Kurt went into the bathroom to change into his blue silk pajamas, emerging with a quilted-satin smoking jacket in dark gray with maroon cuffs and lapels. Blaine laughed. Kurt looked at him with a hurt expression.

“Oh, I'm sorry, Kurt. But my grandpa had a smoking jacket exactly like that. But you look good in it. Really,” Blaine backpedaled. He didn't mean to make fun of Kurt, but he was so darned serious, and his clothes...well, Blaine had no room to talk with his cardigans and bow ties. He smiled.

Kurt removed the smoking jacket and hopped up on the bed. He opened another bag and produced a set of pajamas: cotton, not silk, and they had little cartoons printed on them. Batman. Blaine grinned.

“Perfect!” he shouted and went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and trade in the robe for the pajamas. He hadn't put on the new clothes when he went upstairs for dinner, he'd just tied the robe tighter and went up like that. He though for just a moment and took a pair of the boxer briefs in, too. He usually slept in just his underwear before he was locked in the attic, but he was now a guest in Kurt's home and knew when to show some decorum. He was well aware that he found Kurt very appealing and it would never do to overstep his bounds when he owed someone so much.

“Blaine! “ Kurt crowed as he emerged.

“Yes?”

“I want to ask you something, and I want an honest answer. Not something you think I want to hear, but the truth. Okay?” Kurt looked at him with serious eyes. Funny, Blaine had thought Kurt's eyes were cornflower blue, but now they looked blue-green, like the water in the Mediterranean.

“I'll do my best, but I have never been anything but honest, Kurt. It just isn't in me to lie.”

“I understand that, but I don't want you to be influenced by social convention and what you think I want to hear. Okay?”

“Of course. Just ask,” Blaine was starting to get a little nervous.

“I can make up the sofa for me to sleep on. It's perfectly comfortable. I don't want to assume anything by just climbing into bed with you, Blaine. I noticed earlier today you shied away from me. You corrected yourself, but there was no need to. I haven't lived your situation, so I don't know how you feel, but I want you to feel safe here in my home. You will in no way hurt my feelings if you decide to sleep by yourself. Okay?” Kurt looked straight into those golden hazel eyes and knew Blaine would tell him the honest truth.

“I don't mind cuddling up to you. Actually, I would prefer it, I'm kind of scared still, and it would be nice to have you close. If you feel it's alright?” Blaine asked.

“Yes, Blaine. It's fine,” Kurt smiled. “Now, do you want to watch a movie or read? We can just listen to music and talk or go right to sleep?”

I haven't read a book in so long, do you have a lot of books?”

“Come with me,” Kurt took his hand and led him upstairs to the family room where there were two walls of bookcases. “Help yourself.”

The smile on Blaine's face was spectacular. He ran to the shelves, reading titles and running his hands over the spines of the pretty colors. “Oh!” Blaine's eyes were huge and he almost stopped breathing. His hand shook as he reached out to pluck a book from the shelf. “She wrote another?” he said, almost to himself.

Kurt moved closer to see which book had so captured Blaine's attention. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

“You didn't read that?” he asked, but Blaine wasn't paying attention. He was turning the pages carefully as though this were some rare antique. Kurt thought back, oh. The book had been published in 2007. And Blaine was already locked in the attic by then. Kurt's heart ached to think of how long ago that was, and tears came to his eyes. His arms went around Blaine, pulling him so his back was flush with Kurt's chest and he kissed his neck. “Yes, Blaine. That book finishes the story. Would you like to read it? Or maybe you'd like to read them all again from the first one so you get the impact of the whole story?”

Blaine just stood there, frozen for a moment. “But...will I have time, Kurt? I have to find a way to support myself and get some kind of education, somewhere to live...”

“No, Blaine. You live here, now. My father will agree with me. I will take care of you until you're healed and you want to move on. Until that day – even if it's years from now – your home is here with me.” Kurt told him is a soft but very firm voice.

Blaine stopped. He set the book down on a table and turned in Kurt's arms.

“Okay, Kurt. I will stay with you,” he said, and placed a chaste kiss on Kurt's surprised lips. They stood there, looking in each other's eyes for several long minutes. Then Blaine broke away, scooping up the whole set of Harry Potter books and followed Kurt back to the bedroom in the basement.

The rest of the evening was spent in Kurt's room, Blaine lying stretched across the bed, reading the first Harry Potter book. Kurt made some repairs on a few items of clothes and then worked on his homework so it was all ready for his return to school the next Monday. Kurt played quiet music, no words, just instrumental. They were listening to Tchaikovsky at the moment when Blaine placed a slip of paper in the book and set it down. Kurt looked over in question.

“My eyes hurt. I haven't actually read in so long, my eyes are stinging,” Blaine said, rubbing at them.

“Here, stop that,” Kurt told him, and came and took his hand, leading him to the bathroom. He took out an eye-cup and poured a clear liquid into it. “Now, wash your eyes with this, it will help. Rubbing them will only make it worse,” he finished.

Blaine looked at the old-fashioned eye-cup. “I haven't seen one of these since my grandmother had one when I was a little kid. But, okay. What's in the bottle?”

“Boric acid. Good for your eyes, it will relieve the soreness.”

Blaine washed out his right eye, surprised at the relief he felt. Kurt took the cup and rinsed it, filling it again and handing it to Blaine for his left eye.

“Now, about your glasses. I don't know how to get you glasses, but we'll figure out something. How bad are your eyes?”

“Not terrible. I can see to read, but sometimes things far away are blurry. I didn't wear them all the time, but I couldn't see very well looking out the attic window. I'll be okay without them for a while.”

Back in the bedroom, they decided to go to sleep. Blaine climbed into the bed and looked at Kurt. He gestured as though to ask which side, and Kurt nodded at the one closer to the door. They climbed in, pulled up the blankets and closed their eyes, about a foot of space between them. Blaine took breath to speak, but Kurt anticipated his question and scooted closer. Blaine laid his head on Kurt's shoulder and put his arm around his waist. Kurt pulled him close and kissed his temple.

He leaned close to Blaine's ear and whispered, “I'll keep you safe, Blaine. Rest easy.” He could feel Blaine's muscles relax and soon they both fell asleep.

There was a knock on the back door when the boys staggered up the stairs the next morning. Blaine ran to the hallway and Kurt waited until he was hidden before asking who it was.

“Open the door, Lady Lips.”

“Yes, Satan. As you wish.”

Puck grinned and Santana gave Kurt a small smile.

“Why, Buttercup, you look so nice today,” Kurt said. He heard a giggle from the hall.

Blaine came in, “Princess Bride!”

“Yes. One of my favorite movies,” Kurt laughed, impressed Blaine knew his reference.

He turned to see both Puck and Santana staring at Blaine.

“Who is this and where are you hiding the Prince in the Tower, Porcelain?” Santana asked, walking around Blaine and looking him up and down like a predatory wolf. She bent her arm and shook her hand in a 'this is hot!' gesture. “I'd tap that,” she said in appreciation.

Blaine was wearing the jeans Kurt had bought him and the forest green v-neck shirt. The jeans fit pretty well, but were too long, so Blaine had cuffed them and wore the canvas shoes with no socks. His hair was now combed and the curls were tamed, but not gelled the way he used to wear them, and he was clean shaven. He was skinny, but it seemed to accentuate his broad shoulders and narrow hips instead of making him look sickly as it might in someone else. But his bright smile and soulful eyes with lacy dark eyelashes were what made him so delicious.

“Damn, Prince, you do clean up,” Puck said in admiration. Blaine blushed to his hairline, ducking behind Kurt in embarrassment. He had been used to such praise once upon a time, but that was before.

Kurt hurried to change the subject, not wanting Blaine to be uncomfortable.

“How about breakfast while we talk. Oh, I bet Gramma Sofie already fed you?” he asked Puck.

“Nope, I spent the night with Santana.”

Kurt's mouth opened and moved, but no words came out.

“Pull your mind out of the gutter, Kurt. He slept in my sister's bed.” Kurt's mouth opened even wider. “She's in Florida, your Ladyship, catching some rays for Spring Break. Not that I owe you any sort of explanation. We just thought it would be easier for us to get here this morning if he did.”

Puck was finding this all very entertaining, and laughed a hearty laugh, smacking Blaine on the back. “How about some grub, Kurt?”

“Ah, yeah...coming right up. Blaine, if you could make the coffee, everything is where I showed you last night. Satan, if you could set the table, the flatware is there,” he pointed at a drawer,” and the plates and things are here,” he tapped a cupboard door. “Puck, can you cut up some strawberries?”

Kurt got busy mixing batter and they had pancakes with strawberries and cream in short order.

“I guess we have to start somewhere. What did you guys discuss last night?” Puck said once he'd eaten his fill of pancakes.

“The first thing is, nobody can know where Blaine is. His dad is a fancy lawyer and has most of the judges, especially the family court ones, in his back pocket. So, we have to keep him hidden for the time being. I can hide him here for a while, nobody ever comes down to my room, but we need a safe place for him to run if things go badly.”

“He can stay at my place in that case. It won't last for more than a few days, but would do in a pinch,” Santana said. “Let's show him how to get there later today. Can you drive, Prince?”

Blaine looked at her, not sure if he was allowed to argue with her about the new nickname, but Kurt didn't object to being called Lady Lips, so maybe it wasn't a battle worth waging. “I never got my license, I was locked up when I was thirteen. But I do know how to drive.”

“That'll do.” Puck said. “We can practice this week, just to refamiliarize you with it.”

“We need to look at the big picture here,” Kurt said. Blaine looked at him, but looked scared. It was obvious he hadn't thought farther ahead than the next day.

“What do you mean?” Puck asked, unfamiliar with actual planning.

“He means where do we go when we have Prince here back on his feet health-wise and he needs to get on with his life. When was the last time you were in school?” Santana asked.

“It was the middle of 2007, I was in seventh grade at Dalton Academy,” Blaine said.

“Well, you do have that in your favor, that's a hard curriculum at that school, so you're ahead of the public schools. But three years? I don't know how you'll make up the credits. And I know you don't want a GED if you're going to go to college.” Kurt mused. Blaine looked stricken. “Oh, don't look so worried, Blaine, we can do something, I'm sure. If you're fifteen now..?' Blaine nodded, “then you have three years to catch up. They don't count actual credits until you reach high school, so I think it might work. Maybe we can sneak you into McKinley?” he looked at Santana and Puck. They all smiled.

“We need to get him a new identity. How about we say he's my cousin?” Santana said, “Everyone knows I have about fifty of those, or they assume it, anyway, so Figgins won't bat an eyelash.”

“Figgins?” Blaine asked.

“The principal. Not the brightest crayon in the box,” Kurt snarked. He'd had more than one run-in with the man.

“Puck, call Lauren. She can access the school computer and we can make a mock file for Blaine. She always has your back, so no worries about letting her in on a tiny bit of the secret. But don't tell her who he really is, just an acquaintance of yours should be enough for her to work with.” Kurt was on a roll.

Puck breathed out on his knuckles and rubbed them on his shirt. “Time to break out Puckzilla..”

Santana and Kurt made puking sounds and Puck grinned.

“Puckzilla?” Blaine said, a look of puzzlement on his face.

“Yes, I use it to please the ladies,” Puck said, bucking his hips forward in an exaggerated motion, earning a bitch-glare from both Kurt and Santana.

"Puck shut up," they both said, accompanied by dual eye-rolls.

“What name? We can't use his real name,” Kurt said.

“I think his first name is okay, he needs to be able to answer to it like he's had it all his life, and it's hard to do that with a fake name. So Blaine it is. But the last name. If he's my cousin, it has to be Hispanic, so nobody will think twice. Okay, I have an auntie named Pilar Palomo. So, Blaine Palomo. That do?”

Kurt grinned. He turned to Blaine. “It's like Chloe, so it must be a sign,” Kurt said, but Blaine looked even more puzzled. “Pigeons are also called 'rock doves', and Palomo is Spanish for 'dove'." Kurt explained.

Blaine grinned. “Blaine Palomo. Okay.”

“Now, we need to change your looks. How did you wear your hair?”

“Ah, I had to tame these curls,” Blaine said, and Kurt ran his fingers through them. Blaine smiled. “So, I gelled them. Helmut head.” Kurt rolled his eyes.

“I can frost them. He'll look great, and not much like himself, okay, Blaine?”

Blaine nodded.

“If your own parents haven't actually seen you in three years, and puberty has set in,” Santana gave him a all-encompassing gaze, to which Blaine turned his head and blushed to the roots of his hair. “Then they probably won't know you if they saw you on the street. I think we can get away with it,” she finished.

They all smiled. The basic plan was in place.

Puck and Santana stayed with Blaine while Kurt went out to go shopping. He really wished that he could bring along one of his friends, Mercedes or Tina, maybe even Rachel, but he understood that with every person they added to the ones that knew, the danger increased. And this was not a game, this was Blaine's life.

He felt kind of funny making these decisions that would probably impact Blaine for the rest of his life, but he really didn't know what else to do. So, he put on a brave face and soldiered on. His first stop was to get hair products, then to the mall to several stores to get clothes. He stopped by the grocery to get some food and the Farmer's Market to get fresh veggies and fruit. Finally, back home.

Walking in the door, he was greeted by Santana and Puck, sitting at the kitchen table. Blaine came out of the hallway where he had moved when he heard Kurt's key in the lock. His face lit up when he saw it was Kurt and hurried over to stand close, sliding his hand into Kurt's. Kurt was a little surprised, but thought about how stressed Blaine must be with him gone and two other people here. He squeezed back, giving Blaine a little peck on his cheek, earning a smile. Santana watched this exchange, and gave Kurt a look over Blaine's back, mouthing 'What the fuck?' Kurt just smiled.

“Okay, let's get your hair done first..” Kurt led him down to the basement and they spent the bulk of the afternoon frosting his hair, and then dressing him in the new designer clothes.

“Okay, let's have a fashion show!' Kurt yelled, giggling as Blaine walked out of the bathroom where he'd changed. He came strutting in, his curly hair now frosted with dark blond tips, wearing linen slacks in dusky blue, cuffed a the bottom, a white linen button-up shirt and a charcoal gray vest. He had a pair of soft leather mid-calf boots with large buckles.

All three of the friends cheered as several outfits were shown, Blaine grinning the whole time.

“Well, I'm sure my own mother wouldn't know me!” He laughed for a second, then saw the faces of the others and stopped laughing. It really wasn't funny at all and Blaine just dropped down on the bed next to Puck. “Oh shit.”

Kurt suggested they go up and make some dinner, and he went up with Puck and Santana, leaving Blaine to himself to regroup.

They made enchiladas, Kurt and Santana arguing about the ingredients, but in a good natured way, and were finally ready, calling Blaine. He didn't answer and Puck looked at Kurt, nodding his head to encourage him to go down and get him. Kurt walked slowly down the stairs, worried about what he would find.

“Blaine?” he asked. “Dinner's ready.”

He opened the door to his room and found Blaine lying on the bed, wearing the t-shirt and jeans Kurt had gotten him the first day. He was curled around Kurt's pillow, tracks of salty tears on his cheeks. Kurt didn't say anything, just went over and sat on the bed, rubbing Blaine's back.

“Oh, Kurt. What's going to happen to me? I've known you two days and you're the best friend I have on earth. What does that say?” he sniffed.

“I'd say it makes you one lucky bastard,” Puck said from the doorway.

Blaine looked up, giving Puck a gentle smile. Santana came in and sat on Blaine's other side, putting her arms around him in support. Kurt ran his thumb over Blaine's cheek.

“We'll take care of you, Blaine. Until you don't need us, they we'll still be your friends. Okay?” Kurt said.

Puck took out a lighter and a knife. He ran the blade through the flame, blew on it a little, and cut his thumb. He did the same when Santana held hers out, and Kurt. Finally Blaine. They put their thumbs all together and the blood mixed.

“The four of us,” Santana said.

“Together,” Kurt said.

“Forever,” Puck.

“Until the end Of time,” Blaine finished.

They looked at each other and smiled, then all got up to go eat the food they had cooked, then watched movies and talked until late. They knew the blood brother pledge was silly, that it was out of some childhood book, but it meant something to them. That night the four of them slept curled together in Kurt's king sized bed. It was a little crowded, but nobody complained, and they all wondered how four more different people had come to mean so much to each other in so short a time.