Unfit for Society Recs

Crossovers

Captain America/DCU

Star-Spangled Eyes by feverbeats
He's not allowed to feel bad about Steve. This isn't Bucky's story. "This isn't my story," he says angrily to the dark water.

"Never is, is it?" a voice by Bucky's ear asks.

When he whips around, there's no one there.

Fuck Gotham. Bucky and Jason hook up and try to move on. Sharp and lovely.

*

Fringe/X-Files

as companionable as solitude by eruthros
This story is amazing. It is the Fringe/X-Files Dunham/Scully fic of my dreams. Nails all the character voices and features mentions of Scully mentoring Olivia and Astrid at Quantico and old X-Files cases popping up for the Fringe team and just ALL the awesome Dana Scully and Olivia Dunham bring to the multiverse. ♥

*

Supernatural/X-Files

Veritas, Veritas by moorishflower
Dean feels special, for knowing the truth: that the F.B.I. guy is just this dude who's getting older and who's trying to do the right thing. He can't kill a vampire with only the power of his mind, but Dean knows that he's got floppy hair and a big nose and the sort of smile that lights up a room. Dean and Mulder cross paths a few times over the years. Nicely done.

~*~

Supernatural

Heaven is High and the Earth is Wide by sixth_seed

Really lovely retelling of season 1 if it were set in the old West and Sam had been born a girl. He's never made a secret of it. Sam's a better person than him. For Dean, it's been the best part of his life, to do whatever he can, whenever he can, to get her just a little bit further. She's the part of their family that deserves to get out of this in one piece. If Dean can do that, if he can just get her safe and whole, his life'll have been worth it.

Her eyes go a little wide, like she's seeing that, like she's seeing something in him. He doesn't squirm or look away or try to deflect. He's too tired for that. (Wincest)

~*~

Sports Night

les autres by raven

Lovely moment in time with Dan, Dana, and a piano at 2 am.

~*~

Thor

The Heart Is My Least Vulnerable Spot by waketosleep

Adorable sequel to "It's Electrifying." "I want a codename," she said suddenly.

"What?"

"I want a codename. I may not be a ripped superhero but dammit, I do things. Fuck being an Avenger, I'd like to see forty, but I want a codename." She considered it. "Maybe like, an animal? Since I have no powers to name myself after."

"Mongoose," said Clint way too immediately. It was like he'd been thinking about it.

Darcy thought back to all that time in freshman year she'd spent getting high and watching nature programs. "That is either a bird or a rodent." She was pretty sure it was a rodent but she wasn't going to abandon a clue like 'goose'.

"Rodent," said Clint, and before she could kick his ass off the loveseat he said, "It's a little weasel kinda thing and it looks cute and harmless but it actually kills cobras like it's a hobby." Clint/Darcy/taser=OT3!

~*~

Supernatural

(All the Things) Come Back to You by topaz
Sequel to Dream On (AU, previously recced). Dean and Sam go on the road to try to get Sam's memories back. I liked the casefile they run into, and the slow reveal of what happened to Sam in the pit. The sex felt unnecessary to me, but I guess if you ship them, you'll be more into it. (Wincest)

Cumulus by paxlux
Once, when Sam was a kid, he'd gotten this cockeyed notion for them to send postcards to themselves, to the P.O. boxes so that when they'd get there, they'd have these postcards; Dean always figured Sam pictured it like cartoon mail, piles of postcards spilling out to bury their ankles. He remembers Sam talking a mile a minute, not stopping to breathe, notes from the past, Dean, to our future selves living in another state, and Sam made it sound like a country song, my cares on the wind, rollin' on down the highway, nothin' but the clothes on my back, and a flip of the coin makes my decisions. One more silver dollar. Sam and Dean and the road, making it all fit together, sometime in season 2.

nobody with a good car needed to worry about anything by paxlux
"One of these days, Dean," Sam warned. "You think you can get us outta everything?"

Dean gave Sam his best trust-me grin and Sam shook his head, probably because he knew better, but he didn't let go of Dean, squeezing Dean's finger almost painful between Sam's own freakish long ones, so Dean said, "Yeah, Sammy, you've got the brains, I've got the charm and we've got the car. Man, I betcha we could drive through hell itself." Sam, Dean and the Impala, circa season 1. Oh, boys. *sigh*

Two Part Invention by de_nugis
Like Dean wouldn't get it, like Sam doesn't think he knows what it's like to just give up one day, to hell with the whole mathematics of saving and killing. The ghost writing that always shows through, no matter how many drinks go to wipe the board clean when the equations don't balance.

"You saved plenty of people, Sam. You saved the fucking world. You don't owe anyone. You don't have to explain. You can quit, free and clear."

Sam doesn't look convinced. He never will. They don't buy it, either of them, but they can go on without. Dean stops hunting, and Sam doesn't, for a while. Bittersweet and achy, with an ending that feels true as well as happy. Made me happier than the show has in a while, anyway. (Wincest)

~*~

Supernatural

All Right, Mr. De Mille by britomart_is
Sam, at 15, testing out her sexuality. Really well done. (always-a-girl!Sam) There'll be no new clothes till the crossbow's paid off, Sam's long past the age when she willingly wore Dean's boy-shapeless castoffs, and the shorts are verging on indecently small now. At fifteen she can still get away with it, mostly, but the neighborhood gazes have already begun a silent tug-of-war over Sam's body, her long-and-getting-longer stretch of tanned legs. Sam's thighs are controversial. They're a matter of public debate.

Drowning by whereupon
Brief, lovely, lyrical look at Lisa - how she sees herself, and her relationship with Dean.

Earthquake Weather by paxlux
It's a waiting game, everything with Dean is, sometimes you've got to be dead patient, it's like living with an earthquake, sometimes clear calm, sometimes all shook up and there's nothing like barking dogs or abnormal weather to warn you. It's the little signs only registered by a needle, but Sam's been fine-tuned and honed and he's watching. Ridiculously gorgeous and languid first time Wincest. *happy sigh*

Redefinition by whereupon
Love is staying up all night and pretending not to look at the clock the whole time, waiting for somebody to get home, like keeping vigil ever made a damn bit of difference; love is pulling the trigger again and again until it feels like your arm is going to break, so that when it isn't practice, when it's real, you won't miss. Love is going hungry so that somebody else can eat, and love is telling lies so that somebody else can sleep, and love is wanting a better life for somebody else. Love is the ashes-and-whiskey, gut-punched feeling when they finally get it, and love is not asking them to turn it down, and love is feeling like a fucking asshole for being even just a little happy when they come back. Sam and Dean bicker their way into having sex. Funny and heartbreaking. (set in season 1)

We Are All Star Stuff by innie_darling
"Dean," he said, exasperated, "being in New York, we could get home-cooked food from literally any country in the world -"

"Great," Dean said, smiling his creepy Magic Fingers smile; "I call America." Sam takes Dean to NYC for his birthday. Adorable.

~*~

Supernatural

Anabiosis by whereupon
Dean has to be invulnerable and inhuman and strong enough for the both of them; he has to be everything that Sam is not, he has to be brave so that Sam can be scared, and sane so that Sam can go crazy sometimes. It's a perfectly logical idea, when you're four or six or ten years old and your brother is all you know of heroism, all you know of what makes sense in the world. At twenty-three, when you know what maintaining that illusion has cost him, and continues to cost him, continuing to believe it is at once cruel and the only thing you can do, because he's built his entire world upon it. He believes in it, too, and it'll kill him, that he isn't. That he can't be. That no one, ever, could be. Utterly gorgeous and bleak casefile set between Nightshifter and BUaBS.

Black Dog on My Shoulder Again by sophiap
Sam deals with a hunt at Stanford that only cements his desire to leave the hunting life behind. Oh, Sam... Works in the revelations from s5 naturally and heartbreakingly, as well.

Embers of an Autumn Fire by caffienekitty
Sweet, nicely characterized AU where Sam and Dean don't grow up hunting, but it finds them, nonetheless. I really liked how very much themselves they were in this.

Fightin' Words by sophiap
A catalogue of some of the more...embarrassing incidents Sam and Dean have faced while hunting. Hilarious.

one way of looking at it by theredfeather
Jo also isn't the kind of girl Sam's used to meeting at Stanford. She wears thrift-store tank tops under old flannel shirts and workman's boots worn thin with real use, not bright patterned shirts or sparkling jewelry. There's dirt under her fingernails more often than not and she's got a vaguely Midwestern accent like his, which is strangely rare here. Stanford may have students from all over the country (and the world, for that matter), but the heartland of America isn't always particularly well-represented. She knows how to hustle and steal and use her innocent good looks to wheedle and while what she wants out of the generally unsuspecting public for fun and profit. This, she explains to him, is what she was doing when they met at the bar. She's pretty and smart and an anthropology major and keeps a box full of knives tucked under a false bottom in one of her desk drawers. AU where Jo and Sam meet and fall in love at Stanford. Very cool

the places you will be from by paxlux
"Dude, seriously, without me, you'd be stuck on some half-assed road without a damn clue which way is north. Even if you had a compass rose tattooed on your ass."

"Uh, already stuck on some half-assed road and you're here," Dean points out, slapping Sam's leg. "And if I had a compass rose on my ass, I wouldn't be able to see it anyway, Sam. Unless I had a mirror and—"

Sam smacks his brother upside the head with something heavy. "Oops, thought that was the map." This story starts out with some fine brotherly hilarity and then BAM! it slams you in the gut with gorgeous heartbreak. Have a tissue handy.

Second Map of the World by candle_beck
Sam glanced at his brother. Dean was snuffling in his sleep, pushing the back of his hand across his nose. Sam had underestimated Dean's general devotion, or possibly overestimated his moral code. Sam had forgotten that the list of Dean's priorities was brutally short, and keeping Sam with him was at the top, in bold and underlined and circled a dozen times. Dean would tolerate almost anything to maintain the fragile remains of his family, and there was the operative word, family--it had come to mean different things to the two of them. Different definitions.

It wasn't a new piece of knowledge, Sam's awareness that Dean was and always had been a much better person than he was. Always a step behind, Sam was, always keeping one eye out for himself. There was a lovely kind of self-absorbed self-destruction in wanting only the things he couldn't have. He was trying to do better, though. Awesomely lovely - full of UST, with a great pining, freaked-out Sam POV. (Wincest)

she's a real time girl (in my imaginary world) by lazy_daze
During "Changing Channels," the Trickster zaps Sam and Dean into a lesbian porno. As the stars. They must, of course, play their roles. Ridiculously, amazingly hot. (Wincest)

You Say the Dead Need No Physician by kitsune13
Really lovely post-s5 Wincest tied up with an interesting and nicely parallel casefile.

~*~

Supernatural

Basic Descent by [anonymous]
Showmanship was always the name of the game. Really cool backstory for Deanna Winchester.

Crocodile in the Corn by roque_clasique
Fairly typical post-apocalyptic (AU) hurt/comfort, but I do love it when Sam and Dean get taken in by a community and this hits that button right on the nose and hits it hard. It's just – he likes it here. Likes Randy and Sonya, likes the crew, and the work is tough, but no tougher than other things he's done in his life. In fact, it feels good – these days, the earth is the one solid thing they've got left going for them, now that more than half the population's gone and the major cities have been blown to smithereens. He's been eating shit like rice-a-roni for two goddamn years, and all along there were places like this – fresh food, straight from the ground, so easy to grow once you knew how. It'd be awesomer if Sonya and Randy hadn't sold all their cows, because the only thing better than a cheeseburger is a double cheeseburger, but at this point, Dean'll admit that broccoli is a hell of a lot more welcome than refried-refried beans from a dented can.

A Different Piece of Sky by lavendergaia
Long, achy, heartbreaking preseries girl!Sam/Dean story.

Don't Forget Winona by [anonymous]
Sam's two weeks in Flagstaff. Heartbreaking.

Dream On by topaz
After Swan Song, Dean keeps dreaming of Sam. I really enjoyed this - especially how Lisa and Ben are handled.

fingers hooked in their hearts by paxlux
Once upon a time, there was this pair of brothers.

And they loved each other with this blindness that meant they couldn't see other people or each other very well.

So they held on to each other as hard as they could, to get through the world, and their hands were swollen, their joints spread from holding on. They only let go to hold guns or beer bottles or bags of salt. Shovels and matches, lug nuts and oil rags.

Whenever they said my brother, they never blinked.

It was as easy to say as each other's names and that never got old. Lovely, lyrical look at Sam and Dean (as Wincesty as the show, anyway).

Lines by anonymous_sibyl
It wasn't even about Ben, he thought later that day when he was leaning against a wall in the shade near the Impala and watching Ben snapping pictures of engine blocks. Nor was it about the ready-made family he was terrified he was creating out of Lisa and Ben, as if he could slide into their lives and completely forget about his own. It was about him and how he could fit in this world. He had a hobby, and he couldn't even believe that, and a pocket full of business cards with job offers for restoration work scribbled on the back of them. He had friends who understood that you had to let things do what they were made to do, that cars had to be driven and people had to follow their own paths. Dean, during the summer after Swan Song, feeling out a different way of life. *sniffle* Oh, Dean.

Out Of the Night That Covers Me by mickeym
Post-apocalypse, Sam is trying to deal with the vestiges Lucifer left behind and his own simmering rage. Dean helps. For a story that's so much about Sam's rage, it's very quiet and sweet. (AU; Wincest)

Pancho and Lefty by [anonymous]
While hunting vampires in Wyoming, Sam and Dean get transported back to 1882. I enjoyed this a lot, even if the ending is a little heavy-handed.

Primary Care by [anonymous]
"This is all getting a little too Buffyesque for me," Dean said, low and quiet.

Sam threw a look over his shoulder that was meant to convey 'shut the hell up, you moron,' but it must have landed closer to 'please elaborate.' Dean dropped his voice into a register usually reserved for earthquakes and thunderstorms and intoned, "From beneath you, it devours."

Sam refined the look with as much judgment and disgust as he could manage, holding a flashlight on his own face so Dean could see it.

"Touchy," Dean said in his normal voice. But it was his inside voice, at least, so Sam counted that as a win. Hilarious yet heartwarming. Sam and Dean still have a few issues to resolve after the apocalypse is averted. With Nyquil, bug-monks, and a hilarious cameo by Rufus.

Runaway by hitlikehammers
Breathless, beautifully written first kiss for Sam and Dean. His eyes search out his brother, dart to where he can hear Dean's footsteps, pick out the cadence of his breaths against the soft shift of the wind. He walks close, lets the swell of his frame slip just a bit, just enough into his brother's sphere of being, into the space that is Dean and Dean alone -- he occupies it in tandem for the sparest of moments, vague and reeling, before Dean steps away; doesn't speak, doesn't flinch, but leaves, the shuffle of his boots too sharp to bear. And Sam doesn't follow; drowns a little instead in the dive that plummets hard in his gut, tastes black on his tongue, in the long stretch of the Atlantic glimmering against the sun.

Three foggy mornings and one rainy day (will rot the best birch fence a man can build) by britomart_is
"I was wondering when you'd get the courage up, honey. How are those boys of yours?"

"I only have one son," Mary answers.

"Oh," the warm voice says, sounding honestly stunned. "Oh, Mary. I'm so sorry." Mary doesn't go into the nursery that night. Heartbreaking and creepy.

The Time-Traveler's Brother by gretazreta
Ridiculously, unutterably beautiful. I especially like the extremely logical yet completely unexpected conclusion the story draws to regarding the mytharc. It strikes him, suddenly, how few times in their life they've been together, like this, at the same time, in the same place, from the same when. So many times he's been ahead of himself, or behind, Dean dancing through time and Sam waiting behind for him to catch up with himself. Not now though. Dean's looking at him like he's everything, and it's almost too much to bear. Dean's older, and tireder, but it's still his Dean, from his time. This is really happening, now.

"You and me," Dean says. "Now, and then, and every day of my life." He says it like it's a prayer.

Sam sits quietly, passively, and lets Dean trace his eyebrow, his jaw, his cheekbone. "Don't ever doubt that," Dean says. (Wincest)

The Tomato Plant Doesn't Grow Mangos by [anonymous]
John takes a job as a super in a NYC apartment building in the winter of 1993. Really nice outsider POV on Sam and Dean, a likeable OFC, and an interesting hunt. I really enjoyed this story.

thunder like a train by paxlux
Dean will always do something that Sam can't believe because Dean himself is impossible. Sam's impossible brother, and it's improbable how much Sam needs him around to do his impossible things. Gorgeous first kiss between Sam and Dean. Also, fire.

The Usual Fee, Plus Expenses by [anonymous]
Enjoyable season 1-era casefile.

Wrong Time by [anonymous]
Post-Swan Song, Dean goes back to the site of a job that didn't get finished back when he was a teenager. Creepy, evocative, and heartbreaking.

~*~

Supernatural

Before Your Time Has Run Astray by dollarformyname
Sam thinks Dean is happy where he is, doesn't want to ruin it. Adam is still wondering how they ever got this far if Sam was the brains of their outfit.

He knew Dean for five whole minutes and even he knows Dean is likely drowning in a bottle to escape the gaping chasm where Sam should be. Probably to escape the burbs too, because Dean really struck him as the type who'd go slowly insane in a place like that, maybe even become the recluse neighbor that 'always seemed so nice', according to the interviewees on the six o'clock news after a garage full of mutilated bodies are discovered.

Yeah, Adam's pretty sure getting those two back together is not only crucial to his own sanity, it's a goddamn public service. After they get out of the pit, Adam can't get away from Sam and it's driving him crazy. Sam's not doing so well, either, but he refuses to go see Dean, choosing instead to be an inept mother hen to Adam. Funny and achy, with a great Adam voice.

bells pond by kelleigh
AU in which Sam has a different role in the apocalypse, and it doesn't sit too well with him at first, but he slowly adjusts. Long and lovely, unfolds a little too slowly in the middle, maybe, but full of interesting OCs with whom Sam develops relationships, and of course, his relationship with Dean develops as well, into something new. (Wincest)

Cartography by whereupon
Tiny, gorgeous bit of Dean/OFC. He knows, then, with the logic of dreams, and sometimes still for an instant upon waking, that at times now she sees the unbroken curve of road, the fatal grace of metal and chrome, the ragged map of a world in which she has never walked, and never will.

crabapple pie by theredfeather
Really lovely look at Dean's journey down into grief and finally out through the other side. Let's hope the show handles things as gracefully as this story does.

Cross Creek by zoemathemata
Really fantastic season 2 era casefile featuring a haunted hotel that closes down for the winter; Sam and Dean want to clear out the ghosts, but the people who live there aren't so keen on that plan. There's something else, something far more dangerous lurking, as well, and maybe Sam and Dean have bitten off more than they can chew with this one. I really liked Fay and Oliver and how their relationship mirrored Sam and Dean's. There was a lovely sense of atmosphere and mounting dread as the story unfolded, and if I figured out what was going on before Sam and Dean did, well, it was still really well put together. Could use another line edit for typos, but totally worth reading anyway - highly recommended.

Dictionary for a Dead Language by britomart_is
Lovely, melancholy story set in the AU of "The End". Sam says yes. After Lucifer is banished, Dean deals with the fallout. (Wincest)

Fall on Your Yesterday's Heart by dreamlittleyo
Sweet, melancholy story in which Jo travels back in time and winds up entangled in the Winchesters' lives in 1988. Jo and John's relationship is handled nicely, but I especially liked how wee!Sam and wee!Dean (especially Dean) take to her and invite her into the family circle. (There is also, in the narrative present, an allusion to Sam/Dean that was unnecessary and can be skipped if that's not your sort of thing - it's only about a paragraph and it's not graphic.)

for peace comes dropping slow by wraith816
Utterly lovely story in which Sam and Dean take a break after the apocalypse (written post s4/pre s5) and slowly fall towards each other. (Wincest)

Hover Through the Fog and Filthy Air by chiiyo86
Well-crafted, melancholy, moving story of Sam and Dean's first hunt after the apocalypse, with the slow reveal of what happened to them while they saved the world to leave them in such bad shape. (AU)

I cannot rest from travel by kellifer_fic
Cool AU futurefic where Sam and Dean set up a school for hunters, which is one of my favorite possible futures for them. (Wincest)

Scaling Fences by dotfic
four times Dean had to teach Sam how to get over a fence, and one time he didn't. Aw, boys.

Those Who Favor Fire by kathickers (endearinglysad)
girl!Sam AU in which Sam takes the throne of hell to save Dean from ending up there. Dean's not so sanguine about it, though, and he follows her to try to get her out. Cool story with an interesting plot and take on hell. Also, I was very happy to see Bela out and about. (Wincest)

The Widow Tree by joans23
"Nobody knows what caused the curse. Some say it was the usual - a lover scorned - others claim everything from an angry god to the apocalypse. But they all know what it'll take to break it. They suffer, see their lives crumbling to dust before their very eyes, and still none of 'em is willing to make the sacrifice."

"Sacrifice?" Dean asks.

"Don't be coy with me, boy. You know the only thing to break a curse this old, this deeply rooted, is a sacrifice. Given willingly, to be bound body and soul for three days and three nights to the Widow Tree." Dean can't deal with his feelings for Sam anymore, so he volunteers to make a sacrifice. Creepy, well-done, with pining and self-sacrificing!Dean at his best. (Wincest) (note: the author has some trouble with too/to confusion, but the story's worth reading anyway)

~*~

Supernatural

Drive On Through the Night (If It's the Drive Back Home) by jadedpen
Hot, sad Dean/Ellen post Good God, Y'all.

Everybody Goes to Rick's by nwhepcat
Highly enjoyable AU in which Sam and Dean never reunite to find John; ten years after he left for Stanford, kids in Sam's daughter's preschool class start getting sick, and Sam suspects it's something supernatural. his quest for answers takes him to a hunter known as Rick, and Sam learns a lot more than he expected when they meet.

here I stand again in this old 'lectric whirlwind by paxlux
Short, sharp, breathtaking with a narrative voice like a runaway train. Sam and Dean try to outrun a storm. (girl!Sam, Wincest)

a light to lead you home by coyotesuspect
He's not sure why he's decided to start this up now. This thing which is new and fragile between them. He kissed Sam, or he let Sam kiss him, night that they killed Yellow Eyes. Sam holding onto Dean with the fear of losing him and Dean clinging to Sam with the relief of keeping him.

They hadn't done much beyond kissing, Dean pushing Sam into the wall, Sam wonderfully alive beneath his hands. It wasn't a sex thing. Dean still looks at Sam and thinks brother before anything else, not his fault that that's a more complicated word for him than it is for most others.

He's trying to figure out a language that'll make it possible to explain Sam why he did what he did.

That Sam's always been what marks Dean's way home. Haunting, heartbreaking story set in season 3, where Dean's resignation rubs up against Sam's desperation to save him. Lovely.

Life Is a Broken Winged Bird That Cannot Fly by clex_monkie89
Very short Sam-POV coda to Swan Song that is absolutely heartbreaking. Oh, Sam...

This Time Around by debbiel66
AU of season 1, wherein Dean's the one who's gone missing, and John is the one who comes to Sam for help in finding him. Long, well-plotted, interesting spin on season 1 and an especially good look at John and Sam's contentious relationship. Dean was a good son, but he was a better brother.

Where the Road Ends by destina
Lovely, quiet, happy story detailing what Sam and Dean do after they avert the apocalypse. AU for season 5. (Wincest)

~*~

Crossovers

Leverage/Supernatural

The Sound of Your Own Wheels by glorious_spoon
I don't really care about Dean/Eliot as a pairing, but I loved the Eliot-team interactions in this, especially Hardison.

*

Leverage/White Collar

I Lie, I Cheat, I Steal (and I Just Don't Get Any Respect) by fiercelydreamed
This is absolutely hilariously awesome. The Leverage crew needs Neal Caffrey for a job. Hijinks ensue.

*

Crossovers

Burn Notice/Supernatural

Working Around the Crazy by peroxidepest17
Hee! Lucifer tries to convince Michael Westen to be his vessel. It doesn't go quite like he planned.

*

Narnia/Mary Poppins

Winds to Catch by animus_wyrmis & be_themoon & lassiterfics
Utterly wonderful Narnia/Mary Poppins crossover. This world does not know of small miracles and not-quite-tame lions, but if Susan prides herself on anything, it is her ability to move on and not be crippled by fear or loss or grief. So she does just that, until the day when the East Wind starts to blow in the streets and Mary Poppins steps neatly out of the sky and takes her by the hand.

"Come with me," Mary says, and Susan doesn't hesitate because this is the second chance she thought she'd already lost alongside everyone who could give it to her.

~*~

Supernatural

All Roads Lead to Where We Stand by kkgee
Lovely look at Sam and Dean through season 1. (Wincest)

Brutally, Terminally by paxlux
Growing up, she thought it was unfair her brother got all the looks while she got all the bones and as she got older, it wasn't just his looks, it was how she sized up every man she came across, taught by Dean to see if she could take them down, see their weaknesses, how they'd fight or back down, but on her own, she sized them up against Dean and though she thought it was unfair, she never shook the habit, more like something deep as instinct or DNA or how they sort of share the same nose. Shivery good Dean/girl!Sam with wonderful tension that ratchets up until it finally breaks. *hearts* I really love this girl!Sam.

Capacity by kalquessa
Nice look at Sam realizing something AWESOME about Dean, with a last line that's really a kick in the gut.

Crack the spine, let the words fall out by paxlux
Sam and Dean and books over the years. funny and sweet and heartbreaking in turns. (Wincest)

Crossbones by baylorsr
Fantastic AU in which Mary tells John about hunting in 1973, and they search for a way to break her deal. I would totally watch this version of the show.

Elsinore by malkingrey
Fantastic fusion of SPN with Hamlet. Sam was at the University at Wittenberg along with Hamlet and Horatio, and the Winchesters get drawn into the intrigue at the Danish court. Really well done.

First Recollection by whereupon
Their lives were no longer cyclical, however. They were linear, straight lines unending, a concept that couldn't exist in reality, though there they were. The double helix of their lives was as eternal as the horizon. Gorgeous, haunting story of Sam and Dean coming to terms with unwanted immortality. (Wincest)

An Honest Mistake by paxlux
And then Dean can't breathe, can't catch his breath because Sam is stealing it, along with everything else, boundaries and rules and all Dean knows, what he understands about his brother and how he loves Dean. Because this was supposed to be Dean, only Dean, his mishap and misunderstanding and hardwired mayhem, but somehow Sam is in on it, like a conspirator, like a reckless partner in crime. Which is what Sam is, what he's always been, so Dean shouldn't be surprised, he's sick of surprise, he's given up on surprise. Utterly gorgeous and haunting season 1 casefile featuring Sam and Dean fumbling around their relationship. (Wincest)

In All Our Bones (So Scared to be Alone) by scorpiod1
Jo/Bela, all sharp edges and missed opportunities. Could use another beta pass (tense issues), but gets the characters right.

Lemon Balm and Sugar by janissa11
It was Belinda who introduced him to the idea of plants as more – as tools, as possible weapons – but it was Julia who taught him the most. Julia, with fewer smiles and a much sharper tongue than either of her sisters, whose long thin fingers caressed her plants like lovers and under whose stern eye Dean began to learn. Teen!Dean learns to garden. Lovely.

Now Wait For Last Year by kellifer_fic
Follow up to "Do Winchesters Dream Of Electric Impalas" (previously recced). Dean's time is running out and Sam is running himself ragged trying to fix things. Heartbreaking, and really gets at canon even from such a strange starting point.

The Only Thing We'll Hit Is Sunset by luzdeestrellas
Warm and schmoopy first kiss for Sam and Dean. (wincest, obviously).

Same Bat Time, Same Bat Channel by __tiana__
Dean has ALWAYS been Batman, so it only makes sense that Sam is his Boy Wonder. Utterly adorable. *makes tiny toddler fists of glee*

Sammy Winchester's Summer Reading List by debbiel66
If books can show him a way out, Sam doesn't want to miss a single word. wee!Sam and books. Lovely and wistful.

Southern Summer Rain by lemanya
Lovely moment in time, where Dean works on the car and Sam eats ice cream in the summer heat.

Take a Sad Song by scourgeofeurope
She's not twenty-four anymore and she doesn't remember the fight. Vague memories, maybe planted, but she doesn't remember how she got here. She only remembers her sons. The Winchester family, together again for the first time, on the road. *sniffle*

The Vines Around My Heart by little_missmimi
Lovely bit of girl!Sam/Jess.

Welcome to Fog City by candle_beck
"Dean," Sam said, trembling. "How. How did you know?" / Dean shook his head, his brain gibbering and thoughtless because Sam was so close and warm; it had been an experience beyond joy to be pressed flush against him. / "I know you," Dean said. "You--you're what I know best." Lovely, breathless first time Wincest from Dean's POV.

~*~

Supernatural

Apocalypse Maybe by aggybird
Sam and Dean stopped the apocalypse. OR DID THEY? Sam can't tell because Dean's being all NICE to him, and it's freaking him out even more than the fact that he's in love with his brother. Plus, there is a trip to Disney and a hilarious interlude with a magic 8-ball. Awesome! (wincest)

A Girl Who Sang The Blues by erushi
This is how it happens: / There is a crossroads conveniently located a little more than a mile from the house, and its surface is conveniently of packed earth and scattered gravel and not of asphalt. / When she slips out of her window it's a quarter to midnight, and she discovers that oak trees are harder to climb when you're fourteen and six years out of practice than when you're eight. / She has a spoon in her pocket, stolen from the school cafeteria during lunch, and she uses it now to help her dig. It's not terribly effective: four nails are split to the quick by the time she deems the small hole deep enough, and she's vaguely aware that the latticework of cuts her hands have acquired will sting in the shower. Brilliantly realized, beautifully written backstory for Bela.

Bender by debbiel66
Dean does know it—the world is coming to an end, most of the people Dean loves are dead, and Sam is sorry. Good to know some things never change. Post-Abandon All Hope, Sam goes on a bender. Dean takes care of him. *sniffle*

brother, how we must atone (before we turn to stone) by mimblexwimble
Stars entrance Dean when's he's halfway to passed out or further. Sam has no idea why, hasn't bothered asking in case it stops Dean looking for them. It probably would. / It's quiet, feels like someone's stuffed cotton into his ears. Everything's warm and muffled. It doesn't feel like anything could touch them at the moment. Like Sam could keep driving like this and that would be enough to keep them safe, forever. To maybe heal this thing between them that feels like it'll never get better. Heartbreaking yet hopeful. Dean gets drunk and says some things he needs to say to Sam, some things Sam probably needs to hear, even if he can't believe them himself. Oh, boys. The show really needs to do something like this, and soon.

How Many Floors to Realize by lazy_daze
Dean doesn't get his memories back quite so quickly at the end of IaTL, and he and Sam go out on the road together. Adorable and hilarious. (Wincest)

I'm Telling You Why by teand
"Don't let the shit hide the shine, Sam." / "There's a lot of shit…" When Nick's hand closed around his wrist, the palm and callused fingers warm against his skin, Sam looked up. / "Then the shine's all the more important," Nick said softly. "The bad's so in your face that people don't see the good when it's right in front of them." Aw, Sammy. Lovely bit of Christmas fic.

Kung Fu and the Zombie Apocalypse by harrigan
Wonderful and achy story set during Sam's time at Stanford, in which a banged up Dean ends up in Palo Alto on a case, and gets an inkling that maybe Sam misses him a little too.

Otis Spunkmeyer My Ass by nwhepcat
Sam and Dean and homemade cookies on Christmas. *heart* Boys! And cookies!

Practical Application by ratherastory
Sam gets drunk and reveals that he's tested out whether Lucifer can really bring him back or not. Dean's freaked, to say the least. Nicely done. (Ignore the author's notes at the top.)

seems our whole life is about revelation by aggybird
And Dean has to admit, some of it sounds cool the way Sam explains it. Dean likes the idea of two different bodies of water meeting and mixing: freshwater and saltwater, governed by immutable tidal forces, swirling together and creating something unique. Sam tells him that some of the animals and fish and shit down here wouldn't survive anywhere else. This is a place outside other places, where two things that shouldn't fit together… do. / He doesn't really need to analyze why that one strikes a chord. Wonderfully done first time Sam/Dean wrapped up in an exceptionally creepy apocalyptic casefile.

Staying up by roque_clasique
John and his wee boys celebrate New Year's Eve. *sniffle*

~*~

Supernatural

an apple a day by estrella30
Dean starts eating healthy. Sam freaks out. Adorable and full of "aw, boys."

The Boy Made of Paper by kellifer_fic
He woke from an accident in a hospital bed without his name or any idea what had happened to him but he still knew basic things like how to tie his shoes. He could read, more than one language apparently, and write, cook a mean leftover surprise and make most cocktails which had the nurses at the hospital speculating about his previous career. / Essential, day to day things had stayed in his brain but everything else... Lovely, melancholy amnesia fic. (Wincest)

Mistaken for Strangers by bellatemple
"Dean Winchester. As I live and breathe." / "Told you I'd see you around." / She tucked the spray can back away in her purse and slung it over her head and across her chest. "Yeah," she said. "I guess you did." Enjoyable story about a girl Dean runs into over the years. Coda of sorts for 5.09, though only vaguely spoilery for the ep itself.


~*~

Supernatural

52 pickup by angelgazing
Dean learned card tricks to make him laugh, practicing in the passenger seat while Dad drove through the night, with cards that were worn and dirty at the edges. When they were younger, playing Texas Hold 'Em on cheap motel room bedspreads, Dean never let Sam win. Except for all the times he did. Sometimes, when Dean dreams, it's about the sound of socked-feet sliding over slick blankets, and piles of nickels and dimes falling down. Sometimes it's beer bottles crashing together. And sometimes, it's Sam laughing, his hand wrapped around the back of Dean's neck, thumb tucked up under Dean's ear like it's telling him a secret. Lovely, evocative first kiss for Sam and Dean.

Bulletproof by whereupon
Sam and Dean, doing the arguing until they're kissing thing. (wincest, obviously)

Dessertion by roque_clasique
Dean wakes up and there's a little girl in the Impala who wasn't there when he fell asleep. This is absolutely adorable and achy in the best way.

Form and Content by minim_calibre
Dean, Rhonda, and the pink satin panties, from Rhonda's POV. Lovely fleshing out of a character who's nothing but a one-line mention on the show.

Monkey See, Monkey Do by liptonrm
The Trickster takes young Jesse in hand (not like that!). With hilarious footnotes.

no strings to bind your hands by gatorgrrrl
"If this is out of pity or…or something…" It hurts him to say those words, she knows. Despite everything, he still has his pride. He needs comfort like everyone else—like she does—but he'll never admit it. / Walking over to him, she snakes her hands beneath his flannel shirt and rests them on his hips, the body-warmed fabric brushing over her skin. He's tense beneath her hands and she leans in, pressing her nose to his chest. "It's not pity, Dean," she says, her lips brushing against his t-shirt. / She really wants him to touch her. Fantastic, achy post 5.02 Dean/Ellen, hot and shot through with heartache and hope.

Secretly? He Kinda Liked It by dramaphile
Ridiculously hot Dean/Rhonda Hurley/pink satin panties porn.

That's Why a Duck by dotfic
Winchester prank war! Awesome!

Two Fingers by twasadark
Lovely snippet of post 5.02 Dean/Ellen. When she straightens and turns, he's right there, and the space he takes up is large and warm and decidedly, unmistakably male. "Sit with me. Have a pull on the bottle." She freezes at the sound of his voice, low and unmistakable. She's been around the block a time or two, after all. It's just … well, it's been awhile since she heard a man sound like that around her.

Warranty by autumn_lilacs
[S]he's got the best warranty program in the world. It's not written down on some paper, filed away where the owner can't even remember where he put it. Her warranty contract is written in blood, sweat and tears. In her contract there is no such thing as totaled. That word doesn't exist in the Winchesters' vocabulary. *sniffle* The Impala in early s2.

We Mortals Be by debbiel66
*sniffle* Sam and Dean get trapped in a fairy glamour with their younger selves, and it reminds them of who they used to be and maybe how they can repair their relationship. Oh, boys...

~*~

Crossovers

Criminal Minds/Supernatural

The Time Has Come to Be Gone by jujuberry136
A really enjoyable SPN/Criminal Minds crossover - the writing is a little clunky, and it doesn't take into account the state of Sam and Dean's relationship in early season 5, but the outsider POV on Sam and Dean, plus the interaction between the BAU team and the Winchesters, is a lot of fun.

~*~

Supernatural

As We Know It by roque_clasique
"Fuck mankind!" / "And womenkind," Sam says, waggles a finger, trying to be fair and non gender-specific. "Fuck womenkind, too." / Dean cuffs him on the back of the head. "What, I teach you nothin', Sam? You can fuck mankind – but you gotta make love to womenkind. Show the ladies some respec', huh?" Sam and Dean get their drink on after they save the world. Adorable. *happy sigh*

Come Due by utsusemia
I tried, you want to say. I tried everything I could, and nothing worked. But you can see it in his eyes: you didn't try hard enough. You just failed, all over again. After that, you suck Ruby's blood like a fucking vampire, and you don't care. This time you won't fail. This time you'll save him. You'll save the world. Absolutely heartbreaking look at Sam, post 4.22. The second person POV really works here.

Living Vicariously by debbiel66
In the aftermath of 4.22, Sam starts seeing dead people. Well, more than usual. Dean tries to deal. Lovely bit of reconciliation between them. Also, I really like Sam hanging out with Chuck.

Palimpsest by innie_darling
That was twice now that Zachariah had tried to reduce Dean into an eating-and-fucking golem, a mindless beast that could be controlled with fresh meat and other, more delectable flesh. / Zachariah hadn't counted on his little helper, his mud-monkey, his weapon of choice having a memory, or at least fragments of one that he could slide together to stay whole, stay strong, even after his descent into hell, where he was harrowed for longer than he'd been alive. / And Dean remembered. Maybe not everything, maybe not always clearly, but that simply meant he was human. Sam, Dean, Castiel and bumper cars. Adorable.

The Stars of His Army by smilla
Interesting, heartbreaking story in which Dean's not the weapon, he's the trap. AU from 4.22

This old world is rough by dotfic
Lovely, melancholy Dean/Ellen set in the interstices of 5.02.

True Believer by debbiel66
Interesting story that casts Ruby and Azazel as Sam's shadow parents, watching over him and waiting for him to come into his own. Especially chilling are Azazel's reasons for leaving him with John.

The Waffle Option Initiative by angelgazing
Dean sighed, and did exactly what he'd been doing since Sam was seven and huffing because Dean was telling him it was bedtime. He caved. He did his level best to look innocent as he stepped on Sam's toes on the way to the door, though. Sam and Dean stop for waffles. Hilarity ensues.

we two by mimblexwimble
Gorgeous, lyrical look at s1 Sam realizing that maybe he wants to stay, wants to hunt. Lovely.

~*~