a/n: y'all thought i forgot about the phoenix, did you?
the following chapters will be from scott's pov until further notice
bring some tissues and enjoy what's one of my favorite arcs from the original X-Men cartoon along with my own twist because i can't leave well enough alone ;)
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"LYLA!"
"Red?" I widened my eyes, quickly passing Alex to Rogue before running outside. "JEAN!"
"Lyla... She's finally calling me." Jean choked out, hunched over a tree and shaking. "The Phoenix calls."
"Red, I don't feel anything. How can she-"
"She's not calling you, Claws," Jean said, her voice thin but steady. "She's calling us."
"What are you talking about!? She had years to wake up, but she only showed through you... I have a kid, Jean! I can't just-"
"I know," she said softly, reaching out but stopping short. "That's why she's waking up. You've created life, Lyla. A flame born from flame. Alex... he's the first spark of something new and you know it."
"Jean, it was just a sliver what you gave me and she still took from me."
"It was. Just enough to bring you back. But the Phoenix doesn't give without knowing the cost," she said, her voice trembling. "She was supposed to take over, Lyla. But you didn't let her. You grew. Loved. You changed her."
"Changed her? No... she waited. Waited until I had everything to lose. My son. Scott. This life."
"She chose to wait, Lyla. Because she needed to see what you'd become. What we could become. You weren't just a vessel, you were a seed."
"No. No, I refuse. I'm not giving her anything else."
"You might not have a choice," Jean whispered. "She's already stirring inside you. That fire... it's not mine anymore. It's ours. You passed it down the moment Alex took his first breath."
"What?" I gasped. "No... he's just a baby! He can't—"
"She's not in him, Lyla. But she's watching. Because of you. Because of what you proved, that love can temper fire."
I turned, looking through the window where Rogue cradled Alex close. His little hands reached upward, a soft red flicker curling briefly in the air above his fingers before vanishing.
"I never wanted this," I whispered. "Especially not now."
"I didn't either," Jean said, stepping forward at last, resting a gentle hand on my shoulder. "But maybe now... we can choose what the Phoenix becomes."
"And if she doesn't let us?"
"Then we remind her exactly who we are."
"And Scott?" I asked as Jean held her head and my claws outstretched by themselves. "He thinks the Phoenix is permanently dormant in me... That we were past this!"
