Random Apartment, Off the Loop (Jean Grey)

[Deleted]

Jean could feel the Phoenix force enveloping her, its voice permeating her mind. I brought Madelyne life, and I can lead you back from death—but you must accept me.

“How can I?” Jean demanded, “I rejected you. You went to Madelyne trailing destruction. She had no human experience, no… self. Just borrowed life and stolen memories, tinged with death. Doomed… from birth.” She floated above the body of her clone: the Goblin Queen. “Phoenix. Madelyne. Tangled together like strands of night and fire. Where does one end… and the other begin? Where do I fit in?” Jean shook her head, “What does it matter? I want to live. I accept you—willingly. You’re already a part of me…! We are one.”

Then live, Jean Grey. Live for us all!

Jean felt the Phoenix Force sweep through her and take hold of her body and then…

BOOM! 

The weight on her eyes felt like a tangible fog and her ears were still ringing from the explosion. The fog receded and Jean was finally able to open her eyes. The ringing transformed into the sound of running water, a shower, coupled with off tune Christmas carols. Scott… She sat up and quickly discovered that she was lying in an unkempt bed, in an unfamiliar room. The pictures on the dresser were of strangers; and, the man in the shower, singing those off tune carols, who was he?

He wasn’t Scott or… No, the man in the shower was no one that Jean had ever met before; or, at least he wasn’t anyone that she could remember. The last thing she remembered was the Pheonix and Madelyne. Their collective conscious had just entered her mind and were beginning to mingle when, what happened next? There was the explosion and then… nothing.

Where am I? As if to answer her question, Jean felt a strange warmth in her hand and discovered a purple business card with red writing: 751 N. State Street, Chicago. Chicago!? Jean touched her temple, already feeling a headache coming on. The Phoenix, Madelyne, there was an emptiness where they should have been and panic began to set in.

Jean slid out of the bed, her mind discreetly reaching out to the man in the shower. His thoughts were occupied with work and dinner. The poor man didn’t even know that she was there. Her green eyes rested upon a crumpled up newspaper: The Chicago Sun Times. The date on the top read December 23, 1989 but that didn’t make sense. She picked up the paper and read it again. The paper looked fairly new, barely printed a day ago. She scanned the man’s mind once more for confirmation: Christmas Eve, 1989.

The water turned off and Jean was out of time. She slipped out of the bedroom with the man being none the wiser and made for the front door. Jean could have grabbed some cash or maybe even a coat from his hallway closet; but, no. Jean couldn’t bring herself to do that. No, there was really no need for that, not for her. She headed down the apartment steps and paused at the front doors of the complex.

No one was around to see her and it was after midnight on Christmas Eve. Most ‘good’ little boys and girls were in bed and everyone else would hopefully be too busy to look up at the snow-filled sky. Jean stepped outside into the snow and began to concentrate on the molecules in the air surrounding her person. Soon, she began to glow and the snow melted at her feet. She checked once more and then levitated into the air.

It had been a long time since she visited Chicago, but she was certain she’d find ‘751 N. State Street’ soon enough. She hoped she'd find answers there.

[Deleted]

The last thing she remembered before waking up on a rooftop was running away. A little bit of a thing, sat up on the railing of a fireescape and looked around. She was 'freezing'. The pink-teeshirt and blue cut off shorts had nothing in this weather. She shivered and fumbled for her backpack. Sure enough it had almost rolled off the fire escape.

But where was she? there was snow, light, snow.. but it had just been summer.. and While she wasn't unused to cities, this one looked nothing like her home. She fumbled for her flute and her panpipes. Sure enough they were jammed into her bag, along with her half eaten lunch and her homework... She took out her pipes and gave them a little trill.

They floated through the air and hung there.

She wove her worry and fear into her music, the pipes carrying her song. If her family were anywhere near by they would find her by her music- far faster then if she tried screaming, her soft breathy (and let's face it some what high pitched) voice would go no where in this city- even with it's odd snow-muffled noises.

She sat on the edge of the firescape of a random apartment building and played... keeping as much of her arms tucked into her shirt as possible with the backpack covering her knees. Every once in a while her playing would stop because of a tremor far more serious then a shiver.

Whistle didn't notice the card lying near her... she focused on nothing but playing, trying to coax her family to finding her...

[Deleted]

Luck seemed to be on Jean’s side. There weren’t that many people outside and the few that she did spot were too busy hunkering down against the cold to look up. She flew low, just above the roof tops, and followed the streets towards her destination; and, that was when Jean spotted her.

Well, no, it was the music that Jean heard first and then the girl appeared in a swirl of snowflakes. The music was coming from her, from a set of pipes she held tightly in her hands. She couldn’t have been any older than thirteen, maybe fourteen, and – like Jean – completely not dressed for the weather. If Jean didn’t do anything, the poor girl would freeze to death.

She paused, focusing on the air surrounding the pipe-playing girl to warm her up as she began to descend. Please don’t be frightened, she whispered in the girl’s head, My name is Jean, I want to help you.

[Deleted]

Whistle blinked slowly as she realised.. she wasn't almost numb? It was so... warm.. Like a hug. She fluttered her eyelashes and looked around. Then she heard it.. A soft voice in her head.. Not her own inner voice, it didn't 'sound' like her. She set down the flute and looked up to the lady. Surprise, shock, and one single idea arrowed toward Jean. So pretty! Like an Angel! Then it was lost in a jumble of confused thoughts about running away from home, about her Dad, his face bright red with anger, and then with horror. About swimming for the whales and waking up cold and alone in Eden... wearing the same clothes that should've been soaking wet from her swim. And then, about shame and guilt... not only did she hurt her father, and run away, but now she's being punished...

Whistle stood, clutching her flute to her chest as she kept her eyes on the flying woman. "Why?" her voice was high pitched and musical... perhaps it would have been annoying but the pain pitched it lower as she asked the first audible question to Jean, her brown eyes filled with tears.

[Deleted]

Jean smiled at the unintentional complement and floated closer to the girl; but, her smile wavered as her mind was flooded with the girl’s mixed thoughts and feelings. A runaway, lost and frightened, filled with regret. For her to end up in a place like this after everything she had gone through… Jean couldn’t help but feel a sort of kinship for the girl.

“I don’t know,” she admitted and landed on the fire escape next to the girl. Her aura melted away the ice and snow, but her keen green eyes spotted the card before it could be washed away. With a simple tug of her thoughts, the card floated into her hand. It was a white card with prismatic print: ‘751 N. State Street.’ Jean frowned, “But I intend to find out.” She offered the card to the girl, “It looks like you and I are headed to the same place, would you like a ride?”

[Deleted]

Whistle's eyes brightened when the snow melted away and became water. Quickly- before it could refreeze she summoned it to her. She played with it in the air in streams and then in the shape of a dancer before she settled it, floating in a palm of her hand. "Yes." She studied Jean's face for a reaction of her powers. "I'm a mutant... are you like me? I heard your voice in my head.. and you could fly!" Her brown eyes danced in realization. "Am I going to fly too?"

[Deleted]

Jean watched the water come to life and dance in the girl’s palm. It was an act that would have normally brought a smile to the woman’s lips; however, this time it only brought a sense of dread. They were two mutants, waking up in a strange place, each with a card with the same address. Something was wrong, seriously wrong.

Jean had to get to that address. She had to find out what was going on. She had to find a way home, and to get this little girl home too. The woman smiled down at the bright eyed hydrokinetic, hoping to keep child from realizing the true danger they were in. “In a sense,” She told Whistle, “You’ll actually be floating while I carry you along.”

To show the girl what she meant, Jean gently lifted the girl into the air, being sure to lift up her bag and the card too.

[Deleted]

Whistle's squeal of delight at "flying" was a sound of delightful joy. She kept her big blue-gray eyes wide as she started to float near Jean. Even with her added weight it didn't take them very long to get to the Cathedral where there were quite a few "active" minds.

(I will leave it to you if they remain flying or if she settles them down before scanning the building..)

It wouldn't also take Jean long to realise there were roughly nine minds, one a sleeping dreaming baby with very simple color dreams with puppets, in the building. Two of those minds were layered- one ontop of the other, until suddenly one of those minds- the most familiar perhaps- vanished into ... a corner? An impression of a "time out" ordered and given by a female mind to a very familiar male mind. Charles Xavier had just been banished to a corner.

Xavier's mind was old, older perhaps then the Charles Xavier she had known in her reality, or not. Nearish eighty odd years of life- and... death? They were quick, heated expressions, and just before he went into the "corner" and became silent, he had felt her, a brief flicker of interest/ hope then it was gone.

(Feel free to join Peter/ Maeve in their thread, or.. call them here )