Hello, everyone! I am Dragoncat, and this is my first X-Men fanfic. I do NOT own the X-Men characters, but be assured that later chapters will have characters that are all mine.

As you read this latest creation, please remember the famous words from Mr. Richard Lovelace...

"Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage…"

With that in mind, I am proud to present...

CHAPTER ONE

I know you're a monster… I know you're a monster… I know you're a monster…

For days now, Kurt Wagner has been running for his life. He was either running, teleporting, or even doing both at once. He didn't dare stop. If he did, he was as good as caught.

Kurt wasn't running from the Friends of Humanity, Weapon X, or even S.H.I.E.L.D… Well, actually he had to stay clear of them for…obvious reasons. But, now more than ever, he was running from the people he feared most.

He was running from the X-men.

You're a monster… a monster… a monster…

A monster… That was all Kurt would ever be in the eyes of the world. Well… maybe not always a monster. Many times, he was a demon. Sometimes he'd be a freak, or an abomination, or – at the very least – just a mutant. But mostly, he was a monster. Even among mutants! He would never be seen as someone who just wanted to live normally. Someone who dreamt of having a family, of enjoying the simple pleasures of life that normal humans tend to take for granted.

At least, that's what he'd like to dream of.

Sadly, when he did find a chance to sleep, his dreams would remind him of when he was caged in the circus, or – even worse - being "trained" by Weapon X, to do missions that they wanted done, but did not wish to do themselves.

That was not the life he wanted. After he had escaped Jardine's circus, he was content to live his life in the wild; away from the people who saw him as nothing more than a freak show. He thought life could not get worse than that.

Oh, how wrong he was.

Before he knew what had hit him, he had been captured by Weapon X…and they made the circus look like Heaven on Earth. Nothing would have pleased him more than to be free from that horrifying place, and he tried. So many times… So many times…. But they'd catch him. No matter what, they'd always catch him. And each punishment was more brutal than the last. After a while, he realized that escaping was never going to be an option for him.

He dreamt of all the experiments they did on them, because they could not understand how a creature such as he could possibly exist. But most of all, he dreamt of all the cages he had been crammed in. From the circus cages, to the Weapon X "accommodations"; while the other mutants were placed in cells large enough for a human, he was crammed in cages barely big enough for a large dog. Apparently, he was not considered 'human' enough for any of the same luxuries. Was it really a surprise that he felt more comfortable in the quadruped position?

When Kurt had been rescued by the X-men, he thought the nightmare had finally coming to an end. At long last, he would finally have a chance at a normal life.

What a foolish notion!

Xavier's mansion became the biggest, most spacious, most elaborate prison he had ever been in. At least his room gave him space to move about with no problem. It even came with a nice, large bed to sleep in. A real room! A real bed!

And life at the mansion did have its moments. Every now and then, Kurt and Warren would train together in the Danger Room. The training was more enjoyable when the sequences had a pirate theme. Ah, the adventures of the Dread Pirate Blue Tail made training worthwhile.

Yes, life at Professor Xavier's mansion was much better than Jardine's circus and Weapon X combined. No doubt about that. But at what price?

As the X-man known as Nightcrawler, he could help save the world a thousand times over, but no matter what, he would always be the "odd one out". While everyone else went to the mall, the movies or even Coney Island, Kurt always had to stay home. No matter how many friends he made, he was never human enough to truly become one of them.

I know you're a monster…

Rogue didn't understand. She did not understand at all. When she touched him back at the hideaway, she may have seen some of his horrible memories from Weapon X, but she didn't see everything. Had she seen the ways he had been tortured, their 'training procedures'...What choice did he have? He had to do as he was told…or wish he had.

Sure, Rogue said that she knew about having to hide her mutant powers. But she was fine as long as she didn't have to touch anyone. She could go anywhere and still look human. Kurt had to hide everything that made him…him. Not just his powers, but his very existence. Unlike everyone else, Kurt could never pretend he was not a mutant. He could never fully hide his blue fur, his spaded tail, his hands…and don't get him started on shoes.

But what was worst of all? Everyone had someone…except for Kurt. Scott had Jean, Logan had Ororo, Kitty had Peter, Rogue had Bobby, Warren had Dazzler…. Even the Professor went on the occasional date. But who did Kurt have? Who was there for him?

When Warren had left the mansion after that disastrous rescue attempt, Kurt thought he had a chance with Dazzler. He had always liked her. All he needed was a chance to win her heart. One chance, to prove that he was someone she could love.

As he ran, he thought about how everything went wrong with that. Perhaps he shouldn't have lied about the mansion being attacked. Perhaps Xavier had read his mind when he arrived late for the meeting. And then there's Logan. He does have advanced senses, after all. Perhaps he detected her scent on him. Perhaps it was all of the above. Nevertheless, the jig was up. Even after he had pleaded his case, it felt like no one had truly understood.

Not even Dazzler.

Kurt's punishment was being entranced by the Professor. He was not only locked away from the other mutants, he was locked away in his own subconscious. Having to relive his experiences in Weapon X was pure torture. But what hurt even more, was hearing Rogue call him a monster.

Maybe she was right…

I know you're a monster… Rogue's words continued to haunt him as he fled further and further away from Xavier's mansion. As long as he ran, Cerebro could not get a clear fix on him. It was the only defense he had against the world's most powerful telepath.

Kurt had no idea where he was going, but he felt a bit of relief as he had finally made his way out of the city, and was heading deeper into forest terrain. He assumed he was moving north. Perhaps he had already crossed the border into Canada. Wherever he was, he knew that from now on, he had to stay far away from people, both human and mutant.

Kurt ran… and ran… and ran some more. But he had been running almost non-stop for many days. He was exhausted, weak and so hungry. And then, the night sky began to rain. His hands were filthy from running on all fours, so he looked up to the sky with his mouth open to drink the rain. At least he was able to have some water.

After much more travelling, he had finally found shelter from the downpour. He was on the verge of collapse, so he could not fully inspect his port in the storm, but it felt dry enough for the moment. He had just enough strength left to pray that no one wound find him…at least, not right now.

He was asleep before his head had hit the floor.