of the start and the end, by waldorph

She remembered dying: being cradled in William’s arms while Eric had tried to find something, anything that would save her. She wondered if together they would manage the thing.

Teen, post-movie. I find the movie only so-so, but I like the way it handles its (apparently obligatory) love triangle, i.e. in a way that makes it easy for me to imagine an OT3. This story is pretty much my headcanon now.

of the start and the end, by waldorph

20th Century Limited, by Speranza

“I was in a hospital,” Bucky said slowly. “I couldn’t move. My arms and legs were—broken.” He looked at Steve with real fear in his eyes. “I’m not really here, am I.“ 

"No, I don’t think so,” Steve agreed, swallowing back his own terror. Bucky wasn’t alive, Bucky couldn’t still be alive; Steve would have known if he was. He remembered clinging to the outside of the train and having the radio in his mind go silent: that sudden, terrible dead air. The loneliness, the internal emptiness, was unbearable. 

“I’m in the hospital or I’m dead, but I’m not here,” Bucky said. “And you’re…" They both looked down at the hole in the ice. 

"I’m down there,” Steve said. “I’m still under the ice.”

Adult, canon-divergent, telepathy. One of the side-effects of the serum is that those injected with it are telepathically connected – which changes Steve and Bucky’s relationship considerably… But this epic story only starts there, what’s most amazing is what happens after they both fall…  I can’t believe I hadn’t read this before, it’s simply breathtaking!

20th Century Limited, by Speranza

Down Into The Golden Lands, by Speranza & alby_mangroves

Thor sighed. “He is building a house in the land of the dead, and once built it will be too late: we will see him no more. I went into my mother’s realm, the place beyond death, to try and persuade him.” He looked sadly at each of them in turn. “I know that you would have done the same, for Steve is our leader and our heart. There is not one of us who would not walk into hell for him. But we must face the fact that—" 

“—it’s not us he wants,” Natasha said, sucking her lip. “It’s Barnes. We’ve got to send Barnes.”

Teen, not-CW compliant. This is so different, and all the more beautiful for it. 

Down Into The Golden Lands, by Speranza & alby_mangroves

The Fifties, by Speranza

“We’re alive! We’re all alive!” Peggy sobbed. “We’re all going to live,” Peggy sobbed, and suddenly it was all Bucky could do not to break into tears himself, because—because— He was knocked back by a great wall of Steve, and he was going to pull away, give them a minute to hug and kiss while he pulled himself together, except Steve’s arms were coming around them both, he was holding them both together.

Adult, AU. This is amazing – the best “what if Bucky hadn’t fallen” fic I’ve read. Also, I so did not see that plot twist coming. 🙂

The Fifties, by Speranza

Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square, by Speranza

He’s never going to stop looking for him, Natasha thought, and averted her eyes; their intimacy had somehow become terrible and painful to watch. “We’ve really got to hope he’s not here for Barnes,” she told Tony, “because if he is: I’m not sure we’re going to be able to stop him.”

Adult, time travel, not-CW compliant. Because when there’s a portal, of course Steve wants to use it to rescue Bucky – only Natasha & Tony absolutely have to stop him. This combines outside POV, first time and post-WS feels in the most beautiful way.

Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square, by Speranza

Day 14: Caught Having Sex, by hannahrhen

They decided it was okay–only okay–if Steve sketched Bucky like it was one of the fancy art school classes, Steve perched on the very end of his own bed, body turned back in Bucky’s direction. If Steve was just using this for his drawing, studying the sharp lines of Bucky’s joints and limbs and softer ones of his belly and ass, how he moved when he …

Adult, pre-serum, internalised homophobia, voyeurism. Steve watches Bucky masturbate… This is sexy and bittersweet, it makes me want to hug those boys while also wishing I could see for myself. 🙂

Day 14: Caught Having Sex, by hannahrhen

The Brigadier’s Sword, by Drunk in Charge

“Jealous! Jealous indeed!” He spun round to face me, clearly furious, his jaw working, then once more masterfully pulled his emotions back under control, sending a shiver down my spine. I was almost sorry. Holmes, when he comes alive, is an intoxicating sight.

Adult. A man John has admired since his Army days stirs things up for Holmes and Watson… This is a perfect first time fic, getting the language of the original canon absolutely spot-on.

The Brigadier’s Sword, by Drunk in Charge

a mark, a mission, a brand, a scar, by suzukiblu

Steve Rogers knows from day one that Bucky Barnes is not his soulmate. 

The asset knows from the first glimpse that the man on the roof is his.

Soulmark!AU. This is beautiful, a different take on Bucky and Steve as soulmates.

a mark, a mission, a brand, a scar, by suzukiblu

Report from the Rim, by Carolyn Spencer

Spock takes off that cloak.  Careful.  Slow.  Puts it around the other one.  And now I know who he’s been saving it for.  He don’t say nothing, but his whole body changes.  He’s taller somehow.  Straighter.  I’m more used to reading his face now than I was, and there’s joy now in his eyes.  You don’t see that in the Pit, Federatti.  Not ever.

Adult, warnings for prison setting (mentions of rape, violence). This is an outside POV unlike any other I’ve read – harsh and violent, but the relationship between Spock and Kirk shines all the brighter for the dark.

Report from the Rim, by Carolyn Spencer