We get to see the protective side of Azazel this time, as well as a bit of his 'past'. When the moment comes, imagine the part in First Class where Azazel starts raining CIA guys from the sky, minus Riptide and Shaw, and that's literally what that scene is.

Also, since Zae is Russian (in this story), he'll be like Kurt and just randomly spout words out in Russian. Sometimes it's just easier to do that than to think of the English word xD

Lychee: Trouble-making Muppets...my mind exploded with awesome overload. That is the greatest term I've heard used to describe the Bamfs since Hell Maggots. xD Yours wins, hands down! And also, thanks for the great review!

Thanks to Gared for the follow as well! It means a lot that people are interested, considering this is a less-active fan base than PJO, where I get constant follows and favs and reviews all the time. It's quite the change on this side.

I own nothing you recognize as canon in any X-Men universe.

*~Because Being Together is Enough~*

Chapter Three: Father

Two hours after leaving the Professor's office, Logan was sitting on a roof, keeping Storm updated on anything suspicious around her. She was in civvies, acting as if she were going through a normal day. In reality, she was looking for any activity that would draw attention to a teleporter—a burst of smoke, a sound out of nowhere…anything she'd normally expect of Kurt.

If Logan spotted something from above, he'd alert her. They would have switched roles—with her flying around and him walking—but it was agreed that Ororo would be better at handling a face-to-face confrontation—at least, in a civilized way.

Logan sniffed the air. "Keep yer eyes open, 'Ro," he told her through the communicators. "His scent's on the wind, which means he can't be too far."

"Roger."

As Storm passed an alley, she didn't notice a pair of icy eyes in the shadows. They looked at her, then flickered up to where Logan was perched. A long, red tail swished in curiosity. The eyes shone in recognition towards the gruff man.

Ororo paused just outside the ally, and the figure moved closer to hear the conversation. He heard the woman say, "What do you think we're even looking for? It's like finding a needle in a haystack."

The figure didn't catch the reply, but she spoke up after a few seconds. "I'm sure. I just hope that whoever this is, they didn't hurt Kurt."

The figure's pointed ears perked up. Kurt? As in…?

He growled and 'ported up to where the man was on the rooftops. More accurately, he 'ported a few rooftops over, making sure the short, hairy man saw him.

Logan snapped to attention and started sprinting across the roof. "Storm, I got 'em! He's teleportin' 'cross the roofs. I'm on his trail!"

Storm saw Wolverine take off and was about to follow when a cloud of smoke in front of her made her stop. A strong hand dragged her into the dark and something sharp tickled her neck. She was pushed up against the wall with enough force to stop a truck.

"You listen, X-Man," a deep voice growled. Storm could barely make out two glowing eyes in the darkness. "You will take care of syn and not harm him. If I find that he has been hurt again—"

The sharp object pressed harder into her neck. Storm gasped, her eyes turning white. Rainclouds began to gather above them and sleet came down hard. If that affected the teleporter, he gave no sign. If anything, he pressed harder.

"I have just found syn," he snarled. "I will nyet lose him again."

He disappeared with a bamf, leaving Storm alone with a red mark on her neck. Logan appeared, jumping down from the roof.

"'Ro," he said. "You okay? That bastard hurt you?"

Storm shakily put a hand on her neck, feeling the groove where the sharp object—a dagger? A sword?—had been pressed. "He threatened me—us—but didn't do anything else."

"Threatened? Why?"

"Something about sins," she gasped. "About us hurting and losing sins?"

Logan crossed his arms and pointed at the sleet storm. Ororo nodded and made it dissipate. When it was gone, Wolverine huffed. "Did the guy have an accent?"

"Yes. Russian, like Colossus."

"It's not sin he was talkin' about. He might'a been sayin' 'syn', which means 'son' in Russian." He sniffed the air a few times and growled. "A teleporter with a similar scent, givin' threats to us if we hurt his son…"

Storm finally caught up to his train of thought. "Logan, you don't mean…"

"Yup. I think we've found Nightcrawler's ol' man."

Kurt woke up feeling slow, but much better. He opened his eyes at a glacial pace, adjusting to the bright lights in his room. He stretched his limbs and cracked his neck.

"Boy," he said with a yawn. "I feel a lot better. I guess vhatever vas wrong is out of my system."

That was when he noticed he was in the infirmary. He looked around, confused. "Vhat am I doing here?" he asked out loud.

"Ah, you're up."

Kurt turned, watching Hank McCoy as the the larger mutant walked over, looking all official and doctor-like. "Herr McCoy. Guten tag. Vhat am I doing here?"

"Kurt, what's the last thing you remember?"

He thought for a moment before answering. "I remember going to bed last night und vaking up early. I vorked out a bit und then I fell asleep on the roof."

Hank nodded. "I suppose that's fine. Short-term memory loss can be expected."

"Vait, was?" Kurt blinked. "Vhat do you mean 'short-term memory loss'?"

"Kurt, it's been a few days. Granted, you've been unconscious for most of them, but…"

"Vhat happened?"

"While rescuing Abigail, you fell into the sea and hit your head. You've suffered from a concussion, which can cause memory loss. Thankfully, that seems to be the only symptom, and it was very small. You'll be fine."

Kurt felt his head, realizing it was wrapped with bandages. He tried to remember Abigail, but came up short. For some reason, he remembered the woods and Wolverine…and something about an older, red Nightcrawler? Weird, he thought.

"How long vas I out?"

"Just a few days. Someone managed to rescue you and brought you back to us about forty-eight hours after you disappeared into the sea." Hank placed a strong hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Kurt. You'll be back to normal in no time. In the meantime, I'd like you to take it easy for a few days. Rest up, take it slow. You've got some stitches in your head, so no Danger Room or training sessions for a week. If you start hurting, even if it feels like a headache, tell me."

Kurt nodded. "Okay. Can I, um, go eat?"

"Not until I give you a check-up."

Five minutes later, Kurt was wobbling over to the door. Doctor McCoy had cleared him to walk places—no teleporting at all—but Kurt hadn't realized how hard walking was. He made it to the door and leaned against the frame.

Beast chuckled. "Walking can be a challenge. Do you want me to get a student to help steer you to the kitchen?" Kurt shook his head with vigor. "How about I lead you?"

Kurt groaned in annoyance, but nodded just the same. His tail dragged behind him as Hank led him down the halls and toward the kitchen.

"Dis is embarrassing," Kurt grumbled, his accent thicker with tiredness.

"Mark my words; you'll be annoying me and wiggling around the infirmary by noon tomorrow. Enjoy your rest time, Kurt. No one will think any less of you for taking it easy."

They shuffled into the kitchen. Bobby, Rogue, and Kitty were already helping themselves to some sandwiches at the table. Jamie and Ray were digging around in the fridge.

Kitty spotted the two blue mutants and gave a grin that lit up the world. "Kurt! You're awake!"

She ran up and hugged Kurt so hard he nearly toppled over. Hank cleared his throat. "Easy, Miss Pryde. Kurt's still a little woozy."

"Oh, sorry, Fuzzy. I forgot." Kitty reached up and touched the bandages around his head. "How you feelin'?"

Kurt gave her a small grin. "Like I got hit by a truck. My legs feel like jelly, but I can't stand sitting still and vaiting for food."

Kitty took his arm and led him over to the table. Rogue helped him sit down and put a sandwich in front of him. Kurt smiled at them and muttered a thanks.

Rogue ruffled his hair with a gloved hand. "Glad yer back, furball. Can't tell ya how much we missed ya."

Kurt merely nibbled on his sandwich, not really feeling up to playful banter. Rogue took the hint and sat back down next to him. Kitty sat on the other side. Bobby nodded to Kurt, giving him a warm welcome back, then left the kitchen to do some homework.

Kurt yawned wide enough to swallow the sun. "I literally just voke up," he complained. "I felt great before, but now that I've been walking I feel like I've run a marathon!"

Kitty giggled. She looked at Hank. "Dr. McCoy, do you mind if Kurt just takes a catnap on the couch in the living room? We'll take him back to the infirmary tonight."

Beast nodded. "It's okay with me."

Rogue helped Kitty get a blanket and pillow for Kurt as the young teleporter rose and shuffled into the living room. No one would be using it right now, as most people had to do their homework or train with Cyclops and Jean at this time of day. He flopped like a dead fish onto the couch and lay there on his stomach.

"Don't'cha wanna lay on yer back, Kurt?" Rogue asked as she dragged in a blanket.

He shook his head. "The back of my head is vhere I vas hit. It kinda hurts to lay on, so I'll just sleep like this. It's not like I normally slept in dead-man pose anyvay."

"I gotta tell ya, Chuck; I never would'a imagined the elf bein' the result of two big-time mutants." Logan sucked on his cigar, much to the Professor's annoyance. "An' I thought he looked a lot like Mystique. Dunno why I didn't think o' this guy sooner."

Ororo shook her head. "I'm afraid I don't follow. I understand that this man is Kurt's father, but I never saw anything beyond a bamf and blue eyes."

Xavier rubbed his temples, leading the two X-Men down to the Danger Room. "Let me show you who this man is, and why his being near Kurt concerns me." He brought them to the control booth and started punching in a sequence neither of the X-Men knew. "I had added this man to the program a few years back in case we needed to train against teleporters. When Kurt came to the mansion, it became unnecessary."

The Danger Room lit up, and a cluster of buildings appeared. CIA agents walked around, seeming to go about their own business.

"I was informed of what had happened after, so I tweaked a few things," Charles explained. "The real attack had been for mutant recruitment for a terrorist group, but here, it's just a random attack."

Suddenly, a CIA agent disappeared in a puff of smoke. He reappeared two hundred feet above the buildings and dropped like a stone. Before he even hit the ground, three more agents were suddenly dropping from the sky.

Storm and Logan watched in horror as every unarmed agent ended up sunny-side up on the pavement. The armed ones took cover and started shooting every time the cloud of smoke popped up.

Then the swords came in.

Dual swords came with the smoke this time, cutting down every gunned man. A red devil's tail snapped a few people's necks.

When everything settled and the smoke cleared, there was finally a chance to look at the assassin. Storm now knew exactly why Logan and Xavier said there was a family resemblance.

Standing in the middle of the carnage was a tall man with blood-red skin, slicked-back black hair, a lashing devil's tail, and icy blue eyes. He was wearing an ironed black suit with Oxford's shoes. Not a speck of blood was present anywhere on his person, and his shoes remained scuff-free. His face was scarred, but not hideous. If anything, Storm could see where Kurt got his handsome looks.

She turned to Logan. "You knew about him?"

"Didn't know he was the elf's father," Logan confessed. "But I knew 'im a while back. This wasn't the thing that got my attention, but he sure as Hell made an impression. And that time ain't a time I'd like to think about. What happened there—" He pointed to the massacre. "—damn near happened to me."

"What provoked you to get into a fight with that man?" Storm protested.

The Wolverine snickered. "Well…the Russky kept pokin' the proverbial bear. Word of advice—don't ever think you can outdrink the guy. Or out-insult 'em."

Ororo rolled her eyes. "Who is he?"

"A man that goes by Azazel," Charles answered. "His past is unknown, so the only things we know about him is that he is originally from Russia and had been a part of the aforementioned terrorist group. For a few years he had been a mercenary, but he fell off the map almost two decades ago."

"You couldn't track him through Cerebro?"

"His psychic shields are exponentially strong, and in the two-decade disappearance, he didn't use his powers. Cerebro cannot get a hit on a mutant when they don't use their power after a long period of time."

The computerized Azazel's tail swished as he stepped over the bodies, stabbing each one that dared to twitch or lie wrong. Storm looked away, disgusted. Charles turned off the simulation.

"So, what're we gonna tell the elf?" Logan asked. "Can't imagine he'd be thrilled to find out about a second bad parent."

Storm hesitated. Kurt hadn't taken it very well when he'd found out about Mystique. It had taken him a long time to get over the fact that his mother was a mutant terrorist, and he still questioned whether or not he would turn out just like her. To find out his father was just as bad—if not worse? The poor boy would be destroyed.

"We'll wait until he gets better," Xavier finally said. "Giving him news while he's recovering might hurt him."

"Got another question," Logan said. "Why the Hell is this guy just now showin' up and gettin' interested in Kurt? And why'd the guy save him in the first place?"

"I don't know." Xavier sighed. "But we can only hope that there aren't evil intentions behind it."

Storm looked back into the Danger Room, half-expecting to see the red mutant jumping around and murdering people.

How did our shy, kind, lovable Kurt Wagner…come from parents like Mystique and Azazel? Storm's brow creased with worry. How is it even possible?

Within a few days, Kurt was once again bouncing off the walls. It was like he'd never gotten a concussion or lost a few days in his memories.

Kitty had noticed that he sometimes felt woozy or had a ghost pain in the back of his head. When she asked Hank about it, the older mutant just said, "It's perfectly normal. That's why I said no Danger Room, training sessions, or missions until I clear him. I can tell when he gets those headaches, too, Kitty."

It was okay, though. Kitty was happy to spend some time with Kurt without him teleporting around. And Kurt seemed to be much calmer and mellower without all the training sessions.

Of course, he was swamped with schoolwork. The Professor had excused Kurt from school, pretty much telling the truth; that he'd gotten a concussion and needed a week off. Principal Kelly was okay with it, since it was a medical emergency, as long as the boy kept up with his classes and didn't have any missing work when he returned.

"Kurt, are you stuck on something?" Kitty asked while they studied in the library. Amanda was with them as well, as the Professor had allowed her to visit her boyfriend and help him with certain classes.

The blue mutant sighed, running a three-fingered hand through his navy-blue hair. "It is English again, Keety," he said. "Your language is so hard!" His tail lashed in agitation. "Vhy is your grammar structure so backvards?"

Kitty giggled. "You speak just fine."

"But trying to think about it and make a report on the complicated structures is hard!"

She rolled her eyes. "If it's, like, any consolation: native English speakers have a hard time doing this, too…"

Kurt chuckled. "Thanks for helping me, Keety. I really appreciate it. You, too, Amanda."

"Don't sweat it, Fuzzy." Amanda tapped a pencil on her notebook. "How's your head?"

"A dull ache, and this hard thinking doesn't help…"

Amanda leaned over and hugged him. "You'll be okay. Want me to kiss it better?"

Kurt flushed, but it was barely visible under his fur. "Amanda! Vhy vould you say that!?"

She smiled sweetly at him. "No reason. Just to see you squirm."

Squirm he did. His tail started unconsciously wrapping around Amanda's leg, and she blushed as she felt the velvety fur tickle her skin. Then it began to go higher.

"Kurt," she began. "Kurt, your tail is exploring."

Kurt's face turned purple. Kitty giggled. She knew it took a lot to make his face change color. She faked a grossed-out expression. "Get a room, you two. You're, like, so gross!"

Kurt grinned mischievously and scooted closer to Amanda. She got the hint and began to make out with him. They went a little over the top, but it was all in good fun. Kitty stuck her tongue out and threw a cushion at Kurt. "Not this room, Fuzzy! Go do that somewhere else after homework!"

Meanwhile, outside the window, a pair of little yellow eyes examined what was going down. A tiny red figure watched patiently, its little devil tail swishing in a lazy manner. It yawned, revealing tiny fangs. A second figure, blue in color, raised its head, apparently woken up from its nap. Its own yellow eyes gazed at the red one in a questioning manner.

The red one shook its head in denial, as if it were offended by a question of tiredness. Its tail thwacked the blue one on the head. The blue one paid it no mind and went back to its snooze. The red one snorted and continued to spy on Kurt Wagner and his little X-Man family.

A/N: Ooh~! What could those mysterious figures be? I wonder I wonder~!

As I said before, this has Kurmanda in it. Kitty will be a main presence for some of it, but Kurtty won't be a thing here. I love Kurtty, don't get me wrong. I just like Kurmanda better when I write.