#ofphoenixforces

What is a mutant to do when their powers are acting up and they can’t stop getting horrifying visions? Go to the Institute. Or at least that’s what normal mutant’s were told. Franklin felt weird about it all. He had never really had the chance to interact  with many mutants let alone the X-Men. Although the fact that they were led by an omega level psionic mutant made him feel like there might be enough common ground to ask a favor. Landing in front of the mansion, more crowded than usual with all the Thanos business, Franklin reached out towards Jean with his mind. “Hi, Mrs. Grey. It’s Franklin. Richards. Thanks for meeting with me, I know you have to be crazy busy right now, but I just got here and don’t know where you want me to go. So, yeah.”

When Erik wasn’t with Lorna, he was wandering. He took no notice to where he went or who he passed, he just made himself move. He wasn’t one to seek refuge in others when he was hurting-- mostly because he was afraid of his own emotions. Being around people, having there even be potential for him to break down or lash out when he was in a state such as this was not something he wished to bring upon himself. At the moment, he wanted nothing to do with anyone.

But then there was Jean. Whatever strange connection the two of them shared didn’t appear to have any plans of breaking. All those months ago when the younger mutant approached him and asked for help-- it seemed like a lifetime ago, and he never would have guessed that they would be where they are now. The world into which the two of them were born was dynamic and turbulent, it was messy and painful and it was never going to be easy. That’s what came with being a mutant, even if they never wanted it in the first place.

When this whole ordeal had initially began, he found himself in Jean’s company. Now that it was over, perhaps it was only out of balance that he was to find himself in her company once again. She had been there with Charles during his last moments-- something that Erik wished he could say about himself as well, but it wasn’t meant to be. Her recollection of Charles’ last words echoed around in his head along with Jean’s repeated apology in that broken down clearing. 

Erik still refused to release the anger he felt. There was anger and hatred and despair-- and most would have guessed that the brunt of it would be geared towards Jean, but the longer he fought through it the more he realized that it was not meant for her. It was meant for the ancient mutant who had risen from the dead and ripped his world apart-- and that mutant no longer existed. So he locked it all inside, wishing it away second by second with no success.

This time as Erik wandered the halls, he made himself look around and take in his surroundings. He noticed the faces of the people he passed and the sunlight filtering through the windows. He noticed how it lit up the rooms and how cold it all felt even with the brightness pouring in from every direction. 

So, this was the end? That’s what everyone was saying. ‘The End’ felt like such a meaningless term at this point. It was so relative, one person’s end able to seem like a minor disturbance to another. Erik had gone through and made it out of so many ‘ends’ that now he almost didn’t understand the word anymore.

This situation was different, of course. This looming ‘end’ applied to everyone, and not just the people residing on his own planet. This was massive and terrifying and yet Erik felt an odd sense of.. calm. Or perhaps ‘peace’ was a better term for it. It had been quite awhile since the master of magnetism had felt useful, which was strange. Now it was all happening at once, and within that misplaced peace he was feeling there was bitterness and anger and even a touch of fear. And seeing the faces of his fellow mutants created a sort of paradox for him-- one where he felt strengthened by their unity, but also hurt by their timing.

Where were they when he was out fighting alone? When the answer was clearly in front of them and yet Erik seemed to be the only one who saw it? They rallied together now, yes, but it was all those times of pain and hardship that Erik needed them, too.

Ah well. Charles would tell him to not dwell on the past. It’s what he had told him the entire time Erik knew him, but Charles was naive in that way. Always had been, even at his end.

( That was an ‘end’ that Erik had not been prepared for. )

Friends were hard to come by-- ones that he could trust, that he actually enjoyed being around. Charles was one of the very few individuals to make the list, but he was gone. Erik felt that loss every day, and being surrounded by so many only to feel lost even further was bothering him more than he anticipated. But there was one other person here who his thoughts drifted to--

Jean.

       There weren’t many people Laura could go to with this. Logan was off the list immediately. So was Remy. Logan was like a father figure to her and Remy was basically her older brother at this point. She needed help not two over protective individuals puffing chests. So here she was, standing outside of Jean Grey’s room, knocking quietly on the door and then stuffing her hands into her pockets to wait. If Jean didn’t want to help, that was fine----but Laura just needed to sort some things out. She needed verification. Two years she’d been living out of the hands of people that wanted to hurt her, she’d learned a lot----figured out how to process emotions and feelings but this was different. These were different. She had no idea what they were or how to organize them in her head. She just needed help.