HE'S BACK
There were dreams that Ororo never told anyone about. Because perhaps they weren't dreams. And she didn't want to terrify everyone she knew.
It was the middle of the night when Ororo blinked awake. She was curled up in the brass bed that was the biggest piece of furniture in her beloved attic arboretum. Through the skylight, fast-moving, moonlit clouds were visible, racing out to sea.
And there was a warm - very warm - body in bed next to Ororo. It hadn't been there when she'd gone to sleep.
This had happened before. Turning on her side, Ororo planted a sleepy kiss on a familiar cheek. The figure beside her made a soft sound of approval.
"Welcome back," Ororo murmured sleepily as she took the Phoenix in her arms, and buried her face in the glorious red cascade of Jean's hair. Then Ororo peacefully closed her eyes again, enjoying the luxury of having her old friend with her once again.
Jean's chuckle sounded almost human. Not for the first time, it occurred to Ororo that she really should be frightened whenever Jean paid her one of these midnight visits. But, at least so far, Jean was always on her best behavior during these personal stopovers.
"Good to see you," Jean replied. Then she kissed Ororo in the middle of her forehead. Jean's lips were even warmer than her skin.
"What brings you here?" Ororo asked as she idly ran one of her hands down the long, smooth, length of Jean's bare body. "Do you have a prophecy of doom for us? Is there some sort of cosmic threat on the way?"
"He's back," Jean said.
Ororo's eyes opened wide. Her heart was suddenly pounding.
"Who is back?," she asked - even though Ororo was sure she knew the answer to that question.
Jean laughed out loud. "Really, Ororo?," she replied. "You know who I'm talking about."
Ororo let go of Jean and sat up in bed. Jean turned on her side; propping her head up in her hand. That way she could still face her old friend
"Where is he?" Ororo continued sharply.
Jean just shrugged. "The last I saw him, he was driving a beer truck and killing frost giants. I'm sure he's moved on by now. Oh... and he has an infinity stone. I don't know what's going on, but it's going to be a mess. Well... I suppose that was always a given."
"What?!" Ororo exploded after a few seconds of stunned silence.
But by then, Jean was gone.
"Damn it, Jean," Ororo fumed irritably as she rolled out of bed and onto her feet. She obviously wasn't going to get any more sleep that night.
Ororo was on her second cup of coffee when she heard the thunder of a Blackbird landing in VTOL-mode. That would probably cause a bevy of complaints from the neighbors. The New York city authorities were still unsure how to deal with the comings and goings of the X-Men - it wasn't as if Central Park had been designed to host advanced aircraft. On the other hand, since the X-Men had established their mansion in Central Park, crime in the park had dropped to a tiny fraction of what it had once been.
Soon after, a very young, very alive, and considerably-less godlike version of Jean Grey entered the kitchen. She looked worried.
"Something's happened," she said urgently.
Ororo got up, filled a coffee cup, and put it on the table. At first, Jean looked at the cup as if it were a live grenade. Then she blinked, sat down, took a sip, and tried to calm down.
"What?" Ororo asked. Actually, she had a pretty good suspicion of what Jean had to say.
Jean took a deep breath and then let it out before speaking. She didn't want to look like an over-excited kid in front of Ororo. Ororo had that effect on more than a few X-Men.
"I went to Canada. And I visited Logan's tomb."
Then Jean paused, waiting for Ororo's reaction. Ororo just smiled encouragingly back at Jean.
"The adamantium shell that was around his body - it's broken open," Jean finished. "And there's no sign of Logan."
Ororo nodded. "And?"
Jean gave Ororo another long and searching look. "I think he's back. I... I... sensed something. I can't explain it, but that's why I went to look in the first place."
Ororo reached over and took Jean's hand in her own. "I believe you."
Jean stared at Ororo. It was obvious that Jean's news wasn't actually a surprise to Ororo. And Jean didn't know what to make of that.
That was when Jimmy Hudson entered the room. Ororo hid a smile. She'd noticed that Jimmy eventually always appeared whenever Jean was around. However, he never pushed his presence on her.
Like father, but not-quite like son.
Jimmy filled up a coffee cup of his own. Then he noticed how Jean was staring at Ororo.
"Everything okay?" he asked as he leaned against the kitchen counter. Ororo felt a pang as she noticed the slightly distant look in his eyes and the tilt of his head that meant Jimmy was using his enhanced senses to check the immediate neighborhood. Logan used to do - did do - almost exactly the same thing.
"Logan is back," Jean said earnestly. "Not the new one. I mean the old one. Uh... I mean the old younger one, not the new older one. That is..."
Jean ground to a flustered halt. Ororo gently squeezed Jean's hand.
"It's fine, dear," Ororo told Jean softly. "We know what you mean."
There was an amazed look on Jimmy's face. "Where is he? Is he okay?"
Jean just shrugged helplessly.
"As I understand it, he's driving a beer truck," Ororo told them imperturbably. "And he has an infinity stone."
Jean and Jimmy looked at Ororo as if she was crazy.
Ororo had a mysterious smile on her face as she got to her feet.
"I will tell the others," Ororo said.
After Ororo left, Jimmy gave Jean a long, appraising, look. "I suppose that makes me the new younger one?"
Jean gave Jimmy a long and surprised look. Then she smiled.
"I guess so."
Kitty was in her office. She'd begun starting her days earlier ever since she found herself in charge.
"Thank you, Ororo," Kitty said shortly.
Ororo's nod was almost a bow. "You're welcome, Kitten."
Ororo had known Kitty since Kitty was just thirteen years old. Really, it sometimes amazed Ororo to see how poised and self-assured Kitty had become. There had been a time when she simply couldn't imagine Kitty as anything other than an excitable and headstrong young girl just growing into the first bloom of womanhood.
Then Ororo left the room. Once the door to her office was safely shut, Kitty covered her face with her hands and burst into tears.
Ororo found Jubilation next.
Jubiliation - just returning from some best-not-to-ask nighttime ramble - hugged Ororo so tight that she almost broke ribs.
"You bastard," she whispered brokenly to someone who wasn't present. "What took you so damn long?!"
Ororo held Jubilation close and stroked her hair until she calmed down.
"I gotta tell Shogo!" Jubes finally said. Then she dashed off in the direction of the nursery.
Laura and Gabby were in their apartment when Ororo called.
After they talked, Laura put her phone down on the table and stared at it.
"What's wrong?" Gabby asked immediately. She'd seen the transformation that came over Laura as she talked on the phone.
Laura looked at Gabby, examining her closely. Then she smiled and said, "You'll be meeting someone soon. Someone important."
Then Laura glanced at Johnathan. "You too," she added.
Gabby looked puzzled.
Johnathan just growled grumpily.
It was a bright, cool, and beautiful fall morning. The leaves of the trees in Central Park were just beginning to turn. In a week, the park would be a conflagration of red and yellow.
Off to the west, a wall of dark-gray clouds was slowly assembling into a storm-front.
The old man sat on the mansion porch, studying the immediate approaches to the mansion. He was still as weathered stone as he waited for something that he knew would inevitably come.
Laura walked up the drive towards the old man, gravel crunching under her boots. She'd left Gabby at the apartment. There was good reason for that.
There were no greetings between Laura and the old man as Laura mounted the steps of the porch. The old man loved Laura with all of his heart, but wasn't inclined to advertise the fact. Laura really couldn't make up her mind about the old man. Their first meeting turned into a disaster, but that hadn't completely been the old man's fault. And later on, he did help her.
Ororo walked out of the mansion's front door. She had a pair of saddlebags slung over her shoulder and was obviously quite cheerful. When she saw them, Ororo nodded at Laura and the old man.
"Play nice," she told them with a distracted smile, just before energetically clattering down the steps and heading purposefully towards the garage.
The old man unabashedly watched Ororo's ass as she walked away.
As she stood before the old man, Laura paused to consider her words. There was no point in trying to threaten him. He was walking, talking, breathing proof that there were far worse things that could happen to someone than death. It would be best if she simply told him what she was thinking and hoped he understood.
"He's back," Laura finally said.
The old man nodded in grim agreement. "So I hear. Beer and frost giants and infinity stones."
"You can't kill him," Laura added very seriously. "Don't even try. That will start the one fight you want to avoid more than anything else in the world - the fight with everyone. Including me."
That made the old man pause. His eyes had a flat, dead, look that Laura recognized. It was how he became when he contemplated his past.
"I'll think about it," the old man replied shortly.
Laura figured that was about the best she could hope for. So she sat down in a chair next to the old man.
There was the roar of an engine from the direction of the garage. Ororo was perched on Logan's motorcycle as it raced out of the garage. Just before she left the school grounds, Ororo waved at them. Laura and the old man waved back. After that, Ororo leaned the bike into the turn that would eventually take her to the city streets that led to the highway.
Then she sped out of sight.
The rain-front coming in from the west began breaking up.
"Do you think she knows where he is?" Laura asked curiously.
The old man shrugged. "It don't really matter. She'll find him eventually."
"I didn't know she could drive a motorcycle," Laura added thoughtfully.
The old man just chuckled and got to his feet.
"Cup of coffee?" he asked just before he entered the front door.
"Thanks," Laura said.
After the old man left, Laura fished her phone out of her pocket. Then she stared at it for quite some time before dialing a number.
Someone on the other end responded. Laura took a deep breath. This was going to be a conversation filled with anger and probably no little yelling, but it was only right that she tell him.
"Hi, Daken," Laura said into the phone. "There's something you should know."