Title: Running To Stand Still
Gaining Access: Open
Author: nolagal
Word Count: 12,771
Pairing(s): Draco/Albus Severus, past Albus Severus/Scorpius
Rating: NC-17
Summary: After Scorpius's death, Albus and Draco cling together to the exclusion of the outside world until Draco's decision that there must be a new Malfoy heir fractures their fragile symbiosis.
Author's Website: nolagal's fic list
Why everyone should read this: First, I admit, I am not a cross-gen fan. And worse, I absolutely cannot see Draco doing anything with the son of Harry Potter, unless he were with Harry Potter. There, I said it. And yet, and here is where my mind was blown, I loved this fic enough to consider the possibility that I was wrong! After a tragedy in the family, Draco and Albus find solace in each other, very unexpectedly and sometimes unwillingly. Their grief is very real, as is their response to it, which makes it all that more heartbreaking. This fic is messy, and hard to read at points, but such a breath of fresh air amongst other cookie-cutter fics. And even though Scorpius is never in the scene, you feel him in every breath both Draco and Albus take, enough to feel that you know him too and are saddened by his loss. This author and I started in fandom on the same exact day and its been a pleasure to see her talent grow. This, to me, is my favorite fic of hers because not only does it make me a proud friend to know she wrote it, I'm extremely jealous of this girl's writing chops! So run to this fic, don't stand still, and give this author some much deserved love!!!!

( Excerpt )

Title: The Nature of Pranksters
Gaining Access: Open
Author: lucianwolf
Length/Word Count: 4383
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: Here at ownficfest
Pairing: Fred/George/Harry
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Harry has an unexpected insight into the nature of pranksters.
Author's Website: Her fic list.
Why everyone should read this: Well, I'll start off by saying that this isn't for everyone. It's got incest, dub-con, and some serious sadism/masochism. But if you can handle that, then this is a must-read. It is absolutely brilliant. It explores the dichotomies & parallels that can exist inside people: good man/dark fantasies; hero/villain; merry-maker/sadist. The twins are characterized beautifully -- they're two (very) different sides of one (disturbing, gorgeous and fascinating) coin, and their relationship is twisted, dark, compelling, and incredibly intimate. Harry is amazing in his own right, also -- vulnerable and aching and bold, treading all over places he doesn't necessarily belong. It's also scorchingly hot, if it's your thing (and if it isn't, it just might convert you.)

( Excerpt )

** Dear Mods, I need a Fred/George/Harry tag, if you would. Thank you!

Title: Months and Days
Gaining Access: Open
Author: treeson
Length/Word Count: 11,210
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: At Granger Enchanted (login required)
Pairing: Draco/Hermione; Hermione/Cormac; Draco/Hermione/Cormac
Rating: NC-17
Author's Website: Her fic journal, treefics.
Why everyone should read this: Since I’ll probably never fly the broom for threesomes, I thought I’d slip this little gem in on free-flying month. I had never seen this particular trio written before, and after reading this fic, I’d love to see more of them! Hermione’s internal voice is funny and enjoyable to read, Draco and Cormac are both sex personified, and the smut? Smoldering hot. Enjoy!

( Excerpt )



*Mods, it appears I need Hermione/Cormac and Draco/Hermione/Cormac tags. Thanks!*

Title: Seed
Gaining Access: Open Access
Author: salmon_pink
Length/Word Count: 1698
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: None found
Pairing: Neville/Mimbulus Mimbletonia. Sort of.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Neville is not the only one growing.
Author's Website: Her fic list
Why everyone should read this: You probably saw the pairing and started backing slowly away from your computer, but don’t! Yes, the fic’s pairing is Neville/Mimbulus Mimbletonia, told from the plant's POV over the course of Neville’s fifth year. Don't look at me like that, get your mind out of the gutter! Seriously, it's a beautifully written piece with an unusual voice, and it works. Even if you don't like 2nd person fic (or 2nd plant, in this case), go read. It's definitely a true original, which is saying something in the HP fandom.


( Excerpt )


Mods, I'm going to need a new tag for this. Thanks!

Title: Experimental Charms
Author: birdseyeview
Length/Word Count: 4897
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: Experimental Charms
Pairing: Draco/Rose, Rose/Scorpius, Draco/Rose/Scorpius
Rating: NC-17
Author's Website: the_birdnest
Author's Summary: Rose's work with Patented Daydream Charms gives her new ideas.
Why everyone should read this:
This is a sexy and delightful fic that makes you THINK and leaves you drooling for more. Rose works for her Uncle George and while engaged in improving his daydream charms, she begins fantasizing about being with both her fiancée, Scorpius, and his father. As the daydreams become more realistic, Rose’s real life interactions with Draco leave her (and the reader) wondering if Draco has been fantasizing about her! This amazing one-shot culminates in an episode so well written that after reading it a dozen times, I still can’t decide what is reality and what is make believe.

( Excerpt )

Title: The Travelogue Trilogy (Roman Holiday, Jewel of the Nile and Last Tango in Paris)
Gaining Access: Open
Author: Anna (coldcoffeeeyes)
Word Count: 147,182 words, 129,767 words and ~112,000 words (incomplete)
Alternate Links to Fic: None
Pairings: Draco/Hermione, Bill/Hermione, Snape/Hermione
Rating: Adult
Summary: Hermione, Snape, Draco . . . believe us, you have no idea.
Author's Website: http://www.witchfics.org/anna/
Why everyone should read this: I was amazed to see this wasn't ever rec'd here before--this is in my opinion one of the best Harry Potter fics out there. I have a guess as to why no one had rec'd it up to now, even though this is a classic-era fic first posted in 2002. The trilogy is perhaps the perfect story to rec on a Free Flying month, because it's neither fish nor fowl. The overall arc of the trilogy is Snape/Hermione, and that attraction is a thread through all three fics. However, the first story really is much more Draco/Hermione than Snape/Hermione and the second more Bill/Hermione than anything else. Thus for the OTP shipper, the story is either too Snape/Hermione or not Snape/Hermione enough.

I have to say though, I feel the Draco of Roman Holiday to be one of the most appealing and in-character Dracos I've read (and I do read Draco/Hermione) and that Jewel of the Nile has absolutely the most sexy Bill. What unifies all three stories is the portrait of Hermione, taking her from 16 to her mid-twenties; this is one of the best coming of age tales for her I've read, one of the rare Hermione-centric het stories. I loved the role Salazar Slytherin plays in the story, the unique take on Trelawney, and there are fascinating subplots involving magic. There's also good reason why it's been dubbed The Travelogue Trilogy: the portraits of Rome, Cairo, and Paris are entrancing.

There is an interaction with Snape and Hermione early on I found disturbing enough to consider hitting back button, but the story offers so much I'd urge you to push past it. This is also a story where their mutual sexual attraction starts while Hermione is still in her sixth year, and quite a few may find that off-putting.

The last part of the trilogy, Last Tango in Paris, isn't complete and hasn't been updated for over four years--but it does come to some kind of resolution for Snape and Hermione's relationship. At times the stories are suspenseful, with more than one twist, and other times moving. I definitely recommend you give Anna's epic trilogy a try.

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Title: Uncoffined
Gaining Access: On AFF.net, you must submit an age statement.
Author: Lady_of_Clunn
Length/Word Count: WIP, six chapters so far
Alternate Links to Fic: None that I am aware of...
Pairing: Draco/Hermione
Rating: 'Adult ++', so I'm guessing a safe NC-17
Author's Website: http://hp.adultfanfiction.net/authors.php?no=1296838441
Why everyone should read this:
( And this is where I get long-winded... )

Title: Staff Christmas Party
Artist: frizzy_hermione
Rating: G
Characters: Dumbledore, McGonagall, Sprout, Hagrid, Flitwick, Snape
Artist's Website: Frizzy Hermione's Gallery at deviantART
Why you chose this piece: I had a hard time choosing just one piece to rec for this free-flying month: I dithered between a holiday-themed rec (on the one hand, comfortingly traditional, on the other hand, perhaps a wee bit predictable) and a jaw-droppingly good incest story (on the one hand, a nice, edgy antidote to too much Christmas cheer; on the other hand, perhaps a wee bit dark). As you see, traditional won out, largely because this art is too good to be missed. It's as if Dickens has come to Hogwarts: we have Dumbledore and pretty Pomona in festive headgear, Hagrid in. . .well, you'll see; happy Minerva with sexy hair (and a boa!), and a dashingly-Byronic Snape. Plus lots o' wine. You'll want to pour yourself a cup and join them all. Happy holidays!

Title: Dose of Your Own
Gaining Access: Just click the link!
Author: OurLoveIsForever
Length/Word Count: 104 860
Alternate Links to Fic:
Pairing: Draco/Astoria
Rating: T (Fanfiction.net)
Author's Website: http://www.fanfiction.net/u/937434/OurLoveIsForever
Why everyone should read this: Yes, I know; a hardcore R/Hr-shipper is reccing a story with Draco, but this is too good to be ignored. I have come to like this ship, because there is very little of it in the books and therefore the writers have free rein. And this story reminds me a little bit of R/Hr; the banting! :) And of course the story is very well written.

( Excerpt )

Mods - maybe a tag for this ship please. Thanks!

Title: Half-Sick of Shadows
Gaining Access: Open
Author: lareinenoire
Length/Word Count: 1,448 words
Characters: Merope Gaunt
Rating: PG
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: Here.
Author's Summary: Her mother had told her stories of ladies in towers, imprisoned there by wicked relations, and rescued by knights. But the visions faded quickly, leaving nothing but the filthy little shack in the woods. And there were no knights in Little Hangleton.

Why everyone should read this: Half-Sick of Shadows is a heart-wrenching character study, weaving Merope's passion for Tom Sr together with her desperate struggle for agency and freedom. The piece is short, poignant and beautifully-written, almost bittersweet in its dramatic irony since the reader knows there will be no true escape for Merope.


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Title: Addicted to Blood (the Open Wounds Radio Edit)
Gaining Access: Unlocked
Author: mariana_oconnor
Length/Word Count: 2,981
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: Here
Pairing: Ted/Andromeda, Lucius/Narcissa, Rodolphus/Bellatrix
Rating: R
Author's Website: definewisdom
Author's Summary: Andromeda Tonks has lost two families, and she's still not sure when she lost the first one.

Why everyone should read this: Because it's written like a fairy tale, and everyone loves fairy tales. The author does a great job portraying all three relationships, as well as giving Andromeda, Narcissa, and Bellatrix all very distinct personalities. This a story that stayed with me, well after the last words on the page.

When Narcissa Black first saw Lucius Malfoy, she thought ‘this is the man I’m going to marry’, and she did.

When Andromeda Black first kissed Ted Tonks, she thought ‘I hope my family never finds out’, and they did.

When Bellatrix Black first spoke to Rodolphus Lestrange, she thought ‘together we could bring the world to its knees’, and they did.

Mods, I need a Lucius/Narcissa tag. Thanks :)

Title: Amor Vitae
Gaining Access: Open
Author: I'll let you know after the reveals at hp_holidaygen
Length/Word Count: ~5,400
Characters: Flitwick, McGonagall, Snape, Moody, Lupin plus originals
Rating: PG-13
Author's Website:
Why everyone should read this: This is a masterpiece of storytelling. The author has created a believable backstory for Filius Flitwick from his childhood to love and a family of his own, through tragedy and to the wise head of Ravenclaw house that we meet in Harry’s time. This story has smooth writing, good pacing, full and complex characterization. You’ll laugh, you’ll tear up but ultimately it’s a hopeful story and just right for this time of year. I really hope you’ll find the time to give this one a read.


(  Filius Flitwick believed that love and life were essentially the same thing. )

Title: Common Woodbrown
Author: imochan
Word Count: 37.088
Pairing: Sirius & Remus
Warnings: Language, sex, AU
Rating: R
Alternative link: Common Woodbrown at the 2009 rs_games.
Author's Summary: Look well into thyself; there is a source of strength which will always spring up if thou wilt always look there. In 1985, Remus Lupin realizes that Sirius Black is innocent. Now, he just has to prove it.

Why everyone should read this: This masterpiece emerged from the 2009 rs_games. Told in Remus' POV, the set-up begins in his childhood then careens forward to events referenced in the opening of The Philosopher's Stone. The story's turning point is an original remake of situations following James and Lily's deaths. But that said, it feels about as canon as it does AU, partly due to the phenomenally broad cast of characters that figure into Remus' quest to fit together Sirius' innocence and correct his false-imprisonment. Whoa, hold on a second, for this tale to shape-up as Remus/Sirius and if Sirius is sentenced to Azkaban, where's he in the story? Read and see. The plot is so whole that there's no way Sirius and Remus could have been played any differently here.

imochan has produced a lushly detailed, vivid portrayal of Remus' inner psyche. He's a man who's been caught by circumstance for the entirety of his life, but is strong-willed and well-meaning, maybe a little selfish. Love it for those reasons, and love it even more for its powerful prose and pitch-perfect dialogue. Emotion, description, insight -- nothing is explicitly stated in the writing style yet, technically, it's precisely clear and uses language to say exactly what needs to be said the best way it can be said.

( Excerpt from 'Common Woodbrown' )

Title: Would You Stop Me If I Tried to Stop You [open]
Artist: reira_21
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Rating: R
Artist's Website: Here
Why you chose this piece: In October I recc'd a couple of H/D pics for you. I now have to include this as one of my all-time favourites (especially as it was made for me). Its simplicity belies a wealth of feeling - both from the characters towards each other and to us as observers. The expressions are sublime and the pose/perspective is very fresh. As always, the inclusion of the kit suggests spontaneity. For me, this image is a beautiful amalgam of cautious curiosity and full-on teenage hormones.

Title: These Accidents of Faith
Gaining Access: Open access
Author: dark_branwen (aka kihinranno)
Length/Word Count: 21,356
Alternate Links to Fic/Art: Here at clever_claws.
Pairing: Draco/Luna
Rating: PG-13
Author's Website: Her fic journal Fanfictional Fantasia
Why everyone should read this: Set during DH, Draco returns home for Christmas and is given the task of caring for Luna and Ollivander. dark_branwen's characterizations are spot on: Luna is quietly indomitable, and Draco struggles with his changing feelings and his fears. His attempt to save Luna, an attempt full of opportunistic Slytherin cunning and devoid of Gryffindor heroics, is so in character and such a clever twist on canon, it brought a smile to my face. Beautifully paced, surprisingly believable, almost canon compliant, good and flangsty with touches of humor and suspense, and with strong supporting characters, this is an all-around lovely fic, and a great introduction to the Druna pairing.

( Excerpt )

*Mods, it looks like I need a Draco/Luna tag.

Title: The Dragon and the Rose - WIP
Gaining Access: requires membership/access at The Quidditch Pitch
Author: drcjsnider
Length/Word Count: 22,000 +/- WIP
Alternate Links to Fic: here
Pairing: Draco/Rose
Rating: NC-17
Author's Website: http:// drcjsnider.livejournal.com/
Why everyone should read this: Before this story, I shied away from cross-gen fics, but this one was recommended by someone so strongly, that I had to go check it out, and from the moment I started reading it, I was completely hooked. The two feature characters – slacker Rose and arrogant/snarky Draco – are wonderfully written and have a tremendous chemistry. But the supporting cast, including over-achiever/future politician Scorpius, disappointed yet loving mum Hermione, and pretentious Astoria, is just as brilliant. Unquestionably, the smut in this story is incredibly hot, but the characterizations in this fic truly make it shine.

( Excerpt )

Title: Countdown to Christmas Day 25 – Sirius Black, 24 – Draco, 23 – Ron, 22 – Voldemort, 21 – Hermoine, 20 – Dumbledore, 19 – Remus, 18 – Lucius, 17 – Luna, 16 – Neville, 15 – James & Lily Potter, 14 – The Dursley’s, 13 – Crabbe & Goyle, 12 – Tonks, 11 – Fred & George, 10 – Hagrid, 9 – Ginny, 8 – Kreature, 7 – Kingsley, 6 – Filch, 5 – Bellatrix, 4 – Gilderoy Lockhart, 3 – Fleur, 2 – Sibylle Trelawney, Christmas – Snarry, Boxing Day Bonus – Harry, Boxing Day Bonus II – Snape
Artist: accioslash
Rating: G
Characters: Ensemble!
Artist's Website: her LJ where the art is usually open
Why you chose this: We’re woefully short of gen art yet so I’m hoping the mods won’t shoot me over the number of links here! I eagerly awaited each post last year as much for the snarky comments as to see which beloved character accioslash had done a caricature of next! So do the countdown or click on your favorite characters and enjoy.

Title: Tangled Webs
Gaining Access: Unlocked
Author: realmer06
Length/Word Count: 3 chapter fic, approx 15,000 words
Alternate Links to Fic: N/A
Pairing: Lavender/Ron, Hermione/Ron
Rating: T
Author's Website: Realmer06 on ff.net
Author's Summary: Everyone knows Lavender Brown. Or at least, they think they do. A look at Ron and Hermione's relationship through the point of view of one who has better reasons to watch than you might think.

Why everyone should read this: I fell in love with Realmer06's work after reading the first few lines of one of her other pieces. Her dialogue makes me want to dance around and hug someone it's that brilliant and she really makes you think about things in a different way. That was the whole concept behind this fic, as a submission for The Reviews Lounge Fanon vs Canon Challenge in which she was asked to 'look at an aspect of fanon so widely represented in fanfiction that it has become accepted as truth, and turn it on its head.' And my God did she do that!

A large proportion of Ron/Hermione fans dislike Lavender with a passion which may be a little unfair, but I guarantee that if you read this fic you will have a whole other way to look at Ron and Lavender's relationship as well as reading a stellar fic at the same time. Enjoy!

( Excerpt: Everyone fought in the war or joined the DA for different reasons... )

Mods, please can I have a ron/lavender tag? Thanks :)