October 2006

October was the month for new friendships: Tommy Jones gave Yvette Petrovic a necklace in apology for startling her in medlab and the two discovered a mutual love of poetry. Kyle Gibney, unable to believe his eyes, made a scene on the journals which resulted in a number of people defending the former FOH-er, much to his surprise. Yvette's mother was located and she returned to Kosovo, but not before making many friends and encountering Jennie Stavros and Marius Laverne, neither of whom she remembered. Shiro Yoshida took on Kyle as his personal trainer in an effort to regain his fitness after his brush with addiction. Kyle's pig pillow was pignapped, Jennie and Marius announced they'd 'eloped' during their missing summer in Europe and Halloween went off without a demon invasion or a riot, much to the satisfaction of Jennie, who enjoyed her eighteenth birthday. Remy LeBeau also celebrated a birthday, the first he'd ever had - in an effort to counter the depression and self-loathing caused by the ending of his relationship with Lorna Dane, Amanda Sefton chose the date of his defeat of Gambit as his birthday and arranged a party with his workmates and friends.

Halloween was also marked by the arrival of Pietro "Quicksilver" Maximoff, formerly of the Brotherhood of Mutants. Following the kidnapping of Julio, he had a falling out with his father Magneto which resulted in him betraying his double agent status and fleeing for his life. His arrival created some drama, especially when his twin sister Wanda Maximoff came to talk to him, resulting in a nasty row.

There were also goodbyes: Sean Cassidy returned to Cassidy Keep for an unspecified amount of time, and Amanda visited Muir Island Research Facility where a critically injured Manuel de la Rocha lay, finally coming to terms with the end of their relationship and making some degree of peace with herself.

Kurt Wagner, emotionally reeling from the cumulation of events such as Thermopylae, Bleeding and X-Men Mission: Alcatraz, disappeared from the mansion, seeking out his birth mother Mystique. His sister Amanda, concerned when she discovered he wasn't with the Szardos Clan as she believed, cast a location spell and passed on the results to the X-Men, who retrieved him, although they were shocked to discover he was with Mystique. Kurt prevented the team from apprehending his mother and helped her escape. Upon returning to the mansion, he started therapy with Jack Leary and began the long road to rebuilding his life, with the support of some of his friends and family. There was an unexpected visit from his brother Stefan at the end of the month, and a summons home.

Marius ran afoul of a 'gift' for Henry McCoy from Infectia which resulted in him losing control of his powers. Yvette, encountering him in the kitchen, startled him into teleporting away and she informed Jennie she was concerned. Jennie went out to find him and was attacked, to be rescued by Cain, Lorna and Kyle. Further research by Paige Guthrie, Moira MacTaggart and Amelia Voght revealed the cause of Marius' problem and Charles Xavier managed to psychically talk him into rationality. The incident resulted in Marius' parents coming to the school, to be confronted by Forge's experimental procedure to cure Marius of his maladaptive mutation, using his half-sister Monet St. Croix's bone marrow. Marius presented himself at the Halloween party, cured of the harmful effects of his mutation including the need to extract mutant bone marrow to survive.

X-Force went to Russia to investigate the sudden appearance of hollowed-out superpowered beings attacking various sites across the country. Their search lead them to a former bioweapons project from the Eighties, a technopath who had been integrated into a machine as a living meat computer. Calling herself 'Mastermold', she proved difficult to combat until DJ hit upon the idea of using his powers to take out her power source.

Elpis became involved when Smichov, the mutant neighborhood in Prague, was sealed off for security reasons, with none of its inhabitants allowed in or out until they could be suitably investigated for connections to any of the various pro- or anti-mutant terrorist groups. Following the death of an important government minister on a tour of what was rapidly becoming a ghetto, Nathan Dayspring, Angelo Espinosa, Rahne Sinclair, the group's secretary Juliette Hathaway, and Medusa Amaquelin, joining the group as a volunteer, managed to secure permission to join other NGOs on a UN-sponsored assessment mission, leaving on Halloween.

Doug Ramsey and Forge used their powers in concert to prevent a bank robbery, Logan discussed with Remy the possibility of him training the younger members of X-Force in hand to hand, especially Sarah Morlocke. Theresa Cassidy and Bobby Drake failed their first Danger Room session together in spectacular fashion, with Bobby switching to ice form for the first time and not being able to change back for several days. Logan was fired as teacher of self-defence to the mansion's students following an incident with Crystal Amaquelin. Marie D'Ancato and Clarice Ferguson found themselves on the wrong end of a football riot during Homecoming at Clarice's college, only to be rescued (to their embarrassment) by the 'mutant groupies' known as M.O.N.S.T.E.R.

Timeline

Oct 1 - Marie, returning to herself, emails several apologies and checks on Jennie. Jennie is in the midst of an OCD bout and Marie notifies the staff of her mental state. Julio meets Marius. Amanda, Angelo and Marie go to Muir Island to see Manuel; Amanda begins to finally let him go.

Oct 2 - Forge meets Yvette and shows her the self-repairing cloth he's invented that will stop her cutting things on contact. Haller reapplies for the school counsellor job, being cleared by Charles. Angelica helps Kyle's sore back. Tommy leaves a gift for Yvette in apology for startling her.

Oct 3 - Mark and Amanda talk and a plan to remind Remy of his humanity is hatched. Mommy Dearest Redux: Kurt meets with Mystique; several notes are left by Kurt, telling people he is with his mother. The Gates: The Czech government announces a lockdown of the mutant quarter in Prague, to Nathan's concern. Jennie meets Angelica and shows her the Panty Raid Revenge pictures. Jennie goes and talks to Haller. Haller consults Marie about moving Yvette into Laurie's room, which is in same suite as Jennie.

Oct. 4 - Yvette moves into her new room and meets Laurie and Angel. She also introduces herself on the journals. Tommy saves Sooraya from chemical poisoning in a cleaning mishap. Kyle gets another ransom note for his pig pillow. Mommy Dearest Redux: Nathan hires Amanda to do Elpis research for him in Germany.

Oct. 5 - Yvette meets Angelo and they discuss Elpis and humanitarian work; later, she reads poetry with Tommy in the library. Kyle posts his disbelief to his journal and Tommy is surprised by the amount of support he receives; it prompts him to start being more social and leaving the mansion for the first time since his arrival. Angelo gets a trainee name - 'Sancho'. The Gates: Logan and Nathan discuss the Prague situation and what Nathan plans to do.

Oct. 6 - Crystal apologises to Forge and realises she set his workshop on fire. Rahne meets Medusa. Kyle apologises, both on the journals and in person to Tommy and Yvette. Scott suggests building a cannon for his shop class, but the reaction causes him to change his mind. Yvette meets Sooraya and Mondo, and gets her new non-cutting gloves from Clarice. Angelo plans a belated birthday party for Yvette since she missed hers being comatose.

Oct. 7 - Forge and Doug prevent a bank robbery by using their powers. Angelica meets Marius and there is angst despite her best efforts. Mommy Dearest Redux: Kurt continues to travel with Mystique as she keeps him from the Brotherhood. Nathan discovers Sooraya uses TK to change her shape. Amanda and Lorna run into each other and Amanda makes it clear Remy is still waiting for the other woman.

Oct. 8 - Marie and Yvette have a picnic in the treehouse and Yvette decides to apologise to Logan for cutting him. Logan talks to Remy about combat training for the younger members of X-Force, Sarah in particular. The Snow Valley crew throw a birthday party for Remy on the anniversary of him defeating Gambit; later he leaves a voicemail message for Lorna.

Oct. 9 - The Gates: The Amaquelin sisters discuss Prague and decide to do what they can. Yvette emails Logan an apology. Making dinner with Angelo, Yvette has a brief memory return; Angelo contacts Haller in concern. Lorna leaves a voicemail for Remy, suggesting they meet and telling him about her meeting with Amanda.

Oct. 10 - Laurie emails her suite mates about not using the air filter in the suite to try and control her powers better. Jennie has concerns in light of the Bleeding incident. The Gates: Medusa and Nathan discuss Prague and Medusa offers what information Attilan can from refugees. In return, Nathan offers her volunteer work with Elpis.

Oct. 11 - Mommy Dearest Redux: Meeting with Stefan in Berlin, Amanda finds out Kurt isn't with the Szardos caravan and immediately flies back to New York to raise the alarm; a location spell using Kurt's X-Men tags (left behind) reveals he is likely to be in Chicago. Sean tells Terry he is returning to Cassidy Keep for an unspecified amount of time.

Oct. 12 - Mommy Dearest Redux: Amanda sends Sam back Kurt's tags; Sarah and Marie-Ange drag Amanda to the pub as she is clearly not capable of working; Nathan brings a brooding Ororo food. Crystal and Medusa visit the Snow Valley offices to say thank you for their role in finding Jennie.

Oct. 13 - Logan and Medusa meet and argue about his treatment of Crystal; later, Crystal confronts Logan about his opinions of her and she ends up changing the air pressure in his lungs so he can't breathe before flinging him through the gym doors; Crystal then returns home to Attilan with Medusa whilst the staff discuss the incident; Lorna and Ororo go get drunk. The Gates: Nathan and Rahne attend a meeting at the UN about Prague and encounter protesters from both sides getting heated. Laurie suggests an outing to see Wicked. Jennie visits the Snow Valley offices for a training session with Wanda and is read the riot act about not using her powers.

Oct. 14 - Mommy Dearest Redux: Kurt is located in Chicago and the team confront him and Mystique; Kurt helps Mystique escape, much to the shock of his teammates; Ororo notifies Amanda that Kurt has been found. Kyle asks on the student community about the incident with Logan.

Oct. 15 - Yvette's mother is located and plans made for her to return home. Angelo and several other students throw a belated birthday party for Yvette. Nathan and Cain discuss the security tapes of the Logan-Crystal incident and Nathan is furious. Amanda emails Kurt asking to see him. Alex posts about the earthquakes in Hawaii and reassures people he's safe. Haller tells Jennie he is going to Kosovo with Yvette to settle her in.

Oct. 16 - Forge marks the anniversary of With Malice Aforethought. Vitiation: Marius opens a mysterious parcel addressed to Hank McCoy. Jennie finally talks to Yvette, only to find the Albanian girl doesn't remember Monaco; Yvette forgives her for any wrongdoing she might have done. Nathan welcomes Medusa back from her visit home with dinner plans. Lorna suggests Angelo and herself take over as self-defence teachers. Scott and Marie both talk to Crystal about the incident with Logan, but it is unclear whether the girl has learned from the incident. Mommy Dearest Redux: On discovering Kurt's return, Amanda visits him and badgers answers out of him; Kurt is surprised (and relieved) to discover she doesn't care about Mystique.

Oct. 17 - Ororo fires Logan as a teacher - no-one is happy about the situation. Scott and Forge play chess. Amanda and Mark have dinner and he tells her a little about his personal history. Sooraya encounters Nathan having a loud, Elpis-related disagreement on the phone. Crystal offers to help repair the gym doors. Jennie has a productive therapy session with Leonard Samson.

Oct. 18 - Ororo visits Kurt and they talk a little about Mystique. The Gates: Nathan and Medusa meet Istavan Barath at a UN meeting and he informs them no-one is getting out of the Smichov ghetto any more. Kyle offers to help Shiro get back into shape. Ororo and Scott have bad movie night. Scott and Angelo discuss his prospective teaching position and confirm it won't be too much for his schedule.

Oct. 19 - Angelo reassures Yvette about her impending trip home. Vitiation: Yvette encounters Marius in the kitchen and he is acting very strangely; she tells Jennie, who goes looking for him and when she encounters him, he attacks and feeds on her; Jennie drops a tree on Marius and is rescued at the last minute by Lorna, Cain and Kyle; Moira and Amelia discover Marius has been effected by Infectia's 'gift' to Hank; Charles brings Marius out of his pit of self-loathing. Terry and Laurie meet. Angel goes to the Snow Valley brownstone and meets Doug; he agrees to help her learn to speak Dari for Sooraya. Marie reacts badly to the situation with Logan and Angelo calms her down; Ororo explains to Kyle about Logan and Crystal. Scott announces the new self-defence teachers. Logan and Sarah spar.

Oct. 20 - Ororo tells Crystal she needs to learn to control her anger. Remy and Ororo meet in New York for their usual lunch and talk about their mutual singledom now that Lorna has explained to Remy that things are over. Laurie says goodbye to Yvette. Vitiation: Marius and Jennie resolve their issues and become friends again.

Oct. 21 - Yvette returns to Kosovo with Haller and Marie. Nathan discusses the Logan incident with Crystal. Scott and Kurt talk. Julio startles Laurie out running and she knocks him over, much to his embarrassment. Cain organises a work crew to put up the storm windows and Angel discovers a new aspect of her powers. Terry and Bobby have their first Danger Room session together and Bobby shifts into an all-ice form and can't change back straight away. Logan hands over the self-defence class to Angelo, with little grace. Marius' parents arrive. Cain tells Angelo how impressed he is with the younger man's progress. Nathan holds a dinner party.

Oct. 22 - Operation: Flesh Mechanic: Betsy and Remy are asked for help by the former KGB. Jennie tells Crystal the truth of her summer. The Gates: The interior Minister is assassinated in Smichov and things get far worse; Elpis resolves to go there and find out what's going on, if possible.

Oct. 23 - Marie reports back from Kosovo that Yvette's mother, whilst overprotective, is happy to have her daughter back. Laurie checks up on Jennie. Angel meets Shiro after he accidentally burns down a tree. Operation: Flesh Mechanic: Remy summons the Snow Valley team to Russia. Terp Attack: MONSTER meets at Clarice's college and decide to approach her again about joining, which doesn't go well. Kurt has his first session with Jack Leary.

Oct. 24 - Operation: Flesh Mechanic: The Snow Valley team arrive in Russia, where they discover strange things are happening that could involve an old Soviet weapons program; splitting up, they try and discover what is behind the sudden manifestations and attacks on various sites; Wanda and Amanda investigate mystic causes, while Doug and Mark go through the media. Laurie checks up on Tommy, acting on Yvette's behalf whilst she is gone. Shiro and Forge discuss Shiro's drug problem. The Gates: Elpis gets permission to go to Prague to investigate the ghetto in person.

Oct. 25 - The pignappers send Kyle photos of his pig. Operation: Flesh Mechanic: Sarah and Sofia examine one of the bodies; Remy and Marie-Ange talk to one of the former scientists who was involved in the weapons project and tells them about a technopath who was merged with electronics. The Gates: Nathan announces the Smichov trip. Scott tries to reassure Terry, waiting in the medlab for news of Bobby; Forge upsets Terry asking about Bobby. Crystal meets the new self-defence teacher, Angelo.

Oct. 26 - Operation: Flesh Mechanic: Wanda and Amanda admit defeat and conclude the phenomenon isn't magical; the group re-meets and shares findings, with everything pointing to the weapons program; X-Force faces down the living computer, now calling itself Master Mold, and is nearly defeated before Mark gets a brainwave and destroys its power source. Scott goes out for the afternoon and comes back with a new sports car. Ororo meets Marius' mother; Forge meets Marius' father and outlines a plan to save Marius' life. The Gates: Medusa convinces Nathan to let her go to Smochov with Elpis. Terp Attack: Marie asks Clarice for a visit to her campus, wanting to get away from the school for a bit.

Oct. 27 - Terp Attack: Marie visits Clarice at her dorms and they plan to go to Homecoming. Lorna announces Halloween pumpkin carving. Jennie and Angel paint Marius' mouths with lipstick; Jennie emails Forge asking for an explanation of the bone-marrow transplant from Monet that will save his life. Laurie catches the 'flu. Marius thanks the staff for stopping him in Monaco and he and Jennie announce their disappearance over the summer was due to an elopement. X-Force returns from Russia, jetlagged, bruised and with the flu. Angel brings Laurie soup.

Oct. 28 - Mark makes Akira jokes on the journals, referring to the meat computer. Ororo and Nathan have a flying lesson, which ends with Ororo being tossed into the lake for laughing at him. The Gates: Elpis makes final preparations for Prague. Mommy Dearest Redux: Kurt's brother Stefan arrives at the mansion, to bring Kurt home to the caravan at his mother's behest. Marius undergoes the experimental procedure to 'cure' his maladaptive mutation. Crystal tells Kyle about the incident with Logan.

Oct. 29 - Terp Attack: During a football riot, Marie and Clarice are rescued by MONSTER, much to their embarrassment. Halloween pumpkin carving. Ororo and Wanda go out for a de-stressing session.

Oct. 30 - Crystal and Dani discuss the cooking class. Crystal asks if anyone has seen a package she is expecting. Crystal announces to her roommates that she will be staying in Medusa's room to look after Lockjaw whilst her sister is away. Doug finds Marie-Ange is sick with the 'flu and takes her home. Terry issues an open invitation to her jazz gig. The Gates: Medusa dyes her hair and Nathan completes preparations. Bobby manages to turn himself back into human form, much to Terry's relief.

Oct. 31 - Halloween. Kyle helps Shiro regain his fitness by acting as his coach. Nathan makes Jennie a birthday cake and talks to Lorna. Ororo tries to make amends with Logan, but it goes badly; Marie finds Logan packing, but he promises it's only a short absence. Crystal delivers baskets of fruit and chocolate to everyone who was involved in retrieving Jennie and Marius. Mommy Dearest Redux: Kurt is formally cast out of the Szardos tribe by Margali for his part in aiding Mystique. Scott finds a passenger in his car after a trip into town - Pietro Maximoff, seeking refuge from his father after his role as double agent was exposed; Pietro announces his presence and he and Wanda fight; Scott chases after Wanda and drives her back to New York afterwards. Jennie celebrates her birthday and receives a surprise in the form of a cured (but bald) Marius. Kyle gets his pig back from the pignapper - Angel. During the Halloween party, Angel suddenly starts noticing Boys and has a minor freakout. The Gates: The Elpis crew - Nathan, Angelo, Rahne, Juliette the secretary and Medusa - leave for Smichov via charter flight.

Plots

Mommy Dearest Redux

The Gates

Vitiation

Operation: Flesh Mechanic

Terp Attack

External Links

October 2006