Hail Mary

Post by **HoodedMan** » Wed Dec 08, 2004 6:05 pm

Hail Mary

Description: I know one of these days someone is going to find me and kick me right in my stomach for one of these. I love Angst but it is EXHAUSTING to write and even harder to read. I'm so mean to the poor characters.

Critics: Constructive criticism is loved. Deconstructive criticism, as always, gets forwarded to devnull@shadowedcorner.com (where it shall never see the light of day).

Thanks: Thanks so much to my wonderful beta-readers; with them this story became a diamond (from something even worse than coal). Bamf Bunny, Zazou, and Tenlar are especially thanked because they're truly marvels. Which segues nicely into...

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. It may be a surprise to you, but I don't. And I don't have enough money worth suing for. So there.

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Kurt walked into the darkened chapel, his head downcast. It seemed that an unknown force drew him to this place of worship, but once he was there he didn't know what to do. All the prayers and rituals he knew just vanished from his head. All he had left was the gnawing despair in his stomach and the raw emotion leading him to the only familiar place he had left, the place that simultaneously beckoned to him and rejected him.

His emotion overcame him; with a choked cry he fell to his knees and rested his head on the cool marble of the altar. All the thoughts he regularly repressed around others now flowed throughout him like molten lead and he couldn't stop his sobs.

So many deaths, so much blood... all spilled in the X-Mens' noble cause. It was all very well to be humane to those who opposed them, but their opposers had no such compunctions. So many friends were gone and he feared for those who remained... his sobs echoed softly in the darkness.

After a time he could not have measured, the sobs faded and he raised his head. The words he had wanted to say had come to him in his catharsis in the dark, but he knew not from where. He spoke hoarsely and softly; his voice could barely be heard. "Gegrüßet seist du, Maria, voll der Gnade..." He swallowed and continued, "der Herr ist mit dir." He looked up at the image of God and his voice faltered.

His head sank back upon the altar and he spoke even more softly. "Du bist gebenedeit unter den Frauen, und gebenedeit ist die Frucht deines Leibes..." "Jesus." The word came dangerously close to being a curse in this holiest of places...

His head snapped up and his voice began to get louder. "Heilige Maria, Mutter Gottes, BITTE FÜR UNS SÜNDER!" The energy seemed to suddenly leave him and he put his head in his hands.

He spoke softly yet again, "bitte für uns Sünder." He looked up towards heaven and his choked sobs began again, softly. Finally, he finally bowed his head and whispered, "jetzt und in der Stunde... der Stunde unseres Todes..." The words echoed in his mind. So many deaths... "Der Stunde unseres Todes," he whispered, "Amen." The shadows closed back in around him with their terrible finality and the prayer was over.

Alone, in the darkness of the chapel, the devil wept.

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German Translation

Gegrüßet seist du, Maria, voll der Gnade,
der Herr ist mit dir;
du bist gebenedeit unter den Frauen
und gebenedeit ist die Frucht deines Leibes, Jesus;
Heilige Maria, bitte für uns Sünder,
jetzt und in der Stunde unseres Todes.

Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord ist with thee;
blessed art thou among women
and blessed ist the fruit of thy womb, Jesus;
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,
now and in the hour of our deaths.

/nightcrawler

Post by **fourpawsonthefloor** » Wed Dec 08, 2004 7:35 pm

Very nice, sweet and heart-rending. You know that it is a good story when it leaves the reader wanting to comfort the character.

Post by **HoodedMan** » Wed Dec 08, 2004 8:13 pm

Thank you!

I always appreciate comments. He does need to be comforted; this is a low part of his life. It's not particularly in the timeline as such.

Post by **Rowena** » Sat Dec 11, 2004 5:34 pm

This story was really poignant. Kurt is such a peace-loving soul and as an X-Man he's forced into such violent situations! It's a difficult conflict for him, and you illustrated that very well. Excellent job!

Post by **HoodedMan** » Sun Dec 12, 2004 1:33 am

Thank you! I have always thought that it's an interesting paradox; he's Catholic yet he wants to fight (sometimes violently) for the X-Men dream. In a way it also reflects on the paradox that more people die in God's name than any other, but that's a story for another time.

Thank you all for your comments!

Nightmare · Post by **Nightmare** » Tue Mar 08, 2005 8:45 am

Ahhhh.... short but oh, so sweet.

I can't do stuff like that. I feel driven to tell long, drawn out stories, with lots and lots of character development. =)

Night - "Angst" - Mare...

Post by **HoodedMan** » Tue Mar 08, 2005 6:37 pm

Unfortunately, most of the time it seems like I can only do such short stories because I don't have enough time to take on a multi-chapter story or a serial. I'd like to, because like you I enjoy character development. I'm glad you enjoyed it, though.