WHAT CAME OF OLD BEGINNINGS:

CHAPTER 5

After the party everyone was rather worn out from all the dancing and festivities. They all proceeded on their way. The guests that had come for the birthday party left an hour earlier and then residence of the mansion went up to their rooms. Ororo was talking with Jean about how the children had grown as the two families walked up the stairs to their rooms. Kurt accompanied Mara and Chris was talking with his father, Scott. Logan, as usual, walked by himself and jumped into a conversation every now and then.

Kurt had always been Mara's favorite uncle. She always had her most laughable conversations with him. Strangely, she also had her deepest conversations with him. He had made her think about God and existence and life in general. Plus, Kurt had taught Mara how to speak German. He was trying to teach her how to fence, but she wasn't very apt to it. She was too accustomed to fighting with her hands like with her martial arts skills.

All the same, the two were very close. Every Sunday night Kurt and Mara went to the downstairs living room and sat in front a warm fire. She would curl up with him on the couch and he would read to her from the bible. Marta always had a million questions that Kurt was happy to answer and discuss with her. There, in front of the fire, Mara would fall asleep in Kurt's arms. Mara always made room for Sunday night even if she was swamped with homework.

The group reached the top of the stairs. They parted to go their separate ways when Logan spoke to Mara, "I'll come in and kiss you goodnight if ya want."

Kimara deeply enjoyed it when her father came in to kiss her goodnight. He had not done so for several years. She was about to say, "Really? You never do that anymore, but sure I'd love that." or something similar, but she never got the chance.

Instead, Chris muttered, "Not if I beat you to it."

Logan darted around towards Chris and growled, "What!"

"Oh no!" Mara whispered. She knew this was going to get rather ugly.

"Oh, nothing uncle Logan, nothing at all."

"I heard something' didn't you, Mara?"

Mara smiled wickedly at Chris, "Why yes, I did! Something about Chris wanting to kiss me."

Logan narrowed his eyes at Chris and growled. Chris gulped in fear and sighed heavily. "Oh fine! So, I've been sneaking into Mara's room at night and trying to kiss her." Chris said hastily. He immediately ducked throwing his hands up over his head to protect him from Logan's unavoidable wrath.

"You did WHAT?" Logan shouted coming unglued.

Scott stepped in between Logan and Chris trying to calm Logan. "Now, Logan calm down…" He stopped abruptly and turned around to Chris, "You did WHAT?"

"I couldn't help it, Dad! She was sending me all the signals." Chris retorted smiling innocently.

"What signals, Mara?" Logan asked turning to his daughter with a building rage in his eyes and voice.

Mara glared at Chris with a look that seemed to say, 'I hate you.' Chris glared back with a smug look that almost seemed to reply, 'I know.'

Then Mara lunged at Chris. The two went tumbling and rolling down the hall as they fought. They made quite a ruckus. Their parents went tearing after them and their row even brought out the professor from his study. He saw what was going on and shouted telepathically, 'ENOUGH.'

Then he said out loud with a stern look on his face, "I'll have no more of this. This is no way for X-MEN to behave." Then he smiled as said in a lighter tone, "Now, get to sleep, all of you. I want to see you all in the Danger Room tomorrow for training."

Mara and Chris rose from the ground shamefully and trudged back to their rooms. Their parents and Kurt followed behind. Kurt ran to catch up with her. He escorted her back to her room. He kissed her on the hand and said in his rich German accented voice, "Sleep well, liebchen. I shall see you tomorrow."

Kurt, being the gentleman that he is, opened Mara's door and bowed. She curtsied as best she could in her short dress and stepped inside. She turned back to Kurt and said, "Goodnight, Smirf."

He smiled at her use of the nickname she enjoyed using for him and nodded. His bright yellow eyes sparkled with kindness and his smile showed his fangs. He looked to be the most demonic creature you would ever think to see; yet he was just the opposite. Well, with no more than a puff of smoke he was gone. He left only wisps of smoke and the slight smell of brimstone behind.

Mara smiled and closed her door. She quickly changed out of her dress. She breathed a sigh of relief as she slipped on her pajama shorts and matching tank top. "Oh, thank, God, I can slouch again, oh, yeah!"

She flopped onto her bed in exhaustion just as her bedroom door was opened. She heard noise and assumed it was Chris. "Do you ever learn, Chris? I will tie you to the chimney again, I mean it!"

"You tie him to the chimney?" The intruder asked. It was her father, Logan.

"Oh, hi Dad." She said a little embarrassed that she didn't recognize his footsteps. Her father never made noise when he approached her. Perhaps he was just tired tonight. "Yeah, I tie him up there. I make a rain cloud over his head so he can't burn through the ropes right away either."

Logan smiled widely, "That's the girl I raised."

"So, why did you want to come in and tell me goodnight?"

"Oh, I just, um, figured that ya… I just wanted to talk to ya about things."

"Things? I assume you mean either turning sixteen or becoming an X-MAN."

"Yeah, both actually." He said and sat down on the bed.

"Well, don't worry about it. I'm a big girl and I'm not going to let boys go for me and I'm not going to get myself killed, not just yet anyway."

"Not for a long time. People like you an' me are hard ta kill. I know ya think you're all grown up now, but…"

"I'm not all grown up, and I know it'll be a long time until I am, but don't worry. Nothing bad is going to happen now. I can hold my own in a battle, I had the best teacher."

"Now… that's is true…"

"Oh, dad!" Mara smiled. "By the way, thanks for the codename."

"No, problem, Cub." Cub was another one of Logan's nicknames for her.

"Well, I'm tired, I'm gonna go to bed, now."

"Okay, goodnight." He leaned over and kissed her on the forehead.

"'Night " They both looked up and saw Ororo standing in the doorframe. She was smiling and looking at them serenely.

"How was your' sixteenth birthday, young goddess?" Ororo asked.

"Wonderful!" Mara answered smiling to her mother.

"I hope you will be up bright and early in the Danger Room."

"I will." She rolled her eyes.

"Goodnight." Mara pulled back her sheets and slid into her bed.

Logan rose and joined Ororo in the doorframe. The two looked back at her and smiled as they moved out the door and into their room. Mara closed her eyes to sleep.

✘✘✘

Logan could not sleep. He had tossed and turned for several hours, but sleep did not come. Ororo had awoken due to Logan's sleeplessness. He was staring at the ceiling and she was staring at him.

"Logan, what is wrong?" Ororo asked.

"Nothing." He responded evenly.

"I have always been able to tell when you are lying."

"And…?"

"You are lying. Now, tell me what has you up at such a horrible hour."

"It's just… I keep hearin' things, from Mara's room…" He thought for a moment until his curiousity and fatherly instincts got the better of him. He rushed to the door. "That's it I'm checking it out."

"Logan, you are being silly. Come back… Logan!"

Logan was already trudging out the door, but before he got two steps he heard a loud crash. It had come from Mara's room. At this point Logan was now running and Ororo had jumped out of bed and was literally flying down the hall to her daughters' room.

To their horror and that of the other X-men now swarming in the hall before Mara's room they discovered a gruesome sight. Kurt, who had teleported there just moments before the others had arrived, was lying unconscious on the floor. Small amounts of blood were on the floor around his head. Standing over Kurt was the form of an older looking man held in combat with Mara.

Although, Mara fought furiously and her parents and teammates were mere feet away, it made no difference. Just as Logan was a few inches away from gutting the intruder he vanished. A bright light out-shown the glare of the lightening already present due to Mara's struggle. This light enveloped the intruder along with both Kurt and Kimara.

Mara screamed and reached out to her father barely brushing her fingertips with his before she vanished. At which point Logan cried out and desperately fought to grab her hand failing as Mara and Kurt disappeared into the light. Where they went Logan and the others could only guess…