Fandom: HARRY POTTER
Pairing: Petunia Dursley/OFC (pre-slash), Dudley Dursley/Piers Polkiss (established)
Length: 5900
Author on LJ: girl_tarte/tarteaucitron
Author Website: Tarte's masterlist of fics
Why this must be read:
Oh, girl_tarte and her marvelous way with words. This is a fic full of gentle surprises, first and foremost the discovery that Petunia can be made human, uncertain, poignant and if not yet lovable, then comprehensible and intensely sympathetic. This isn't a trumpets-blaring sort of redemption, more of a wobbling baby step. Tarte's brilliant at holding new sides of old characters up to the light, finding the stirrings of independence, of second chances in even the shallowest, dried-up prune. This story leads Petunia inch by inch out of her withered shell and lets her stand blinking, lost and perplexed, almost newborn. There's a grace and hesitation to this tale, punctuated by the ghost of Petunia's acerbity, the awkward collision between her narrow-minded, loveless habits and her inarticulate longing to be someone new. Or to be someone old, the person she might have been if she hadn't betrayed herself. The girl she used to be, Petunia Evans. Lily's sister.

In this story, Petunia has left Vernon. The carapace she constructed for herself has finally cracked, and she has no job, no status, no suburban prison to fuss over, no sense of direction. Her son is living with another man. She's being counseled in how to face her past cruelties, her fragile and unstructured future. Anything is possible, and Petunia's bravery – because she has no idea how to conduct herself, how to sit in a coffeeshop alone, how to talk to her Indian neighbor, how to contemplate the fact that her nephew is willing to welcome her into his home – is supremely touching. By means of the simplest things, the smallest revelations, the fic throws both Petunia and the reader off-balance; Petunia because she's having to relearn who she is, and the reader because it's difficult to believe Petunia Dursley could have so much heart. Yet Tarte not only makes it believable but something you want to believe. I ended this fic rooting for Petunia's first shy struggles toward regaining her dignity, her sense of shame, her sense of self. It's a lovely and lightfooted story, delicate and shrewd, and magical enough to show us a pathetic cartoon villain in an entirely human light.

~~#~~
( The smell of wet cement )


Souvenirs and Lost Luggage

Fandom: TRON
Pairing: Lora/Yori, refs to Alan/Lora, Alan/Tron
Length: 761 words
Author on LJ: winzler
Author Website: http://whatistigerbalm.dreamwidth.org/
Why this must be read:

There are a lot of TRON AU fanfics in which Kevin Flynn shares the secret of the Electronic World with his closest friends. This charming, saucy vignette focuses on Lora Baines, during her first visit inside the system.

Lora gave herself a mental kick. She was a scientist, for cripes sakes! "Is that what my butt looks like" was not the first thing that should've come to mind when she saw, really saw the program she wrote for the laser. She should've marveled at the metaphysical processes that allowed her to be there, not eye the thighs on her digital counterpart and bite her tongue so as not to ask Yori to twirl around.

Along with the cheerfully bawdy comedy, winzler works in some striking images as Lora observes how various test subjects (fruit, mice, a swarm of bees) manifest in digital space. But it's definitely Yori and Tron ("Eyes upwards, Lora. Keep. Eyes. Up.") who make the biggest impression.

"Experiment"

Fandom: DOCTOR WHO/TORCHWOOD
Pairing: Eleven/Jack, Amy
Length: 3 613,  5 145, and 2 673
Author on LJ: sahiya 
Author Website: Teaspoon AO3
Why this must be read:

These are the stories of what happens to Little!Amy when her 'Mad Man in a Box' comes back, takes her travelling around the universe, and picks up his boyfriend along the way.

Sahiya has written a cute little series where Jack and Eleven take on the task of raising a young Amy. Full of Awww moments these three stories will have you wishing the Who Writers had taken the story in this direction. Can you imagine the havoc Amy could of wrecked on the universe had she been raised by Jack and Eleven?

Excerpt:

Amelia Pond was bored.

She'd wanted to come with the Doctor because life in Leadworth was boring, and he said he had a time machine and could take her anywhere she wanted, anywhere in all of space and time, as long as it was amazing. What he never mentioned, but which she probably should've guessed from how they met, was that sometimes time machines break down a little - not a lot, the Doctor said, but a little - and then they'd end up in boring, boring, boring markets on worlds where the weather was a lot like Leadworth.

Amelia Pond Has Two Immortal Daddies Series by Sahiya on AO3

Fandom: TRON
Pairing: Junior/Sam
Length: 1,100 words
Author on LJ: igrab
Author Website: the_grrrrid
Why this must be read:

Cillian Murphy’s uncredited cameo in TRON: Legacy as Edward Dillinger, Jr., led to a lot of questions: Why is he at ENCOM, and not Dillinger Systems? Is he as hostile as his barbed exchange with Alan Bradley would imply? Does he have any kind of relationship with Sam Flynn?

Here’s one possible answer (one Disney is unlikely to pursue, more’s the pity):

"Got anything important going on?"

There was something in his voice. Sam's voice was always deep and rich, like chocolate, and when he spoke to Junior, there was usually a little husky burr of affection, but this - it was slow, drawled out, kind of distant. Junior frowned.

"Not... specifically," he said carefully...

There was a breathy - shaky - sigh. Then, on the other end of the line, Sam muttered, "Good."

It was a wicked sort of 'good'. It was a 'good' that had intentions.

Because whose day isn’t better for a little straight up, PWP phone sex?

“Off the Hook”

Fandom: SUPERNATURAL
Pairing: Dean/Castiel
Length: ~ 5000
Author on LJ: seraphwings
Author Website: unknown
Why this must be read: Most people have had at least one date that's gone horribly, horribly wrong. You start with the best laid plans and wonderful romantic intentions and somewhere along the way you end up with something that is at best a funny story to tell and at worst, a complete and utter fiasco. This particular story of Dean and Cas's first date is actually a bit more serious than most, although it's tempered beautifully with those moments of absurdity that can only happen when an angel and a human try to get together (with the whole world watching). Dean's trying so hard not to screw things up and Cas is clueless when it comes to seduction techniques, but somehow in spite of flaming desserts, voyeuristic elementals, dancing cephalopods, and some brotherly interference, they manage to have an evening that is quintessentially them: sweet and a little bit weird.

( Dinner went off without a hitch, otherwise. Until dessert caught fire. )

Read the story and feedback the author: Date Night

Fandom: DONALD STRACHEY MYSTERIES
Pairing: Donald Strachey/Timothy Callahan
Word count: About 1,800
Author on LJ: laeta
Author Website: None of which I'm aware.

Why this must be read: The Strachey Mysteries have two canons — book and movie. As is shown in the fandom overview, the characters are very different from one universe to the other. Fic writers usually choose one or the other universe in which to write, but Aeneus has brilliantly turned book!Donald into movie!Donald, all in the course of one heartbreaking story. This beautiful, ultimately uplifting piece was written for nick_n_nora's "monogamy" challenge in 2007.

( An excerpt )

Some Things are Better Said

Fandom: TRON
Pairing: Alan/Lora
Length: 1,240 words
Author on LJ: lynstraine
Author Website: Oscillating Wildly between Boredom and Terror
Why this must be read:

Here’s another workplace fic, this one focusing on Lora and set at ENCOM before Kevin Flynn’s dismissal, but after he and she have ended their relationship. Lora is intrigued by a certain bespectacled, oh-so-serious programmer, but doesn’t see an opening until she works late during a rash of car thefts and hold-ups:

( Lora considered him as they walked together; he was so thoroughly focused on threat assessment that he didn’t seem to notice her glancing back at him. )

Thornmallow gives Lora depth in this story, as her scientist’s mind juggles awareness of her vulnerability, irritation with same, and appreciation of Alan (whose description, evoking Tron as it does, also serves as a sly wink to the audience).

“Initiative” at AO3 and on Tumblr.

Fandom: STAR TREK: REBOOT
Pairing: Kirk/Spock, Sulu/Chekov
Length: 14,452
Author on LJ: what_alchemy
Author Website: At AO3
Why this must be read:

Star Trek seems to have a lot of genderswap, where random things turn people into the opposite sex. Sometimes I read them, but rarely do I find one that does what I want with the genre, which is to explore gender identity. This one does it magnificently.

Spock, Sulu, and two others have their genders swapped by conveniently-placed flowers. In a move that is (sadly) refreshing, what_alchemy continues to refer to them by their original pronouns, because the people involved still feel like their original genders.

And it's hard. They don't just want to play with their new equipment and that's it -- for most people, whether you're cisgender or transgender, your gender identity is an important part of who you are, so how do you feel when you're just suddenly, randomly switched? Does your concept of your self change? Do your relationships with others, particularly your significant other, change? Can you come to some sort of balance with who you are, even feeling like an alien in your own skin?

what_alchemy really deals with these issues in a fic that is everything I want out of this trope.

Also, definitely check out the rest of what_alchemy's fic. I chose Faultlines to rec, but what_alchemy writes a lot of fic with some equally thoughtful themes, plus a lot of smoking hot porn.

( Excerpt )


Faultlines

 Fandom : STARGATE SG-1

Pairing: none

Length: 1,619 words

Author on LJ: sg-fignewton

Author Website: Masterlist on LJ

Why this must be read:

Fig Newton is known for her team-y fics, both hilarious and soul-searching. This recent example of hers just takes the cake for the hilarity side. From Sam and Teal'c exchanging make-up tips to Daniel fluttering eyelashes to Sam stalking Jack with a powder poof, the laughter-inducing images employed by Fig Newton are guaranteed to bring eyes filled with happy-tears and a stomach sore from the laughter. My favorite idea was that even when the team encounters a matriarchal society so different from the Shauvadi from episode "Emancipation", Sam STILL has to play dress up, make-up included. That poor Sam just can't win. :) Enjoy the merriment that is Fig Newton's writing as it's sure to brighten even the most gloomiest of days.

( Snippet )

For All Your Beauty Needs