all duct tape and safety pins inside

title. burn
author. bungee
type. injury
rating. pg-13
words. 1,865
characters. sam, dean, (john)
summary. sam gets his first drink at twelve years old, going ninety down a two-lane highway in the middle-of-nowhere, south dakota. there's snot and blood and tears all over his face, and his leg hurts like a sonuvabitch.
reccer's comments. sam is injured on a hunt and dean is panicky and scared out of his mind for his brother.

title. long-term consequences
author. oscared3
type. chronic pain, broken bones/fractures
rating. g
words. 3,400
characters. sam, dean, john, jess, ruby
summary. only one person knows how to make it stop. (from the age of 15, sam has to deal with chronic pain.)
reccer's comments. sam breaks his scapula during a hunt and must deal with the consequences for the rest of his life. this fic uses sam's pain to illustrate the brothers' undying bond.

title. remembering how to dream
author. ancastar
type. fever, deliriums
rating. pg-13 (reccer's rating)
words. 4,100
characters. dean, sam
summary. (s5) sam is out of his head with fever for whatever reason and thinks dean is ruby and that his brother is still in hell.
reccer's comments. a much-needed moment between the brothers. great writing and some really gutting lines.

title. the noise of stars
author. unperfectwolf
type. deafness
rating. pg-13
words. 2,900
characters. sam, dean
summary. even when you know it's coming, dealing with the consequences of a deal made with a demon is never easy.
reccer's comments. sam saves dean from hell, but at the loss of one of his senses. a lovely look at how much sam is willing to sacrifice for dean.

title. laid low by damascus
author. kroki_refur
type. angst
rating. pg-13
words. 2,128
characters. sam
summary. he’s fourteen years old, and he can’t remember his home-room teacher’s name. he knows three summoning spells by heart, but he doesn’t know any of his neighbors. He can dismantle a glock and put it back together, but there’s no food in the house, and there’s no-one to call.
reccer's comments. dean and john leave a fourteen-year-old sam home to go on a hunt. while waiting for them, sam comes to realize that everything in his life is transitory and there's absolutely nothing to stop him from losing his family.

title. still the empty hands in which the hours never pool
author. nantahala
type. self-harm
rating. r
words. 1,352
pairing. sam/dean
summary. he cleans the knives with methodical precision, but sometimes he cuts his finger on the blade as it comes off the whetstone.
reccer's comments. a coda to 4.22. beautiful writing and a deftly dealt with sensitive subject make this gem of a fic believable.

title. a bleak understanding in reverse
author. lustmordred
type. cancer
rating. nc-17
words. 12,320
pairings. sam/dean
warnings. language, character death
summary. it was hard to imagine that life without monsters could still kill them.
reccer's comments. a beautiful, potent, heartbreaking fic.