Fandom: FRINGE
Characters/Pairings: Original Character
Length: 1315 words
Author on LJ: littledelusion
Author Website: unknown
Why this must be read:

Because the damage done to the other Cortexiphan trial kids doesn't tend to get explored a lot, with the characters largely brought up as handy plot devices. In fic it's rare to see the focus be on them alone and I think this short piece plays with the familiar threads (the soldier mentality, programming to blend in, the potential unlocked but not understood) weaving them into a new yet hauntingly familiar tale.

Annie

Fandom: Doctor Who
Pairing: Gen (with the barest possible hint of Doctor/River)
Length: 1126 words
Author on LJ: netgirl_y2k
Author Website: Teaspoon
Why this must be read: I was just reminded of this fic thanks to a discussion about the Doctor traveling with children over at doctorwho, and I thought, "I must rec this!" I love the alternate dynamic between the Doctor and his companion (that is, a not-potentially romantic one*), and tiny!Amelia is pretty delightful. I'd love to watch this show.

*and don't be hating on Moffat--RTD is just as guilty.

( Only I don't think my friend can swim. )

The Care and Feeding of Tiny Humans (and slightly larger Time Lords)

Fandom: Bandom (My Chemical Romance, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys)
Pairing: Fun Ghoul/Party Poison
Length: ~1,900 words/ 17m:29s
Author on LJ: akamine_chan
Reader on LJ: erica_schall
Website: akamine_chan at the AO3 & erica_schall at the AO3
Why this must be read/listened to: This was created for pod_together 2012, where writers and podficcers collaborated during the writing and recording process. It's one of my favourites from the challenge for a few reasons. First of all, I like the tonge-in-cheek humor of the story, the tight worldbuilding, and the erotic tension. Erica Schall's performance adds another layer of intensity - her voice, the superb sound effects (so much love for them!), and her pacing make listening to the podfic a uniquely rich experience.

Neon Kisses in the Dark

(Tag me, please: bandom, fanfic, podfic)

Fandom: TEEN WOLF
Pairing: Laura Hale, Derek Hale, Chris Argent, Laura/Chris
Length: 25K
Author on LJ: magneticwave
Author Website: at AO3
Why this must be read:

I haven't read a lot of fic about Laura that is set inside of canon. Not only does this fic take you from the moments just after the fire to the moment of her demise, it paints a stunning picture of a woman who is holding herself together and her brother together and doing the best she can. Laura is fully fleshed out, warts and all. It's sad and funny and sexy and visceral. Laura struggles but she gets through it if if she has something of a recurring problem in her life: Chris Argent

“We should probably establish some ground rules,” she says to the back of Derek’s neck, sucking down a noodle.

“What, like a bat signal?” Derek says. He must be awfully tired, if he’s just opening himself up to the dork jokes like that.

“Cute,” Laura says. “It’d be cuter if I didn’t know you were deadly serious.”

“You should never joke about Batman,” he says seriously, and Laura can’t help cracking a grin at that. She feels emptied out, after the tears, and still not at all ready to keep her brother from dying on their cross-country road trip.

“Let’s shelve that one for now, Bruce,” she suggests drily. “I meant more, like, when they shot you, you could’ve said something along the lines of, ‘Laura, sister dear, I appear to have been shot by a pair of morons with more flannel than balls.’” After critically examining something that might’ve once been a sugar snap pea, Laura abandons it in favor of more sesame chicken.

Derek shrugs. He doesn’t say anything, which is not exactly rare when it comes to graduates of the Derek Hale School of Communication, but Laura has sixteen years of being his sister and the Alpha senses on her side. “Derek,” she says. “Look at me.”

He reluctantly shuffles to the side, scooting his butt further up the bed. His current position qualifies as ‘looking at Laura’ by the skin of its teeth, but Laura knows how to pick her battles. “Don’t ever do that again,” she tells him. She lets the Alpha bleed into her voice and her eyes; she can feel her face shift, but it’s the smoothest transition she’s ever had. The wolf assures her that this is right; this is good. Derek smells like a vessel full of liquid—all blood and tears and saline solutions—and hers to control. It tickles her nose.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Derek says, but he’s not even trying; his voice is flat and hard like a paving stone. There’s no inflection on any of the words.

Laura has so much sympathy for her father right now. Beyond simply how fucking difficult it is to suppress Alpha instincts, he’d also raised four children within a pack structure, and Laura knows that Natalie and Erin were worth more trouble than most sextuplets during their formative years. “Derek,” she chides, gathering the growl deep in her chest, “you aren’t ever going to do something so goddamn fundamentally stupid again.”


guaranteed to blow your mind

Fandom: HOCKEY RPF
Pairing: Alexander Semin/Eric Staal
Length: 500
Author on LJ camshaft22
Author Website: on AO3
Why this must be read: Alexander Semin seems so much happier with the Hurricanes than he did with the Capitals last year. This is a very short fic that attempts to explain why, and demonstrates why a good captain is so important for player morale. Or perhaps Eric Staal is just a better captain than most.

The fic makes me want to give Sasha a hug, or better yet -- have the whole 'Canes team hug him.

Useful Russian Phrases alternate link: Useful Russian Phrases

Fandom: Avengers comic!verse
Pairing: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Length: 85,131
Author on LJ: dorcas_gustine
Author Website: dorcas_gustine on AO3

Author’s Summary: Tony goes to see Wanda, and suddenly Steve is alive and there are Skrulls! Or maybe Tony is just going crazy. Nothing happens in this fic, until the very end. Seriously. There's a lot of talking, mostly at inopportune moments, Tony's views on the acceptable gifts to give people are slightly different from everyone else's and he spends more time than would seem necessary being (half-)naked. What else is new?

Why this must be read: Iron Man 3 is out in theatres! Don’t spoil me, I’m going to see it tomorrow. But since the internet is sure to be spammed with a plethora of new Avengers movie!verse fics in the next few months, I’m going to go in a different direction today and rec a comic!verse fic.

This is one of those stories I come back to again…and again…and again, and I never seem to get tired of re-reading it. There are three epic Civil War fix-it fics that I feel are truly exceptional in terms of both plot and characterization, and this is one of them.

If you’re not familiar with the Civil War event in Marvel comics, there are a number of websites that explain and summarize it. But elspethdixon provides an excellent and brief summary in terms of the Steve/Tony relationship in the Captain America/Iron Man Ship Manifesto. Just scroll down to the “I could not love thee, dear, so well, loved I not honour more" heading (although the entire essay is well worth reading and does a great job of explaining, for those who are familiar only with the Avengers movie!verse, the comic!verse history of Tony and Steve).

This time tomorrow (where were we?) on AO3

Fandom: PERSON OF INTEREST
Pairing: none; Kara Stanton
Length: 1000+ words
Author on LJ: chimera_12
Author Website: detailed index on LJ or list on AO3
Why this must be read: Part of the Wolf and Chain series, this short fic explores what Stanton thinks when she first meets Reese (episode 1.08). The author did an impressive job in capturing the calculation and mockery we saw through most of Stanton's time on the show.

On the Chain