Fandom: THE SENTINEL
Pairing: Jim/Blair
Length: 19340 words
Author on LJ: not known
Author Website: http://brothersinarmsfiction.com/
Why this must be read: - What will Blair do to help a friend? In this story he's a guide who's done some temporary guiding, doesn't want a permanent sentinel, but sells his services for seven years so that a child can get life-saving surgery.

It's a semi-sympathetic look at William Ellison, who is worried enough to buy Blair's services for Jim, and a strong Blair whose life experiences are far greater than anyone expects. There's a bitter-sweet feel to it - Blair knows there'll be no return for what he's done - but at the same time he knows how much he's valued.

Sell My Soul

Fandom: STARSKY AND HUTCH
Pairing: Starsky/Hutch
Length: 4363 words
author on LJ: loyseofverlaine
author's website:unknown

Why this Must be read Verlaine is right up there as one of my favorite authors. This covers the first five days after Starsky gets home from the hospital after the Gunther shooting. He's fragile, but determined, Hutch is a bit hovering and their friends are assuming something that hasn't actually happened yet. Wonderful innuendo, dawning realization and the true connection that make Starsky and Hutch a one true pairing come into play here.

Five Days in July

Fandom: The X-Files
Pairing: Mulder/Scully
Length: Novel
Author on LJ: Unknown
Author Website: Unknown
Why this must be read:

Walking the Cage is by far one of the darkest, most frightening XF fics I have ever read.  It is scary not just for what it implicitly depicts or shows, but for the mere idea that Scully could ever be put in this terrifying situation: hidden in plain sight.  It is a Scully torture story, and has an accompanying amount of Mulder angst.  Things do get much better when you get to a certain bathroom scene, but otherwise, you are in for a long, angst-ridden story.  That being said, it is beautifully written and character driven.  The author has no website or archive of her stories that I could find, but I do know of one other story entitled The Forgotten Ones.  It is quite possibly even darker than this one.  You can find that one over at the Annex.

Walking the Cage

Fandom: The Magnificent Seven
Pairing: Chris/Ezra
Length: 3766 words
Author on LJ: zekiel 
Author Website: Zeke Black on AO3
Why this must be read:

Zeke is one of the best stylists - word smiths - I've ever had the pleasure to read, and in this story, she tackles the missing resolution to one of the most intense episodes of the show. This was the last episode of season one, and it features Chris, the reluctant leader of the seven.  Chris, on his own, is illegally detained in a prison work camp where he's subjected to not just inhuman conditions but to the hatred of the camp's commander who sets out to break Chris' spirit.  The other six, once Chris is very late for his return, set out to find him, succeeding just as Chris has found his own escape.

This story is the missing scene between the 'rescue'/reunion of the seven and the last scene of the episode, the morning after when the seven turn the camp over to legitimate authority and leave.  In her wonderful style. Zeke shows how each of the six reaffirm their allegiance to their leader, and reassure themselves that Chris is, indeed, all right. She does a brilliant job with the characterizations of all seven, and the dynamics of each individual relationship Chris has with his men.

( an excerpt )
A wonderful view of the seven and the relationships they have with their leader.

Dear Camerado: Inmate 78

Fandom: Magnificent Seven
Pairing: none
Length: 1o00 Words
Author on LJ: graculus 
Author's website: Graculus on AO3

Why this must be read:

Graculus is a wonderful author, her style rich and atmospheric.  She also writes from the point of view and about one of the characters who doesn't get as much attention as he deserves in the stories, Nathan Jackson, the man who inadvertently starts the process of bringing the Seven together.  It is Nathan, the former slave, who is the group's healer and often its conscience, and who is often, because of canon, portrayed with a striking lack of depth or dimensionality. 

Graculus is among the small group of writers who sees the nuance of the character, the depth of his trust in the other six men, the dynamics of his relationships with them.  In "Leave the World to Darkness", she does a role reversal: it is Nathan who is sick and the others who tend him, and it is Ezra, the person with whom he has, canonically, the biggest differences, who is sitting at his bedside when he awakens.

( An excerpt )

 

I encourage reading everything by Graculus, but this is a lovely introduction to her Nathan.

"Leave the World to Darkness"

 

Fandom: WHITE COLLAR
Pairing: Peter/Elle/Neal
Length: 45k+
Author on LJ: china_shop
Author Website: AO3 or china_shop
Why this must be read: I love long stories. I especially love long stories with a little plot, a little romance, and a little porn. china_shop has all 3 in one beautiful fic. This chronicles the beginning of Peter, Elle, and Neal's relationship up to an interesting conclusion that allows the 3 of them to be together. Because, lets face it, Peter is an FBI agent and Neal is his charge. The author deals with their feelings, trepidations, and wants and writes a compelling story about how 3 adults work through these problems to be together.

Reasonable Doubt 'verse