#threewordtitle

part one, part two, part three

A Christmas Pharol (ao3) - Merrydith

Summary: Dan Howell hates Christmas.

On the night of Christmas Eve (2014), Dan Howell is visited by an old coworker who claims she will show him the meaning of Christmas. They take a journey through his past, get a peek into who he is in the present and then glimpse the future Dan desperately wants. Dan learns to appreciate what the holiday means to him and accepts who he is in his heart.

a leafy conundrum (ao3) - megiaolf

Summary: Dan's mum is coming to see the phouse.

A Perfect Macro (ao3) - scaryfangirl2001

Summary: When Phil doesn't answer his texts, Dan searches for him and finds a work of art

All Pleasure Now (ao3) - ingydar_phan, jonsaremembers

Summary: “You can appreciate me anytime,” Phil says, trying to ease the nerves he still feels at the idea of being the utter center of attention.

Dan doesn’t seem to think this is a joke. “Trust me, love,” he says, his voice darkly fond, “I will.”

ask and receive (ao3) - Celeste (artificialmac)

Summary: It’s 2009 and Dan and Phil meet in person for the first time, and it’s a lot. But it’s mostly just frottage.

Between the Lines (ao3) - smutlovingho3

Summary: Dan Howell had always been good with words. They spilled out of him in a mix of self-deprecating wit and philosophical musings, wrapping neatly into videos that made people feel seen. But when it came to Phil, words always felt clumsy.

Maybe it was because Phil Lester was impossible to define. He was a collection of contradictions—bright but soft, chaotic but calming, the kind of person who made Dan believe in the concept of home. And somewhere between the years of shared flats, late-night talks, and knowing glances, Dan had fallen in love.

He just hadn’t said it.

Blackpool Claw Machine (ao3) - danisonfire

Summary: Dan and Phil's trip to the arcade, and the monster that Phil wins for Dan :)

bottle, blanket, balcony (ao3) - gaydreaming

Summary: March, 2018.

The Interactive Introverts Tour is set to begin in a month. The venues are all booked, the fans are riled up and Phil is ready to enter an era that will surely be the peak of their career. There's only one problem: Dan doesn't want to do it anymore.

brews and serendipity (ao3) - bejulesed

Summary: it's 2009, and dan and phil meet each other in a coffee shop.

christmas in september (ao3) - Mildredo

Summary: The next time they’re in this house there won’t be any birds, or any sun, and they’ll have to hope the pipes aren’t completely broken because they’ll need the heating on. It’s still basically summer outside, and the next time they’ll be here it’ll be basically Christmas.

somewhere between the europe and american legs of the tour, christmas comes early.

Coffee and TV (ao3) - p4stmybedtime

Summary: Dan got back from finishing his tour a few days ago so the boys take it easy and enjoy each other’s company during a lazy morning in the phouse.

Demon of Temptation (ao3) - dipnpip

Summary: "Why do any of the difficult stuff when the fun is right there?" - Daniel Howell

first of many. (ao3) - razussy

Summary: luci and dani celebrate the holidays.

gentle with me (ao3) - youreabadliar

Summary: Phil has a headache.

I Love Him (ao3) - yikesola

Summary: There’s a lot to love about tour, but free time in a city on the opposite end of the world is very high on the list.

A fic about art galleries and love at first sight.

it is you (ao3) - manchestereyes

Summary: @danisnotonfire: I wonder how biology can explain the physical pain you feel in your chest when all you want to do is be with someone D:

When Dan gets permission to spend a week with Phil in December, he has a stunning realisation.

Lean on Me (ao3) - imademon

Summary: Dan has been working out more regularly and intensely, and Phil wants to figure out what the reason behind it is.

Love You Anyways (ao3) - strawberrystargirl27

Summary: Some fluffy, angsty phyuri, pretty baby phan but tbh could be viewed in any time!

Make It Work (ao3) - phiclets

Summary: Dan has been touring with his show We're All Doomed for months - the longest he's ever been away from Phil. All he wants now is to be back for Phil's birthday.

make me feel (ao3) - blossomsphan

Summary: dan discovers a new use for his walk-in closet

moments of envy (ao3) - starlightphil (adreaminthedark)

Summary: Dan’s never wanted anything as badly as he’s wanted Phil, so of course he’s had his moments of envy over the years. A ficlet written for anonymous on Tumblr who asked: "Dan trying to deliberately make Phil jealous (for whatever reason) and then immediately regretting it?"

next to me (ao3) - afestivequest

Summary: “Well. Here we are.”

“You, me and everything between us,” Dan says, gesturing between them.

In 2014, Dan and Phil break up.

Five years later, Phil checks in.

Not in Nottingham (ao3) - ottertrashpalace

Summary: “You’re doing it again,” Phil mutters, after he takes an obliging sip.

“Hmm.”

“You need taking care of and you're taking care of me instead.”

of a feather (ao3) - plinythehotter

Summary: A stranger shows up at the secluded Wuthering Heights during a snowstorm and learns that the house has a history: one that begins with Katherine Lester's younger son and his... childhood friend. That's what they're calling it.

off the record (ao3) - jailedmoonshine

Summary: dan isn't in the mood to film a video, so phil makes sure he's in the mood

perhaps in sydney (ao3) - jonsaremembers

Summary: Phil likes Dan's new hair. He likes it a lot.

Phil and Ted(dy) (ao3) - skygremlin

Summary: Dan and Phil are working with some new people on their 2025 Tiny Horse calendar when someone accidentally calls Dan "Teddy," and the joke sticks. It's quote-able, meme-able, and maybe not a good idea to save it as the default file name without checking first.

Pop Like Bubblegum (ao3) - nebulaedaniel

Summary: Phil bites Dan's hand as a joke during dinner. Dan doesn't protest. How far can Phil go with this revelation?

prayer for love (ao3) - lionxlioness

Summary: “You're ridiculous,” said Dan, unable to stop one side of her mouth from curling up. I love you, she thought. But she couldn't say it. Not out loud, in the way that she meant it, which would be more an admission of sin than anything else. Maybe not ever.

Dan and Pippa meet as sisters at a convent.

remote crisis manager (ao3) - danhoweiis

Summary: it's 4am in auckland the day before dan's show and dan is having a crisis

Rock, Paper, Scissors! (ao3) - xXspencerXx

Summary: Dan and Phil realise they have to share a bed during the american leg of their TATINOF tour.

Safe With Me (ao3) - Sillylittleroomba

Summary: Dan and Phil have always had two bedrooms, but that doesn't mean much.

Or: Phil can't sleep on the first night back home during their Christmas break from tour. Dan is always the solution to this problem.

A frankly irresponsible amount of domestic fluff, occurring in a world where Phil didn't have Covid over Christmas.

So Long, London (ao3) - solarpower21

Summary: This can’t be Phil’s life right now. He can’t be having a panic attack in the bathroom of an airport café after randomly bumping into his ex and being told his flight home has been cancelled.

or: Dan and Phil did the unthinkable and broke up in 2020. They meet again, four years later on Christmas Eve.

Still With You (ao3) - singlelogbridges

Summary: On holiday, pent up emotions from Phil's recent hospital stay surface.

Such a windup (ao3) - e_5456

Summary: Dan's been winding Phil up all afternoon sending Phil photos of his 'new clothes' Phil decided if Dan wants to play games so does he

The Ring Incident (ao3) - imademon

Summary: aka how Phil almost ended up in A&E when he swallowed his engagement ring by accident.

'“Hey, hey, hey, you’ll be fine. We can’t get married if you’re dead.” Dan said. It did not reassure Phil.'

The YouTube Games (ao3) - dnpangels

Summary: When YouTube threatens the existence of creators on the platform, a bunch of YouTubers are invited to join together in a high-stakes game to solidify their spot on the site. Dan and Phil believe that this will be their chance to revive their channels and connect with their audience again. They could never have expected that they would be thrown into a real-life squid game, battling against other Youtubers to save their jobs. When they realize there is no way out, how will they cope with the thought of having to compete against each other in a competition for survival?

There you are (ao3) - Japhan2025

Summary: Dan panics when Phil isn't at home.

Werewolves of London (ao3) - Anonymous

Summary: “I am not a werewolf,” Dan says.

“You are, though,” Phil says. Again.

“No, I’m not,” Dan says, insistent. “Because werewolves aren’t real.”

Where I Belong (ao3) - euphor7a

Summary: You know now a sliver of how he would react, and you think, in full clarity, that you would go to Hell if you put him through that pain. It doesn’t take away the want, though.

part one, part two

A Human Heart (ao3) - andthenshesaid-write (ladyknight1512)

Summary: Phil's mother has always said that there are creatures in the forest and Phil has always thought they were just stories. Then one day he runs into the forest looking for somewhere to hide and meets Dan, a man with antlers and the ability to talk to trees. Phil's world opens up but there are dangers in the forest that he can't even begin to imagine.

Boys on Fire (ao3) - transdimensional_void

Summary: Dan is visiting Phil for the second time ever and a little Buffy viewing session turns into sexy times.

cowboy hat canoodling (ao3) - calvinahobbes

Summary: Usually they’re of a height, somewhat because Dan has that tendency to slouch. But today Dan is in boots and the cowboy hat, both making him taller than usual.

Don't Blame Me (ao3) - ForeverJustAnEmoKidAtHeart

Summary: When Phil gets a new job at the Tops Only Bar, he's just looking to make ends meet over the holiday period. He doesn't expect how he'll feel about one of the performers or how hard that'll make his job.

Doubt and Trust (ao3) - MorningStarshine

Summary: Being at the party had been fine. Stumbling home arm in arm with Phil, that had been the best part. But when kissing started leading to something more, Dan had a bit of a confession to make.

dreaming of you (ao3) - blossomsphan

Summary: “and now I’m dreaming, dreaming, dreaming, dreaming, dreaming of you”

endings, endings, beginnings. (ao3) - commonemergency

Summary: A lot can happen in eleven years, he said, finishing his cup of coffee. Dan and Phil had lived a full life. It wasn’t always happy, but nothing can ever truly be happy, but it was finding the happiness and the light in those dark places.

When Dan finished talking, when all the words had come out, Evelyn had looked at him the same way that she looked at him back at that last session, a mix of pride and unbridled joy that Dan had grown up. He had grown up and become the person that his twenty-one year old self had been so scared of, the sixteen year old self he would have been proud of, and the twenty-five year old he almost gave up on if it hadn’t been for those around him to remind him that he was loved.

everything has changed (ao3) - gamingbeats

Summary: Dan and Phil go on holiday to NYC and everything changes when Dan books only the couple's options.

Falling for You (ao3) - Anonymous

Summary: Dan is at the front door waiting for Phil, eager to get outside so he can put his secret plan in motion when he hears a chilling thud of his partner colliding with the bathroom tiles.

Hospitals and homosexuals (ao3) - trashcanfromgallifrey

Summary: The story of Phil's near death experience

How Life Changes (ao3) - madd09

Summary: Phil had no idea how much his life was going to change when Cornelia and Martyn announced they were expecting and how it would end up being a catalyst for him and Dan,

Like Fine Print (ao3) - totalincandescense

Summary: Every few weeks, Dan was given an unfriendly reminder of at least one of the many reasons why he never went outside.

The most frequently recurring thing on the list being the general existence of people.

But more specifically, the existence of people who flirted with Phil.

missing the obvious (ao3) - Fictropes

Summary: Dan just wants this guy to stop ruining his game.

(or a reverse you've got mail)

one night stand (ao3) - dizzy

Summary: Dan meets a stranger in a bar during after one of his shows on the We're All Doomed tour.

Some Other Light (ao3) - jestbee

Summary: Dan works the night shift because it's easier to exist in the dark

still so lucky (ao3) - jonsaremembers

Summary: Dan and Phil take a little trip, but Phil gets a migraine.

sunny intervals tomorrow (ao3) - dizzy

Summary: Phil thinks about fifteen years.

Tequila and Lime (ao3) - SecretLlama_22

Summary: Dan and Phil bartender AU, where Dan has a crush on his recently phlonded colleague.

the fisherman’s guide (ao3) - watergator (orphan_account)

Summary: it’s 1956 and phil is a lighthouse worker who wants to write, and dan is the handsome stranger that washes up on shore one night who can’t remember who he is, but does know how to fish

The Philver Scream (ao3) - UnorthodoxSavvy

Summary: While Dan's career in the FBI is taking off, Phil is left behind to pick up the pieces of his life after his brother's death. However, he finds himself plagued by strange nightmares that he can't explain. Soon, people around him start dying. Can Dan and Phil's partnership survive the mounting body count?

three of us (ao3) - SylvesterLester

Summary: Phil is ready to make the next step. Dan isn't so sure.

Set after Dan comes home from WAD.

To be loved (ao3) - Thedemonqueen

Summary: Dan knows Phil insisted they’re together. Dan knows Phil loves him. But it doesn’t stop Dan from feeling dirty when he wants to touch Phil.

Viva Las Vegas (ao3) - evermorepeyton

Summary: Dan and Phil go to Las Vegas on October 19th. For what? Honestly, who knows? But maybe we should all seriously imagine it anyway.

What A Catch (ao3) - hygge

Summary: Phil visits the same cafe every weekday morning without fail. But, when he decides to visit the cafe on the weekend for once, the atmosphere that he had grown used to has completely changed thanks to a piano player named Dan. While Phil is ready to jump into a relationship, Dan is hesitant and is still trying to stitch his life together again after What Had Happened in his past relationship. And that’s easier said than done.

Where it began (ao3) - Frog910

Summary: Dan and Phil are thinking back to how things started

You and Me (ao3) - Scuddleduck

part one

An Arranged Marriage (ao3) - MarriedPhan1234

Summary: Dan and Phil are forced to marry each other, even though they’ve never met. Differing life experiences leave the boys unsure of how this could possibly work.

A Wizard’s Misgivings - jilliancares

Summary: Dan Howell’s entire family has been in Slytherin, and there’s no doubt he’s supposed to end up there too. Phil Lester does’t exactly know what to do when he finds himself liking boys, so he’s usually just horrendously mean to them.

Back to Normal (ao3) - iamphanaf (taylorann14)

Summary: When Dan joins Phil on a family vacation to Florida, Phil’s mother thinks they’ve finally gotten together, Dan panics and goes along with it…

Communication Is Key (ao3) - philsmeatylegss

Summary: In which au Dan and Phil are friends with benefits despite the fact that neither of them want to be friends with benefits and Dan just sucks at talking about his feelings

Demons And Diners (ao3) - kae_karo

Summary: A broke Dan, on the run from his previous life, finds temporary shelter in an abandoned diner…for the night? (Dan POV)

Empty Double Cups - cafephan

Summary: Dan and Phil are in a relationship, but you wouldn’t think it. They attempt to surpass their first milestone as a couple – their first house party, where everyone would see them together.

Follow You Home - paradisobound

Summary: Dan and Phil are neighbours who are there for each other whenever they need help. When Phil breaks his ankle, Dan helps him take care of his dog, and their friendship begins to grow to something more.

Hung(over) On You - secretlywritingstories

Summary: Tipsy Dan were brave enough to talk to boy. Drunk Dan was secure enough to make out with them. Blackout drunk evidently went home with guys - or well, one guy who seemed much too kind and considerate for someone who had been forced to deal with blackout drunk Dan’s incompetence.

Ink And Alice (ao3) - dizzy

Summary: Dan joins a band instead of going to university, and then he meets Phil.

In My Way (ao3) - INeverHadMyInternetPhase

Summary: Daniel Howell is 21 and Britain’s newest star. He’s just been cast in the much-anticipated film adaption of Last Man Standing, the popular teen fantasy novel with a huge fanbase hanging off his every tweet. In other words, Dan has made it big.

Phil Lester couldn’t care less. He’s a stressed out PHD student working part time at a bookshop while he struggles to get into post-production. He’s 26 and still lives in a tiny flat on the fifth floor of a building with a lift more broken than it is in use. He loves books, but he thinks big film adaptions screw with the plot too much.

Needless to say, Phil is less than impressed when Last Man Standing is getting filmed in his hometown. And he certainly doesn’t want anything to do with obnoxious, arrogant, so irritatingly perfect leading actor Daniel Howell.

long-distance lads (ao3) - possumdnp

Summary: Dan worries that he’s going to miss Phil while on tour.

On The Road (ao3) - yikesola

Summary: Phil still isn’t quite used to it all being okay. He isn’t used to Dan not fearfully dissecting a tweet reply that called them queer icons. He isn’t used to things like what the two teenagers they bumped into at the airport said when they stuttered out, “I met my girlfriend because of you,” feeling only good. No twinge of bittersweet. A fic about changes and landscape.

Pastel Meets Punk - doomedhowell

Summary: Soulmate AU where pastel!dan is dragged to a party by his best friend PJ, who ends up leaving him alone at said party. Dan meets punk!phil and they hit it off immediately. Dan doesn’t realize their soulmates until later, and sets himself a mission to find his soulmate once again, with the help of his friends.

Paying In Naivety - xinyanhowell

Summary: “My friend bet me twenty dollars that I wouldn’t walk up to a random underclassmen and ask them to prom, well now I’m twenty dollars richer and no, that doesn’t invalidate the offer, you’re actually kind of cute.”

Shake It Out - howellesterfics

Summary: Phil has been pining after Dan (despite his affinity towards edgy fashion), but sometimes it feels like he doesn’t really know him at all. Maybe all they need is a little liquid courage.

Star Crossed Enemies (ao3) - Junebug1312

Summary: When Dan’s school decides to put on Romeo and Juliet, Dan is beyond excited. Until the lead actress drops out and Dan’s enemy takes her place. Add in a kiss scene and everything starts to fall apart rather quickly.

Who knew the theatre program could be so dramatic?

The June Video (ao3) - possumdnp

Summary: Dan posts “the June Video” as originally planned… in 2018, right in the middle of the Interactive Introverts tour.

The X-Philes (ao3) - UnorthodoxSavvy

Summary: Phil is a psychic. Dan is a detective. When Phil is visited by the ghost of his brother, he knows something isn’t right. Can he and Dan solve the case, or will they become the next victims?

What He Wants (ao3) - bestelitecouple

Summary: Dan Howell always gets what he wants.

From the car he was given on his sixteenth birthday, to the job as president of the Drama Society in Year Ten, Dan has everyone wrapped around his finger. He likes to do things a very specific way, his way, and he’ll do anything to keep it that way. Even if it means fucking Phil Lester until his ass falls off in order to keep the auditorium for the Drama Society. At least, that’s what he keeps telling himself. (Or in which Dan and Phil are both presidents of different honors societies that have to share the school’s auditorium and work together for the production of the spring musical. Dan, being a brat, comes up with a dumb plan to get it back, which works fine, until his feelings come into the mix.)

Your Crowning Glory (ao3) - pasteldanhowells, rainbowchristy

A Bad Day (ao3) - jestbee

Summary: Phil has a bad day, but Dan is there to make him feel better.

A Blue Starfall - wavydanrises

Summary: Phil is a botanist who enjoys going on hikes through the woods, when someday he walks into someone quite… particular. He didn’t believe in coincidences, so maybe it really was fate that guided his steps.

a delicate cycle (ao3) - phantasticworks

Summary: twelve years should be enough time to learn how to do laundry… right?

Bells For Becca (ao3) - asherisnotfunny

Summary: Phil’s long-term girlfriend mysteriously vanishes without a trace. With her history of suicide attempts her family fears the worst. He, however, does not lose hope. He spends 5 years desperately searching for her. Just when he thinks of giving up he receives new information on her possible whereabouts… One thing is for sure: a person can change a lot in 5 years.

black and blue (ao3) - waveydnp

Summary: dan and phil lie in bed and trade stories of the various injuries they’ve sustained throughout their lives

clumsy, not creepy (ao3) - natigail

Summary: what if all those creepy things happening in your flat at night were ghosts who just bump into everything because they too need some light to see. also just clumsy ghosts who can’t help but push a vase off a table because they’re that clumsy. why do ghosts have to be creepy?

Enter Philip Michael Lester – the clumsiest ghost in the world.

And Daniel James Howell – the guy who didn’t believe in ghosts.

Well, until he met one.

Feel Good Inc. - melancholymango

Summary: Dan is your local sexually ambiguous religious boy. Phil is your local bad boy that sleeps with anyone that’ll have him and sins as if second nature. Then there’s also the poor original character that gets caught between them and their ridiculous amount of sexual tension. Threesomes, eh?

friday night placebo (ao3) - kishere

Summary: Phil Lester never thought that he was going to be here in his life: successful, healthy, a little lonely, and helping produce his own Netflix show. Dan Howell, YouTube fanboy and food aficionado, just wants to get a job in television acting. One audition could help both of their problems.

hard times, baby (ao3) - queerofcups

Summary: For some people, their jumps came with a task. Figure it out, finish it and your past self would just fade away. That's not Dan. He's not sure why his past self is here. But he's got some theories.

Koi No Yokan (ao3) - cold_cereal

Summary: Phil proposes to Dan.

light my candle (ao3) - sadlybunny

Summary: Dan's heat gets shut off, so he heads downstairs to his neighbor's flat for a match. There's something about this boy that's so familiar... (literally just light my candle from rent but its dnp)

often and frequently (ao3) - dickiegreenleaf

Summary: It’s ironic, really. Phil’s just spent all this money on a new home when the only place he wants to spend his time is at his hot neighbour’s place.

Saturday Night Fever (ao3) - TheUKAmazingDan

Summary: It's the 1970s, and Phil is just looking to have a little fun.

the lucky ones (ao3) - sohmaskyos

Summary: AU in which everything is in black and white until you meet your soulmate. Or, the one where Dan and Phil meet and are thrown into a world of colour.

The Second World (ao3) - velarisstars

Summary: On the eve of Dan’s twenty-fourth birthday, nothing seems to be going right. His parents are acting weird, and even he feels a little funny. It’s not until later that night on his actual birthday, do things start going downhill. Someone has come for him - and he claims he’s there to bring him home. It’s not long after that Dan finds out he’s actually an angel to a place below heaven, and he was stolen from his home twenty-three years ago. And the answer as to why, isn’t, exactly, pretty.

Walking on Eggshells (ao3) - thatsmistertoyou

Summary: Dan and Phil feel the pressure and stress of being soon-to-be-published authors, and it puts a strain on their relationship when they consider our side.

What's Left Unspoken (ao3) - DontForgetToPanic

Summary: So he imagines what Sunday dinners could be like, how his parents’ kitchen table is made for four but maybe they can make room for five, because kitchen tables are for families and maybe their family seats five. But they’ve never been invited to a Sunday dinner, so Dan stops wondering. ~*~ Where Dan wishes he wasn't a stranger to his own family, Phil and Dan support each other, people don't always need words to speak, and there's no such thing as being saved.

Featuring: puns, family roadtrips, a wedding, and the inability to express emotions.

Where You Belong (ao3) - blissedoutphil

Summary: Dan had always wanted to be in a D/s relationship, but he doesn’t know how to sub properly. That was until he met Phil.

with a bullet (ao3) - waveydnp

Summary: phil returns to his room after a party thrown by his housemates only to discover that there’s already someone in his bed

Work That Rock (ao3) - adorkablephil