Machines of Loving Grace

Sci-fi AU in which Blaine Anderson wanders the halls of Dalton Academy, a safe haven created by his father after the events surrounding the Sadie Hawkins dance. Populated by student-machines, Dalton is an orderly place where everyone does exactly what Blaine wants, until Kurt Hummel (an actual real boy!) sneaks in to spy on the Warblers—which changes everything. Part gothic fairy tale and part sci-fi adventure, this is a story about adapting and surviving—and breaking free of the cage.Written for the Blaine Big Bang. Art by (http://magicalplaylist.tumblr.com) magicalplaylist!

Author's Notes: Written for the Blaine Big Bang. Thanks to my magnificent betas: (http://archiveofourown.org/users/JudeAraya/pseuds/JudeAraya) judearaya, for cheering me on and appreciating the gothic elements of the story; (http://neyronrose.tumblr.com/) neyronrose, for being the skeptic I sorely needed throughout; and (http://archiveofourown.org/users/misqueue/pseuds/misqueue) misqueue, for the many fantastic across-the-globe conversations about Kurt, Blaine, and AI(!) that led to the story being what it is. Also thanks to (http://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=luckyjak) luckyjak, whose (http://luckyjak.tumblr.com/post/44304373754/kink-meme-tropes-and-fics) post about world-building is partly responsible for what you're about to read. Finally, special thanks to (http://magicalplaylist.tumblr.com/) magicalplaylist, whose (http://sothinky.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/bbb500.png) brilliant art is, well, so appropriately Thinky. In fact, there's an Appendix to the story where I go on to meta what she's created—just don't read that until you finish the rest! I was floored that she picked my story, and her art captures so eloquently the themes I was batting about in my brain all these months.