Title: "The Gospel's Joy"
Author: Pirate Turner
Rating: G
Summary: He comes here whenever his burdens get too heavy to bear alone.
Warnings: Drabble
Challenge: For a now-closed Marvelites LJ comm weekly challenge
Word Count: 300
Date Written: 30 June, 2012
Disclaimer: Kurt "Nightcrawler" Wagner; all other recognizable characters mentioned within; and the X-Men are © & TM Marvel comics and Disney, not the author. Everything else is © & TM the author. The author makes absolutely no profit off of this work of fan fiction, and no copyright infringement is intended.

He comes here whenever his burdens get too heavy to bear and start to make him wonder rather or not he's on the right path. He comes here for renewal of his soul and belief not just in a good and loving God but in humanity and his own self, as well. He comes here under the guise of a normal man seeking to celebrate the Lord, but every now and again, the image inducer fizzes out and he has to improvise. The inducer went out last night, but he needs this today too much to stay away. He's here with a plastered face to hide his true form, gloves and a hat to conceal what fur the plaster doesn't cover, and a trench to keep his tail in check.

Yet, as the singing overcomes his soul with joy, his tail gets out of bounds as it so often does. He feels it whip out from underneath his trench and forgets about singing for a moment as he gulps in fear instead. He looks swiftly about him, but no one else has stopped singing. The Preacher's daughter is looking, however, and he knows from her wide, innocent, blue eyes that she's seen the Devil within him.

He smiles shakily at her, and to his surprise, she smiles back. She touches her cross. He touches his, and they nod in secret understanding. They've come to celebrate the same God. They have nothing to fear from each other. Kurt's grin reaches all the way to the bottom of his heart. Humanity is still worth saving. There's still hope for the dream. He's in the Lord's house and with His people, and here, he has nothing to fear. He sings again, and this time, his soul is nearly bursting with the gospel's joy.

The End