Before Secret Santa '24 Makes Us All Happy With New Fiction And Art: A Far-from-complete List Of Beatles

Before Secret Santa '24 makes us all happy with new fiction and art: A far-from-complete list of Beatles (mostly mclennon) Christmas fics

...roughly in chronological order, from earliest days to modern AU's

• And to you a happy chrimbo (@fingersfallingupwards). John and Paul’s first Christmas together…short and sweet and very them.

• Silent Night (Hidden Track) (@savageandwise)…strangeness after their first kiss, solved by presents and a near drainpipe collision.

• Boxing Day 1958 (@beatlessideblog). I Need You Darlin’ extra (omegaverse). Paul and John’s first Christmas together after they bonded, and they try it “the other way around.”

• Christmas lights (keep shinin’ on) (distinguishd_like). John spends Christmas 1958 with the McCartney family—and they end up confessing their love in a way only they could.

• Hot Cocoa (@toovirgins). Mistletoe romance in the McCartneys' kitchen. Sorry about your favorite cup, Jim.

• Mike Storms the Bastille (@m1ssunderstanding). John and Paul escape to Paris and stay there; Mike and George visit them for Christmas in the winter of 1961. Yes, Lennon/McCartney, but: Mike & George works *so* well.

• There snowbound together (@backbenttulips): 1961. Paul visits John and at Mendips, and they keep each other warm by the fireside. A soul-nourishing story, and they’re 150% in character.

• Mistletoe (thinkpink20): A classic for a reason. Paul watches John kiss Cynthia, and gets an idea. The two of them against a wall‚ what more does this world need, really?

• The Spirit’s Up (@swinginglondon42): It starts in Hamburg: Ringo plays Father Christmas for Paul…a tradition is born. TW: drum stick defilement.

• The Present (@ohjohnnysblog). Hamburg. The first Christmas without Stu. Paul comforts John. The late-night banter in bed is so lovely, and the ending is hot…!

• I’ll Be Home for Christmas (@savageandwise). 1963 Christmas Show. Paul and John miss each other, and finally admit to it.

• So, I’m offering this simple phrase (frogchorus). John and Paul escape from fame and being Beatles on a walk through the snow.

• Let your heart be light (@backbenttulips). John spends Christmas 1967 at Paul’s place, and all is right with the world.

• Blue Christmas (@theoldmixer). Brian lives AU! 1968. It’s Christmas, and there is tension between John and Paul. Still. Again. Their manager intervenes.

Post-1980 (John lives AU)

• Leads Me to Your Door (@bluewater9). 1989. Paul had a difficult year, but John finds him at Christmas. Sad in places, but so beautiful and comforting in the end! All-time favorite. <3

• Just Like the Ones We Used to Know (@econhomework). Paul and John are married with children…but this is just them, early in the morning. In bed. With lovely memories of their young love tied-in.

• This Year’s for Me and You (@skylikeaflame). 1998. Paul and John both loved others, but now their life-long love finally has its turn—with their children’s blessing. Beautiful poetic masterpiece.

Modern AU

• Talk santa to me (@backbenttulips). John volunteers as Santa at Macy’s. His ex, Paul, appears unexpectedly, and seats his pert bottom on his lap.

• Can You Still Love Me Tomorrow (ImagineBeatles). John is secretly in love with his best friend, Paul, and yet he agrees to be his pretend boyfriend for Christmas. Together they face Paul’s dad’s “piercing looks of disapproval.”

• I wish I had met you when your heart was safe to hold (goingmywaydoll). High Fidelity AU: record shop owner John asks his exes what went wrong between him and the one who got away—Paul.

Today of all days: fics in which John is old and happy!

Take a sad song, and make it better (@javelinbk). Excellent fix-it. “What would have happened if John had taken up Paul’s offer to come to the UK in 1980?” There’s also a Christmas follow-up and a sweet, fluffy extra!

(Just Like) Starting Over (dollylux). 8 December 1980, and John and Paul are writing together. The magic is still there.

Would you still love me if I were a worm? (@unchaineddaisychain). Old McLennon discuss hypotheticals. In bed. This is how it should have been!

Here Today (HerSpecialAgent005). John and Paul got together in the 1970’s, and live in Scotland. In December 1980, they invite friends and family for a cozy dinner—but Paul feels anxious for no reason he can explain…

Grow Old with Me (@inherownwr1te). Old McLennon on the Scottish farm, a broken arm, taking care of each other. Old love at its finest!

oh darling, pardon me (can you help me remember?) (@inherownwr1te; set in the same ‘verse as “Grow Old With Me”): Paul is nervous about the release of his and John’s next album. John soothes him with a tried-and-true method…by combing his legs. Seeing these two being sweet and bantering together is good for the soul.

Take the shape my body makes (backbenttulips). Mid 1980s. Married McLennon find themselves in a sex shop, watch Beatle porn, and fuck. Then they shop at Williams Sonoma. Pure Utopian bliss.

Having Coffee (dornfelder). “In a world where Mark Chapman doesn’t shoot John Lennon, the Beatles reunite in 1982. In 1983, John and Paul are outed by the tabloid press.It’s 2020, and two journalists are on their way to meet them in their home in Central London.” Interview/Article fic that nails the reporting voice and John and Paul’s voices perfectly.

everything that dies someday comes back (@backbenttulips). 2008. Paul is divorcing Heather; John is out as bi. After a lifetime of being friends and loving others, they are free to declare their love. I’m enjoying this one, because it honors the other relationships in both of their lives, while also leaving space for the lifelong big love they never lost: each other.