Authoress's notes: umm... -looks around sheepishly- was the ending that confusing? I'd thought ... I thought it was pretty obvious that she chose Kurt... -headdesk-
For the very last time in Velvet Roses, I give you, the Reviewers' Response:
leslienicolespeaks – too bad you only stumbled upon VR now; I'd loved to have gotten reviews from you earlier. I do hope to post much more fanfiction; if you want, you can add me to your Author Alerts and you'll get a message when I do.
chelseypudge – thank god, history exams are over! -weeps for joy-
Pyromaniac – erm... she did...
Rogue200315 – thanks, hun :)
the littlest weasley – I'm sorry, honey, I'm just not such a fan of Rogue...
live2luv – this is the epilogue.
xImmortalx– hey, listen. I've been trying to work on a sequel for ages, ever since I finished the story, and even some time before that; I have more or less the whole plotline figured out, but for some reason I just can't write it out. I'm sorry, but it might take a while for the sequel. I'll do my best, and hope you'll like it when I post it!
... - epilogue here; sequel... maybe. It's slowly coming together. Very slowly. Slooooooooowly. Gah.
hottietom– this is the epilogue, but the 'or is it' in the end was actually hinting at a sequel. I just hope I can get cracking onto that now that I've got more time on my hands. -crosses fingers-
Well. Here it is. The Epilogue.
WARNING: CHARACTER DEATH! IRONIC, TRAGIC, (not to mention POINTLESS) character death!
Epilogue: Ironic
Everyone was ... well, to say that everyone was instantly ecstatic would be wrong. It's not often you get to see your old Math teacher come back from the dead as an evil alter-ego, and then come back to herself. It took a while for the children to get used to Jean all over again. In a way she was the same old Jean, and in some ways she was unexplainably different.
The students huddled around her in a tight circle, bombarding her with questions and hugging her and weeping with joy. Jean herself began to cry as well, tears of sorrow for the times of sadness that she had caused them, tears of anger for the time she had missed being dominated by Phoenix, and tears of joy that she was back.
As Jean walked away with the children, Scott trailing behind them with the goofiest smile she had ever seen, Amanda sighed to herself and made her way to the front door, stepping out into the cool November air. She decided to give herself a tour of the gardens, as she was quite sure that Kurt would never be able to do it; they'd always get interrupted. Smiling slightly at the thought of Kurt, she hummed to herself as she strolled aimlessly through the gardens.
Well, not completely aimlessly. She was thinking. It had been an exciting month and a half since she'd discovered officially that she was a mutant and had come to the Institute. Let's see... Amanda thought to herself, I met Logan and Kurt, and fell for them both. I decided to move in permanently, and planned a Halloween party with Kitty and Mel. I got kidnapped by the bad-guys. I was rescued by the good-guys. After a while I kissed Kurt. Then I kissed Logan. Then they fought over me. She chuckled. And who said chivalry was dead? She sighed.
I brought Jean back. Just like Slayer said.
"Amanda."
Amanda jumped, spinning around. Then she frowned, her hands on her hips. "You sneak up on me one more time, Jake Slayer, and I'll – I'll – I'll slay you myself!"
He snorted. "Good luck trying."
"Ooh, cocky, aren't we?"
"I was just wondering if we could talk," he said, gesturing at a bench.
"What, so you can boast that you were right and say, 'I told you so'?" she crossed her arms and sat down with a huff.
Slayer chuckled. "Not really. I'll have you know that my visions aren't always correct."
"Well, anyway, this one was. I'm glad it was, though." She smiled. "Scott's been pining for Jean for three years now; to see her on the other side must have been hard for him. I'm glad I could help him someway."
"I'm glad you're so optimistic."
Amanda laughed. "I'm like that. I try not to get pessimistic – I mean, what's the point? It's better to be nosy and meddle in other peoples' lives. That's fun."
"Yes, I know." Slayer's smile practically shouted I know something you don't know!
"And what exactly does that mean?"
"Don't you know already? I mean, you are a telepath."
"Nice try. I know you've got barriers up. Do you think I haven't already tried to read your mind? Please."
"All right, all right. All I'll say is that you are quite the matchmaker."
"Aw, come on!" Amanda pouted. "That doesn't tell me anything! I already know that I'm a matchmaker. It comes with the territory."
"What territory?"
"Reading peoples' mind and knowing who they like or whatnot. And don't try to change the subject! Tell me what you saw."
Slayer laughed. "All right, Matchmaker. I don't think I need to tell you anyways; Charles needs you. You'll find out what -- or rather, who -- I'm talking about soon enough. Good luck."
And without so much as another word, he stood up and walked off, disappearing into trees. Amanda sighed and shook her head after him, standing up as Professor Xavier's voice in her head beckoned her to his office.
"What's up?" she asked as she closed the door behind her. Jean and Scott were already there, holding hands. Logan was also present, leaning against a wall with his arms crossed and a (fake) nonchalant look on his face. He didn't look up as she entered. Storm and Kurt each sat on chairs, grinning at the newly-reunited pair on the sofa.
"Amanda," said Xavier, "we would all like to thank you."
Amanda blinked. "Thank me...?"
"For – for bringing me back," said Jean, her hands still clasped in Scott's.
"Oh. Well, it's the least I could do to help."
"Amanda, we've come to a decision. All that remains is your choice." Xavier smiled at her. "Would you like to become an official X-Woman?"
"Oh, hell yeah!" Amanda grinned. "That would be great! I'd love to."
"Good. We're just on our way to a new mutant. Would you like to join us?"
"Of course I would!" Amanda nearly giggled.
"Not us, though," said Scott, smiling at Jean. "We're going out."
"Have a great time," said Amanda, winking at Scott.
-X-
"Doktor Grey?"
"Come in, Kurt."
"You look lovely, Doktor," said Kurt as he opened the door and smiled at Jean. The bed was laden with clothes as Jean changed and changed and changed yet again.
"D'you think? She asked the teleporter, twirling around. The dress she wore was dark blue, long and elegant. Her hair was loose, the red locks framing her face in a way that made her look very pretty, in Kurt's opinion. It was the perfect outfit for her date with Herr Cyclops. Everybody else was on the mission to pick up the new mutant – but somebody had to stay behind and watch the children. Kurt had volunteered.
"Ja," he said, smiling. "Come now, Doktor. Your escort for the night is impatiently awaiting his lady."
"Oh, Scott's always impatient."
"Ah, but he has every right to be impatient, Fräulein. He has been impatient for over three years. And finally he has you back. Do not keep him waiting for too long."
"Kurt, that's so sweet. You know, Amanda's a lucky girl to have you." Jean laughed at the blush that crept into his face. "All right, I'm off. Remember, call if anything happens. Just ... make sure it's really important before you do."
Kurt winked at her. "I'll not disturb your night out with your liebe, Doktor. Go on!"
-X-
"Scott..."
"Hmm?"
"Where are we going?"
Scott smiled at Jean in the seat next to him. "You'll see. It's nothing too special – just a welcome back outing."
"All right..." Jean smiled. She supposed he was taking her out to dinner, and then perhaps a play or an opera – he knew how much she loved those. She considered taking a peek into his head to see his plans, but in the end decided against it. She'd let him keep the surprise to himself. Besides, he'd feel her.
Jean and Scott had established a telepathic link long ago – before Alkali Lake, before Logan and Rogue came along, when they were just becoming a bit more than friends. At first it was strange -- that always-constant tiny presence in your head -- but after a while you get used to it, and you learn to appreciate it. To have another person sharing your life is an incredible feeling. And it was mutual. Jean and Scott were one, in a way, since they shared their minds.
Jean wondered what happened to that link when she had been, well, dead. Had it been severed? How could it have been, if it was now alive, crackling between them in unseen and unfelt power? And what of the time Phoenix had had control over her body? Jean remembered calling out to Scott, calling out to her love, her soulmate, while Phoenix kept her in the darkened room in her mind. Her consciousness locked away, unable to surface, Jean had felt nothing of the link. In the end she'd given up. Until Amanda came along.
Jean gave a small sigh at the thought of the bright woman – one of the newest residents in the Institute. There was simply something about her that made you want to smile and giggle stupidly. She seemed an optimistic person – always at least trying to look on the funnier side of life. She had a tendency to curse a bit, which Jean learned came from her working at a bar for three years. The thought made her laugh – she was like a female Logan: different on the outside, giving you one impression, while inside she was actually something else completely. A bit darker, with death and uncertainty in her past. Loyal to her friends, and willing to do anything to help them. She loved everyone – even if she tried to hide it a bit.
Logan. She wondered how he'd handle her return. There hadn't been any romance between them – at least not on her part. She'd always been Scott's. The only thing that might have come out of Logan was a short fling... and that had never happened. She supposed Logan was over her – he'd sure been glad to see her back to herself, but had greeted her like a friend. A close friend. Jean smiled, happy to have him as that.
"Jeannie?"
"Hmm?"
"What're you thinking about?"
"Everybody," replied Jean. "I got my life back, Scott; that's an opportunity I don't think I'll ever get again. I want to treasure my life with you and with all the people I love."
-X-
It was a beautiful thing to say. It was a wonderful sentence, if a bit cliché. And it was the last sentence Jean Grey ever uttered, as a huge truck came careening their way. It slid onto its side up ahead of them on the road and collided solidly with the car.
There was no explosion. There was no fire. There was simply a crash, the sounds of a collision, as metal grated on metal and against asphalt. There was the sound of two seatbelts snapping taught, and then snapping broken. The two airbags that sprang up did nothing, torn as they were by the splinters of glass from the front windshield. One figure was hurled out of the squashed car, landing a few feet away on the road.
Cars screeched to a stop behind the car and the truck, on both directions of the road. The truck was overturned on its side, and was blocking all the lanes. The truck driver was undoubtedly dead; it was pure luck that the truck had been filled with wooden furniture and not fuel or anything flammable. The figure on the road, its glasses miraculously still on, scrambled to its feet and ran dazedly to the car. Frantically, it tried to wrench the passenger-side door open. When physical strength failed, it raised its hand and raised its glasses a fraction, aiming a beam of concentrated energy at the hinges.
With the door out of the way, the figure still inside the car could be seen: pale and still, its chest not rising and falling but completely, utterly still. With a strangled sob, the first figure pulled the second out of the ruined car and laid it down on the hard asphalt, now growing wet as rain began to fall.
"Jean..." he whispered, crouching over his beloved. "Jean ... wake up. Jean, you can't do this to me. Not now. Jean!"
But Jean did not wake. She did not move. She did not open her eyes and comfort the other half of her soul with a last word of goodbye, even as he frantically tried to find a pulse in her delicate wrist, and then at her neck. He found none.
"No ... no, Jean..."
People were beginning to crowd around the pair. Someone was already dialing 911 on their cell-phone. The truck driver had been checked on, and upon realizing nothing could be done for him, everyone moved to crowd around the two figures that lay a few feet away from the crushed car, one of them crouched above the other, sobbing.
Poor thing, thought one old woman to herself. Still so young, and lost his love in an accident.
For an accident it truly had been. A man-made accident. Nothing related to mutants or humans or war between them or the Registration Act...
It was so ironic.
Scott Summers threw his head back and screamed.
It was almost too ironic to be true.
But it was true.
Jean was dead.
And this time ... she was not coming back.
Beyond the fence that separated the road from the foliage stood a woman wearing black. She took off the dark sunglasses that hid her black eyes and pulled from the pocket of her leather jacket a cell-phone.
"One down," she said to herself as she dialed a number, "just a few to go. Mr. Harcourt? Yes, it's me. Yes. No, the Phoenix will not be a problem anymore. Phoenix is dead. And this time she's not rising again."
She began walking away from the site of the 'accident'. She flexed her fingers. It was so tempting... the boy's pain, his emotional anguish was mere meters away. It would be so easy to reach out with her mind and use that pain. It would be so simple to kill him.
But Mr. Harcourt had specifically ordered that only the Phoenix was to die. He'd left the details to her, as long as it was made to look like an accident which did not involve mutants. She sighed as she replaced her glasses and slipped between the trees.
Killing people was no fun anymore.
Authoress's note: yeah, so...
Please don't kill me.
The sequel is on its way. It's just going very, very slowly, and will be quite a long while before I post it, so I apologize in advance.
By the way, the last line is a quote from one of my friends, on whom Misery (if you haven't realized that it's her, then you haven't read very well!) is based. She's a really crazy bitch, but I love her :)