From: michaelaltheim

Re: Ich hoffe das hilft dir

I want to begin by thanking you for telling Lucy about your trouble so she could break the news to the rest of us before we'd hear from anyone else. This gave us some time to brace ourselves and help Mama calm down before our news ran with the stories. Poor Mama still cannot grasp that you have actually killed people in your line of work. Our dear brother Vincent is taking this rather philosophically. He, our family's greatest pacifist, of all people, reminded us that Ecclesiastes did say there is a time even to kill. He believes that what you were trying to prevent must have been dreadful enough to warrant the measures you took. For everyone's sake, I hope he's right, and I hope you succeed in whatever you're trying to accomplish creating the stir you have. I still remember too well how even a just cause does not and should not necessarily ensure an easy conscience. Like how many people died so we could simply set up a field hospital during the Rwandan genocide.

Anyway, I did some searching and sent you some articles from some papers around the world, hoping that it will help if you know how people outside the States are reacting to this.

Give my regards to Onkel Charles, Jean, Hank, and the rest. Even Logan. I figure, if you, the person who never forgets a thing, can find it in your heart to forgive him for breaking your arm, I suppose I should as well. But tell him I am still tempted to search for ways to break adamantium just in case. ;)

Wir lieben dich, und die Kinder beten täglich für ihre Tante Kassi.

-Michael

Kassandra read the printout of that email, as well as of the attached articles that were sent with it. Right and left wing papers alike from countries as diverse as Canada, Egypt, Thailand, and Switzerland echoed the sentiment expressed in Italy's left-leaning La Republica, of mistrust for the US government, their inconsistent regard for humanity's best interests, et cetera. Interestingly enough, the oft overtly political Namibian contained most levelheaded reports, considering that up until only a few decades ago, when a certain diamond heir created quite the scandal and eloped with a woman from the opposite side of apartheid, the Altheim name seemed inextricably and rather prominently linked with colonial oppression. No matter. In only a few days, any objective, levelheaded reporting on her case would fly out the window altogether.

And now for reading the next email. She figured Kurt would lose no time sending messages like this. A sweet couple of sentences, the gist of which were that he missed her already. And he would console himself by planning a- purely hypothetical, of course- scuba diving adventure for the two of them, exploring ships sunken off perhaps Bimini or Abacos, and it would get their minds off all of their recent troubles.

Kassandra certainly understood. While Kurt was indeed recovering nicely from his run-in with the Church of Humanity, he was still tormented by some very ugly flashbacks. One in particular, involving a waterfall, Kassandra didn't have the heart to explain when he told her about it. But she knew, more than Kurt, what it meant. And the very idea that a mother could not only abandon a child, but hurl him off a cliff, turned Kassandra's stomach. A vacation could be good for him. She would have liked one, too. But why the Caribbean? And what was with all this talk about the Bahamas? Kassandra decided she'd had enough and had to call Kurt, now.

"Kurt, Liebster, I have a different idea for an adventure. One that I think we should take now."

"Was ist das, Liebchen?"

"Fly down here right now, stay for a few days, and I can show you Washington DC like you've never seen it before. And we'll try to arrange with the court so you can deliver your testimony while you're here."

Kurt suddenly had an impression of Kitty Pryde on the phone.

"Kassi, after all this," she said, "what I think we all need is to see England without any work-related distractions. You especially. You've obviously forgotten what it's like to travel for fun."

"Kassi, I'd like that," said Kurt, "but it's late. How about if I fly in first thing tomorrow?"

"Kurt?" Kassandra didn't know how to tell him that she was terribly worried it wouldn't happen. "I'll pray you get here safely and soon. Can we meet at Langley Air Force Base? Forge owes me a couple of favors, anyway."

"Nun gut. Ich liebe dich, Kassi."

"Und ich liebe dich auch, Kurt. Gute nacht."