The town didn't look any different, people still walked the high street, chatting idly and laughing while children played in the park, running after each other through the jungle gym. The streets were clean, shops were still open and flower stalls and newspaper stands still littered the street corners. The only difference Kurt could make out from his perch on a branch by the forest edge, was the closure of the dry cleaners and a drenching of wolf scents over the entire town.

Kurt placed a hand over the pistol in his holster on his hip bone, pulling it out and flicking open the chamber to count the six solid silver bullets then putting it back, his hand moving down to the sais on his thighs and finally the katana pressed against his back. He let out a sigh as he went through his weapons, feeling at ease with them in place. He wore a dark grey shirt with light wash denim jeans and black boots. He'd jumped for joy this morning when he realised he'd be able to wear anything other than white. He'd almost rushed through his skin routine to get into his clothes, but old habits die hard and he took his time to apply the lotions to his body for the first time in two days.

All the wolves had been upset that he was covering his scent, but he needed to do it this way, needed a normality to deal with what was to come, and he didn't need rogue wolves sniffing him out while he had to deal with angry humans. With a grunt, Kurt swung himself down from the branch and slowly walked out of the forest. Blaine had wanted to come with him, but Kurt wouldn't allow it, forced to dominate the Alpha and make him stay. He hated the hurt he saw in Blaine's eyes when he did it but again, he didn't need the added pressure; walking up to humans with a wolf at his side was not helpful, especially a growling wolf.

As he approached the first set of houses, Kurt sniffed out Finn before the giant could be seen, leaning on the fence of an old house, grass overgrown in the front yard. Finn stood, rifle in his hands as he strained a smile to Kurt, who returned the strained smile. Kurt was thankful when Finn lowered the rifle and pulled him into a warm, tight hug, his own hands digging into Finn's back, taking a deep breath of his step-brother's aroma.

"Thank God, you're alright." Finn whispered.

"And which God would that be?" Kurt smiled.

Finn laughed, patting Kurt on the back and squeezing his shoulder, "Dude, this is some serious shit you were keeping from me." Kurt went to defend himself but Finn held up a hand to stop him, "But Burt told me everything and with all that's happened, I can understand why you didn't tell me. I've never been very good at keeping secrets, have I?"

Kurt shook his head, blinking back tears, "No, you're rubbish at keeping secrets." They shared a sad laugh, wiping away tears, "But I'm glad you know now, one more person on my side... right?"

Finn nodded, "No way you're getting rid of me, little brother."

"So, umm... what's it been like?" Kurt asked.

"Bad bro... about fifty people have already left town, another twenty are leaving today and half the town want you gone and the other half is too scared to say anything. That stupid Sebastian didn't help either, spreading those things about you bringing death and how we should string you up." Finn was getting angrier with each word he uttered.

"Is he gone?"

Finn nodded, "As far as I know."

That filled Kurt with dread, sniffing the air to see if he could smell anything, but there were so many other odours in the air it was hard to pick out just one. He could smell something like Sebastian's scent but it was old. Placing a hand on Finn's arm, he started to walk into the town, Finn at his side.

"Let's go see what the locals have to say." Kurt sighed as he spoke. Honestly, this was something he was dreading.

As the high street came into view, a crowd of people started to fill the pavements, mumbling to one another, some looking scared, some looking frightened and some looking worriedly to Kurt. He could pick out Becky wiping tears from her eyes, and Sid looking around at the crowd nervously, the nursery staff he rescued were whispering to one another, taking glances at Kurt.

Kurt stopped in the middle of the street, pulling his thoughts together, trying to figure out where to start when a voice called out to him.

"Is this why you forced us to be surrounded by wolves? Because you're one of them?"

Kurt didn't know where the voice came from and it didn't matter, because it echoed the thoughts of others, "No." Kurt called out to his audience, "I did it to protect us. We all know how dangerous vampires can be, but I know how territorial wolves and vampires are. They don't step into each others' territory. Before I became your hunter, this town was overrun with vampires and rouge wolves, I brought in the wolves to give us some protection. I turned down hundreds of pa-... hundreds of clans to pick out the four we now have... And I did it knowing very well if I tripped up, they'd more than likely kill me for what I am."

"Yeah well, they know now, we know and everyone else knows and you're bringing that danger here!" Shouted one of the residences from the old people's home.

"If I go they will still come, and they will burn this town to the ground to find out where I've gone. As these clans are our best defence to the threat out there, I am your best defence against these demons." Kurt turned to everyone in the crowd.

"You shouldn't have been here in the first place!" A man from the bank cried out, throwing a rock at Kurt.

Kurt ducked, the rock skidding behind him, holding a hand out to Finn, who had raised his rifle to the crowd. As Finn lowered his weapon, Kurt turned back to his audience.

"I didn't know what I was! It was hidden from me and I only found out a day ago. I knew I was in danger, that my life and no one else's was in danger, but I didn't know that what I was would cause all of this. But I'm here and-"

"We don't want you here!" Another voice called out.

"But I am here and I'm not going anywhere, I caused this mess and I'm not leaving you to deal with this. I will stop this demon and I will fix this mess. This is my home, that is my mother in that park and that is my father." Kurt pointed to Burt, who stood next to Sid, nodding proudly at Kurt. "I'm not leaving, and if you don't like that, if you don't like the safe haven I have created here, then leave. Pack your bags and go. In fact I'd prefer it, the less of you here when the demons attack, the better. You can return when the danger is gone, any of you who do leave will be greeted with open arms... and then... if you still don't want me here... I'll leave... until then you'll have to put up with me."

Kurt watched a few people in the crowd walk away, urging on their families to follow them back to their homes. Kurt sighed heavily, "I'll be going to New York tomorrow, and I'll be gone at the most, four days... I'll be heading to the academy, hopefully they'll be able to help us... after that, the boarders will be closed. No one will get out and no one will get in without going through the witches' barrier."

Kurt stood still, silently letting the crowd take in what he'd said, watched them converse quietly with each other and sighed heavily as they all walked away. He spotted Becky looking to him with a hand over her mouth, her father pulling on her arm to follow him away. Kurt sent her a nod and a small smile as she waved to him before following her father. Kurt leant into Finn, eyes still on the crowd as he spoke.

"I want a count and name list of everyone who stays behind by the time I get back."

With Finn's nod, Kurt and he walked over to Burt and Sid, both of which pulled Kurt into a tight hug, before Sid dragged Kurt into the bar. While Sid situated himself behind the bar to pour drinks for the group, Kurt sat between Finn and Burt at a table.

"Well that could've gone worse." Burt spoke up, breaking the tense silence.

"They all hate me. I'm gonna have to sleep with my pistol under my pillow." Kurt groaned, pulling at his hair as he leant over the table.

"I thought you already did that." Burt nudged him.

"No, I can feel it under my pillow... makes my head hurt." Kurt muttered.

"For what it's worth, Kurt." Sid spoke out, coming back round with their drinks and sitting next to Burt, "I think it was very brave of you to stand out there and take all of that. What you said was right, you have looked out for us all and made this place one of the safest towns in the state... even though it was putting you at risk."

"Yeah dude, it's like, all we've had to worry about in ten years is a few rouge wolves and a black witch now and again. You don't get any praise for that but a little demon trouble and they bring out the pitch forks!" Finn raised his arms up in annoyance.

"It's a little bit more than just a little demon trouble, Finn." Kurt groaned, glaring at his step-brother's puzzled look.

"Plus that Alpha didn't help." Sid moaned, taking a long drink from his bottle.

"Sebastian?" Kurt asked, groaning at the nod he gets, "I'm going to kill that wolf."

"I'll happily do that for you, kid." Burt gripped his cap, tugging down around his bald head. "That asshole caused all of this, if he'd kept his mouth shut, we wouldn't have to deal with all of this."

"Well, what's done is done. I'm just thankful that most of the wolves around here are on my side." Kurt sipped his drink.

"Most?" Finn asked.

"Blaine and Nathan are trying to hide it from me, but I can still smell the hatred towards me from a few wolves, but I'll be ready if they decide to turn on me."

"You'll have another set of eyes up there on the next full moon." Sid spoke up, tapping Kurt's hand across the table, laughing at his confused look, "My daughter came down while you were out, and I decided to take the ceremony. So once I join Noah's clan, I'll be keeping an eye out for any wolves who might want to take you out."

Kurt's smile grew with every word, "You're seriously taking the ceremony? That's fantastic, Sid."

"You'll be there, right? When I take it?" Sid asked, his nerves surfacing.

"Of course I will, you've been so good to me and my dad, Sid, I won't miss it for the world." Kurt smiled.

"At this rate, me, Carole and Finn are going to be the only humans left in this town." Burt joked, downing his beer.

"Would that mean less patrols?" Finn asked excitedly.

"Yes it would, but that's not going to happen, Finn."

"Why not?" Finn asked with a whine.

"Because I doubt I could get four clans to live together in one town, plus I doubt all the people who live here will leave." Kurt spoke as he sipped his drink, placing the empty glass down, then standing.

"I'm going to head home. I've got a lot to prepare before I head out tomorrow."

Burt stood and pulled Kurt into a tight hug, patting him on the back before letting him go, Kurt waving to Sid and Finn before leaving the bar and walking home, hand resting on his pistol. He held his head high despite the glances he got from people in the streets and the fluttering of curtains. Cars packed with suitcases and cardboard boxes raced passed him and towards the highway, horns blazing as they go.

It was hard watching the people he thought he could trust run from him, threaten him while the wolves he thought he couldn't trust were the ones who were protecting him. Though he had still been proven right by the reaction of Sebastian's clan and some of the wolves from the other clans. Stepping up to the gate of his home, he gently placed his hand on the wood and paused. Eyes ablaze, they darted over the house, over the garden and surrounded woodland while Kurt sniffed the air, his wolf growling with the familiar scent growing stronger with every quickening heartbeat.

Keeping his sword in its sheath and gripped in both hands, Kurt turned to stop the two clawed paws jumping at him, pushing them above his head and kicking a foot into the belly of the wolf, throwing him over the fence and into the garden. Chestnut brown fur stood on ends, white teeth and long sharp claws on full display, a menacing growl vibrating through the wolf's whole being as golden eyes bore into Kurt.

Sword still in its sheath, Kurt leapt over the fence, eyes never leaving golden orbs, "Sebastian, stop this, let's sit down and talk this through... I don't want to hurt you." Kurt voice was strong, but calm. There would be no submitting to this wolf, he would need to dominate Sebastian to stop this.

The growl heightened as Sebastian arched his back, tail twitching in the air as he readied himself for attack, and Kurt waited, knees bent, ready to move with the wolf. Leaping forward, Sebastian's teeth went for Kurt's belly, snapping on empty air as Kurt ducked and thrust his sheathed sword into his side with a cry, watching Sebastian tumble away with a yelp.

Kurt held his body tall, eyes aglow as he growled at the Alpha, fearlessly stepping forward even when the wolf got back on all fours and circled the hunter. Sebastian snapped and Kurt swung his sword at him, the wolf just barely escaping, both growling, both arching their bodies to look bigger than the other. Sebastian snapped again, Kurt's sword finding the soft skin on his neck, watching Sebastian scurry back out of reach.

Kurt sniffed the air, "Sebastian," He unsheathed his sword, sheath in his left, sword in his right hand, "Tell your clan to back off if they value their lives."

The growls intensified as the hidden wolves surrounded the property. Kurt could see five but smell three more still hidden away. He growled to a wolf on his left who jumped the fence, thankful that he didn't come any closer, swinging his sheath back at Sebastian when the wolf tried to take advantage of the distraction, the thud against his jaw only just audible above the yelp the Alpha lets out.

"You don't think I've been trained for this? This is nothing, Sebastian! I could've cut you down but I haven't! Stop this now!" Kurt cried out.

The howl signalled the attack. His sword swung left, slicing the neck of the wolf, using the dying body to jump over another wolf, claws pulling at his shirt, tearing the material. His sheath dropped to the floor to pull out a sai, spinning in the air to throw the weapon into the belly of the wolf. Firm on his feet, Kurt swung his sword around to get the other wolves to back off, teeth everywhere, growls deafening.

Kurt found the chestnut fur of the Alpha he wanted, "How many more of your men have to die?" He growled.

The tension was agony as Kurt held the eyes of the Alpha, daring him to test him. Eventually the Alpha snapped at his men, sending them away, two of them clamping their jaws around the necks of their fallen brethren, dragging them away. Kurt kept his katana held out at Sebastian as they both waited until the last of the wolves were out of sight, just their scents remaining. Sebastian morphed, his hair dishevelled, dark wash jeans and black shirt torn and covered in mud and eyes still golden as he stared down the hunter; a stare Kurt didn't dare back down from.

Footsteps circled Kurt as Sebastian growled continuously, Kurt following him with his katana, holding his head high, bearing his teeth to the Alpha, his own growl burning in his throat. Snarls were exchanged when Sebastian charged at Kurt, noses just touching as the katana sat against the tender flesh of Sebastian's throat, hot breath against cheeks. Fingers itched next to Kurt's throat while a trickle of blood slipped down Sebastian's neck, both snarling and growling, at a standstill.

"This is getting us nowhere, Sebastian. As you can see, I'm not that easy to kill." Kurt whispered, not trusting his voice to stay level.

"A demon wouldn't need much to possess you, Hound." Sebastian spat.

"We're working on something and I have the salt diamond bracelets."

"Nothing you're working on will outweigh the work of seven centuries. Killing your kind has worked just fine for now."

"Not if I kill this demon first." Kurt breathed, pushing on his katana when Sebastian tried to inch closer.

"Then we'll just be waiting for the next demon to come after you." The growl deepened.

"Not if we send them a message. Show them that the key can't be obtained so easily, that the key has the support of the clans again."

"The key will never have the support of the clans again! Not after what happened! Not after we lost so many members of our families! Five centuries... that's how long it took for my clan to come back together! You left two wolves from my bloodline alive, two! You left them fighting against those overpowered demons for five centuries! And only forty years ago did we get the last of them!" Sebastian was shouting now.

"The last of them?" Kurt whispered.

"My clan was the one chosen in this country to defeat all the demons who had gained powers from the opening of the Gates of Tartarus. It was with our sacrifice that the world sleeps peacefully for the first time in seven centuries. I will not let you ruin that for everyone and put my clan back in that dangerous position!"

"That wasn't me, Sebastian. I'm stronger than that, I won't let it happen... and if the demon does somehow manage to possess me..." Kurt took a deep breath to steady his voice, knowing Blaine would never forgive him for what he was about to say, "I want you there to kill me before he makes me open the gates, because Blaine and Nathan won't, and if what you say is true, then you have every right to be the wolf to do it. I don't want your clan to suffer either."

The silence dragged on between the pair, neither one making a move, Kurt allowing Sebastian to be the one to decide what happened next, hoping he'd made an impact on the strong Alpha. He jerked as a hand raised to his cheek, stroking the skin tenderly and moving to slip into his hair, his katana moving away from Sebastian's neck in return.

A hitched breath was all Kurt could let out as finger gripped in his hair, yanking his head back harshly. Kurt tried to get his katana back up but Sebastian's other hand was already wrapped around his wrist, squeezing until Kurt let out, a silent thud in the mud as it lands. Kurt grips at Sebastian's shirt to try and hold him away, teeth grazing the delicate skin of his neck.

"I'll kill you before that demon even gets to touch you... Why did it have to be you?" Sebastian hissed.

"You think I wanted this? But right now, with my training, I'm probably the best chance we have of stopping this. I'm going back to the academy, they might have something I can use to help me." Kurt opened his fisted hand to lay it over Sebastian's heart. "You're a good Alpha, Sebastian. I wouldn't have let you live here if I didn't think that."

"I want my mines back." The words were hissed into his skin.

Kurt nodded, coughing to clear his throat, "I wasn't the one to kick you out, so to me, they're still yours, and those who joined you. Just... don't get in my way, and control your clan. I have enough to look out for without your clan coming after me right now."

Nodding, Sebastian moved Kurt's head until they were eye to eye, "You're strong... I just hope you're strong enough."

"So I do." Kurt spoke honestly.

"Watch your back, Hound." Kurt shivered at the lingering look Sebastian gave him, swallowing hard.

Pushing Kurt away, Sebastian morphed into his wolf, howling into the sky, a chorus of howls following him and he walked out of the gardens and towards the forests... back towards the mines. Knees giving way, Kurt tumbled to the ground, bringing his knees to his chest, wrapping his arms around them, pulling them as close as he could, and cried.

He cried in fear, in relief and in acceptance of his fate. He cried until Santana returned and dragged him into the house. He cried himself to sleep, begging his mind to take him to that meadow, to the only place he felt safe at this time.

It wasn't long until the Hounds were there, looking up at the giant cracks in the pearly gates, the black fog creeping through the stems of sodden grass. Two more Hounds were missing from the fields; one an old man, who would always play hide and seek with the new cubs... and the new born pup, who had appeared at the same time as Liam. Kurt sat in his normal spot, next to the gate looking up at the cracks, as three Hounds moved to sit around him. He recognised the two as Jane and Emma... the third, he recognised from his training so many years ago.