Chapter Three: Jean's Return

And here's Chapter Three! Like I said before, I'm not killing off Scott. So what's gonna happen when he and Rogue arrive at Alkali Lake?

Also, since Ms. Marvel wasn't part of the trilogy (and because everyone wanted her left out anyway), I've got a new reason for Rogue to have super strength and the ability to fly. It's not much; it's short and simple, but I'm pleased with it. Because if I'm being honest, there had to have been times where Rogue absorbed the powers of the rest of the X-Men, whether it be accidental or for a Danger Room session, between films. That's what I think, at least.

thewriternextdoo: Exactly! I mean, it's great that you believe mutants are fine without this cure, 'Ro, but why not put yourself in someone else's shoes? Like Rogue? And from what I remember, wasn't there a part of Jean's back story that her powers got her childhood friend killed? I'm not sure if her parents died in this version, but they were suspiciously absent when Jean returned to her old home...

genbo: Don't worry, this story will definitely end with Scott and Rogue preparing to lead the school together!

0001234: Rogue is gonna show a few signs of being a good example for the school before (and even during) the final battle. I just hope I do Scott enough justice as well...

Hope10: Wow, that is actually a great idea! Thankfully, I've got time to figure out how I wanna write it, so thanks! However, even if she did give Jean a talk, I don't think Phoenix would be willing to listen...

Mezita: I'm happy you found it, too! And thanks!

Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men.

Rogue held onto Scott's waist as he drove his motorcycle across Canada. They had been traveling nonstop to get to Alkali Lake.

She had boldly decided to carry both their bags on her back the whole ride, and felt no pain whatsoever. After absorbing so many people since she was seventeen, both humans and mutants, their combined strength helped boost her own. Thanks to this, along with plenty of physical training, she was now strong enough to effortlessly lift the X-Jet with one hand. And thanks to absorbing Magneto and Storm, she fully utilized her new ability to fly in Danger Room sessions along with her super strength.

After traveling for a few days, they had finally reached Alkali Lake. Parking his bike and placing the bags on the ground, Scott stood with Rogue and they looked out across the lake. Aside from the large rocky platform they walked to stand on, there was nothing but water; William Stryker's base was completely submerged, along with the corpse of Stryker himself.

Scott...

"I hear her, Marie," Scott said softly.

She nodded and they looked harder at the water.

Scott...

As Scott continued to hear Jean's voice whisper to him, Rogue carefully inspected the flowing water below them.

"I don't see anything, Scott," she said, turning to face him. "Maybe we should go a bit further –"

But Scott wasn't listening.

Can you hear me? Jean's voice sounded desperate now. I'm still here. Scott... Scott...

"Stop..." he said aloud.

Rogue cupped his face in her gloved hands. "Try to relax, Scott," she tried to soothe him, but to no avail.

I'm here, Scott! Jean was yelling now.

"Stop it." Her frantic voice was becoming too much for him to handle.

"What is she saying, Scott?" Rogue asked him urgently. She didn't dare use telepathy on him, not when he was in too much distress.

He just backed away from her, clutching his head. "Stop it!"

Scott! SCOTT! Now he was seeing her drown again...

"STOP!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. Rogue quickly jumped out of the way as he ripped off his shades and shot optic blasts into the water. He fell to his knees in despair, shutting his eyes.

"Scott!" Rogue knelt beside him. She gently took his shades and placed them gingerly back onto his face. "What happened? What was she saying?"

But before he could say anything, they heard what sounded like waves crashing. They turned to look at the spot he shot the optic blasts at. It was swirling, but they couldn't see what was in the middle. Then water suddenly burst from it, causing such a powerful gust of watery air that they were knocked backwards.

Groaning, they tried to untangle themselves; Rogue had landed on Scott's lap.

"Are you all right, hon?" she asked him. She stood up and held out her hand.

"Yeah," he mumbled, letting her pull him up.

A bright light was shining behind her, causing them both to shield their eyes, even Scott. They could faintly see a figure standing before them, but the glow was too blinding for them to see who it was. As they steadied themselves on their feet, the light quickly dimmed, and they couldn't believe their eyes.

Jean Grey was standing before them, oddly dry despite having drowned, but unmistakeably alive.

"Jean?" they both asked in disbelief.

"Scott? Marie?" Jean asked back. She was still wearing her uniform, and her red hair had grown to her mid back.

"How?" Scott questioned her.

She looked like she was wondering that herself. "I don't know."

Soon, none of them cared how or why. Scott and Rogue were so happy, and relieved, to find that they had been right after all. The three threw their arms around each other in a group hug.

"I can't believe you're really here, Doc!" exclaimed Rogue.

Jean smiled at her. "I missed you," she said. "Both of you." She turned to Scott. "I want to see your eyes."

Both Scott and Rogue stepped back in surprise.

"Take them off," said Jean, lifting her hands to take off his shades.

"No," said Scott at once. He lowered her hands. "No."

"Trust me," she whispered. "I can control it now."

Rogue wanted to ask how, but she remained silent, knowing that this was a tender moment for her boyfriend and friend. She understood how deeply they still cared for each other, and never once felt jealous. And she knew, from one of their past conversations, that one of Jean's desires was to see the color of Scott's eyes. If she was being honest, she wanted to see them, too...

Jean slowly took Scott's shades off of his face. He had his eyes tightly shut.

"Open them," she said softly. "You can't hurt us."

Rogue stood beside Jean so that she could look at him clearly. They watched him slowly open his eyes. His eyes glowed red, but the glow quickly faded away, revealing clear blue eyes. Rogue was taken aback.

"You have beautiful eyes, Scott," she murmured, completely lovestruck all over again.

Scott carefully looked at them both. "You both look so beautiful."

The southern belle blushed, but smiled brightly. Jean smiled, too, but then she gasped suddenly.

"What is it?" Scott asked immediately. Rogue quickly took his shades from Jean and handed them to him, and he put them back on.

"Something's happening," said Jean frantically. She heard a voice eerily similar to hers say,

I'M FINALLY FREE!

Scott and Rogue watched her eyes slowly blacken, and felt wind swirling around them. Using telepathy, Rogue was able to figure out what was going on. She sensed a new presence in the older woman, and it was dangerous and deadly. Fearing Scott was in danger from this display, she pushed him out of the way and stood in front of her.

"Marie!" Scott groaned from the fall.

Rogue ignored him and stared into Jean's black eyes. "I don't know who you are, or what you're doing inside of Jean," she said, narrowing her eyes, "but you are not gonna hurt Scott!"

And disregarding her own safety, she ripped off her gloves and placed them onto Jean's face, forcing her powers to kick in immediately...

Rogue... Rogue... Rogue... Rogue...

Professor Xavier's thoughts echoed in the minds of everyone in the mansion. Hearing him whisper Rogue's name, Logan immediately ran from his room and down the stairs. Ororo caught up to him.

"What happened?" she asked quickly.

"No clue!" he answered. They both ran to the professor's office. "Professor, you okay?"

His wheelchair was facing the windows. Slightly turning his head, the only thing he said was, "Get to Alkali Lake."

Logan and Storm took the X-Jet to Alkali Lake. When they reached it, they found a massive cloud covering it. They carefully landed the Jet on the ground in the midst of the cloud.

"You don't want to be here," Storm noted as they exited the Jet.

"Do you?" Logan rebuked. She didn't answer.

They slowly walked through the mist. Logan looked around and saw a few rocks floating gently around them. As soon as he saw them, they fell back into more fog.

"I can't see a damn thing," he grumbled.

"I can take care of that," said Storm calmly. She stopped walking, her eyes glowing white, and within seconds, the cloud had disappeared.

They observed their new surroundings. Rocks, twigs, and even water droplets from plants and the lake were floating leisurely along the rocky ground. It was as if gravity had stopped working properly, though the two X-Men were unaffected.

"Logan? Storm?" They heard a familiar voice approach them. They turned to their left to see Scott running towards them from behind a boulder, holding an unconscious Rogue in his arms.

"What the hell happened?" Logan demanded, carefully examining the young woman. Storm went to investigate behind the boulder.

"I don't know," said Scott shakily. "She's still alive, but she won't wake up."

Logan gritted his teeth. "How did this –"

"LOGAN!" Both men jumped at Storm's shriek. They ran to her.

"Oh, God," Logan gasped, seeing who Storm had found.

Jean Grey was lying on her back, unconscious like Rogue.

"She's alive," said Storm in utter disbelief.

Logan almost laughed in relief, turning to Scott. "You guys were right."

Arriving at the mansion, the professor had briefly inspected Rogue before telling Scott that she would wake up fine in less than an hour. Absorbing Jean had left both women unconscious, but Rogue would be able to recover on her own. While Scott took her to their room, Professor Xavier had Jean set up in the med lab, a computer monitor showing a scan of her brain.

"The sheer mass of water that collapsed on top of Jean should have obliterated her completely," he told Logan from his position behind Jean's head. "The only explanation of Jean's survival is that her powers wrapped her in a cocoon of telekinetic energy."

Thanks to her, he thought grimly to himself.

Logan walked over to look down at his unconscious love. "Is she gonna be okay?"

The professor looked up at him. "Jean Grey is the only Class Five mutant I've ever encountered, her potential practically limitless. Her mutation is seated in the unconscious part of her mind, and therein lay the danger." At Logan's curious look, he explained, "When she was a girl, I created a series of psychic barriers to isolate her powers from her conscious mind. And as a result, Jean developed a dual personality."

Logan frowned. "What?"

"The conscious Jean, whose powers were always in her control, and the dormant side, a personality that, in our sessions, came to call itself the Phoenix – a purely instinctual creature, all desire and joy, and rage."

Logan closed his eyes, taking the information in. "She knew all this?"

The professor shook his head. "It's unclear how much she knew. Far more critical is whether the woman in front of us is the Jean Grey we know...or the Phoenix furiously struggling to be free."

"She looks pretty peaceful to me," Logan observed.

"Because I'm keeping her that way," said Professor Xavier. "I'm trying to restore the psychic blocks and cage the beast again."

At this, Logan stared at the professor suspiciously. "What have you done to her?" he questioned roughly.

Professor Xavier could sense his suspicions. "Logan, you have to understand –"

"You're talkin' about a person's mind here, about Jean," Logan interrupted him, raising his voice.

"She has to be controlled," Professor Xavier insisted.

Logan glared at him. "Control?" he repeated, stepping closer. "You know, sometimes when you cage the beast, the beast gets angry."

The professor stared back at him. "You have no idea," he whispered. "You have no idea of what she's capable."

Blinded by his fury, Logan couldn't see the fear in the professor's eyes. "No, Professor. I had no idea what you were capable of."

"I had a terrible choice to make. I chose the lesser of two evils."

"Well, it sounds to me like Jean had no choice at all," Logan shot back.

Professor Xavier looked down. "I don't have to explain myself, least of all to you." He ignored Logan's look of disgust as he went back to containing the Phoenix. He barely registered him storming out of the med lab.

And there's Chapter Three! What will happen when Rogue and Jean/Phoenix wake up?

About the whole Class Grading System for mutants, I wonder exactly how it's supposed to work. I would assume that Rogue would also be a Class Five mutant, seeing as her power is to take other mutants' powers to use for herself. But some people believe that she's a Class Two or Class Three mutant. I wish the movies had more time to properly explain the Grading System.