The next few weeks passed by in a blur for Kurt and before he knew it, he'd been there for over a month. Between heavy loads of homework, Warblers' rehearsals, and helping Blaine with damage control for Nick and Jeff, he had barely had any time to himself. That's why the Friday before Thanksgiving break, Kurt decided to spend some alone time in the library reading. Kurt absolutely loved to read in his spare time when he was back at McKinley, but now it seemed like he was never alone. When he first walked into the library, he realized what a shame that had been because the large antique shelves that lined the walls in the corridor were packed full of every book you could think of. Kurt was in heaven. He sat on a plush sofa with his nose buried in a slightly tattered copy of Alice in Wonderland for hours. When Kurt finally tore himself away from the story and looked at the time, he saw that it was nearly 10:30—which was when the library closed. He quickly gathered his things and headed for the door, running smack into someone as he rounded the corner of one of the shelves.

"I'm so sorry!" he quickly bent down and began gathering the stranger's papers and books that had gone flying in the collision.

"S'fine really" he said in a thick Irish accent. Kurt looked up to see the stranger had piercing gray eyes. The coldness in them stilled Kurt's heart for a brief moment before a pleasant feeling of warmth spread over him, leaving goose bumps trailing down his arms.

"Uh…I…I insist." Kurt broke eye contact with him to continue cleaning the mess he had made.

The stranger squatted next to him and began picking up scattered papers, "Really, ya don't need ter go outta yar way ter help me." He took the stack of books and papers from Kurt's hands before helping him stand up. He kept his grasp on Kurt's hand and shook "I'm Braeden."

"Kurt" he returned the handshake with a firm grip before reluctantly releasing.

"Brae, I couldn't find the…Oh, hello. And who do we have here?" the girl that was now standing across from them had the same lilting accent as Braeden and the same dark hair and piercing eyes.

"This is Kurt. He was just kindly helping me clumsy arse." Braeden winked at Kurt who then blushed, "This is me sister Brenna."

"Hi" Kurt whispered shyly.

The siblings exchanged a brief look that seemed almost like there was an argument behind their eyes. Kurt felt as though he should be concerned, but the thought was suddenly brushed to the back of his mind, leaving nothing but that warm, euphoric sensation.

"Well, I s'pose ya'd like ter get back ter yar dorm. I know I'm nackered. Hopefully we'll see ya 'round though." Braeden smiled briefly at Kurt before following his sister into the darkness of the empty library.

As soon as the pair vanished, Kurt felt an unsettling coldness wash over him that gave him the heebie-jeebies. He quickly walked back to his dorm, frequently checking over his shoulder as he went.

When Kurt stepped off of the elevator and on to the second floor, he ran directly into a mildly disheveled Blaine. "I have got to stop doing that!"

Blaine laughed at Kurt both in surprise and agreement before he saw the look in his eyes and quickly grabbed ahold of his arms. "Hey, are you alright?" the concern in his voice apparent as he continued to search Kurt's eyes.

"No, I'm not."

Blaine's eyes widened, "What did you just say?"

Kurt's eyes narrowed in confusion, "I didn't say anything."

"Kurt…what happened to you?"

"I'm not really sure…nothing really. I'm just being a spaz I guess."

"No, Kurt. Something has happened to you…I can hear what you're thinking."

"What does that have to do with…?" Blaine caught a flash of a face that he thought he would never see again.

"No." he said disbelievingly. His grip on Kurt's arms tightened as he delved deep into his thoughts, watching the entire scene in the library replay before his eyes. He felt Kurt's initial panic and then the warmth that had spread through him, the all too familiar to him. He quickly dropped Kurt's arms and jumped back as though a jolt of electricity had run through his body.

"What is wrong with you?"

"Kurt, you have to promise me that you will stay away from those two." Kurt raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth to say something back but Blaine cut him off, "They're trouble. You have to trust me on this. They aren't even supposed to be here…"

"What? What do you mean they aren't supposed to be here?"

"The Duffy twins were kicked out last year for misuse of their abilities. They…that warmth you felt when you were with them—how comfortable you got—that was all Braeden's doing. It's part of his ability. I think he's done something to you—forced your guards down somehow. I can read your thoughts now I couldn't do that the last time I saw you. There's only one reason I can think of that he would do that…" Kurt looked at him, waiting for an answer. "Braeden can also control what you do if he gets a deep enough hold on you."

"And why would he do that? I think you're seriously overreacting, Blaine. They seemed pretty nice to me." He said with a shrug.

"Because I just know, okay? Trust me." The look on his face made Kurt wonder if he was speaking from experience.

Blaine's eyes broke away from Kurt's gaze and he noticed how incredibly pale he looked. He nodded at Blaine, "I trust you."

Blaine sheepishly glanced at Kurt, "Thank you."

Kurt took Blaine's hand and gave it a squeeze, "Come on, we should get to bed. We have to be up bright and early for rehearsal." With that, the two broke apart and went to their respective dorms. Neither slept much though, their thoughts surrounding the eerie twins and what their sudden return to campus would mean—and more importantly, whether or not Dalton was safe anymore.

The next day Kurt was greeted by Blaine waiting outside of his door. They walked to breakfast together where they met up with Nick, Jeff, David, Wes, and Grant before walking to rehearsal.

Blaine, Wes, and David were arguing over what the next song the Warbler's would tackle was going to be while Kurt giggled at them, occasionally giving his input.

"What the fuck?" Jeff and Nick froze where they were, expressions mixed with fear and rage plastered on their faces. The others stopped to look in the direction that they were glaring and Kurt felt Blaine tense next to him as his eyes fell on Braeden and Brenna walking across the courtyard with two other girls. As the group drew closer, Kurt saw that one of the girls was tiny with platinum blonde hair that fell to her shoulders. The other girl—who was standing exceptionally close to a flirtatious Braeden— was Aimee.

Blaine began to clench and release his fists repeatedly. "What in the hell are they doing here?" Wes hissed.

"Just transferred back." Blaine said through clenched teeth, "Kurt had the luck of running into them last night. Braeden did…something to him. His guards are down on his thoughts now."

David and Wes looked from Kurt and back to Braeden, "Shit…"

Kurt, not really fazed by any of this, leaned over to Wes and David, "Who's that girl with them?"

"That's Violet." David whispered. Jeff still heard him though and flinched at the mention of her name.

As they watched, Braeden leaned over and tucked the blue streak in Aimee's hair behind her ear as she giggled and blushed.

"That's it!" Blaine lunged in the direction of Braeden but Wes and David grabbed him before he could get too far.

"This isn't the way to handle this."

"They'll strip you of your Prefect title if you get in a fight, even if it is with a Duffy." Wes said the name with such venom that it sent a shiver down Kurt's spine. "They must be really bad…"

Blaine spun around to him, "They are," he spat, "and I don't want that sick fuck anywhere near my little sister!"

"Uh-oh…" Nick and Jeff snapped out of their horrified trance and began to back away from Kurt, the anger now pulsating off of him.

"You think I haven't figured that out yet? With the way you all are acting someone might mistake them both for the devil incarnate!"

"But they are…" Nick muttered.

"I don't care!' Kurt snapped, "I want you all to stop behaving like idiots holding this stupid grudge against them. Aimee can take care of herself." He turned to Blaine, "And I want you to stay out of my head." With that Kurt stormed off towards the dorms, not caring about rehearsal anymore as hot tears began to trail down his cheeks. "How could he snap at me like that? I didn't do anything! It was his own fault for not minding his own damn business."

"Kurt, wait!" Blaine called after him, coming to his senses. But it was too late and the boy vanished into thin air.

Kurt spent the rest of the afternoon curled up on his bed, watching the sunlight that was lightly streaming in through the windows as it danced on the wall. At about 4:00 there was a knock on his door. He begrudgingly climbed out of his warm bed to answer it, already knowing who he would see when he opened the door.

"Hi." Blaine smiled at him weakly, unsure if he had given Kurt enough time to cool off.

"Hey" Kurt returned Blaine's smile only briefly.

"Can I come in?" in answer Kurt stepped aside and went to sit on his bed, leaving the door ajar. Blaine walked in and closed the door behind him before joining Kurt to sit on the edge of his bed. Neither of them dared to speak so they instead glanced around the room, avoiding each other's eyes.

"Look," Kurt blurted, finally breaking the silence, "I'm so sorry for snapping at you earlier, I just…"

Blaine cut him off, "No, it was all my fault! I'm just so tense now that Braeden's back and seeing him with Aimee just set me on edge. I shouldn't have snapped at you because it wasn't your fault. So don't you blame yourself for a second." Kurt looked up at Blaine and saw the pain behind his eyes. He nodded at him as a blush began to creep across his cheeks. Blaine's hand reached up to lightly grab Kurt's chin, forcing the boy to hold his eye contact, "I'm sorry. I am truly and deeply sorry. You deserve better than that."

Kurt's breath hitched in his throat and he suddenly found it very hard to breathe. Blaine hesitated, his eyes scanning Kurt's, searching for the answer to his question. Kurt's lips parted ever so slightly and Blaine leaned in, gently capturing Kurt's lips with his own.

Kurt's eyes widened in surprise briefly before he let out a sigh and relaxed. Blaine brought his hand up to rest on the side of Kurt's neck. Kurt's hands dug into Blaine's shirt as he whimpered. After a few more seconds, Blaine pulled back, a crooked smile on his lips. Their eyes met and they both looked away, blushing furiously.

"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that…"

Blaine laughed at Kurt, who looked up at him and grinned. Kurt laid his hand on top of Blaine's where it was resting on his comforter and squeezed it lightly, "While that was nice, that doesn't get you out of the questions I still have for you." Blaine's smile tightened a little as he nodded, returning the pressure on Kurt's hand, "Although, you did just answer one of them." Kurt added with a murmur.

Blaine chuckled before nodding at Kurt to continue. "Why did you hesitate before you kissed me?" Kurt wasn't really sure where the question had come from.

Blaine, taken aback by this, coughed slightly before answering, "You told me to stay out of your head, so I was. I didn't want to kiss you if you weren't going to react well to it, but I still wanted to respect your wishes."

Kurt nodded and paused to take that in, his eyes glassy and far away. He continued, "Why do you hate Braeden and Brenna so much? What did they do to you that was so horrible?"

Blaine stiffened next to Kurt before he looked up at him, "That's a very long story."

"But you'll tell me." It wasn't a question.

"I'll have to eventually." Blaine smiled at Kurt, who was now pouting slightly, arms crossed tightly over his chest. He leaned over and kissed him lightly on the cheek, causing Kurt to gasp, before standing up, "Come on, I'm sure you're hungry by now. Let's go get some dinner and make sure Nick and Jeff haven't killed anyone yet."

Blaine helped Kurt off of the bed and they walked hand in hand down to dinner, Kurt now feeling the happiest he had felt since he had stepped on campus.