[AN: Yay! First chapter of the last book! So, guess I'll put a content warning on here about the book, just hope ya'll read it so you're not shocked... So here it is! First of all... Because Kerri was pretty shielded from the outside world (since she was usually in the X Mansion) the story so far has been pretty tame. But, since she no longer has class to attend and she's out in the real world more (and with Xavier wanting to send her on missions), it's about to get a lot darker with some real (and not so real) life issues. If the thoughts found in this book offend you, I apologize, but I'm not changing them since they're what drive the characters forward. Besides, this book is rated M(A on some chapters) for a reason. SO, if you are offended by sex (hey, it happens, it's life, and besides, they've loved each other for two years! Lol), I'll put a note at the beginning of the chapter about it. However, there are a few controversial things in this book as well... Can't really name them all here without giving some of the plot away, so I'll leave it at controversial. Anyway, really long disclaimer out of the way, I hope you enjoy this chapter and the rest of the book!]

Kurt rolled out of his bed, landing with his amazing, cat like grace and standing tall.

He walked over to his bookcase and dug out the box he'd hidden there. He opened it and looked inside at the shining stones in the necklace it contained.

They were a soft lavender, arranged around the silver heart-shaped locket in a smaller heart. His fingers closed the velvety box and smoothed across it.

He slipped the box onto the shelf slowly and turned to his closet to gather clothes for after his shower.

As the water ran down his soft, lightly furred skin he wondered if the pictures for the locket were finally done, knowing that Dr McCoy had been very busy for the last few months, trying to figure out what the group calling themselves "the push" were trying to do with the large quantities of chemicals they'd been gathering.

They were sure that even if they intended to do good, it wasn't looking good for the mutants of the world, even if the push was only a small group, for now.

Kurt stepped out of the shower and toweled off before getting dressed and making his way back to his room.

He'd just finished with putting his things away when there was a knock on the door. He opened it, hoping for Kerri, but saw Beast, Dr. McCoy's alter ego. "Ah, hallo, is zhere somezhing going on?" He asked.

"Oh, no, my dear boy, just on my way to a mission to investigate further with "the push" and thought I'd drop off these for you. Sorry it took so long, what with this group doing who knows what with massive quantities of what seems like every poisonous chemical known to man. Anyway, here you go. Jean said she'd help you with getting them set in there, if you'd like."

"Ok, I'll talk to her about zhat, zhank you," he told him as he took the pictures.

"It's no problem, my boy, I'm just sorry that they're so late."

After Beast left, he grabbed the locket from the shelf and made his way to find Jean.

Kerri woke up, feeling more rested than she had lately, and she stretched, glad that her relationship with Kurt was easing into the way it had been before, even if she still had troubled thoughts sometimes about how she'd behaved the last year.

She walked to her closet and pushed aside her long sleeved shirts and t shirts to find a tank top that would allow her wings to be free if she chose to grow them, and a pair of jeans with a hidden hole for her tail if it grew.

She pulled the shirt on and workout pants she'd thrown on the ground yesterday, then carried her jeans with her, picking up her lightest jacket and putting it on as she made her way down to the danger room.

She threw her things into her locker and went to the doors of the danger room to meet Logan.

He put out his cigar and turned to the door, saying, "'bout time you showed up, Kid." They went in to do a warm up spar before the group exercises, and after a while, the rest of the group made their way to the danger room.

Logan and Kerri went to change into their training suits, meeting again as they went toward the door.

"Ready for a real fight, Coyote?" He asked.

Kerri's brow darkened with irritation. "I suppose, Badger," she said as she walked through the door.

She knew that he knew it bothered her when he called her Coyote, she'd told him that she was a wolf, not a coyote, but he'd been insisting that she was sneaky like a coyote since they'd gone on the mission with the Avengers to rescue the Hulk.

It was a normal scenario; rescue the hostages, and as Kerri walked to the door with everyone else, Kurt walked next to her. "So, how did you like es, liebling?" He asked.

"It was ok," she told him as Wolverine was passing.

"Hey, Elf, don't you remember that we're supposed to call everyone by their code names? You know old One-Eye'll get on you for that. Coyote," he greeted as he walked past them.

Kerri's eyebrows met as she watched Wolverine walk off. "Whatever you say, Badger," she agreed.

Kurt watched in amazement as Wolverine walked out without comment. "I can't believe he didn't say anyzhing," he told her.

She shrugged. "He knows I'm kidding as much as he is, I guess," she told him, peeking at him from the corner of her eye to enjoy his natural looks while she had the chance.

Kurt shrugged off the strange occurrence and turned back to her. "So, um, zhere vas somezhing I vas going to ask you," he paused and Kerri looked at him fully. "Let's go on a date tonight."

Kerri smiled humorously, almost laughing, and Kurt smiled as well, enjoying her somewhat rare truly happy emotions. "That's not a question," she told him teasingly.

Kurt took her hand to stop her outside of the danger room. "Liebling, zhat's not an answer," he told her.

"How am I supposed to answer when there's no question?" she teased again.

Kurt held her hand to his lips. "Liebling, you know I love you," the playfulness in Kerri's eye's quickly disappeared. "Und I vould be very flattered if you vould give me zhe honor of your presence on a date zhis evening," he told her, finishing with a kiss to the back of her hand.

The tugging guilt in the back of her mind pulled as she thought again that she'd been so terrible to him and wondered if he'd really been able to forgive her, especially when she couldn't forgive herself completely.

He looked up at her from her hand and smiled teasingly. "I know it didn't have a question mark, aber, it is a quvestion of your acceptance of my invitation," he teased.

Kerri looked at the ground. 'I don't know what you see in me, but-' "Alright," she said aloud. "When and where?"

Kurt just smiled again. "Vell, about six-zhirty, ja? Und, vell, zhe vhere, I'll keep zhat to myself, just dress normally," he told her, leaning close and kissing her lightly on the lips before turning and going into the men's locker room.

Kerri followed suit, making her way to take a shower.

She looked at the clock and dried her hair a little more with the towel. It was almost four o'clock, even though she hadn't done much yet in the day. 'Only about two hours until our date...' she thought to herself with a smile.

Her smile fell as her gaze turned to the mirror. "Wow," she muttered. 'I have a huge rat's nest of hair... Better blow dry it...' she thought and pulled her blow drier out of the small, plastic chest of drawers she kept all of her beauty things in. She blow dried and combed, brushed and dried, and eventually her hair was dry. She ran the brush through it again, getting the last of the tangles out before pulling it back onto a ponytail, not sure what to do with it yet.

She went to the closet and looked for a shirt that wasn't a tank top. "But," she said to herself. 'He said to dress normally, and it's pretty hot... And I don't want to ruin my shirt if I have to fight...' She thought to herself, knowing that there had been more and more violence towards mutants on the news lately.

She debated for a minute before she decided on a newer tank top that was nice looking and her normal jeans and flip flops, pulling her light jacket on over the tank top. She looked in the mirror again and decided to leave her hair alone, since it was usually in a braid, it was a bit of difference.

She walked down to the kitchen and pulled a soda out of the fridge, opening it and taking a huge gulp.

"Hey there, little Coyote," Ben, one of the other mutants that had been in the training greeted. He was a junior that stood about six foot tall, over her by about half a foot, and his muscles reminded her of Piotr.

Kerri's eyes darkened at the added insult of little to coyote. "You do realize that I'm going to be a teacher this next year, right?" He nodded. "And that you have to take my class?" He nodded again. "And that I'll be able to torment you and make you do whatever I tell you?"

He smiled. "If you tell me something I don't like, I'll just stick you on the roof," he told her, still teasing.

"That's it, insubordination, go to the principal's office now," she pointed to the door and joked.

He got a soda from the fridge and said, "yeah, I'll get right on that."

Kerri drank the last of her soda and threw it in the trash. "Yeah, and throw your garbage away, too, no littering," she threw over her shoulder in mock strictness as she left the room. She made her way up the stairs to her room, but when she got there, Kurt was knocking at the door. "Um, hello," she told him.

"Ah, liebling, zhere you are. I know it's a little early, aber, I couldn't stay avay any longer!" He told her, stepping closer and taking her arms in his hands and directing them to his sides, careful not to look too suggestive in the hall where any passing students might give them a hassle for being overly romantic.

Kerri smiled and leaned forward, moving her chin up to kiss him.

"Oooo, go teach!" A student called as a group passed by the hall.

Kerri pulled back and rolled her eyes. "Jeeez, teenagers," she muttered.

Kurt laughed as they started walking out to the garage. "You are a teenager also," he told her.

"I'm an adult," she told him. "The law says you're an adult at eighteen, and if you remember, it was my birthday last month. So I'm an adult plus a year."

He laughed again, enjoying the not often seen playful side of Kerri.

The old white van that Kerri had pretty much taken ownership of since starting to do the grocery shopping pulled into the theater parking lot. "I don't know vhy you don't vant me to drive," Kurt said as he got out.

"Because you just got your license... And she's temperamental..." Kerri told him.

"Ja, is she you or zhe van?" Kurt teased.

"You wanna find out?" Kerri challenged as they walked towards the door. She put her hands up jokingly. "I had two training sessions today, you know."

"Ja, zhat just means zhat you're more tired," he teased. "Makes it easier for me to catch you."

Kerri pretended to think about that as Kurt bought the tickets. They stood in the line for the snack bar and Kerri shook her head. "I can't believe they want so much for popcorn and paper cups mostly filled with frozen water."

"Ja, aber, it tastes besser zhan popcorn from home," he told her as they reached the counter. "Vone large popcorn und two large sodas," he told the girl.

She handed over the items and he handed over money while Kerri took them, all the while shaking her head. They went into the theater and sat down, finding a good spot that wouldn't deafen either of them.

After the movie they climbed into the van. "That movie was so funny," Kerri laughed. "Imagine, if we could just run around like idiots and claim vengeance on random things!" She laughed again.

"Who vould you claim vengeance on?" Kurt asked.

"Um, Ben," Kerri said. "That'd teach him to call me Little Coyote, just cause he's the size of a Buick... Oh, Logan, he's the one that started that anyway," she named. "What about you?"

"Hmmmm, vell, probably on every student zhat valks past us in zhe hall," he told her.

"What? Why?" She asked.

"How am I supposed to kiss you until you melt if every student passes us making immature comments?" He asked, making her blush. "Don't forget, ve're going to zhe restaurant," he told her.

"You're still hungry after that giant thing of popcorn?" She asked.

"It vasn't zhat big," he told her. "And I didn't eat all of es."

She drove them to the restaurant and the went in.

Kurt was nervous, trying to decide when he should give the locket to her.

"So, you've been stirring your shake for about ten minutes now," Kerri commented. "I think it's about melted..."

Kurt came back to reality. "Oh, ja," he laughed. "Vell, I vas just zhinking..."

Kerri was silent for a moment, but then asked, "about what?"

He smiled comfortingly to her at the slightly worried tone in her voice. "Vell, my present for your birzhday," he told her.

"My birthday was last month," she told him, confused.

"Ja, I know," he told her. "Aber I got you a present, it just took a little vhile to get it finished." She still looked at him in confusion. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the velvet box, smoothing his fingers across it under the table.

He put it back in his pocket, deciding to wait until after dinner.

As they walked towards the van, Kurt's hand dug into his pocket again. "So, liebling, about your present..."

Kerri stopped walking so they stood together next to the van. He held the box out to her, waiting for her to take it.

Kerri stared at the small, blue velvet box he was aiming at her.

It was small, enough to be a ring box?

She wasn't sure.

They'd gone a long way to getting back to normal, but was it enough for him to think that much for their future?

Kerri took the box before the look on Kurt's face started to turn to worried. She looked at for a second. "You- you didn't have to get me anything," she told him, thinking that for the first year she'd known him she'd missed his birthday, and for the second she'd been so stubborn that she'd refused to talk to him.

"Liebling, I vanted to. Now, it's a birzhday gift, not a bomb, open es," he told her.

She opened it and almost let out a sigh of relief.

It was a necklace, not a ring.

Not that didn't think about marring him one day, just that it was just that; "one day", and not "is sometime in the the next six months good for you?"

"It's a locket," he told her as she admired the light stones in the twilight.

"It's beautiful," she told him.

"Open es," he prompted. She pressed the latch and the little heart swung open, reveling the picture of them from the formal, with him kissing her on the cheek. "I left zhe ozher side open so you could decide vhat to put in it," he told her, taking it and motioning for her to turn around so he could put it on her. He fumbled for a moment with the tiny clasp, but got it latched. "Zhere you go, now if only it could glow vizh as much beauty as you," he told her, running his hand down her cheek, resting on her jaw.

He leaned forward and kissed her. She kissed him back, and his other hand moved up her side, sliding under the jacket she refused to take off unless she had to.

He didn't think she had anything to hide, but she was still self conscious about showing off a lot of skin and cleavage at the school since becoming more aware that a lot of the members of the household did actually notice and stare at her when she did.

His hand found the bare skin of her shoulder blades, right where her wings would grow, and he pressed, rubbing in a small circle.

Kerri gasped against his lips and her knee buckled, making her stumble and fall back against the side of the van. Kurt went with her, holding her up and continuing to rub the spot, enjoying the feeling of her hands clenching at his shirt, pulling him closer, one of them breaking away to run along his furred skin.

His tail was having trouble staying out of trouble, wanting to curl around her and pull her closer.

It was quickly devolving into panting and clutching at each other as the built up desire started racing through their veins, clouding their minds.

"I thought this was a family restaurant," a haughty voice pierced the fog as it complained loudly as a group of older women passed.

Kerri let her head fall back against the van in agitation.

Kurt sighed as he looked down at the ground. He'd never get to kiss her if this continued.

After a moment Kurt stepped back and they climbed into the van.

Kerri parked the van in the garage where it belonged and they climbed out, walking into the school.

"Thank you for the locket," Kerri said as they stopped in front of her door.

"Of course, liebling, it looks beautiful on you," he told her, his hand cupping her jaw. He slowly leaned forward and their lips met.

The desire hadn't lessened much on the ride home, and now it started to grow again.

As Kerri's breath started coming fast again, a group students from the girls dorm passed them, giggling.

Kurt pulled away from Kerri's lips as they sighed in irritation at the constant interruptions.

"I'm sorry liebling," Kurt told her softly.

Kerri convinced her hands to let go of his shirt. "Me too."

Kerri laid back on her bed, the electricity still humming in her veins. She sighed as she turned over to look out the window.

Her body was still yearning, crying out for Kurt's touch. It was the kind of closeness that she knew might eventually lead them into trouble, but that they both wanted.

It was a very adult want, and she knew that she was just on the verge of being ready for it, but she was still not quite there yet.

Not that she'd never thought about sex, especially sex with Kurt, and not that it didn't make her pulse race and body feel tender every time she did, but it had always seemed to her that it was an act that adults did together, something that teenagers did while trying to play at being an adult because they thought it would make them grown up.

She'd never gotten "the talk" but she'd gone to health class, and living on the streets had done something to lift her allusions, but she still felt like it was something that if you did it, at least if you did it right, you needed to be old enough.

She almost scoffed, 'Yeah, like you magically gain the knowledge just by getting older.'

Kerri woke up the next morning, earlier than she would have liked, but she needed to go to her "class on how to teach class," the name she'd given to what she did with Ororo in her classroom to prepare for the next school year.

"Ok, I think that is all for today," Ororo said, finally. "So think of what you want to be in the class, what's important for them to learn, and next week we will look into starting to form a schedule."

Kerri walked through the hall, making her way to her room to put her things away before lunch. As she sat at a table in the dining room, she tried to think of what would be important to know when you lived on your own.

She was startled back to reality when Kurt sat down, his tail wrapping itself around her leg as he smiled at her. "Gut afternoon liebling. Vhat do you have on your schedule today?"

Kerri's heart was fluttering at his touch. "Um, well, I already did my class with Ororo, and since I had to go there, I missed my morning spar with Logan, so I should probably train, but other than that, I've got the day to myself," she told him.

Kurt smiled mischievously. "I know a gut vay to train," he told her.

"Oh? And what's that?" she asked, her heart still tripping over itself in her chest.

"Zhe high vire," he told her.

"So soon after I eat? Is that because you want me to lose my lunch everywhere?" She joked.

"You've never lost es vhile on zhe vire," he laughed.

"Yet," Kerri joked.

Kerri's hands tucked a stray hair that had worked it's way out of her bun back behind her ear.

Her taloned toes curled around the wire along with her tail, and her wings were out to steady her as she stood straight. "I swear, this is the only way I'll be able to walk across on two feet," she told Kurt as he walked along the wire to stand a few steps from the same spot as her, only on the other side of the wire.

As if it was the most natural thing in the world, Kurt leaned in, reaching for the wire. He took hold of it and turned over so he was on the same side as her before straightening. He smiled and stepped closer, taking her shoulders in his hands. "I don't know if zhis could be called standing, schatz," he laughed.

Kerri tilted her chin, looking towards the top of her head. At the ground. "Well, I'm not crouched," she told him.

"Ja, aber, ve are just hanging here," he said, tilting her chin back to him. "Not really standing."

"Well, what should we do while we're just hanging around?" She asked.

"Vell, I could zhink of somezhing," he answered, pulling her closer and leaning forward to kiss her.

Kerri felt the tingles starting in her stomach. They made their way out to her fingers and nose, and her heart beat was loud in her head. It was a moment before she realized that her nose tingling and loud heartbeat were due to being upside down. She pulled back and wondered how Kurt never seemed effected by being upside down.

She ran her hand over her face and tried to pull herself back onto the wire, but her toes slipped so she was just hanging by her tail.

Kurt tried to grab her, but her hand flailed, slipping away before he could grab it. Her tail tightened on itself, and she knew she had to be careful so that she didn't cut her own tail off. Kurt grabbed for her again, but her tail slipped off the wire, and she was falling.

Her wings opened fully, catching air, righting her as she got closer to the ground and twigs and branches sped past her head.

Kurt appeared on the ground with a Bamf right before she was close enough to turn and land.

"Liebling!" He leapt forward and enveloped her into a hug, pulling her against him. "Schatz," he said, staring into her eyes for a second before he pulled her closer and touched his lips to hers.

It was like instant electricity filling her.

Kurt's hand moved up to her shoulder, right where her wing jointed to her body. He ran his fingers around the joint, and Kerri's head flew back, startled. She turned her head to the ground as the recognition of feelings flowed through her head.

It was like he was touching a part of her that both existed, and didn't exist. It was weird. She unknowingly took a step back from Kurt, and he took it as some sort of rejection, like he'd hurt her, maybe.

"Ah, s-sorry, I-" He stepped back and tripped, falling backwards.

Kerri's eyes shot up at the noise. Her head tilted as she looked at him in confusion. What was he doing on the ground? She'd never seen him trip, ever. She stepped closer to him and knelt at his side.

"I'm sorry, liebling," he told her, not moving from his spot on the ground.

"It's ok, it was just strange," she told him. She leaned over and kissed him. She pulled back and looked down at him. The electricity was back, and her brain was a little fuzzy.

Her heart started racing as she moved her hand under his shirt, running it across his chest. She wasn't sure where the idea came from, but she scooted closer, lifting one leg over him so that she straddled him just above his hips.

Kurt stared up at her in shock, watching as her face flushed.

Kerri leaned to the side, shifting her weight as she leaned forward to kiss him again. As she shifted and leaned back, she felt something poke her. She looked behind her, but didn't see anything. She shifted again to figure out what it was, and Kurt took a sudden deep breath as she sat on the thing that had poked her.

Realization of what it was flooded Kerri's mind, and her cheeks heated more than they already had. She bit her lip, unsure, but shifted around again.

"Liebling," Kurt gasped and a groan came from his mouth at her movement.

He tried to shift away and move her, but her legs and thighs tightened on their own, refusing to be moved. She leaned down again to kiss him and her hips slid back, then again as she straightened.

Another groan left Kurt's mouth and his eyes were clenched shut. "What's wrong, did it hurt?" She asked, now nervous that it was a groan of pain.

"Nein," Kurt almost whispered.

She tilted forward again to kiss him. "Good." She kissed him, her hands running over his chest. When she pulled back and sat up she realized that his tail had circled around her waist.

"Liebling," Kurt's voice came out husky and more heavily accented than usual. "Ve have to stop," he managed to get out.

Kerri's eyebrows met in confusion. They weren't touching, it wasn't sex, there were clothes in the way and everything. But also, where she was sitting on him was starting to feel like an itch that she just needed to press a little harder as she moved to scratch. "Why?"

"Es ist- gefahrlich- dangerous," he told her, and even though his mouth was trying to say no, his hands were trying to say yes; one of them was on her hip at the top of her pants, squeezing softly, and the other one was on the back of her thigh.

"What's so dangerous about it?" Kerri asked through the fog in her brain as she drew circles on his chest with her fingernails.

"Ahhh," Kurt tried to think, but somehow his brain had been disengaged and he couldn't think. Was there something dangerous about this? It felt so nice. But wasn't it... bad or something? Kerri was too close- no, she needed to be closer... no, those things keeping her body heat from him needed to be gone- No, that's why it was bad, right?

While Kurt struggled to remember what was bad, good, and dangerous about the situation Kerri leaned down to kiss his jaw, making his brain stop working and reboot.

There was suddenly a loud cracking sound as a rather large branch broke and fell from a tree not too far away.

Kerri's instincts took over and she rolled, leaping to her feet and facing the noise, her heart thundering in her chest in surprise.

Kurt's head snapped up and he slowly stood, watching as Kerri glanced over at him with a red blush covering her face.

Kerri didn't say anything for a moment, too embarrassed at having lost control of her mind. "Um- I- sorry, I-" she stuttered, not sure how to apologize.

Kurt took her hand in his. "It's ok, liebling, I- I vas lost too," he admitted.

Kerri let a shiver run down her back, getting rid of her battle form as she leaned to grab her jacket and pulled it on. She looked at Kurt shyly as she put her feet into her shoes. "It- wasn't all bad though, was it?" She asked, her wolf tail appearing and twitching while her wolf ears laid back shyly.

"Ah, vell," Kurt's blush made his cheeks purple. "Let's just say zhat I von't be forgetting es any time soon."

They walked toward the school, unaware that they were being watched by the person who had broken the branch that had awoken them from their foggy daze.