SPOILER ALERT

The fact that the Warblers, as both Kurt AND Blaine's friends, would have known what throwing a slushie in someone's face means and yet chose to do it anyway has made me lose so much respect for them. Dalton prides itself on a "no tolerance bullying policy," yet this value does not seem to mean anything to them. The fact that they planned this, and then did NOTHING for their "friend" (and I now apply this term loosely because even if they didn't mean the harm they caused, the fact is that they blatantly attacked someone they were supposed to care about) when he was clearly in a lot of pain speaks volumes about their collective character. Santana ripping them a new one was too nice a punishment, and just served to lower my opinion of them further when it became clear that NONE of them bothered to call him and see that he was ok afterward, and THEN they let Sebastard slushie Santana even after they heard about Blaine.

I'm so upset about this because I honestly loved the Warblers. No matter how proud I am of the New Directions for taking the noble road, I'm so disappointed with the Warblers right now.

ON WITH THE STORY

XX

Wes had settled in well at Dartmouth. He was immediately welcomed into the Aires – the a capella group of the university – and he could honestly say he loved it. He had spoken to many of the Warblers over text and Facebook, enough to learn how Kurt and Blaine were faring back at McKinley and to learn of the newest additions to the Warblers.

It was definitely a surprise to Wes to get a phone call from Kurt at 4:30 in the afternoon on a Tuesday.

"Hey Kurt," Wes' surprise translated through to his tone after he accepted the call, "What's up?"

"Wes," Kurt sounded so upset, "Wes, it's bad. It's Blaine-"

Wes felt worry clench his heart like a vice, "It's going to be ok Kurt. What happened? Tell me everything."

XX

The door to the choir room slammed open with a deafening 'BOOM'. The Warblers, interrupted mid-meeting, all turned to the door to see Kurt and Wes standing there. Wes looked furious, but Kurt simply looked sad. Sebastian turned and faced the two newcomers coldly.

"Well, if it isn't lady lips," he smirked before turning to Wes, "And who are you?"

"I was Head of this council. I graduate and trust that the Warblers will continue to conduct themselves in an honourable manner," Wes growled, "And then I get THIS call from Kurt!"

David stood, "Look Wes, we really didn't mean any harm-"

He was cut off by the sheer force of Wes' glare. They locked eyes for a few moments until David slowly sat down. Wes turned the full force of his anger on the entire room and the Warblers collectively shuddered. Wes didn't need a gavel to control the room, and when he finally spoke again his voice was eerily calm, "I'm so disappointed in all of you."

"The fact that you all knew what a slushie means to me, and to all of New Directions, and yet you chose to throw it anyways," Kurt choked a little, "I honestly thought you had accepted me as a friend to you all. I know Blaine was your friend. I honestly can't believe any of you right now. I know Santana told you that Blaine needed surgery. None of you called him. Do you know how much that hurt him?"

"Kurt," Trent moved towards him, "I'm so sorry."

Kurt nodded at him. He had hoped that his impression of Trent hadn't been wrong; the resident "sassy" Warbler had always been extremely nice to Kurt, and he had definitely counted them as friends. Kurt turned his sad eyes on Nick and Jeff, who were sitting on one of the couches together, their hands clasped tightly. He caught Nick's eye and saw that the other boy was now in tears, and Jeff wouldn't meet his eye at all. Kurt felt a moment of regret strike through his gut, but quickly shook it off.

"And yet none of you learned anything. You may not have known Santana, but you knew Blaine. You slushied them both. You were his friends," he whispered, still sounding like a gunshot in the dead silent room, "So I just don't understand why you thought that would ever be ok. We're competition, yes, but first and foremost we were friends."

No one looked like they wanted to say anything, and Kurt was reminded of a similar situation this time last year, when he was mourning Pavarotti. This time, however, he was mourning the loss of his respect for these boys. They had protected him, accepted him, and showed him the true meaning of camaraderie. Kurt continued:

"There was once a time when I could count on all of you. And you could count on me. I don't know where that went. Or if it was ever there in the first place."

He choked again, and finally let the tears he had been holding back begin to flow. Wes grabbed his hand and held it tight.

"I count you all as my friends. Our motto is 'Once a Warbler, always a Warbler'. I'm in so much shock and disappointment with every. Single. One of you. One of Dalton's proudest qualities is its Zero Tolerance bullying policy," Wes' eyes looked around the room coldly, "If the administration expelled all of you I wouldn't be surprised."

There were collective gasps from all around, but Wes shook his head.

"I'm not finished. I wouldn't be surprised, but I know it's not going to happen. But I will tell you this: You will all have to live with this on your heads. You failed. You failed Dalton. You failed the safety it's supposed to offer everyone. And most of all you failed Blaine. And Kurt.

Blaine came to us three years ago, broken and afraid. He looked for sanctuary at Dalton. He found a place among us, and became an amazing person and friend right in front of our eyes. He opened up to us and trusted us. Then last year Kurt came to us for the exact same reason. Dalton is supposed to be a safe place from hate. No one should be afraid of Dalton. Ever. So you failed." Wes shook his head, then leveled a steely gaze at Sebastian, "My time as Head may have been a little strict, and maybe I stuck to the rules, but I honestly cared about every single Warbler. Not just what they could offer to the group. I cared about them as people. I don't think you can say the same and it baffles me that you're in charge here."

The Warblers looked at Wes and Kurt with regret and sorrow. Kurt had collected himself and now held his head high, his tears drying regally on his cheeks. Wes was still holding Kurt's hand. Both looked solemn.

"We're going to go now," Kurt said, "I don't know what this means for our friendship. Or any of your friendships with Blaine. It's going to be something that we'll have to work on separately. I'm not going to force him to be friends with any of you if he doesn't want to be. If he chooses to remain friends with you then I will support him. As for me? We're going to need to work on our trust. So for now I'm going to take Wes to see Blaine. His surgery is tomorrow and Wes can't stay."

"Good bye," Wes finished sadly as he and Kurt turned away.

"Wait!" it was Cameron who spoke. The pair stopped and Kurt glanced over his shoulder, but neither turned around.

"Can-" Jeff's voice came out a high-pitched squeak. He shook his head and cleared his throat, "Can we come visit him?"

Kurt studied his earnest face for a moment. His eyes softened, though he didn't smile when he replied, "I think that would make Blaine happy."

The scramble to grab bags and arrange carpool to Blaine's house was manic and loud after the past few minutes of silence, but the Warblers were fast to make decisions and soon they were all piled out the door. Wes and Kurt were leading the way. Wes looked a lot happier to see that his Warblers were still there. David was on his other side, talking a million miles an hour. Trent was on Kurt's other side, babbling faster than David, proving it was possible. Kurt was smiling at him, if a bit warily.

Sebastian stood in the middle of the room, looking at empty seats and knowing he wouldn't be welcome at this Warbler party. Even those who had only met Blaine on his few visits to Dalton had gone to wish him well. Now Sebastian was all alone.

He sighed.