"But what is it?" Scott demanded as Magneto left the room. "And how do we get it out of Jean?"
Grace's purse, which was resting on the bedside table, began moving. "Hey! In here!" came the muffled voice of her little smooshed-face lion. She took him everywhere.
"I think he has something to tell us." she said, putting him in the center of the table.
Grace relayed what the lion had to say. "Better sit down. This is gonna take a while.
"In the beginning, there was Nothing. Nothing was Everywhere. When it became aware, it changed, and became Something.
"Something wasn't happy. It had Nothing to compare itself to, and Nothing to look at. There was Nowhere to go, and Nothing to do, and No One to speak to. It was looking for Anything, or Anyone.
"So Something split itself up, and became Everything. Everything kept on splitting, and as it split over and over, all the pieces of Something became more and more unique, more and more specialized. Some of it became Somewhere. Some of it became Somebody. This is still going on today. Some parts are newer than others, some parts are stronger, some more aware.
"The Phoenix is part of Everything. It's not Nothing, but it's close to it. It's aware, it's new, and it's strong, but it's not unique enough to be Somebody on its own. It wanted to be Somebody, Anybody. It picked your girl. It's too powerful for her. It's too big for Anybody. Imagine if you tried to burn rocket fuel in an ordinary kerosene lantern in your old dry log cabin."
"Meaning the Phoenix is the rocket fuel, Jean the lamp, and the cabin…" The professor sounded very unsure of himself, even frightened.
"The cabin is the world."
"And Ah'm supposed to pull it off her." whispered Rogue into the silence.
"What am I supposed to do?" Grace cried.
"You stay in bed." said her panther. "And stay calm. This isn't your job. It's hers."
"And I am responsible for this." The professor bowed his head, then looked up. "Because I did not see it for what it was. I allowed it to take root in her."
"Remember the blind men who touched the elephant?" the lion asked, through Grace.
"One of them touched its ear, and thought an elephant must be a sail. Another touched its trunk, and thought it must be a snake. The tusk meant it was a spear, the tail a rope, and so on." Xavier replied.
"You got it. You don't have the ability to see it for what it is all at once—and it's one big mother of an elephant." Grace passed along. "Don't kick yourself. You have work to do."
"What work is that?" Xavier asked.
"Think of the Phoenix as a big old tick with its head buried in her flesh. Rogue is the tweezers. We're the hand that uses them. You and your people have to be the match that burns its ass until it lets go."
"That's awful specific." Rogue observed. "That means it's time to get real worried."
"Rogue, we are speaking of the destruction of the world. That ship sailed a long time ago." Grace shook her head. "This one makes my job look positively manageable."
"I have a great deal of respect for you, Ms. Engstrom," the Professor began.
"Please. Can't you unbend enough to call me Grace?"
"If you wish. I am having a great deal of trouble coping with this, intellectually, and emotionally. Jean was my first student, almost my daughter. I want to trust in your voices—but—I implore you. I implore them. What are they?"
"They'll probably just say that when you're ready to understand the answer, you won't have to ask the question." Rogue predicted.
"We're part of Everything that's aware of what it is. Just like you. Except we can see the whole elephant, and we've been around longer." said the lion.
"What will happen once we get the Phoenix out of Jean?" Scott asked.
"To Jean? She'll be fine. To the Phoenix? That's our job. Just get burning."
"But where is she?"
That was all the answer anyone was to get for a while.
Pietro had left the room when his father did. Too cautious to listen at the door, yet curious—even suspicious of what was going on between the two villains, he hung around the hallway until his father emerged. "Father! What did Doom want?"
"I don't believe I've told you how much I appreciate the help you've given me these past weeks, Pietro. Thank you; it has meant a great deal to me that you have been by my side."
"I'm not sure you should thank me. I haven't been there to be supportive so much as to keep an eye on what you're doing."
"Whatever your motives, you have been there, and I am glad of it."
"But what did he want?" asked his son, all impatience.
"He wanted to propose an alliance between us."
"I don't like the sound of that."
"Between himself and mutantkind, not me in particular."
"Why? He's not a mutant."
"For private reasons I am not about to divulge."
"What did you tell him?"
"I told him I was reluctant to trust someone who was not a mutant, but I suggested a solution. If he is willing to commit himself personally and permanently, I would be willing to commit to him." Erik could not keep a note of self-satisfaction from entering his voice.
"You were gloating just now. I heard it."
"No, I wasn't."
"Yes, you were. I know you too well. Why were you gloating? What did you mean by his committing himself personally and permanently?"
"I was not gloating." his father denied. "I suggested he consider marrying into the family of mutantkind—and our family in particular."
"WHAT?! You promised Wanda's hand in marriage? You promised my sister to Doom? Father! I don't know why I should be surprised. I should have seen this coming. Of everything you've done, this has got to be the worst—Does Mother know?"
"Does who know?" Erik asked, diverted.
"M—Ms. Engstrom. She can't possibly know. She'd be throwing shoes around. I'm going to tell her."
"You referred to her as 'Mother'. Without realizing it or thinking about it."
"I did not."
"Yes, you did." Callisto skidded into view. "I heard it. Probably everybody did. I didn't catch what he did, though."
"He's gone and promised my sister to Doom."
"Oh!" exploded Callisto.
"No, I didn't. I only suggested that he court her with an eye to marriage. If she doesn't want to marry him, that's fine with me. I care deeply about her happiness, and I would never push her into a loveless union. However, if she can love him, that's another story."
"If she can love him? Love him?" Pietro raised his voice.
"Pietro, please. We are under his roof. Don't insult our host. Why not? Grace cares for me."
"Right. I should have considered the source."
"At any rate, you did call her 'Mother', and in front of a witness. That's one down. I believe I shall buy Grace an engagement ring. I wonder when Wanda will give her consent?"
"Once she finds out you're trying to fix her up with Doom? How about the thirty-fourth of never?"
A/N: Another short one. The next should be longer.
