Nostalgia Waltz

This is really more of a romance, I might put a lemon scene in later if I'm really bored. Well let me tell you a little bit about the story. It takes place before Kurt meets up with the X-Men. He escaped from Alkali Lake and is on the run when he meets and Original Character of mine named Cecilia and falls in love with her. In spite of her obviously well known name, she fails to see anything wrong with Kurt and sees him as a person, not a mutant. This part is told from Kurt's perspective. The second part takes place right after the X-2 movie. I shall say no more! You must read!

Chapter 1: Waltz of the Masks

Beads of dew hung on every leaf in the garden of the mansion. As the sun's beams touched the earth, a radiant glow illuminated from every drop. The smell of morning was in the air and the promise of a new day was upon the world. The mansion doors opened and out stepped a man who's appearance was demonic, yet in his eyes all the love of the world could be seen. He carried with him what appeared to be a prayer book and a white rose. A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he descended the steps of the mansion and set out to the most private part of the gardens.

He passed through a myriad of flowers and trees to a small stone bench, nestled between two tall cherry trees. The cherry blossoms were in bloom and had begun to fall off of the trees, leaving a sheet of pale pink flowers on the bench. Brushing them off, he sat down and laid the rose in his lap.

Taking out his prayer book, he opened it to a page with a Latin prayer printed on it and clutching his cross in his hand he began to read. "Requiem aeternam, donnaeis domine, et lux perpetua...." What seemed like hours passed him by before the prayer was done. He closed the book and put it back into his coat pocket. Taking the rose in his hand, he stood up and gazed towards the horizon and the sun that was climbing through the trees and making it's way to the sky.

He swallowed to fight back the hurt he felt inside. "God, if you could ever find it in your heart to forgive me for what I let be taken from this world..." He trailed off before he could finish. Perhaps because it hurt him so to speak, or perhaps because he could not think of what to say. "I miss you, you know. I miss seeing you smile, I miss hearing you sing, I miss watching you dance from the dark. I want for nothing more than to be free of you. But I accept this as my punishment for letting you die..." He placed the rose on the bench and heaved a heavy sigh. "Goodbye, Angel."

~*~

Marie rushed through the halls towards the Professor's office. Her alarm hadn't gone off so she was running a little late. 'Thank God the bell hasn't rang yet.' She thought. She trotted down the stares and turned round the corner. She was puzzled to find that all of the students, including Kitty Pride, were waiting outside the door to their philosophy class.

"Kitty, what's going on?" Asked Marie. Kitty leaned against the wall, holding her books in her arms. "I don't know. The Professor said he needed to speak with that blue guy in private. I wonder what he's done?" Said Kitty. Marie set her books on the side table next to the door and pressed her ear against the thin barrier between them and the Professor. The other students sat quietly and waited for Marie to tell them what she could hear.

As the bell rang, the Professor opened the door. Marie stumbled forward and caught herself on the armrest of his wheelchair. Quickly gathering herself, she stood up and backed a step away. The Professor smiled and looked at his watch. "This is going to take some time. I'm not sure how long, but I don't think we'll be meeting for class this morning. However I'd like you all to come after your last class this afternoon to make it up. I'm very sorry for the inconvenience, but there are pressing matters to attend to right now."

Without another word, he turned his chair around and closed the door behind him. Marie picked up her books off of the side table and started back towards her dorm room. "Hey Marie, where are you going?" Asked Kitty. Marie turned around at the stares. "I'm a mess. I need to go do something with my hair." She said, and slowly descended the stairs back towards her room.

~*~

The Professor moved his chair around to his desk. "Kurt, I saw you walking in the gardens this morning. I know it's been a big change settling here but I wonder if there is something else on your mind? Now, I respect your privacy so I haven't gone through your mind for the answer. The truth is, I'd rather hear what it is directly from you." He said.

Kurt was sitting next to the window looking out at the garden below. He stood still; he didn't even look at the Professor. "This date is significant to you. Why?" He asked. Kurt still didn't answer. "Kurt, I cannot help you if you will not tell me." The Professor's tone was firm this time. Kurt looked at him. He could see now the concern in his eyes.

"I do not want to say it more than once...perhaps it would be better if Ororo and the others were here as well." Said Kurt. The Professor nodded and in a matter of moments Ororo, Logan, Marie, Bobby, and Scott entered the room. "Now then, do you mind explaining what it is that's on your mind?" Asked the Professor. Kurt sat down next to the window, tilting his chin up so he could still look outside.

"Her name was Cecilia Zertuche. She was a ballerina and she had the most beautiful voice. When she danced, it felt like a dream, and when she sang...all who heard her would cry for they truly believed that they would never hear anything more beautiful. She was 19 years old when I met her, an American girl." Said Kurt.

"And what happened to her?" Asked Ororo, placing her hand on Kurt's shoulder. His lip trembled and he clutched his hands into fists. "She died. For my sake...she died."

The room fell silent. They had always assumed that his life was in many ways tragic, but they'd never imagined that a woman -whom he saw as nothing less than God's brightest Angel- had sacrificed herself so that he could live. "That was two years ago today...she'd be 21 now if she were still alive. I know it seems strange. She was 10 years younger than I after all...well that doesn't matter now."

Kurt stood up and leaned his head against the window. He did not look at his friends, perhaps because he didn't have the courage to see the pity that they might've had in their eyes. He did not want pity for his sins. He unbuttoned his shirt, revealing to them the three largest and most elaborate of his scars.

"All three of these are for her." He said. "Why three?" Asked Bobby. Kurt finally looked into their faces and swallowed the lump forming in his throat. "One for each bullet."

"What happened between the two of you Kurt?" Asked the Professor. His long blue tail swished back and forth between his feet. "I had just escaped from Alkali Lake. It was not easy and I didn't escape scratch free. I don't know how I had the strength to get there; I had lost a lot of blood. But I had teleported to New York City. Into the very theatre where "The Phantom of the Opera" was being rehearsed.

I'd found my way onto the catwalk, and that's when I saw her for the first time. The lights shined down on her as she sang and danced across the stage. Suddenly it was like the world didn't exist and I wasn't dying. It was only her. I forgot about the blood escaping me...until her song ended and I was thrown cruelly back to Earth. The rehearsal had ended, after many congratulations from other actors, they scrambled off the stage until she was the only one left. Somehow, I knew that those men were here, that they'd found me. How they arrived so quickly, I do not know. The one thing I knew was that she was in danger.

I had to get to her, I had to warn her. If she would not listen then perhaps she would at least be frightened enough by my appearance to run away. I had stumbled down the stairs, I couldn't see well, I knew I didn't have much time before I would collapse. It seemed like it took me hours to get to the stage, perhaps she'd be gone by the time I got there. By some luck, as I ascended the steps to the stage, I found that she was still there, going through some sort of ballet routine. It didn't take her long to catch sight of me. I thought 'good, now she'll run away.' But she didn't...her face held no horror. She could see that I was bleeding, that's for sure, because she tried to approach me. Before I blacked out, I told her to stay back...and to run away."

"I'm not sure what happened after that, it's all a blur for sometime. It felt like I would never wake...when I came to, I couldn't see much, the room was dim. The sweet smell of roses and jasmine filled my head. I could feel the soft blankets against me. The pleasantries of the room quickly escaped my mind as the pain from my wounds became annoyingly apparent.

I couldn't think of anything else until I could hear light footsteps to my side. I turned in the bed to see her standing in the entrance to the room. She was holding a tray with some linen bandages and some sort of liquid in a cup. I could see some alcohol swabs and antibiotics as well. I couldn't understand it...why was she here? And where was I? She smiled and walked over to my side of the bed, setting the tray down on a side table with a lamp and a small box of some kind.

"You shouldn't move, you were hurt pretty badly. Don't worry, I had my friend Dr. McCoy look at you. He promised he wouldn't tell anyone that you're here. You're safe." She said. Her voice was gentle, it had a string of sincerity in it that made me believe her. "Where am I?" My throat was so dry it hurt to ask. I tried to sit up but she eased me back onto the pillow.

"Try not to move. You've got a bit of a fever, so just relax. You're in my home, but that doesn't matter right now, we'll talk more later, just rest." She lifted my head off of the pillow and pressed the cup from the tray to my lips, pouring the liquid it contained down my throat. It was some sort of tea, my throat was so dry it ached to swallow but somehow it's taste relaxed me and I laid back onto the pillow. I could feel sleep trying to take me but I had to know her name before I succumbed to it.

"What's your name?" She smiled and wrapped her small fingers around mine. "Cecilia, Cecilia Zertuche. What's yours?" Her eyes were beautiful...a deep reddish brown, as beautiful as they were intoxicating. "Kurt Wagner..." I wish I could've said more...but I couldn't fight sleep any longer.

Alright! That's chapter 1! R&R please. If I don't get a whole lot of reviews, I probably won't continue this story.