Fanfic Recs by coprime

When Mikey Met Spidey (Michelangelo, Peter Parker | PG13 | 10,205 words): An enemy of Michelangelo's sends him to another universe where he meets (and teams up with!) Spider-Man. This is just plain fun. Fun action and fun character interactions. And I really enjoyed the fact that while Mikey and Peter are justifiably cautious about each other at first, it doesn't turn into a fight between them as often happens in stories like this. They do get to fight together, but not fighting each other feels more realistic to their characters to me.

Excerpt:
"Hey, can you hear me? I asked if you are all right?" the concerned voice repeated insistently. "Do you need a hospital?"

Mikey's eyes widened in fright at the terrifying prospect. He hurriedly pulled away from the stranger's solid grip, stumbling slightly in his haste and shaking his head as he backed into the nearest parapet. "I'm fine!" Mikey squeaked quickly. "I don't need any hospitals!"

For the first time he was able to fully see the person who saved him and it was definitely no one Mikey had ever seen before. He was clad head to toe in red, blue and black spandex with not even the tiniest glimpse of skin showing and there was a stylised spider emblem emblazoned on the centre of his chest with web patterns all over.

"Are you sure? You seem to be in shock," the strange hero persisted worriedly.

Mikey nodded emphatically. "Positive dude! Just, heh, got a fright, that's all." Mikey looked him up and down, gawking in barely concealed excitement. "Are you a new hero? Do the Justice Force know about you yet? Is this your first night out? Are you..."

Don't Mention Demi Moore (Clint/Phil | PG13 | 14,599 words): After The Avengers, Phil Coulson returns as a ghost. This is a wonderful fix-it for the end of The Avengers, even if it was thoroughly jossed by later canon. I thought the explanation of what was happening made sense given canon, and more importantly I thought the Clint and Phil's emotions as they dealt with what was going on were realistic and touching.

Excerpt:
'He's here? Where?'

'Are spirits not visible in this world?'

'We don't have spirits in this world.'

The hubbub dies down a little as Rogers gets meaningfully to his feet, with a look of a person Doing the Right Thing. 'Hello Agent Coulson,' he says firmly. 'We're all very grateful to you for serving your country, sir.'

Clint snorts. That's Captain America all over, managing to slip in a tiny implied reprimand to the others that it's rude to talk about someone like they're not there. Which it is, but honestly, when confronted by a ghost people tend to focus on incredulity first and good manners a distant second.

Phil's all pink round the ears, looking at Clint with an expression as close as he ever comes to discomposure. 'Clint, Captain America just thanked me. Tell him I said… something. Anything.'

It's too good to miss. Clint turns a solemn, serious face to Rogers. 'He says yeah, you owe him one, but if he can get a naked picture of you he'll call it even.'

Poor Communication (Faraday/Vasquez | NC17 | 10,449 words): Faraday enjoys a night in a town while Vasquez stays in their room; clear communication is difficult. This is a really fun and sweet exploration of these two men who probably wouldn't be good at communicating with each other naturally but who put the effort in and get there eventually.

Excerpt:
Vasquez opens his mouth to respond – no doubt with some variation of 'You know I hate it when you call me that' – but only manages a surprised "Oomph!" noise when Faraday launches himself at him, landing heavily on his stomach. They wrestle for a few seconds, but Faraday has the element of surprise on his side and manages to maintain his position, straddling Vasquez's waist and pinning his wrists with his hands to keep the other man from shoving him off.

Faraday meets Vasquez's ensuing glare as best he can, and prays that he ends up walking away from this little stunt with only minimal retribution. Vasquez is not a particularly nice man when crossed.

"Now then," he says as firmly as he can manage. "Let's talk, shall we?"

"Don't want to." Vasquez says mulishly.

Faraday feels his eyebrows start to rise towards his hairline. "You know," he says slowly, "most folks would say I'm the immature one out of the pair of us, but I think some opinions might get reversed if they could see you right now."

Diamonds and Stars (Karkat/Gamzee | PG13 | 15,091 words | sequel is Comets and Coal): Karkat's a pale porn star, and Gamzee's his new coworker. This is just, like, thank you, Homestuck fandom, for redefining what counts as "porn" because this is some of the palest, most serendipitous porn out there.

Excerpt:
"…okay," you say, and settle down slowly in front of him, not making any sudden movements. "Okay, I won't go anywhere. What's wrong?"

He shakes his head mutely, makes a noise that's half a growl and more a whimper.

"Voices in your head," you repeat—not the direction they suggested you take it in the script, but then again nothing about that was mentioned at all anyway. Nobody said anything about voices in his head, and when you say it out loud back to him, he cringes and one of his thin hands knots in his hair. A low snarl hums in his chest, almost a purr but with a rumbling, rolling edge to it that makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck. "Hey. Hey, focus on me, okay? Whatever's going on in your pan, it's not real."

He makes an anguished noise and jerks like he's trying to shake off a hand that's touching him. For a second you're concerned, and not just as the character—then you catch yourself. Actor. He's an actor, you're an actor, you're actors. Goddamn. You slam that feeling deep down inside you, even while you let it flash across your face in a pang of pure, pale concern.

Missing (Gaara/Lee | PG13 | 12,348 words): Lee is declared dead, body unrecoverable; Gaara goes looking for him. Ahh, this is great. Gaara's emotions, the way he processes his feelings and his meditations on grief and loss are fantastic. Plus the mystery of what really happened is interesting.

Excerpt:
Gaara stops at the top of an arroyo and examines the familiar landscape. Lee walks this route with him sometimes. Lee used to walk this route. Gaara repeats it silently to himself until the words become a jumble of syllables and still they feel meaningless. Lee patrolled this area on a regular basis; he'd lived in Suna for nearly two years and protected it assiduously. The people of Hidden Sand knew him, he'd made many friends. He participated in missions, he ate lunch at the refectory, he lived with the Kazekage, shared his bed where he touched Gaara in the dead of night, he touched Gaara, he's touched so many things, he's here, he's created ties here. Those ties are still here, they've not been severed. Lee's absence is not carved into the village and into Gaara's soul; he's not gone.

He's not gone.

Lee is something unique in Gaara's life, a bond like no other for a creature who does not have that many to start with. Gaara knows that when his lover dies, a part of Lee will live on within him; it's the nature of what they share. But that corner of his soul that belongs to Lee will change when that happens. It will go from Present to Past. It will stop, it will be closed, like a book when it hits the word End. Gaara has been looking for that End for days now and cannot see it anywhere. It does not make sense to have been walking around with such a terrible rift in his soul for six days without even knowing about it. It should be there, but it's missing. Lee is missing.

Lee is missing. Gaara repeats the words slowly, and this time they feel right. Lee is alive, because at this point in time his death is not a reality, a tangible fact. What is a fact is that he's out there somewhere, missing.

Everything Will Definitely Be All Right (Rin/Sousuke | PG13 | 13,689 words): Sousuke knows Christmas is supposed to be spent with your most special someone. Ahh, this is just lovely. Sousuke's view on Rin and their friendship and the shape of their dreams, from the past on into the future, it's all so sweet and wonderfully them.

Excerpt:
Sousuke scoots farther down on the bed beside Rin, who has turned on his side in boneless contentment. The party hat lies forgotten near the pillow. "Do you really like it?" His voice is hesitant and strangely unsure as he pats Rin's scarf, the necklace nestled underneath.

"I love it." Rin's face lights up with genuine delight. Sousuke loves seeing him smile like this, he thinks to himself that Rin should always be smiling and full of enthusiasm. It's a mesmerizing sight, the curve of Rin's mouth and the berry color of his lips. "I can't take you to Iwatobi or Australia with me, but this way...you'll be there, too. I'm gonna make the best relay team possible, and I'm gonna live out Dad's Olympic dream." His eyes sparkle, no longer from fever but from pure excitement and pure Matsuoka drive. "And I'm gonna stand on the world stage someday together with you." He makes a victory fist towards Sousuke but a second later hesitates and pulls back, biting his lip. "Sorry, hands and germs."

"Don't care." Sousuke reaches to complete the fistbump, then their hands flop down together on the bed, not quite entwined but still touching. "Besides, as much as you call me stupid, I think I'm immune to your colds."

Kankri: Learn from Humanity. (Cronus/Dirk/Kankri | NC17 | 14,418 words): Cronus and Dirk help Kankri confront some of his issues. In the bedroom. But really, this is great. It gets Kankri and what makes him tick, and the porn is wonderfully thought through.

Excerpt:
He looks sidelong at Dirk with an expression that says he's trying to decide what he can get away with. And you know Cronus; you know he always comes down on the side of taking the risk. "I like seeing what I can do to him by saying yes."

Dirk gives him the sort of smoldering look that makes you feel like you're intruding on something, never mind that this is a public place; you can see the need thrumming between them, the predatory hunger that you hadn't associated with humans at all. It would probably be prudent to just leave.

But Dirk turns that challenging stare on you next. "So what do you think? Satisfied that I'm not hideously mistreating him, or do you need to come see for yourself?"

Pennsylvania (Gus/Shawn, Dwight, Jim/Pam | PG | 10,184 words): Gus and Shawn get hired to investigate a case at Dunder Mifflin. The weirdness of Shawn and Gus meeting the weirdness of the Dunder Mifflin employees is a thing of beauty. The story is hilarious and snappy, especially once Gus and Shawn get to Pennsylvania. And the Gus/Shawn tension is just perfect! Something that's present and important without being overly melodramatic or angst-ridden. And then the ending! The ending was built up to over the course of the story so wonderfully, and then it happened and it was squeefully delightful.

Excerpt:
"My name is Gus," Gus says, dropping their bags at Shawn's feet. "And I am not his sidekick. I am his partner."

"Then why were you carrying his luggage?"

Shawn steeples his fingers together. "My psychic abilities give me a somewhat delicate constitution, due to being so closely connected to the astral plane."

"And he forgot them," Gus says, kicking Shawn's bags closer to him.

Dwight gives Gus a sharp, disapproving look that reminds Gus that they are in some warped kind of service profession. "But that's why I'm here," Gus says, forcing a smile on his face. "I keep Shawn grounded, if you will, in the day-to-day realities of life."

"I'd be lost without him," Shawn says, patting Gus on the shoulder.

Knowing (Heero/Duo | R | 16,913 words): Heero and Duo join the Preventers after the war, but they're not exactly made welcome. I wish I could find more Gundam Wing fic like this: well-paced, tightly written, and emotionally real with a wonderfully done Duo voice. And not a whiff of fangirl Japanese in sight, thank goodness. I like this future for Heero and Duo. The evolution of their friendship into a relationship just works for me.

Excerpt:
By the time Heero prodded the fourth prisoner - the one with the shattered hand - over to my position, I'd managed to wrestle my temper back under control. This was neither the time nor the place to be discussing the seamier side of internal Preventer politics, personality conflicts, and power struggles. "Dispatch said in fifteen," I said shortly.

Heero scowled, "Chopper or shuttle, then, unless they were enroute."

"Chopper or shuttle," I agreed. It was impossible to make it from HQ to here in less than an hour by car, even under ideal conditions and with a damn good driver.

Heero's scowl darkened at the implications. I inclined my head slightly, my jaw tight with tension. Being on our own during the war had been one thing; being unable to count on backup now was something else entirely. Now, we were supposed to take prisoners, not shoot to kill. During the war, we'd have just blown the damn shuttle full of weapons and been done with the whole mess. Hell, we'd have blown the fucking *hangar*, not screwed around trying to get the assholes to surrender or to at least manage to take them alive.

Partners have to rely on each other. Have to trust each other. Heero and I did. Unconditionally. Our close friendship was an extension of that partnership, one that we both treasured.

But as Preventers, we should have been able to rely on other Preventers. Should have been able to trust our fellow agents on a professional level even if we weren't exactly best buds on a personal level. And we couldn't.

Footwork (Napoleon/Illya | NC17 | 14,798 words): There's a suspected plot at a dance troupe, so Napoleon and Illya go undercover as an IRS agent and ballet dancer, respectively. Oh, this is one of those stories that's just nice and fun. There's an interesting plot that's a bit different from the typical spy plot, what with the little old ladies. And I like Napoleon and Illya's relationship, how comfortable they are with each other.

Excerpt:
"Hold still, let me get this off you."

Illya stilled instantly, his head coming up, turning blindly toward the sound of Napoleon's voice. Napoleon began to work at the cord that bound the pillow-case over his partner's head. After a moment he heard a sigh issue from within the folds of fabric.

"I suppose it's too much to hope that you are here to rescue me?"

"I was sort of hoping the reverse might be true," Napoleon admitted, loosening the knot and pulling the cord away, then tugging off the makeshift hood.

Static made Illya's blond hair stand out around his head like dandelion fluff until he shook his head in irritation, which made at least some of it lie down and behave itself. His gaze went first to Napoleon, a quick, intent flicker up and down, and then once he'd determined that Napoleon was in one piece, it ranged around the room, analytically cataloguing its contents. Napoleon worked at the ropes around Illya's wrists, waiting for his reaction. It wasn't long in coming. Illya let out a low whistle.

"Neveroyatnyj, did the Hermitage have a jumble sale?"

Napoleon chuckled. "I wondered something along those lines myself." He freed Illya's hands and soothed a thumb across the reddened skin left behind. Illya pulled his hands away impatiently and headed for the closest window.