Three X-Men ficlets
Feb. 11th, 2007 07:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eliyesI wrote the following three short fanfics after reading X-Men Annual #1 (January 2007). Therefore, spoiler alert! Also, they won't make much sense if you haven't either read that or found out what happened. (Especially the third one.) All of them take place in a hypothetical near future that presumes Jean-Paul goes back to Xavier's, and in the third instance, takes Jeanne-Marie with him. (I can't see them wanting to be separated again any time soon.) They don't take place in the same continuity, though. Just three stories with a similar initial premise.
None of these stories are sex or slash or even contain swearing. No warnings! :D
Title: Just Looking
Word Count: 87
Characters: Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, Bobby Drake/Iceman, Raven Darkholme/Mystique
Summary: Bobby Takes It Badly, Take 1: think before you speak
Jean-Paul took one look at the way Bobby looked at Mystique and couldn't not say something.
“Do you just have an attraction to blue-skinned women, mon ami?”
The look Bobby gave him was anger-hot and colder than ice.
“I am not your 'ami', Northstar. When you and your sister nearly killed me, she helped me come back. You have no right – ” He cut himself off, made a mute gesture of rage, and stalked away.
Jean-Paul looked away – to find Mystique watching him thoughtfully.
Title: Nothing New
Word Count: 132
Characters: Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, Bobby Drake/Iceman, Emma Frost
Summary: Bobby Takes It Badly, Take 2: this is Emma's idea of a pep talk. Be afraid!
Trying to apologize to Bobby had been a bad idea, obviously.
“You want to see a new direction? A new momentum? How's this: I hate you!” Bobby yelled and left.
Jean-Paul let him go, sinking into a chair.
~If it's any consolation, this isn't a new direction,~ Emma said into his mind.
He scowled and glanced up as she walked up beside his chair, arms crossed.
“So he hated me before.”
“No. Not what I meant, either. This is how he reacted when I pushed his powers past what he thought he could do. Painful experiences, both, but he'll get over it in time.”
Jean-Paul snorted his disbelief, and she turned to him with a sly smile.
“Depending on how far the parallel extends, he may even go out with you.”
Title: Refresher Course
Word Count: 586
Characters: Victor Borkowski/Anole, Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, Jeanne-Marie Beaubier/Aurora
Summary: What if the twins didn't remember anything after the point at which the virtual retread of their memories was interrupted?
It took a while for Victor to work up his courage, considering how badly things went last time Northstar came back. He still had stitches.
He found his former mentor outside one of the training rooms, sweaty from a workout, sucking back a bottle of water and laughing at something said by the dark-haired woman who could only be his twin sister.
He looked... happy. More relaxed than Victor had ever seen him, somehow more content.
This threw him so badly that they were walking past him before he managed to speak.
“Uh – um – Mr. Beaubier?”
Both twins stopped and turned to look at him, eerily similar expressions of inquiry on their faces.
“Could I talk to you a minute?”
“Certainement...” Jean-Paul replied, but his voice was quizzical. With a sinking heart, Victor realized there was not one iota of recognition there.
“You don't remember me,” he whispered, horrified, embarrassed. He swallowed and looked down, unsure what to do. He could hardly bring up – ...well, anything, really.
God, this was a disaster.
“He's a little young, don't you think?” Jeanne-Marie murmured in French.
“No younger than I was, but I don't think – ”
“Je me comprends le Français,” Victor said abruptly, before he could get any further mortified.
“Good!” Jeanne-Marie replied approvingly. “So few Americans do.”
“To answer your question,” Jean-Paul said, switching back to English, “I'm afraid I am missing a few years. They undid the brainwash by running us through our own memories – but it was interrupted. I don't remember everything.”
“It is good, not to remember the programming,” Jeanne-Marie chimed in. Her accent was much more pronounced than her brother's.
“Oui, c'est ça. But I should know you...?”
Victor looked up to see a concerned expression on Jean-Paul's face, one he'd seen many times before. His throat constricted, but he nodded.
“I'm one of your students.”
He didn't understand the worried look the twins exchanged.
“I thought I was the teacher...” Jeanne-Marie murmured.
“Perhaps you could refresh my memory?” Jean-Paul asked, pleasant, polite. “If you do not need to go to class?”
“I – sure. Okay.”
The twins exchanged wordless nods, tapping each other's arms with their water bottles in a touching-not-touching that made Victor remember hearing about some power they only had when they touched. About them killing Iceman with it.
He wondered if this was a really bad idea, but suddenly Aurora was gone and he was being herded down the hall to some chairs.
“I mostly just want to ask if you're all right,” he stammered.
“I think I must be better than I was,” Jean-Paul replied with a strange, sad smile. “And you? Are you all right, Monsieur...?” His hand moved over Victor's face, cupping the air barely an inch from his bruised jaw.
“Borkowski. Victor Borkowski. Also called Anole.” He felt himself under scrutiny, and confessed, “I've been better.”
“Hmm.” They stopped at the chairs. “Well, wait here a moment. I will be right back.”
Victor hadn't even finished the act of sitting down when Northstar collapsed in the chair beside him with a noisy sigh, dry and freshly dressed.
“Am I really a teacher? I hated school!” he exclaimed.
“Um, yes. Business and Economics, and a flight class.”
Jean-Paul smiled.
“I do love flying.”
“It looks fun.”
“You don't...?”
“No. You, uh, you were the teacher in charge of my student advisory group.” Victor took a deep breath and began explaining.
“We were called Alpha Squadron...”
Cross-posted to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
speedsicle and twin_one.
None of these stories are sex or slash or even contain swearing. No warnings! :D
Title: Just Looking
Word Count: 87
Characters: Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, Bobby Drake/Iceman, Raven Darkholme/Mystique
Summary: Bobby Takes It Badly, Take 1: think before you speak
Jean-Paul took one look at the way Bobby looked at Mystique and couldn't not say something.
“Do you just have an attraction to blue-skinned women, mon ami?”
The look Bobby gave him was anger-hot and colder than ice.
“I am not your 'ami', Northstar. When you and your sister nearly killed me, she helped me come back. You have no right – ” He cut himself off, made a mute gesture of rage, and stalked away.
Jean-Paul looked away – to find Mystique watching him thoughtfully.
Title: Nothing New
Word Count: 132
Characters: Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, Bobby Drake/Iceman, Emma Frost
Summary: Bobby Takes It Badly, Take 2: this is Emma's idea of a pep talk. Be afraid!
Trying to apologize to Bobby had been a bad idea, obviously.
“You want to see a new direction? A new momentum? How's this: I hate you!” Bobby yelled and left.
Jean-Paul let him go, sinking into a chair.
~If it's any consolation, this isn't a new direction,~ Emma said into his mind.
He scowled and glanced up as she walked up beside his chair, arms crossed.
“So he hated me before.”
“No. Not what I meant, either. This is how he reacted when I pushed his powers past what he thought he could do. Painful experiences, both, but he'll get over it in time.”
Jean-Paul snorted his disbelief, and she turned to him with a sly smile.
“Depending on how far the parallel extends, he may even go out with you.”
Title: Refresher Course
Word Count: 586
Characters: Victor Borkowski/Anole, Jean-Paul Beaubier/Northstar, Jeanne-Marie Beaubier/Aurora
Summary: What if the twins didn't remember anything after the point at which the virtual retread of their memories was interrupted?
It took a while for Victor to work up his courage, considering how badly things went last time Northstar came back. He still had stitches.
He found his former mentor outside one of the training rooms, sweaty from a workout, sucking back a bottle of water and laughing at something said by the dark-haired woman who could only be his twin sister.
He looked... happy. More relaxed than Victor had ever seen him, somehow more content.
This threw him so badly that they were walking past him before he managed to speak.
“Uh – um – Mr. Beaubier?”
Both twins stopped and turned to look at him, eerily similar expressions of inquiry on their faces.
“Could I talk to you a minute?”
“Certainement...” Jean-Paul replied, but his voice was quizzical. With a sinking heart, Victor realized there was not one iota of recognition there.
“You don't remember me,” he whispered, horrified, embarrassed. He swallowed and looked down, unsure what to do. He could hardly bring up – ...well, anything, really.
God, this was a disaster.
“He's a little young, don't you think?” Jeanne-Marie murmured in French.
“No younger than I was, but I don't think – ”
“Je me comprends le Français,” Victor said abruptly, before he could get any further mortified.
“Good!” Jeanne-Marie replied approvingly. “So few Americans do.”
“To answer your question,” Jean-Paul said, switching back to English, “I'm afraid I am missing a few years. They undid the brainwash by running us through our own memories – but it was interrupted. I don't remember everything.”
“It is good, not to remember the programming,” Jeanne-Marie chimed in. Her accent was much more pronounced than her brother's.
“Oui, c'est ça. But I should know you...?”
Victor looked up to see a concerned expression on Jean-Paul's face, one he'd seen many times before. His throat constricted, but he nodded.
“I'm one of your students.”
He didn't understand the worried look the twins exchanged.
“I thought I was the teacher...” Jeanne-Marie murmured.
“Perhaps you could refresh my memory?” Jean-Paul asked, pleasant, polite. “If you do not need to go to class?”
“I – sure. Okay.”
The twins exchanged wordless nods, tapping each other's arms with their water bottles in a touching-not-touching that made Victor remember hearing about some power they only had when they touched. About them killing Iceman with it.
He wondered if this was a really bad idea, but suddenly Aurora was gone and he was being herded down the hall to some chairs.
“I mostly just want to ask if you're all right,” he stammered.
“I think I must be better than I was,” Jean-Paul replied with a strange, sad smile. “And you? Are you all right, Monsieur...?” His hand moved over Victor's face, cupping the air barely an inch from his bruised jaw.
“Borkowski. Victor Borkowski. Also called Anole.” He felt himself under scrutiny, and confessed, “I've been better.”
“Hmm.” They stopped at the chairs. “Well, wait here a moment. I will be right back.”
Victor hadn't even finished the act of sitting down when Northstar collapsed in the chair beside him with a noisy sigh, dry and freshly dressed.
“Am I really a teacher? I hated school!” he exclaimed.
“Um, yes. Business and Economics, and a flight class.”
Jean-Paul smiled.
“I do love flying.”
“It looks fun.”
“You don't...?”
“No. You, uh, you were the teacher in charge of my student advisory group.” Victor took a deep breath and began explaining.
“We were called Alpha Squadron...”
Cross-posted to
speedsicle and twin_one.