancholy. This how Niki and Claire would be if this would have happened - Claire determined and Niki protective and angry - and plausible growth for them both.

( Excerpt )

String Theory: An AU of an AU