I know I have prompts to fill, but I just had to write this. Song is from A Very Potter Sequel; it's called "Those Voices". Please review! I'm seriously sleep deprived here and would love some REVIEEEEWS!
I know you
:-:
The first time Finn saw the sad woman, he was lying in bed, contemplating how badly he screwed up. He can hear his mom crying down the hall, and it's all his fault. He got himself kicked out of the Hummel's, he destroyed his mother's second chance at love.
He broke Kurt Hummel's heart.
Sure, Kurt had been creepy and overbearing, and living with him had been horrible, but he didn't deserve to be shot down like that — crushed like a bug under Finn's foot.
Lost in his thoughts, Finn hadn't noticed the brown-haired woman at first. Looking over at his bed-side table and wondering if he should call Kurt and apologize, he jumped back as she smiled at him, a cry getting caught in his throat.
"Who are you? What the hell are you doing in my room?"
She said nothing, sitting on the edge of his bed. Her smile turned sad as brushed back a strand of hair from her face. It was a pretty brown color, pulled into a loose ponytail that draped beautifully around her round face.
The woman's watery blue eyes met Finn's confused brown ones, and his fear subsided.
"He'll forgive you," she said, smoothing the fabric of her skirt.
"What?" Finn sat up, finding his voice.
"Kurt. He'll forgive you."
Finn shook his head, trying to wake himself up.
"Who are you?" The woman ignored him, reaching out to stroke the side of his face. Finn shuddered at the touch.
"Just…protect him, okay?"
And then Finn woke up. He was sprawled on the ground next to his bed, tangled in the sheets and breathing heavily. The woman was gone, but her soft touch lingered on his cheek.
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The first time Kurt saw the tall man, he was crying.
Finn had been kicked out of the house, abruptly ending Carole and his dad's relationship, and it was all Kurt's fault.
Sure, Finn had lost his temper and pulled out the f-word, but it was Kurt who had pushed him to that boiling point with his flirting and ogling and dammit, now no one was happy.
"Hey, don't cry." The small boy looked up, heart racing. A tall, muscular man sat on what had been Finn's bed, concern in his warm eyes.
"Who the hell are you?" Kurt asked, sitting up and shuffling back against his headboard.
"Don't cry; he didn't mean it."
Kurt frowned. "Who are you?"
The man didn't flinch at the boy's harsh tone. Instead, he just smiled.
"Don't cry."
"Who ARE you?"
"You'll forgive him."
"Get out of my room!"
"Finn means well."
"What?"
The man closed his eyes, humming to himself. Kurt just stared in amazement, wondering why the creepy man in his room hadn't tried to kill him yet.
"What are you singing?" He asked, feeling a bit more relaxed. He was obviously asleep; this was all just a dream.
"Oh, just a song…"
"Your vagueness is rather frustrating, you realize."
The man laughed, and the light in his eyes could have illuminated an entire football field.
"You two are so much alike."
"Who?"
"She always tries to outsmart me with her advanced vocabulary. It's sort of cute after a while."
Kurt ran a hand through his messy hair. "I don't suppose you'll tell me who you are, what you're doing in my bedroom, or about whom you're talking. Hmm?"
The man wouldn't stop grinning; it was eerie how cheerful he was, even if he was just a dream.
"Well, if you're not going to answer my questions like a normal person, I'm going to sleep." Kurt replied haughtily, lying down against his pillow. The man just chuckled, and began humming again.
And then Kurt woke up. The room was empty and quiet, the only sound Kurt's heavy breathing. Wiping the half-dried tears from his cheeks, the small boy fell back against his pillow, letting unconsciousness overtake him once again.
As Kurt's eyes drooped down, a faint melody drifted through the room, lulling him to sleep.
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I've seen you in a dream,
an old familiar scene, from somewhere...
:-:
The night after Finn saved Kurt from Azimio and Karofsky, the sad woman came again.
"I told you he would forgive you."
This time it didn't scare Finn as much, but he was still a little weirded out.
"Who are you?"
"He forgave you. I think I'm allowed to say, 'I told you so.'"
Finn sat up, almost wanting to laugh. "Yeah, he forgave me. But Mom and Burt are still broken up."
The woman sat on his bed again, folding her hands together. "It's a step forward."
He sighed. "Yeah, I guess. I guess…I guess I just hate that it's all my fault. I let my anger get the best of me and now my mom has to suffer for it."
The woman's eyes grew sadder, and she looked down at her lap. "Does she love him? Burt, I mean?"
Finn nodded, burying his face in his hands. "She does! And now I've screwed everything up! Burt isn't like Kurt – he won't forgive me because I wore a dress to school! He'll always hate me, and Mom won't be with him if he hates me."
The sad woman touched his hand, closing her shimmering blue eyes. "If she loves him, they'll make it work."
Finn woke with a start, relieved he was firmly in bed and not sprawled on the ground like the last time. Groaning, he flopped back against his bed, wondering if he'd ever get rid of the guilt that was gnawing at his stomach.
:-:
That same night, Kurt was visited by the tall man. He was trying to get to sleep, but the room was too quiet without Finn's snores.
"I told you he didn't mean it."
Kurt looked up, rolling his eyes at the intruder.
"Of course he meant it. But I pushed him to it…God, I messed everything up!"
Kurt buried his face in his hands, trying not to cry. It was a great feeling not being mad at Finn anymore, yes. But things between them were still on shaky ground, and Burt and Carole's relationship was still on stand-by.
"Hey, hey, buddy…don't cry. Please, don't cry." The tall man stood up, his hands waving defenselessly in the air. He settled for rubbing Kurt's shoulder awkwardly.
"I'm not crying!" Kurt defended, pouting at the man. "But I will start if you don't tell me why you're here."
The man sighed with relief. "She told me you were a vicious little thing. Of course, when she said it, she made it seem cute. Now I'm just a tiny bit scared."
Kurt groaned. "Who is this she you keep talking about? On that note, who are you?"
The tall man just smiled. "Is Carole happy with your dad?"
Kurt nodded slowly. "Yes. Or, she was, until I screwed everything up."
The man just closed his eyes happily. "Oh, they'll figure it out. Carole knows how to get what she wants."
The man began humming again, and Kurt was hit with a realization.
"You…you're Finn's dad, aren't you?"
And then he woke up, the lingering notes of Christopher Hudson's song caught in his mind.
:-:
you know me.
:-:
It was a week before Finn saw the sad woman again. He and Kurt were getting along, preparing for Regionals every day after school happily and without trouble. They even hugged once (though it was awkward and one-armed) after perfecting their small duet in Don't Stop Believing.
Sadly, Burt and his mom had barely spoken. Finn had tried to ask Kurt about it on a few occasions, but the smaller boy just paled a little and murmured something inaudible before turning away.
When he finally noticed her standing next to his bed, he almost smiled.
"You two have been working hard."
Finn nodded. "Yeah. Regionals are coming up. We have to beat Vocal Adrenaline."
The sad lady grinned. "Is he good?"
"Who?" Finn played with the edge of his sheet.
"Kurt."
Finn nodded. "Yeah, he's really good. He'll make it out of this cow-town one day."
She looked at Finn, her blue eyes glittering with unshed tears.
"Is he loved?"
The boy nodded, slowly this time. "Uh, yeah. His dad loves him so much, loves him for who he is. And he has friends in glee club: Mercedes, Quinn, Brittany, Tina, Artie…and Me. We love him, too."
The sad lady's lips trembled. "That's good. The poor baby…"
Finn bit his lip. "Why are you so interested in Kurt?
The woman looked up, surprised. "Haven't you figured it out yet?"
He shook his head, and she sighed.
"Goodnight, Finn."
He woke, confused and irritated.
:-:
there's glowing in your eyes,
a glow I recognize, from somewhere...
:-:
"Thanks for helping me with this, Finn. Normally I would ask my dad, but he's been out so much lately…"
Finn shrugged, smiling. "No problem. Where do you want this?"
The taller boy held two large, heavy boxes in his arms, standing at the bottom of the attic steps. Kurt pointed towards the basement.
"Our- I mean, my room. Please."
Finn nodded, lugging the boxes towards the stairs as quickly as he could. Trying hard not to trip, he plunged down into the familiar bedroom, shocked that it had been returned to its "Dior gray" state.
Kurt seemed to notice, and immediately turned red. "The new design just wasn't working for me."
Finn nodded, setting the boxes down carefully. Kurt brushed past him anxiously, opening the boxes to reveal a collection of picture frames.
Kurt brushed the dust off the first one he picked up, smiling. "My father put these all in the attic after she died. He just…couldn't handle seeing her face everywhere. But I've been thinking lately, and I decided I needed a bit of her back in my life."
The smaller boy passed the picture to Finn, who stared at it open-mouthed. In it was a family of three: a young Burt Hummel, a small boy with Kurt's perfectly-coiffed hair and blinding smile, and none other than Finn's nightly visitor, the sad woman.
"Is…is this your mom?"
Kurt nodded, pulling another picture from the box. "I've…I've been having these weird dreams lately, and I just want to feel connected to her again. It's time. I'm older, I've healed a bit…it's time."
Finn couldn't tear his eyes away from the picture. There she was, his blue-eyed friend, holding up his almost-stepbrother in her arms.
"What was her name?" He couldn't help himself; he had to call his new friends something.
"Katherine. Katherine Anne Hummel." Kurt took the photo gently from Finn's hands and placed it on his vanity, positioning it until it was just the right angle.
"She misses you," Finn said, not realizing how strange his words were. Kurt, luckily, didn't catch his friend's meaning.
"I miss her, too. So much."
Finn hugged his friend, resting his cheek on the boy's head. Kurt tensed at first, but slowly relaxed into the embrace.
Glancing in the mirror of the vanity, Finn was met with the same, sad, blue-eyed stare that he had been greeted with for countless nights since he had been kicked out of the Hummel house. Only this time, the gaze came from Kurt.
Finn wondered how he never saw the resemblance before.
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those voices,
singing out…
"la, la, la, la, la..."
:-:
Kurt hummed to himself later that evening as he and Finn sat on the Hummel's back porch, watching the sun go down.
Finn watched him curiously. "Where'd you hear that song?"
Kurt shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I heard it somewhere."
The taller boy smiled sadly. "Oh. It's just, it sounds like the song my mom used to sing me to sleep with. Said my dad came up with it before I was born, called it his lullaby.
Kurt swallowed, staring into the sunset. "Well…maybe I heard you sing it, then."
"Maybe."
The small boy sighed. Chris Hudson's song had been playing non-stop in his head since he realized who the mysterious man was. He had visited a couple more times, and each time his humming had lulled Kurt to sleep. Even when he couldn't see Christopher, he could hear his song.
"Boys? You out here?" Burt Hummel's voice came from the back door.
"Yes, Dad!" Kurt shouted back, standing up. Finn followed, still a little afraid of Mr. Hummel.
"Can you boys come here for a second?" Carole's voice sounded after Burt's. Finn would have been scared, if not for the happy tone in her voice.
"Coming!" They shouted. Forgetting all talk of the lullaby, the two friends walked into the Hummel's living room, where the two parents sat, holding hands.
"So, as you two were not aware of, Carole and I have been seeing each other again," Burt said, much to the happiness of the boys. "And we were wondering, maybe, since you two have grown so close, if the Hummels and the Hudsons could try living together again?"
"Yeah, sure," Finn said, grinning. "If it's okay with Kurt."
Kurt nodded. "Sure. We never got around to moving your bed out of my room, Finn."
"Cool!" The taller boy said, excitedly. "We should have a sleepover!"
The parents chuckled, and Kurt just sighed adoringly.
"Sure, Finn. Sure."
:-:
those voices
reaching out…
"la, la, la, la, la..."
:-:
Finn and Kurt fell asleep on the same bed that night (Kurt's, of course; it was by far the comfiest bed in the house). It was around midnight that their visitors came, but neither boy woke up.
"Your son turned mine gay, Katherine."
"Oh, you know it's cute, Chris. Don't deny it."
"You know, you're quite scary when you're upset. Kurt definitely takes after you in that way."
"Well, Finn certainly didn't inherit his charm from you. Calling a woman scary. Honestly."
"Ooh, testy."
"Christopher, shut up. You'll wake them."
"You've obviously never met a Hudson – we sleep like rocks."
"And you've obviously never met a Hummel – we sleep like babies with diaper rash."
"I really didn't need that visual, Kathy."
"Don't call me Kathy. Let's just let our boys sleep. Come on, Chris."
"Coming, Kathy."
The two adults faded away, leaving Finn and Kurt alone in dark. A song lingered in the air as the night passed on, remaining in their hearts for the years to come.
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"la, la, la, la, la..."