Sorry for posting a day late! Somehow my cold-addled mind thought Thursday was Wednesday.

Title: But The Cat Came Back
Fandom: X-Men: First Class (small crossover with Sherlock BBC)
Pairing: Charles/Erik (implied Sherlock/John)
Categories: AU, crossover, humor, crack, angst, fluff, creature/transformation, cats, secrets, spies
Length: Medium (3,848 words)
Warnings: n/a

Author on LJ: twelve_pastels / twelve_pastels
Website: twelve_pastels

Summary:
In retrospect, Erik possibly should have been suspicious. All of the mannerisms were the same, the coloring was almost exactly correct, and whiskey in the milk? A dead giveaway.
Although, to his credit, the last thing a man thinks of during the week after he’s broken up with the person who he’s certain is the love of his life is, upon seeing a bedraggled, frantic cat crouching on his stoop on a rainy night, “Oh, look! It’s Charles, and he’s been transformed into a cat by a malevolent government program! I wonder how I can change him back and thereby secure his love forever and ever, amen?”
(Erik’s dilemma was entirely understandable.)

Review:
Because I am feeling sick and miserable, angsty cracky fluff is in order, which somehow this fic brings in equal measure. In this modern day AU setting, Erik gets his heart broken when Charles unexpectedly breaks off their relationship (mostly due to Very Important Secrets they were both keeping). The only thing that brings him comfort is a strangely Charles-like cat that turns up on his doorstep, until Charles' lab-partner calls Erik for help in finding the missing man. Frantic searching, angry phone calls, veterinary visits and unwanted house guests follow, until finally Charles is found right under his nose.

A fun balance of break-up angst with cracky bits--such as Charles turning into a(n alcohol obsessed) cat--while still feeling very true to the fandom. I love the modern AU fusion with Sherlock BBC, with the idea of the United Kingdom purposefully hiring mutants as spies and in other fields as a clever way of averting a war with mutants with good jobs and a nice benefits package.

But The Cat Came Back (on AO3)
But The Cat Came Back (on DW)