Sparrows and Iron

Chapter 15

Jenny Xavier descended the main stairs of her father's - well, hers now. Her mansion... It had been for quite some time, but she still never got used to the fact that her father was gone, the school now hers. When she reached the foyer, she paused, smiling wistfully at a group of kids a they ran by.

"Morning Jenny," Scott greeted. She smiled in acknowledgement and headed to her office.

Today was the day that the X-Men were to meet the Avengers to team up. After working separately for so long, both groups had decided that they should form something of a relationship so that they could help each other if ever a problem arose that they couldn't face alone. Jenny was nervous, admittedly, but she also had the strangest feeling of familiarity, like she was meant to go to the Avengers tower. After the final arrangements were made, she loaded the X-Men into the jet and headed that way.

---

"Welcome to the tower, X-Men," Tony said boredly to the mirror.

"Oh come on, Tony, you can do better than that," Pepper said as she held out two ties for him to choose from.

"Really? Cause I don't see why we have to be so formal with this whole shebang. Couldn't we just throw a party?"

Pepper rolled her eyes. "No. This is an important milestone for both groups, try to be a little more excited..."

"Parties... are exciting, Pep! Come on..."

"No."

"Maybe just a small one?"

"No!"

---

"You sure about this, Professor X?" Hank muttered to her from the pilot's seat. "Maybe we should've waited another week... You know how that Stark guy is."

"We can't put it off any longer, Hank. And please, as I've said many times before, Professor X was my father."

"I know... I just think he'd be proud to see you take up the title."

Jenny sighed and murmured, "Perhaps someday... Just not today. What's our ETA?"

"About ten minutes."

"Alright everyone..." She turned to face the rest of the team. "Let's do this."

---

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Xavier. I spoke with your father a few times before he passed."

"Likewise, Doctor Banner. He spoke quite highly of you..."

Banner smiled modestly, then glanced up at the doorway of the meeting room. "Tony should be here shortly... I don't know what's keeping him," He paused, then, "Actually, I probably do..."

Jenny laughed softly. "His fiancee, right?"

He seemed a bit confused at first, but it only took a moment for him to recall her powers. "Ah, here he is."

Sure enough, the playboy billionaire was walking through the door. The moment Jenny saw him, a monstrously ill feeling welled up in the pit of her stomach and she went weak at the knees, only just barely supported by Scott in time.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" came a voice.

"F-fine..." she managed to force out.

"Here - Buck, get her a chair..."

And then, she heard no more. Memories flooded and nearly overwhelmed her mind, memories of another life... an alternate timeline. Snapping out of the daze, Jenny found herself in a chair, surrounded by worried faces. Once everything had settled, she brushed aside the questions with a wave of her hand.

"I've made a terrible mistake..." she murmured softly.

Stark... Tony frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

Jenny paused. "I'm not talking about this meeting... I'm talking about something years ago." She hesitated. "I've altered the timeline..." She looked into the eyes of her alternate life's lover. "And I need your help to make it right."