A Holmesian Solstice

Title: The Pearl
Recipient: rabidsamfan
Author: truly_bohemian
Characters/Pairings: Mary/Watson, Mary/Mrs. Cecil Forrester, Holmes
Rating: G
Warnings: Spoilers for Sign of Four and everything following I suppose? Apart from that, nothing.
Notes: Many thanks to thesmallhobbit for betaing.
Summary: Magical Realism AU. Mary Morstan Watson's disappearance was not a death, merely a changing of shells.

( The Pearl )

Title: History, Revised
Recipient: rhuia
Author: numberthescars
Characters/Pairings: Holmes/Watson
Rating: PG
Warnings: Angst, grief, brief mentions of canonical violence
Summary: In the spring of 1892, Aloysius Garcia was killed, John Watson was confused, and Sherlock Holmes was in two places at once.
Author’s Notes: This is basically my attempt to explain the timing of The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge, which Doyle dates to the spring of 1892 – smack in the middle of the Great Hiatus! I’ve taken a few liberties with history for the sake of the story, since (as my wonderful beta informed me) Wisteria Lodge was actually first printed in the States, and only later in The Strand. Endless thanks to tweedisgood for her fantastic beta skills and to rhuia for the inspiring prompt. Happy holidays!

( History, Revised )

Title: Staged
Recipient: tazlet
Author: blighted_garden
Characters/Pairings: Holmes/Watson
Rating: R
Warnings: Mild violence, sexual content.
Summary: A retelling of Doyle’s The Adventure of the Speckled Band. In which Holmes faces the frenzy of a young Miss Helen Stoner, struggles with the temperament of an imported cheetah and encourages the curious hands of Dr. John Watson.
Notes: I have moved the date of SPEC from April to winter, in the spirit of the winter solstice. Thank you to swissmarg for the efficient last minute beta, and for tolerating what errors I’m capable of at four in the morning. Happy holidays tazlet, and I hope that this pleases you!

( Staged )

Title: A Sound Prospect
Recipient: kirstenlouise
Author: musamihi
Characters/Pairings: Jim Moriarty/Mycroft Holmes
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Dubious consent, hateful/sexist/homophobic language, violence, references to torture; explicit sexual content, references to cross-dressing.
Summary: Mycroft invites James Moriarty, a brilliant but reckless young man, into his world – and then scrambles to stop him eating it from the inside out.
Notes: Happy holidays, kirstenlouise! I was so thrilled to get your prompt - I hope you enjoy it.

( A Sound Prospect )

Title: The Other Tenant
Read on A03: Here
’Verse: ACD Canon
Recipient: coloredink
Author: tweedisgood
Pairing: Holmes/Watson implied
Rating: G
Word count: ~6,200
Warnings: None really, usual Victorian homophobia , racism, classism, sexism.
Summary: “The Doctor made no mention of the other tenants of Baker Street when he began to write about Mr Holmes and his cases.” The Landlady, however, has quite a few things to say about one of them.
Notes: have played slightly with the chronology of the stories to fit my plot, but probably not much more than did ACD. Beta thanks to mad_with_july and spacemutineer .

( The Other Tenant )

Title: And the bells were ringing out
Recipient: ms_soma
Author: corialis
Characters/Pairings: John/Sherlock
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Brief but significant mention of events in TRF, avoid if you are somehow unspoiled.
Summary: 221B attempts a traditional Christmas.
Notes: With apologies to The Pogues and thanks to prodigy.

( And the bells were ringing out )

Title: Long Distance II
Recipient: almost_clara
Author: brighteyed_jill
Characters/Pairings:Sherlock/John, Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade, Mycroft
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: discussion of illness

Author's note: A text-only version of this story is available here, and will be available on AO3 after the reveal. Thanks to [redacted] for the last minute beta, and Tony Harrison for the title inspiration, from his poem. I owe an obvious debt to Arthur Conan Doyle.

Summary: While John is out of town, Sherlock contracts a mysterious illness.

( Mrs. Hudson, the landlady of Sherlock Holmes, was a long-suffering woman. )

Title: New Beginnings
Recipient: lyrical_sky
Author: Saharra Shadow
Characters/Pairings: John/Sherlock
Rating: PG
Warnings: Au
Summary: John returns home, but finds that even his surprise inheritance of a bookstore isn’t the calm peace he thought he needed. Oddly enough, that’s fine with him.

( New Beginnings )