The fight against the Inhumans is over, mutants have a future on Earth again.
The original time-displaced X-Men and their friends are outside a motel.
Oya and Genesis sit on a bank musing about everything that has changed. Just seems like the end of a thing, Idie muses. No more Terrigen death cloud. No more Inhumans versus X-Men. Evan agrees. Both are thankful. But they wonder where they even are, or what’s going to happen. Idie asks if he has heard anything from the school. Nothing yet; he would kill for a little old-fashioned book learning right now, Evan admits.
They watch Iceman and his Inhuman boyfriend Romeo, who shows Bobby how to fire up a public grill. Romeo teases him about his privilege, when Bobby admits his family has a grill at a private lake house. Seeing that the grill doesn’t light up, Angel uses his fire wings to start a fire – on the grill and all around.
Laura Kinney (aka Wolverine) takes out a human trafficking ring in the backwoods. She is still there cleaning up. Angel only came because Hank called this super-secret meeting. What do they think that is about? That moment, a blackbird jet lands and the person stepping out greets them.
Not far away, Cyclops is training his optic beam, keeping a car in the air before destroying it. She sure hopes nobody needs that car, Jean Grey observes. What did she miss? she asks jokingly before asking what his beef with the station wagon is. He replies that the hotel manager said it was for target practice. The two hug, then Jean draws back sensing bad vibes from him. She asks if he is okay. Why does she ask, when she already knows the answer? Jean replies she doesn’t read people without consent anymore. But the dark and stormy coming off of him is hard to miss. What’s going on?
Frustrated, he bursts out that Emma Frost escaped and she caused all of this. The war with the Inhumans. Then she gets off scot-free, like nothing! Jean agrees that that sucks, but that’s what villains do. It’s what gives the heroes job security. Seriously, he replies. Emma ruined his life, set his name on fire then put it down on the pavement, so it could writhe all twisted. Made him afraid to grow up. Afraid he had been born a monster. She shouldn’t get away with that. She deserves comeuppance. He deserves…
…to optic blast her rusty bumper off? Jean suggests as she hugs him lightly. She agrees but how much better does he think beating up “Victoria’s Secrets” will make him feel? A little, he suggests.
Jean points out the important thing is they know it was a lie. He has nothing to fear anymore. The adult Cyclops wasn’t a villain. He didn’t do that stuff. His destiny is free and clear. He concedes the point, but most people don’t know that. As far as they are concerned… She reminds him that they are X-Men. Since when do they care about what everyone else thinks?
He fires his blast and asks what she is even doing here. Nervously, she replies Hank called her. They join the others. There is something he wants to talk about with the original five, he tells them. He hasn’t had time before and the magic is complicated.
Scott recalls Hank telling him he already solved time travel and has been home. But he forgot!
A little later all the original five are gathered around Beast. Jean peeks as he puts on the magic mask and briefly turns into a horned monster.
Then they reappear at Xavier’ School, with Hank looking normal again.
Scott is ecstatic, Hank is exhausted and Bobby is furious at him for yanking them through time without asking. Scott, on the other hand, enthuses that everything is perfect. They walk into the kitchen, where Scott is happy to see even the food is typical of their time. Angel announces this is messed up. Hank replies that it’s complicated. Jean orders Hank to explain, while Bobby demands to be taken back home (meaning the future). Jean orders that he needs to end this. Hank sighs. He knows and asks Cyclops if he remembers the bank.
In Manhattan, Unus the Untouchable is in the process of robbing a bank. Pickles teleports the X-Men into a nearby alley. Scott explains it’s one of the fights they missed after being yanked into the future. He’s read the other Scott’s journals. He knows how to beat Unus this time. As Scott describes his plan, Jean tells Hank now would be a good time to tell him. When Scott plans to attack, Hank tackles him to the ground and asks him to just watch.
What they see is themselves, the original five in their original costumes attacking Unus. While the doubles fight Unus, Hank explains he had to show them, because they wouldn’t have believed it otherwise. This is the reason they couldn’t return home - they never left! It is the only thing that makes sense. This isn’t their timeline. Or everything would have changed when they left. Which means, their time…
Hank groans as he is transformed into horned beast again. And they are back to the future.
Hank turns normal again. Scott is in denial, shouting that wasn’t home. Their past has to be somewhere! Hank is afraid that is the only past this reality has. And it took all he had to keep them there as long. Same as last time. They don’t belong there. The universe rights itself. Scott demands he take them somewhere else. Dejected, Beast asks where Scott doesn’t know. Neither does Hank. Furious, Scott stalks away. Jean follows.
Outside the motel, Scott lets loose his optic blast. Jean hugs him. Scott asks where they go from here. Forward, she replies and assures him it’s going to be great. Scott kisses her and Jean doesn’t reciprocate. He apologizes for making it weird. She gently tells him this isn’t weird but it wouldn’t be moving forward. It’s backward or sideways or something. They shouldn’t. She’ll always love him but they know where that path leads, and nobody wants that. Reluctantly, he agrees.
She takes his hand and they join the others, including Laura, Idie, Evan and Romeo who are eating tacos.
Jean assures Hank that Scott is fine but wants to know what’s going on with him. She peeked and saw his other form. He tells her it’s none of her business. To change the subject, he suggests a baseball team. Evan instead turns on the iPod and they dance.
