One year later

Tickets to New York Comic Con are way too expensive.

Blaine would know, since the credits that his parents gave him a year ago are, to no one’s surprise, utterly useless. He and Kurt had to pay in dollars!

But it’s a special occasion. It’s a reunion of the cast of The Cooper Chronicles movies, including the actor who played Blaine. But they’re not here for him. They’re here because B.D. Dalton is making an appearance, which is basically unheard of.

B.D. loves her privacy and has barely made any public appearance since the final movie came out. But she’s made an exception for the anniversary.

“I am going to see my creator,” Blaine mutters and he and Kurt take a seat in the convention hall.

“Yup.”

“So weird.”

“She won’t know, though.”

Of course she won’t. Apart from Kurt, no one knows the truth. Kurt and Blaine have created a story for Blaine. He’s Blaine Anderson, originally from a town in the middle of nowhere in America, and he’s lost his parents in an accident, so he moved to the big city to start anew. He and Kurt met in New York, but lost contact. Blaine then found Kurt again, and no one can disprove it. It helps that Santana believed herself to be high when Blaine arrived. She totally hallucinated this fire portal! What a trip!

It also helps that no time had passed on Earth when Kurt was in Daltonia. That was a huge relief for Kurt. No worried friends and family! No awkward explanation of where he’d been for days! When Blaine heard, he was happy for Kurt, although he did wonder if that means that time in Daltonia is now stopped.

But Kurt didn’t think so.

“I never belonged in Daltonia, so the world I am from was halted to a stop while I was there. You, on the other hand, do belong on Earth now,” Kurt had explained, and he had a reason for thinking that Blaine was at home on Earth. It’s thanks to his mother.

It’s been a year since Blaine moved to this world, and he’s getting used to it. He doesn’t regret his choice, especially since he now lives with Kurt, Rachel and Santana in the loft. Waking up next to Kurt is a dream come true, and it makes it all okay. He’s still as directionless as before, and even more so, since he has to adjust to a new world, but he’s also more optimistic than ever.

The panel starts and Kurt and Blaine applaud loudly, together with the many other fans.

It starts off rather boringly. Everyone talks about their experiences filming the movies and what not. Blaine hasn’t seen the movies. He still hasn’t even read the books. Maybe he never will. It is still too strange for him.

But when it’s time for the audience to ask questions, he sits up.

Kurt’s hand flies up.

“Yes, you,” the moderator points towards him.

Kurt stands up. He talks about how much he loves the book series and the movies, and how happy he is to see B.D. in the flesh.

“My question is for B.D.,” he continues, “If any of your characters would come to life, what would you say to them?”

“Any?” B.D. asks.

Kurt nods.

“Well, that is easy. I would tell them I love them,” she says with a warm smile, and Blaine instantly believes her.

The audience also coos and awwwws.

Blaine also raises his hand.

“Yes, with the bowtie?” the moderator says.

Kurt sits down and Blaine gets up instead.

“Uh, hi B.D.”

“Hello,” she says back.

“If, uh- Imagine your world were real. Daltonia were real. And it would exist alongside this one, do you think it’d be possible for people between them to be connected?”

B.D. blinks a couple of times. She did not expect that question, which is fair, because it sounds ridiculous. Only Kurt and Blaine know the truth.

“I don’t think so, because Daltonia is a world of fiction,” she answers, obviously. She frowns. “May I ask… Connected how?”

“Well, I found out that the character of queen Pamela was originally planned for another book. You repurposed her for this series.”

“True.”

“And, uh, what if- I mean… What if because of that, queen Pamela would always be a bit, uh, off within the world of Daltonia?”

That is Kurt and Blaine’s theory. When Kurt found out about queen Pamela’s character, he immediately started theorising. What if queen Pamela also didn’t fully belong in Daltonia, even though she never knew? And if so, then her child may be the same. Maybe that is why Kurt, who definitely didn’t belong in Daltonia, reacted towards Blaine’s potions and why Blaine was able to read the books, even though they came from a different world.

It’s a theory, though, and they may never get an answer. Definitely not now. B.D. Dalton seems absolutely confused by Blaine’s question, and of course she is.

“Never- Never mind,” Blaine says. It was a bit unfair to expect an answer from B.D.

“No, it is an interesting thought!” B.D. reassures him, “Pamela did come from a story that took place on Earth, even though it was still a work of fiction. And I hope I didn’t write her as an outsider, but it’s true she’s the one character who wasn’t originally created for Daltonia. So who knows?”

It’s an open question to a weird question, but Blaine takes it.

“Yeah. Who knows? Thank you.”

Blaine sits down again. Kurt puts his hand on Blaine’s leg and they continue listening to the panel. At one point, another fan asks if B.D. has ever thought about continuing the series in any way, be it through a sequel, a prequel, or something set in Daltonia.

“No, Daltonia is over for me,” B.D. says, “I have said it before, and I’ll say it again: I have no interests in revisiting it. I think the books ended where I wanted it to end, and I don’t want to risk besmirching that.”

“But you’ve really never thought about what the characters would be up to now?” the fan presses on.

“Never,” B.D. says with a smile, “I have no control over the Chronicles Club anymore. I’d like to think stories live on, even without the author’s interference. And you are free to use your own imaginations, but for me, I have let them go on.”

Kurt squeezes Blaine’s leg and their eyes meet. They share a look. They know that B.D. is right, and it’s their inside joke in a way.

The panel ends. The moderator thanks everyone for coming and the cast and B.D. leave the stage with a huge applause. Then, the convention room slowly empties.

Blaine follows Kurt out, but it’s so crowded, and he loses Kurt in the crowd. That’s fine. Blaine’s adapted to this nifty device called a cell phone. He can call Kurt. He first follows the stream of people, just to be sure, but it’s no use.

Blaine has to make the phone call. He can do it.

He sneaks off to another room, opening a door without reading the sign. He needs a quiet spot.

“Oh.”

Blaine looks up.

B.D. Dalton and two other people are standing in this small room. Blaine must’ve accidentally gone backstage, or what they call it.

“Sorry, sorry, I wanted to make a phone call!” Blaine sounds apologetic, “I will… leave.”

“Wait a minute,” B.D. says. Blaine stops in his tracks. “You asked the question about queen Pamela.”

“Uh. Yeah.”

“… What was your name?” B.D. asks and she looks at him, really looks at him.

“Blaine. Blaine of- Anderson.”

“Blaine,” B.D. says with a hushed voice. Her eyes are basically staring into his soul. Does she recognise him for who he really is?

That is silly.

“Like the prince,” she says, sounding awed and confused, as if she’s glad to see him but can’t understand why.

“Like the prince,” Blaine confirms with a smile. If only she knew.

She keeps looking at Blaine for a while. The other people in the room are confused. But then she quickly shakes her head and laughs quietly, as if she’s realising something funny. The moment has passed.

“Nice to meet you, Blaine,” she says, voice normal and professional, “Now go before security thinks you’re a stalker.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Blaine leaves the room with his heart beating in his chest. For a moment, B.D. recognised him. She might believe it was silly of her, but she did. Blaine doesn’t know what that means, but it makes him feel happy and warm.

“Oh, there you are!”

Kurt walks towards Blaine.

“Sweetheart, I lost you in the crowd.”

“I’m here!” Blaine says. His face is glowing. He is so happy. Kurt notices.

“Anything interesting going on?”

“I will tell you later,” he says, “At home.”

He first needs to sit with it for a while. He’ll probably never speak B.D. Dalton again, but it’s fine. He has this moment.

“Ready?” Kurt takes Blaine’s hand. They’re going to a merch hall. It’s going to be weird to see different interpretations of Cooper in fanart.

Blaine gives Kurt a quick kiss.

“Yes. Lead the way.”