Fleeting Fancies - Fanworks Recommendations

- Marvelverse/Quicksilver/Magneto - This Distance Between Us by Larissa James - So, in continuing with my sudden Pietro/Magneto fascination, I've been hunting down everything I can, and I am so glad I found this story, because it captures the essence of Magneto so beautifully. Hard edges tempered with regrets and sorrow, all worded in his elegant way of thinking and speaking. The tension between father and son was incredible, there were no easy answers, just awkward moments and it was beautiful for that--I agree with the author, Marvel could have a great angsty family relationship here if they ever chose to do anything with it, and this story capitalized on that to a wonderful extent. (No warnings.)

- Marvelverse/Quicksilver/Scarlet Witch - Bucket by Phil Hartman - Major spoiler warnings if you haven't been keeping up with New X-Men lately, but nothing too specific, you just have to know the main details. Okay. "Bucket". Right. *sigh* I really wish Marvel would do more with this family, because they have such potential, and Phil has capitalized on it wonderfully. Pietro's unsurity about how to feel, Wanda's uncertainty as well, their mutual grief for the way things are and everything they've lost... it's lovely, in a heartbreaking way. (No real warnings.)

- Marvelverse/Quicksilver - Vibrato by Phil Hartman - (Unfortunately, as I read this off the OtL archives, I couldn't find a site that hosted it, so no link.) There is a serious lack of Pietro fanfic out there, which is a shame, because--and I freely admit how much of a dork this makes me--after watching Evolution, I've come to like the character a lot more. I know a little about his comic origins, enough to at least recognize the references in this short piece, but what really captured my attention was the wonderful writing, and Pietro's more serious outlook on life, and the great comparisons to the Flash. Just the little mentions of various details were my favorite things, the slight reference to Magneto and Wanda and Crystal and so on. Just... yeah, I'm babbling. Sorry. Excellent oneshot. Must read if you're a Quicksilver fan. (No warnings.)

- Marvelverse/Scarlet Witch - Dealer's Choice by Phil Hartman - I'm very glad Phil wrote a collection of these little stories about the whole Maximoff-Lehnsherr family, because they're exactly what I needed recently--wonderful oneshots that deal with the characters' insights into their own lives and how they're going to face what's happening in their lives. I admit that I don't know that much about Wanda, but you don't really need to to get the impact of this story. (No real warnings.)

- Marvelverse/Scarlet Witch - The Silence I Keep by Larissa James - Now, I like Wanda, but she's never going to be a favorite character of mine. However, this story was a gorgeous oneshot for her, showing her motivations and thought processes wonderfully, during the time not too long after Magneto rescued her and her brother. Magneto was wonderful, you were never quite sure if he was just trying to needle Wanda into being what he wanted her to be, if he would have done the same for anyone who'd walked into the library that night, or if he was genuinely trying to be something like a father to her.... Or a combination of everything. At any rate, the characterizations were fantastic and played on the Maximoff-Lehnsherr family dynamics beautifully. (No real warnings.)

- Marvelverse/Quicksilver - Within, Without by Larissa James - I've ceased trying to understand what it is that draws me to Pietro's character and just go with it, and this story made me ache for the poor thing. Larissa writes beautifully--a story which would have been sub-par and/or pretentious in so many authors' hands, wound up being a fantastic piece of writing here. Pietro's angst was nicely played, and while obviously it was played up for the story, it didn't feel contrived, it wasn't the kind that made me want to roll my eyes and start skimming, but the kind that had me glued to every word and wanting to give him a hug (and never let go ^_^) by the end. So... yeah, I'll stop gushing now. ^_~ (No real warnings.)

- X-Men - Genetic Superiority, World Domination, and a Double Chocolate Mocha Latte To Go, Please by Matt Nute - I read this story ages ago and I'm surprised I never recommended it, since I went through that whole period of fascination with Magneto and his kids. Because I've been reading Ultimate X-Men where they actually get screen time, I've had that interest rekindled and I started poking around again. This fic is just as much fun as I remember it, just as filled with those little nods to canon that I love, the little touches on what it's like to be part of this family, the hard parts of their lives, the connection as a family they still can't deny, yet never swerving away from being a humorfic. The two aspects are balanced very well and it's still one of those fics I'll pull out every couple of years to reread when I want Magneto family reading. (No warnings/pairings.)

- X-Men - untitled by atdrak - I almost sort of wanted to rec all these 100-word short pieces seperately because I am so deliriously in love with them. (There are about seven of them, I think. I'm linking to the author's memories--which include more x_men100 posts, but the ones labelled AU are the ones I'm referring to--because it's much easier.) An AU where Magneto raised his kids is exactly what I wanted after getting dragged back into comics via House of M, there's even Lorna in them! And not just readable Lensherr family fics, they're powerful, effective, and breathtakingly good. Seriously. I'm having the worst time not flailing and keyboard mashing out of love. It starts off with a piece about how... well. The first line is: Father was very strict. In his mind, they would always be children, needing guidance and protection. I could not have summed up Magneto's relationships with his children in such an AU more perfectly.

After that, the second one is Lorna practicing her shielding, her father gentle but relentless in his training for both her and her siblings' protection. Then it's weaving in little details of their religions and their backgrounds, the pain their family has gone through. It's little scenes of the characters being siblings and moments of closeness or humor or practicing to be stronger. And all of it is brilliantly written, the author has tremendous talent for making each one perfect, for packing this great punch with each scene. Every time those 100 words are up, the absolute right note has been struck. It's terribly addicting and I'm only sad that the author hasn't written more. (Also, one absolutely must read the comments of the fourth one because they are hilarious and brilliant.) (No real warnings/pairings.)

- X-Men - untitled by atdrake - [ part one - part two ] Note: Both of these posts contain shortfics that are not part of the "the twins raise baby Magneto" series, but all the short fics are worth reading. This is another AU that the author has written several pieces in and... I mean, I was interested from the very first one, where the ending is magnificently timed. But it was the second post, the At least you're not a Summers shortfic that has the best ending line ever. Then the second one went and broke my heart and I'm convinced the author is genius, because these are concepts that could eat a poor fangirl's soul if there were much more to them. It's partly that the concept is a grand one, but it's the way the author pulls it off, the moments of levity followed by Erik's memories starting to come back and how much it all hurts that's the real genius. It's how well the author knows the characters and how to write, how to have a deft hand when dealing with a perfectly crafted scene. I'm going to end this rec now before I further embarass myself. (No real warnings/pairings.)

- X-Men - untitled by atdrake - These are a series of historical settings for the various Marvel families (the Magneto family and Braddock family most notably) and, each time I read a new piece, I come away utterly delighted at the author's creativity and brillance at reweaving them into different eras (omg the Norse one! so much awesome!) and yet still maintaining the spirit and themes of the characters. The writing mirrors the periods while still being a light, easy read--not fluffy, but something that just sails smoothly along, where I find myself having finished the story before I quite realize it. Again, I'm only saddened that there were not more from this author. (No real warnings/pairings, but you could read Pietro/Wanda if you squinted.)

- X-Men/1602 - Survival by Sabine - Having only recently picked up 1602, I had to rush over and read this fic, because I'd been keeping it in mind since it dealt with Wanda and Petros and I was curious. I wasn't quite prepared for something so breath-takingly gorgeous, something quietly intense and perfect. The emotional weight of what the characters go through in this universe, Wanda's sorrow and the not-quite-incestuous relationship with her brother, the introduction of Kitty (and Emma) into the universe that were perfect, and just... oh. Oh. This was so gorgeous and everything it needed to be. It does justice to the original series, I didn't really expect to find that. (Implications of Petros/Wanda.)