A/N: Special thanks to Lucas'sgirl, MoonlightPhoenix3, and punkcatwitissues, for your reviews of the last chapter.
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A few days had passed since the memorial service for Russian cosmonaut, Mikhail Rasputin. After the government officials had made their speeches about the courageous young voyager and they had given their condolences to the grieving family, each of Mikhail's loved ones were left to deal with the loss in their own personal way.
Mikhail's father Nikolai, the patriarch of the family, passed much of his time together with the Professor. They went to the meeting hall in town, where the other elder men of the village gathered daily to either talk about the daily news or play chess. Nikolai actually beat the Professor a couple of times and he marveled at how skilled Peter's father was at the game. Professor Xavier had only played one other person in recent memory that was as capable at matching his own formidable abilities in the game of strategy.
Meanwhile, Nikolai's youngest child, Illyana and her new friend Theresa Cassidy, were busy exploring the local area together. Illyana had spent much of her time with Theresa after their return from the memorial service. She didn't remember her oldest brother very well, but sometimes she would try to imagine what kind of person he might've been like.
But in the case of her mother and other brother, they remembered quite well what Mikhail was like. Alexandra, the keeper of the family, had kept herself busy with the numerous daily chores that still had to be done. She was dealing, as best as one could expect, with the loss of a child. That left only one other, Nikolai and Alexandra Rasputin's middle child, Piotr Nikoleivitch Rasputin.
Peter had spent the last few days preparing the vast farmland in the surrounding area for planting crops later in the spring. It was the only thing, besides painting, that seemed to put his life in perspective. Peter worked from dawn to sunset, going almost non-stop and without using his mutant strengths to accomplish the task. It was also a way for him to keep his thoughts off of the best friend that he had lost in his older brother, and also about the words that he would never get the chance to say to him.
"You look tired." Peter's mother told him in Russian as he walked into the house, following another long day working with the land.
"Not really. I have finished with the surrounding farmland, so I decided to stop for the day." Peter replied.
"You did not have to do it all by yourself." His mother Alexandra said as she continued preparing that evening's meal.
"I know, but it was a way to keep my mind occupied." Peter responded.
"You know, your friends are very nice and caring people, especially Kitty."
"She is very special." Peter added.
"She has even been trying to help me with the tasks around the house. Her heart is in the right place, but I had to send the poor girl into town on an errand before she burnt the house down." Alexandra revealed, "Even so, she still might make a suitable wife for you."
"Mother!" Peter exclaimed, "We aren't even dating yet. In America, such things are done differently than they are done here."
"Do you not like this girl?" Alexandra asked Peter.
"I care for her very, very much." Peter told her.
"Well, I can tell that she cares deeply for you as well." Alexandra replied.
"How? Did she say something?" Peter asked her.
"Of course not. But a mother can tell when a young girl is smitten with her son. It is obvious by the way that she looks at you when you enter a room." Alexandra revealed, "Plus, any young girl that is concerned enough about a young man to come to a strange new land for his sake must feel something for him."
"Oh." Peter replied as he thought about his own feelings for Kitty. He then kissed his mother on her cheek and continued upstairs to wash up.
After changing clothes, Peter walked around outside until he ran into Illyana and Theresa. He learned from them that Kitty was down by the shore, at Lake Baikal. As he made his way through the small wooded area near the lake, Peter could see Kitty standing there. She was wearing a rose colored windbreaker and was gazing out at the water. The sun was shining brightly on the cool, clear spring day and that, combined with the light reflecting off of the lake's surface, seemed to create a radiance around Kitty.
"Hello Kitty." Peter said as he walked up behind her.
"Oh, Hi Big Guy." Kitty replied as she turned around in his direction, with her right hand up by her neck. She was grasping a necklace that had a Star of David attached to it, a gift given to her by her parents. It was something that she normally kept tucked beneath the top of the sweater or blouse that she was wearing.
"What are you doing down here?" Peter asked.
"Nothing, just standing here and thinking." Kitty answered, "I can see why you like the lake so much back home, it's a lot like Lake Baikal here."
"Yes, they are both very beautiful sights." Peter responded. "So, what were you thinking about?"
"Just about life." Kitty told him, "In particular, I was just wondering why there's so much suffering in the world, and why people, like your brother and Jean, have to die so young."
"Perhaps, there is pain so that we can have a better understanding of life's joy." Peter said as he offered one possible explanation.
"Maybe." Kitty commented, "But it just seems so unfair."
Dr. Jean Grey had been the instructor at the school that Kitty had felt closest to. Ever since her death, Kitty had told herself that things were okay, that she was dealing with it all just fine. But being at Mikhail's memorial service had brought all of those issues back to the surface, forcing Kitty to face them once again.
"Look at me, I'm supposed to be here to cheer you up and I'm probably making you feel even worse with all of this depressing talk." Kitty replied as a tear started to roll down her face.
"It's okay." Peter replied as he went over to her and wiped the tear from her face, "It doesn't bother me to talk about it. The way that you've listened to me, I would like to be there for…"
Peter was stopped in mid-sentence by Kitty, as she put two of her fingers over his lips. She caressed the side of his face and then something spontaneously happened. Weeks of bottling up the feelings that they felt for one another had finally expressed itself, in a kiss so intense, that it surprised the both of them.
"That…was like…whoa!" Kitty said softly as she looked up at Peter.
"That's one way of putting it, Katya." Peter managed to utter as he looked deeply into her beautiful brown eyes. He then put his arms around her small frame and kissed her again.
Their show of affection went on for some time, and neither of them wanted the moment to end. Eventually, they were interrupted by the sound of a voice calling them in the distance.
"Time t'break it up, you two. Supper is almost ready." Theresa remarked as she and Illyana walked towards them.
"All right, we'll be there in a minute." Kitty said to the two girls as she and Peter stood there embracing one another. They soon made there way back to the house, holding each other's hand the entire way. After finishing the delicious dinner that Mrs. Rasputin had prepared, Illyana made a request to her brother Peter.
"Will you tell me a story, like the one you told last night? Pleeeaazze?" Illyana begged as they sat in the living room.
"Okay, but why don't we let Kitty tell one for a change?" Peter said as he looked in Kitty's direction.
"I don't know how to tell a story." Kitty replied.
"It doesn't have to be perfect, only entertaining." Peter assured her, "Just use your imagination."
"Okay," Kitty said, "Well, me and Jubilee watched Pirates of the Caribbean for like the millionth time before I left, so I guess I can try a pirate story. Here goes…"
"There once was a pirate named Kitty and she lived in a far off land with all of her magical friends. Each one of them had a really special power…"
Illyana, Theresa, Peter, and even the adults in the house, heard Kitty and became engrossed in the magical tale that she was telling. For Kitty it was a slight twist on a very real life that she lived everyday, but for Illyana it completely sounded like some sort of fairy tale…
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While a tale about magic and wonderment was being told at a house in a rural region of Russia, researchers in a secret laboratory half a world away were attempting to take the latest advances in modern technology to an even higher plane.
"Shall we proceed sir?" A man in his late twenties and wearing a white lab coat asked as he sat before a large computer console.
"Yes, initialize the independent functionality sequence." A second, older man replied from an observation room high above in the laboratory.
As electrical power began to surge into the laboratory, it caused temporary brown outs and black outs within a 20 square mile radius.
"Terminate all additional power. The activation sequence is complete." The older gentleman said, "The cybernetic links withstood activation and their artificial intelligence interfaces are now operating independently."
"Then it was a success?" The younger man asked.
"Indeed, it was an overwhelming success." The older man said with a smile, "After these many years, our efforts have finally reached fruition. Soon the world will marvel at humanity's newest equalizer against the mutant menace. Soon, they will witness the power of the Sentinels…"
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Next Chapter: Two new students are brought to a school that was formed to help mutants in using their powers. But, this is not a school in upstate New York and it is not run by Professor Charles Xavier…