Mutatis Mutandis

Summary: Rogue lives in stereotypes. Logan breaks a few.

She went out and bought a notebook. It was cheap and dark green and she wrote 'History' on the cover in big black block letters. Every time she told a story she wrote it down in her neat, even handwriting--wrote down the lies she spun and who she'd wrapped them around. Sometimes she'd have to go back and check, because it was hard to keep the stories straight, the lives straight.

Later she bought another notebook, and on the top of each page she wrote a name. By the end of the year Jean had six pages, because that was how much space it took to write all the lies she'd told the person who was supposed to be her friend.

On the last page of her notebook she stenciled the word 'Truth' in small, barely there letters.

A tough but not ultimately tragic look at how Rogue copes (or doesn't) when something awful and unexpected happens. One of the best treatments of the subject I've ever seen in fanfic.

Living in Stereotypes

Summary: A chance meeting at a clothing store leads to an unlikely friendship between Hank and Ben Grimm.

"Damn kid burnt a hole through my favourite jacket, so I'm making him buy me another one, and a new pair of shoes if I promised not to tell Sue. Trouble is..."

"There aren't ever any sizes or only for their ugliest pair?" Hank glanced down at his own feet, which were tucked inside a very large pair of sneakers. He'd much prefer to be barefoot, but many establishments frowned upon that sort of thing.

"Huh. Yeah. I mean, look at these." Ben held up a pair of leather shoes that would've been respectable enough had some designer not decided to use big, ugly stitches that went around the toe. "These deserve to be set on fire."

A charming story of bonding between two men who turn out to have more in common than you might think. It's also about the little ways this unexpected friendship helps bring Hank out of the shell he's retreated to. I also enjoyed seeing Hank interacting with Jubilee, and I love the idea that she buys Wolverine mittens *g*.

Lose These Blues I've Found

Lovely digital portrait - I like the gleam of the helmet and the glowing metal.


Magneto by ~Rennee on deviantART

Summary: Some people aren't meant to be kept on the ground.

The second time he flies, it takes just as many months to practice as it does to work up the nerve.

The practice is easier than he thinks. The initial shock of reaching back to scratch his shoulder blade for the millionth time in a week and brushing his fingertips over pinfeathers, white and perfect and slightly damp where they emerge from his skin, dies a quick death. The fear of being found out fades away the first time he tilts back his head and looks up at the sky, the feathers tickling his flesh as they skim across the inside of his expensive school uniform.

If something's calling to him up there, he's probably just imagining that.

Warren learns to fly. A gorgeous story of what Angel's wings mean to him, and how he comes to embrace them and what they give him. I also like the background characters here; it's always nice to see humans who aren't waiting to get out the pitchforks and torches for every mutant they see.

The Man on the Flying Trapeze

Seriously pretty ensemble cast wallpaper. The green is a good choice of colour.


Mutants Among Us - X-Men by *TerryXart on deviantART

Nifty pencil sketch - I love the detailing on her scales.


Mystique by ~LunaPlina on deviantART

Summary: A Wolverine. A beagle. Just watch the damn dog, Logan.

At four months, Darwin had liquid brown eyes, a tail that was in perpetual motion and the approximate IQ of bait. The game of fetch confounded him, loud noises unnerved him and the concept of bladder control had yet to penetrate his expensive little head. As far as Logan was concerned, Jeannie could just as easily practice her parenting skills on some poor mutt from the pound, but it wasn't, he thought with a dark look at Summers, the first time she'd gone for a pretty face over actual brains.

Logan agrees to watch Jean's new beagle puppy for a couple of hours while Scott goes to the airport. What could possibly go wrong? Howlingly funny. (Pun totally intended.)

Natural Selection

I love this heavily stylized take on Kurt, especially the tail.


Xmen NightCrawler version by *Jeemfers on deviantART

Summary: Sometimes coping can be difficult. Scott and Jean from the film's 'September' find themselves in a difficult 'November.'

She's sleeping now, her knees curled into her chest, covered by an old leather jacket of his that he hasn't worn since he graduated. He remembers he used to like that jacket, used to give her looks across the courtyard when he was wearing it, and bite his lip a little awkwardly whenever she came near him. The first time she touched him, the first time she whispered a confidence into his ear, it had been this jacket that she'd clasped, balled into her fist as she'd leaned into him, her hot breath on his ear as she told him she liked it. Then, blushing lightly, she clarified it was the jacket she liked.

A great look at how Scott and Jean fall apart and pull together in the aftermath of X1. I love stories about established relationships and how people negotiate the changes they go through, and this is a wonderful example.

The November Dawn

(The link takes you to Kat's XMMFF Archive author page, since they require an age check before you read it.)

Summary: Kurt talks to a priest. The priest talks back.

"You shouldn't have to hide," Father Enrico said as he pulled his bulk into the narrow aisle between the pews, gathering his skirts to him. He sat down with a small huff. "You are, as I've said before, as much God's creature as I. You were born of mortal flesh, as was I. You had a father and a mother." Had Kurt had such? Well, presumably he'd had them.

This close, Kurt could smell the spicy sweat of the man, like smoked garlic sausage and incense. "I was adopted," he admitted. "I never knew my --what is the phrase? --my birth parents."

"Hmm," Father Enrico said non-committally. "And do you know why?"

"I was born much as I am now," Kurt answered, keeping his voice carefully neutral. Then he grinned at Father Enrico. "But I was cuter then."

A neat story about how Kurt became what he is, and how he might become someone else. I like stories that get into the nitty gritty of the ideological debate around mutant rights, and this is a great one for that.

Ode to Joy