Javert/Valjean recs
I had this list set to "private" because I wanted to keep working on it and make sure I'd put together all the gems I like best, but, uh. I've become overwhelmed with how much good J/V fic there is, so the thought of "finishing" this, or getting it up-to-date even, became kind of... Well, I'm just going to post it as is. Maybe someday I'll come back and fix it it up. But for now, I may as well just make this public and leave it here for anyone who might stumble along.
Toulon
Beneath the Lash by Michelle Mercy
An uprising breaks out in the prison and Valjean and Javert are caught in the middle of it.
Gone by Corvid Angel
Javert is troubled by dreams. (Ho, boy, repression!) This one follows the 1978 movie where Valjean's final escape attempt is successful.
Montreuil-sur-Mer (and beyond)
Themis Diana & Beggarman Thief by silverbird13
Two very well-written little fics featuring female!Javert and female!Valjean. Yay genderbending!
But M le Maire-- by Michelle Mercy
Valjean and Javert play cat-and-mouse. (Or gay chicken.)
Punishment by aunt_zelda [R]
After Javert makes what he believes to be an egregious mistake (accusing the mayor of being a convict), he begs to be punished... Against his better judgement, Valjean agrees. Features barely-closeted-submissive!Javert, repressing-lots-of-anger!Valjean, D/S and UST! Warning: Dub-Con.
*The Man You Take Me For by scioscribe
An understated but devastating exploration of what life might have looked like for Valjean (and Javert) if he had remained Mayor instead of revealing his true identity when another man was falsely identified as him in court.
*Three Days (or The One Where Javert and Valjean Take a Road Trip Through France and Raise a Child) by zamwessell (greencarnation) [NC-17 in later chapters]
Exactly what the title says. When Valjean promises that three days are all he needs before he'll let Javert take him back to prison, Javert calls his bluff and accompanies him to retrieve Fantine's orphaned daughter. Awkwardness, fluff, angst, lots of UST and eventually smut ensues, and all of it is delightful.
No Worse Than Any Man by Waltzin Atlana
Another look at a world where Valjean remains mayor, but this time, it's out of his hands. Told from Javert's perspective, as he is slowly won over by the general awesomeness of Monsieur Madeline.
Trespass by Corvid Angel [R]
Javert agrees to give Valjean one night of freedom before taking him to prison. Valjean wants to make the most of it, aaaand all the sense of Javert's world is shattered.
Paris/the barricades
Simple, Crude, Insufficient Words by MsBanks
"In which Javert goes undercover at number 50-52, desperately attempts to remain on the right side of the fine line between love and hate, and is wrong about nearly everything nearly all of the time."
Sachant. by Auntarctica, Greekhoop [NC-17]
Valjean rescues Javert at the barricade... Assumes a prior relationship back in Montreuil-sur-Mer. Dub-con.
Post-river...
*my heart lies buried like something dead by Cinaed
Valjean convinces Javert to live. Sometime later, Javert returns the favor.
*The Drowning Sky by zamwessell (greencarnation) [R/NC-17]
Valjean pulls Javert out of the river and takes him home to recover. Javert, figuring he's already damned, tries to drag Valjean down with him, or make Valjean punish him, or something (I don't think Javert is very clear on what his own motives are here). But that's not exactly what happens.
*The Resignation of Inspector Javert by wraithwitch
Valjean pulls Javert out of the river and takes him home to recover. And they talk things out, a lot, and very eloquently! (And then have sex. But I guess that chapter is optional, like a choose-your-own-adventure.)
The Final Exile of Jean Valjean also by wraithwitch
Sequel to "The Resignation of Inspector Javert," in which Javert and Valjean talk things out some more, but this time it's Valjean under the microscope and Javert in a healthy place mentally at last.
*As Lucifer Fell by Sue
An apparition stops Javert from going through his plan to commit suicide. Instead, he seeks out Valjean.
A Christmas Tale by Sandi
Sequel to "As Lucifer Fell."
Between the Dog and the Wolf by AmZ
"A month after the barricades fall, Valjean finds himself in the middle of a mystery. Violence, language, mild sexuality." AmZ has a unique and compelling take on Javert. (While most J/V fanfic reminds me of Rorschach/Daniel (if you're familiar with Watchmen), this series to me feels much closer to Holmes/Watson than anything else.)
Port au Change by Arlene C. Harris
This one has been published, and looks quite good from the sample I read!
Toulon
Beneath the Lash by Michelle Mercy
An uprising breaks out in the prison and Valjean and Javert are caught in the middle of it.
Gone by Corvid Angel
Javert is troubled by dreams. (Ho, boy, repression!) This one follows the 1978 movie where Valjean's final escape attempt is successful.
Montreuil-sur-Mer (and beyond)
Themis Diana & Beggarman Thief by silverbird13
Two very well-written little fics featuring female!Javert and female!Valjean. Yay genderbending!
But M le Maire-- by Michelle Mercy
Valjean and Javert play cat-and-mouse. (Or gay chicken.)
Punishment by aunt_zelda [R]
After Javert makes what he believes to be an egregious mistake (accusing the mayor of being a convict), he begs to be punished... Against his better judgement, Valjean agrees. Features barely-closeted-submissive!Javert, repressing-lots-of-anger!Valjean, D/S and UST! Warning: Dub-Con.
*The Man You Take Me For by scioscribe
An understated but devastating exploration of what life might have looked like for Valjean (and Javert) if he had remained Mayor instead of revealing his true identity when another man was falsely identified as him in court.
*Three Days (or The One Where Javert and Valjean Take a Road Trip Through France and Raise a Child) by zamwessell (greencarnation) [NC-17 in later chapters]
Exactly what the title says. When Valjean promises that three days are all he needs before he'll let Javert take him back to prison, Javert calls his bluff and accompanies him to retrieve Fantine's orphaned daughter. Awkwardness, fluff, angst, lots of UST and eventually smut ensues, and all of it is delightful.
No Worse Than Any Man by Waltzin Atlana
Another look at a world where Valjean remains mayor, but this time, it's out of his hands. Told from Javert's perspective, as he is slowly won over by the general awesomeness of Monsieur Madeline.
Trespass by Corvid Angel [R]
Javert agrees to give Valjean one night of freedom before taking him to prison. Valjean wants to make the most of it, aaaand all the sense of Javert's world is shattered.
Paris/the barricades
Simple, Crude, Insufficient Words by MsBanks
"In which Javert goes undercover at number 50-52, desperately attempts to remain on the right side of the fine line between love and hate, and is wrong about nearly everything nearly all of the time."
Sachant. by Auntarctica, Greekhoop [NC-17]
Valjean rescues Javert at the barricade... Assumes a prior relationship back in Montreuil-sur-Mer. Dub-con.
Post-river...
*my heart lies buried like something dead by Cinaed
Valjean convinces Javert to live. Sometime later, Javert returns the favor.
*The Drowning Sky by zamwessell (greencarnation) [R/NC-17]
Valjean pulls Javert out of the river and takes him home to recover. Javert, figuring he's already damned, tries to drag Valjean down with him, or make Valjean punish him, or something (I don't think Javert is very clear on what his own motives are here). But that's not exactly what happens.
*The Resignation of Inspector Javert by wraithwitch
Valjean pulls Javert out of the river and takes him home to recover. And they talk things out, a lot, and very eloquently! (And then have sex. But I guess that chapter is optional, like a choose-your-own-adventure.)
The Final Exile of Jean Valjean also by wraithwitch
Sequel to "The Resignation of Inspector Javert," in which Javert and Valjean talk things out some more, but this time it's Valjean under the microscope and Javert in a healthy place mentally at last.
*As Lucifer Fell by Sue
An apparition stops Javert from going through his plan to commit suicide. Instead, he seeks out Valjean.
A Christmas Tale by Sandi
Sequel to "As Lucifer Fell."
Between the Dog and the Wolf by AmZ
"A month after the barricades fall, Valjean finds himself in the middle of a mystery. Violence, language, mild sexuality." AmZ has a unique and compelling take on Javert. (While most J/V fanfic reminds me of Rorschach/Daniel (if you're familiar with Watchmen), this series to me feels much closer to Holmes/Watson than anything else.)
Port au Change by Arlene C. Harris
This one has been published, and looks quite good from the sample I read!