An Evolution Based Story

[thylacine]

Mr. and Mrs. Wagner tried for many years to have children and were disappointed when the doctors told them they could not. They wanted to adopt but the social workers told them they were too poor and that a child would deserve a better life than they could offer. They lived in a tiny run down but neatly kept home near the river, just outside of the village. The largest building in the area was the medieval monastery in the hills, and the most modern structure in the little town was the gas station where Mr. Wagner worked as a mechanic. Mrs. Wagner worked in the local coffee shop as a waitress. And so the social worker who met with them to discuss adoption expressed to them that children deserved better educated parents who could give them better opportunities. Also, they were both getting old. They were both quite unhappy about this harsh judgment, of course. They both liked to read and keep up with current events and did not consider themselves to be less intelligent than those who had opportunities to attend the university.

One afternoon Mrs. Wagner went to visit an elderly aunt who was a nun in the convent that was near the monastery. She had baked her a cake like she did every time she came to see her, and the sisters were always happy when she came -- they knew she was a good cook. Mrs. Wagner sat in the receiving room with her coffee and her aunt asked if they had any luck with the adoption agency.

"No, we did not. It was terrible. They turned us down because we are poor and working class. What is this world coming to? We have enough love in our hearts to give. Isn't that what a child needs? Do they think that children need expensive toys and fine clothes? I am so upset I don't know what to do... !"

"Now Greta," Sr. Louisa said, "I just know things will work out for you."

"Don't say that. We hit a brick wall with those social service people. What are we supposed to do? Go to the shelter and try to take home a lost cat? I think it's time to give up, but I've so badly wanted children." She quietly began to sob. "I suppose I'm being ridiculous."

"But Greta," the nun said, "I said a prayer for you and Otto last night, and in my dreams I saw you and Otto with a little boy. A special little boy, pulled out of the river like Moses, to keep in your arms and be protected."

"Oh Louise," Greta said. She knew her aunt was getting old, "That's... kind of you. Well... I really should be going. I'm due back at work, and if I'm late, you know how they are." She left.

That evening she told Otto what her aunt said. "The poor women is failing, dear. How old is she now, eighty nine?"

"Eighty seven. Perhaps she was being kind? Oh well. What's the use?"

"Oh well." He was sad too, but did not say so. "You know what I'm going to do on my day off? I'm going to get up early and catch a few fish. That's what I'm going to do. They keep me so busy since the other mechanic quit I never get to go fishing anymore. And here we live right by the river."

The next morning Mrs. Wagner sipped her coffee and read the newspaper while her husband searched for his fishing gear. "Otto! Look at this!"

"Look at what?"

"It says here that there are mutants in America. They are trying to outlaw them."

"What on earth are they?"

"Unusual children, born with strange powers."

"Ridiculous. I've never heard of such nonsense. And how can you outlaw something like that?"

"This Senator Kelly wants to keep them out of schools, and out of public life, maybe even round them up and send them away somewhere."

"That would be terrible, like what happened long ago."

"Otto. It isn't your fault what happened long ago."

It was the family's secret shame. Grandpa Wagner was an SS Officer, and a particularly vicious one at that. "No... but it's still terrible. If only there was some way to make up for what he did. The things they said about him. I always had nightmares as a boy."

"You still do, Otto."

"Do I? Well, never mind. I'm going to try to catch that trout." He didn't want to talk about it.

Mrs. Wagner went back to her reading and forgot all about Senator Kelly and the "mutant problem" until she heard her husband shouting wildly outside.

"Greta! Greta! Come quick! Greta!"

"Otto? What is it -- ?"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The couple loved the little mutant baby. It was a joy to watch him play and run up walls and bounce around the tiny four room house. When he finally tired out he would curl up in his papa's lap like a soft blue kitten and sleep. When Mrs. Wagner was seen buying diapers in the little market some women friends saw her and asked about it. She claimed she was looking after a little nephew for a while. Of course, they really had no other family. But it was the best she could come up with. As he got bigger she would buy yards of fabric and make his clothes with an old sewing machine. She could not be seen as buying children's clothes, or people would think she had kidnapped a baby out of desperation. Everyone in town knew the social workers rejected them, and how sad she had been. She sent away for books and was determined to educate him at home as much as she could, in case one day he did have to go out into the world. They would not be able to protect him forever, she knew that. They were both getting older, and some day he might have to fend for himself. But how? His appearance would forever set him apart, and people grew more and more fearful of mutants every day. She kept up with the situation in the news. There was always more rage against "dangerous mutants" -- especially in America.

She and Otto could not imagine their Kurt as being dangerous. He was always helpful around the house, and almost never disobeyed. What strange powers could he possibly have except for climbing up the walls? she wondered. And what harm did that do? None! she would say, when such things were discussed on the television.

Kurt was happy most of the time, but always wished he had other children to play with. "It's impossible," she would say. And he knew it was true. Normal children would reject him, maybe even hurt him. The thought of being discovered terrified him. His parents were the only ones who even knew about him. When people came around the house, he hid out of sight.



to be continued...

[taekwondodo]

There isn't one, which means you can do whatever you want for it.

[thylacine]

5/11/04 -- I promise I shall revise & finish this up some day as soon as I have a chance!!!

[RavEnigma]

Please do, mon ami. This is really good so far, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

[thylacine]

Thank you. I'm glad you like it. I have other stories too, in Writing Critiques.

I think I might finish this in a few weeks -- hopefully. Just busy -- not out of ideas!:)

[thylacine]

Together the family lived happily for many years in their tiny house in the forest by the river. It seemed almost like one of the fairy tales that his papa would read to him at night, "Once there was an enchanted little boy who lived in the forest with his mama and papa who loved him very much... " But he grew older and knew there was another world outside -- a world he could never be a part of. What was he to do? One day his parents needed to go to a funeral and left him alone at home. He watched television and saw what was happening in America with the "mutant problem." Sadly, he realized that his parents would not live forever, and they were all he had in the world. There were others like him, but they were all hated and feared, like Magneto... He did not know what he could do or should do... He did not want to leave his parents, but they were getting older. And he wanted to be with other children, other children like himself...

To be continued (soon!).

[CurlyyHairGirl]

oooh! ooooh! Please continue! I wanna read more!! It gettin' intrestin'!!

[thylacine]

I will! I will! I am sooooo busy right now, my life is going too fast and I wanna get off!!! Later, I promise!!!

[thylacine]

I promise I will try & finish this sometime this week -- I hope!!!

[thylacine]

Later that night he saw the newspaper on the kitchen table and it advertised that the circus was coming to town. Not a big circus, of course. Just a small circus run by the Gypsies, he guessed. He wanted to go so badly, but how could he?

"Oh, Kurt, my boy, why are you sad?" his mother asked.

"I wish I could go see the circus, mother," he said.

"I wish you could, too."

"Well, why don't you just climb a tree and watch from a distance," his father said.

"Then I will," he said excitedly.

"Yes, why not?" his mother said. "No one will see him way up there. And it will be dark out. You'll have fun. We should go too, Otto! We'll see if we can get tickets. Why not?"

And so Kurt was happy. But deep down he felt a hint of worry... what if something went wrong? What if someone saw him? What if he got caught? No, he told himself. Impossible... what could go wrong at the circus! Nothing, of course! It will be fun!


Later that evening...

It was too far away, he decided. And the leaves kept getting in his face. From his perch, he could only see the dancing poodles. That was it, he decided. He was going down to get a better look. No one would see him. It was dark, so he would be safe...

He leapt down and quietly landed. Looking around, he noticed no one had seen him. Good. He went to get closer to the show...

"What a great costume!" said a girl's voice.

"What?" he spun around.

"That's a great costume. And it's even got a tail!"

"Oh, yes. Thank you! Made it myself!"

"I never saw you before. Are you new? I'm Trina. I'm going to feed the horses. I want to ride in the show, but my parents say I'm too young. You can come and help me."

"Alright!" he was excited. He never spoke to any other children before, "Alright, Trina. I'll help you." He followed her to where the animals were housed.

"So, what's your name?"

"Kurt."

"Where are you from?"

"I'm from around here."

"You are? You're going to be traveling with us, then?"

"Well... "

He followed her inside and she closed the door behind her. It was bright light inside the stables. He was worried. She would see him up close.

"Here, take this bucket and... What's wrong with your hands?"

"Nothing! I -- "

She screamed. He shrunk back away from her.

She screamed again. He ran in terror.

"Oh no. What have I done!"

[thylacine]

Okay... I'm gonna try & finish the rest of this soon! I just need to slow my crazy life down! Bye for now -- later!

[thylacine]

He ran, terrified, out into the darkness. But the girl continued to scream. He heard voices. Men were coming. He would be found, and caught, and discovered. And what would happen to his parents then?

He wished he had never come. He wished he was back at home, where he would be safe.

He looked and saw a crowd was coming. He shivered and wished he was far, far away...

Suddenly he was home, in his room, alone. And safe.

"How did I get here?"

Soon his parents came home and found him. "Thank God you are safe," his mother rushed to embrace him.

"I'm sorry. I -- "

"No, Kurt." His father said, "We said you could come. It's as much our fault."

"Someone saw me. She started to scream and -- " a tear streamed down his face.

"How did you get away so fast?" his father asked.

"I... I don't know. I... I was terrified. I just wanted so badly to be back home, and there I was!" He sobbed and hugged his mother. "I was so scared. They might have caught me, and then what would happen?"

"There there, now. You are home. You must have run so fast and you must have been so scared you didn't remember -- " his mother said.

"No, mom... I think something happened to me. There was smoke, and everything went dark, then I was here! I'm so confused -- "

"Now, let's talk no more about it," his father said. "It's late. You should be in bed."

He obeyed quietly, but could not sleep at all.

The next morning, the incident was in the local paper. "Mutant Attacks Circus!"

"Dear God, Otto! What will we do? Poor Kurt. They'll hunt him down!"

"Now calm down, Greta. No one was hurt last night. The people in town will forget it after a while. Maybe they'll be an burglary or a fire or something, and they'll have some other foolish thing to worry about."

Kurt drifted into the kitchen for breakfast and saw his mother hide the newspaper. "Are you all right, dear?"



But it wasn't only the local papers that reported the so-called mutant attack. Around the world, newspapers included small paragraphs about the incident... a small German circus experienced a sudden and terrifying mutant attack last night. Police still search for the mutant, or mutants, who terrorized performers and audience alike...

"Take a look at this, Charles. We may have a new problem."

"Or a friend in need of help, Logan. Perhaps Cerebro can shed some light on this?"

[CurlyyHairGirl]

*bouncybouncybouncybouncybouncybouncy* Das ist gut!!! MORE MORE MORE MORE MORE. That must have been really scary and sad for him, meeting a kid first time ever, then getting screemed at.

[thylacine]

Thank you, Curly Haired Girl... Now... Let me continue... Hope I don't suddenly run out of creativity here...



Kurt stayed in his room, reluctant to come out. When his mother would call him to dinner he would emerge, eat, then drift back into his darkened room to hide and be alone. His parents hid the local newspapers, worried he would see more reports on the "mutant attack investigation."

"That's it, Greta. I am not going to let that boy hide in there all day. He has to at least do his chores."

"Don't be too hard on him, Otto."

"Who's being hard? The world is hard. He can't stay hidden forever. Someday he is going to have to come out. We won't live forever, you know. We'll be too old to protect him one day, Greta. And he'll have to go out into the world, like everyone else."

"How, Otto, how? How will he get a job? Who will hire him?"

"I'll teach that boy to be a mechanic like me, that's how."

"Otto, you're talking foolish. What will the customers at the garage say?"

"Oh... Never mind." He threw the newspaper in the trash and got up from the kitchen table. "Kurt! Now come out here and help your mother clear the dishes. Right now. Enough moping. It's been a week ago and you're still sulking -- "

"Otto! Otto! There is a strange car out in our driveway! Look."

"What? Oh no... Never mind, boy, stay in there!" He came back into the kitchen to look out the window. "Now who could that be?"

A tough looking man got out of the car. He wore blue jeans, cowboy boots, a cowboy hat, and a leather jacket.

"He looks mean, Otto! Who is that? I'm frightened." His wife ran to lock the front door.

"I don't know, dear. Never saw him before in my life! And he looks like trouble. Who does he think he is, some strange cowboy biker?"

Greta watched as the strange man went around to the back of the car to pull a wheelchair out of the trunk. He set it up and brought it around to the passenger side of the car. "There is someone else -- "

Otto looked as the well dressed man emerged from the back of the Mercedes sedan. "What is going on? Who are these strange people?"

"Mama? Papa?" Kurt shuffled quietly into the hallway... "Is there someone there?"

"Get back in your room, boy!" His father whispered. "Quick!"

[CurlyyHairGirl]

GAAAAHHH!!! Why must Nightscrawlers attract not only NC fanatics, but also writers and their notorious cliffhangers!!! I am already going into withdrawl from Zam, Tat and Nach, Rowena, Nandi, Ravenigma and about ten others...I. Will. Die. BUT NOT UNTIL YOU FINISH, end my suffering, post more fic...this is a tasty one.

[thylacine]

Kurt ran to hide in his room as he heard the strange people enter his home. He listened at his door...

"I am Professor Charles Xavier, and I have come to talk with you about your remarkable son -- "

"Oh no!" he whispered. Kurt was terrified. They would surely take him away, lock him up somewhere because he was different. He meant no harm, but everyone in town was frightened of him... What could he do? He was trapped...

Then that odd feeling came over him again. That feeling of wanting to be somewhere else. The way he felt when the girl began screaming... He was terrified and wanted to be far, far away. Anywhere but here...

BAMF!

There was smoke. He was gone.

"Where am I?" He looked around. He was out in the light of day, surrounded by buildings, cars, and... people.

He was right in the middle of downtown Winzeldorf where his parents worked... "Oh no. How did I get here?"

"Look!" Someone shrieked. "It's the mutant!"

"Run!"

"Call the police!"

"Everyone! Get away from that thing!"



"Otto, Kurt isn't in his room!" Greta cried. "Where could he be now?"

His father went to go look for him. "That boy keeps disappearing lately. Kurt! Where are you? Come out here now, boy! These people want to talk with you. It's all right. You're not in trouble. They are from America -- Kurt?"

The Professor interrupted, "Mr. Wagner, your son disappearing. That's one of the things we must discuss. Many mutants I have come across have special talents. Your son could actually be teleporting from place to place."

"He had better just teleport himself right back, Herr Professor! I want you to meet him. I don't care how shy he wants to be. He's never met another mutant before -- Kurt? Where are you?"

"He's never been able to go to school before, either, Professor." Kurt's mother said. "This would be so wonderful for our boy." She suddenly remembered that she was to work that morning. "Oh. I must make a call. I shall say that I am ill. I work as a waitress you know... " She reached for the telephone and spoke in her native German. Her voice began to shake. She slammed the phone down. "Otto! They tell me to not come to work. They say it is too dangerous! The mutant was seen in town! Our boy is in the village somewhere! How did he end up there?"



Kurt cowered against the brick wall, looking up at all the angry, terrified faces staring down at him... "Please... Let me go! I... I didn't do anything!" He looked away, but heard the vicious whispers all around him...

"Look at it! It even has a tail!"

"It's eyes! Don't look into its eyes! They're evil!"

"We should shoot it!"

"No! Burn the thing! That will get rid of it for good!"

Again, he teleported involuntarily.



Where am I now? he wondered. He looked around. It was a church. Perhaps he would be safe there? His mother often complained that "no one bothers to go to church nowadays" so then he would be completely safe -- He would be alone, finally, to hide.



Otto Wagner drove the old Mercedes he fix up after finding it in a junk yard. His wife sat beside him. And Professor Xavier and Logan sat in the back seat...

"Herr Professor," Greta said in broken English, "Suddenly, I think I know where he is. I told him, whenever he is afraid or sad, to turn to God. Otto, let's try the church. He may be in there, hiding from those people." She looked and saw crowds running through the street, same carrying hunting rifles, the police trying to calm them down.

[thylacine]

I promise I shall finish this soon!!!

[thylacine]

Okay... let's hope I can finish this one up!!!

Kurt hid behind a statue. He could smell the incense, and felt safe in the darkness, hidden in silence of the semi-dark candle lit church. Suddenly the door flew open, "Kurt!" It was his mother. How did she find him?

"Kurt? Are you here?"

Slowly he emerged, "Mother?"

"Kurt! Thank God you are safe! Why did you run away like that?"

"I... I didn't. I... Something's been happening to me. I don't understand it. I keep finding myself in places for no reason and -- "

His father followed Greta in, "The man who came to the house today, Kurt -- he is a professor of a school for mutants. He says you are teleporting. Can you believe it? Well, there is no other explanation for this -- "

"A school for... for children like me?" He was amazed that such places even existed. Mutants were outcasts. They were not allowed in school with other children.

"Kurt," his father said seriously, "Yes, there is a school for children like you. The Professor says you can go to this school. It's in America."

"But that is so far away... I don't want to leave you -- "

"We don't want you to go, either," his mother said, "But, Kurt, you must. It's the only way for you to go into the world, be with children like yourself. Go with him, you deserve better than the life we can give you."

"Come on," his father said, "Greta, take him out the back door where no one will see him. I'll bring the car around."

"Should I go, mother?"

"Kurt, what do you want to do?" She took his hand and led him out to the rear exit of the church.

"I want to be with other children, children like me -- "

"Then you must go. No matter what you do, you will always be our son. Kurt, God made you special. You have great gifts to help others with. Imagine what you can do now that you can... " she tried to remember the word, "Teleport. There is a whole world out there for you to see."

"All right, then I'll go... But I'll miss you."

"We'll miss you, too, Kurt. You have brought great joy to our lives, even if we did have to keep you a secret from everyone. Come on home." She wiped away a tear, "I'll help you get your things together."