Always there for me
"Kurt, we're gonna be laaa-ate!"
Kurt opened his eyes and sat up, blinking away the excess sleep. Jean and the other children were already downstairs, waiting. If he didn't get up now, they most definitely would be late. So he got up and stumbled around his room, pulling on the random articles of clothing he found. Hopefully they looked alright, but he didn't have the time to care. They'd have to do. Besides, his father had tailored them special, just for Kurt.
He ran down the stairs, deciding half-way through to teleport down to the main room. Jean gave him a look, silently admonishing him for nearly being late. Kurt looked at his feet, sheepish and embarrassed.
"Es tut mir leid, Jean." Kurt mumbled, not meeting Jean's eyes. She merely shrugged and went back to chattering with Scott. They were, after all, 3rd graders. Attention span wasn't really a thing. Chastised enough, Kurt looked around. It seemed he wasn’t the only one late-- Jubilee wasn’t present. Kurt’s suspicions proved true, because a moment later, Jean yelled,
“JUBILEE! WE’RE GONNA BE LATE!”
The mutant in question came racing down the stairs, her shoes untied. Once downstairs, she pouted at Jean. Jubilee was quite good at guilting her fellow friends out of being angry.
“‘M sorry, Jeanie. I couldn’t decide which shoes I wanted.”
Kurt wished he had Jubilee’s powers of persuasion. His (only) friend could get out of just about any situation. Sure enough, Jean let it go. Probably because it was finally time to go to school.
While Jean loved school, Kurt, on the other hand, did not. Sure, his grades were as good as a 3rd grader’s grades could be, but he didn’t have any friends in his class. None of the other children really wanted to be his friend.
But that was okay, he guessed, because when he got home, Peter was always there, ready to play or talk or even snuggle! Peter was Kurt’s best friend. There was just one problem with that. Peter wasn’t real. He was Kurt’s imaginary friend-- and Kurt knew that, but in his mind, that just made Peter even more special, because he was only Kurt’s friend!
“Peter, Peter! Let’s play a game, mein freund!”
Kurt ran through the halls to his room, knowing that Peter would be sitting on his bed, waiting for him. Sure enough, when he opened his door, there was Peter.
“Peter, I learned the best game today! Let’s play!”
Peter was always down for whatever Kurt wanted to do, which was the best, because Kurt didn’t normally get to choose what to do with the others. So he grinned and nodded, agreeing silently to play the game with Kurt. That was the other thing about Peter. He didn’t talk much, but when he did, he told the best stories! Kurt loved hearing Peter’s stories-- they were so creative! Kurt’s favorite was about the shape-shifting girl and the teleporting boy, because they reminded him of his mother and his father.
“Or maybe could you tell me the story about the teleporter and the shape-shifter?”
Kurt smiled, waiting for Peter’s answer. Of course, Peter nodded. He liked telling his stories. Kurt curled up on his bed, cuddling with one of his pillows, and waited for Peter to start telling.
“A long time ago, in a place kinda like this, there was a group of people with really cool powers. There was a girl who could make herself look like other people, and a boy who could teleport. They’re the main characters in this story.
The girl’s name was Wren, and she was a lovely shade of blue. Her hair was red when she was herself, and the boy found her enchanting. His name was Zel, and he was red, like a tomato…”
Kurt smiled, closing his eyes. Peter’s stories were always wonderful. He wished they would just go on forever. Before long, Peter was finishing up the story.
“...Eventually, the boy and the girl grew up, and fell in love. They had a son, who was blue like she was, and could teleport like he could. And they lived happily ever after. The end.”
Kurt really liked that story. He also liked the one about the Russian runner-- he was so fast! The man in the story reminded Kurt of Peter, he even had the same silver hair.
“Peter, will you tell the story about the fast Russian man? I like that one too!”
Peter shook his head, as if to say, that’s enough for today. Kurt supposed that was all well and good-- he had to go to dinner anyway.
“Bye Peter! See you tomorrow!”
Kurt waved goodbye and ran down the stairs for dinner. His mommy didn’t really like it when he teleported to dinner. He always seemed to land in the food. Oops.
Dinner was a boring affair. Everyone talked about their day. Kurt waited to go last. When it was his turn, he smiled a really, really big, happy smile and announced what he’d done that day.
“I did all of my school stuff, and then Peter told me stories!”
This drew a slightly worried look from his mother. Of course, she didn’t understand. Peter was Kurt’s special friend, and she just didn’t get it. But Uncle Charles did, he understood everything.
“What was Peter’s story about?”
At this, Kurt launched into a story, trying to remember Peter’s story like he’d told it. Kurt’s version wasn’t quite like the original, but he told it well enough. He thought everyone liked the story.
“Doesn’t the girl and the boy in the story remind you of you and papa, mommy?”
Kurt asked happily, humming to himself. Raven could only nod. The people in the story sounded so familiar, like she knew them. Perhaps she did.
Kurt and Peter stayed friends for quite a few more years. Peter seemed to always stay the same age-- he looked to be a teenager, but Kurt figured it was because he had always wanted an older friend, someone to guide him through life. It was only when Kurt reached high school that he noticed something-- Peter was faded.
“Peter, why are you see-through?”
Kurt frowned, closing his maths textbook. His loyal friend had been sat with him, helping out when he needed help. Peter shrugged, appearing unconcerned.
“I guess maybe you’re just getting too old to have an imaginary friend. It was gonna happen sooner or later. Besides, you won’t miss me too much, you’ve got Jubilee.”
Kurt frowned. Was he really growing out of Peter’s friendship? That wasn’t what he wanted.
“How can I get you to be solid again?”
He frowned, concerned for the boy who had been his friend for so many years. Peter thought for a moment.
“Well, there’s one thing you can do..”