CHAPTER THIRTY —
( The end of the world. )

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Later that night, everyone in the Xavier mansion got woken up by someone causing the building to shake. Knowing who it was in an instant, considering it had happened to Jean on more than one occasion, Lydia headed straight to her room.

All of the students were out of their beds and standing in their doorways. "Kids, it's alright. Go back to bed," Lydia ordered as she walked towards Jean's door where Hank was.

Avery's head peaked out from one of the rooms. "Is everything okay?" She asked quietly.

Lydia walked up to her and placed a hand on her cheek. "Everything's alright, sweetheart." She looked towards the next room. "Sophia, do you mind looking after Avery for a short while?"

"Sure thing," Sophia nodded and held her hand out for Avery, watching as the small girl walked over and grabbed her hand.

Lydia made her way to Jean's room, where Charles and Hank where waiting for her. Hank opened up the door to Jean who was tossing and turning in her bed, the wallpaper around her beginning to crumble. "Never seen it like this," Hank whispered.

"Nor I," Charles spoke.

"It keeps getting worse," Lydia said.

"Don't let any of the children come this way," Charles told Hank as he wheeled himself into the room with Lydia following closely behind him.

Jean's body began to steam and bubbles kept popping up on the wallpaper above her. Lydia looked around the room and noticed it was happening to all of the walls. Jean continued to toss and turn and breathe heavily as Charles and Lydia made their way to stand besides her bed.

"Jean," Charles reached out, when suddenly they were both hit with a massive searing pain in their heads.

All Lydia saw in her head was red. And fire. It was all very hot. Red clouded Lydia's vision. Red screams, red fire, red....everything. It was almost like a red storm was happening in her mind. Lydia's mind couldn't take it anymore as she clutched onto her head, groaning at the pain Jean's head was causing her. People were burning, houses were burning, people were screaming.

Lydia quickly brought her hand over towards Jean's head and tapped it, causing Jean to wake up from her nightmare, her breathing awfully heavy. Her scared filled eyes looked over at Lydia and then to Charles. "I saw the end of the world," Jean breathed out. "I could feel...all this death."

Lydia pulled on a tight, convincing smile while she blocked her head out from her telepathic mind. "It was just a dream, Jean. Go back to sleep."

"But it felt real," Jean turned to Lydia.

"I know," Charles said. "Your mind is one of the most powerful I've ever seen. It can convince itself...."

"No, no. It's not just the mind-reading or the telekinesis, it's something else," Jean said. "Some dark power inside and it's growing. Like a fire." She shook her head. "God, I thought I was getting better."

"You are," Charles and Lydia said instantly. "You will. You just have to be patient."

"No, no. You don't know what it's like to be afraid to shut your eyes. To be trapped inside your own head."

Lydia glanced up at Charles. "Oh, I think we do," Charles smiled kindly at her. "It wasn't so long ago that Lydia and I were both plagued by voices. All their suffering."

"All their pain and their secrets," Lydia sighed.

"I'm afraid one day I'm going to hurt someone," Jean brought her eyes down.

Lydia smiled lightly at her. "Lie back down."

Jean did as told and rested her head against the pillow. Charles lifted himself up from his wheelchair and sat on Jean's bed, causing Jean's eyes to widen with surprise. Lydia knelt down on the other side of Jean's bed.

"Everyone fears that which they do not understand," Charles smiled.

Lydia reached forward and placed her hand on Jean's forehead. "You will learn to control your powers," she smiled. "And when you do, you'll have nothing to fear."

Jean nodded in understanding. "Thank you, Professor and Lydia," she smiled lightly at them.

"Now, I'm going to try something different to help you sleep." Lydia held her hand up towards her chest and closed her eyes as she concentrated on pulling out a green ball of magic from it. Lydia held her hand out and watched as a jar flew towards her and she placed the green ball into the jar. "This should help you sleep. It helps block off my nightmares and I know it's worked with other students."

"Why didn't you do this before?" Charles asked Lydia, his eyes watching the magic flow in the jar.

"It tends to drain a lot of my power to make one of these," Lydia explained as she placed the jar on Jean's bedside table. Lydia then smiled down at Jean. "Sleep well, love."

Lydia helped Charles get back into his wheelchair and the two left Jean's room to let her go back to sleep. Hank nodded his head as a signal for the two to follow him, but Lydia shook her head at them.

"Charles, fill me in. I'm going to deal with Avery," Lydia told the two men.

The two of them nodded and Lydia turned around and walked back to Sophia and her roommate, Ivy Mitchell's room. She knocked on the door, and then opened and peaked her head inside.

"Everyone okay?" Lydia asked.

Ivy was laying on her bed, reading Stephen King's 'Carrie', while Sophia sat on the floor with Avery. Sophia was showing Avery a book on flowers and nature, that Avery (surprisingly) found interesting.

"Everyone here's good," Sophia replied, looking up at Lydia with a small smile.

"You ready to go back to bed, Avery?"

Avery hopped up off of the floor. "I guess. I like hanging out with Sophia, though."

"During daytime hours," Lydia said, then held her hand out. "Come on."

Avery walked towards her mother and waved back at Sophia. "Good night, Sophy. Good night, Ivy."

Ivy saluted and Sophia smiled with a wave. "Good night, Avery."

Lydia walked into the next room with Avery. She still had her own room with no current roommate to share the space with, but Lydia and Charles had planned that when Avery begins her school education, they'd find a roommate for her.

"Get to bed now," Lydia said lightly. Avery hurried over to her bed and leapt right under the covers. "Do you think you'll sleep easy tonight?"

Avery nodded. "I'm not scared of Jean tonight," she said softly. "I know it's not her fault."

Lydia hummed. "She just doesn't have full control over her mutation yet," she replied. "I remember watching you struggle with your mutation when you were a baby. It was funny, I'll admit, but you got there eventually, didn't you?" Avery nodded. "And I know that there is so much more you will learn from your mutation as you grow up. I know I do, and I still do learn more about my mutations even now. And mummy still messes up."

"Really?" Avery asked, not believing her mother.

"Of course," Lydia smiled and tucked Avery in. "Now, if you go to sleep, we'll go out and get ice cream tomorrow. Does that sound alright?"

"Yeah!" Avery chirped. "I love you, Mommy."

Lydia pressed a kiss onto Avery's forehead. "I love you, Avery."