The journey from Cairo back to Westchester had taken its time, but it still didn't feel like long enough when they approached the grounds of the destroyed building.

At the airport, they'd had a chance to get somewhat clean and buy some new clothes. They looked somewhat presentable, and while Raven had been able to change her appearance for the flight, Hank and Kurt had stood out quite uncomfortably.

While on the flight, Hank had told Iris and Charles about the explosion at the school.

"Alex tried to stop you guys from being taken," Hank's voice was low, "But the beam he shot out... it hit the warplane and the whole school exploded. Peter here saved almost everyone, but... Alex."

Iris felt her eyes sting, and beside her Charles' breath hitched in his throat. Blindly, Iris reached out and covered Charles' hand with her own.

"Alex was the best of us," Charles murmured, and his eyes sought out Scott on the other side of the aeroplane, "His death won't have been in vain."

Now, as they looked at the devastation left behind where the mansion had once been, Iris felt a strange emptiness overcome her. It had been her home for so long, and now it was gone.

"We'll rebuild it." Erik's voice was firm, startling them all, "With my abilities, and Jean's telekinesis, we can rebuild it."

He paused and looked at Jean, "If you're ready, of course."

Iris studied Jean closely, but she simply flexed her fingers and smiled, "Well, we do need somewhere to live."

Iris wondered if Jean's skin was still thrumming with heat like hers was.

"We can all help," Iris spoke up, "Ororo, Scott, Kurt – you guys can help, right?"

The three young mutants glanced at each other before nodding in agreement. Iris was happy to see that Ororo was starting to relax around them, and making friends with the other students.

When they'd landed in New York, Moira had returned home to her son, and Raven had taken Peter to the hospital to get his leg seen to. Iris really hoped that Raven would return to them, for Charles' sake.

At the thought of Charles, she glanced over at him and saw he was sitting with his eyes closed. She knew that he was still in pain, still hearing too many voices. She reached out and brushed his shoulder gently.

"Hey, why don't you and Hank sit together somewhere in the woods? Away from everyone else? I'll join you guys in a while."

Charles opened his eyes and smiled at her. He touched her hand resting on his shoulder, and when he felt the heat of her skin, he frowned in concern.

"I'm fine," She smiled, not quite meeting his gaze.

Hank and Charles made their way over to the wooded area away from the school, and the other mutants got to work. Iris was hesitant to use her powers, feeling as though she might burst into flames if she tried.

When she glanced up, she saw Erik watching her. He reached out and touched her shoulder, "You don't need to be afraid, Iris. You used your full strength in Cairo when you and Jean fought together. A task like this isn't something to be afraid of."

She inhaled deeply and nodded, knowing he was right. After a pause, she closed her eyes and created the materials that Erik described to her that they'd need to build the school. It took a while as there was so much that they needed, but when she finally opened her eyes again she was pleased to see it had worked.

Erik and Jean were to move the materials to begin building the foundations. Ororo could produce winds strong enough to lift things as well. Kurt teleported back and forth, moving things where they needed to be. If anything needed welding together, Scott helped too.

Iris felt exhaustion wash over her, and distantly wondered where Hank and Charles had gone.

"Find the others," Erik told her gently, "We'll let you know if we need more materials."

She nodded gratefully and slowly walked towards the woods. Her body ached – she hadn't slept in a proper bed in days. All of them were exhausted, not just physically but mentally. The events in Cairo had truly taken their toll on all of them.

She spotted Hank and Charles sitting together in the shade. Hank was reading a newspaper he'd picked up at the airport, and Charles had his eyes closed.

"Have you fixed that bloody mansion yet?" Charles asked, without opening his eyes. He had a small smile on his face.

"Working on it," Iris muttered, flopping down onto the ground beside his wheelchair.

After a pause, Charles reached his hand out and took hold of hers, "Thank you, Iris."

"What for?" She asked in confusion.

"Everything." He murmured, pausing, "Your hands are still so warm."

She lowered her gaze, "It's nothing. How are you?"

"The voices are fading... slowly." He shook his head gently, as if it would hurt too much if he moved too quickly, "I've never known what it was like to have the voices of every person on this planet in my head. It was painful – it still is. I feel like I'm coming off of the serum all over again."

There was a faint crease between his eyebrows, as if he was actively trying to block voices out. Iris reached her finger up and smoothed the crease out gently, causing him to smile softly.

"En Sabah Nur's influence will not fade away very quickly for any of us. Erik, you, me, Ororo... we're all finding it difficult, I can tell." She hesitated, "If we were all strong enough for En Sabah Nur to use us, we're strong enough to overcome his power."

Charles' lips twitched into a smile, "You're very wise."

Hank chuckled beside them, "I think you're rubbing off on her, Charles."

"Oi!" Iris pulled his newspaper away, "I have always been wise, Hank. You just don't listen."

The three of them laughed together, and for a moment it felt as though everything in Cairo, and all the pain that lingered, wasn't there at all.

*

Iris felt someone shake her shoulder gently, and she blinked as she tried to work out where she was. She realised as she opened her eyes that she'd nodded off in the forest between Charles and Hank. Erik was standing over her with a smile on his face.

"Is it done?" She asked as she stood up, stretching herself out.

They traipsed out of the forest, and when Iris caught sight of the new mansion, a smile broke out on her face.

"You guys are brilliant," She told them with a smile. Charles reached out and squeezed Erik's arm to thank him.

Iris glanced up and saw that Peter – with a new cast on his broken leg – had returned with Raven. She was surprised at the sight of Peter's return, but even more at the sight of Raven's. Charles and Erik shared a smile before they walked over to talk to them. Iris didn't follow. She could feel Jean behind her.

"Can you still feel the heat?" The young girl asked, her voice quiet, "The fire beneath your skin?"

Iris turned to face the Jean, and recognised the flicker of fear in her eyes instantly. With a sigh, Iris nodded. She reached out and touched Jean's hand, showing her how warm her skin still was.

"It's going to be hard," Iris murmured, "Such a release of power... it's going to linger for a while. For all of us." Her gaze fell on Erik and Charles. There was a moment of silence, and Iris finally raised her face to look at Jean again.

"I'm sorry that I almost killed you," Her voice was low, "I would never have been able to forgive myself, if I had."

Jean shook her head right away, "The important thing is that you didn't. Something stopped you – I don't know what it was. Something broke you away from what you had become."

Iris sighed and her gaze fell to the floor, "I... I was reminded of my parents. They died so that I wouldn't be a weapon. And I realised that it would have been in vain, if I killed you. Something in my brain snapped, and it was like I woke up."

Jean hesitantly reached out and squeezed Iris' hand, "I think you're really strong. I look up to you, you know. I think we have a lot in common, and I used to feel like I was weak because I couldn't control my powers. But seeing you fighting in Cairo, and seeing you break away from En Sabah Nur's powers proved just how strong you are. I hope I can be like you."

Iris felt her eyes sting, "I think you already are like me, Jean. Much younger, of course."

The two of them laughed together. After a slight pause, Iris reached out and pulled Jean into a hug. The young girl relaxed into her, clearly exhausted from the last few days. Their skins burned, their eyes stung with tears – but they weren't alone.

They were never alone.

*

Iris felt unsettled as she walked around the mansion. She could feel the tense atmosphere in the house – everyone was desperately trying to have a sense of normality. They'd ordered some food, they'd got washed and changed, and they'd all slowly made their way up to their bedrooms.

Normality didn't feel right to Iris. She wasn't sure what it was. It had something to do with what had happened in Cairo, but it was also the knowledge that before all that, she hadn't lived here. She'd been a guest, helping out. She longed for normality... but what was normality?

There was a gentle knock at the door of the living room. She glanced up, and her eyes fell on Charles. He smiled gently at her, "Can I come in?"

She nodded quickly, trying to smile and to steady the increased rate of her beating heart. He crossed the room, positioning his chair so that it was opposite her. Their knees were almost touching.

Almost.

"How do you feel?" Charles' voice was gentle. Iris gulped. It wasn't an easy question to answer.

"Tired," She murmured, "But I won't be able to sleep."

He leant forwards slightly, encouraging her to elaborate. She was struggling to meet his gaze – those piercing blue eyes. She was worried if she would, she'd break.

"He violated me." Her voice was thick with emotion. Charles reached out and placed his hand on top of hers. She stared at their joined hands.

"I wasn't in an unconscious state. I was aware of everything I was doing, but I couldn't stop it. I was me, but I also wasn't me. I can't describe it. I remember everything." She shook her head, "I was so close to killing Jean - "

She couldn't carry on. She couldn't look up at him.

"You didn't, though," Charles told her gently, squeezing her hand, "It's like you told Erik – you made it right in the end."

With his other hand, he reached out and touched her chin, raising her head so that she was finally looking at him. His eyes were so warm, so comforting. She felt her own eyes fill with tears.

"My whole life, my powers have been stunted. When Shaw had my memories wiped and my power blocked, it affected me for life. My mind has been meddled with time and time again, but now..." She paused, "For the first time in my life since I was a child, it's not like that anymore. You're the most powerful telepath I've ever met, but the wall in my mind was too strong for even you to properly break down. It had to be broken down by my powers. When En Sabah Nur strengthened my powers, he restored them. The wall in my mind is broken. My memories from my childhood, from my time with Shaw, are the clearest they've ever been."

Iris could feel that she was shaking. Charles had noticed it too.

"Those memories will be painful, Iris. But you have to realise – your powers were controlling you, but you broke away from that. Now, you're controlling your powers. If what you're saying is correct – that the full extent of your abilities has finally been restored – then it only shows how much control you have over yourself. You don't need to be afraid, because without even trying since we were in Cairo, you've been in control."

Iris began to nod slowly, blinking away the tears. Charles leant forwards and kissed her on the forehead, and then he paused, his lips millimetres from her skin. It was a gentle, familiar gesture - and yet before everything had happened, they hadn't seen each other for months.

"Iris..." He whispered, his breath warm against her forehead. She gulped, before she reached out and pulled his face down lower. Their eyes met, and they looked at each other for one long moment before he brushed his lips against her own. It was a soft kiss – one that sent a shiver down her spine. There was a pause before they kissed again, and then it wasn't soft anymore. They'd spent months apart, they'd both almost died, and they both desperately needed one another more than ever. Iris felt her heart rate quickening as their bodies moved closer together.

Charles paused and moved himself from his chair onto the sofa beside her before their lips met once more. Iris let her hands trail along Charles' body, revelling the feeling of him being so close to her.

"We have a habit of doing this in rooms where there's not a bed," Charles murmured against her shoulder with a smile, and she laughed.

"Remember that first time, the night before Cuba?" Iris whispered, and Charles nodded with a grin before he reached for the hem of her t-shirt and tugged it up gently.

"How could I forget?"