A/n: Here's an idea which stuck to me after I watched Age of Apocalypse.

In my story, Apocalypse survived. His physical being was destroyed, but because of the connection he had with Charles Xavier, due to the attempted and failed transference, a part of Apocalypse still remains, hidden deep within the recesses of Xavier's mind.

The story takes place a few years after Apocalypse's apparent defeat, when he gained enough strength to corrupt, and take over Xavier's mind, granting him full control of Xavier's telepathy - and in a single instance, he was able to control every living being on Earth.

It's a fun way of turning everyone hostile and evil. It means that she's completely alone, there's no one else out there she could trust…

But.

The Phoenix, is an immortal and omnipotent force, it resides dormant in Jean's mind, in peaceful slumber until the attempt by Apocalypse in ravaging her mind.

And thus, it awakens, protecting her and preventing Apocalypse's control.

As we weren't shown Jean's age in the movie (or were we? I can't remember), I'll have her enter the school when she's six, and have them defeat Apocalypse when she's seventeen. The story takes place half a decade afterwards.

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Chapter: 1

There was an unfathomable maelstrom of fire, and it was as boundless as it was infinite.

It was as old as the universe itself, a manifestation of all lives past, and all that will ever be.

It was formless, but sentient, and with the purifying flames of judgement, it set all in existence ablaze.

And for the longest time, it had slept.

A peaceful slumber, deep within the mind of a young mutant girl.

Then, came a day when the forceful presence of another, intruded the deepest recesses of her mind.

A foreign entity of malevolence, intent on ravaging, and tearing her mind asunder.

There was pandemonium, and the chaos stirred the being from its eternal slumber.

There was fire, and the phoenix was once more infinite.

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She woke – and the rest of her room's furniture came crashing down.

It was pitch black, but she could see the pale outlines of her strewn furniture, a consequence of her unconscious telekinesis – undoubtedly the results of a distressing nightmare she couldn't even remember.

She squeezed her eyes shut, futilely trying to block the coming headaches; the pain was uncomfortably vivid, and her breaths came in sharp erratic inhales.

She pulled the bedsheets aside, her soles meeting the cold floorboards of Xavier's institute – the school where she had called home for the past decade; though in recent years, she had graduated from her old shared dorm, and was given a more private room – the perks of becoming a teacher at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.

She stood in the unlit room, her eyes coming to a close, her breathing slowly starting to calm.

She stood there for the longest time, and when she eventually raised her palm – all the scattered objects started to return to their rightful place.

Overturned chairs were returned upright, as strewn books and files returned to their shelves.

In only seconds, nothing remained of the previous disarray, but a tidy living space, except for the shattered glass window to her side. She moved the broken glass aside, leaving them safely in a corner to clean up the next morning, when she noticed it was raining outside.

The curtains fluttered as a flash of lightning momentarily illuminated her room; the sounds of rain followed next, as the shadows quickly returned.

Then, it was quiet again, the passing weather as though a mere illusion, gone with a blink of her eye.

It was too quiet.

The institute was supposed to be readily available at all hours, providing help to those in need even in the dark of night, and there were quite a few she knew who did not require sleep like the average mutant.

But it was too quiet, like she was the only one remaining in a long forsaken world.

She reached out with her mind, but to her complete surprise, there was not a single tether in range – an impossibility, not when she felt the presence of dozens sleeping nearby. The inhabitants of the school were still in their beds, but it was as though their minds were forcefully severed from hers, and with a protective dome placed over their heads, preventing her unwanted intrusion.

She was perplexed by the situation, and took a moment to compose herself before wrapping a thicker jacket over her nightgown and stepping out into the unlit corridor. There wasn't a single visible source of light, and when she tried the switches, they remained in gloomy darkness still.

A blackout from the recent storm, or perhaps, something more sinister.

A feeling of unease came quickly over her, and she tried reaching out to the professor – Charles Xavier was always there, regardless of distance and time, he was not just the voice of reason, but a guiding light and a reassuring presence for all those in need.

Only silence greeted her in return, and it was terrifyingly worrying.

But Jean Grey was no longer the scared child she was sixteen years ago. She had long learned to hone and control her abilities, her telekinetic powers allowing her to feel the presence of those around her.

She could feel the professor, he was still in his room by the opposite end of the corridor, but like the others, a connection between their minds could not be formed.

She started heading in the direction of his room, when a sudden stab of pain exploded across her skull. She stumbled forward, blindly grasping onto a nearby table for balance, her hands quickly digging into her temples, trying to alleviate the growing pangs of pain.

It was nothing like a normal splitting headache, but instead, the resounding aftermath of a powerful clash between the strongest of telepathic energies.

She reached out with her mind, gritting through the pain and seeking its source – and then, she felt it, not a telepathic attack, but a strange warning.

Before she was able to decipher its meaning, she noticed the sudden presence of another.

She turned – and a figure stepped out into the dark.

His features were shielded by shadows, but she recognized his posture and the shape of his body – after all, she knew Scott Summers since they were mere teenagers.

The other mutant stood silently across from her, the red of his visor shrouding their surroundings in an uncanny luminescence.

"Scott," she called out to him, "thank goodness you're here, I think something's wrong-…"

She stopped in midstride, her sentence left unfinished.

The throb in her skull reduced to a soft persistent buzz, and she was suddenly aware of how vacant the man was. She was unable to form a tether between their minds, but she was still able to reach inwards, to see his inner thoughts.

It was completely barren, without a single passing thought.

He turned towards her expressionlessly, and even though his eyes were hidden underneath the visor, it felt almost like he was looking right through her.

It wasn't just mind control, but something else entirely, something more powerful than she imagined possible – his mind was completely gone.

Before she could contemplate her next move, he reached for his visor – and a beam of reddened energy lanced in her direction.

She raised her arm instinctively, and the beam was caught in mid-flight, frozen in animation inches from where she stood. Her breath caught, and her arms started to shake from the unbearable pressure.

The beam intensified, and she felt herself being pushed backwards by its momentum.

Unable to hold on further, she swung her arms to her left, using her telekinesis to send the beam off-course. It narrowly missed her, the concussive shockwave sending her flying across the corridor, painfully slamming against the behind wall.

There was a tiny crater where she once stood.

Her vision blurred, and there was a loud ringing in her head – a concussion, she thought, from the impact of her crash.

Then, he was there, staring at her silently, dispassionately – and he reached for his visor again.

She squeezed her eyes shut, and in that instance – the phoenix was once more infinite.

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When she opened her eyes, the first thing she noticed was the cold – it was freezing, and her jacket did little to shield her from the cold.

Then, as her eyes slowly adjusted to her dimly lit surroundings, she realized they were no longer at the school, or even on an actual plane of physical existence.

She floated in a dark space of emptiness – and then he was there, with the most curious stare.

A pair of green eyes, peeking mysteriously from a veil of black. Then, he emerged, and there was a prick of familiarity in the back of her mind, as though she had known him her entire life.

But, it wasn't a face she recognized.

He stood taller than her, with gentle features under a headful of dark black hair.

He was powerful, she could feel it, but he had eyes that would betray any traces of hidden malevolence, and a part of her simply knew – he wasn't a foe.

She was shivering, her arms wrapped around herself, a mist of warm condensation with each exhale.

He came closer, and it was suddenly warm.

It wasn't the sweltering heat of a powered source, but a mellow comfortness, like a brave star, trying to eradicate all the darkness in the world.

"Who-… What, are you?" she asked.

I am you.

His voice echoed softly, and she realized it was all inside her head.

Are you a telepath? Where are we? she responded in kind.

We are at where at all began, and where it all shall end – the center of our universe.

She cocked an eyebrow in his direction, not quite believing what he was saying.

She knew they were no longer on a physical plane, but there were plenty of mutants with the ability to travel between realms, and there were ones with the ability to create illusions so elaborate, their victims could believe their entire lives a lie.

You have forgotten me, Jean, the voice said, and it sounded almost disappointed.

Forgotten you? she replied, I've never met you.

But somehow, it felt like she had.

You have not, not in my current physical state, but I've been with you, always.

"What do you mean?" she asked, no longer through telepathy.

There was a time… when we were inseparable.

He waved his arm, and she saw images of herself as a child – they were sitting next to each other, but those were memories she could not remember, yet something inside of her, knew they were beyond a doubt.

There was a time… when I no longer remained in your memories.

The images shifted, and she saw herself on her first day at the school. She was only six, and was seated across from Charles Xavier, the older man looking at her with the most uncertain smile.

That day, she remembered. It was when Charles Xavier first placed the mental blocks in her mind.

It was quiet for the first time, her mind no longer filled with the loud voices of those around her.

And there was a time… you feared my very existence.

She saw herself again, the countless times she woke in the middle of the night, her room in a complete state of disarray. She saw herself running to the professor, begging him for help, to further cage the darkness inside of her.

She remembered the nightmares, the dread of losing control to her powers.

But she also remembered his warmth, and the pureness of the flames used to destroy Apocalypse.

And then, she knew – exactly what he was.

"The phoenix," she said.

And he spoke, "Yes."

Countless questions arose, and she voiced the most obvious one.

"Why bring me here?"

To protect you.

And then, she remembered – the school, the quietness… and Scott trying to kill her.

She gasped, "I have to go back, I have to find a way to help, I have to get the professor to-"

The professor can't help. Their minds are already lost. He is the reason for their demise.

"What do you mean?"

Apocalypse. He controls them.

"That is not possible. We destroyed Apocalypse."

Only his physical state. Not all of him. During the attempted transference of his mind into Charles Xavier's body, a part of him still remains, hidden away deep inside the professor's mind. For the past decade, Apocalypse had been slowly regaining his strength, slowly corrupting the professor from inside, and when Charles Xavier was finally weak enough, Apocalypse took over his consciousness, and even without his physical form, he was partial once more.

"So… Scott… and the rest. They're in that state because of the professor's power? Apocalypse is using Charles Xavier's telepathy to control the mutants?"

No, not just the rest, but the entire world.

She was quiet for the longest time. "Why not me?" she eventually asked.

He tried to control you. But I resisted, and it was why he sent Cyclops after you.

"I don't understand."

I am a part of you, Jean Grey. Our destinies were inexplicably entwined the moment you were conceived, and so, I have always been a part of you, dormant in wait until the day you needed me most. When Apocalypse attempted control, it attacked the part of your mind I had inhabited, and thus, I was awoken. I resisted… and he burned.

She remembered the headache, as though the aftermath of a powerful telepathic clash. It was starting to become clear.

"When we were fighting Apocalypse…"

Yes, I granted you a fraction of my strength.

"I… didn't know, I've always thought you were…"

Evil? Malevolent? A darkness inside, you couldn't control?

"Yes, I'm sorry."

I am not evil, but neither am I benevolent.

"What do you mean?" she said, before stammering, "I'm sorry, I'm asking too many questions… I just-…"

You know… we were friends once.

She knew the images he showed her were true, but no mattered how hard she tried, she simply couldn't remember.

"We were?" she asked.

Yes. You called me… Harry.

"H-Harry…" she whispered, and the same feeling of familiarity rose, "I think… I remember."

She gasped, "You were my imaginary friend."

Something briefly lit up in the man's eye, but it was gone as quickly as it came.

Yes, I was your… imaginary friend. That was how you saw me when you were a child.

"If you were real, why did you disappear?"

My presence… it was a great strain on your psyche, and you couldn't control your powers. When you lost control for the first time, you parents brought you to Charles Xavier, and he placed the mental blocks which allowed you to dampen your abilities, until the day you could learn to regain control.

"So did he…"

Yes, he was the one who prevented you from seeing me. The mental blocks kept us from communicating, and slowly, as you grew older, you lost all memories of me. But I do not blame him, he did not know of my existence, he was only helping you… and I could have broken free whenever I so wish, but I knew how heavily the repercussions would affect you, and so… I slept.

My flames went into slumber, but I've always watched over you.

"That means you must have heard-…" she said suddenly, "I'm sorry."

What for?

"You must have heard all the hurtful things I've said over the years. I was able to learn acceptance eventually, but in my younger years, when I first started studying at Xavier's school, I was alone and outcasted because of my abilities. I hated my… powers, I hated myself. There were many times when I wished that the… thing, inside me, you, didn't exist. Many nights I must have laid awake, cursing at you, afraid of going to sleep."

The man blinked, he was visibly unsure of what to say next.

She noticed his reaction, and quickly added in, "I… I'm sorry again, this… you… everything, it's all so… overwhelming. I have a tendency to apologize too much, and embarrassingly enough, there first thing that came to mind, was what I've said to you when I was younger."

"So…" she asked next, trying to rid the visible awkwardness, "you were not kidding about the whole… center of the universe thing?"

I do not… kid.

She clenched her fists embarrassingly; the situation was a most peculiar one, and she had no clear idea of how she should respond.

You are still in the mansion, but you are here as well. Time works differently in this realm. You can spend an eternity here, and only half a second would have passed in yours.

"That means… I'm still there, in the mansion? About to be killed by Scott?"

Yes – the voice was dispassionate, like a machine without emotions.

"Is that why I am here? Because I'm going to die?"

You are not going to die, Jean. You have me, you always had me.

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She blinked, and she was no longer there.

She looked up – as Scott activated the visor, and the beam of red lanced fiercely in her direction.

This time, she wasn't afraid.

She tore down her barriers, and she allowed him in.

Time came to a halt, and the world rained fire.

To be continued...

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