Ships Ralvez Slow Burn

Best Ralvez Slow Burn Fanfics

The best slow burn Ralvez (Spencer Reid/Luke Alvez) fanfiction on AO3, curated by popularity. Readers love the anticipation, the meaningful character development, and the eventual payoff of a well-earned romance.

Criminal Minds 2,000 Ralvez works 850,000 slow-burn works

Top Ralvez Slow Burn Fic Recs

1 slow burn Ralvez fic matched, followed by other top-rated Ralvez stories.

1

Make me feel like I am breathing

Slow Burn

by K_nIghT_shadE

Spencer Reid has dealt with a lot of things through his life. But maybe the combination of headaches, a very pyromaniac unsub and a lack of good coffee as well as Luke’s nagging might make him take a break. Maybe.

30 kudos 7,324 words 10/10 chapters Mature
2

Forms

by Idontknowguys

In an alternate universe of shifters/shapeshifters, Dr. Spencer Reid hasn't managed to completely trust his teammates in his time at the FBI. He had been getting close to finally letting them in, letting them know him, when it's revealed that they lied to him about Emily's death. He goes postal.Alte

560 kudos 10,617 words 9/? chapters Not Rated
3

Legalities

by balutheskeleton

Luke is Spencer's boyfriend and he gets back from deployment and Spencer is ecstatic to see him again. A few years later, we see them already married and when the Fugitive Task Force crosses paths with the BAU, the team finds out about the two of them.

123 kudos 2,597 words 1/1 chapters Not Rated
4

“Bless me, Father, for I have sinned”

by alvezNroses

Where Luke is the priest of a small parish in Virginia and one night his self control is challenged by the atheist FBI agent Spencer Reid.Priest!Luke AU.

123 kudos 11,648 words 3/3 chapters Explicit
5

we were built to fall apart and fall back together

by my_middle_name_is_awkward

A year and a half after breaking up with Luke, Spencer sends him a letter explaining everything. OR Spencer and Luke become friends after their breakup.

89 kudos 22,250 words 8/9 chapters Not Rated
6

Unseen Chains

by Bella_Biohazard

A twist on Spencer’s final days in prison. After being released from solitary confinement, Spencer finds himself being beaten into a coma by other inmates which leaves him with a traumatic brain injury. The team have to help him navigate through this new reality of profound disability, whilst he and

84 kudos 25,294 words 7/? chapters Mature
7

Sins of a father

by Whitakerstan25

Spencer and Luke are together but hiding their relationship. Things take a turn when a case hits home for Luke.

66 kudos 2,279 words 1/1 chapters Explicit
8

A Permanent Solution

by Bella_Biohazard

Spencer has been released from prison and he's so done with everything that he makes the rash decision to try and end his life. However, one member of the team isn't going to let him do that so easily. I started this a long time ago but hit a wall with it.

40 kudos 7,638 words 3/3 chapters Explicit
9

Criminal Mind Rambles

by canreadclem

I'm obsessed with Criminal Minds and I keep vomiting words onto google docs, so I might as well share them with the people.chapters so far:1: transfem!spencer reid2: transfem!spencer reid x luke alvez3: assistant spencer reid au4: post prison recovery with derek au5: single dad spencer drabble6: for

36 kudos 7,500 words 6/? chapters General Audiences
10

Dead of Night

by esims96

“I’ve got you, I’ve got you,” Luke murmured, not to reassure anyone but because the words were the only thing he had. His palm under Spencer’s jaw was warm, steady. A relapse doesn’t happen all at once. It happens in inches.One bad week turns Spencer’s life into evidence—at work, at home, in the pla

36 kudos 28,253 words 19/19 chapters Explicit
11

Bloodlines and Burdens

by Done_with_life

Dr. Spencer Reid’s world shatters when he learns he has a nine-year-old daughter, Mary Winchester—born after a long-ago encounter with Amelia, Sam’s estranged twin. Raised by Sam and Dean, Mary grew up amid rituals, grief, and danger. But after Reid’s release from prison, Dean was gone—turned demon—

30 kudos 5,269 words 5/? chapters Not Rated
12

The Devil's Hour

by esims96

JJ glanced at Spencer, and shook her head, “Honestly, considering what happened last time, I don’t want Spencer to play her game either.” Heads nodded around the table. Luke inched his hand toward Spencer than stopped himself.Spencer’s fingers tightened around the pen in his hand, “This is not about

19 kudos 26,404 words 21/21 chapters Explicit
13

Surrounded by Shadows

by esims96

A “wellness accountability collective” weaponizes recovery language to control members. Spencer goes undercover to expose coercion, but the psychological cost threatens the life he’s finally built. Series Spoilers. I've already planned out parts 7-10. And an AU part 11. Love to see your reactions in

17 kudos 24,046 words 11/16 chapters Explicit
14

When the Night Watches Back

by esims96

Spencer’s breath caught. He adjusted his cuffs, suddenly clammy. “What... ‘other stuff,’ Garcia?”She fiddled with her necklaces, not meeting his eyes. “A few videos. Some are AI-generated, but others look real. From... the Hankel case. And there’s a new one—footage of you doing drugs at a party.—”On

16 kudos 32,141 words 14/14 chapters Explicit
15

You can't get rid of me that easily...

by Purple_Squishy_Alpaca

Spencer Reid didn't share much about his past, unfortunately for him he doesn't have a choice

15 kudos 4,293 words 1/1 chapters Teen And Up Audiences
16

Between Midnight and Morning

by esims96

Emily didn’t waste time. “Luke’s okay—don’t freak out.”Spencer’s grip cinched on the phone. “What happened?” Recovery doesn’t look like a montage. It looks like silence, interrupted—by a family emergency, by blood in the field, by a body that still remembers the dark.Spencer is rebuilding, but the

14 kudos 11,968 words 12/12 chapters Explicit
17

Vodka Soda

by ubird

"Did you know your body is more likely to absorb alcohol in carbonated drinks?" Reid asked, but it was more of a statement than a question. Or, A ralvez moment post-Thanksgiving dinner with Luke’s family

10 kudos 394 words 1/1 chapters General Audiences
18

Different

by ubird

“Stella thinks about it, she never really thought she would find an ally in Spencer” Or, Stella and Spencer share a moment

6 kudos 723 words 1/1 chapters General Audiences
19

here in my room, dreaming

by ubird

Spencer has a dream!   title from “dreaming of you” by selena

5 kudos 428 words 1/1 chapters Not Rated
20

You will worship me as it happened (once in a dream)

by moonagedaydream_baby

No summary provided.

2 kudos 5,748 words 1/1 chapters Teen And Up Audiences

Find More Ralvez Slow Burn Stories on AO3

Browse the full AO3 archive for slow burn Ralvez fanfiction, sorted by kudos. Then read offline with Fanfict Reader.

Why Slow Burn Ralvez Fanfiction Works So Well

Spencer Reid/Luke Alvez — The fugitive-hunter who joined the BAU and immediately oriented himself around its resident genius — visiting Reid in prison, recruiting his help training Roxy the dog, absorbing every brush-off with a grin. Late-seasons Criminal Minds quietly built the fandom's favorite new dynamic.

Slow Burn — A romance that develops gradually over time, with tension building across chapters or the entire story.

Soft persistence versus post-prison walls; fans write Luke patiently earning the trust canon only sketched. Readers love the anticipation, the meaningful character development, and the eventual payoff of a well-earned romance. That's why slow burn Ralvez fanfiction is one of the most consistently popular combinations on AO3.

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