The reading group for X-Files fanfiction

This week we have a short fic with a long title. The aurthor calls it penance for some "MSR atrocities" she wrote (under an undivulged pen name) when the show was in its early years. The fic itself is MSR, but what drew me to it was that it feels different from what I'd come to expect of MSR. It's set in season 4, sometime after 'Memento Mori,' and is essentially a spare but introspective study of Scully and her relationship with Mulder as they both attempt to come to terms with the reality and the potential outcome of her illness.

Relativistic Gravitation and Celestial Mechanics by LM

Side note: wendelah1 and I were unable to find this fic archived anywhere and we could not get in touch with the author, but I had a copy of the fic saved so we decided to archive it on Fugues in the Key of X. If anyone knows the author or knows how to contact her, please let us know so that we can properly ask her permission to archive her fic. If asked to remove it from the archive, of course we will comply with the author's wishes.

I'm feeling a wee bit obsessed with season seven at the moment. I already know what most people's favorite season seven story is (and don't get me wrong, I like "Parabiosis," too), but this one is mine.

Summary: An explanation of Mulder's sudden belief in "miracles." Arthur C. Clarke's second law in action. A bit of Mytharc in the guise of a case file. But in the end it's all about sex. Then again, what isn't?

I can't think of anything to add at the moment. The link is to her old site, now at reocities, but if you want to read an old-skool text file, the entire fic can be read or downloaded at onemillionnine's Author Page at Gossamer.

If anyone has suggestions, especially for season seven stories, feel free to leave them in the comments or the suggestion post. And good, bad, or indifferent, please let us know what you think.

Read "El Quinto Sol".

After the considerable word count of our last fic, now seems like a good time to take a bit of a breather with a nice short read. This week's fic was recommended by lightlack. It takes place sometime not too long after the events of "Christmas Carol" and "Emily" when Mulder and Scully end up back in San Diego on a case. The fic is focused on Scully and how she is coping with recent developments, the turn her life has taken, what it all means for her, and where Mulder fits in amongst all the chaos and wreckage.


Living with the Dreaming Body by Punk Maneuverability


Send feedback, give us your recommendations, and please do come back for the discussion.

Hi! I had spotty internet access the later part of March so amyhit kindly filled in for my last turn. I'm bypassing the queue this time around to suggest a story I've been meaning to reread for at least six months. "Laws of Motion" is a sequel to "Universal Invariants," which we discussed back in November, 2010. If you haven't read her first story, you won't get as much out of the sequel. (But you totally should read UI! It's my favorite of syntax6's stories!)

However, if you don't want to read "Universal Invariants" before tackling "Laws of Motion," here's a brief summary: "Universal Invariants" is an au in which Scully is living with her boyfriend Ethan (who was deleted from the pilot) when she is assigned to the X-Files. The novel spans all of season one and the beginning of season two through "One Breath," and has scenes from many of the episodes artfully woven through it. There is also an original casefile, which is the B plot, with the A plot being their developing partnership, and the effect it has on her personal life, especially her relationship with Ethan. HUGE SPOILER here: Scully gets engaged to Ethan after the X-Files are closed down, then has sex (amazing sex!) with Mulder while they are in Arecibo, Puerto Rico during "Little Green Men." Major awkwardness ensues, Mulder and Scully never discuss it, and she is too ashamed to tell Ethan. Then Scully is kidnapped by Duane Barry. Months later, when she is returned, not only is she missing time from the abduction, she can't remember earlier events, including what happened at Arecibo. Mulder can't bring himself to tell her. She never regains the lost memories, but breaks up with Ethan anyway. The End.

So. "Laws of Motion" picks up at the beginning of season five, just after "Redux 2." Scully is cured of cancer and Mulder has just brought her home from the hospital, when there is a phone call from her ex-boyfriend, Ethan. He's in jail, accused of murdering a colleague, and wants their help. Like "Universal Invariants," "Laws of Motion" is structured around a casefile, the murder Ethan has been accused of committing, but the story's focus is squarely on the secret (from the previous story) Mulder has been keeping from Scully and the consequences of that deception. It's a fun read and I remember loving it almost as much as "Universal Invariants."

"Universal Invariants"

"Laws of Motion"

Send feedback, tell Syntax6 we miss her, and please come back to let us know what you thought.

Of all the XF fanfic authors I can call to mind, I tend to think of JL (the artist previously known as Jamie Lyn) as the one whose writing has undergone the greatest transformation over the years. Even accounting for the fact that her fics were posted over an almost ten year period, there’s still a remarkable transformation in her work, from the enjoyably dramatic and tempestuous fics of 1999, to some rather more somber, subtle, and conceptually complex fics in later years.

This week’s fic, "Sandcastles for Pele," was recced by selynne. It’s going to be another one of those times when I’m reading along with those of you who haven’t read this fic before. I can, however, at least tell you that it’s post IWTB fic, and that at least part of it takes place in Hawaii - a long way from the DC-basement days of old. In the author's notes JL says, "If I had to describe it, I would say that it is... not at all what you think it is." Going by my memory of some of her other fics, I doubt she’s overstating things.

Send feedback, give us your recommendations, and please do come back for the discussion.


Read Sandcastles for Pele.

Gosh, look at that startlingly large number in the heading! It appears that our little (but oh-so-tenacious) community has reached its two-hundredth fic.



Cheers everyone!

I must say, I’ve been adoring you guys’ recommendations even more than usual lately. There have been a few fics I am particularly fond of come up, including a very recent rec by littlegreen42, which I am going to pounce on immediately like a cat on a jubilant grasshopper. It was written in the pre/post IWTB era, making it relatively new by this fandom’s standards. It’s short – but with an endearingly long title – and the prose has an idiosyncratic sort of poetry about it. Ultimately, I think the author herself sums it up best when she says, These are not all the ways and whys and hows Mulder loves Scully, just some. In reverse.

Read a weatherman to know which way the wind blows by zauberer_sirin

After reading "Five Things That Never Happened to Dana Scully" last week, it seems appropriate that this week's offering is also about a "road not taken." Since three members separately expressed some interest in reading it, and because Sabine is an accomplished and entertaining writer, "Dance Card" is now on our dance card.

( Author's Note )

That will all make sense after you read the story, I promise. "Dance Card" has two sequels: "What Happened After That" and "Moonshine," which could be subtitled "What Happened After What Happened After That." The links are all to Gossamer under "Sabine" if the links get broken; the first and third are also at Fugues Fiction Archive. Discussion on any and all of the three is welcome. Sab is iamsab here and Sab at AO3, but alas, these stories have never been re-posted to either location.

Leave feedback, leave suggestions, and come back for discussion, which is still ongoing for the last two fics we read, by the way. You guys are awesome.

Read "Dance Card".

Read "What Happened After That".

Read "Moonshine".

The next fic was nominated by lightlack and enthusiastically seconded by myself. It’s written by threeguesses, who is one of my favorite writers to come out of the pre/post IWTB era. Her writing in this fandom was not prolific, but her stories have always stood out (at least for me) for their powerful concepts, enthralling emotional currents, and the deceptive simplicity of threeguesses’ writing. Undoubtedly you know how "five things" fics work, in which case you also know the title of this week’s fic tells you just about everything that can be revealed about it without spoiling the sense of discovery that comes with each new segment.


five things that never happened to dana scully

The author is still around and writing up a storm (though sadly not in this fandom), and I’m sure she would appreciate feedback. There’s lots to say about this fic, so please do let us know what you think. And, as always, the nomination post is open for new suggestions.

This story was nominated by write_out but it's one of my favorites now, too. Confession time: the first time I read it, I thought Mulder was being a little whiny. But I love him better now, so it's all good. Tesla's writing is smooth as silk and no one writes a better Mulder voice. Enjoy!

NEW: "Get Up, Mulder"
Author: Tesla
Rating: PG-13 for language
Keyword: MSR, spooning, post-movie

Summary: Mulder recalls the trip back

Spoilers: To "Fight the Future"

Mod note: It says "MSR" but I think it's noromo friendly.

Now I really need to give tesla321 her own tag. Seriously, is there anything of hers we haven't read? See, we do use the suggestions from our nomination post, so go suggest some more, please.

Read "Get Up, Mulder".

This week's story was nominated by badforthefish. Go Fish!

The Lure of the Fox
By Caroline O'Callaghan
Rating: NC-17 I suppose, but it's nothing too bad (not sure what she means by that...I guess we'll have to wait and see.)
Classification: Mulder/Scully Romance. Mulder and Scully pursue a serial killer who calls himself 'The Fox'.
Spoilers: Small Potatoes/Never Again
Disclaimer: Mulder and Scully don't belong to me - I hereby promise to return them when I've finished playing with them.

I haven't read it yet. Neither has amyhit, so we'll all be reading it for the first time to-gether. Fun times!

Like "Every Sparrow Falling," "Lure of the Fox" was first posted back in 1997, so we're still in early fanfic territory. Shall we call this a theme? Shall we read more early stuff? Is there something else you'd like to read instead? Why, then head to the nomination post and let us know.

As far as feedback goes, I have no idea if the email address is still valid, but I'm guessing not. If anyone has a valid email for her, please let us know. In any case, good or bad, we'd like to know what you think.

Read "The Lure of the Fox".