Disclaimer: There is no feasible way that I could own the X-men in their entirety. Absolutely none short of a hostile take over of Marvel…but I like 'em too much to do that…oh well…
Authors note: This story takes place after chapter nine of Best Laid Plans…for those who don't want to go read it to figure out what's going on…Kitty was injured in a fight with Jean, Kurt was hurt later…do to a large amount of injuries and lack of cots in med-lab, they were both tucked into the same bed while unconscious.
Chance and Circumstance
It was dark, and she hurt…hurt so badly. It was the pain that made her wake up. Her thoughts were dislocated, jumbled…it truly felt as if she had a small incendiary grenade go off in her brain. And then she remembered…Jean. Jean gleefully tearing her mind to shreds…Jean slamming even her phased body with telekinetic fury…pain…and laughter.
The laughter was a dim echo in her mind, sending lances of pain down her spine that reverberated through her body, making her fingers twitch and convulse in mild spasms. She had been dreaming…a burning, terrifying dream of the phoenix netted, trapped…while a shadow laughed…but behind that shadow…behind that shadow…red hair… Another stab of pain distracted her from her thoughts, forcing her to exist in nothing but misery until it passed.
I wonder what she did to me? I bet I'm in med-lab…if I'm not dead. If I can open my eyes and tell them I'm awake, they'll tell me what's wrong…
Opening her eyes was more of a trial than she expected. They were gummy and glued shut…her rebel hands wouldn't move to help her peel back her lids. Eventually, after a few more waves of agony, one lid cracked open, allowing a dim light to filter through. Through that one released orb, she saw nothing but an expanse of grey…tears threatened to leak through from her slit eye …Blind????...then she noticed the grey moving...or breathing actually.
To the best of her knowledge, blind people did not see colors breathing…which meant that her field of view was simple towards a grey…wall? With a dull whimper, she forced her eye open further. It wasn't a wall, but a t-shirt. A t-shirt that was on a very attractive body that she knew…she had seen him wearing it in the kitchen. Kurt.
She watched him breathe, fascinated despite her distracted state, as his chest rose and fell in a steady, comforting rhythm. With some concentration, she could feel his chin on the top of her head…he was cradling her. The warm fur of his arms, soft as silk, tickled ever slightly. It was a good feeling to be here, safe…
She had to wonder though…what was he doing here? Admittedly, her memory currently had some holes…but she was certain she would remember if Kurt had ever seen her as other than a child. She would definitely remember dating him. That meant he wasn't here for her, but for his team member, Shadowcat. He was here as a team leader offering comfort.
Another convulsion went through her and she saw the t-shirt ball and move as her fingers twitched. She was holding his shirt in a death grip apparently. Warmth started to flow from her nose, and she watched as crimson stained his shirt, undoubtedly soaking into the fur beneath. It was more than she could bear…here she was, being held like a child, Kurt was obviously here to make sure she didn't "wander off in her injured state"…she was acting childish clutching his shirt and bleeding on him…
She closed her eye and waited for the self-pity to pass…I bet Kurt offered to keep an eye on me…he's caring like that, he remembers Excalibur…
But the truth remained clear to her, the one thing she wanted…would never be. She was a child to Kurt…dear sweet sexy Kurt had so many women lining up for his attentions… It took more than brains to attract someone like Kurt, that's why all she had ever had was a Russian that didn't even think twice about dumping her when he was in another dimension, and Wisdom…who admittedly she had loved…but wasn't exactly the greatest when it came to being a healthy relationship for her.
And even he left me…admit it…you're not worth it. Not worth anything. Jean should have killed me…if this bleeding doesn't stop, she may yet…
Death seemed so peaceful when compared to the fact that she was in pain and in bed with a man that would never be hers. The amount of blood gushing from her nose was frightful; it hadn't stopped yet, or even abated. But it didn't bother her…what bothered her was that Kurt's last memory of her would be of his friend, his teammate, the child Katherine Pryde bleeding all over him like some snot nosed infant.
She ran through the mental checklist of her abilities…she could phase she was sure. It might kill her…but at least Kurt would be saved the memory of her growing cold in his arms. She loved him enough to give him that and more. She loved him enough to give him an open field, free of her mooning, childish crush. She even loved him enough to wish him well, to hope he had a wife eventually and children…little fuzzy children. When it came down to it, she just loved him. That's why she phased out of his warm, soft embrace after laying a gentle kiss on his chest.
Phasing was agony. It had never hurt before, not like this. Ever nerve synapse was afire with the sensation of liquid metal. The darkness she had awoken in reached up to engulf her in a sea of razor blades and blood. She felt her body grow solid once more, on the cold floor of the med-lab. But it didn't matter…it was all so distant….so dark…
* * * * *
He awoke once more to warmth. But it was a different warmth…sticky…he felt something brush his chest like a phantom caress…then his arms were empty. He sat up with a start and looked down at his blood soaked shirt. He could feel the fur beneath clumping into uncomfortable patches as he moved, trying to ascertain where Kitty had gone…then he saw her…on the med-lab floor in a spreading pool of blood, mouth open in a silent scream as her body twitched in an uncontrollable seizure.
He moved so fast that he may have ported, throwing the entangling blankets across the room in his hurry to reach her side…help…
He couldn't do much but signal for the rest of the team to come down while he cradled her head. They were coming…but they may be too late. Even as he watched, her eyes started to lose their normal sparkle…they started to go dull and flat, glassy. The tremors ceased abruptly, leaving her lying in his arms limply, breathless…
He wouldn't let her die.
The rest of the team came in to see him whispering to her in German and stroking her hair. There was blood on his lips from where he had given her CPR, but she breathed. He was thanking God in German. She breathed!
* * * * *
Hahahahahaha! Chapter two done! You like? I may write more…it is definitely amusing me…