an open slate...

[saturn]

I'm feeling nostalgic - almost painfully so - about next weekend's release of Deathly Hallows. I want the book RIGHT NOW and also NEVER. I read Chamber of Secrets in 1999 just prior to the release of PoA and that was it. Love. It took me another five years to succumb to HP fandom. On April 1, 2004, I wrote this: I've started reading HP fic specifically, and only, Harry/Snape. There are enablers of the evil sort lurking around here. For years I swore that I would never read HP fic. I even had a soapbox. But, Harry/Snape. There's something there. Hahaha! All these years and pairings later, I'm still a Harry/Snape girl at heart.

Deathly Hallows will joss fic the same way every book always has but, before that happens, I've been reading some of my favorite stories - post HBP and otherwise. The end result is a list of my favorite 22 pre-Deathly Hallows stories. With the exception of Harry/Snape fic, I tried to limit it to my favorite story for each of the pairings I read. (And, by "pairings I read", I mean you're not going to find much Sirius or MWPP fic.) I think the strain of picking favorites burst a few blood vessels in my head. After all this time, my favorites haven't changed much. Maybe it's nostalgia but almost all of these are stories I've loved for years.

Saturn's Definitive Harry Potter Fic Recs

Harry/Ron #1: Close Enough by helenish (NC-17) We've got some dysfunctional boys here, folks, but it's breathtaking watching them try to get their act together. Post-war.

Harry/Ron #2: Credulous Hearts by callmesandy (PG) Ron's wife is dead and he's a mess. But then he's not. Their friendship is real and tangible and underneath everything. Post-war.

Ron/Draco: A Soft Spot for Lost Causes by helenish (NC-17) Ron struggles to give Draco what he needs but only because it's something he wants, too. Post Hogwarts.

Ron/Snape: The Tao of Diogenes by thetreacletart (R) The war is finally over and two veterans meet again...for the very first time. This is one of my all time favorite Ron/Snape stories.

Trio: Bed and Board by resonant8 (NC-17) The war's over and others think they know best. Maybe Ron and Hermione really do.

Snape/Draco: Reveillon by femmequixotic (NC-17) Plot driven and well paced with excellent characterizations, this is an excellent post-HBP story. You can't help but root for Draco, Snape, and even Narcissa all along knowing where their loyalties lie.

Hermione/Snape: Body of Knowledge by arsenicjade (NC-17) Prequel to Origins of Myth. Hermione loses Draco. She finds Severus. This is one of my favorite Hermione/Snape stories. Really, though, Arsenic writes all the best Hermione/Snape. She respects Hermione tremendously and I love here Snape. You can find all of her fic here. After – or before - reading Body of Knowledge, you're also going to want to be sure you've read Origins of Myth (Ron/Draco).

Harry/Draco #1: Tissue of Silver by Fearless Diva (R) Harry is the auror sent to protect Draco from a mysterious assailant.

Harry/Draco #2: Transfigurations by resonant8 (NC-17) The war is over and it’s time to rebuild Hogwarts. Stunning story.

Black/Snape: Rat's Alley by fabularasa (NC-17) Snape’s a vampire. In six parts. This is one of the best Black/Snape stories I’ve read. Certainly required reading for anyone interested in the best of the pairing.

Lupin/Snape: The Way of the World by scribbulus_ink (NC-17) This is the story that introduced me to the pairing and it remains a favorite.

Harry/Snape: A Choriambic Progression by Mairead Triste and Aristide (NC-17) One of my all time favorite Harry/Snape stories. This is gorgeous. Just go read.


Harry/Snape: So Lonely Without Me by caligryphy (NC-17) Two men, two rooms. Takes place seven years in the future, during the war. Nice and long and simply beautiful.

Harry/Snape: Scratch by auctasinistra (NC-17) Such a beautiful story that characterizes Snape almost exactly as I imagine him should he find himself in such a situation - stoic, self-loathing, determined, afraid, hopeless, and hopeful. The ending dialogue is near flawless in it’s honesty.

Harry/Snape: Protean Charm by elanor_isolda (NC-17) Protean charm is about the seduction of power to both those who yield it and those who are in the presence of it. The characterization of Snape is one that I haven’t quite read before but it ties easily to canon and is both entirely believable and powerful.

Harry/Snape: Penance is the Play by Maeglin Yedi (NC-17) “Harry wants revenge. Harry has a plan. But is Harry Slytherin enough to avoid his own trap?” This story is brilliant from start to finish. It’s hot, in character, and the ending is perfect, perfect, perfect.

Harry/Snape: Mind Games by arsenicjade (NC-17) Occlumency lessons are revealing things. It’s surprising what you learn when you least expect it. From 5th year past graduation.

Harry/Snape: Give and It Shall Be Given Unto You by Kai (NC-17) Harry/Severus, Harry/Draco, Snape/Lucius Harry/Lucius, Harry/Severus/Lucius (some pairings are explicit, others are implied) In this brilliant universe, Snape is (willingly) in Harry’s service after he defeats Voldemort and exerts his power. Flashblacks flow seamlessly to let us see how they arrived at this juncture.

Harry/Snape: The Fourth Year by caligryphy (NC-17) "The days were hard enough to pass with the aid of chores. He could clean. He could cook. He could pretend that he was somehow still vital to some future plan. His life would never be his own, granted, but there was a possibility he could still contribute. Until then, he would maintain. He would master the (sadly) domestic spheres available to him. He would wait. He would scrub. He would stew." Post HBP. Long, plotty, lovely.

Harry/Snape: Crucius by Dolores Crane (NC-17) Harry turns to Snape when he leaves Hogwarts. A long time favorite.

Harry/Snape: Contemporary Magical Innovations, by H. Granger by Kai (R) There’s always more to be told than what’s written in the history books. Post-Hogwarts and exceptionally well done. It's still original after all this time.

Harry/Snape: Aqua Fresca by stellahobbit (NC-17) A fabulolus vampire fic I read over and over and over again.


As always, all 275+ of my Harry Potter recs can be found over at Moonshot. You'll see I shamelessly nicked these reviews from what I said over there. :)

Anyone have favorites of their own to share?