The two 13-year-olds will now stay close forever, buried side by side beneath the sandy soil of the Vagankovo Cemetery on Wednesday -- two of the youngest victims of the hostage-taking crisis.
"She was like his sister. He always talked about her and how cool she was," said one of Kurilenko 's former classmates, who asked not to be named.
The pair were actors in "Nord Ost."
Some 150 relatives and friends came to the cemetery to mourn the two teenagers. They stood pale and drawn as snow fell, more stunned than angry about the loss of life.
"Whatever happens, they couldn't have negotiated with the terrorists. But right now, I can't even think about that," said Alexander, 46, whose daughter Anna was an actor in "Nord Ost" but was not performing when the guerrillas struck. "Anna can't stop going over it. I could never have brought her here."
Flowers and wreaths were piled high on both sides of the open graves.
Most mourners praised the conduct of the special forces in storming the theater.
"The special forces did the right thing -- how they organized it all, how they got the people out. However [President Vladimir] Putin solves the problem, I support him," said Gennady Shamkov, whose 12-year-old son Roman had been among the hostages.
Shamkov said he spoke to the leader of the group, Movsar Barayev, to plead for the release of his son and the other children.
"But he said that my son was already a man and would have to stay, and so would everyone else over 12," Shamkov said. "Chechens are not even human, they are just criminals. We must give the police and the army more money, and we must help fight international terrorism alongside the Americans," he said.
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