Fandom: GRIMM
Pairing: Monroe/Nick is you squint really hard; I actually read it as gen
Length: 885 words
Author on LJ: tripatch
Author Website: DW
Warnings: dark , mention of violence against children
Why this must be read:

Author's Summary: For the kinkmeme prompt, "Nick is having a really rough time with all things Grimm -- maybe he tangled with something particularly nasty, maybe he's having nightmares, maybe he split with Juliette because of his new calling, or maybe it's just a been a bad week -- but he's freaked, stressed, and down. Listening to Monroe play helps."

This fic is beautiful in its tragedy and visceral imagery. Tripatch has dug into Nick's need for solace after trying so hard to protect those humans under his care and not being able to save everyone. Then there is the amazing description of Monroe's environment from pieces of his hobbies that make up his life to the beauty of the instrument that brings Nick some little comfort at the end of this very moving piece. I loved how Monroe cares enough about Nick not to ask for the details, to only sit back down and play the music that Nick simply asks for. It shows a very deep relationship to just get what the other needs after a painful day like Nick's.

And don't forget to listen to the suggested song while reading. I swear to the heavens this fic will just weigh in your hearts if you do so.

Midnight's Nocturne

Fandom: BANDOM (My Chemical Romance)
Pairing: Frank/Gerard (with background Mikey/Alicia and one-sided Pete/Mikey)
Length: 40,217 words.
Author on LJ: dear_monday
Author Website: Masterlist on LJ or dear_monday

Why this must be read: My first bandombigbang 2012 Wave 1 rec, and this one's a doozie! The characterization is completely what sold me: not only does Frank start out with some heavy Catholic guilt (always a favorite), but Gerard in this story is not sunshine and rainbows. Even his geekier sides seem tinged with darkness. But it's still unmistakably him, and there's a lot of straight-up sweet moments that really get across why Frank falls for him. I've read this multiple times since it was posted, and it's just as good every time!

( Summary and excerpt. )

Ain't Nobody Gonna Love You Like The Devil Do on AO3 and on LJ

Howdy. My name is georgiesmith and I'm so excited to be driving the Sherlock van this month. I've gone through the stories that have been rec'd previously so I'm crossing my fingers that there aren't any duplications.

I know most of us don't take the time to drop our favorite writers a note of appreciation for their work, so this is my way of saying thank you to all of the storytellers who have kept me up long past my bedtime with exciting escapades (and in some cases lots of smoking hot sex).

Fandom: Sherlock
Pairing: Sherlock/John
Length: 12,351 words
Author on LJ: augustbird
Author Website: Stories on AO3 or Master post on LJ
Why this must be read: This is one of those rare stories that will be long considered one of the classics of Sherlock fandom (and I'm terrified it's been rec'd before and I've somehow missed it because it boggles my mind that it hasn't been done already). The story is a Flowers for Algernon fusion where at the Baskerville labs John has become infected with a virus that turns him into a genius. It's a roller coaster ride of a story where we go from the highs of John being able to keep up mentally with Sherlock, to the dramatic lows of knowing that if a cure isn't found John will be facing not only the loss of his newly found abilities but a protracted, painful death. This is one of those stories that once you start reading it, you won't be able to stop, to look away, and even when you're done it'll stick with you for days afterward. This is quite simply one of the finest examples of fan fiction in any genre I've ever read and is more than deserving of your time and attention.

Equilibrium

I promised some long stories for weekends. Here's the first!

Fandom: THE PROFESSIONALS
Pairing: Bodie/Doyle
Length: 60,000+ words
Author on LJ: byslantedlight
Author Website: Slantedlight story list on the Automated Hatstand website
Why this must be read: because it has plot, and humour, and tension, and insight, and mystery, and love.

"He'd thought, somehow, that as they got older they'd slow down, that they'd end up as staid and respectable as every other desk-bound fifty-something in the City. It didn't seem to be happening."

In this novel-length Pros story, Bodie and Doyle have made it through the eighties, the nineties, and the millennium celebrations, only to find themselves in 2005 running CI5 and dealing with problems their boss Cowley never had.
( Their problems just mount up and up... )
Although it's a long story, it races along, and elements throughout fall into place at the end. There are copious references to the programmes - what did happen to Bodie's girlfriend who was caught in the bomb blast, for example, after the dust had settled and life went on, and then there was that night in the bowling alley - and reminders that the world is different now...

"The bloody things were probably on memory sticks and being left on coffee tables all around H-fucking-Q. Christ, they were probably on the *internet* by now" ... "I thought it was funny at first, but then Tom told me what a golliwog was… isn't that a bit racist, Mr Bodie?" ... "EO91ZZH204?" "E-ticket booking number."

One thing that really works for me in this story is the switching between the main action, as Bodie and Doyle experience it, and the documentary voice-overs, which I hear as a hushed voice, with not a hint of salacious suggestion in it, oh no...

And, of course, it is a Pros story and that means Bodie and Doyle, and it is a Bodie and Doyle story, and that means slash (well, it does to me, and clearly it does to byslantedlight too), and it is a slash story and that means emotions swirling and thoughts roaming and glances across the room catching - but there are cameras there and there is a job to do, and they can't do anything but snatch moments, until...

Well. Neither man has changed that much....

Who Caught And Sang The Sun, by Slantedlight