Something clicked as soon as Blaine heard the doors to the sanctuary slam shut behind him. He took straight for the training grounds. The Elders advisors and other members of the fae court seemed to follow at his heel. Something had shifted and they all sensed it, an urgency descended on the mountain settlement. Questions flew back and forth between the gaggles of Blaines new followers. He called for intelligence and for messages to be sent to all fae and dragon settlements to prepare and be on high alert. He decreed that all information concerning warlock movements should be shared. Most importantly he decreed that there would be no offence. Their armies sole purpose would to be defence and to liberate the dragon kind being used by the warlocks as weapons.

Blaine may not have been raised as a warrior or even as an Elder but he had listened and learnt. He was the one the Morrigan had delivered the prophecy to, it was his job to protect the peace at all costs and it had already cost him so much; his family, his clan, his sanity. So as he rounded the last corner, Kurts hand held tightly in his he took a deep breath as he was faced with every member of the Boann and Arianrhod guards.

"News travels fast here I see." He said amused but still with the faint tremor of fear running through him. A glance to his left saw Kurt smiling and waving at someone. Intrigued Blaine asked for an introduction. "Blaine, this is Danu, my teacher and friend." Danu, a wiry fae with beautiful braids and honest eyes stepped forward. Blaine bowed his head respectfully, a gesture often only reserved for Elders and royalty. Danu was the greatest healer of the age, she had saved countless lives including Blaines own, for that Blaine had more respect for her than he did any Elder or King.

"Gossip travels fast here." She said with a smile and took his hand tenderly. "How are you?" Her sincerity made it hard to breathe and Blaine managed to choke out a quiet fine before serendipitously changing the subject. "Thank you for helping Kurt find his way. I always knew that with the right teacher hed find his true calling."

"He is very skilled that is true, and we are lucky to have the both of you leading us in the endeavour for peace."

"The both of us?" Kurt reiterated confused.

"Well," Blaine began turning to him "did you think I would ever want to do anything without you by my side?" The urge to kiss the fierce look off of Blaines face was not as strong as the need to imprint the conviction and absoluteness of his love into his very soul. They had been so close to losing each other and he had no doubt that they would come close again.

.oO0Oo.

Blaine was grateful that the Boann and Arianrhod clans were spread out across so much land as it made mobilising and training easier than he had originally anticipated. Less fortunate was the effort it took Blaine to travel back and forth between training grounds. The healers and guards of their company trained separately. Kurt spent the majority of his time with the healers but found his way back to Blaine where he had assembled a committee in the Elders sanctuary to discuss the warlocks movements and strategy. Liber and Mania stood moodily in the corner refusing to look at each other whilst casting furtive glances toward the centre of the room where Blaine had assembled a group of messengers, advisors and community leaders around a round, gilded table strewn with parchment.

Blaine would have felt bad if he hadnt have tried to involve them from the beginning but all they had replied with was a haughty sniff and mutterings about dishonour. Blaine tried his best to ignore them, he had more pressing matters to deal with, but their judgement and lack of faith in him wormed its way through his ribcage to rest by his heart. There wasnt time for self doubt but he became more conscious of the directions he was giving to those around him. What made him qualified to lead them, to tell them what to do? Hed made the choice to start making the decisions as he couldnt stand to sit back and do what bickering Elders asked him to do. How then could he expect anyone around him to do the same?

All his waking hours he spent flitting back and forth to make sure everything was okay, that they were prepared and ready for anything. Most of his nights were sleepless and spent shut away in the Elders sanctuary pouring over messages and maps trying to anticipate when and how the warlocks would strike. When dusk began to fall on the fifth night Kurt came to find him hunching over the many pieces of parchment just staring, as if he looked close enough at the lettering hed be able to predict an attack.

Blaine sagged against Kurt as he wrapped his arms around his waist, gently easing him upright and away from the table. "You need your sleep." He said simply, softly.

"I cant. Every time I blink I see them. Its like not only am I haunted by what happened but also what will be." Blaine whispered, his words imitating wind in the sound of their echoes around the vast chamber. "What might be." Kurt offered hopefully in reply and Blaine fell a little more in love with him.

"Take a walk with me?" Kurt asked whilst taking his hand and leading him out into the fading light. "Its so beautiful here yet youve seen little more of it than the training grounds and the hall of Elders." Blaine followed him out into the crisp air, slowly leaving the settlement and venturing down a somewhat familiar path lined with hazel trees. The fast approaching night was still and cold even for Blaine. He had forgotten how quickly time passed and seasons changed. The leaves were turning and lighting the path with their rich oranges and crimsons, winter was fast approaching and Blaines mind turned to how many more hed see, if any.

Kurt was silent as they stepped into a clearing paved in cracked stone and surrounded by foliage, the masonry overgrown and in disrepair. The place was old, ancient, the atmosphere strangely ethereal despite the presence of decay, a crumbling well in the centre of the clearing and the dying hazel trees that lined its edges. There was a sense that it had once been a vibrant place but the air remained stagnant and cold. Blaine walked around the clearing dazed, a familiar song resonating inside his head, drowning out Kurts voice.

And when the sun sets dimmed in eve, and purple fills the air,

Suddenly the clearing was transformed, the stones were painted an array of colours and soft candlelight marked its edges, twilight had just fallen.

I think the sacred hazel-tree is dropping berries there,

The trees were lush and green, the air warm and filled with laughter and song.

From starry fruitage, waved aloft where Connlas Well oerflows;

The well was a magnificent structure at the centre of it all, feeding life into the flora that surrounded it and the peoples, fae and dragon kind alike that gathered there, dancing into the night.

For sure, the immortal waters run through every wind that blows.

Blaine leant over it and retrieved a golden bowl filled to the brim with the clearest water with too small hands. He smiled. He was home. He gazed into the sparkling water seeing only flames. It slipped from his grasp but instead of hearing a dissonant crash the screaming began.

He blinked and was faced with Kurt, crying and terrified framed by a crown of burning hazel.