Chapter Fourteen:
"He's a demon!"
"Monster!"
"Mutant freak!"
Kurt sat in the medical bay and closed his eyes. He knew that would not help silence the voices from his past, but at least he could block out the room's bright lights. The dark was good sometimes; the dark was where he was safe.
"Kurt?" he heard Rogue's voice call to him with concern, "Are you sure you're alright?"
He opened his eyes and glanced over at her with a weak smile. His hand rested over the place on his chest where the Slayer had kicked him, but the dull ache was barely noticeable over the painful memories her words had awoken.
Rogue had taken him to the infirmary to wait for Dr. McCoy to return. The Professor knew how powerful Faith's attack had been, and he insisted that the doctor examine Kurt for any internal injuries. However, Kurt had been injured worse than this in the past. He had broken limbs, and broken ribs, and he knew what they felt like...especially when other people caused them.
Kurt took a long breath and winced slightly. He tried to reassure Rogue that he would be fine, but his own voice did not sound convincing to him.
"It's nothing," he said, "I took worse hits than this when training in the circus."
"Well," Rogue said, glancing at the clock anxiously, "The doc will be here any minute...just to be sure..."
"I know," he replied, staring away from her with a distant look in his eyes, "You are all concerned for me, and I appreciate it more...more than you could ever know..."
His voice trailed off quietly, talking of his friends at the mansion but not thinking about them. He was thinking of the circus, as he grew older, as his talents began to overshadow the other acrobats, as their resentment grew...when the mutter had passed away...when they came to his traveling home with fire...
"I think..." Kurt began, turning his head and giving Rogue an apologetic, shy glance, "I think...right now...I need other guidance besides our good doctor."
BAMF.
Rogue jumped back in surprise as Kurt disappeared. She glanced around quickly, and called out to him. He was not in the room. Kurt had jumped without a visual cue. He could be anywhere now.
"Damn it," Rogue said, sounding more than a little like Logan, and she rushed out to find the Professor.
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Storm was walking quickly with Henry down the hall, when she saw Rogue sprinting toward them from the infirmary. The younger X-Man skidded to a halt in front of them, the expression on her face full of concern and frustration.
"Doc! Storm! Kurt's gone!" Rogue announced and Storm put her hands on the girl's shoulders to calm her.
"Gone?" Henry asked, "The Professor said he was injured..."
"Yeah, the Slayer hit him but he said he was alright," Rogue said quickly, "But he was acting really strange. Then he said something about needing other guidance besides the doc's and..."
Henry sighed, "Well, I doubt he's seeking out alternative medical treatment."
"No," Storm said frowning with thought, and then she glanced upward, "He's probably just gone to the church."
A wave of relief washed over Rogue's face, but she still sounded concerned when she spoke.
"That Slayer," she explained, "She confused him for some creature she was lookin' for. I think it really bothered him. He just teleported from the room right in front of me."
Storm nodded knowingly, "I understand. I've been confused for something more supernatural than a mutant before as well."
"But Kurt knows he's human," Rogue said, "He's knows he's just a mutant like the rest of us and not some kind of monster."
"I'm sure he does," Storm said softly, "However, when you are called horrible things like that over and over again through your life, sometimes...sometimes, you may start to question who you know you are, even though you also know the truth."
Storm glanced between them and smiled reassuringly.
"I'll go look for him," she said, "If he is badly injured, he may not even make it to the church without help."
Henry nodded, "We'll let the Professor know where you've gone, but contact me immediately if you need assistance."
Storm nodded and then rushed off toward the elevator to follow after Kurt.
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It was searching...and it was hungry...
It had been wounded by the Slayer's blade, only a little, but enough to infuriate it.
The sky was dark now, and the demon drew its essence together, sensing, searching for a great gathering of life forces...
It sensed the school...but there was a danger there...an ancient power it feared...
So it moved on...and searched...
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The air had gotten much colder since the sun set, and Storm pulled her jacket around her face as she got out of her car. She had parked next to the old local church and stared up at it for a few minutes before entering.
She had never really understood it, how Kurt could believe so much in his religion and keep such a strong dedication to his faith, even after being subject to harsh prejudice as a mutant, and after being tortured and used by the mad Colonel Stryker. And his appearance unfairly added to his isolation from the rest of the world.
Storm had a taste of this as a child, her stark white hair instantly distinguishing her from the rest of her village, making her different, making her an outcast. She had confronted that bigotry the best way she knew how.
Anger had become her main defense against their hate, her fury at the world's injustices against mutants motivating her to find a better way for mutants to live. It was not what had drawn her to Xavier's school, but it was what had kept her there. She was making a difference, giving lost children the support and kindness she had always yearned for when she was young. But, despite all the good she saw in the others around her, she still used her anger to push her onward, to make her a fighter, to make her a survivor.
But, Kurt was different. He never spoke about the way people reacted when they first met him. He would just grin and shrug and let each person make their own decisions. Usually, the students would become friendly with him quickly, once they saw he was not so different from them. But, there were still some who continued to judge him solely on his appearance, and Kurt simply had learned to acknowledge that some people might not ever be able to see past his blue skin or his long forked tail.
Kurt accepted this, and still never seemed to have the anger Storm had always lived with. He did not hate the people who hated him. He just kept faith in himself, and that he knew who he was...and that was all that really mattered.
It was intimidating for Storm, though she had difficulty admitting that to anyone but herself. His dedication and faith was terrifying for her, that someone could freely accept the world for what it was, and completely understand their place in it, without anger and without hate.
But he shouldn't have to live with such prejudice, Storm thought, He shouldn't be treated so differently from everyone else. He should be able to go where he wants and do what he wants without worrying about what he looks like.
"How could she have confused him for a demon?" she said aloud to herself, hearing the disgust in her voice and unsure of how else to express the injustice she felt, "Demons hate. Kurt...you never hate, do you?"
Storm sighed and walked up the steps quickly to the church's front door. She pushed it opened quietly, and scent of incense filling her lungs as she stepped among the visages of angels and saints.
This was different than when she and Jean entered the small chapel near Boston where they had found Kurt. There it had been dark, the building weathered and old on the inside and outside. This church, however, was alive with light, and she suddenly felt very vulnerable within this place of worship, almost as if she was alone and separate from the scattered congregation around her.
Intimidating, she thought again, crackling the air around her slightly so she did not feel so powerless and unprotected.
Storm searched the rows of pews until she spotted Kurt seated in one corner about three rows from the front. She noticed a few of the people around giving her strange glances, but she ignored them, and ignored her anger as well.