This was the kind of day that Blaine used to dream about when he was younger.

A bright sun up above, a beautiful blue sky, temperature comfortable, the road stretching on forever into the horizon.

Blaine sitting on a cooler, leaning against his car and knocking back an ice-cold beer.

And the most important part.

Kurt with the hood of the Mustang propped up, leaning into the machinery with a wrench, grime and dirt smeared on his face where he'd wiped the sweat off, clad in a ratty old t-shirt of Blaine's and torn jeans, humming absently along to the old radio Blaine dug out the trunk.

Of course, Blaine hadn't always thought of Kurt being there. But someone. Just someone there; someone willing to travel with him.

Texas was making him sentimental.

And Kurt caught him staring. But instead of a snarky remark, Kurt broke into a wide grin and began singing along to the radio, using the wrench as a microphone and shaking his hips to the beat.

"No, I'll stand my ground, won't be turned around,

And I'll keep this world from dragging me down,

Gonna stand my ground and I won't back down."

He grabbed Blaine's hand and yanked him up, pointing the wrench at Blaine's face and smirking expectantly. Blaine took the cue and sang the chorus with Kurt's backing vocals meshing strangely well. Figuring he might as well go out, Blaine grabbed a screwdriver and hammed it up to Tom Petty, dancing around the Mustang. Kurt just laughed, and never missed a line.

It felt so right and perfect to sing his heart out with Kurt right there with him. Even though the world was full of shit, this lonely Texas highway was a perfect moment. He worried everyday about whether taking Kurt out of Ohio was the right move but right now? He knew it was. Somehow, they were both in front of the Mustang again, facing each other as the song wound down.

"I won't back down."

"No, I won't back down."

Kurt finished, meeting Blaine's gaze evenly. The kid had too much pride. Too stubborn. Blaine felt himself blushing, but he didn't want to be the one to break eye contact first. The radio DJ was rambling about some contest, and then U2 was slipping through the speakers.

Tough, you think you've got the stuff

You're telling me and anyone

You're hard enough

The radio was testing him; Blaine just knew it. He silently cursed Bono.

But Kurt was turning away and had his arms elbow deep into the Mustang's guts. Blaine didn't have a clue what Kurt was doing; he was hopeless when it came to cars. When the Mustang started clanking on the highway, he'd pulled over and let Kurt work his magic. As Kurt clearly wasn't interested in talking, Blaine sat back down in his previous position and brooded about the warnings and signs he kept seeing. Seeing Pavarotti was next to him, Blaine began tuning her just for something to do.

Something was coming. Something huge.

And no one knew what it was.

"I meant it, you know." Kurt's voice interrupted his thoughts. Blaine watched him tighten something deep within the car; watched him grunt with effort before it satisfied him. Then Kurt was looking at him, all blue fire in his eyes and strong chin. "The song. I'm not running away."

Blaine didn't answer, just plucked the strings in a random tune.

"I know you don't believe me," Kurt continued, wiping his hands off with an oil-stained rag and shutting the hood. "But I won't. We're in this together. Nothing will scare me off. I'm too much of a stubborn-ass bitch, remember?" Kurt smirked when Blaine finally laughed. "Come on. Get up." He kicked the cooler lightly. "I fixed your baby, you can drive her. I want a nap."

Blaine rolled his eyes, but got up and stowed Pavarotti in her case and rested her in the backseat. Kurt jammed the toolbox in the trunk between the shotguns and books in the trunk before flopping into the passenger seat, cranking the window down. He kicked off his shoes, curling up in the seat and falling asleep against the window ledge within seconds.

With a silent scream, Kurt jolted awake. For a few seconds, his eyes darted around the car before he recognized the familiar Mustang and its leather seats. It had gotten dark outside but they were still driving.

Get a grip Kurt. You're safe. Blaine's here. You're not…there. Kurt groaned and rubbed a hand over his face, trying to stop shaking. This was the second dream in a week that he'd woken up muffling screams and tears. He saw Blaine out the corner of his eye looking at him with a grim expression while talking on the phone. Oh, awesome. Blaine noticed. Maybe he'd forget. Not likely, of course.

They were actually more frequent than Blaine knew. And had started over a year ago. At first, he dreamed only once or twice every couple of months, but they sped up after his father died. Every week, then every few nights, now every night and sometimes during the day. Kurt was just very good at staying quiet at night. He had a lot of practice from high school. But Blaine was starting to notice.

And he couldn't give Blaine another reason to leave him.

God, but he was horribly co-dependent wasn't he?

Kurt tried to calm his breathing, listening to Blaine's voice.

"Sam, why're you calling us? It's like one in the morning." Blaine sounded tired, but he gave Kurt a glance that said We are so not finished. "Come on Sam…wait, really? You think…this could be interesting yeah! Where is…" By habit, Kurt already had a notebook and a pen out. Blaine grinned and dictated a few names, spelling a few. "Thanks, Sam! …I'll let you know…What? Oh. Yes, I'll bring him one day. Full name? Kurt Hummel, but why…" Blaine suddenly blushed. Interesting. What could possibly make Blaine Anderson blush? Kurt tried to hide a grin. "Yes, he's nice. Shut up, Sam! Sam says hi, by the way." Blaine glanced at Kurt, who was snickering. He flushed even darker. "I'm hanging up now. Bye, Sam. Yes, I miss you too. God, you need to get out once in a while. Talk to you later." He hung up, rolling his eyes and smiling apologetically at Kurt. "Sorry about that."

"No, he seems cool. I wanna meet him." Kurt waved his hand flippantly. "Anyone who can make you blush is instantly alright in my book." He nudged Blaine's shoulder.

"Whatever." Blaine scoffed. "Anyway…" And Blaine was looking at Kurt with barely contained excitement. Kurt wondered if he should be worried. "How do you feel about vampires?"

Kurt blinked. "Vampires?"

-Halling, Nebraska -

The small woman licked the last of the blood off her lips. She relished the coppery bittersweet taste before leaning in to kiss her mate's cheeks. He stood up, pulling her with him and settling his hands on her waist.

"So beautiful," he whispered into the moonlight, dragging a cool finger lightly across her cheeks.

She felt his stomach through his thin shirt. "So are these," she whispered, giggling. "I swear, every year these abs get more and more defined."

"I think you're more in love with my abs than with me."

"Guilty." The girl sighed, leaning in to his embrace and enjoying the feeling of his hand combing through her long, silky, black hair. For the moment, they were safe. But they would have to go back to the nest soon and deal with the others. "What are we going to do?" she whispered.

The tall man just sighed. "I don't know. We'll think of something."

They walked away from the field, leaving a drained cow corpse behind.

The bar was loud and raunchy, but the bartender was friendly. Blaine flirted with her enough to get free beers, knowing that Kurt was watching and probably laughing his ass off. When we got back to the table, though, Kurt was resting his head on his hand with his eyes closed.

'm not sleeping." He mumbled, grabbing one the beers and pressing the cool glass to his forehead. "Leave it alone, Blaine." He glared, daring Blaine to say something.

Christ. Blaine was starting to get worried about his lack of sleep, but Kurt was too stubborn to talk about it. He decided now was not the time to get into a fight.

"So, check it out." Blaine unfolded a map over the small table. It detailed Halling, Nebraska and the surrounding counties. Pulling out a marker, Blaine began making dots on the paper, trying to remember what Sam had said on the phone. "There are two things going on. In the past three weeks, five cows have been found drained of blood. Old ones, ones that can't produce milk and were about to be sold for their meat." He marked five circles in red on the surrounding fields. "They're from several different ranches too. Now in town," Blaine found a green marker "Here and…here, two people have been found dead. One was a twenty-five year old woman named Naomi Drake, who was found behind a dumpster in an alley of a night club. The other, thirty-nine year old Harry Sowers, died in the bathroom of a different club all the way on the other side of town. Both had significant blood loss, but there was no blood at the scene."

When Blaine glanced up, though, Kurt was staring past his shoulder. Blaine turned around, but only saw a small group of friends. They were dressed in black and listening intently to small Asian woman with blue streaks in her black hair. Another Asian, a tall, thin man with strong arms, held her protectively against his waist. She continued talking, waving her arms frantically.

"They keep looking at us," Kurt said. And he was right. Every so often, one member of the group would turn around and stare at them before diving back into whatever argument they were having. It was mildly unsettling. Blaine tried to ignore them when Kurt looked back at the map.

He watched Kurt study the map. Kurt chewed the inside of the bottom lip and narrowed his eyes, like he did when he was thinking hard about something. "I don't get it."

"What?"

"This!" Kurt waved at the marks. "I think we can assume they are related if only because of the lack of blood, but why would a vampire go after a cow? Especially with such a large source of humans so close by. What came first?"

"The cows," Blaine said. "Well, the pattern was three cows, a human, a cow, a human, a cow." It really didn't make sense actually. And Kurt saw it right away.

"See, it's just weird. If you can get humans, why eat the cows?"

"Less fat?"

"Hilarious, Blaine." Kurt frowned, though. "Can vampires live off of animal blood?"

Well that was an interesting question. Blaine was baffled. Vampires were only just recently been active again; centuries of hunters had driven them nearly to the brink of extinction. Blaine honestly didn't know a whole lot about them, other than the few facts his father had bothered to leave him with.

"I don't know. All I know is that vampires are vicious killing machines that like to drink human blood; blood from a dead body is toxic to them; and that stakes are useless. You gotta cut off their heads." Blaine felt eyes watching him. When he turned around the Asian girl was looking at him, but she quickly turned away. "Look Kurt," Blaine lowered his voice. He really didn't want the other patrons to be suspicious. "I don't know why the cattle are dying, but that's not my concern. Our job is to find the vampires that killed the people and kill them. End of story." He began folding up the map.

"That's a little heartless, isn't it? What if—"

"Kurt, they're vampires, not misunderstood children. They kill people, we kill them. Easy." Blaine shoved their stuff into the duffel. He wasn't a heartless person. But hunting was hard enough without having to stop and discuss the morals behind every creature. "Come on, Kurt. Let's look up some stuff at the room."

Kurt seemed a little unhappy, but followed Blaine outside with little protest.

While Blaine went to get the car, Kurt waited by the door with their bag. It had rained earlier, and Kurt flat out refused to walk through mud without proper footwear. Thankfully, all he had to do was pout a little and ask please and Blaine caved. Such a sweetheart.

Leaning against the side of the building, Kurt bit at his fingernail. Honestly, he was a little worried about sleeping tonight. The nightmares were scaring him, but he really didn't need another reason for Blaine to worry and consider leaving him. No. He'd deal with them on his own.

Kurt was thinking too hard about his dreams to notice when a large presence appeared next to him.

"Well, look at this. A fairy sighting."

Oh Christ. Kurt froze, eyes dragging up the huge frame of Dave Karofsky. Well, wasn't this perfect. What the fuck was this asshole even doing here? His black double was nowhere to be seen. Karofsky was grinning in a very unsettling way and Kurt tried to suppress a shudder. Maybe sass would scare him off.

"Oh, it's you," he drawled, trying to sound uninterested. "Thought I smelled utter failure and sweat."

Karofsky's face darkened. Mustering up every bit of courage, Kurt ignored him. Showing weakness to the hunter could only end badly, and Kurt's instincts were going haywire. Where the fuck was Blaine?

"You've got a lot of nerve, fag," Karafosky leaned in and hissed into Kurt's ear.

His hot breath against Kurt's face sent cold fear down Kurt's spine. Kurt was suddenly aware of how much bigger than him Karofsky was, and how close he stood to Kurt's body. He was shoved backwards around the corner of the building into a dark alley. Karofsky pushed him up against the wall, holding Kurt's chest in place with a thick arm.

"You think you can parade around us hunters dressed that that?" Karofsky snarled. Kurt was completely lost. He knew he wore tighter clothes than most hunters, but he wasn't nearly as bad as he'd been in New York. No bondage shorts or leather harnesses at least. "With your skinny jeans and shit?" Karofsky tugged off Kurt's scarf harshly, nearly ripping the fabric.

And ok. Now Kurt was terrified. "Karofsky," He tried not to hyperventilate, but the other hunter was pressed up tight against Kurt's body and he couldn't move at all. "Karofsky, get off of me." Memories of another incident were trying to come to the surface but Kurt pushed them down. Now was not the time for PTSD. Karfosky was breathing heavily and started grinding his hips into Kurt's and fuck no this wasn't happening. Then Karofsky's mouth was on the space between his neck and his shoulder and was biting and sucking and FUCK NO.

Kurt brought up his hand and punched the side of Karofsky's face with a sizable amount of force. "Let me go!" he shouted, but Karofsky just growled and caught Kurt's hand, pinning it against the wall. His other hand let go of Kurt's chest and pressed tightly against Kurt's mouth, muffling his screams.

Can't move just like before oh god oh god no that was a long time ago it won't happen again I won't let it why is he doing this oh my god where's Blaine someone find us I can't get away oh my god lips TONGUE get off get offgetoffGETOFFICAN'TBREATHE

The heavy weight suddenly lifted and Kurt drew in a shaky breath, coughing. He looked up just in time to see the young Asian woman from inside the bar hurling Karofsky into the ground. She had a fire in her brown eyes, and she glared at Karofsky's prone form.

"The—the fuck, man?" Karofsky sputtered, stumbling to his feet. Kurt's knees almost gave at out the look Karofsky shot at him but he stood tall. Memories kept trying to surface and Kurt fought to keep his eyes dry.

"Never. Touch me. Again." He got out in a harsh whisper. The woman stood next to him, daring Karofsky to respond.

"I think you should leave." She stated. Kurt was surprised. She had such a sweet voice it was strange to reconcile it with the image of her throwing around a huge hunter.

Karofsky seemed to think he could take her, but at that moment—

"Kurt? Kurt, where the hell are you? Kurt! Kur—oh." Blaine stood at the end of the alley. Never had Kurt been so happy to see that mess of dark curls. Karofsky took one last look at Kurt, and walked away, pushing past Blaine with a harsh shove.

Blaine watched him go, then turned back to Kurt. "What just happened? Why was he here?" He finally really looked at Kurt. Blaine's voice softened. "Hey, you're white. And shaking. Are you alright…?"

Flinging his arms around Blaine, Kurt breathed in his scent, trying to forget what just went down. But he wouldn't cry. No. Even though his breath was hitching like he might. Blaine smoothed down his hair and held him. "Hey, hey, it's ok. You're ok, Kurt," Blaine murmured into his ear. And god, Kurt just held tighter.

"That man was hurting him. Kurt, your name is?" the woman spoke after a few minutes. Kurt finally pulled away, wiping away the few stray tears. Blaine still had a look of confusion but now it was heading towards anger.

"Yeah. I'm Kurt." Kurt held out his hand. "Thank you so much. If you hadn't…" Kurt's throat closed up.

The woman just smiled, her eyes crinkling up. "Glad I could help. My name's Tina."

Kurt felt his face responding. "Nice to meet you, Tina." He shook her hand delicately.

"I'm Blaine." Blaine cut in. "Does anyone want to tell me what actually happened?"

How to tell him? Kurt felt sick. But this wasn't something he should hide. Karofsky was dangerous. And clearly deep in the closet. Kurt took a few deep breaths, Tina squeezing his hand reassuringly.

"Um, Karofsky kind of…um," Kurt swallowed hard. "He…kissed me." There. That was enough, right? Blaine didn't really need to know about everything else. No, just the kiss. But Tina was glaring.

"He was doing a hell of lot more, Kurt." She snapped.

Kurt tried not to look at Blaine, but he saw his friend's face drain white. God, this was so embarrassing. He hated being so weak. Kurt snatched his scarf off the ground, dusting it off. He was about to put it back on when Blaine's hand stopped him. Kurt froze when Blaine's fingers brushed lightly over the dark hickey on Kurt's neck.

Blaine's eyes suddenly darkened. "I'm going to kill him." He said; voice dangerously calm. He took out his spare gun from his jacket and cocked it, obviously ready to kick some ass.

"My hero," Kurt said sarcastically, Tina giggling. He helped a furiously blushing Blaine up. "Hey you're bleeding. Did you hit your mouth on the ground or something?"

"Yeah," Blaine wiped the blood off his mouth, grimacing. Kurt winced when he used his jacket sleeve to stem the rest. Tina stood stock-still, eyes locked on Blaine's mouth. She seemed to be transfixed, chest heaving as she breathed shallowly.

"Are you ok?" Kurt asked, a little nervous. This was a strange reaction, but maybe she just hated the sight of blood. But the way she stared…

Tina gasped and shuddered and shut her eyes tightly. Her nose flared though, as if she smelled something irresistible. Then her mouth opened and oh wow.

Kurt's eyes widened at the sight of dozens of thin sharp fangs erupted over her normal sized teeth. He just gaped at her, but Blaine's reflexes were better. He shoved Kurt behind him, aiming the gun at Tina, who doubled over and breathed harshly.

"Give me—a minute—to explain," she gasped out.

Blaine had other thoughts on his mind. "Why the fuck should we do that?" he snarled. "You're a vampire. I should just waste you while I can." He shrugged off Kurt's hand on his shoulder.

"So why don't you?" she countered.

Narrowing his eyes, Blaine readied his stance. "You saved my best friend. That's the only reason you're still breathing. Or existing. Or whatever."

Tina finally managed to control herself. Her fangs retreated, and she straightened up. Fixing her hair, she eyed Blaine calmly. "First of all, that gun is useless and you know it." Blaine let out an indignant sound, but kept the gun up. Tina sighed. "Look, I need to talk to you two. Yes, I am a vampire. But my coven and I don't feed on humans. While animal blood is undesirable, it works. And it keeps hunters like you away from us." She suddenly looked very tired. Kurt felt himself pitying her. She was only trying to exist. Tina began again. "There's a rogue vampire around here. We can't find it. And I know it's not one of mine. We need your help." She held up a hand. "Truce?"

Blaine glance at it disdainfully. "Why should I trust a word you say?"

"Well you're still alive, aren't you?" Tina kept her hand out. "I could have just walked away when I smelled Kurt's fear. But I stayed and helped. If I'd wanted you dead, you both would be wasted faster that you could blink.

Her story made sense. It fit it with the cattle slaughter and human deaths. Kurt put his hands on Blaine's tense shoulders. "I think we should listen to her," he whispered into Blaine's ear. Blaine stiffened, but lowered the gun. Grudgingly, he shook her hand.

"I still don't trust you," Blaine said. "The instant I think you're messing with me and Kurt, I'll kill you."

Tina smiled. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

The party had been a massive failure. Logan Smith hoped he would be going home with Amy, but she took one look at him and kissed the nearest guy passionately. Why did women hold grudges for so long? It'd been two weeks and she was still mad. Whore.

Logan kicked a piece of trash and drew his coat in closer. He hadn't really noticed how cold Halling was tonight. Or dark. Jesus, didn't anybody check the streetlights? Like half of them were knocked out. Tax dollars at work, every one.

He suddenly stumbled over a loose beer can and nearly fell, swearing loudly. Maybe he'd had too many drinks tonight. Logan glared at the can. No, he deserved to drink after watching his ex make out with that blonde douchebag all night.

Logan was still thinking about various ways to get back at Amy when a scream ripped through the deserted streets. For a moment, Logan thought he imagined it, but then there was another one. Somehow, he managed to stay upright as he ran down the street, head pounding. Oh, he definitely drank too much.

Finally, he found the source of the screams. Down a small alley lit faintly by a streetlight, a small woman was surrounded by several large men, one of whom had her purse. She was pretty, all legs and a thin dress. The men resembled what Logan thought of as punks. All black leather and spikes. One of them had long black hair tied back in a braid. They caught sight of him swaying in the alley's entrance and laughed.

Well, that wasn't cool. Logan Smith was not a joke. He drew himself up, trying to seem more intimidating than his preppy coat and slacks suggested.

"Leave her alone!" Hey, his voice wasn't even slurred! Logan felt proud of himself for about a second until the group of men began walking towards him, still grinning. Maybe this was a bad idea. "I mean it. Didn't your mothers ever teach you to treat ladies right?" Logan stood, refusing to budge. Besides, if he got beaten up, Amy would have to talk to him and she'd feel so guilty. It was win-win right? He eyed the largest of the punks' hands. They looked strong. Shit.

But they were stopping. "Well, you've convinced us. Come on boys; let's find more prey for the night." Braid-Head waved the pack on, flashing a last look at Logan as he turned the corner. For some reason, Logan had a weird feeling that they were mocking him. Or secretly laughing at him. But then the harassed woman was pressed up against his side and trailing her long fingers up his face.

"You saved me, you sweetie," she purred. Her eyes were a deep brown and blinked seductively, staring up at him through her eyelashes.

Looks like Logan was getting laid tonight after all.

He smiled at her, appreciating her many curves and mile-long legs. God, those legs. Logan tried to think of something witty and manly to say but then she was pulling him down by his collar and kissing his neck. It was the most amazing thing Logan had ever felt. Her lips and tongue were incredible, holy shit. He gasped, feeling his blood running south when—

"OW! The fuck?" He pushed her away, clamping a hand to his neck. She licked her lips and smiled maliciously. His neck felt wet. Logan pulled his hand away, inspecting it in the faint light. It was covered in blood and his neck hurt like hell. "Crazy bitch!" What the fuck was even going on? He saves this chick from certain robbery and maybe death, and she practically rips his neck apart. He stared at her incredulously.

The woman giggled. "You taste good enough. Maybe a little alcoholic, but beggars can't be picky, right?" She slinked up next to him. Logan tried to back away but his back hit a wall of solid flesh. Braid-Head was back. Along with his friends.

The fucking hell?

"He's good, boys. Take your fill." She smiled again, only now Logan could see all of her teeth. They were numerous, long, thin, and most definitely fangs. Numbly, Logan looked up at Braid-Head. More fangs.

Logan had enough time to scream once before five sets of fangs sank into his body.

"I don't like this." Blaine grumbled. He was blindfolded and in the backseat of a car driven by vampires to go to said vampire's nest. With Kurt next to him. Though Kurt was allowed to be unrestrained and unblindfolded, according to Tina after a quick private discussion. The whole situation was fucked up and Blaine's nerves were stretched to the breaking point.

After Blaine agreed to hear Tina out about her rogue vampire problem, she'd whistled and suddenly there were six strong vampires surrounding them. And then she'd smiled guiltily and asked them to let he tie them up and blind fold them to take them back to the nest.

Like Blaine had a choice. Who'd say no to seven vampires when armed with only a gun?

Vampires. And Karofsky. Plus Kurt was keeping secrets again, and Blaine hated it. There were altogether too many secrets going around these days. The car hit a particularly large bump and Blaine pitched into Kurt, swearing loudly. He felt hands gently tug him upright.

"Jesus, Mike, they're just humans. Feel free to knock them around a little." That was the driver, Blaine was pretty sure. A big ugly guy with a shaved head and tattoos everywhere. He tried to peer out from under the coarse fabric of the blind fold, but Tina tied it too tight.

Mike was talking. "They haven't done anything to us, Brandon. We need to get along with hunters and humans if we are to survive longer than a decade now." Mike was Tina's mate, they told Blaine and Kurt. He seemed nice enough. A tall, thin Asian, he had continually asked if they were comfortable while the rest of the group scoffed and snorted.

"How much longer?" Blaine snapped. His wrists hurt and he was itching for something sharp in his hands. Blaine felt naked without so much as a penknife within easy reaching distance. When neither of the vampires answered, Blaine kicked the back of the seat in front of him savagely.

The driver swore and likely would have ripped Blaine to pieces if he didn't have to focus on the road. Too bad. Blaine was rapidly getting pissed off at all the secrets. No one would say where they were going or why they needed Blaine and Kurt specifically or how they even knew Blaine and Kurt were hunters (honestly he was a little worried about that last point) or why he had to be restrained but Kurt didn't and Blaine felt an urge to punch something. Except his hands were also tied. Fucking undead parasites.

A soft voice was at his ear. "Blaine, you've got to calm down. Just be patient, alright?" Kurt. Oh and he wasn't off the hook either.

"We're talking about everything when we get released. If we get released." Blaine glared in front of him. Even though the blindfold hid most of it, he hoped the gist got through.

"Of course you're getting released. We aren't kidnapping you." Mike said soothingly.

"So what, the blind fold and tied hands are just for shits and giggles?" Blaine struggled with the bonds again, eliciting a sigh from Kurt. "Into some kinky shit are you?"

Kurt elbowed him harshly. "God, Blaine, shut up! Maybe you should stop trying to intentionally antagonize the people who literally control whether we live or die, yes?"

"The blindfolds are kind of unnecessary. If you promise not to bite me, I'll take them off." Mike waited a second before Blaine nodded grudgingly.

When the blindfold fell off, Blaine fixed Mike with the angriest look he possibly could. He doubted it was on Kurt's level, though. The boy could make Blaine feel like he was ten years old and stole the last cookie from the cookie jar.

"I have to leave the ropes on though," Mike smiled apologetically. "It's to make the rest of the coven feel safe. We haven't had the greatest of relations with hunters in the past."

"Wonder why," Blaine muttered, then winced when Kurt kicked his shin.

"Play nice." Kurt hissed at him.

They finally pulled up to an abandoned warehouse. It was fairly large and rusty as hell, but looked study enough. A vampire emerged from the shadows to unlock a large door, and they drove inside. Gas lamps in various places around the warehouse gave them enough light to see the hammocks and sleeping bags in one corner and a fire pit in the other.

Brandon put the car and park and got up, opening Blaine's door and yanking him out on the floor none too gently. Blaine spit out some dirt and shot an angry glare, but decided fighting back could only end badly. Two more black cars pulled up and Tina got out of one, yelling at Brandon. Blaine was trying to stand up with his hands tied and suddenly Kurt was there, kneeling next to him.

"Blaine, please, please listen to me. Tina's pissed at Brandon for dumping you on the floor, but she needs us to be cooperative because some of the vampires are eyeing us and I don't want to be dead forever ok?" Kurt helped him stand up. "Plus I don't like wearing leather all the time. It doesn't breathe, Blaine!"

Honestly, Kurt probably had a point. They needed to be careful now. Blaine had never fought with vampires before, but his father had and said they were smart, cunning, and extremely vicious. Pissing them off would only endanger Kurt more and Blaine would never do that. Ever.

So. Time for "Dapper Blaine."

Tina walked over to them. Blaine was surprised to see exhaustion and stress in her eyes. Everything he'd been told about vampires indicated complete sociopathic tendencies and lack of empathy for human beings. But Tina actually looked worried.

"There was another attack tonight. I just found out." she sighed, tugging on a lock of hair. "God. Look, I promise you it wasn't us. These all listen to me. We don't usually hunt each other and we know most of what to look for but when you two showed up…" Tina seemed to notice that Blaine was still restrained. "Crap, I forgot. Mike, untie him. We don't have to fear Blaine."

A few of the vampires growled at this, but Mike bared his fangs and they settled down pretty quickly. Once freed, Blaine kept up his gentlemanly air, hands clasped in front of him and a look of attentiveness on his face. Kurt was eying him funny, but kept silent. Tina motioned to the fire pit where there were some chairs and throw rugs.

"We can talk more there. Just relax. And Gabe," Tina turned to a small blond vampire with cowboy boots and a tight black button-down that was none too subtly checking Kurt out. "Hands to yourself. Leave Kurt alone." Gabe sulked, but didn't move his eyes. Kurt slid a little closer to Blaine.

Once they were seated (Blaine took a chair and perched on the edge, tense, and made Kurt sit next to him. Mike and Tina faced them, and the rest of the coven found various watching places.

The silence was really uncomfortable. Tina sat chewing her nails, and Blaine imagined the gears turning in her head. He felt the eyes of nine vampires watching him and Kurt and Blaine thought that this was what being cornered felt like. They were completely at the mercy of these bloodthirsty heathens. Christ, he should have just wasted them earlier.

Next to him, Blaine felt Kurt shift. "Alright this is very dramatic and everything, but can we please move on? I want a shower at some point tonight and a decent amount of sleep." Kurt gave a crooked smile. "Also I would like to say, Tina, I am impressed with your gothic chic. Tasteful, yet not over done." When Tina giggled, Blaine was still confused but respected Kurt's tactics. Obviously, Tina was the leader, and getting on her good side was the key to escaping this mess.

"You are a sweetheart," Tina winked at Kurt. "I guess we do need to explain some things to you."

"No shit," Blaine said under his breath then hissed in pain when Kurt punched his shoulder. "You're abusive." He sulked.

"And you're a loveable idiot. Now shut up, Blaine."

Kurt thought he was 'loveable'? Blaine tried to hide his grin but Tina was snickering. Honestly, this vampire chick behaved more like a giggling schoolgirl than the leader of a band of savage predators.

"Anyway, if the lovebirds are done Blaine opened his mouth to correct her but kept quiet at Kurt's glare. Tina kept talking. "We came to Halling about three weeks ago. There are a lot of ranches around here so we figured we'd hang around for a few weeks before moving on, but then people started dying. And then those other hunters showed up—"

"'Other hunters'?" Blaine interrupted.

"The one that um, attacked Kurt. And his friend." Tina shuddered. "Big black guy. They were just…awful." Several vampires nodded in agreement. One, a thin woman with bright purple hair snarled and spat. "They killed Victor and Sammy a few nights ago," Tina whispered. "We were trying to contact them like we did with you and it seemed to work, but then they came back to our nest and just…destroyed us. We were lucky to get away. This," she waved her arm at the warehouse. "This is supposed to be temporary. We'd leave, but those two would just track us down and we thought maybe you could help us." She looked at them nervously.

Well, fuck. "I don't—God." Blaine groaned and rubbed his face with both hands. "I don't know what you want us to do. We can't control Karofsky and Azimio. As you've already seen, they hate us. I'm still not entirely sold on your whole non-human diet anyway," there were a few growls at that, "and why do you care so much about a vampire killing people anyway? I mean it's just doing what you normally do."

Tina considered him for a moment. "We need that vampire taken care of. It's been following us for several towns. We just want to live, and every time it decides to murder we run the risk of a hunter finding us and destroying us. A few cattle die; no big deal. But humans? Suddenly the entire world is hunting us down. While animal blood isn't ideal, it works. We're just trying to live." Mike squeezed her shoulder.

"Can you please try to help us?" he asked gently.

Blaine was torn. He grew up on stories of how awful vampires were and how they had no mercy and yet here was an entire coven literally begging for his help. What the hell was he supposed to do now? Blaine saw Kurt looking at him expectantly. Kurt wasn't born in the hunting lifestyle. He had no idea the kinds of deep-rooted prejudices hunters had. Time. Blaine needed time.

"Can we think about this?" he finally said. Kurt narrowed his eyes but Blaine ignored them. "I just…need to think."

The purple-haired vampire scoffed. "Are you guys kidding? We're asking help from Blaine Anderson. Michael Anderson's son! Of course he won't help us; he'll probably find the others and then come back armed with more machetes and murder all of us!" She paced around the fire pit, arms waving wildly.

"I won't," Blaine put in hurriedly, suddenly nervous at all the nods of agreements at the vampire's speech. Tina was getting angry. "I won't attack like that. If I decide not to help, I'll at least tell you to your face."

Tina hissed at the other vampire. "Myra, sit your bitch ass down! Blaine," she changed tone, but kept glaring at Myra, "Your father has a um…an undesirable reputation among vampires. We are going to let you go as a sign of good faith." Her eyes silently dared anyone to challenge her. She walked over to Kurt and handed him a piece of paper. "When you decide, please call us. We want this over with. If we don't hear from you by tomorrow night, we're leaving. And we'll just try again." Suddenly Tina looked exhausted, and Mike was instantly at her side. Blaine wondered for a moment exactly how old she really was. He also wondered what it'd be like to have someone around all the time that loved you and knew you better than you knew yourself. Blaine remembered that vampires mate for life, but this was a different kind of love. It seemed more real than the love most of the living couples he knew had.

Mike pressed a quick kiss to the top of Tina's head before moving away. "I'll drive you two back now," he said, waving the keys. Blaine just nodded, head still reeling.

Blaine was silent during the drive back to the bar and again on the ride to the motel. By now, Kurt knew when to let Blaine just sit and think. Pushing would only irritate Blaine further and cause him to yell at Kurt and then Kurt would have to spend hours convincing Blaine that no, he wasn't mad and yes, he forgave Blaine. And Blaine would still mope around like a shamed puppy for hours.

Whatever his parents did to him, Blaine seriously had no idea how to let loose. Sometimes complete bitchfests were therapeutic.

When they finally stepped inside the room, it was around three and Kurt was exhausted. His feet hurt and his hair was destroyed. Memories of Karofsky crowded back now that he wasn't distracted by vampires (vampires!), and Kurt shut his eyes tightly against the deluge. Taking a few deep breaths, Kurt hurried into the bathroom with his overnight night bag without saying anything to Blaine. Hopefully he'd get the hint.

The bathroom was decent. Fairly clean, a few rust stains but nothing Kurt couldn't handle by now. The mirror actually looked polished. In the harsh light, Kurt began yanking off his clothes, shivering in the cold air. By habit he glanced in the mirror and gasped aloud at the sight.

Honestly, it hadn't felt that bad in the alley but Kurt's skin marked easy; he'd known that for years. But seeing the dark mark on the side of his neck from Karofsky's mouth made Kurt gag. He reached up and prodded it, inhaling sharply at the sudden flash of pain. Bastard.

Kurt felt his pulse quickening. Shit. He hadn't had these kinds of flashbacks in years. Breathing deeply, Kurt sat on the toilet with his head between his knees. Flashes of the alley mixed in with high school kept running through Kurt's mind and suddenly hated himself for being so weak and so used and dirty and he knew he was going to sick.

He scrambled up to get the toilet cover up and heaved into the bowl, coughing at the acidic bile. There was no way Blaine didn't hear that, Kurt thought ruefully as he flushed away his stomach contents. Sure enough, a knock at the door confirmed his suspicions.

"Kurt? You ok?" God, Blaine sounded so worried. But Kurt couldn't face him yet.

"Yeah." Kurt stood up gingerly, hoping he could keep down the rest of his dinner.

"You don't sound good," Blaine said through the door.

There was definitely going to be a conversation about this. Blaine and his "talks." It was nice, though. To actually talk. Usually if he and Jesse were arguing they'd just have sex and bam, problem solved. Except it wasn't. At least Blaine seemed to really care.

"Is this about Karofsky?"

Blaine Anderson was entirely too perceptive for his own good.

"Blaine," Kurt said, then stopped. He couldn't face Blaine right now. He needed to take control of himself first. But he was going to talk. Kurt promised himself. "I just need to shower. I'll explain later."

The lights were still on when Kurt finally came out of the bathroom, dressed in comfort clothes. He toweled his hair dry, thinking absently that he had to get it cut soon. Blaine would probably do it for him if he asked, but Kurt wasn't sure he trusted Blaine with a pair of scissors yet. Not after the knife incident.

Blaine was on the bed, sweats and a t-shirt on and reading an old book. He glanced up when Kurt sat down on the edge.

"You feeling alright?"

God, no. But Kurt knew he was done keeping secrets. Other than the nightmares. Those could wait some. "Yeah. Yeah I'm good now. It's just…" Kurt swallowed around the lump that suddenly rose in his throat. Courage, he thought to himself. He took a deep breath and met Blaine worried hazel eyes.

Blaine closed the book and sat up, facing Kurt. "If you don't want to tell me yet, I can wait." He said gently. Oh, damn, why was he so perfect?

"No. No, I need to tell you. Just give me a second." Kurt tried to organize his thoughts. "I don't know what school was like for you. I was stuck in a public high school in Ohio and I'm pretty damn flamboyant. There was no hiding who I was so I was out and proud. The only out kid in my school." Kurt knew he sounded bitter, but Blaine needed to know.

"I was moved around a lot." Blaine said. "A new school every few months. I didn't advertise my sexuality, and I was bullied a bit for being the new kid, but it always died down once everyone realized I could take care of myself. And if anyone found out I was gay, we were back on the road before it became a serious problem."

Kurt nodded, trying not to be jealous. "There was a group of football players that made my life miserable. And I was in glee club, which made it worse. I spent a lot of time in dumpsters, being shoved into lockers, having slushies thrown at me…" Kurt almost stopped at the sight of Blaine's face. "God, Blaine, that's just the way things were back then."

He started when Blaine found his hand and rubbed soothing circles on the back of his palm. "What about your glee club? Didn't they help?"

Right. Glee. Kurt laughed bitterly. "Of course not. I mean. They did try, some of them. But they were already on the bottom of the social ladder and standing up for me would have put them in the sub-basement. Plus they had other dramas, and I was too stubborn to ask for help." He heard Blaine make a noise of agreement and elbowed him. "Shut up. Anyway. Um. Junior year, it got pretty bad. One football player in particular started really laying into me any chance he got. And one day…I snapped. He shoved me into a locker so hard I fell, and I just couldn't take it anymore. So I ran after him into the locker room."

Kurt started breathing harshly. This was the part of the story he wasn't sure if he could make it through. He couldn't even look at Blaine; didn't want to see the look of revulsion he'd probably get when he finished. Instead, he focused on the other bed's comforter. He could even smell the locker room: the stench of sweat, old gym socks, acrid deodorant. Calm down. You can do this. Blaine squeezed his hand.

"Kurt?"

"I'm fine. I'm fine." Kurt released his breath, but still didn't meet Blaine's eyes. "In the locker room, I just let loose. You know what I get like. I just started screaming at him to leave me the fuck alone, that I was gay and he couldn't change me, and that I wasn't at all attracted to him so he didn't have to worry about that and then," Kurt squeezed his eyes shut. "He kissed me."

Blaine sucked in a harsh breath. "God, Kurt," he breathed, and Kurt felt tears prickling at the corner of his eyes because Blaine didn't know the rest of the story. Blaine must have noticed because he stopped stroking Kurt's hands. "Oh shit, Kurt. Please tell me that's all."

Kurt shook his head slowly, tears finally spilling over. "Fuck," he muttered, swiping at his eyes angrily. It's been nearly five years; he should be over this shit already. "I wasn't—not—not all the way." Kurt finally said. He felt Blaine sigh with relief next to him. "After he kissed me, I pushed him away. It was my first kiss, you know? And it was with a sweaty, closeted homophobe. He got—he got angry, and he tried t-t-to force me and I fought like hell but he was just so much bigger and he held me down and I couldn't move or breathe and his hand was on m-m-me and Kurt let out a gasping sob. God, he was such a mess. He had to pull himself together. Blaine pulled his hand away. That scared the shit out of Kurt, and all of his old insecurities about being unclean and tainted came running back. There wasn't much left though, so he pressed on. "When he shifted to try to undo the button on my pants, I kneed him in his crotch. I thought…I thought I could get away, but he just got really angry and started punching just…everything he could reach. He told me I deserved it, that I was a cocktease for wearing what I wore and that by being a faggot I was a slut and a whore and I deserved everything—"

"Please stop," Blaine interrupted, looking stricken. "Just—just stop calling yourself those things. I can't listen to that."

Kurt looked at Blaine, but nodded slightly. "Anyway, I was screaming by that point and the coach heard us and found him beating me. I was in the hospital for a few weeks. He broke four of my ribs, my collarbone, and twisted my shoulder when he held me down. He was expelled, but he told everyone I came on to him, so it just got worse and worse. But Dad couldn't afford to send me to another school and we couldn't prove anything so I just stayed and dealt with it." When Blaine didn't say anything, Kurt took another deep breath. "I was in therapy for a while. Going to New York for college helped. It's been a long time but stuff like that never really leaves you, you know?" He didn't wait for Blaine to answer. "Today just brought back a lot of bad memories. I think I'm ok for now though." Please don't hate me.

Blaine still hadn't said anything. Kurt felt the tears come back. A small voice in the back of his head laughed cruelly and told Kurt that it was over, Blaine would never want to be with him after that, that Kurt was used and tainted and disgusting, that no one would ever love him—

"Did you tell Jesse?" Blaine suddenly asked.

Weird question. Kurt sniffled and ran a hand through his damp hair. "No. I didn't." Hell no, he hadn't told Jesse. That pompous jackass wouldn't have understood.

"He was your boyfriend for over a year and he never knew?" Blaine sounded shocked.

"I didn't want to." Kurt snapped, scrubbing at his eyes and cursing his tear ducts. "He'd have left me. I was so unclean and disgusting after Murdoch. No one ever would want me if they knew." Kurt shifted guiltily. "…I told Jesse I was a virgin when he asked about why I was so terrified of sex. And yeah he pushed a little," more like a lot, "but I got over it. I'm fine. More fucked up than you thought, but fine." He finished in a whisper. Please let him be fine.

Kurt wrapped his arms around his waist and tried not to cry. He just wanted a hug. Really. He'd deal with vampires tomorrow, but right now, he just wanted Blaine to put his arms around him and tell him that everyone was going to be alright. He'd never see Karofsky or Murdoch again and if he did, well, Blaine could teach him to protect himself.

But Blaine still wasn't looking at him and his hands were pressed up tight against his mouth, like when Blaine was thinking heavily. His eyes kept blinking rapidly and lit on everything but Kurt and Kurt felt like crying again.

He wouldn't, though. He'd done enough crying over Murdoch nearly five years ago, and Karofsky wasn't worth another second of Kurt's life. Kurt decided a long time ago that he would not let that locker room define his life and if Blaine could handle it, Kurt would deal. Like he'd done after mom died, after the bullying started and especially after leaving with Blaine. Kurt was a survivor.

"Goodnight, Blaine." Kurt finally whispered, squeezing Blaine's leg and standing up. Blaine needed time, he figured. It was a lot to happen in one day.

Blaine suddenly grabbed Kurt's arm and pulled him back to the bed. "You aren't fucked up. Well, maybe a little. But everyone is, in their own way." Blaine's eyes got hard and serious. "Listen, Kurt. 'Cause I mean this. You're the most amazing person I've ever met. You're wonderful and compassionate and loyal and bitchy and stubborn, but I love it." He gripped Kurt's hand tightly, swallowing hard. "You're perfect how you are. And someday, someone is going to realize that and want to be with you because you deserve that happiness."

I'm happy with you.

"And please promise me you won't call yourself…those names anymore." Blaine continued. He actually looked a little queasy. "They don't fit you. You didn't deserve what happened then, and you certainly didn't deserve what happened today," Blaine's face darkened at the thought of Karofsky. "I'm going to kill him if I ever see that fucker again."

"Murder's illegal."

"Then I'll shoot his balls off. He'd deserve it." When Kurt felt his eyes burning with tears again, he sniffed. Loudly. Instantly, Blaine wrapped his arms around him. "It's gonna be alright Kurt."

Kurt full-on sobbed at that. "You're an incredibly sweet person, Blaine. You shouldn't be real. Guys like you don't exist outside fairy tales."

"Sure we do. You just gotta look." Blaine let Kurt cry for a little while longer. "I don't like secrets. They just fester and stew forever until they explode. So thank you for telling me. No more secrets, ok?" He released Kurt and pushed him away just far enough that he could look directly in Kurt's eyes. "Ok?"

Kurt knew he was thinking about the dreams. But he wasn't ready to talk about them. "Right. No more secrets." Kurt smiled weakly. "But…" he took a deep breath, "I don't want to discuss my dreams just yet. I will. I promise. Just not right now. It's not a big deal and they might go away."

His answer didn't completely satisfy Blaine, but thankfully Blaine let the subject drop. He squeezed Kurt's hand again.

"Ok. Vampires in the morning?"

"Vampires in the morning." Kurt agreed.

Blaine hesitated. "Hey. D'you wanna, um. Do you wanna sleep with me? You look like you could use cuddles."

Kurt felt a genuine smile spread on his face. "I really could use cuddles." He slid under the covers with Blaine, who turned off the light.

He had no idea what he and Blaine were. Not boyfriends. They weren't dating. But they were definitely closer than friends. Not quite brothers, though. It was just complicated. Blaine's arm slid across Kurt's side and tugged close to his body.

"Hey Blaine?"

"Mmm?" Blaine was half asleep by this point.

"Thank you," Kurt whispered.

Trying to open the door with a tray of coffee and a bag of bagels was a feat, but somehow Blaine managed it. Kurt was still sleeping when he walked in, so he shut the door as quietly as possible and put breakfast on the small table before sitting at the foot of the bed. It was rare for Blaine to wake up before Kurt so he took the time to study him.

Oh God, Blaine was a creep.

Kurt had kicked the covers mostly off, and was sprawled across the bed on his stomach. He clutched Blaine's pillow and buried his face in it.

He was too cute. Blaine noticed Kurt's shirt had ridden up a bit and was about to tug it down when he saw the edge of faint scar. Deciding that Kurt was pretty out of it, Blaine pushed the shirt up a little farther. The thin scar line began at the end of Kurt's ribs and twisted up and around to his front. It must have been from the broken ribs. Maybe they had to operate because of internal bleeding? Blaine stroked the scar lightly, frowning when he realized he could feel Kurt's ribs easily. He'd have to make Kurt eat more. No one could survive on lettuce and sass alone. He covered Kurt up again and studied his face. Kurt's face was peaceful, but there were still dark circles under his eyes. Poor kid.

"'Mm fine." Kurt mumbled, startling Blaine. He cracked one eye open and smiled at him.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to wake you." Blaine poked his side, avoiding Kurt's half-hearted swipes. "But it's almost noon, so time to wake up! I got coffee and bagels."

"Mmargh." Kurt groaned and yawned loudly. "Sorry. Didn't mean to sleep so late." He smiled gratefully when Blaine pressed a cup of coffee in his hands. "Thanks," he said taking a sip.

"Welcome. And don't be. You needed the rest." Blaine noticed that Kurt didn't disagree. "No nightmares last night?" he asked cautiously.

Kurt shook his head. "Nope. I'm kind of surprised, actually. After yesterday and all. But no, I slept really well." He got up and walked over to the bagels, picking out an everything bagel and a packet of cream cheese.

"I am shocked. Kurt Hummel eating carbs?" Blaine held his hand over his forehead dramatically. "I might faint."

"Shut up." Kurt lightly kicked him when Blaine got close enough. They sat at the table in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the peace.

After dwelling on it for hours, Blaine still had no idea what to do about the vampires. Sure Tina talked a good game and she had resisted attacking when she saw Blaine's blood but…still. She was a vampire. They were all vampires. And vampires just don't change. They don't.

Then there was the whole Karofsky mess. Blaine's knuckles whitened as he squeezed the coffee cup. It had taken everything to not storm out of the room last night, find Karofsky, and beat the shit out of him. The only reason he hadn't was because Kurt had still been upset and Blaine couldn't bring himself to leave Kurt alone after that. But if he caught wind of Karofsky, he could not be held responsible for his actions. Blaine vaguely wondered if he should bring Sylvester in on this. She seemed to like Kurt. Hell she might even be able to go after the first guy. Murdoch? Blaine was still musing on various punishment plans when Kurt's foot collided with his shin.

"Ow! Fuck, Kurt, I'm going to have a permanent dent in my leg from all your kicking!" Blaine complained, rubbing his shin.

"Pay attention when I say your name then." Kurt took another long sip from his cup. "First of all, stop think about going after Karofsky."

"How'd you know I was—"

"Because you are painfully transparent." Kurt giggled. "I mean it though," he said, sobering up quickly. "Karofsky will end you."

Blaine scoffed. "I can handle him."

"He'll squish you."

"He won't."

"You're like half his height, shorty. And weight."

That was just unfair. Blaine leaned back in the chair and pouted. "You're being cruel."

"I'm being realistic." Kurt patted his knee. "What we going to do about the vampires?"

The vampires. What was he going to do? "I want to see the bodies first." He said. Maybe that would help him decide.

Kurt was going to throw up.

He was also going to murder Blaine, who was having way too much fun with this whole situation.

"Thought you said you've been to an autopsy before?" the portly coroner said, looking Kurt up and down. "It's just a liver. Keep holding it for me while I figure out how to get these intestines back in." Kurt forced a weak smile as he watched the elderly man stick his arms deep into the corpse on the autopsy table. The organs squished wetly as he moved his hands, releasing a thicker stench of decay. Kurt fought down his breakfast, glaring at Blaine, who just smiled and held up a pad of paper.

"You're such a good sport, Agent Jones." Blaine said innocently.

With his arms full of liver, Kurt could only shoot him a look that promised pain later. Blaine actually gulped a little and ducked his head.

Damn right, be afraid, Kurt thought. He looked at the grayish red-brown organ in his glove-covered hands. Oh god, this was so gross. It was still slippery, and Kurt could feel the smell settling into his favorite Armani suit. Blaine was going to pay for the dry cleaning. That's all there was to it.

The coroner, Dr. Holland, was actually the local funeral home director as well, and didn't seem accustomed to full blown autopsies. Finally, though, he managed to get every in the chest cavity and took the liver from Kurt's hands. Kurt practically ran to the sink in his haste to get the gloves off and his hands under soap.

"I can't thank you enough for doing a rush job on this case for us," Blaine said as the doctor began sewing up Logan Smith. Kurt would never understand how people said the dead looked like they were sleeping. Logan didn't. He just looked dead.

Dr. Holland shrugged. "No problem Agents. Thank you for the help." He sighed and took off his gloves, rubbing his face. "I've been doing this thirty years, and never have we had so many murders. And now three in a few weeks?" He grunted. "Disgusting. Alright, so you want the summary?" Dr. Holland's tone took on an official air.

"Yes, sir." Blaine held a pen in his hand, ready to write. Kurt continued scrubbing his hands. He'd never get the rotting, slightly fruity smell out. Never.

"All three bodies," Dr. Holland walked over the wall with the cadavers and pulled out two tables. "Were found drained of blood." Naomi Drake, a young African-American with long braided hair lay on one, and the other had Harry Sowers, a middle-aged store manager with a beer belly. Kurt noticed how pale their skin was when he walked up next to Blaine. It was unsettling, actually. "There wasn't enough blood at the scene for that to be the kill site, but we can't figure out how the blood was drained in the first place." Dr. Holland pointed to a point on Naomi's neck where Kurt could see a ring of tiny dark circles. "That's the only injury we could find on both. Same place too, just below the left ear. It's say it was a bite, but unless someone has taken to filling every single tooth into a canine, it's just not possible. Now as for Mr. Smith here," he patted Logan's unfeeling arm. "There were more marks. Instead of one circle of marks, there were five." Dr. Holland pointed them out: the neck, the right arm, two on the left arm and one on the inside right thigh.

Blaine nodded as he wrote the information down, but didn't comment.

"No evidence of any other fatal trauma, and a tox screen came back negative for everything. These people died from blood loss but God knows how they did." Dr. Holland glanced up.

Kurt schooled his face into an appropriate solemn look. He certainly knew.

"There's one more thing." Dr. Holland put his hands under Logan and rolled the body onto its side so Kurt and Blaine could see his back. Kurt let out an involuntary gasp.

Etched deep into the flesh was one word: KURT

This was fucked up. Kurt stole a glance at Blaine, but the hunter's face was expressionless.

"Do we know who 'Kurt' is?" Blaine asked, voice steady. How was he so calm? Kurt was freaking out inside.

The doctor shook his head. "Nope. He was straight, according to his ex. You'll have to ask the detectives about it. But whoever this Kurt is…" He traced the angry red cuts. "I'd watch out."

"Blaine?"

"What?" Blaine shut the motel door behind him forcefully and Kurt cringed at the sudden noise. But he needed answers.

"Why was my name on a dead guy?" There. A straightforward question. Blaine couldn't dodge that, right? And Kurt knew Blaine knew something. Either that or he was really freaking out about the whole situation.

He suspected the latter, to be honest.

"I don't know. It might be a coincidence." Kurt shot him a look. "It's possible, Kurt." But Blaine looked unconvinced.

Kurt flopped back on the bed and threw his arm over his eyes. Yeah, the cadaver stench was still there. "My suit smells," he complained. When Blaine didn't answer, Kurt sat up, watching the hunter dig through his duffel for a small book. "Blaine, why don't you like vampires? Tina seems trustworthy. And they're still waiting for our answer."

Blaine looked up at that. "We aren't doing anything with Tina and her gang." Wait what? "We're leaving tonight. Soon as we get that suit dry-cleaned. I don't need dead liver smell to stink up my car."

Oh no. Blaine was not getting out of it that easy. "But why? They still need help, something is still killing people! Just because my name was carved into some vampire's dinner, it doesn't change anything."

"It changes everything, Kurt." Blaine laughed bitterly.

"It might be a coincidence, like you said!"

"There are no such things as 'coincidences' to a hunter." Blaine began finding his scattered clothes across the room and shoving them into a bag. God, he was irritating.

"At least fold them," Kurt snapped, getting really angry. "We can't leave. People are still in danger."

Blaine glanced up at that. "Yes, they are."

Oh for the love of God. "Not me, you asshole! And I don't believe you. The body is why you're running away, maybe, but you weren't planning on working with Tina anyway, were you?" Blaine didn't answer, instead packing Kurt's clothes. Kurt snatched a shirt out of Blaine's hands. "Come on, Blaine! No more secrets, remember?"

"You're one to talk!" Blaine shot right back.

They might have gotten into a huge argument, but right then Blaine's phone rang. Glaring at Kurt, Blaine hit "accept."

"What?" he snapped into the phone.

Sam blinked and glanced down at his phone, rubbing his ear. "Jesus, Blaine what crawled up your ass?"

"Don't fuck with me, Sam! Actually, no, this is perfect. You can explain something to me."

Blaine sounded pissed. Which was never good. Sam and Blaine had known each other for several years, and he'd only pissed Blaine off three times.

None of those three times ended well. Sam winced when he caught sight of his Limited Edition SD Gundam with a spoke broken off. And the bullet hole in the wall he hadn't gotten around to fixing. He really should move. And never tell Blaine his new address. There were too many priceless collectibles in his small house.

But for now: denial.

"'I sense a disturbance in the force. Obi Wan. Blaine couldn't get mad at Obi Wan, right?

Wrong.

"Sam Evans." Blaine's voice was low and dangerous. Fuck. Had he done anything to piss the hunter off? Sam wracked his brain, trying to figure out why Blaine was so pissed. "You have two minutes to explain why you sent me to Halling when Dave Karofsky was already here."

"Karofsky? What's wrong with Karofsky?" Sam couldn't remember being this confused ever. Yeah, he knew Blaine and Karofsky never got on that well, but they were always civil to each other. "I told him about it before you 'cause he was closer but he said he and Azimio were heading to Maine. There's a potential poltergeist up there."

"Well obviously he's not in Maine since he tried to molest Kurt yesterday!" Sam felt the blood drain from his face. He was fully aware of Kurt's history from the background checks he ran earlier. The attack Kurt suffered in high school got a lot of press in Ohio.

But something else was off.

"Karofsky's gay?"

Sam jerked the phone away from his ear at the resulting shriek of indignation. "Kurt almost gets raped and that's what you pick up on? That Karofsky's gay?"

Actually, that had been a pretty insensitive comment. Sam knew he could be oblivious at times, but sheesh. Come on, Evans.

"No, no, Blaine, I didn't mean it like that. I told Karofsky that I was going to call you if he didn't want to go."

Blaine didn't answer. There were a few muffled cries and a loud thunk, and then a new voice was speaking. "Hey, Sam?"

"Kurt? Hey man, I'm so sorry—"

"Look, I won't say it's ok because it's obviously not, but can you do us a favor?"

"'I live to serve you, Lord Megatron.'"

"I'm going to murder your dumb ass, Evans."

"Shut up, Blaine! Seriously, Sam. We have a problem."

When Kurt explained the situation, Sam had to agree. This situation was strange all around. His mind began whirring as he jotted down information, already organizing everything like a puzzle. There was a pattern here. And Sam was starting to suspect Kurt might be a part of it.

That kid just couldn't get a break. Sam brought up a map on his computer that showed the latest reported supernatural sightings from around the country. There were more red dots than usual.

Sam hoped Blaine was up to performing. Because Kurt was definitely in danger and he had no idea why.

The rest of the day was spent in relative silence. Blaine called Tina and told her to meet them at the bar at nine that night. Then he stuck in his head phones and read every book on vampires he could find.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

But Kurt Hummel was having none of it. He was a Hummel, and Hummels did not get ignored.

Anderson wasn't going to know what hit him.

Sure enough, when Kurt came back from the burger joint in town and slammed Blaine's soda down in front of him, Blaine started like he'd had a heart attack.

"The fuck, Kurt?"

"You're going to explain what we're doing in two hours." Kurt ground out, trying to resist dumping his salad over Blaine's head. "We're a team, Blaine. I deserve to know what you want to do. And we're going to decide together." Kurt sat down and pushed the greasy bag over to Blaine. "Come on, Blaine. Seriously. We're in this together, right?" Kurt put on his best kicked-puppy expression. It was nowhere near as irresistible as Blaine's, but Kurt was a part-time actor, right. It seemed to work well enough, though. Blaine sighed and put down his book.

"I don't trust Tina." He stated flatly.

"But why?" Kurt genuinely tried to understand. But the fact remained that Tina and Mike and the rest of them haven't done anything to seem like they were lying. Or dangerous. Hell, Tina hadn't even attacked Blaine when there was blood right in front of her, right?

Blaine shot a tortured look at Kurt. "Do I really have to explain? Can't you just trust me when I say we can't trust vampires?"

"So it's a species thing?" Kurt took a bite of his salad. "That's speciest, Blaine." Score, a smile! It was a bit weak, but Kurt would take small victories.

"Kurt, you have to understand. Vampires have been around for as long as hunters. They kill people. It's in their nature. I grew up with vampires injuring or murdering my family friends. They are monsters who want nothing more to destroy us and we want to destroy them." Blaine close his eyes under Kurt's wide-eyed stare.

Seriously? "Blaine, that's horrible. You can't judge an entire species—"

"Yes I can." Blaine interrupted. "They're evil."

"No they aren't." Kurt wanted to slap Blaine when the other boy scoffed and shook his head. "People judge me like that all the time." Kurt leaned in so Blaine would have to listen. "You should have heard what I got in high school. 'He's gay, he's such a slut.'Hummel's a little fairy that likes little boys.'He's got no morals and is a horrible thing that doesn't deserve to live. Kurt saw Blaine become upset, but he was too angry to stop. Blaine was a sweet person, but he was prejudiced against a whole group based only on stories. "I know what it's like to be completely disregarded based on rumors and tales. I never thought you of all people would be so closed-minded." Kurt sat back, stabbing his lettuce harshly.

A few minutes of silence passed. "What if you're wrong, though?" Blaine whispered. His face was pale and Kurt briefly wondered if he was sick.

"If we help them out and destroy the pack—I don't think one person fed off of Logan Smith, by the way—and if we're wrong, we'll come back." Blaine still looked sick though. "Blaine…" On impulse, Kurt reached across the table and gripped Blaine's hand. Blaine stared at him. "I don't want to live my life second-guessing everyone. Tina was telling the truth. I can feel it. I just…I won't make snap judgments on people without evidence. I've gotten enough of that my whole life and I won't contribute to more."

Blaine had a funny expression on his face, but Kurt met his gaze evenly. He kept his chin high, refusing to look away first. Blaine cracked a smile.

"You're so stubborn."

"Understatement of the year." Kurt grinned.

Blaine shook his head like he was still in amazement that Kurt had managed to change his mind. "It's early, but let's head over now. I could definitely use a drink…" Blaine trailed off when there was a knock at the door.

A chill went down Kurt's spine. No one knew where they were staying. Supposedly. Except maybe Tina had them followed last night. Kurt felt sick at the thought that Blaine could have been right.

Wordlessly, Blaine passed Kurt a handgun; he held a machete in two hands. He motioned for Kurt to back away from the door, and Kurt obeyed with no protest.

Blaine shifted the machete to one hand and reached out to open to the door. Kurt spread his legs to steady himself and aimed the gun at the door. One, Blaine mouthed. Two…three! He flung open the door but stopped the machete swing with a yelp.

"Jesus, Tina!"

The small vampire marched inside, crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Kurt. She burst into tears, burying her face in Kurt's chest. Completely confused, Kurt patted her back.

"Tina, sweetie? What's wrong?" Kurt shot a terrified look at Blaine. Kurt didn't do comfort. That was Blaine's area of expertise. But Blaine just shrugged and sat down. Helpful, Anderson, Kurt thought sourly.

Tina's deep hiccupping sobs wracked her entire body. "They took Mike," she whispered. "What am I going to do? They took Mike, and my friends left. Well," she squeezed Kurt tighter. "My coven left. They aren't my friends. Not after this."

Blaine appeared deep in thought. Which meant Kurt was on his own. "How did you find us?"

"I followed you home last night." Ah.

"I need to find Mike." Tina continued. She spoke into Kurt's shirt. "He's all I have left."

What was one supposed to do when a non-human eating vampire bursts into your room and cries into your shoulder about her kidnapped boyfriend?

"We'll get him back," Kurt whispered into her hair, hugging her close.

"You're sure this is the place?"

"Yeah." Tina said.

All three were crouching behind an old car outside an old barn on the outskirts of town. The barn was run-down and the only light came from the moon. Blaine squinted and…there. In the shadows near the door, a faint outline moved. He nudged Kurt, who nodded. Seriously, he was so lucky to find Kurt. Kurt actually paid attention to his lessons and stuff. While he didn't exactly listen all the time and had more pride than a freaking lion, Blaine knew he could trust Kurt in these situations.

"We need a plan." Blaine whispered. Tina and Kurt looked at him expectantly. "Alright. We have to take out that vampire before he can sound an alarm or anything. Once he's out of the way, we'll sneak inside and scout out the place until we find Mike—"

"Blaine, I think someone else is getting ahead of you." Kurt pointed at the two headlights swerving wildly up the road. They ducked when the light passed their car, peering over the hood carefully when the tires squealed to a stop.

The car was an old muscle car, though Blaine had no idea what model. Two large men were jumping out and one of them looked familiar. Kurt tensed up next to him and Blaine swore under his breath.

Karofsky let out a yell as he charged the vampire by the door, who shrieked in surprise. He barely had time to move before Karofsky swung the machete like a baseball bat. Blaine felt a little queasy as the head sailed into the darkness.

"Sweet, man!" Azimio cheered. "That went what…twenty feet? New record!" They fist-bumped and crowed happily, bounding inside the door.

Tina hissed. "Animals." She snarled. "You hunters are like animals." She stood up and marched towards the barn.

Kurt sighed and glanced at Blaine. "She has a point," he muttered, following her.

After growing up around hunters his entire life, Blaine knew he was biased. He'd been raised to see things black and white: if something was evil, he killed it. If something wasn't human or attacked humans regularly, he killed it. Before now, he'd never had a reason to doubt his system, but Tina…

Tina made things complicated. And so did Kurt.

Karofsky still had a beating coming to him though.

From the barn door, Kurt motioned frantically for Blaine to come, then disappeared inside. Glancing quickly around, Blaine saw nothing moving. As quietly as possible he ran across the open space and slipped inside the door, where Kurt slapped a hand over his mouth and pulled him off to the side into the shadows. Blaine could barely see him in the gloom, but Kurt leaned over and whispered for him to be quiet directly in his ear. Tina was crouched behind a pile of hay bales and she looked ready to murder someone.

Blaine silently slid down next to her, taking in the scene in the center of the barn.

Gas lanterns lit the area in a soft light, showing vampires lounging around on various hammocks, sleeping bags, and hay bales. Blaine sucked in a gasped when he saw Mike tied down to a chair, bloodied and head hanging. No wonder Tina was flipping shit next to him. Kurt nudged his side and pointed at two bound bodies next to Mike. Azimio and Karofsky. Azimio looked out cold, but Karofsky's terrified eyes were darting around the room, alighting on Blaine. They widened. Blaine glared and held a finger to his lips. Thankfully, Karofsky got the message and shut up. He glanced at the woman relaxing on a threadbare couch nervously.

In contrast to her black leather and spandex-clad brethren, she wore a thin white dress. Her hair was long and wavy and she sipped seductively from a cup. Blaine caught a hint of red on her full lips. Every so often, a large male vampire with braids would lean down and kiss her neck.

She snapped her fingers. "Victor, get me a phone." Her voice purred as the braided vampire growled at another young man, who immediately shuffled and fumbled a cell phone from his pocket.

"For you, Brianna."

"Thank you, Victor." She kissed him long and deep before dialing a number.

Blaine had a bad feeling about this. Vampires were smart, yes. But this was just…off. This group had kidnapped one of their own and taken hunters hostage. Karofsky hadn't been turned, just fed on a little. None of them were dead. And now the leader was calling someone else.

"Darling!" Brianna said in a sing song voice. She giggled a little at the response. "Look, honey, we've been doing what you asked. We're working on it…what? Yes, we're trying!" Her voice rose in indignation. "We don't know where they are! I did what you asked and carved up a human. He hasn't found us yes. We have two other hunters that tried to ambush us…" She stroked Karofsky's cheek, smiling when he twisted away. "We also have one of vampires from the vegetarian coven." The coven snickered at her words. "They'll come. You said he's honorable, right? Humans are just so predictable."

The words were just weird. And strange. Blaine felt like he had all the pieces but not the whole picture but he was fairly certain they were talking about Kurt. He caught a glimpse of Kurt's wide eyes and thin lips. Kurt saw and glared, daring Blaine to say something.

"Of course, darling. We'll call when we get him. And then…? Perfect." Brianna's lips curved up in a nasty smile. "Oh, this is such a wonderful time to be alive!" she gushed, ending the call and playing with the braided vampire's hair. "Or dead. Or whatever. Anyway!" She turned to Mike with a huge grin. "Your lover isn't here yet. Damn, she must not care about you after all, huh? Pity."

Blaine and Kurt grabbed Tina's arms before she could storm into the opening. Mike snarled and bared his fangs at Brianna. "I'll kill her," Tina hissed. "I'll tear her pretty locks right off her fucking head!"

The very last thing Blaine needed was an angry vampire raging on the loose. He let go of her arm, but hooked his own around her neck and bent her backwards to throw off her balance. His father insisted Blaine learn chokeholds, and this one was very effective. Tina couldn't move without falling over or snapping her neck. "Tina, relax. We need to come up with a plan. We can't run in there without a plan otherwise Mike could die. Ok?" When Tina finally nodded grudgingly, Blaine released her.

Then he noticed Kurt wasn't behind him anymore.

It was a bad idea. It was a really bad idea. And Blaine was going to kill him if he pulled this off and lived.

The fact was that Kurt had read earlier that day. And several books mentioned burning vampires could work as well as beheadings.

As there were seven vampires and three of them plus three hostages…

Well. A fire might even the odds.

The hay felt dry enough. Plus the lanterns were gas. Kurt ducked from shadow to shadow, trying to find all the exits. His plans would work if there were more than one escape route. He wondered if Blaine realized he was gone. When he'd restrained Tina, Kurt took the chance to slip away, though he thought Karofsky saw.

Kurt briefly entertained the thought of letting Karofsky burn for what he did. God knew it'd be cathartic. But he'd survived worse, and he even let those teens in California live. Kurt knew he was a terrible person in some ways, but he wasn't quite that vindictive.

He would never forgive Karofsky though.

Blaine was up ahead. Somehow, Kurt managed to walk the entire barn length without getting caught. And the only exit was the door they came in through. Time to convince Blaine.

"The fuck were you thinking?" Blaine's voice was low but dangerous. "Why would you wander off like that?"

Brianna was entertaining the vampires and taunting Mike, waving her arms wildly and laughing at his stony silence.

She was distracted. Kurt pulled Blaine and Tina in close. "We're going to burn them." He said. Their eyes got huge. Kurt could help but be kind of insulted. He worked hard on this plan! "We'll need someone to be a distraction, and once we get Mike and Karofsky freed they can help us. It's just that burning them is a lot easier than trying to cut all of their heads off." Kurt was pleased to see Blaine slowly nodding. Especially because Kurt's next words were really going to piss him off. "I'm going to be the distraction."

"Fuck no." The response was immediate.

"Come on, Blaine!"

"No! They're looking for me—"

"—All the more reason to not give yourself to them."

"Blaine! I'm the best choice! They expect me to come and if I do they'll pay attention to me. Tina can move fast and she can help get Karofsky and Azimio out of the barn and I can start the fire. There's only one way out of here. I checked." Kurt wanted to choke Blaine when he saw Blaine wasn't listening. Honestly, did the boy think he couldn't pull his own weight or something? "You can't stop me. So you can either sit there or help." With that, Kurt stepped into the light with a cheery smile.

Blaine had no time to react when Kurt left his side and walked into the lion's den. Why. Why did Blaine have to be stuck with the most headstrong kid on the planet? He groaned to himself and dragged Tina, sticking the outskirts of the barn.

All of the vampires were facing Kurt, leaving Mike and the other hunters unnoticed. Now behind the vampires, Blaine crept forward and knelt next to Karofsky, though he kept an eye on Kurt. Tina had Mike free in seconds, and they both worked on Azimio.

"Heard you were looking for me, sweetie!" Kurt was saying. Blaine winced and prayed to a god, any god, that Kurt wouldn't do something stupid and get himself killed. He fumbled with Karofsky's bonds and he was slightly rougher than he needed to be? Well, the rope was tight. Karofsky shot him a glare once his arms were free but wisely kept silent.

"He looks…delicious." One of the vampires licked his lips and Blaine fought an urge to destroy the little black-haired punk. Instead, he shoved Karofsky into the shadows and nodded at Kurt.

Kurt had a plan, Blaine knew, but he hadn't shared. Blaine decided he needed to get everyone the hell out, preferably with Kurt intact as well. But that hungry gaze Brianna was dragging up and down Kurt's body made Blaine nervous.

"You're not my type, mouse." Kurt sneered, winking at Blaine. He began walking in a wide circle to the right. The vampires followed him, leaving the barn door unwatched. Tina and Mike quickly slipped through the door with Azimio propped up between them. Blaine and Karofsky hid behind a hay barrel, watching Kurt.

Brianna grinned, showing every one of her sharp teeth. Blaine shifted his machete to his right hand.

"Look at the little kitty, baring his baby claws." She drawled, slinking up near Kurt. Blaine saw him swallow and take a few steps back, though his expression remained confident and haughty. Oh Kurt, don't do anything stupid…

"Is he fucking nuts?" Karofsky whispered in his ear.

"Yes." Blaine gritted out.

Walking back to the vampires, Brianna let out a tinkling laugh. "Anyway, thank you sweetie, you've made this so much easier for us. Phone!" She barked out the command and the mousy vampire nearly tripped over himself to hand her the cell phone. The vampire barely acknowledged his presence before yanking the phone out and dialing. "You hang out there for a moment darling, this will only take a second. Yes, hello? Well I thought you'd like to know—"

Blaine saw it in slow motion before it happened. Kurt reached behind him, drew, and fired his gun in one smooth moment. Somehow, in the weeks with Blaine, Kurt had become a regular sharpshooter. Though his aim was severely lacking.

Shrieking in sursprise, Brianna dropped the phone and stared. Her arm had a line of red near the elbow and it dripped steadily. But the cute was already beginning to heal.

"I think you need to read up on effective weapons against us," she growled, her coven following. Her grey eyes flashed with fury and Blaine had no idea how Kurt could stand there so calmly. "Also you need to work on your aim." She chuckled maliciously.

Kurt just smiled. "No I don't." Then he squared off his gun and fired again, hitting one of the gas lanterns. The glass exploded, raining burning gas on the dry hay, which went up in flames. Kurt wasted no time shooting out two more lamps before turning and running.

Blaine saw the flames spread rapidly and one of the vampires got caught in the blaze. As the figure screamed and twisted, the rest of the groups just stared until the pillar of flame collapsed. The vampire didn't move again. Kurt was right; fire apparently could kill vampires. Brianna had given chase to Kurt after the death of her minion and Blaine leapt out from behind the hay, brandishing his machete wildly.

Swinging the blade easily, Blaine managed to cut down a tall, thin vampire with a purple vest easily. He barely stopped to think, instead tearing after Kurt, who had resorting to shooting Brianna to keep her away. She healed too fast, though. Blaine bolted, dimly aware of Karofsky fighting behind him. Brianna was only a few feet in front of him. Blaine leapt, landing on her back and driving her face into the barn floor.

"Don't you touch him," he growled in her ear. Brianna hissed through her teeth and bucked up with a surprising amount of strength, toppling Blaine to the ground. He dropped his weapon and smacked his head on a broken wooden beam. Eyes watering, Blaine began feeling around for the machete, suddenly coughing around the smoke.

"Blaine!" Kurt was at his side, wiping off the blood running down the side of his face. He tried to push Blaine to stand up, Blaine was tired, so tired, and his head hurt and he couldn't breathe. As he choked on the ash in the air, Blaine thought he heard Karofsky yelling triumphantly across the room and dull thumps from his weapon. Kurt tried to lift him again, managing to get Blaine to his feet. "Come on, Blaine, move!"

Did Kurt understand that he couldn't? Blaine felt sluggish and sleepy and his limbs weighed a million pounds. He gripped Kurt's arms, willing his legs to support him. Dimly, Blaine wondered if this was what concussions felt like.

Brianna grinned among the flames. Blaine took in her singed and blackened white dress and cold eyes. He tried to step forward but almost pitched onto his face. Kurt dragged him up and backwards until their backs hit the side of the barn. Even through the clouds of the concussion, Blaine knew they were in trouble.

"Sweet little kitten trying to protect his master," Brianna snickered, a hand raised to her mouth as she laughed behind it.

"He's not my master," Kurt shot out, still gripping Blaine's arms tight and keeping him upright. Blaine was so grateful in that moment because he wasn't sure he'd be able to support his own weight.

Brianna's teeth glinted in the firelight. She didn't even seem to hear the screams coming from her coven at the hands of Karofsky. "You know," she said silkily, "I have orders to keep you alive. You," she clarified, pointing a long graceful finger at Kurt, "not him." The finger moved to Blaine.

Kurt stiffened next to him. "You won't hurt him. I won't let you."

How had Kurt become so brave? Blaine had no idea. Maybe Kurt had always been strong. His head hurt, but Blaine wanted to stay conscious, stay with Kurt.

"You can't stop me!" Brianna shouted, her eyes flashing with murder. She rushed at them but before Kurt could move or push Blaine out of the way, Tina was in front with the machete in one gloved hand. Brianna frantically tried to backpedal, but it was too late. Tina stepped forward and swung with a grunt. Brianna's head flew into the flames, still wearing an expression of shock. Even before the body had time to fall, Tina had her arm around Blaine and ran outside, Kurt following.

Behind them, the barn collapsed in a roar of flames and broken wood.

"Thank you," Tina whispered the next evening, her head buried in Kurt's shoulder. They stood in front of an old Ford loaded with a few bags of clothes. Mike and Blaine were off to the side, waiting patiently. Blaine had a bandage wrapped around his head, covering ten stitches. The doctors at the emergency room hadn't blinked an eye at Kurt's story of him tripping over their dog and catching the counter top corner.

Kurt squeezed Tina tightly. "No, thank you. You saved us, remember?" Kurt grinned, ruffling her hair. Tina squawked indignantly, but held Kurt's hands for an extra second.

"You and Blaine are wonderful people. Thank you for helping me save Mike." Tina ducked her head. "Um, I also put my number in your phone so call me if you need anything? Or you know…" She shifted uneasily, and Kurt grinned again. He knew what she was asking.

"I will," he said. "You may be dead, but it gets so tiring to have to converse with him all the time." He threw an exaggerated glance at Blaine, who sputtered at being singled out. "I need my girl time too, you know!"

Tina giggled and hugged Kurt again. She released him and glanced at Blaine. "You treat my boy right, hunter." She frowned. "Or else I'll sic Mike on you." Blaine swallowed and glanced at Mike, who towered over him. When he looked back at Tina, though, she smiled. Like she did Kurt, she embraced him tightly. "You're a much better man than your father." She whispered in his ear and pulled away.

"Are you ready?" Mike asked. He'd already said his goodbyes.

"Yes." Tina left a stunned Blaine and flounced into the passenger side of the rusty blue Ford. As Mike got in the driver's seat, she rolled down the window. "I'll miss you guys!" As they pulled away into the darkness, she waved frantically, half-leaning out the window until Mike pulled her back in.

Kurt kept waving until the taillights were tiny dots in the distance. When he turned to Blaine, he saw his friend staring into the night with a strange expression. "Hey, what's up?" He touched Blaine's shoulder carefully.

"Nothing," Blaine said. But a faint smile ghosted over his lips. "You ready?"

"Almost. I just…give me a second." Kurt sat on the roof of the Mustang, staring up at the stars. They were just outside of town on a small road, so there were almost no lights around. The stars shimmered and twinkled above him. Just about the only thing Kurt had missed about Ohio while in New York were the stars. He leaned back against the windshield.

He felt rather than saw Blaine climb up next to him. The other boy just laid there in silence, letting Kurt decide when to talk. It was nice.

As Kurt traced the stars with his eyes, he replayed the conversation the night before.

"I'm sorry."

Kurt stared at him incredulously. "You're sorry?"

While Blaine was getting stitches and Azimio was getting examined in some room, Karofsky sat next to him in the waiting room. At first, Kurt almost got up and moved, but something in Karofsky's eyes stopped him. He couldn't stop the flood of anger he felt when Karofsky hung his head and stared at his feet. This was who was afraid of? This scared little boy?

But Karofsky was sniffling. "I…I shouldn't have done that. I shouldn't have…" Tears trickled down his face. "I wish I could take what I did to you back."

Kurt knew he should be raging right now. Tearing down Karofsky, screaming for him to go to hell. But some reason, he couldn't. Kurt wondered if it was because when Karofsky kissed him he couldn't shake the feeling that Karofsky had hoped he'd kiss back.

Coming to terms with your sexuality was hard. Kurt had only done it because he was too open and too stubborn to hide himself. But for someone that could pass as straight and grew up in a culture that valued manhood and probably called everyone slightly girly a fag? It took courage.

Kurt didn't think Karofsky had it yet.

"I wish you could too." Kurt said, turning to face the hunter. "I won't tell you I forgive you because I don't. I know it's hard to admit to yourself…things. But I won't out you." Karofsky's eyes lifted hopefully at that. Then they clouded and glance over at the door that led to the examination rooms. Kurt interpreted the look instantly. "Blaine won't either. Just know this." Kurt dropped his voice so only Karofsky could hear. "Karofsky. Don't do what you almost did to me too anyone else. That kind of attack is the worst kind of violation anyone could ever experience. Believe me." Kurt sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. It'd been a long day.

"Dave."

Kurt opened his eyes. "What?"

Karofsky hesitantly met Kurt's eyes. "My name. It's Dave. Well, David. But I like Dave."

He wasn't fixed. Not by a long shot. Kurt knew people like Karof—…Dave don't change overnight. He'd been a bully for so long he had to remember how to interact with people without violence or crude jokes.

But maybe Kurt could help change him. So he let a small smile play around his lips and held out his hand. "Hello, Dave. I'm Kurt." The resulting smile was so wide Kurt couldn't help but be hopeful.

"I used to watch the stars when I was little," Blaine said, cutting into Kurt's thoughts.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." Blaine stretched, letting out little groans of pleasure. "If my parents were on a hunt, I'd go the roof of the building and sit there, making pictures in the sky until they came home."

Kurt had an image of a small, curly-haired boy in too-big polos and ugly shoes sitting on a roof by himself. The image was so lonely Kurt wanted to cry.

"It made me feel less alone, you know?" Blaine kept talking. "I could look at the sky and imagine so many other people looking at the same sky, the same stars. So even though I didn't know their names or even where they lived, we still shared something." He folded his hands behind his head. "This is a good spot," he said quietly.

"That was really sweet, Blaine." Kurt giggled at Blaine beaming at him. "We can leave now, if you want."

But Blaine shook his head. "I wanna look for a little while longer." And how could Kurt say no?

The night was slightly chilly, but Kurt couldn't feel it. He was content to sit with Blaine as long as he wanted. Faintly, he noticed Blaine was singing. It started off very quiet, but Blaine grew louder when he turned to see Kurt gazing at him.

When you wish upon a star
Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
Will come to you

Blaine's hand reached out and Kurt took it, smiling to himself. Under the stars, on top of an old Mustang, with Blaine singing felt so perfect and so right.

Kurt knew it couldn't last, but dammit, this moment was all that mattered right then.

When you wish upon a star
Your dreams come true