Unfit for Society Recs

Discworld

And A Hardboiled Egg by icarus_chained
Excellent character study of Vetinari.

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Elementary

The Case of the Bohemian Box Turtle by Siria
Joan makes a discovery about Clyde. Adorable. I could totally see the show doing this.

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Harry Potter

Food of Love by toujours_nigel
Sirius tries to seduce Remus via The Twelve Days of Christmas. Remus is baffled. This is adorable.

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The Losers

Let Me Show You, Baby, I'm a Talented Boy by innie
10k of Jensen pining for Cougar. Lovely.

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Discworld

'Tis Impossible To Be Sure Of Any Thing by karanguni
Really excellent story about Vetinari and Moist and Death and taxes.

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Doom

Stratigraphic Context by Aderam
"What's the plan?" John asked, redirecting the muzzle of the large gun towards the floor and pointedly taking it from Sam's hand.

"Run for the nearest exit," Sam offered ruefully, leading the way into the hallway. She could hear John's huff of disapproval behind her even over the sounds of people running in their direction.

"I don't think I like your plan," he replied. Post-movie John and Sam for me! I like how they keep rescuing each other, and I hope that they have a peaceful future free of UAC, and this story gives me both of those things. <3

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M*A*S*H*

The Art of Bluffing by CousinShelley
"You're going to sit there until I fall asleep, aren't you? Staring me into submission."

"You wanted to be alone. In Hawkeye logic, that means you don't want to be alone. So I'm going to sit here, yes." She slipped her hand under the edge of the covers and took his, holding it firmly, thumb brushing over the back. "But if you tell anybody I've gone soft and tucked you in, I'll mix castor oil into your still."

"Blasphemer." Really lovely look at Hawkeye and Margaret's friendship. The ending definitely made me tear up. *sniff*

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Elementary

Hark the Herald Reptiles Sing by Bow
"You see, in essentials we are not so very different. I believe it comes from—your previous life," she says smugly. "There's a kind of affinity between a good surgeon and a talented painter. You grow accustomed to looking inside of people, to seeing on levels that normal people can't reach. Pulling bodies to pieces."

"Some of us do our best to reassemble them," says Joan Joan and Moriarty share some similarities but it's the differences that are most important. Really nicely done.

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Rivers of London

Folly To Be Wise by Philomytha
Excellent casefic that shows how Ettersberg reverberates even now through Nightingale's life.

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Greek Mythology

Here Thy Hands Let Fall the Gather'd Flower by Cinaed
Nice take on Hades/Persephone. I like this version of Hades.

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Legend of Korra

a gate that swings both ways by psocoptera
Korra confronts the implications of energybending. Exactly what the summary says. Thought-provoking.

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Criminal Minds

Close our eyes, pretend to fly by that_1_incident
Understated, sweet, and lovely Morgan/Garcia story where Garcia owns a coffee shop instead of working for the BAU.

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Elementary

Guided by the Beauty of Our Weapons by cjmarlowe
"Well, the nature of our relationship to one another is complicated," said Joan. "Even for your father—who does care about you, by the way, even if he doesn't show it in typical ways—who knows the particulars of my former employment."

"He thinks we should be clearer about the delineation between the personal and the professional."

"Well, I can't argue with that in principle," said Joan, "but since when do we let ourselves be defined by anyone else?"

"Since always," said Sherlock. "I believe that might actually be the definition of definition."

"Well, then it's time we stopped," said Joan. "You're my friend, and my employer, and my mentor, and I am your friend and your colleague and your sounding board. We can be all of those things, as long as we understand the nature of each of them."

"Clear boundaries," said Sherlock. "Consideration. Trust. Occasional bowls of late night ice cream."

Joan smiled at him. "I think we're getting the hang of it." During a case drought, Sherlock and Joan continue to negotiate their relationship. Nice slice-of-life story.

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Rivers of London

a spell against the lonely by singlecrow
Lovely look at Nightingale over the years.

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Crossovers

The West Wing/M*A*S*H

cj cregg meets margaret houlihan by raven
"What's a community organiser, anyway," she says, "isn't that what we all do, if we're worth anything. I'm a nurse, Ms. Cregg. These days, more of a midwife."

"A midwife?" CJ repeats, again feeling useless and tired.

"Some things take longer to be born than others," Margaret says, and smiles, softly. "Good luck." *sobs*

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Elementary

The Case of the Chimerical Chelonian by Siria
"I have managed to ascertain Clyde's location," Sherlock said, and beamed at her.

Joan peered at him. "You know, you phrasing it like that makes it sound like you lost him."

"It wasn't so much that I lost him as that he chose to absent himself—"

"How do you lose a tortoise, Sherlock? He can only travel at—"

"—Striking out on his own, as it were. Hence the theme song."

Joan flopped back against her pillows. "You lost Clyde." hee! Adorable Sherlock/Joan conversation that could have come right out of an episode.

The Cupcake Mafia by Siria
"And after all, Watson," Sherlock said, clapping his flour-dusty hands, "on a most basic level, cooking is just chemistry." this is adorable.

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Elementary

for the sane mad and the bravest monsters by language_escapes
Nice look at Sherlock, pre-series. (subsequently jossed, but still nicely done.)

A Lopsided Symmetry of Sin and Virtue by language_escapes
Joan and Sherlock pretend to be married for a case. this is a really lovely, quiet variation on the trope that felt true to both of them.

your heaven's trying everything (to break me down) by bittereternity
Lovely Joan character study.

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Elementary

The Art of Negotiation by language_escapes
"I was testing the velocity of various sock brands," he says, which is a sort of truth. He was really just bored and throwing socks around, but it sounds better if he couches it in scientific terms.

Watson gives him a flat look. "So you were bored."

"Of course not!" Holmes protests immediately. "Knowing the difference in velocity between, say, my orange toe socks and my purple zebra socks could one day be essential to a crime."

The look Watson gives him is a familiar one. It's her you-are-shitting-me-I-swear-to-God-it's-a-miracle-I-haven't-killed-you-yet look. Watson's looks are quite eloquent. It's amazing how much disdain, frustration, and cynicism she can communicate with a simple glance.

"I don't care how bored you get, Sherlock. You're going to keep your socks out of my room!" Sherlock and Joan adjust to living and working together. This is ADORABLE. It put a huge smile on my face.

Paler Than Grass by philalethia
"If you have concerns," she continues, "or thoughts or anything about the men I date, you are welcome to talk to me like a rational adult, but you do not ever do this again." She wiggles her phone in front of his nose, which wrinkles in displeasure. "Are we clear?"

"Quite," says Sherlock. "Feelings, actions, talking, never again. Quite clear." [...] "Yes, all right," he says eventually, his expression somewhere between a pout and a scowl. "I apologize." He lifts another spoonful to his mouth and says, still chewing, "I was only trying to be helpful."

Joan doesn't doubt it. It's just that Sherlock's attempts to be helpful fail spectacularly almost as many times as they succeed.

"Next time, just double check with me that you're actually being helpful first," she says, in her firmest no-nonsense voice, and waits for him to nod solemnly before she turns to go back upstairs. Joan dates and Sherlock tries not to interfere. This is really lovely and in character.

This Old House by innie_darling
Adorable post-ep for 1.16 in which Joan and Sherlock contemplate redecorating the brownstone.

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Crossovers

Elementary/Buffy the Vampire Slayer

i think you need a shotgun blast by postcardmystery
Excellent crossover/fusion of Elementary with Buffy; epic in scope for something that's only 3K words and completely believable. Joan is a Slayer and Holmes is her Watcher.

*

The Middleman/Star Trek

A Christmas Card From The Middleman – 2012 by themiddleblog
In the past twelve months, Wendy Watson had honed the cool and sardonic demeanor that first got her this job into a weapon as powerful as a 30-Megahurt Definit-Kil Photrazon cannon. Even now, as she made an uncontrolled ascent over the city, hands white-knuckling one of the control line of a massive helium balloon in the shape of one of the adorable characters from "Ferrets of Fury" - the almost criminally popular game app that had taken the country's tablet and smartphone users by storm - her thoughts ricocheted with their usual post-modern tangentiality...but even as her mind ameliorated all the synaptic red alerts over her current predicament by busily trying to replace the lyric "high adventure beyond compare" from the theme to the old "Gummi Bears" cartoon show with the more descriptive "they're gelatinous with sucrose to spare" she truly could not tune out the screams of the fourteen year-old boy clutched beside her in the inflatable paws of this once adorable video game creation turned hateful harbinger of helium-filled hatred. Technically, this is not fanfic, since it was written by the show's creator, but *hands* it is too awesome not to rec.

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Elementary

Building Bricks Without Zipper Masks by gynomancy
Joan and Sherlock negotiate the D/s elements of their relationship. Hot and sweet and very in character.

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Sports Night


You and Me and the City Makes Three by innie_darling
Dan and Dana and NYC = OT3.

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Suits

take your cues by abvj
Really lovely Donna/Harvey story in which Harvey bides his time until he doesn't. and the sequels: Equilibrium and a minor acclimation

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