Fan Fiction Friday: Tumblr’s 20 Best Femslash One-Shots

Tumblr is a gift from the fandom gods, a enormous playground of visual and intellectual delights that you could spend your whole entire lesbian life exploring without ever running out of new things to experience. Last week, I asked you guys to send me Tumblr drabbles, the best one-shots for your favorite lady-lady couples that are buried in the nooks of fandom and not available on major fan fiction sites — and boy, did you ever oblige!

I have gathered up 20 of the best drabbles y’all sent to me. I tried to avoid fandom overlap, but I received ten times more Brittany/Santana recommendations than all other fandoms combined, so you’ll see them here more than once. (They’re getting married; they deserve the celebration!) You also sent me some frikkin’ amazing fan art, so I’m showcasing that, too!

Also, I want to give a special hat tip to Femslash Revolution, which is going to be my go-to Tumblr for fan fiction recommendations and research from now on.


Tumblr: fortythousandth

Pairing: SilMil Uranus and Neptune, Sailor Moon

It’s her birthday, okay, and maybe it doesn’t make sense to keep track of birthdays when you’re functionally immortal, and it makes even less sense trying to figure out the equivalency of a lunar year billions of kilometers away on Uranus, but it’s one of the few little things she never let go upon taking up her post.

And you’re supposed to spend your birthday with people you care about, but she hasn’t seen Neptune in way too long, and they’re still years away, too far out to even begin to look forward to being guaranteed to see each other at Queen Serenity’s next ball, and honestly, more than anything, Uranus is just so fucking lonely.


Tumblr: Where’sMyNaya

Pairing: Brittany and Santana, Glee

When Brittany blinks away her leftover sleepiness to see Santana still soundly asleep, even snoring a little, she smiles. After giving birth to their daughter Charlie, Santana had become a bit of an early bird which Brittany finds hysterical because back in high school no amount of kisses or promises of sexy times could wake the girl up. With wanting the brunette to get as much rest as possible, Brittany pressed one soft kiss to Santana’s cheek and carefully slid out of bed determined to uphold their Sunday morning tradition: breakfast in bed.


Tumblr: possibilistfanfiction

Pairing: Korra and Asami, Legend of Korra

You’ve been helping Korra with calculating volume for about an hour and a half in the coffee shop, where you still come to do homework at least four times a week, but you keep getting distracted by her, because she keeps pushing hair behind her ear and biting her lip in concentration.

It’s getting colder, because it’s almost November, and you’re working on some new designs while she does her calc homework, which you check it after she’s finished. You’re in your glasses and a beanie and a big sweater—you’ve had a busy month, so you haven’t had it in you to try very hard with blazers and neat hair—and Korra’s in sweatpants and a university women’s soccer t-shirt and a pair of TOMS that she should really throw away; the playoffs for her are coming up, so she’s exhausted too.


Tumblr: avesnongrata

Pairing: Maria Hill and Natasha Romanov, The Avengers

“Jesus Christ, Natasha, not again,” Maria gasps, nearly jumping out of her skin when she comes into her bathroom to find Natasha lounging sleepily in her bathtub.

“It’s good to see you, too,” Natasha teases, flicking water at her.

“You know,” Maria sighs, exasperated, “I should make you a punch card: break into my apartment while I’m at work 10 times, get a spare set of keys for free.”


Tumblr: racethewind10

Pairing: Helena and Myka, Warehouse 13

Ice clinks softly against the side of the glass as Helena lifts the tumbler to her nose, inhaling the sharp scent that rises from the amber liquid within. Her eyes are closed as she takes a sip, holds the liquid on her tongue until she can distinguish the notes of oak and peat at its base. She swallows and it burns, hot and clean and pure all the way down her throat.

A pale hand reaches out and wraps around a tall bottle bearing a black label with a stag. She pours holding the neck. Its inelegant and impolite. She doesn’t care. The scotch catches the firelight as she brings the glass back to her lips, the flames flickering in the deep gold liquid.

The tumbler never makes it to her mouth.


Tumblr: orangeyougladyou8

Pairing: Brittany and Santana, Glee

You can tell she’s bad news just from the way she moves through the crowd.

She doesn’t move at all, she glides.

She parts the crowd with her aura.

Not once does she get bumped or shoved or stopped. She just oozes through like air.

You’re standing by the bar when you see her, she slides through the room like a lion on the prowl. She’s all blonde hair and blue eyes and legs, legs, legs.

Yeah, she’s bad news.

And you can’t take your eyes off of her.


Tumblr: writetherest

Pairing: Emma and Regina, Once Upon a Time

She’s struck by the image, by the reminder of another time when Emma had sat on the bathroom floor holding not Henry, but Regina herself as she’d sobbed over the two lines staring up at her from in between them. Emma had held her, soothed her, assured her over and over that she would be there, that Regina could do this, that it would all be okay. And it had.

It had. Because Emma was there. Just like she’d been there on the day that Regina had been kicked out of the only home she’d ever known, offering up a place to stay without even a thought and going herself to pack up Regina’s things because she just couldn’t face her mother again. Just like she’d been there only a week later when Regina got the call about Daniel’s accident and like she’d been there at the funeral, holding Regina’s hand and helping to grieve the boy that she knew she could’ve loved, if only she’d had more time.


Tumblr: momentary-ecstasy

Pairing: Root and Shaw, Person of Interest

“That woman,” Joan looked down the street at a pair of women walking toward them. She had reluctantly agreed to have brunch with Jamie and only have there are been established ground rules. She narrowed her eyes, “She looks familiar.”

Jamie turned around and looked at the people on the sidewalk passing by. She was about to tell Joan that it was rude to not pay attention to her brunch date when a woman walking toward them stopped her cold.

The other woman stutter stepped when her eyes met Jamie’s. She slowed her walk. The woman with her stopped and looked from the brunette woman looking at a blonde sitting at the table.

“Hi Sweetie,” the brunette put on a smile, “Did you miss me?”


Tumblr: cumaeansibyl

Pairing: Peggy and Angie, Agent Carter

“Well, surely it isn’t a requirement,” says Peggy, back in Angie’s apartment.

“I dunno, English,” Angie says. “It might be kinda fun.”

The next time Peggy walks into Angie’s room, ready for a night on the town, she finds the little waitress decked out in the very finest from Sol’s secondhand store down the street: unfashionably narrow trousers rolled up twice at the cuffs, boys’ wingtip shoes, a too-big khaki uniform shirt bloused out at the waist. Angie’s hair is tucked up under a newsboy’s cap, her thumbs are tucked under a pair of bright red suspenders, and she’s grinning like the tiniest, snottiest, trouble-makingest punk kid who ever got in a back-alley scuffle over a game of marbles.


Tumblr: sarahdoesfandom

Pairing: Allison and Lydia, Teen Wolf

Allison doesn’t lie to her. She absconds from the truth in Lydia’s room, curls next to the pillows and buries her head in her arms.

Allison doesn’t lie to her. When their toes touch just shy of the covers and their eyes meet in the dark. She doesn’t lie. Her eyes are wet, her lips parted.

There are no words to tell because this year has been hell and Lydia has needed nothing but someone to just stay. Stay for a little while. Please. She has wanted to scream it out loud as all the wrong ripped through her and left her empty and grasping for something.

Only no one was there.

She wanted Allison and her pink lips and her hesitance. She wanted those lips stuck between her teeth and manicures in quiet afternoons and late evenings.


Tumblr: minister-for-femslash

Pairing: Spencer and Paige, Pretty Little Liars

Spencer rests back against the cubicle wall, desperately trying to catch her breath. Her body quivers as Paige draws the lock across and then slowly turns around. She watches as Paige pushes the hair away from her face, allowing Spencer to see her dark brown eyes still clouded with lust and desire. Spencer’s knees are already weak and when Paige’s thumb touches her bottom lip, brushing against it softly she almost drops to the floor, it’s pure willpower that keeps her standing. Paige just laughs, her hand snaking around Spencer’s neck, deliberately tickling at the sensitive spot she knows is there.


Tumblr: thecousinsdangereux

Pairing: Skye and Jemma, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Which, okay, the car selection was totally not Skye’s call so it isn’t really her fault that their Fortress of Fun in the back seat makes it really hard to climb into the front seat and get the car started before the guy with the semi-automatic gets close enough to shoot through the front window.

So that means a Plan B is in order.

Or… maybe a Plan C, because Jemma’s binder full of information about their secret, anti-parent-trap identities is probably the Plan B that Skye isn’t thinking about at all when she pulls a struggling-to-untangle-herself-from-her-Snuggie Jemma into her lap and kisses her.

Like… really kisses her.


Tumblr: brocanteur

Pairing: Joan and Jaime, Elementary

Moriarty’s smile trembles when the door closes behind her. She stares at Joan, her eyes narrowed in the dim light, her mouth quirked in that particular way of hers, as she strips out of her wet clothes, as Joan brings a blanket to wrap around her shoulders.

“How did you find me?”

“How do I always find you?” Moriarty asks.

Joan makes tea, ignoring Moriarty’s snipes about the weather, about indulging Romantic sojourns.


Tumblr: novelconcepts

Pairing: Cosima and Delphine, Orphan Black

Delphine moves against her searching hand, pressing her face to the curve of Cosima’s cheek. It strikes her, suddenly, dizzily, that she is actually in the process of getting her hand down the pants of a cop, and Cosima would be laughing her ass off—except Delphine is making this insanely hot little noise against her skin, breath puffing hot, hips working. She gets a thigh between Cosima’s legs, and it’s all downhill from there: no words, only rock and grind, ebb and flow. Cosima’s arm slides around her shoulders, her skin painted with damp breath.

Not Beth’s, she thinks, her mind spiraling somewhere between velocity and friction. Not Beth’s, not even a little, Jesus, Delphine—


Tumblr: karatam

Pairing: Chloe and Becca, Pitch Perfect

“We really shouldn’t be doing this.” Beca meant to sound forceful and admonishing, but it came out kind of breathy and not at all intimidating. That might have something to do with the hickey Chloe was no doubt leaving right below her collarbone.

“No? And why not?” Chloe smiling as she bites down just hard enough to make Beca yelp. She’d look up, but there are hands in her hair holding on rather tightly.

“You’re my – oh god – superior officer and the CAG. Jesus, Chloe.” Beca drops her head to rest against the lockers Chloe has her pressed up to. “Commander Posen already hates me, I’d hate to give her another reason.”


Tumblr: themostrandomfandom

Pairing: Brittany and Santana, Glee

Brittany figures that if her parents really didn’t want her to see Santana today, they would have banned her from going to school, the Lima Bean, and Cheerios practice; they also probably would have thought twice about giving Brittany the okay to take her sister out to see a movie on a Friday night, knowing how much Brittany and Santana like seeing movies and how much they like each other.

(Friday night is date night. Duh.)

The fact is that Brittany and Santana will always find ways to see each other, even when Brittany’s parents ground her—it’s just like a law of nature or something. Brittany’s parents know better than to fight nature.

(They’re pretty smart sometimes, in their own way, Brittany guesses.)


Tumblr: hollsteinz

Pairing: Laura/Carmilla, Carmilla

“Laura Hollis,” Carmilla said, not ceasing eye contact. “You are the most brilliant, most dedicated girl I’ve ever met. You are prepped. You are ready.” Carmilla snaked her hands around Laura’s waist, pulling her torso and chest as close as possible. “And I know you’re not having a good time with that,” Carmilla gestured to Laura’s notes, “because I haven’t heard you laugh for almost two hours.” Carmilla frowned. “You know how sad I get when I don’t hear your laugh.”

Laura scrunched her nose and let out a huff. “I know, I just really need to go over my notes one more time…” Laura said, her eyes shifting back to an open binder on her desk. Carmilla kissed Laura on her cheek, bringing Laura’s attention back to her girlfriend.

“One more time, but that’s it,” Carmilla said, letting go of her girlfriend, so she could continue studying.

But, of course, Carmilla had no intention of letting her girlfriend continue studying.


Tumblr: malefices

Pairing: Jo and Charlie, Supernatural

The girl is a pretty redhead with a Harry Potter t-shirt, and she’s staring at Jo behind thick-rimmed glasses, eyes wide.

“Hi,” Jo says with a grin, offering her hand. “I’m –”

“Jo Harvelle,” The girl blurts out, shaking her hand enthusiastically. “God, you’re even prettier than I imagined.”

That makes Jo pause, and the girl blushes a fierce red.

“Wow, that was really creepy. I mean, I’ve read the books? And you’re one of my favorite characters. I had a huge crush on you. Not that you’re a character, obviously. Well, you are, but you also exist, which makes you a –human being…” Her voice trails off, and she looks away with a sigh. “God, I’m so awkward.”


Tumblr: fayrose

Pairing: Eleanor and Max, Black Sails

All of Noonan’s women were beautiful, but this woman was exquisite. She had the most beautiful eyes, so dark that they seemed almost black until the candlelight caught them, setting them gleaming the very richest of browns, bright with life and laughter. Her skin – and Eleanor had the good fortune of being able to feast her eyes on a good deal of it – glowed a deep, flawless bronze that turned rosy at her cheeks and pinker still at her lips. And what lips they were; full and tempting as they twisted up in a smile. Her hair too was quite remarkable, curling and gleaming with a perfection that Eleanor had only seen in paintings and the fine sculpture work of the classics. Curves she had too. Small and slight though she was, she had curves enough to make Eleanor’s mouth water and her body thrum. If Eleanor believed that there had ever been an Eve, then this woman, she was sure, would be the image of her. She could tempt even the most devout of men to sin, and Eleanor was far from devout.

“Fuck,” Eleanor breathed, dizzy from desire. She could not remember when she had felt the like of it. Perhaps never at all. Women always did seem to have a way of making her lose her sense quicker, even if the endpoint was more or less the same. Well, not quite, but that was all part of the fun, was it not?


Tumblr: iiallthesmallthingsii

Pairing: America Chavez and Kate Bishop, The Young Avengers

Suddenly, a clatter was heard from outside and Kate struggled to pull away. ”Easy there, princess. Probably just Lucky,” America reassured Kate, returning her lips to teasing kisses between Kate’s thighs.

“Hey, Katie, you in here?” It was none other than Clint Barton, resident Hawkeye, who stumbled into the room, staring in wonder at the arrows in his hands. “I brought back some pizza and you gotta check out these new arrows I — ” It was at this moment that the man looked up to find his flatmate in a rather compromising position. He let out an un-human squawk that sounded more parrot than hawk and turned as red as America’s boots. Turning around to leave, he slammed into the door frame, calmly took a step to the side, and exited the room closing the door behind him.

Kate attempted to sit up. ”That was embarrassing,” she said, her face as red as Clint’s.

“Whoa there, princess. We aren’t done yet,” America told her, forcing her hips back down. She made quick work of Kate, and the two of them put their clothes on, preparing for what they would meet outside.


Share your favorite Tumblr one-shots in the comments!

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Heather Hogan

Heather Hogan is an Autostraddle senior editor who lives in New York City with her wife, Stacy, and their cackle of rescued pets. She's a member of the Television Critics Association, GALECA: The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics, and a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer critic. You can also find her on Twitter and Instagram.

Heather has written 1719 articles for us.

42 Comments

  1. This made me think to go to FanFiction.net and look for some “The Librarians” fanfic. So far they haven’t paired Cassandra with any women. We all saw “The Fables of Doom” and the “Loom of Fate”. She’s gay. Write her with another girl.

  2. I’m wondering if there’s any Dorothy/Charlie Fic out there for S’natch as I lovingly refer to it. I fear if I fall down that rabbit hole I may never return and I have deadlines.

    • If you fall down that rabbit hole, will you crawl out for just a minute to come here and share your findings with the class? Please!

  3. I love everything about this.

    And it’s refreshing to see fanfiction that’s a) queer lady centered and b) not Glee related.

    • That whooshing sound you hear is me running off to print the ones that focus on Maria Hill and Natasha Romanoff (and in all likelihood probably also the ones about Charlie). Maybe I have a thing for redheads.

  4. This column always makes my day. Maybe sometime you could do a post devoted to the Warehouse 13 ladies (Myka/HG is a beautiful pairing but I’m having trouble finding femslash involving Claudia Donovan) or one for Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D? I am very here for queer Melinda May.

    • Yes to all of those things! It’s ridiculous that there’s not more Claudia fic out there!

      • I know, but I’m honestly not a huge Cleena fan. Leena just seems so timeless and ancient, even if she’s actually quite young. She’s always felt to me as more of a mother/aunt/guardian figure to the team, particularly to Claudia, than anything else.

  5. I always love this column. Thanks, Heather, for showcasing these awesome stories! And finally some Carmilla love at Autostraddle!

  6. I would like to *thank* whoever recommended that Hermione/Bellatrix fic a few weeks back. “These Gilded Chains”?
    Anyways, I have been keeping out of the HP fandom for good reason..that was bloody brilliant! I forewent sleep, food and water only to leave the house after 7 pm, unshowered with a coffeine withdrawal headache.
    Also kudos to Warehouse 13’s “The Twisted Turbine”. All of that smoking made me want to yell at the characters at some point, but it was well worth it!
    And thanks, Heather, now I feel inclined to wrestle that beast by the name of Tumblr after all..
    Thank you especially much for that pretty Bering&Wells drawing, these two do hold a space in my heart something dear.

      • You know, grief makes people do absurdly crazy stuff. That’s my explanation for Season 5.
        I think I needs me a bottle of Bailey’s and then I’ll be watching season 3 fanvids for the rest of the evening.
        Or maybe listen to at least three different versions of “Running Up That Hill”.
        After I’m done with that, I’ll gather some great, albeit mostly unfinished Myka/HG fic recs.

  7. I love minister-for-femslash for Paige couples and Faberrittanainthetardis for well, any PLL couples.

  8. Um, I just want to say thank you for this because I’ve been hoping you would do some Joan Watson/Moriarty, Kate Bishop/America Chavez, Agents of SHIELD and Agent Carter stories ever since this column began, or in Agent Carter’s case, ever since Angie appeared on the show (and I honestly wouldn’t mind more of each)

  9. I read through malefices’s entire Charlie/Jo tag after reading the fic recommended in this article, god bless.

  10. Fortythousandth has been a tumblr friend of mine for a long while now, and I can’t recommend his stuff enough, he is basically THE harumichi smut peddler of tumblr.

    POUR ONE OUT FOR EVERYONE STILL INVESTED IN A 90S ANIME COUPLE

  11. This is actually the most wonderful column ever. The only thing that would make it better would be some Buffy recs. And/or Firefly–I need some more Kaylee/Inara in my life.

  12. I have to admit that this is pretty exciting to me because I did not know that people did fanfiction on tumblr! Thank you for giving me a great reason to continue to obsess over that site. The Black Sails story has to be my favorite. The way the author described that scene really was…hot.

    As a sapphic soap opera fan I am disappointed that both real and imagined couples are not on here. Am I missing something or are they a huge minority in tumblrland? Then again there are about 0.00 lesbians on American soaps so maybe it does make sense.

    • I’d love some recommendations for couples of sapphic soaps! I can’t think of any off the top of my head!

        • In terms of specific couples, All My Children has a rather large number of canon pairings. Bianca Montgomery at various points on the show had cannon relationships with:
          -Maggie Stone (ship name Bam. Considered a soap supercouple);
          -Lena Kundera (ship name Lianca. Also possibly a soap super couple);
          -Reese Williams; and
          -Marissa Tasker.

          Los Hombres de Paco was a Spanish crime/comedy soap that had the canon relationship of Pepa and Silvia (aka PepSi). Unfortunately I can only find an incomplete collection of their interactions, courtesy of youtube http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL434D307606D7B764 . I really enjoyed watching the clips, but it might be worth doing a quick wiki of the relationship before becoming emotionally invested.

          I never watched Guiding Light, but from what I can gather Olivia and Natalia (Otalia) is a canon couple with a relatively decent following.

          There’s also Shortland Street (a NZ hospital soap), which had several lesbian/bi characters (Maia Jefferies, Nicole Miller and Jay Copeland), and Home and Away had a hideously shoddy attempt at a lesbian relationship a number of years ago (between police officer Charlie Buckton and trawler worker Joey Collins)-but some of the fic is possibly worth reading.

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