4.
In the quiet aftermath of her explanation, Phoenix looks around at her gathered friends, noting the slight differences the years have brought to their familiar faces. They are no longer the same people she left behind. But then, she is no longer the woman they knew.
Phoenix knows the message carried by the celestial song. It pulses within her at all times, in the wisps of melody she catches on the breeze, quickening her blood and soothing her mind.
There is one constant in the universe, a single aspect that affects all things, living and non-living, celestial and earth-born. Ironically, that constant is change, and that is the message sung by the stars. All things change, nothing is ever truly the same from one moment to the next. Dust piles up in an empty house, subatomic particles shift their positions, mountains crumble into sand that sticks to the toes of growing children.
Phoenix knows change, but has never before viewed it subjectively. To Phoenix, change has never been good or bad, right or wrong. Change just 'was'. It was a part of Phoenix, yet it was also apart from Phoenix. It had never before touched Phoenix's core.
But now, Phoenix has been changed. She is no longer an entity solely of energy and light, but a creature of matter, of mind. Of Earth.
The earth-woman's thoughts had called to Phoenix, drawing the celestial avatar down from space. And Phoenix had reached back – playfully at first, but then with more intensity. When the earth-woman strove to use her paltry powers to hold back the raging waters of a collapsing dam – not for her own safety but to allow her friends to get out alive – Phoenix had felt compelled to assist. Through her, Phoenix had learned what it was to fear, to hope, to love, and ultimately to die.
Phoenix's offer to merge with the drowning woman had been an act of pure compassion – a feeling the celestial being could not have comprehended before their link – and the woman's acceptance had filled Phoenix with a joy more intense, more penetrating, than any she had known, or imagined could exist. The merge had taken nearly two years to complete, but the human concept of time had always seemed inconsequential to the immortal Phoenix.
Now, Phoenix is human. She is the woman, Jean Grey. Phoenix shares her memories, her body, her voice. Her spirit has merged with Phoenix's own. And change – once simply a primal force to be sung about and respected – suddenly means a great deal.
For the first time, Phoenix finds she wants a hand in shaping how things turn out. She wants to make a difference in the world she now calls her own. She realizes this strange, human concept of time is actually a way of measuring change, and she doesn't want to waste a moment of her new life.
The man Jean calls Professor Xavier understands this. He understands it all. Warm tears sting her eyes as she feels his acceptance roll over her, filling her mind with relief.
"We would be honored if you choose to remain with us," the Professor assures her and turns his head to gauge the reactions of the rest of his X-Men.
Phoenix can feel their thoughts in her mind. Slowly, very slowly, they are overcoming the shock, grief, confusion and anger sparked by her appearance. She now senses curiosity, trepidation…even a hint of acceptance.
Phoenix smiles, a small, gradual beam, looking into each of their eyes in turn. Her smile warms when she sees Ororo clasp hands with Kurt, knowing her lonely friend has finally found someone she can be close to, someone who loves her for herself without fear or envy of the elemental power she wields. It's a love the guarded, angry young woman has learned not only to accept, but to honestly return in kind.
But, when Phoenix turns her eyes to Scott, standing stoic and stiff by the Professor's side, she feels her smile fade, her eyes widen with an unexpected upsurge of emotion. It hurts her to see him in such pain – to understand she is the cause...
Jean's love for Scott runs deep, deeper than even she had realized. When Phoenix steps toward him, that action is Jean's. Jean reaches out to him, taking his hand with a gentle squeeze. And, it is Jean who stares warmly into his stoic face, reaching up to brush an errant strand of hair away from his visor.
"Can you hear my thoughts?" she asks him, her voice soft, a small smile tugging at her lips.
Scott's eyes widen behind his visor, his mouth slightly agape. Jean uses the special mind link the two of them have forged to communicate with him directly, filling him with the love she feels and is no longer too shy or frightened to express.
"Oh, my god," Scott breathes, pulling her into his arms and squeezing her tightly to him, rocking her slightly as he kisses her brilliant, red hair. "Jean!"
Tears of joy pool behind his visor as he sends his love back to her in full. The pair lean in for a passionate kiss, and the Professor gestures to the others, suggesting it might be best to leave the two of them alone for a while.
Ororo and Kurt share a grin, his tail pulling her close a moment before they vanish in a BAMF! of smoke. Hank and the Professor follow, slipping silently out of the room.
Logan stands for a moment, watching the reunited lovers with surprisingly soft eyes. The impossible has happened. Jeannie has come back to them. And as much as he longs to touch her, to feel her hold him the way she's holding Scott, he finds he can accept her choice. He cares for her, and deeply, but what she'd shared with him had not been love. At least, not the kind he was seeing right now.
A slow smirk creeps across Logan's scruffy face. If Jeannie wants a stiff-necked prick, that's her business. Logan is just glad to have her back, safe and sound, even if they never will be more than good friends.
The mansion is awakening now, the children tumbling blearily out of their beds and heading for the growing shower lines. Their shouts and laughs, thumps and giggles echo down to the foyer as the good smells of breakfast begin wafting in from the kitchen.
All this is lost to Scott and Jean. They're aware of nothing but each other, their world extending no farther than the glow in the other's eyes. The sun has risen and the stars have faded from the sky. But, far beyond the Earth's thick atmosphere the celestial forces continue their eternal song, enfolding the lovers in its delicate harmonies.
All too soon, Jean breaks their kiss, looking through Scott's ruby-quartz visor and straight into his eyes.
"So," she whispers through her smile. "Did you miss me?"
The End
Thanks so much for reading my story! Please let me know what you think! :D
