William's face contorted with rage at the sight of his apprentice-he refused to acknowledge that Kurt was no longer his-hand in hand with the bloody Marquess of Wiltshire. He recognized Lord Nikolas, standing just off to Kurt's side, looking at William with pure hate blazing in his eyes and the idea that Kurt had managed to somehow ingratiate himself to two of the most cold hearted vampires in the demon world arose William's ire.

"You wretched little traitor," William snarled moving towards Kurt.

William realized too late that he'd allowed his emotions to cloud his judgement. Nikolas began to shift but before the vampire could even complete his transformation, William found himself pinned to the wall, a heavy weight settling over his chest and all the air being dragged from his lungs.

"Someone's run afoul of his majesty," Rory remarked cheerfully, bouncing on the balls of feet and shooting curious but happy looks over at Kurt.

"You are guest in my home, William. I suggest you get a hold of yourself and behave in the matter befitting a man of your station, or the next corrective measure I take won't be so gentle," Sam said coolly.

William felt the weight come off his chest and he sucked in breath after breath.

"Sit, William. We have much to discuss." Sam said.

"Sam," Kurt asked, his voice quaking ever so slightly, "what precisely is going on here?"

"William here is going to convince us, and by us I mean you, that he deserves to given the potion he needs to continue his miserable existence," Sam said easily, taking a seat motioning for the others to sit as well. "If he can't come up with a suitable argument, then he'll be sent back to Ravenshire sans potion to await his eventual demise."

"You can't be serious," William scoffed. "What possible sway can a half bred mongrel have over the new King of the fey? He's an exceptional seeker; I'll grant him that but now he's that sullied himself with the likes of them," William sneered at Nick and Blaine before turning back to Sam, "he's little more than a vampire's whore."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a burst of light erupted in the room and William found himself feeling as if he were burning from the inside out.

"Rory!" Sam bellowed, "Stop that this minute. Release the mage."

Rory shot Sam a petulant look but ended his enchantment. "You'd do well to watch your tongue," the little fey warned William. "I don't care for you at all."

Nick snorted in laughter. "You just might be alright," he said giving Rory an approving look. Rory smiled back.

"I'm sure by now you've noticed your magical defenses are non-existent," Sam said, addressing the confused mage. "You're in my realm, in my home; the only magic here is the magic of the fey sorcerer. Keep that in mind."

"What is going on here?" William demanded.

"I'd rather like to know that myself," Kurt said.

"I believe, dear one, Sam is giving you the chance to hold William's future in your hands as he so casually held yours," Blaine said, brushing a kiss over Kurt's knuckles.

"Indeed, I am," Sam said, smiling at Blaine. "You chose well little brother, your mate is rather quick on the uptake."

"Little brother?" William repeated blankly. "Mate? What fresh hell is this?"

"Oh this isn't hell," Blaine said dismissively. "I've been to hell and this, this nothing like hell."

"Yes, there is a distant lack of weeping and wailing," Sam agreed.

"Tis no fire nor brimstone neither," Rory piped up from the corner.

"In all fairness though, there are a number of the damned present," Nick put in.

"Well you should all hitch up a caravan and travel as a comedy troupe," William said dryly. He turned to Kurt, his eyes cold and accusatory, "You mated with him?"

"I did," Kurt said, meeting William's gaze head on, "Blaine is my mate."

"As you might have inferred," Blaine began, his voice deceptively quiet,"that means Kurt is no longer in your service."

"We have a contract," William stated smugly. "I'll simply go to the council and they will oblige him to return to me."

"You could go to the council," Kurt said, not a trace of fear in his voice, "but then I might be forced to explain to them I didn't feel comfortable being in service to someone who'd forced me to use my powers to steal from them. Or were you planning on returning the Ring of Solomon when you went to complain to them?"

William paled momentarily but then recovered. "You can hardly point the finger at me without cutting your own throat. I wouldn't possess the ring had you not taken it."

"You stole from the Council? The Ring of Solomon? Have you lost your mind?" Blaine rounded on Kurt. "Do you have any idea-"

"Of course I do," Kurt snapped, "which is why I didn't take it. William is in possession of a very clever fake and the council, should they ever feel the need to seek it out, will come across a sealed letter detailing exactly what happened and who was responsible."

"You treacherous –"

"Watch your tone, William. That's my little brother you're talking about." Sam chided, smiling at Kurt.

"Brother? Since when?" William demanded.

"Since the day he was born, William. That's generally how it works," Sam said dryly. "Queen Adeline was his mother and that makes him my brother and that makes him your better…I suggest you remember that."

"You are in no position to call anyone treacherous," Kurt spoke up before William could reply, "You know as well as I do the reason the council has the Ring of Solomon is because the power to command demons is one that should only rest in their hands," Kurt flung at William.

"Fine Kurt," William said, "I won't go to the council to complain about you terminating out contract early. I'll leave you to your mate and never bother you again. Now, can I have my damn potion?"

"I suppose-"

"Nay, little brother, not so fast," Sam said, stopping Kurt mid sentence. "Rory, bring the wine."

Rory clapped and raced off, returning a moment later with a crystal decanter and a single goblet.

"How about we celebrate our new understanding of things," Sam said, pouring the liquid into the glittering golden goblet, "Kurt is no longer in your employ and you will leave him and his mate alone and by contrast none of us will seek out revenge upon you. Everyone wins, as long as you plan to abide by our agreement, we shall do the same. I'd say that's worthy of a good toast. Drink William, and don't spill a drop, eh?"

William wanted to refuse. He wanted to take the wine and fling it Sam's face. He wanted his powers so he could place a spell on Kurt that would cause him a maximum amount of pain and suffering. He wanted to tear the wooden leg from the table and drive it through Blaine's chest.

He did none of those things, however. He had already suffered the consequences for losing his temper twice and had no desire to endure them for a third time. He would simply humor them all and then, when he'd gotten his potion and regained his strength he would make them pay.

"To the ending of old associations and the beginnings of new ones," William said, raising his goblet and draining it dry. "Now, about the potion-"

"Yes, about the potion," Sam said, "Why do you need it?"

"It's the only source I have for my immortality and if I don't get some soon I'll die," William said simply. His eyes narrowed and he looked at Sam with suspicion. "What did you do to me?"

"Tis a saying amongst my people," Sam said, with a wolfish grin, "when the drink goes in, the truth comes out. Of course, among the fey that's usually because we've compelled it but the sentiment remains the same. So William, what are your feelings towards Blaine, over there?"

"I detest him," William said, unable to keep the words from tumbling from his lips, "He's a hell spawn and a monster. That creature is not fit for society and he and his ilk should not be permitted to exist on the surface among us decent people."

"How dare you," Kurt hissed, "what makes you think you are fit for society? You are a user, a liar, a thief and a murderer. You're no better than Blaine-in fact you're worse because Blaine doesn't pretend to be anything other than what he is while you put on the airs of a gentleman when the truth is you're one of the most vicious monsters I've ever had the misfortune to encounter."

"It's ok, dear one. His opinion of me is of little importance," Blaine said, trying to calm Kurt before the smaller male launched himself at Schuester.

"He's a vampire, Kurt," William said. "He kills for sport. You can't seriously believe that he's anything but the devil incarnate. Has he quite literally fucked you senseless? Do you really believe-"

"What are your feelings for Kurt?" Sam interrupted quickly, needing to move things along before either Blaine or Nick lost control and attacked William.

William blinked and then scowled. "He's a traitor. I cared for that boy, even thought once that perhaps he could be more than my apprentice but he rebuffed my every advance. That was fine though, I didn't need Kurt's body, just his talent. I gave him the finest of everything and he repaid me by running off with that damn vampire. He's a disloyal cretin and deserves hellfire to rain down upon his ungrateful head."

"I'll miss you too," Kurt replied dryly.

Sam held up a hand when Blaine began to speak. "Now that we know you cannot tell a lie, tell us your plans for Kurt. If he allows you take your potion and go, what will you do?"

William struggled not to speak. His fingers dug into the arm of his chair and his face scrunched up with effort. He bit on his bottom lip so hard he drew blood but in the end he was powerless to stop the river of truth from flowing forth. "I'll kill him. I'm going to gather my strength, assemble my forces and lay siege to the bloodsucker's home. I'll come in the day when they are more vulnerable. I'll give the order to kill every member of their clan and I'll personally stake that one," he said pointing to Nick," and behead the Marquess. I'll make Kurt watch and then I'll kill him myself."

The room erupted into chaos. William, realizing the gravity of the situation, bolted from his seat and ran for the door. Rory let loose a lightning bomb, knocking the mage away from the door but before he could press his advantage, Nick shifted and was on top of William, pinning him to the floor, and trying to sink his fangs into his neck. Kurt meanwhile was desperately hanging onto Blaine, trying to keep his mate from attacking his former protector. Sam sighed and snapped his fingers, freezing everyone in place.

"Gentlemen, there will be no murder in the castle walls. Well, there will be no more murder in the castle walls," Sam amended. "Nikolas, get off of William. William, retake your seat. Rory, no more lightning bombs inside the building, eh? Blaine, calm yourself, you're distressing Kurt and Kurt let Blaine go."

No one quite understood why but they all found themselves obeying Sam. Once some semblance of order had been restored Sam turned to Kurt and began speaking.

"If he lives, he's going to try to kill you. Maybe not today, tomorrow or in a fortnight but one day he will come for you and he will come for Blaine," Sam said quietly. "He is a threat, to you, to your mate and your clan. You needed to know the truth to make an informed decision. I'll give him the potion and send him on his way if that's what you choose, or I'll send him away empty handed to await his ever after. The choice is yours, little brother."

Kurt was lost. The closest he'd ever come to being responsible for a death was when Mike had killed Azimio to defend him. Kurt knew none of the others in the room would hesitate, but somehow, even knowing that William would be a future threat didn't feel like enough of a justification to send the man to his death. If William were attacking right then Kurt knew he'd do whatever was necessary to defend himself and his family but to punish the mage for things he hadn't done yet and might not ever do didn't sit well with the witch.

"Kurt," Blaine said softly, "It's ok. Do what you can live with. No one here will judge you either way."

Kurt looked into Blaine's eyes and expected to see disappointment at his weakness and instead all he saw was love. "I…I can't. I know I should. He threatened us all but I just-"

"Shh, love it's okay," Blaine said drawing Kurt into his arms. "Getting blood on your hands isn't an easy thing. It's fine. I'll do enough killing for the both of us."

"Gods Blaine," Kurt said, a watery laugh escaping, "That's not exactly comforting."

"Well, now that Kurt's made his decision, I'll take my potion-"

"Not so fast," Sam broke in. "One last question: What are your plans for me?"

Sweat broke out across William's forehead and his eyes darted wildly across the room as he sought a way to decamp. He knew his next words would bring his own death upon his head yet he couldn't keep them from escaping.

"You're going to be killed. I have a meeting with Lord Eadbh�rd. He's agreed to help me overthrow you. He'll assume the throne in your place and in exchange for my help he'll give me the Ring of Eluned and unlimited amounts of the potion."

Sam's lips quirked, "You should have negotiated for both the Ring of Eluned and the Spear of Lugh. Murdering a king should be a bit more profitable."

"Sam," William said, trembling," I can explain."

"I rather believe you just did," Sam said quietly. "Now, fortunately for you I have no plans to get blood on my carpet so I won't be dashing you to bits in my sitting room."

"Sam-" William attempted to speak.

"Unfortunately for you, I lack Kurt's capacity for mercy," Sam continued on as if the interruption hadn't occurred. Sam rose and stood in front of Will. He stared down at the human and a cruel smile twisted his lips. "You won't have to wait for the lack of potion to do you in mage," he said shoving a small bottle into William's hands.

Sam clapped William on the shoulder. "Out with you, go home now William." The trio on the couch watched in surprise as Sam allowed William to rise and began walking him to the door. Just as he reached for the handle, Sam's hand came down on top of William's, halting him.

"One last thing," Sam said cheerfully,tightening his hold on William's hand, before reciting a spell.

"God Arawn to you I pray,
Avenge the wrong that's been done this day,
Let William's flesh rot as it falls from the bone,
Send Charon quickly to carry him home."

William turned white and wrenched his hand free. "You cursed me…you put Charon's curse on me!" He yelled, grabbing Sam's shirt and bunching the fabric up in his fists.

"Aye," Sam said flinging William from him. "I suggest you use the next twenty four hours to put your house in order. Charon isn't long in coming once he's called."

"You bastard," William spat. "You said Kurt got to choose!"

"And so he did. I gave you the potion," Sam pointed out. "I promised that as long as you planned to hold up your end of the bargain none of us would come after you. But you didn't plan to hold up your end of the bargain and you're plotting with one of my disloyal subjects to have me murdered. Be grateful I only called on Charon. I considered calling upon V�li, but I don't think my little brother is quite ready to be face to face with a vengeance god. Now be gone with you William. Make your peace with this earth because you're not long for it."

With those words Sam extended his hand, directing a bolt of energy at William that caused the mage to disappear.

Silence reined for several moments before Kurt broke it. "You knew," he said dully. "You knew that I wouldn't withhold the potion. You had no intention of letting him walk out of here alive."

Sam turned to face his brother. "He may be the walking dead but technically, he is alive little brother," Sam pointed out. "But yes, I did know. I knew that you are far kinder and more merciful than anyone I've ever met. I knew that Schuester would be counting on that and I knew that he could not be trusted. I knew that he is a snake and in the end a snake has no choice but to slither."

"I don't understand why-"

"Don't you? Are you going to tell me that you didn't need to know that if came down to it your wish for revenge on the man whose made your life a living hell wouldn't overrun your better nature? Do you mean to tell me you didn't need to know where your line was Kurt? You didn't need to know how far you could go," Sam questioned gently.

Kurt opened his mouth and then closed it. Sam was right. The entire exercise with William had enlightened him to the fact that he could take a life, but only in the immediate defense of himself or a loved one. It was a question that he'd wrestled with ever since Jeremiah had taunted him about not being strong enough to help Blaine in battle. Kurt had always known he was willing to die for those he loved; now he knew that under the right circumstances, he was also willing to kill for them.

"No more games, Samuel," Blaine said quietly. "You've done what you needed to do for Kurt the best way you knew how but from this point on, no more plotting and scheming. You're honest with Kurt."

"Agreed," Sam said easily. "Manipulation may come easily to me but I have no desire to make you into a pawn, little brother. I did what I had to in order to keep you safe and I'll always do so, but from now on I'll keep you in the loop."

"Good," Kurt said smiling. "Now, we really do have to get going."

"Of course," Sam said, "but first, would any of you care to explain to me just whose bright idea it is to willingly go into the domain of a Jinn?"

Blaine groaned and Kurt shook his head. "How did you-"

"You freed several of our people, Kurt," Sam explained, "And your mate other there, his reputation precedes him. It didn't take much to figure out the "pretty half witch" that he had with him was you. But I'll ask again, why are you provoking the Jinn?"

After several stops and starts they managed to explain the whole story to Sam, whose face grew more and more thunderous with each passing word. At the completion of the tale, Sam turned to Blaine and narrowed his eyes. "Why are you permitting him to go? This Jeremiah has made his intentions toward Kurt quite clear and yet you are taking him into the belly of the beast?"

"I'm not made of glass," Kurt said crossly. "I may not be a vampire or a Fey King but I'm not useless and I won't sit idly by while my brother is tortured and my mate fights to free him."

Sam nodded. "I don't like it. If I had my way I'd keep you here in Caisle�n until the danger had passed," At the mutionous look on Kurt's face Sam relented,"but it's not my choice. You're a grown man and if you want to go into battle than that's you'll do. I wish I could go with you but I have to handle Lord Eadbh�rd sooner rather than later. "I'll send some of my men with you and-"

"I'll go," Rory spoke up suddenly, coming to stand beside Nick. "You know you won't trust any of the others to keep Kurt safe-no offense vamps-and if this Jeremiah fellow is throwing about lightening, it's about time he meet someone who can catch it, eh?"

Sam nodded. "I expect the both of you to come back in one piece." He said, pulling Kurt and Rory into his embrace.

"Yes, your majesty," Kurt joked.

"You bring them back to me," Sam said looking at Blaine, "or I'll rain down a vengeance upon you that will have the gods themselves seeking sanctuary."

Blaine smiled. "Are we ever going to part ways without you threatening me, Sam?"

"I doubt it," The blonde said, his eyes twinkling. "And I mean it. These two are mine, you bring them back."

Blaine's eyes flashed and he wrapped an arm around Kurt's torso. "That one is yours," he said nodding at Rory, "this one is mine.

"You'll have to excuse Blaine," Nick said cheekily, "He never did learn to play well with others. Even as a small child he would rather-"

"Nikolas!"

"-Break the stick off his hobby horse rather than let anyone else have a turn," Nick finished gleefully.

"Blaine," Kurt cried out reproachfully.

"It was my damn horse," Blaine defended himself.

"He once shredded his kite because be didn't want to let me fly it," Nick said, feigning sadness.

"I am going to stake you. Right in the leg, with a silver stake so that it hurts," Blaine promised his brother.

"You will do no such thing," Kurt said, "And we should go."

"Wait," Sam said suddenly, "the four of you, form a circle and join hands."

The four tentatively followed Sam's instructions. Sam stood motionless for a few moments before he began chanting.

By Earth, By Water, By Fire, By Wind
Keep them safe until the journey's end
As old as the first day the sun awoke
The power of protection and strength I invoke
By the power of the five point star
Spirits be with them near or far
Hail fair moon ruler of the night
Guard these of mine until morning's light.

The Kurt and Rory felt a slight weight settle over them, reminiscent of a heavy winter coat while Nick and Blaine looked puzzled. "You guys can't sense it, but Sam just did a protection spell. A pretty powerful one, too if the weight I feel is any indication," Kurt explained.

Sam nodded. "It is. But its only til sunrise," He removed an ring from his desk drawer and handed it to Kurt. "The spell is only on the four of you. Give this to your lycan when you find him. It'll afford him some measure of protection as well."

"This may be one of the few times I've found myself grateful for magic," Nick said.

"Don't be," Sam said seriously. "I have no idea how powerful your Jinn is. Under the best of circumstances I'd be hard pressed to match a Jinn's magic and from what I gather, these aren't the best of circumstances. The spell may be for naught."

"But it is still better than nothing," Kurt said. "And even if it doesn't work, we're no worse off than we were before. So thank you, brother. And stay safe. This Eadbh�rd sounds dangerous and…I just found you. I don't want to lose you."

Sam laughed. "Lord Eadbh�rd is the only one in danger, brother. Examples shall have to be made and well…he's going to be the unlucky first."

Blaine nodded. "You handle your traitor, I'll handle mine."

After securing several magical weapons from Sam's arsenal the quartet left Caisle�n, traveling back through the Sugar Maple and landing on the path in front of Jesse and Mike.

"Did all go well?" Mike asked anxiously.

Kurt smiled at Mike. "It went amazingly. Sam…Sam's my brother and William is no longer a threat and Rory here is…I'm not sure what Rory is but he's mine too and now we just have to go get Noah and everything will be perfect."

Jesse turned a quizzical glance at Blaine. "Is…is Mast- uh, Kurt under some sort of enchantment?

"He's fine," Blaine assured his fledgling, "A little overly optimistic but fine. Now let's go. Jeremiah must be dealt with."

Jeremiah sat on his throne, absently running his fingers through the hair of the terrified sprite kneeling at his feet. "You know, you're almost too pretty to kill…almost." As the sprite whimpered Jeremiah made shushing sounds. "There, there, now that's enough of that. How about if I promise to keep you in one piece, huh? Isn't that nice of me? So tell me, would you rather be-"

Jeremiah stopped suddenly and smiled. "I'm afraid I don't have time to kill you properly, love," he said, bringing the sprite up to her feet and cupping her face gently. "I have to go get ready to play with a pretty little porcelain doll now," he said.

The sprite closed her eyes in relief but in the next second felt a blinding pain as Jeremiah wrapped her long tresses around his hand. "I said I didn't have time to kill you properly, dear," Jeremiah said as he tightened his grip. "I didn't say I didn't have time to kill you."

Before she could respond a hideous snap echoed through the room. Her body crumpled into a heap at Jeremiah's feet and her head went rolling across the stone floor.

"Now to go greet my guests," Jeremiah murmured to himself as he exited the room and made his way to the main tunnels.