Thanksgiving

"It's the wrong time of year to be visiting the beach," Jubilee quipped as the X-men stood on the shore. Well, several of the X-men. Storm and Cannonball had the Blackbird and were delivering the young bomb-building mutant to Muir Island. He was 13, but had been able to use his advanced intelligence and gills to build an underwater nuclear device. A device that currently Phoenix and Rogue were attempting to disengage at the bottom of the sea.

Jean had created a TK bubble around her, Rogue and the bomb to provide air and contain the possible explosion. She brought down air from the surface to replenish the supply. Rogue's knowledge of explosives from her childhood at Mystique's knee made her the obvious choice for attempting to disarm the bomb.

Along the shoreline the crew of costumed superheroes waited: Cyclops, Wolverine, Jubilee, Gambit and Bishop. Cyclops and Wolverine had settled down on the rocks to wait. Bishop stood, patiently waiting. Gambit was smoking next to him while Jubilee collected shells.

Logan and Scott were trying to keep calm so as not to disturb Jean's concentration. Jean was keeping up a constant report of Rogue's activities, more to keep herself calm than anything else. Rogue was calm. She recognized the design. All it should take was the cutting of two wires and they would be home free. As she touched the knife to the yellow wire, she realized the mistake. The boy had used the same color wire for two very different systems. There was not time for the thought to form before the bomb exploded.

Jean and Rogue were consumed by the blast.

There was barely a ripple on the surface of the water.

Scott crumpled into Logan's arms, in shock as the connection to Jean was severed. Logan rocked him, tears streaming down his face.

Remy wrapped his arms around his stomach as he sank to his knees. He rocked himself in a habit he thought long outgrown.

Jubilee and Bishop stared out to sea. Jubilee whispered, "Please God, don't do this. Not when they've just found happiness."

*****

It was to that shock-frozen tableau that Sam and Ororo returned. "What has happened?" Storm asked Bishop.

"I'm not sure."

"Dey're dead, Stormy," Remy stated. "Have t' get Scott t' Hank. Pro'bly should have him look over Logan too. Dey're hurtin' fr' de loss o' her link. Might be somet'ing really wrong. Don' dink Scott can even stand right now." He waved a hand in the direction of the rocks. "Get Jubilee out o' here too. She need t' be with Logan. Dey're gonna need her t' remind dem dat dey're still needed. Remy gotta stay here. Can' go back yet." Storm smiled gently.

"You cannot stay here alone, my friend."

"Gotta sit vigil, 'tite." Storm blinked. Then, she noted the clenched jaw and tight shoulders.

"I will take care of Scott and Logan. Then, we must talk, brother."

"Oui, chere." Storm touched Scott's cheek gently. He was cold and his skin seemed clammy. That was not a good sign. Logan didn't rouse at her intrusion.

"Logan? Logan!" He still didn't respond. "Jubilee, come here please." Jubilee scrambled up the rocks.

"Wolvie?" she queried. He didn't seem to here her. Her china blue eyes grew very wide. She shook his arm. He was completely focused on Scott. "Shit."

"Indeed." Storm gathered them up in her winds and eased them onto the plane. Sam put his arm around Jubilee and she hugged him as they followed them onto the plane. Storm glanced at Bishop.

"I will watch over him," he said to her.

"No need, pup," Gambit informed him.

"I wish to." Gambit shrugged. Bishop was more worried than grief stricken, it wasn't a problem. Storm squeezed Remy's shoulder and went to the plane. When it was out of sight, Remy fished out a queen of hearts and set it into the foam. He settled on the highest rock. Bishop took up position below him.

*****

Shattered fragments of conversations and images invaded Scott's mind. He remembered laughter and tears. Pain and joy and the feeling of soft kisses against his cheek. He remembered a hand touching his stubbled cheek and once seeking Jean's face without anything to separate them. He could smell Logan near him. He tasted salt and blood on his tongue. A low constant growl rumbled in his ear. He reached and tested the link. It was still there between him and Logan. Logan reached for him as well.

Logan looked down at his lover. He seemed so young right then. He could smell fear and sadness and salt. He brushed away the tears with rough pads. Tears splashed on the younger man's visor and Logan realized he was crying. He could hear Scott's heart beating, soft and steady. There was a hum of conversation and machinery around them, but they were ignored. He nearly skewered Hank the one time the doctor had tried to separate them. Slowly, as if in slow motion, Scott's hand reached for the extended claws. He felt the relief through the link and reached out for Scott's mind.

//Can ya hear me?//

//Thank God. Logan.// Scott opened his eyes and reached up for Logan's cheek. //I can't… I can't feel Jean.//

//I know.// Logan's arms tightened around him. //But I need you. I don't think I can handle this on my own.// Scott's fingers traced the spaces between the blades, soothing the constant ache.

//Everything echoes in here. I can still hear her screaming. I want her back!… I know I sound like a child.//

//Thank you.//

*****

Jubilee convinced Sam to take her back to the beach with supplies. "Now, Miss Firecracker, why would ya be wantin' ta do that?"

"Remy won't be thinking of it. And if we don't take anything they'll be sick by the time they come back."

"Why didn't they come back with us?"

"Remy's standing vigil until 'de souls o' de dead take flight.' He told me about it. It's a custom. He won't forget it. It's important for him to keep up tradition even though he's not with his family. Shit, what the hell does a rosary look like?" Jubilee was pawing through Gambit's nightstand.

"Ah think it's the beads hangin' off tha mirror, Hon." Jubilee grabbed the beads.

"Let's go." They picked up water and some food on the way through the kitchen.

*****

Jubilee wasn't daunted by Bishop's solemn look. She set the basket down by him and nodded to him. Then, she scrambled up the rocks to Gambit's position. She pressed the beads into his hand. "Merci, 'prentice."

"I need to watch Wolvie. Don't get hurt."

"Remy'll be back in t'ree days. Don' worry, 'tite." She hugged him and he kissed her cheek. "Go t' y'r pere." Sam and Jubilee left them.

"Father," Bishop said softly.

"Oui, pup?"

"Would you… pray aloud?" Gambit blinked.

"Why?"

"Because when I was… you… the Witness would pray aloud at night. I… got used to it." Remy smiled.

"Oui, Bishop. I do dat."

*****

Xavier rubbed at his temples. Scott was still in a trance, but he seemed to be responding to Logan, if no one else. He sighed. It had barely been a day. The headstones would be delivered tomorrow for the X-men cemetery. Warren, Bobby and Hank had spent the time sitting with Scott and Logan. The first X-men. They had made a pact to remain together forever. Any favor. Any secret. Anything, they would be there. One for all and all for one. Betsy, Jubilee, Storm and Sam were contacting everyone they could with the news that Rogue and Jean were dead. They had been unable to reach Mystique, but she had a way of knowing everything without anyone officially telling her anything.

Charles went into the front hall on a random patrolling and was shocked to see Jubilee directing the covering of the large mirror with a dust cloth. "What on earth are you up to Jubilation?"

"Have to cover the mirrors, so they won't get trapped here."

"Who won't get trapped?"

"Jean and Rogue. They'll come back here before moving on. They can't be trapped in the mirrors." Charles held out his hand and she took it. "It'll make Logan feel better if he knows that she can't get trapped. He made me promise that if he ever died I'd cover the mirror in our base. I have to do the same for Jean and Rogue. Have you found Mystique?"

"No."

"I guess I'll have to call her then. Remy should have her beeper number somewhere. Or Rogue maybe." She went up the stairs without another word. Xavier went to the hall table and set the small mirror there face down. Jubilee missed the other aspect of the task, it gave one something to do when one was feeling useless.

*****

Bishop was unsurprised to hear the soft sobs start at midnight. He resisted the temptation to climb up onto the rock. He knew that Gambit's pride wouldn't allow him to take the comfort, no matter his protestations of family.

Bishop slung the gun off his shoulder as the tesseract opened. He was surprised to see Sinister in his human form. He was carrying a blanket and thermos. He ignored the implied threat of Bishop, instead climbing the rocks and settling the blanket over Gambit's shoulders. He poured a cup of whatever was in the thermos and pressed it into Remy's hands. "It is merely hot chocolate. It is far too cold for this."

"Some t'ings have t' be done," the thief sniffed. Essex looked at him. He smiled and shook his head.

"Catholics. Drink your cocoa. I could clone her. Although why you insisted upon pursuing a woman you cannot touch is beyond me."

"Don' have t' worry 'bout chilen, neh?" Gambit said snidely. "If'n y' gonna boder Remy 'bout havin' chilen an' his affairs de couer, y' can leave now."

"No, not tonight. In a few weeks however…" Bishop's eyes narrowed. "Were you going to marry her?"

"Maybe." Remy shrugged and stared out to see. "Her momma like me well 'nough." He shivered. "Why you care, hehn?"

"LeBeau, don't try my patience."

"Guess dis mean dat Rachel ain't gonna be born here. Dat's gotta hurt. Wonder if dey got ahold o' Raven."

"Celeste's mother?"

"Hmmm? Y' dink dat y' could make a baby Rachel?"

"I think I have just lost the thread of this conversation."

"Y' have Jeannie and Scott's DNA, non? Den y' could combine it an' make a baby f' Scott an' Logan. Dat keep dem busy."

*And I thought I meddled in the Summers affairs.* Sinister thought. "Perhaps." He watched the young man run the beads through his fingers.

"Y' cold, pup?" Gambit asked looking down at the large shape of the X-man posted below him.

"I am fine."

"Liar." Remy dropped the blanket onto his head. "Y' don' have a coat, an' Stormy won' forgive me if y' get sick."

"Yes, Father," Bishop rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but smile. In his saner moments, The Witness had been the Gambit very few ever got to see. Precise and chillingly practical, mixed in with odd moments of genuine affection that belied all his protestations. Something pricked in the back of Bishop's mind about that description.

The sun rose over the still water, to show three figures. Red eyes watched over the resting place of the dead, and the still, sleeping form of a young man he'd once considered his ward.

*****

Xavier was startled when he looked at Jean's father. He seemed old, fragile. Her mother bore up with the same stoic front that Jean had held. Scott was pale and wavered where he stood to greet them. Mrs. Grey pulled him into a tight hug. Mr. Grey just shook his hand. "What happened?"

"She…" Scott began. He had to stop as he grew dizzy once more from seeking her through their link. Logan looked at him sharply. Scott took a deep breath. "She saved us. There was a nuclear bomb. She and Rogue went down to stop it. She contained the blast, but they were inside the bubble. They were consumed." His voice was flat and analytical.

"Where?"

"A beach on the coast of Maine."

"Have you?"

"The headstone will be here tomorrow. If you prefer to have your own services…" Xavier offered.

"No, thank you. Is Rogue's family going to be here as well?"

"We have not been able to contact her mother yet. Jubilee has been trying all the phone numbers we can find, but it is possible that she has changed them again," Xavier explained.

"Jean mentioned that Rogue was seeing someone? Well actually, it was as if they were attached at the hip. Remy and Rogue this. Rogue and Remy that," Mrs. Grey said.

"I haven't seen Gambit since…"

"He stayed to hold a vigil watch over the place where they died," the professor told Scott gently. Scott nodded.

"I should relieve him."

"No, Hank won't let you leave the house until you're stronger. You've had a severe psychic trauma." Scott shrugged, listless.

"I think I'll lay down again."

"Hank, didn't want ya outta the lab anyway. Come on."

*****

//Jubilee, come to my office please,// Charles instructed. The teen stepped into the room. Her yellow trenchcoat and brightly colored clothes had been replaced by black… and green, Xavier noticed to his surprise. She looked at him with serious blue eyes.

"Wolvie's not doing well and I don't want to be away for long," she stated.

"This will be quick. Did Gambit tell you when he wished to be picked up?"

"He said he'd be back in three days. So, sometime today, he should show up. A little worse for wear and probably in need of a shower." She flashed him a slight smile, but she was too worried to carry it off.

"Thank you. I'll make sure Storm goes to fetch him."

"You don’t need ta. He'll get back on his own." She ran a hand through her spiky hair. "Rachel said she'd be here today. And Raven said she'd come too. Should I get some rooms set up?"

"That would be good. Thank you, Jubilee." She nodded and went to find Sam.

Xavier was caught up in memories. Jean as the young girl he'd first met in a coma. Then, as Marvel Girl. Then, the Destroyer of Worlds. He saw her die in the blaze of flame that was the Phoenix force. Then, her and Scott when she awakened from her stasis. Her smile of pleasure the first time she managed to hold up a truck. Her joy when Scott proposed. The sadness in her eyes the day after their honeymoon when they told him about the 12 years they'd spent in the future. Red hair sopping wet from running through a rainstorm Ororo had produced. Laughter at Bobby's antics. The small assurance that all was well when she went through her nightly ritual of touching the minds around her. Her care when helping him to bed. Her failed attempts at knitting.

He saw Rogue as well. The frightened stand-offish teenager who thought she was mad. Her tears as she begged him to help her control it. The flash of anger in her eyes. Her freedom in flight. Her delight with the small puppy a friend had asked her to take care of for a couple of days. Her shock when Gambit first started flirting with her. Her strength in a fight. Her tears when she thought the world lost to her forever. The first of many attempts at hair dye that never seemed to take. The tight braid for fighting with Logan. Her smile at her official first date. Her burnt fried chicken.

Storm set the plane down. She found her best friend diligently forming something the surface of the rock he'd been sitting on with minor blasts. Bishop gave her a quick hug in greeting and turned to watch Gambit with solemn eyes. "He's been working since noon yesterday. I believe he's nearly finished." About fifteen minutes later, Remy left the rocks. He kissed his fingertips and brushed the edge of the rock with them.

He looked, for lack of a better word, ragged. Storm decided that the sooner they returned to the Mansion, the better.

*****

Remy collapsed onto his bed after a shower and covered his head with his pillow. There was too much activity for a house in mourning. Too many old friends from around the globe coming for the memorial services. And it was time to face the masses. First things first, he had to check on Scott and Logan. He managed to slip through the halls unseen, due to his practice at sneaking in and out of the mansion. However, as he approached the lab he was attacked by a female shape-shifter with a mechanical psi-damper. She grabbed him and hugged him tight before he could hit her. He wrapped his arms around her waist. "Raven."

"Remy." She let him move away a step. She knew she was swamping him with emotions, but she didn't care. She needed the contact. He was the only one in the house that didn't treat her differently than normal. Of course, he'd known her longer. She took his hand and they went to the lab. Scott looked up at him from where he was sitting on the bed tying his shoelace.

"Gambit. Thank you for watching over her."

Remy shrugged. "Y' needed t' be here." He offered a tight hug, pulling some of the harsh grief away. "Dere be happy days again, mon ami. Don' y' worry so much. We take care o' dings f' awhile." He repeated the gesture with Logan.

"The service is at 3:30," Scott informed the thief.

"Merde. Got t' change. Remy see you dere." He kissed Raven on the cheek as he passed. "Take care o' dem f' moi."

"Of course." Raven mustered up a smile to match his.

*****

The headstones of the X-men's cemetery were uniform. The newest marbles stood in their place, next to their comrades. Xavier presided over the ceremonies, inviting people up to offer their own eulogies. Raven and Mrs. Grey spoke of their daughters as children. Scott concentrated on staying vertical and conscious. Jubilee stood close by Logan and Scott to offer them support when the grief threatened to take them over the end. Xavier studied the flat-faced Cajun. Beneath dark sun-glasses his red eyes couldn't be read. Storm was holding one hand while Raven was sobbing on his other shoulder. There were speeches from Alex Summers and Sean Cassidy about Jean. There was a poem written by Hank about Rogue.

The empty coffins were lowered into the graves and the X-men past and present and their family and friends moved into the mansion for an old fashioned wake. Xavier waited for all of the guests to enter the house before him. There was enough food for several small armies in the ballroom. Betsy had been cooking since the news had arrived and Mrs. Grey had assisted her. The cooking had kept them sane. Xavier frowned when he realized the there were three people missing from the room. He found Mystique watching the sky from the balcony.

"They're still at the grave, Charles."

"I see."

"I had such high hopes for her. She would be the best in the world. She was too. Until that damn Danvers woman. I lost my daughter to a bitch that didn't know when to let go. She was learning to control her powers. That's more than you've ever done for her. You selfish pig," she spat. "I thought I might get her back when she met Diablo. At least as a spy. But you seduced him into your little cult too. Told him with one mouth that what he was born to do was evil and with the other asking him to do all the things you told him were wrong. He nearly didn't stay, but I asked him to watch over my baby girl. I knew you lot weren't doing it. She was still wearing gloves. Those damned, fucking satin opera gloves. And you didn't give a fuck, Charles. You could have helped her. But no, you wanted to follow your own agenda. You could help Scott too. You could find out what's wrong and fix the inside of his head. Teach him to redirect and recreate the connections to fix his eyes. You could purge the guilt that's eating up Logan. And find out what happened to Psylocke during that Crimson Dawn bullshit. You've never taught Storm to control her powers only her emotions, so you've made her an ice princess. She's afraid to love. Afraid to mourn. Oh, you have your successes. Your favorite girl, Jean. She was a success. That is until she tried to destroy the universe. You are a cruel man. Scott looks to you as a father. Damn it, you use him. Sometimes you sicken me, Xavier." Raven punched the wall. "I'd kill you if I didn't think I'd be hunted down by Boudreaux's assassins. Or Creed. Hell, Diablo'd probably even remember his training and stalk me. You fucking bastard. They're children, not soldiers."

"They were children. They are soldiers. And that, my dear Mystique, is the most conceited thing you've ever said. You were training your daughter to be a terrorist. At least my cause is a little more pacifistic. I gave them a family when no one else would take them."

"You convinced them that the world hated them. They don't hate us. Or they didn't. The high profile shit that your children get up to has done enough damage to the mutant reputation. They destroy property. If you were a political group… You could achieve wonders, Charles. You have the passion. You can give the speeches. You have the money. My daughter didn't have to die! If the world knew there was someone who could help them with their children's differences. If you made this place into the school it pretends to be. Our daughters would still be alive," she finished in a harsh whisper. "Tell Remy I couldn't stay."

"Don't turn away from him, Mystique."

"He understands. I have to keep the wolves away. Or red-eyed vultures." She vaulted onto the lawn and changed into a dog, loping across the grounds. Xavier buried his face in his hands and sobbed. He was unsurprised to find Gambit sitting with him as the wave of grief subsided.

"Y' feelin' as bad as Scotty 'bout losin' de link, non?" the young man asked softly. He was sitting on the ground, arms wrapped around his knees. His eyes were still hidden by his sunglasses, despite the fact that the early winter night had dropped.

"A bit down perhaps."

"Don' lie t' Gambit. He know dese dings. Y' need me, I be on patrol t'night. Stormy not goin' t' hit me wit' de lightenin'. She don' want t' hurt Bishop, but he need t' be wit' her t'night. So she knows she not be alone. It's a dark place t'night."

"What is?"

"De Mansion. It be a dark place." Xavier frowned as he realized there was something more in the statement.

"Show me," he whispered. He saw the quicksilver shields open and entered. He saw the Mansion through Remy's eyes. The swirling energies were black and red and purple with splashes of other colors. He gasped. //Is this how you see the world?//

//It's de energy I use. All energy be de same, professeur. De emotions or de molecules in a card, dey be the same. But t'day it be darker than usual.// The shields began to close and Xavier retreated swiftly. There was no way in a moment later. "I be on patrol. G'night."

"Good night, Gambit."

*****

Scott and Logan were settled in the med-lab for the duration of the wake. Every once and awhile someone would seek them out to offer condolences. Scott barely heard them. He felt his mouth making the appropriate shapes for the right words and they went away comforted. But his head echoed. He was getting fractured images of Jean's memories. He clung to the knowledge that Logan was still there. That some day things would be all right. His chest burned with the numbing cold of emptiness. He wanted to howl over the walls that surrounded him, but there was no where to go. It was like being suspended in limbo and trapped behind mile high walls.

Suddenly, with blinding clarity there was a full born rage bubbling up in his chest. He wanted to destroy something, anything. Logan sat up straight as he was overwhelmed by the new thoughts from the link. He'd managed to batter the grief down in his own mind, but rage was different. This he couldn't force himself to push away. He was hanging on to sanity by the tips of his claws and it seemed the Scott was caught in the same dilemma.

It was like walking through mud, or when the world had turned on him during the Proteus incident. Through what seemed like miles, Logan moved to the bed that Scott had curled up on and refused to be budged from. He put out a slow motion hand and was relieved when Scott grabbed ahold of it. He pulled the younger man into a fierce hug and the storm of emotions bounced back and forth between them until they were united in howling grief and pain. Hank watched over them for a little while, then turned the task over to Bobby. Hank went to bed and cried himself to sleep.

In her room Storm sobbed into her pillows. Outside, the raging winds and rain rattled the windows. She was vaguely aware of centering the eye over the moving sentinel along the walls, as she did every night Bishop patrolled. But the loss of a friend, a sister, hurt and she let the storm winds convey her pain. Bishop stood guard outside her door.

*****

Jubilee curled up in the visitor's chair with a gun in her hands. She was more used to using her powers, but the weapon was solid and she didn't have to worry about losing control of it. She wanted to pry Wolverine away from his lover and hold him herself. She'd never really been fond of Jean, though she was old enough to realize some of it was a child's jealousy. Now, she had other responsibilities. Logan was her partner and if he was hurt, then she had to watch his back. No matter what.

*****

Sam Guthrie scrubbed the plates and glasses, relaxing into the familiarity of the task. Mr. Grey was sorting through Jean's will. "Do you get paid, Mr. Guthrie?"

"Sir?"

"Do you get a salary?"

"No, sir. Ah'm here as a student."

"A student of what?"

"Mah pahticular talents, sir. Mah sistah goes ta tha Academy. Ah have a pension from tha government for some work Ah did for them." Sam shrugged.

"It seems that Jean didn't have anything of real value. But she was very specific about how the things were to be divied up. Why are Rachel and Cable included in this list? I didn't think they worked closely with you."

"Jean had a special bond with them, sir. It's not something Ah can explain ta yah. Ya'll have ta talk ta Scott when he's better."

"What's wrong with the man anyway?"

"He and Jean had a telepathic bond. When that was shattered it hurt worse than anything else could have. They've had that bond since before they were married, sir. And ta lose it? It must be like losin' ya mind. Ta be able to know that no mattah what they'd be able ta sense one anothah, and then it's gone." Sam shook his head. Mr. Grey stared at the young man.

*****

Betsy tucked the professor into bed early. It was going to take getting used to. Jean had always taken care of the man before. She ran Jean's evening ritual, touching everyone's mind that she could in the house.

*****

Warren wrapped his hands around a mug of lukewarm coffee and listened to Mrs. Grey talk about Jean's childhood.

*****

Bobby curled up next to Hank and slept.

*****

A tesseract opened and Nathaniel Essex placed a single white silk rose on Jean's grave.

FINIS