The Magician Series

Fanfiction
Title:	The Magician Series
Author(s):	Suzanne Bickerstaffe and Jennifer Lyon
Date(s):	June 1995 (Book I) – January 21st 1999 (Book IV archive date at Gossamer)
Length:
Genre(s):	het
Fandom(s):	The X-Files
Relationship(s):
External Links:	here
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The Magician Series is an X-Files set of stories by Suzanne Bickerstaffe and Jennifer Lyon.

It was the winner of a several Spooky Awards, starting in 1995.

Series

• Book I - The Magician - An investigation into the appearance of a bizarre creature in a lab at MIT is the portal into a fantastic alternate universe, where Mulder and Scully must save a world to save themselves and their new-found bond.
• Book II - The Runaway - Sick of his 'duty', Prince Andalor runs away to Mulder's world, where he inadvertently becomes embroiled in a Consortium plot to manipulate the Vortex. Pursuing him into this strange world are the best and brightest of the Realm, who enlist Mulder and Scully's aid to find him.
• Book III - Dark Queen - Back from the mists of time and space, an enemy seeks to bring about the destruction of the Realm. Mulder and Scully take on the quest to find the one man who can help them end the greatest threat ever to the Realm and control the life-threatening complications to their bond.
• Book III Part 2 - The Firebrand - The Realm is rebuilding and the beings look forward to a Royal Wedding. Meanwhile, brigandage is widespread, causing death and economic havoc, and the Noble Houses are up to their necks in conspiracy and treason. But from one House comes a leader who can alter the course of Realm history.
• Book IV - The Warrior Priest - Mulder and Scully travel to the Realm for the birth of the Royal Heir, little knowing that a glitch in the vortex has swept an unsuspecting Skinner along for the ride. When the Heir is abducted, the three must work together to find him, as Skinner makes some difficult adjustments to new-found talents and new-found love.

Reactions and Reviews

Unknown Date

When this was recced to me I was sure I'd hate it: It is a Fantasy AU, it is MSR (when my X-Files preferences are normally NoRomo), it lands Mulder and Scully (in a rather deus-ex-machina way) in a land where magic works and a number of other things are very strange. I know, I know, it sounds rather awful, but the authors make it work, because Mulder and Scully are as bewildered as the reader, it is interesting and sometimes funny to see how they deal with it. I actually enjoyed the first book most, and lost a bit of interest after that. The author' site unfortunately vanished but The Magician I (and the following books) are still at The Annex: X-Files Novel Archive in a PG-13 and a NC-17 version.

My absolute favorite Alternate Universe. I love fantasy, what can I say? Mulder and Scully are beamed into a fantasy world complete with magic and swords and monsters. They're there, of course, to save the world. This is as good as any fantasy novel I've ever read. Even better, actually, because Mulder and Scully are in it.

Omigod. This has to be THE best fantasy series of books ever written! Yes, it's X-Files, and no, I'm not kidding when I say 'books'. Each book is huge (between 300 and 700K) but beautifully done.

WARNING: This discussion is chock full of spoilers for "Magician's Book I" -- including quotations of several passages. Don't read this section if you don't want to know what happens. Also, this section is rated PG for language. Kris's words are in blue and Shari's are in purple. [see original page for the colors, which are denoted by initials here on Fanlore]

[snipped]

[K]: "The Magician" is a book that has a little of everything. It's different from many of the stories we have discussed, as it is one of the most extreme cases of "alternate universe". Fans of fantasy stories will find "The Magician" wonderfully intriguing, however it's much more than a fantasy story.

[S]: This is where I step in and say I am definitely not a fan of fantasy, and yet, I loved this. Guess I just need Mulder and Scully in the universe for me to like it. So fellow non-fantasy fans, don't let that necessarily be what holds you back from reading this. Suzanne and Jen managed to make Mulder and Scully in this universe very believeable.

[K]: Yeah, I guess I forgot to mention that part. I'm not a real big fantasy fan, either. But something about the well-crafted world, something about the enthralling secondary characters, the wonderful M/S interaction...it all wound together to suck me in and hold me down for the count. <g>

[K]: "The Magician" is a rip-roaring adventure with all kinds of mythical elements, a fun look at Mulder and Scully in a sort of "fish out of water" scenario, a terrificly sweet MSR...there's magic, mystery, intrigue, conspiracy, royalty, romance and even a suspenseful courtroom drama.

[K]: "The Magician" was able to tap into many fanfiction weaknesses of mine. The first and foremost being my penchant for reading MSR fanfiction. When I found "The Magician", I had just discovered fanfic and was reading *anything* that was an MSR. Which means, I read quite a few things that weren't quite so stellar. "The Magician" was a rare moment of splendidly sweet, real and scorching MSR that fell perfectly within the boundaries of a "real" story.

[S]: Ah, yes! The MSR in this one was definitely the biggest selling point for me. Starting out there was this same comfortableness between them that we saw from the mid-seasons of the show. So much tenderness. (Shari's a sucker for tenderness.) And yet, some sparks when Mulder and Scully begin settling into their respective roles as Mage and Healer/Warrior.

[K]: It progressed slowly, the sizzling UST growing and growing.

For a long time they lay with a wide expanse of bed - their no man's land - between them. Consumed and exhausted by their thoughts, they willed their bodies and minds to relax, for sleep to come. Out of nowhere, Mulder thoought he heard a tiny voice, so faint as to be almost inaudible, as if it were coming from a locked vault. Lost and alone, the voice pleaded, "Hold me." Did that come from me or from Scully, he wondered. The aching need to hold and to be held grew overwhelming. Now the voice grew stronger, out from behind the barriers. "Hold me!" it insisted, demanding to be heard, demanding to be obeyed.

They found each other in no man's land, and found their peace, sleeping soundly in each other's arms.

[snipped]

[K]: Well, it had *me* perched on the edge of *my* seat. <g>

[S]: ::::nodding because Kris managed to get the cool quotes. Probably paying me back for the "No Greater Love" discussion. <g>::::

[K]: Damn straight. <g>

[K]: On top of all of that, the two talented authors of "The Magician" mangaged to introduce some incredibly original and fun secondary characters. Reinald (the Royal Mage), Tarnor (the loyal gargoyle), Jourdain (a realm-version of Skinner) and Aldara (the fierce warrior) helped to make "The Magician" that much more full of depth and excitement.

[S]: Tarnor, Aldara, and Lita were probably my favorite secondary characters. Tarnor just because he was so cute and funny. I loved seeing Aldara unfold... she started out so harsh, almost emotionally wounded, and very resentful of Mulder, but she finally was able to trust the two of them. She and Scully formed a strong bond, and in this incident it was especially nice to see how Scully responded to a friendship other than the one she had with Mulder. And of course, Aldara and Jourdain's (and I think it's a little unnecessarily harsh to compare him to SKINNER, Kris! <g>)....

[K]: Big difference between Skinner and Jourdain...I like Jourdain. He's how Skinner SHOULD BE, dangnabbitalltothenetherworld! (No offense to Skinnerfans, but I calls 'em like I sees 'em <g>)

[S]: .....blossoming romance was a great sub-plot. Then there's Lita. Wise, straight-forward, and wonderfully caring toward Mulder and Scully... can't imagine how anyone could not love her.

1998

My first selection is a tale that started out years ago and is actually one of the stories that got me hooked on fanfic. For those of you who like a good loonnnnng read, this trilogy is for you. Imagine, if you will, the X-Files universe turned on its ear as Mulder and Scully are somehow transported into a Tolkienesque universe complete with Scully: Warrior Princess whipping around a sword. The first part is still my favorite, but the entire series is worth a read (and rumor has it part 4 is in the works). So, sit back, relax, and enjoy "The Magician".

1999

I am a noromo. So when it comes to a story in which Mulder and Scully are joined at the hip in the most intimate way, and I can't stop praising it to the sky, it means the story is more than excellent. It is a rare gem, such as Magician Series by Jennifer Lyon and Susanne Bickerstaffe. Not only that, it is also worthy of the best fantasy series you can find on the shelves of an ordinary bookstore.

2002

My first AU! I didn't think I could ever get into AU. This changed my opinion for good.

Incredible series! The mix of XF and fantasy is strangely appealing. You won't be able to put it down (which is good because it's rather long), and when the last part is over you'll be begging for more. M&S; don't seem extremely in-character to me, but it's always nice to see them so happy.

2006

This story is an AU without being an AU.

Have you ever had the desire to see Mulder as a Mage? Wanted a good fic where Scully is Healer with magical powers? Don't want to sift through horrible AUs with no appreciation for the original characters? This is the fic for you. Scully and Mulder are still Scully and Mulder, FBI agents, but they're transported to an alternate realm where magical powers are commonplace. Both must adjust to their new lives. All the fun of an AU with none of the hassle.

The prose is a little irritating at first, I thought, but the plot is irresistible. It's also long, so leave yourself time to read, as I've found it to be an addicting fic.

One of the earliest examples (possibly the first? I don't know) of a favorite fanfic genre of mine, the let's-drop-our-heroes-into-a-fantasy-world AU. *grin* Basically, Mulder and Scully are investigating the unexplained appearance of a gargoyle-like being in a DC laboratory when a portal opens and sucks all three of them back to the gargoyle's home dimension, and it turns out to be no accident, because our intrepid FBI agents happen to be the fulfillment of a prophecy, and it's up to them to save the Realm from invasion by dark, ruthless creatures from yet another dimension. To complicate matters, it's a world where magic is real, and both Mulder and Scully find themselves developing unexpected powers and a powerful psychic link, much to Scully's chagrin. Even though I'm no longer a 'Shipper, this still remains among my all-time favorite AUs, not just because it hits both my major kinks--fantasy and telepathy--but because it's incredibly well-written and the Realm is vivid and three-dimensional enough to deserve publication. *grin*