I'll Race You

by Without permission

a well-meaning officer, and a runaway criminal. A listless young man, and a stranger from space. They've chased each other in a game of cat and mouse until one of them decides to fuck with the laws of the universe. AU slash

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee

Summary: a well-meaning officer, and a runaway criminal. A listless young man, and a stranger from space. They've chased each other in a game of cat and mouse until one of them decides to fuck with the laws of the universe. AU slash

A/N: I wrote this a few months ago and never intended to post it until now. It ended up cheering me up a little given recent events. The story is heavily AU in one world and twisted in the other. It made little sense to me before, during, and after I'd written it, but now its rings a different bell – to me, at least. Maybe this'll help you guys out, too if you're just as stuck as I am. I had to edit/cut out a few bits because I felt they were too triggery and I myself wasn't comfortable with posting it the way it originally was.

Warning: Kinn slashy situations, halfhearted descriptions of a futuristic sci-fi world, implications of prostitution and suicide, light violence, and HEAVY OOC – though given the circumstances I put our boys in, their characterizations make sense. Sort of but not really minor character deaths (it's complicated). Bottom!Finn.

NOTE: while it's an AU, one of the settings is set during the beginning of Season 4 when Finn comes home from Georgia.

…

I'll Race You

…

The first time he met him it was at The Shop in the Venus Colony circling around the planet of its namesake. Calling it a Colony was mere formality, however. The station was more like a getaway for crooked politicians and guilty visitors in for a quick bite of relief. Other colonies around the galaxy considered it a blight, but the Unity had kept them from destroying it as it should have long ago. Each colony was to live the way they wished, and that included Venus.

He never really thought much of the Venus Colony. His comrades loved making jokes about it, and egged him to go since it was 'right up his alley'. But he never went. Not because he couldn't, he just didn't want to. He knew the nature of Venus, and despite all its laws regarding safety and health within its citizens, it didn't sway him to pay the place a visit. He wasn't a swinger.

Plus, despite a history of healthy experiences, he was too damned shy.

People still called him 'Baby Face' even now that he was twenty two and virtually all baby fat burned away. He would hate to hear that nickname from the lips of whoever he was bedding.

Personal issues aside, he was busy. Mars was littered with criminals yet to be apprehended, and he was fresh out of the Academy as a police officer. With the city of New Venice taking him in with open arms, he was determined to prove his worth just as he had in the Academy. It was going to be twice as hard, too, because the officers around him were all experienced, gruff, and loved to pick on the new guy.

He heard it all by now, Porcelain, Lady Face, Fancy Pants…

If they hadn't changed demeanors while on mission and took him seriously, he would have clobbered them with his bo staff. As it were, they were merely teasers and meant no harm behind their words. So he didn't take it personally.

What he did was Chief Sylvester's decision to put him on vacation to Venus. He'd only been in New Venice for six months and already they were giving him time off? What gives!?

The Chief mentioned something about a runaway spotted in the colony, but gave him no further information save for a harried drawing of an evil looking kid with huge fangs and greasy hair. Apparently, the guy had run off after a failed robbery at the Paolo district. They received special permission from Venus officials to visit their turf and find the man. The attempted robbery was fairly small and not that big of a deal considering New Venice's other crimes. This was just an excuse for Sylvester to get rid of him for a bit. She blatantly said she wanted him to enjoy himself and not be so stuffy all the time.

Still too much of a rookie to argue with his boss, he left on the grudging promise that he'd get a hefty raise for his success in finding the thief.

When he set foot on the foreign colony he was immediately greeted by synthetic simulations of a paradise world. There were blue skies, beaches with soft white sand, beautiful half-dressed people who either walked alone or were latched onto the smug arms of decidedly regular Joe's and Jane's. The buildings all over the place displayed in great neon lights the promotion of toys, videos, costumes, and 'Products'.

People who served only for sex. In other words, the real residents of Venus.

After self-consciously weaving through the crowds, he found himself inside one of the more renowned stores in the colony simply called The Shop. Though he managed to keep it secret, he had a friend who owned the place. He never visited her, but kept contact through video transmissions. She was the most persistent of all to get him to spend the week at Venus.

"Or else you're balls'll shrivel up and fall off," she once told him.

He was going to reach the secretary – keeping his eyes to the floor so he wouldn't be caught gawking at all the Products displaying themselves for a client – when he slammed into someone who spilled water all over him. Or he hoped it was water. You just don't know when it comes to Venus.

"Shit. I'm so sorry," the young man panicked, wiping over the ruined shirt. He pulled out a rag that had been hanging from his hip and busily tried to dry the officer off.

"It's…it's all right," he looked at the guy – a waiter from the simple uniform. He was tall, about a head taller than him, with short dark hair and a boyish face that was twisted in anxiety for his flub. He was muscular, but not so much that he was exploding from his clothes. Lean was a better word. And handsome. The officer flushed and looked away. Very handsome. And very much his type.

"Crap, you're a cop!" the young man spotted the badge stuck to the officer's belt. "I'm really sorry!"

"It's okay," he repeated, a little amused. "It's just water, it'll dry up, no problem." He paused in afterthought, "it is water, right?" The guy gave a nervous laugh and rubbed the back of his neck while nodding. Though he was tall, the way his shoulders hunched and kept ducking his head gave the impression that he thought himself much smaller. Unconfident and simple. Heart achingly innocent. Nothing like the residents of Venus, which meant, "first day on the job?"

"That obvious?" he mumbled with a sheepish grin. He looked at him and the officer now realized that he was…probably not entirely human. His eyes were a strange shade of bright pink with bits of red speckling the outer rim of his irises. He caught a flash of sharp canine teeth. Not completely fangs, but not entirely human either. Whatever race the man was, it was carnivorous. He wracked his thoughts on the different species known to exist.

There were the Neptunian's who were the closest biological cousins to humans, but they couldn't survive outside their atmosphere without turning blue even inside their protective suits. Earthlings were dominantly human with a smidgen of other travelers or immigrants of other galaxies. None of which had pink eyes or fangs – generally non-human species were extensively different physically. Perhaps this one was a hybrid of some sort – or he was a Splicer who thought changing his face would be cool because apart from the two unnatural features, he still looked very much human.

Interesting.

"I'm Kurt," he stuck his hand out before he could stop himself, "Kurt Hummel, I'm here on duty." And totally not on vacation.

The man brightened up with a dangerously endearing lopsided smile and shook his hand, "John. I'd be happy to help."

…

When he first saw him, it was on the worst day of his life.

There was very little he saw in himself that was worth something for the future. The dream of football lasted all of fifteen minutes when a scout told him he wasn't good enough. He tried out acting, but the school he applied to shut the door on him faster than he could get a monologue out. He wasn't passionate like his ex-girlfriend, so following her into Broadway would be impossible unless he was willing to walk in her shadow and hold her purse.

And that was just…no.

The army seemed like the next option even if it distressed everyone and their mother. Except that worked out just as brilliantly as his auditioning.

How the hell do you shoot yourself while cleaning your gun?

The general asked himself the same question right after, 'this probably isn't the best place for you.'

The army was supposed to be his fall back. Now that they kicked him out for being an idiot he had absolutely no idea what to do or if he even wanted to keep going. He was humiliated. High school had been so wonderful, and now that it was over, he was tripping over himself in trying to find a place in the world. Shit, was there even a spot for him?

Maybe he really wasn't good enough. Maybe he was going to end up like those moody dishwashers in the back of craggy old restaurants. Shit pay. Shittier life.

His mom was going to be so disappointed.

Happy that he wasn't going to war. But disappointed.

Fuck.

He'd been traveling for a week, taking the slow route back home. He needed time to think. Time to get over his shattered confidence and find whatever courage was left in him to face his mother. Face his friends who all looked up to him when he left.

Walking down a barren dirt road in Kansas, he looked up at the blue skies and wanted to howl in misery. He wanted to cry, but his eyes were too tired to spill anymore.

Maybe he should just give up.

Find a rope. A sturdy tree.

Hope the pain of his neck snapping would pass really fast.

Let darkness invade him and sweep him away from this sorry spit of land…

He opened his eyes and let out a dejected huff. No, he wouldn't go through with it, what would his mother do without him? She had Burt, but he was self-aware enough to know she'd be devastated if she lost him. So hanging himself was a no, what else was there to do then? Go back to Sheets 'N Things?

And that's when he saw it. A flash in the sky.

He blinked.

At first he thought it was his eyes fucking up, but then a dark dot followed the flash, fast growing into a round shape the closer and closer it got.

He froze in horror. It was a bomb.

Fuck! On top of moping over his failures he was going to get nuked!

Swearing under his breath, he ran as far away from the approaching bomb as possible. Running into a field of corn just as the object crashed into another field nearby. The impact threw him off his feet and into a wall of stalks, scraping him up with flying debris and loosened rocks. His heart hammered in his ears as he gathered himself to his feet. The hissing of cooling metal filling the air, black smoke and dirt dancing up from the field it hit.

Seconds turned to minutes, and no explosion occurred. Feeling a little bit more curious, but still jittery with nerves, he gingerly stepped out of his hiding spot and cautiously approached the large thing.

It made a huge crater, once he moved from the corn field into what was left of the wheat. The size of a football field. His careful steps fumbled, and with a cry of fright, he tumbled down the rest of the way to the mysterious object that had yet to defuse. Grimacing in pain, the rejected army recruit crawled to his feet, his hands burning from the scrapes of his fall. Under the bright unassuming sunlight, he looked down at the large black structure and could see that it was actually a craft of some sort. Black and would have been shiny if the dirt hadn't dusted over its surface. He crept a little closer, grabbing an uprooted wheat stalk on the way. Inching closer, he held it and lightly tapped the metal casing.

It didn't look like a bomb at all.

Rather…

Immediately, his head was filled with images of a man in red, yellow, and blue. The origins of him being discovered by a couple.

In Kansas. As a baby. In a spaceship.

Ho.

Lee.

Shit.

He yelped in fright when a neon orange line glowed around the middle of the oval shaped ship and a new hissing emitted from it like a pressure cooker followed by the top half suddenly cracking open and turning up like an invisible hand were opening a box. Gulping, the harried traveler took a step closer.

The interior was small. Filled with cushioning and little lights. Its occupant lying inside. To anyone, it looked like a coffin, because the person – because it looked like a person – was unconscious with his arms – because it looked like a 'he' – were crossed over his slim stomach.

He stared at the stranger with a mix of wonder and fear.

It was a young man, a little smaller than himself, with a peaceful pale complexion, and short chestnut hair. His relaxed features made him think of elves from Lord of the Rings, and his black clothes mainly consisted of straps and buckles. Not in the fashion/lunacy sense. They made him look like some kind of mercenary or army official. With no visible weapons, though, he seemed harmless.

And because this was the twenty first century, he pulled out his phone and snapped a few pictures. Before he could stop his childish instinct, the traveler poked the creature with the end of his stalk.

The thing stirred and groggily opened his eyes. Teal, bright and clear in the sun, and the traveler found himself captivated.

Then bone curdling terrified because the…the creature reached out to him, stumbling out of its metallic coffin.

"Oh my god," he murmured feverishly. He should have run away. Should have called the cops or someone important. He didn't know if this alien was friendly or not. Maybe it was one of those types that liked to eat brains or kidnap people and poke them with needles.

And FUCK! He was getting closer.

Breathing quickly, he skittered backwards, tripped over loosened rocks and fell on his ass. The alien was not so nimble on his feet either and fell as well. He got back up though, and continued to come closer on shaky legs, trying to say something, but only coming up with 'ah's or 'eh's.

"Stay away!" He threw his hand out as if that would stop him.

The creature took his hand gently, and he tried to pull it back, but ended up yanking the alien down over him. He screamed, panic overriding his senses. This was it. He was going to die by space alien and no one would be there to save him.

He shivered when a warm hand came to rest on his cheek. He was shaking, too shocked and scared to push him off.

Then the alien kissed him.

His lips were soft and tasted of…it tasted normal.

It tasted familiar.

His eyes widened, then slowly shut of their own accord as he – by some weird instinct – kissed back. Thoughts of aliens invading earth and impersonating humans were quickly fogging in the sensations of his world falling from his feet and catapulting him into the skies. He felt…felt really freaking strange.

And that wasn't necessarily a bad thing…

When they parted and he opened his eyes, he saw that they were a good ten feet off the ground. Literally.

Gasping, he clung onto the alien, who realized their situation and seemed just as surprised. Like a drunken bumbler, they haltingly fell back onto earth. He still held the alien, head reeling.

He just made out with freaking E.T.!

"Uh…you come in peace, right?" he said weakly.

The thing looked up at him with its bright colorful eyes. "I…" he licked his lips, suddenly able to speak the English language. Distantly, the traveler wondered if the kiss they shared offered the alien that ability. Then that made him think of Teen Titans and then Starfire, then Robin, Batman, and finally Superman. Again.

Which brought back the obvious. They flew didn't they?

He had to be hallucinating. The shock of getting kicked out of the Army was the last straw for him, he was officially insane.

"Who are you?" the alien asked quietly.

"Finn." He squeaked out, "Finn Hudson." He swallowed nervously, the alien blinked and swayed a little, he felt so tiny in his arms, yet he could sense muscle underneath the strange clothes. Quiet power. He was not a fragile tea cup. "And…who are you?" He hoped it wasn't some ridiculously long name that was impossible to pronounce without hurting himself.

"I…" he shut his eyes with a frown. He looked disoriented, "I don't…know…" was all he could manage to say before fainting in Finn's arms.

…

His name was John Doe because he didn't remember what his real name was. Kurt's friend, Santana, found him wandering around in rags, all beat up, and decided to take him in. Contrary to his handsome features he was no Product material, so she made him a waiter to serve clients food and beverage. Kurt listened to his story with rapt attention, fascinated by the mystery surrounding him.

And even if he wasn't a Product, he wasn't against Kurt taking him to bed.

In the end the thief was never found. Months passed, and Kurt thought he'd never see the waiter again. He kept himself busy with New Venice. Patrols had increased around the Paolo district, but it was all for nothing. There was never another attempted robbery, and a few days later, he was reassigned to Renaissance Square.

Though its name held history in the artistic revolution many millennia ago, Renaissance Square was anything but. It was a business district stuffed with banks and identical office buildings. There was nothing artistic about it save for the artificial trees that lined the streets in neat rows. With the sky simulation, it gave the impression of Earth. A home that was constantly copied in many human colonies, but never truly real.

Renaissance Square held little to no crime miraculously, people walked busily back and forth in suits and briefcases, cabs hovered here and there, and the occasional delivery boy passed by, but that was it. And Kurt was immensely bored.

Joining New Venice meant he wanted in on the action. Stop the increase in crime and provide a safer home for its denizens. He did not want to be stuck in the snobby rich area where everyone judged you by the shoes you were wearing. He had enough of that on Earth before switching careers.

Pouting behind the wheel of his hovercraft, Kurt crossed his arms and stewed in his boredom.

Or he would have if someone hadn't knocked on his window.

The officer looked up startled and came face to face with a pleasantly surprised John Doe smiling behind the glass window and flashing his ever sharp fangs.

Clicking a button on the wheel, the window slid down so he could properly greet the young man.

"Never thought I'd see you again," John grinned, shaking Kurt's hand.

"Me either." Wide expansive universe and all that. "What brings you to Mars?" Stuff that, what brought the man to New Venice?

"I moved here a few weeks ago," John explained, looking sheepish as usual, Kurt kept his face neutral, hoping his swooning wasn't showing, "Venus wasn't really my thing, especially after that attack…"

Kurt nodded. Two months ago a cult invaded Venus with the goal to 'cleanse it of its sins.' Seventeen people, both Product and client, died in an explosion and hundreds more were injured. The Unity took swift action in snuffing out the cult and asked all Forces from all planets under the Unity Pledge to investigate any loose ends. This would be the first attack on the 'peaceful' colony, and if it wasn't looked into, it could cause an interplanetary war just by making people think they can actually start something with the hated community.

Right now services were limited and security for visitors had increased. People were becoming paranoid and were starting to leave the colony for a safer home.

"Then I'd recommend a better city than New Venice," Kurt said jokingly, "we're known for our crime rates. West Crown, however, is everyone's pick for a peaceful life."

"Nah," John shrugged, stuffing his hands in his pockets while looking around the buildings, "I've warmed up to this place." Kurt eyed his attire when he wasn't looking. He wasn't into style or modern fashion. Outside the waiter uniform he was dressed in simple dark blue pants and white t-shirt under a thin red plaid open shirt – all signs of a mediocre income and dancing around the poverty line. Nothing was tight or form fitting, but the ancient style of dress served to make him look more attractive than he already was. Amongst the crowds of businessmen in their black and gray suits he stood out like a sore thumb and didn't give two shits about it. "I was hoping I'd get to see you again."

Kurt shook himself and flushed, he'd been caught staring.

"Are you still on duty, or can I steal you for a few hours?" his smile was shy, but there was a glint of mischief in his eyes that made blood rush down his groin.

"I'm actually – " a whoosh of another hovercraft landing behind him made him look back in surprise. It was patrol, his replacement for the rest of the day. He recognized the silhouette of Sam from behind the tinted glass and threw back the wave he was given. "My shift is done for the day," he turned back to John who pinked slightly and smiled wider. Clicking the lock on the passenger seat he nodded to the new Mars citizen, "hop in."

The man didn't need to be told twice.

John lived in the outskirts of New Venice called Edge. Originally it was called Hummingbird, but it was too long and wimpy of a name for the violent area, and since it literally was on the edge of New Venice with the water reservoir separating them from the next city, people came to know it as Edge.

Kurt wasn't too pleased that John moved to the slums – in a tiny claustrophobic apartment with only the bare essentials – and offered a better home at The Florence, his neighborhood. John hushed him with a needy kiss.

"I'll think about it," he said breathlessly, deftly working through the buckles of Kurt's uniform with growing enthusiasm. "I missed you." He latched onto him again.

The next day, when Kurt arrived to work a good deal happier and more refreshed than ever, the office was in an uproar over a heist that had been stopped at Renaissance Square. No one was harmed, nor was anything stolen, but it gave everyone quite a scare since it was one of the peaceful sections of New Venice. It was just Kurt's luck he missed it all.

At least it was worth it.

…

It became clear that this stranger wasn't out to invade earth. Not yet, at least. How could he? The guy was a fainting flower, and after some poking around in the ship he came in, Finn decided there were no real weapons. It literally was a chamber for one to sleep in. Or he hoped so. There weren't any signs with weird languages so he had to draw his own conclusions.

The thing was. The kiss he shared with the alien felt so familiar. It didn't remind him of Rachel or Quinn, or even Santana. It felt…

It just felt really familiar! He couldn't find a way to describe it.

In fact. He wanted to kiss him again. Except he was unconscious, and kissing him now would be creepy of him. He first had to figure out a way to hide the alien from the authorities, and figure out what to do with him next.

Yeah that's right, he was going to hide the space alien.

And wait for him to wake up so he could kiss him again.

Finn slumped pathetically, he was such a loser.

Unfortunately, he couldn't dwell on his internal bashing because a deputy car pulled up and the driver was rushing over to him.

"I saw what happened, you two okay?" he said, light sweat on his forehead. He fell silent when he spotted the space ship lying a few feet away. "Is that what fell from the…" he turned to Finn with wide eyes who nodded, "is that what I think it…" Finn shrugged helplessly, holding Kurt closer. The deputy finally really noticed him and had enough professionalism in him to bypass his shock, "we'd better get him to a hospital, he could – "

"No it's okay, he just fainted," Finn said quickly, hoisting the creature up in a better position, "he's my…stepbrother, the crash really terrified him." He didn't know how, but the lies kept tumbling out like vomit, "we were trying to hitch a ride when that," he nodded to the still fizzing craft, "crashed down." He noticed the deputy eying the alien's attire skeptically and added lamely, "he's a fashion freak."

"I see…" the man looked back at the crash site, and murmured something into his walkie talkie. Meanwhile, Finn worried his bottom lip hoping his story was good enough to pass. He couldn't explain it, but he really didn't want anyone examining the creature. He felt it was safer in his arms than on a metal table with cold and calculating scientists. "Come on, I'll take you into town. You can get transportation from there."

"Thank you!" he was quick to say, following the man into the car. As they drove down the road far away from the space ship, other police cars rushed passed them followed by ambulances and fire trucks. Clearly the deputy had no idea what happened and had called in whatever help he could think of. Finn was sure that in a few hours the government would be paying a visit to Kansas, too.

When the alien woke up it was in a motel in Kentucky. Finn had been taking him through trains and buses, passing off the excuse to curious onlookers that his brother was a heavy sleeper. It was two days of travel, and many hours of nervous contemplation when the ex-army recruit decided to stop at Kentucky to figure out what he was going to do next. He was considering dropping the alien off at a hospital because he wasn't waking up, but there was something in him that couldn't. He didn't want to part with him. Didn't feel right parting from him.

So he waited in the motel for two more nights until finally, the alien stirred and opened his eyes. Finn waited with baited breath as the alien sat up woozily and looked around. He didn't seem hostile at all. Not even when he had no idea where he was. Everything about him was relaxed and unassuming.

Finn licked his lips in anxiety, "uh…morning."

The creature turned to him with sleep lidded eyes, hair sticking up in different places. It would have looked adorable if he didn't look so sickly from a week in a coma-like state. "Shower," he mumbled softly, rolling off the bed and staggering to the bathroom. Finn grabbed him quickly before he fell again and helped him inside the starkly lit little room.

"Are you…" Finn bit his lip, "a-are you an alien or…like from Mars or something?" he sounded so stupid.

"Mars…" the alien mumbled. "I…" he frowned at the tiled floor, "human. I'm human…"

He looked human, Finn agreed, but he wasn't human.

Last he checked he was pretty sure humans couldn't fly.

"Where…am I?"

"Kentucky," he answered quickly, setting the alien on the toilet and turning on the shower. He hoped he wasn't the kind of alien who died by water contact. "A motel, that's a place for – "

"Traveler's…yes," he said distantly. "Kentucky?" his brows knitted, "It…it's intact?"

"Yeah…" why wouldn't it be?

The alien seemed confused by his own question, but said no further as he fumbled over the buckles of his outfit. Wanting to help out, Finn joined him and found the fastenings pretty easy to work free. They were too normal to be alien and it unnerved him.

"I don't remember my name," the alien mumbled, a lost look upon him.

"We'll just call you John for now," Finn said gently, helping him shrug off the jacket, "John Doe. It's a name we give to people with no identity."

"John Doe," the creature repeated, rolling the name on his tongue. "Familiar…"

…

"Do you think time traveling's possible?"

They were lying on John's bed when the question popped up. Three months of living in New Venice, and the young man still hadn't moved from Edge. Kurt had long since given up suggesting better areas for him to live. No one had bothered him so far so perhaps it was okay for him to live here. Still, it didn't stop Kurt from worrying. Intimidating as John's height was, he wasn't the type to get into a fight even if one came to him. He was too kind and naïve to notice when someone was taking advantage of him.

But he still remained in Edge.

Kurt looked down at John who was resting his head over his bare chest. He stroked his smooth pale shoulder, occasionally brushing over the roughened edges of the tattoo on John's shoulder blade. It was a lined design of a pocket watch and Kurt couldn't get over his fascination of it. It seemed that John got it before his amnesia because he couldn't remember ever getting tattoos. He was afraid of needles.

"Time travel?" Kurt eyed him strangely. John nodded, his short hair tickling his chest. "I guess it could be possible, but I hope not. Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering," he said softly, "what if it already exists and whoever went back changed the events of today except we don't change because now we're an alternate reality and whatever future that person goes in, it's the timeline he changed and traveled in."

"I…" Kurt blinked, "never thought of it that way."

John hummed, "if you had the choice to travel back in time, would you?"

Kurt looked at his lover curiously, he was in a mood tonight, usually he'd crack jokes over their ruined clothes or make plans to order food. "I don't think I could," he answered honestly. "I mean…with knowledge of future events I would feel too powerful. Then I'd end up changing events that could be catastrophic in the future…have you heard of the butterfly effect?" An ancient saying, but the officer was pleased to see a nod of confirmation, "I'd probably erase my own existence. If I opened a window, or dropped a pencil – something stupid. Then it may somehow prevent my father from ever meeting my mother."

"Then what about Reality Travel?"

Kurt arched an eyebrow, "I'm assuming the theory of traveling through alternate realities?"

"Yeah." John rested a hand on Kurt's thigh and lazily made circles with his thumb, "then maybe you couldn't prevent your own existence."

"But I'd still conflict with the existence of my alternate self," Kurt said rationally. His brows knitted, "why so curious?"

John shrugged leaned up to give Kurt a chaste, but lingering kiss. "I just…want to know who I am," he smiled sadly. The officer softened. He wasted months in DNA testing, video transmissions, and leafing through documents trying to find any clue to John's identity, but nothing showed up. The Unity had no documentation concerning John's existence in the past before they had to create a new one for him as a Mars citizen. It was like he suddenly popped into existence.

It was especially strange because he was – according to all planets and neighboring galaxies – the only one of his species.

The DNA tests proved that while he was partially human, there were heavy signs of a second specie within him. No one had been able to figure it out yet, it had no matches to other creatures. The news horrified the young man, it took Kurt weeks to get him to see that he didn't care that he wasn't completely human, it changed nothing for what he felt for him.

He…he loved him.

"The medic said the head trauma you've experienced is more psychological than physical. Don't stress yourself out so much, let the memories come back naturally," Kurt soothed, running a hand through soft dark hair.

John looked uncertain, "what if I was never a good person?" he mumbled.

"If you weren't we'd have you logged into the IPCR," Kurt said easily, referring to the Inter-Planetary Criminal Records. "Even suspects are on that list."

"No, I…" John blushed, "what if I'm like those people in Venus? I…I never slept with anyone before you – after my amnesia, I mean. Doing it feels…it feels like I've done it before and…" he ducked his head, his blush spreading down his neck, "when you leave I…um…I still want more that I…I have to use stuff and…" his mumbles trailed off until Kurt couldn't hear him.

The cop's face turned redder and redder as his lover stammered out his worries that turned into a personal confession and though he meant it with all seriousness and shame, Kurt was guilty to feel aroused by it. John needed him that much?

"I think I have a problem," John let out a huff of defeat.

"What stuff do you imagine me doing to you?" Kurt blurted out. John looked at him with wide eyes, and he ducked his head in embarrassment.

"Um…" John squirmed beside him, not helping at all with Kurt's growing excitement. "A-a lot of things…"

Kurt stared at him.

The human hybrid's eyes flashed a brighter pink as they always did when he was turned on. "You like this, don't you?" he said softly. Kurt kept his eyes locked on his. His heart pounding in his chest. John crawled over him, straddling his hips and teasingly sliding his ass against Kurt's proudly standing arousal, "damnit, I can never get enough of you."

As a response, the officer pulled him down for a searing kiss and sheathed himself inside his lover with the barest hope that their previous lovemaking had left him enough prepared. John cried into his mouth, pulled away with a guttural moan.

…

John Doe had assimilated easily into the life of Lima, Ohio. As long as people didn't ask any pointed questions, he was safe from the government prying any identification from him. They were more preoccupied with the space ship that crashed in Kansas anyway. The fact that it was unoccupied but had traces of an occupant had left people scared and curious.

Well. Some. Most people thought it was all a hoax to distract them from protesting laws they didn't want passed, or laws they did want passed.

John found it all curious. Now that he was regaining his strength after replenishing his need for food, Finn found that along with his elven features, John was a spritely type of species. He kept insisting he was human, but Finn knew better. Humans don't fly, and that's exactly what they did the first time they met.

John couldn't remember flying, nor could he repeat it. He jumped off the side of Finn's mother's car and ended up with a nasty bruise on his knee.

"Human," John said stubbornly, crossing his arms defiantly. Finn rolled his eyes. He preferred John when he was unconscious. The desire to kiss him had waned in the presence of the shorter alien's rather flamboyant personality. He wasn't homophobic. Or he wasn't anymore thanks to Rachel knocking sense into him, it was that with the guise as John being a stepbrother, Finn was starting to view him as such. And kissing your brother? Yeah, he wasn't that kinky.

The story went that John was a child of Christopher Hudson from a batshit crazy woman who drugged him into sleeping with her. At the time he was happily married to Carole, and he didn't want her to know what happened to him so he sent the woman off. Nine months later Finn was born, and across the country in some dank old trailer, John was born. John knew the circumstances of his birth and ran away from his mother in search of his father. His travels led him to bump into Finn. They did some blood tests. Came home to tell Carole and her new husband Burt, and boom, new addition to the family.

His parents knew the truth behind John though. Most of the truth anyway. Finn fed them a story that John was wandering around with amnesia. They became friends when Finn was on his way back home, and ta-da! Now he gets to board with them while he finds a way to get back on his feet. They did wonder why Finn didn't want the rest of the world to know the 'truth', but with John winning their hearts with his cooking and general sense of caring, they didn't ask too many questions. He was bonding particularly well with Carole, and even found common ground with Burt when it came to car jargon.

For a kid trying to recuperate his memories, John sure didn't live up to it. There was always a smile on his face and an energy that rubbed off on anyone around him. Whatever past he had, he didn't seem curious at all to decipher it. Finn figured it was best. If he was an alien – which he fucking was, okay? – Maybe his memories involved a plan to invade Earth.

"You're hilarious," John said dryly. He was lying on his stomach on the bed of the guest room which was quickly transforming into his bedroom. What was once a plane spare room was now a colorful canvas of purples, oranges and reds. John had taken great fascination with home decorating and had a flare for the dramatic. Were he any regular person, Finn would assume he was well on his way to becoming a fashion designer, but he knew better. Alien invasion. It was going to happen.

"I'm on to you," Finn narrowed his eyes.

"Then why'd you rescue me?" John arched an elegant eyebrow, he closed the magazine he'd been reading and sat up. At Finn's silence, he clapped his hands mockingly and held them to his cheek cutely, "see? You do like me."

"You didn't seem like a threat when I first saw you," Finn admitted grumpily, "we even you ki…" shit, he couldn't say it. "Whatever. Look, all I wanted to say is I'm heading out to New York, don't do anything funny while I'm – "

"New York!?" John gasped, rushing over to Finn, his normally well combed hair flapping from the run. "When are you going? Are you going to Broadway? Are you going to see Wicked? Do you have tickets?" he blinked. "Do you have money for tickets? Oh please let me tag along please!" he was gripping the front of Finn's shirt in his giddy excitement.

"Chill dude!" the taller man struggled to pry him off, "I'm going to see my girlfr…my ex-girlfriend. I…" he flushed, "I wanted to see how she was doing…"

John stared at him with his bright ocean eyes. He seemed a little saddened, Finn thought curiously. "Pfft! You just want to fuck her brains out."

The moment vanished at the unexpected and uncharacteristic slur. "What!?" Finn sputtered, his cheeks burning. "Dude!"

"I do not want to see that, I've seen pictures of her," John shuddered, throwing himself back on his bed and picking up his magazine again. "You have awful taste by the way."

"You…you can't just…Rachel is not ugly!" Finn continued to sputter.

"Ugh, that's what they all say, don't they?" John rolled his eyes, turning back to his 'stepbrother', "Look if you want some alone time to reconcile the broken remnants of your deplorable relationship with that woman, I will not step in your way. I'll be here. In my cozy little room. Dreaming of stage lights, standing ovations, and a bouquet of roses."

He could take that, "good, I'm glad you understand." He turned to leave, then had an extra thought, "no invading Earth."

"I come in peace," John drawled, holding up the Vulcan peace salute.

…

The rate of petty thievery had lowered that year, though it was little cause for celebration because there was in increase in organized crime. Whoever was pulling the strings was pulling them well because every criminal Sylvester's teams were able to capture refused to reveal the identity of their leader. No matter what method of interrogation was used.

The problem was that every crime related to this invisible leader had failed. The people trying to rob banks, houses, or holding hostages gave up quite easily after the police came to stop them. If they gave up so easily what was the point of following the orders of someone who obviously didn't know how to succeed in a heist?

The answer was, the heists weren't real to begin with. They were distractions.

Kurt, Sam, and a new recruit Blaine Anderson, had gone into investigating anything strange occurring around the city at the time of the burglaries. So far nothing turned up stolen, except for maybe a library book that had the librarian incensed. It was found later in an alley a few blocks away. Whoopdeedoo.

Despite the fact that nothing proved his theory, Kurt knew that something was up. He knew there was more to this than met the eye, that's what organized crime was all about. Luckily Sylvester believed him and kept him on the case.

"We've got surveillance on every corner in New Venice as well as a few surrounding cities," she said gruffly, a hand over the holster on her hip, "so get to it Sparkles, give me a rat to chase."

It was easier said than done.

And Kurt needed a break.

Hence why he was back at Edge.

"Couldn't wait to see me, could you?" John murmured, smirking against Kurt's chest. They were lying in his bed again, cuddled comfortably under the sheets. They'd seen each other only yesterday, yet the few hours they'd been apart Kurt yearned to see his lover again.

Kurt let out a breathy laugh, running a lazy hand through John's mussed hair, "more like you couldn't wait to see me." He cheeked, referring to their earlier lovemaking.

"Spend the night here," John said quietly, his lips tickling Kurt's skin as he slid a hand over his bicep, he had a thing for Kurt's lean muscles. "You know you want to..."

The officer swallowed his agreement. It was getting pretty bad. Every time he came to see John he'd been less willing to leave. Every bit of him ached without his touch. His visits were becoming more frequent and…yes he needed him, too. Just as badly. But more than just for sex. Their conversations were taking a deeper turn. John was proving a very intelligent man despite the simple and naïve manner in which he spoke. He loved to talk about history, and music, and occasionally his queries on time travel skirted into philosophy. He was never boring, and Kurt found himself hopelessly lost in his arms.

And…it was bad because this wasn't just love anymore it was obsession. And fuck, it was getting harder to think straight without him.

Slyly removing his hand from John's hair, he sneaked lower ran a finger up and down his spine.

"Nyah…!" John stiffened. He arched and shivered at the touch. It was a reaction Kurt discovered a month ago. They weren't sure if it was a human thing or an 'unknown species' thing, but it always made John react. Against his hip underneath the sheets, Kurt could feel John's arousal at the small touch. He held back a grin, feeling guilty for the change in conversation. Kurt repeated the stroke and John trembled, mewling and clutching onto his lover as he temporarily lost himself to the nirvana of his lover's simple touch. "N-No fair…!" he breathed out, trying and failing to control his body from rubbing against Kurt in desperate need of relief, "so…s-so good…ahn…no!" he clutched on Kurt's shoulders, fighting against his instincts, "I want an…an answer," he bit his lip cutely, his glare at the other man marred by the growing lust clouding his pink eyes.

The officer pulled him into a deep kiss, succeeding in getting John to forget his request.

Spend the night?

Kurt would love to.

Unfortunately, he still had a job to do, and as wonderful as John was, he was becoming a huge distraction.

…

He found Rachel's apartment. And then found her with another guy. Life just couldn't suck any worse.

The guy, Brody Whatever, left almost immediately, and Rachel insisted nothing happened between them, but they both knew it was a lie. The guy was a toned glittery eyed Broadway star in training. Rachel was a hot, naïve Broadway star in training. If nothing happened between them, Finn was going to eat his own foot.

And because he was so pathetic and couldn't run off to a motel because he had to save money for the trip back, he slept over. On the same bed.

He sucked all right? He was a lovesick puppy who'd take any bone thrown at him.

The following morning was just as awkward. She wanted to know why he never called her, so he had to explain – for the fifth time – his humiliation of getting kicked out of the army. She got all sympathetic and speechless. He took whatever comfort he could get.

And miraculously, by the end of the day they went to some café for a date.

You cancelled our wedding to join the army? It's cool. You got over me fast enough to find another guy? Water under the bridge!

Except it wasn't, it was horrible. Brody joined them. She and he sang a very telling duet, and Finn was once again left to stew in his own misery as he watched his (ex?) girlfriend sing with another guy like they were meant to be. He used to be that guy. They were going to get married for christ's sake, did that matter to her at all?

"So I see you've come to the conclusion that you just made the biggest mistake of your life and would very much like to live the rest of your days under a rock."

Finn whipped around to come face to face with John, sliding neatly into the chair beside him and sipping a fruity red drink through a neon pink straw. He winked at him.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Finn hissed, looking around for any sign of his parents because there was no way John came to the city alone. "Are mom and Burt here?"

"No, contrary to my amnesia, I can read signs," John took another sip, "they gave me the money to book a quick flight, and some extra cash to have my wild fun."

Finn glared at him, "are you going to make fun of me?"

"Uhhhh…." Kurt dragged out, narrowing his eyes in deep thought then nodding with certainty, "Yes, yes I am. So," he smacked his lips and regarded the singing pair critically, "Rachel Berry, NYADA student, current favorite of the dean, diva queen – your ex-girlfriend, and totally making eyes at that…" raised his eyebrows appreciatively, "strapping young fellow." He whistled and fanned himself, "sorry to disappoint you brother, but you are way out of your league."

"Are you done?" Finn grumped.

"She looks like a hooker," he added, returning to his drink. "I prefer the grandma look she sported in those old pictures. That's saying something."

"Seriously?" Finn hissed. "I'll take whatever you throw at me, but you cannot insult Rachel, she – "

"Ran to the next hottest guy faster than you can say bitch?" Kurt said smartly. "If I recall correctly from the anecdotes your family and friends loved to throw at me, you were going to marry her – and she accepted the engagement. How do people move on that fast?"

"I kind of cancelled on her on the wedding day so she could go to NYADA," Finn mumbled guiltily, "I didn't want to stand in the way of her dreams."

John considered this. "Callous way to 'set her free'," he admitted, "um, you're a bastard. But that still doesn't justify much. If she wants to be a star so bad, and she loved you enough to want to marry you, then marriage shouldn't have gotten in the way of anything," he took a long sip of his drink, "well. Except for the purse bearing husband thing, which in that case, you let her go because you didn't want that." Finn wanted to rip that drink away from John and shove the straw down his throat. "So all in all, maybe you two weren't that in love to begin with – hi!" he greeted energetically, throwing his hand out to the approaching Rachel. "John Doe, pleasure to meet you."

The young woman blinked, uncertainly shaking his hand, "John Doe?" she looked to Finn, "who…?"

"He's my…stepbrother," Finn said lamely. He wasn't feeling too good about himself at the moment. "Dad's side of the family, it's a long story." He actually kind of forgot it.

"Oh!" she looked back and forth, "really? He looks nothing like – "

"Mother's side of the family, fortunately," John waved off. "I've been staying at Lima the past few weeks getting to know my father's side of the family. I heard a lot about you." Rachel seemed pleased yet unsure of this, Brody just smiled beside her, "when I heard Finn was paying you a visit I decided to tag along, I've been so interested in meeting you," he flashed a toothy smile.

"I…" Rachel raised her eyebrows, "w-well, here I am." She had no idea what to say and laughed nervously. "Finn? I didn't know you had a…"

"Oh, he wasn't hiding me," John laughed good-naturedly, "he never knew about me until we crossed paths in Kentucky. Just so you know, blood tests? Annoying."

Rachel laughed again, "Finn, I can't believe you have a brother!"

"How old are you?" Brody asked, feeling left out of the conversation.

"I know right?" John squealed excitedly, wrapping a tight arm around Finn, "I grew up an only child so when I found out – I'm sorry what did you say?" he turned to the tanned man apologetically.

"I was wondering how old you were," he repeated, not showing how put out he felt at almost being ignored. Finn couldn't help snorting and quickly hid it behind an angry cough.

"How old am I?" John looked thoughtful, "I'm legal, sweety, that's all you need to know," he winked.

Brody sputtered much like Finn had back in Lima. "S-Sorry, I'm straight."

"Pity," though he didn't seem all that disappointed. Finn hid a grin behind his drink. "But you and Rachel, wow."

"Oh no, we're not – "

"We're just friends." Both were quick to answer.

"I was referring to your performance," John grinned toothily with an arched brow. The two friends flushed and glanced at each other before looking away quickly. Finn's amusement died away. He distracted himself by swishing his drink around and glaring at the melting ice cubes. "Wonderful duet – actually, I'd like to sing, too."

"What?" all three said flatly.

"I can't?" he pulled the best kicked puppy face.

"Of course you can," Rachel said hurriedly.

"Yeah, the floor's yours," Brody pitched in.

"Can you sing?" Finn asked skeptically.

"I love the support, dear brother," John rolled his eyes and strolled up to the stage, murmuring something to the musician. He turned to Rachel and waved her over enthusiastically.

The three watched with growing interest. "Your brother, huh?" Rachel muttered, standing up to reclaim the stage, earning several scattered claps who enjoyed the last performance.

"Yep," Finn finished his drink in a gulp. Whatever John had planned, he wasn't sure it was going to end well. Already he could see the two Broadway geeks having a disagreement. From what Finn could gather, they both wanted the same role of what was apparently a duet. Few people watching started murmuring curiously until finally the pair reached an agreement and faced each other with their microphones.

The song didn't start out with a melody or singing. Rather it was an argument. Something about hoping the other was happy for doing something that might have fucked up something. Finn was sure he heard it somewhere before in glee club, but everyone else recognized the words and were whistling and clapping. He recalled Rachel mentioning that the café was a regular haunt for NYADA students.

He turned to Brody for help.

"Wicked," he shrugged, "come one dude, you had to have heard it, this song is on Rachel's iPod and everything."

He did not like that Brody knew what was on Rachel's iPod. "Yeah…" he mumbled.

The musicians started playing, so he sat back as the argument melded into actual song.

"…I can't want it…anymore…" John sang softly. And. Okay, he wasn't bad. Rachel looked miffed, though, and he had no idea why. It was only a little melody, what was so impressive about that?

His confusion increased when Rachel pitched in and people became even more interested. He grudgingly turned to Brody again. "Uh…"

"It's not a duet," Brody said more to himself with an amused grin. "It's a duel."

Finn gave up. He had no fucking idea what the fuss what about. He watched the singers throw each other lyrics like bullets, hitting every note the higher and more exciting the song became. Towards the end he started to fear that John would humiliate himself by flubbing a note. This song was not meant for guys. Even Rachel was starting to look worried for him, but John was too focused on himself to notice anyone else.

The excitement was growing in the café, those that knew the song – and that was practically everyone – silenced in anticipation.

"Tell them how I am defying gravity!" Rachel was pouring her soul out on the stage, Finn was mesmerized by her voice like many times before. This was what reminded him why he fell in love with her.

Her passion.

"I'm flying high! Defying gravity!" John hit higher notes still, people started applauding.

And…yeah, Finn agreed that was pretty impressive. He had a feeling the audience was more rapt with John's singing since he was a dude hitting crazy notes and Rachel…well, she was pretty much expected to hit them as well.

"And nobody…in all of oz," Rachel stared down at John.

"No wizard that there is or was," he shot back.

"Is ever gonna bring…" they both sang together. Finn could feel everyone take a collective intake of breath. "ME! DOWN!"

Shit! He hit it!

And held it!

"LOOK AT HER SHE'S WICKED! GET HER!" Finn jumped in fright. "NO ONE MOURNS THE WICKED!"

Half of the café had burst into applause, others who were so into the performance and who knew the song by heart joined in as a booming chorus. The dueling pair continued their last few words as the patrons gathered into a fuller chorus to end the song so loudly that it made Finn's ears ring.

Bowing to the whistles and standing ovation, the breathless pair slinked back to their table. Rachel was happy to have gotten such a reaction, but John was bursting with joy and surprise that he was being well received, he was literally glowing. Some people nearby were patting him on the back.

Theater geeks, Finn thought with some amusement.

He…couldn't stop smiling. Watching John so flush with genuine happiness made him happy. Suddenly all the heartache over Rachel seemed meaningless and for the first time in…wow, a long time, he felt a calm fall over him.

Huh.

…

He came to headquarters ready to go through a weeks worth of surveillance tapes. Nothing had come up in the past month and already two robberies were stopped with no resistance. He was missing something. A piece to the puzzle.

Kurt was dragged out of his mulling when a concerned Blaine approached him with a paper. He was brand new just like Kurt, but less eager to see action, and more eager to use words to quell enemies. It had become a thing with their little team. Blaine was the diplomat, Kurt was the detective, and Sam was the brawn…and distraction. The blond was crazy good at making distractions. In the short time Blaine had been in New Venice, Kurt grew to trust the man's methods and presence – he was very dapper. If Kurt hadn't been so obsessed with John, he would have had a serious crush on Blaine.

Fortunately, it wasn't so, because the brunet was quite obviously smitten with Sam who was more focused on his lip balm collection than the fact that he had the poor guy crawling at his feet.

"What's up?" Kurt felt eyes on him. He could hear people murmuring and shaking their heads. Blaine noticed it too and took him away to a more private room. In this case, the conference room. "Blaine?"

"Okay, look," he said warningly, "I swear, we did every kind of enhancement, used the DeMasker in case he was wearing a disguise, cross checked all the videos, put a match test twenty times but – "

"What's going on?" he had a really bad feeling. A hole in your chest feeling.

Blaine shut his mouth, eyes sympathetic. "We figured out what the problem was – why nothing seemed stolen. Why that book was stolen."

"Book?" Kurt blinked, "what book?"

"The library book," Blaine ran an agitated hand through his gelled hair, "we're not sure what he's after, but he's got the criminal world under his thumb, he's using them to distract us while he goes and steals right under our noses."

"I thought you said – "

"He's replacing them with fakes. Really good fakes – we don't know how he's making them. People are just starting to see the difference and are sending us reports," he looked even more agitated now. "We weren't able to catch him on video because he's fast. So fast he's invisible to the naked eye. Sam was playing around with the idea that maybe our guy was an alien with powers so he slowed the videos down by like…I don't know point one hundred? It took forever, but we got a frame." He looked at the paper he was holding, "you may want to sit down." Kurt stood rooted on the spot and held his hand out. Hesitantly, Blaine handed it to him.

Steeling himself, Kurt looked at it.

It was a clean image. A museum. The artifacts displayed were probably from the twenty sixth century. None of that mattered though. What mattered was the man right by the camera, dressed completely in black and in the middle of swapping a slender bottle from its display case.

It mattered because that was John.

Kurt couldn't take his eyes off the image.

It was John.

His John.

"I'm sorry," and Blaine meant it. "I'm really sorry, but there's more." Kurt set his jaw and looked at him, "Scion Labs finally answered our call concerning our investigation on John." Kurt's eyes widened slightly. Scion Labs was an afterthought. Kurt had been so curious of John's origins as an actual specie that he forgot to consider splicing. He sent a request to Scion ages ago since they were big on genetic research, but they never replied until now. "They wouldn't give us his name, but they said he was a failed experiment set for decommissioning."

"Decommissioning?" his voice was hollow.

"Venus…Venus wanted a Product that was designed purely for sex without the guilt of employing a human, or non-human and treating them like an object therefore disregarding their rights as independent individuals. Scion assigned their two top scientists, Carole and Christopher Hudson, to create John through a mix of…genes – all that would have the code that he's only meant for – " he cut off sheepishly at Kurt's glare, "anyway it failed because he started rebelling. He became violent – more independent, he had none of the qualities Venus was looking for. They said something went wrong with the genetic process."

Kurt couldn't believe it. John was…he wasn't even living, he was a science experiment.

"Kurt, he's dangerous," Blaine continued gravely, "whatever genes he has, it's given him abilities. He's using them to steal. He hasn't harmed anyone yet, but if Scion's right, he could become violent again. We need to bring him in."

The officer grit his teeth. John was a criminal. He'd been sleeping with a criminal.

"Did you find out what the tattoo stands for?" his voice sounded disconnected to him.

"It's from that twentieth century book," Blaine was quick to answer, referring to the one that had been stolen. "It's a children's story called Alice in Wonderland. Lewis Carroll. I read it and…it makes no sense to me, but it's about a girl who falls asleep and dreams about going into a world that defies logic. I think the pocket watch stands for the animal she follows into that world. The White Rabbit. He's described as carrying around a pocket watch and claiming he'll be late."

Kurt frowned. He never heard of Alice in Wonderland. Such ancient tales were buried under the heavy hand of history that most people rarely bothered to look back on. The only ones who might be familiar with it were the Earthlings and Kurt hadn't lived on Earth long enough to pick it up. Mars was a completely different story, the community was more concerned with the present than the past. What the hell was so special about Wonderland other than the pocket watch tattooed to John's back?

A white rabbit claiming it would be late…

John had taken an interest in time traveling…

Time traveling.

Kurt grimaced.

"I need to find him."

"Wait," Blaine blocked his path, "Kurt, think clearly, if you go to him he'll just manipulate you again. He's using you, you know that don't you?"

"Yes, and if you barge in on him he'll get nervous and flee, which, if what you told me is true, will make it very hard for us to pin him down," Kurt shoved the paper back at Blaine. "I need a squad on every block – undercover, don't make a scene, I'll try to get him to come quietly." He marched past his comrade for the door. "Son of a bitch!"

…

So it was official. Finn and Rachel were no more. After their big fight that ruined what good John made of it, Finn ran back home feeling smaller than he had when he left. John, for once, was quiet the whole trip home. Finn was hoping he wouldn't follow, New York bewitched John, he would have fit in more in the city than in Lima. And he really wanted to cry alone on the way back, but he didn't want to humiliate himself further by doing that in front of the alien.

He felt lost.

Usually at times like these he would have run off to Mr. Schue who was always there to comfort him with a hug and kind words.

Instead he locked himself in his room and turned his pillow into a tissue.

Eventually, when he became too tired to cry anymore, he stared at the wall. Blank and unchanged since the time he left for Georgia. The room was kept tidy, and his mother kept the trophy's he earned in high school out on the shelves to glint proudly in the afternoon sun. To her they were reminders that her son had done great things. To him they were sad echoes of simpler times that fell out of his grasp like dry sand. Nothing lasted forever. That included high school.

Rachel no longer wanted him. She'd been the one and only constant in his life and now she pulled herself away. Didn't want him anymore. Had a new, better guy to be with.

He ached all over.

It'd been so long since he kissed her. Felt her warmth. Her smell. Her touch.

He missed her so much and now all that he had left were memories.

A hand rested over his shoulder, Finn was too exhausted to feel surprised. His mother was probably going to pass on words of wisdom. Tell him that first loves were hard to give up. That things would eventually get better and he'd find someone much more worth his while, because that would be his true love, and true love was the most important of all loves.

"Hey. Can I have the last popsicle in the freezer?"

Finn whipped around to glare at John.

"Is that a yes?" the shorter man hazarded unashamedly. "Because I really want it, its cherry flavored."

"When you invade earth, I'm gonna make sure all cherry popsicles will cease to exist," Finn growled, clutching his snot soaked pillow.

John rolled his eyes, "If you're here moping about Rachel Berry I will throw up all over your bed and walk away with no guilt whatsoever." Seething, Finn hit him across the head with his pillow. John gagged in horror, "Oh god it's wet! Have you been drooling on it?"

"No, I blew my nose on it," Finn watched with dark satisfaction as John's face twisted in horror, his whole body lurching in disgust.

"You…" John grabbed a second pillow and wacked it several times over Finn, "Son! Of! A! Bitch!" he paused to catch his breath, "that was my face!"

Finn snickered, a little winded from the attack. "Actually, I think I made an improvement." He heard John's scandalized gasp and was attacked once more. Not wanting to be pushed over so easily, he struck back with his dirty pillow, earning more angry screams from his 'brother'.

They continued their pillow fight for about ten more minutes until they were too breathless to go on. Taking a minute to breathe, Finn threw in a sneak attack, only he was so tired that he swayed and fell over John, pinning the surprised man down.

He stared at wide blue green eyes.

And kissed him.

…

A year passed since the revealing of the White Rabbit. A time in which New Venice was alive with wanted posters, pursuits, and narrow escapes. It took a long time for Kurt to view his former lover as a criminal. He was still struggling with it, and it hurt every time he wandered back to their moments together.

The question was always on his tongue, but too afraid to come out. Did John really love him? Or was he just using him as he was programmed to do?

A sex toy.

Kurt felt dirtied. Violated.

Heartbroken.

No one bothered him since then. His work on the investigation garnered his respect from his peers who used to tease them. If they called him names it was out of fondness and a hope to get him to smile again. They knew about his relationship with John, so they knew how much he was hurting.

The focus now had to be on what John was planning to do.

The stuff he'd been stealing were mainly books and a few artifacts that were mentioned in those books. What bothered Kurt was the unnecessary use of rookie thieves to cause a distraction. What was the point of that if you could run so fast it couldn't be caught on camera or motion sensors on time?

There was also the jarring personality change. Though that was a personal matter.

Like now.

They tracked him down to Venture Labs, a research center for the pursuit of time travel. Kurt should have known. John had an obsession with time, and it fit perfectly to his title as the White Rabbit from the storybook. He was standing behind a wall of unimpressive looking street thugs with a weeping woman at his feet and a gun pointed lazily on her head. Like the first image Blaine caught him in, the thief was dressed completely in black; an NVPD uniform. Though this one was modified to be more form fitting not for vanity, but for endurance against John's super speed. A few gunfights ago, it was also discovered to be bulletproof, although whether it was the suit, or John's durability remained to be seen.

"Hey Kurt," John smirked behind his wall of humans, "how've you been?"

Kurt scowled, never wavering his gun from where he was crouched with his squad. A few feet away Blaine took a step forward.

"John, we have you surrounded in a research center for time," he said in a calm rational voice, "we have control over their systems – you move a muscle and we can slow you down. No super speed can help you this time."

"Hmm…yep, I know that," John nodded, waving his gun around. The woman took her chance and started running, but he shot her without looking, the bullet grazing her thigh. With a cry of pain, she fell to the floor and clutched her bleeding wound. The thief grabbed her by the back of her collar and dragged her back. "I told you not to run."

That was the thing with John's style. He never killed anyone, but it didn't stop him from injuring his victims if it were necessary. His preferred weapon was a pocket knife, and whenever he used something like a gun he used it as carelessly as he had done now. Without looking, and without any real kind of aim.

Except he had frighteningly perfect aim. If he were running away from the cops and he chose that moment to blow off his pursuer's pinky toe, he could do it. He had done it. Made a bet on it in the middle of the chase and succeeded.

Blaine held his hand back for anyone behind him wanting to open fire. "Are you saying you're turning yourself in?"

John smiled a smile that would have made him more handsome if he weren't giggling like a child. "Oh, you are smart, Short Stack! And here I thought I was gonna have to start monologuing."

Blaine and Kurt exchanged frowns. Something wasn't right.

"Look," John tossed his gun, the weapon skittering to a stop at Blaine's feet. The captive took it as another chance and made to move, but he slammed his foot down on her wound, keeping her in place as she cried out again and trembled in pain. Kurt grit his teeth, his finger itching to pull the trigger. John turned back to Blaine. "I've got no weapon, you have the 'make time slow down' machines, what the shit am I gonna do, right?" He held his hands out with a smirk, "come on."

Hesitantly, they approached him. The wall of crooks broke away and dropped their weapons, letting themselves get cuffed. Blaine approached John cautiously, grabbed his hands and cuffed him from behind. That was it. He was finally in their custody.

Kurt ran to help the wounded woman, eyes glued to her shooter who never took his eyes off him, a grin plastered to manic his face.

…

The kiss didn't last very long.

One second Finn had his lips on him, the next he was flat on his back with John glaring down at him.

"What the hell, Finn!" he squawked.

"Um…" he had no real answer to that.

"You're making fun of me, aren't you?" John said quickly, face turning red, "you know, just because I'm gay doesn't mean I want your dick in me – "

"Uhhh…" okay that was kind of gross…

"And even if you're hot, you're still a disgusting calorie inhaling Neanderthal, you can't keep a girlfriend more than a few months before breaking up and running back to her again like a masochist, you have zero sense of style, you cry in a corner whenever things don't work out your way, you're so pathetic even the army kicked you out, and," he took a few breaths, "you…you smell!"

He probably should have taken all of that in, but his brain short circuited. "You think I'm hot?" was all he got from that rant.

John blanched. "No!"

"You said 'even if you're hot'," Finn sat up. John quickly backed away, his face red.

"No I didn't!"

"Yeah you did."

John pursed his lips. Opened them, then slammed them shut again. "Okay, when you're not inhaling a burger you are moderately handsome, I'll admit – but not enough to want to kiss you – mmph!" He fell back against the bed when Finn jumped him. His protests muffled by their mashed lips.

And Finn was kind of freaking out, but not really because crap! John's lips were soft and…and pliable…and – and…shit!

Both gasped for air when they finally parted. The familiar tingling sensations shuddering through Finn like licking flames. John glared up at him, marred by a slight glaze of dazedness.

His hair sticking up in all places against the pillow, the soft glow of the lamp casting gold tinted shadows over his elven-like features. His lips were puffy and pink from abuse, pulled back in a dreamy smile.

He heard himself say, "You're so beautiful like this, Kurt."

Finn pulled back sharply, hand flying up to cover his mouth. John gave him an odd look, then rolled his eyes.

"What, are you going to have a gay freak out?" he asked, unimpressed. Sitting up and straightening his shirt, he composed himself much faster than Finn would expect, "in my defense, brother, you were the instigator, I just wanted a popsicle." He paused briefly, "and not in the dirty way."

Finn looked at him with wide eyes, the hand over his mouth trembling. What had that been about? A memory? He kissed John before? Well. Before they met in Kansas? But that was some months ago, he didn't know him before then, and he was sure that if he did he would remember making out with a…no wait. The John in his memory had no shirt. Did they have sex before!?

"Holy shit," he whispered.

John stared at him, "it's alright, Finn. It was just a kiss. You had your heart smashed by Rachel's gaudy pumps, you're just upset. You're still straight."

Wait a minute. Finn forgot. John was an alien. Maybe he implanted fake memories in his head.

"Are you messing with my head!?" he yelled, grabbing his hair.

Hurt flashed across John's eyes, but they hardened quickly. "Seriously? You think I'm giving you the gay? What happened to all that tolerance crap you're always preaching about!?" He stood up huffily and marched out the room.

"Not the gay thing, the memories!" Finn shouted, causing the chestnut haired man to whip around in confusion. "The image of you and…and I called you Kurt!" his face was burning.

John stared at him.

Blinked.

And stared some more.

"Finn," he said in a tiny voice. No longer angry. He paled and looked both concerned and frightened. "Your…your eyes."

…

He was confined to a solitary room with his hands cuffed behind him on a bar in the chair he was sitting on that had been nailed to the floor. He legs were chained to the legs of the chair, his waist strapped in, and every corner of the room had a hidden camera at every angle, along with a motion sensing laser that would fire if the prisoner tried to escape. It may have been over the top for a thief.

But John was no ordinary thief.

He looked up at Kurt who was standing before him and smiled.

"Come for some fun?" he asked coyly. "Kinky. I like that."

Kurt ignored the comment and tapped on the tablet he'd been holding. A file popped up on the screen as well as a recording program which he started. "Are you going to tell me why you're stealing ancient artifacts?"

"I'm a hoarder," was the simple answer.

"Says the guy with an empty home."

"I have no home," John sat back and made himself comfortable, "You already know what Scion told you about me. I'm not meant to have a home."

Kurt narrowed his eyes. Was John trying to gain his sympathy? "That's right you don't belong here."

John cracked a grin. "Ouch."

"You've replaced a total of ninety-nine artifacts with fakes, hired teams of useless thieves, for what? To make your own personal museum?" he walked around John, both because he couldn't look at his face, and to make the thief feel insecure now that he couldn't be seen. "You went to Venture for one purpose, John. As big as you are on the whole hoarding thing, your thefts have been relatively small and unimportant. What you needed were the documents held in all those museums – clues to the real thing you were after. A map." He grabbed a corner of the back rest and leaned down to speak to John by the ear, "your goal was Venture Labs."

"What makes you so sure?" he arched into Kurt, but the officer pulled away and started pacing again.

"You're obsessed with time travel. They're researching time travel. It's not that hard to put two and two together."

"And yet it took you a year to catch me," John said with a cold laugh.

"You never expected us at Venture Labs – no one expects anyone at Venture Labs, they're supposed to be nonexistent, can you imagine the chaos of everyone knowing that time traveling exists?" Kurt said calmly, "they're located on one of Saturn's moons, all of your thefts had been occurring on Mars. You thought we'd fall for the bank robbery again, but you didn't count on one of your men to snap out of your hypnotism."

John arched an eyebrow. Kurt circled around him, not looking at him.

"You don't just have super speed," he looked down at the prisoner, with unreadable eyes. "I always thought it was strange that you had all those criminals under your thumb without some kind of payment other than a promise that they'd be put to jail. Who would agree to that kind of deal?"

John stared at him for a long minute, then let out a snort. "Alright, you caught me there," he shrugged, "I wouldn't exactly call it hypnotism, though. Just a tug in the right direction. A promise here, a smile there."

"You clouded them with lust."

"Gotta do what you can to get the job done," John shrugged unashamedly. Kurt glared at him, and he stared back. "I never used it on you."

"Really."

"I never succeeded," he relented. "You're the only one I could never use it on," John said softly. Kurt's face twisted in disgust. "I was…confused. The first time we met in Venus I was just going to use you for information. I've heard about you from a few sources. First to graduate from the Academy – top marks, honor's, and a few cases you helped solve. Then you get assigned to New Venice, the toughest city to get thrown into. With all your little badges and boy scout morale I figured you'd be in on the secrets of Venture Labs. Only the most trusted officers could be, anyway."

Kurt's eye twitched involuntarily. Was John confessing everything, or was it more lies?

"The closest I ever got were the few times we talked about time travel," a sad look briefly crossed the thief's face, "I miss those times…you were only supposed to be useful for one thing, I never even planned to sleep with you. But after Venus I didn't want to let you go."

He was using their past to gain his favor. Kurt scowled. He needed to leave before it actually worked. And before the guys looking over their interrogation got more unnecessary information than they needed. He had to turn the tables.

"Christopher Hudson, one of your donor's and the man who helped create you, died before you were 'born'," he easily changed the subject. John narrowed his eyes. "According to his wife Carole Hudson, he'd been suffering PTSD during his time in the Elite Forces against the Barx's." This was a fact. The Unity had come to a discord against a war hungry community called the Barx's. They wanted to conquer, and the Unity refused to back down, naturally causing a war. Christopher had been taken in as a scientist for the Elite Forces and faced a lot of trauma from his short time there, making him turn to panic medication to help him deal with the gory memories of war. One pill too many and he was gone. After his death, Carole had to continue the Venus Project by herself.

"You, did your homework. I knew you were a boy scout," John said with a smirk, though there was a heaviness to his tone. They crossed a subject the experiment didn't like.

"Two years after your birth Carole Hudson disappeared," Kurt continued, earning a frown from John. "With no one, but her to keep you company at Scion you considered her as your mother figure and became attached. She didn't just treat you like an object meant for one purpose, she treated you like a person." John's face gradually turned blank. "That's why you became violent. She disappeared and with the only link of maternal compassion gone, you were stuck in a place where people didn't consider you anything, but a sex toy." His voice softened a fraction. "That's why you need Venture Labs. That's why you're so obsessed with time travel. You want to find your parents."

If John had grown uncomfortable with Kurt's deductions, he didn't show it. He remained passive. "I was called Experiment 19, but they hated calling me that so they gave me a real name."

"You never had amnesia, have you?"

John's face softened, not caring that he was tied to a chair, or that other cops were overhearing this conversation. He seemed honestly sincere for once, and Kurt felt his heart tug with memories and a longing for his former lover.

"Run away with me."

…

They went to the hospital immediately. Carole was freaking out, and the doctors had no explanation to the change in Finn's eyes. If it were pink eye, that was much easier to understand, but the whites of his eyes were fine, it was his irises that had changed color.

And his canine teeth sharpened just a bit, they knew because he cut his tongue and lips a few times as he was shouting for someone to help him.

The best that could be done was do some X-Rays and send them back home since the changes didn't seem to harm Finn's eye sight. They couldn't do much about the teeth either.

Finn had an idea that it was all John's doing, but even John was just as confused as he was. Scratch that he was frightened.

Hence why Finn didn't point the accusing finger and left the door to his room open for John to slip in easily after Carole and Burt went to sleep. Finn looked at him from his huddled up spot in the corner of his bed. He couldn't sleep. He was worried whatever was happening to him would worsen when he'd wake up in the morning. He wasn't in any kind of pain, but shit this was still scary!

The chestnut haired boy shut the door behind him. "Okay, I so did not do this."

Finn let out a halfhearted snort.

"I'm serious!" John hissed, on the verge of stomping his foot. He deflated uncomfortably, feeling sheepish. "I'm human. I know I'm human…"

"I found you in a space ship, dude," Finn rolled his eyes.

"Yes, I saw the pictures," John sighed and sat down on the bed, "but I don't remember any of it. If anything you're the alien."

"Hey!"

"I'm not the one who went through physical changes while in the middle of spouting accusations about memories," John crossed his arms huffily, "you claim we flew when you were pulling me out of my 'ship' but that could have easily been you. I've jumped off every sensible high place I could think of and all I end up with is bruises." John gave him an odd look. "What the hell were you doing in Kansas anyway? It's way off course from Georgia to Ohio. What'd you do? Take a wrong turn?"

Finn's cheeks pinked. "No…"

Now John snorted.

"Well, what about when you woke up in Kentucky!" Finn was quick to say, "you said you were from Mars, and that Kentucky was intact – were you supposed to destroy it or something?"

John threw himself over the bed, "for the last time, I don't remember anything until I woke up again in Ohio. I'm not from Mars, okay? I'm from Little Lima!" He straightened up suddenly, surprise written all over his face.

Finn scrunched his face up, tugging his comforter tighter around him, he looked like a giant marshmallow. "What the hell is 'Little Lima'?"

"I…I don't know why I said that," John said distantly.

Was he remembering something? Finn's eyes widened and he leaned forward eagerly, "so is your name Kurt?"

John's brows knitted, he looked lost and troubled. Finn almost felt sorry for him. He couldn't imagine himself with amnesia and not knowing anything of his past other than the few months that passed by. John turned to him determinedly. "Kiss me."

"What?"

"Kiss me, maybe I'll remember something," he said eagerly, crawling closer to the shrinking man, "I'll admit it, kissing you didn't feel strange – I think I've kissed you before, but I can't remember when," he placed his hands on either side of Finn's head, "now or never, pucker up."

"Stop it!" Finn pushed him off, quickly lowering his voice in case his parents heard him. He glared over John, "dude come off it, you think a kiss will instantly bring back – mmph! Jo – mm…" his eyes shut as the shorter man tugged him into a persistent kiss. His protests fell on deaf ears and eventually pushing John away turned to pulling him closer.

The blankets fell away as their tongues danced eagerly. A trace of familiarity hitting the pair as John pulled Finn from his corner and fell back against the bed with the eighteen year old on top of him. They moaned quietly as their bodies pressed firmly together. Finn braced himself against him, scrambling around for a comfortable position until finally settling on straddling him. Their lips smacked lightly against each other, skin tingling with excitement as they explored each other with growing curiosity.

Then John tugged his shirt up and ran a finger gently up and down Finn's spine and suddenly, the world exploded.

It was like his sense of touch increased by tenfold. The simple touch had him shuddering with raving lust. A fierce need to be touched everywhere, desire for John and John only to do things to him that could make him sing.

He was hard in an instant. Arching into the touched, Finn gasped and cried out so softly, John wasn't sure it really came from him. It startled them both into staring at each other. Finn turned red in embarrassment. He'd never felt this way before. The only people he'd seen with his sudden behavior were the girls in the porn he'd sometimes watched. He never imagined himself having this kind of reaction but fuck it felt so good.

He…

He wanted more.

He needed more.

The two young men stared at each other, both breathless, confused and…captivated.

…

Venture Labs was unknown to 99.9998% of all population. It was a small establishment hiding in the caverns of one of Saturn's moons. Kurt had only ever been to the tiny facilities twice in the past. Once after Sylvester trusted his loyalty to tell him the truth behind the Forces, and in another to apprehend the White Rabbit who managed to break into the laboratory with a miniscule fleet of thugs drunk with hazy hunger for their leader. This would be the third time he was allowed to enter Venture upon their request.

Standing in the conference room, Kurt felt like he was an intruder amongst gods.

Sitting in the small and rather plain room were the Unity Trinity Carmen Tibideaux of Earth, Isabelle Wright of Mars, and Emma Pillsbury of Neptune. They each had traces of non-human genes within them, and had sacrificed their mortality for the continued existence of the Unity Pledge made by all known planets. Normally they never left their planets unless it was to gather at the Star, a massive space craft the size of Earth's moon where they would lead all planets with a firm, but kind hand during dark times. Since the end of the Barx war almost twenty years ago the three women never gathered again.

Much less in a small room in a lonely moon.

Kurt couldn't help stealing glances at Emma, the only Neptunian able to leave her planet without a space suit. Because of her immortality, she was free to travel wherever she pleased, but that didn't stop the change in atmosphere from messing with her physically. On Neptune she had ginger hair and skin as pale as snow, bright blue eyes that screamed innocence – hiding perfectly the wisdom she held for two millennia. Now, outside her home planet, the slender woman had blue skin akin to the color of Neptune, eyes bloodshot, and sickly. If she was in any kind of pain, she didn't show it, sitting primly beside Carmen, her hands folded over the table and a tiny smile on her lips.

Even more bizarre were the three other people in the room.

William Schuester, president of Scion Labs, Holly Holiday president of Venture Labs, and a bespectacled young man around Kurt's age bound to a wheelchair. After introductions were made, he learned his name to be Artie Abrams, an intern of Holly's.

Trying not to gawk at the group of people sitting in front of him, Kurt wondered what in the universe they would want with a rookie NVPD cop?

"Thank you for accepting our invitation Mr. Kurt Hummel," Carmen gave him a nod, her deep commanding voice filling the loud silence. The officer nodded back, not trusting himself to speak. "We asked an audience with you in regards to the White Rabbit."

Again, Kurt nodded, he had a feeling this would be about that.

"As you understand, the existence of Venture Labs is known to those who can be trusted. Do you know why Sue Sylvester chose to reveal its identity to you and your team?" Isabelle spoke up, her tone much friendlier than the authoritative Carmen.

"I…assumed it was because of my loyalty to justice," Kurt rasped, embarrassed to show such awe in front of the three women.

"She picked you because we asked her to," Emma said, her voice the sweetest of the three, despite her scary appearance. "The process is complex, but we pick out those we deem fit to know of Venture's existence. Those who've proven themselves through many tests that they can be trusted with even the greatest temptation."

Kurt set his jaw. He fucked up that trust big time with John then. He could already hear the accusations coming.

"We know you didn't reveal Venture's existence to the White Rabbit," Emma continued, earning a frown from the officer, "we didn't call to point fingers, we called you because you are the closest to him."

"You understand the truth of the Forces and Venture, of course," Carmen spoke up again. Kurt nodded. The Forces were all of the police forces from all planets under the Unity, they protected their planets accordingly, but also played bigger roles as soldiers in times of war. The badge officers so proudly brandished represented their loyalty to justice, and their sacrifice to the greater good so that they may be used as guardians to the universe the Unity needed them to be. Officer's didn't have to know about Venture in order to protect it, it's why their population was so big. The only ones allowed to know of it were those who'd proven to have an unwavering sense of right and wrong. Even in this age, corruption poisoned the Forces.

The relationship between Venture and the Forces was simple. Protect it from those who seek to upset the balance of time. Those who were aware of Venture were the few allowed to be inside lab itself.

Kurt and his team were chosen to know the truth because they had also proven one more thing the Unity needed. Leadership.

"Then you understand the severity of the White Rabbit's actions," Carmen said grimly, "he wishes to jump into the past."

"To look for his parents," Kurt almost kicked himself for his immediate need to defend his former lover. In front of Carmen Tibideaux! "We have him incarcerated."

"Traveling through time is what he wishes to do. But it's not something he'll ever get," Isabelle said quietly, somber and, maybe a little pitying. "Venture has stumbled into the discovery of travel…but it's not through time. That's just a smokescreen for those outside this room." Kurt's jaw slackened, his heart thumping in his ears. If time traveling wasn't possible…then what was Venture's true purpose? And even if he was close to John to get this kind of information, they had the criminal in jail, what point was there to tell him the truth now? "Venture has the means of traveling not through time, but through realities. We've kept the front of time travel even to those aware of Venture in order to maintain its safety."

Kurt's eyes widened.

Reality Travel.

John had mentioned it to him one night when they were musing the theories of time travel. The idea of traveling through alternate realities had only been discussed in amusement. Kurt could not imagine such a thing to be…

"There are other worlds out there?" he asked stupidly.

"If you're an officer here, in another reality you could be an actor on Earth," Carmen said calmly. "When you pass on there, of course. With the discovery of Reality Travel, the idea of visiting this world is actually tangible." Her brows lowered darkly, "the problem is, if the White Rabbit gets a hold of this technology, he may not find what he's looking for. Nor will he be the same person he is now."

Something Carmen said sparked curiosity in him. "Pass on?"

The three women looked to each other in silent discussion. No words were exchanged, but with the insistence in Isabelle's eyes, and the grim look in Carmen's, Kurt could tell this was a long wearied argument. He waited patiently as they glared at each other, his need for answers keeping him quiet.

"It's…complicated to explain…" Carmen said uneasily.

"But simple at the same time," Isabelle added, throwing the darker woman a meaningful look. Kurt looked back and forth between them, anticipation more explanation. "Well…" she turned her whole attention to him, "it's a system. One that has begun at the birth of the universe, and continues on until nothingness returns. There are…worlds – alternate realities – all endless and completely different from one another. People often talk about these worlds having alternate selves – they fancy themselves with ideas of living a better life in that other world, but the truth is they don't exist in that world because they continue to live in the current one they're in."

Kurt opened and closed his mouth, glancing at Carmen and Emma for their input.

"The thing that's keeping us from moving to the next reality is our bodies," Emma said, not helping his confusion at all, "when they expire, our souls are free to leave the current reality and naturally move on to the next one where we'll be reborn with no memories of our past life and a blank slate to live a new life."

Kurt shut his mouth. So in a nutshell people die, and move on to another reality to be reborn. Didn't explain ghosts. But whatever.

"So…no heaven or hell?"

"We have not come across such worlds, but some realities do seem close enough," Carmen answered flatly.

"And you know this because…"

"We're the Trinity," they said in unison, startling the young officer.

"We oversee the bridge to the next world," Isabelle explained. "Among other responsibilities."

"Then that means that everything with a heartbeat's immortal." He frowned when the three shook their heads.

"Our souls are, our bodies aren't," Emma said quietly, placing a palm to her chest. "For Carmen, Isabelle, and I, it's more complicated. In order to oversee the bridge, we must remain at our posts for eternity. We cut our souls in half so that one half stays here, and the other can continue moving on. With our halved souls bleeding into our bodies instead of remaining caged, our bodies become eternal."

"Why this world?" Kurt asked, "why not a happier reality? We went through massive losses during the Barx War – Earth looks like Swiss cheese now. How is this the perfect reality to be immortal?"

Emma gave him a delicate smile. "Apart from advanced space travel unchallenged by no other reality, this place is filled with brilliant minds and greedy hearts far beyond any other universe. We're not protecting this reality, we're protecting the others from it. Imagine if we weren't here and a criminal were to discover reality travel? The results could be disastrous. The only way out is through death, messing with the natural order of the universe could have serious repercussions on the system altogether."

"And that's why you can't let the White Rabbit get his hands on Venture," Kurt concluded. But really, John only wanted to travel so that he could be reunited with his mother and father. "If we can find Carole Hudson, his search will stop," he said aloud, hoping the suggestion would ease the Trinity.

"Carole Hudson no longer exists."

He looked at Artie with wide eyes, having forgotten the other three regular non-immortal people in the room. "I'm sorry?"

Pushing his glasses up, the young man looked directly at Kurt. "Dr. Hudson performed reality travel herself. I was her intern before transferring. I witnessed the phenomena."

"How do you know she's in another reality?"

As an answer, Artie tapped the table where an LCD keyboard lit up on the smooth surface. He typed away and suddenly a hologram of a video recording popped up at the center of the table, giving everyone a perfect view of a middle aged woman standing in an empty lab on a circular platform with several lights glittering in front of her. Kurt watched as she sifted through every light before picking one and suddenly vanishing. The last thing he saw was the selected light showing the words Earth 345 Lima, Ohio and an image of the planet of a much livelier Earth than the one he grew up in years ago.

"Earth 345…" he muttered.

"It took me five years to understand the significance of that name," Artie explained, "by then I transferred here, where my expertise was more useful." Holly pat his shoulder silently. "I couldn't repeat Dr. Hudson's escape, but I managed to design a Pod that could withstand the forces of time from permanently removing our memories – in theory. I haven't tested it on living creatures yet, but I doubt the survival rate, it's still a prototype."

"Could John…" he bit his tongue, "Could the White Rabbit know about reality travel through Dr. Hudson?"

"If he did, she would have taken him with her," Artie shook his head. "Dr. Hudson left by accident." He replayed the video and Kurt watched with a more scrutinizing eye. He saw the wonder in her eyes as she let her hands ghost over the little balls of light. The curiosity after grasping one of them, and the jolt of shock and fear just before vanishing. "She had designed the machine out of grief for her late husband. She used to tell me how she sometimes built things without knowing what they were meant for. She had no idea she discovered reality travel until she tested it out." He sighed, "no one was able to get the machine to start up again, so it was taken apart and disposed of."

"You want me to keep the White Rabbit from getting his hands on your prototype," Kurt looked over at the Trinity for confirmation. "Doesn't this conflict with your so called laws of nature? Why not destroy the machine."

"That is ideal…" Emma gave Carmen a sideways glance, "but the problem is that people in this universe are just too brilliant. A total of twenty have stumbled upon reality travel and destroying their inventions merely urges on their curiosity. Venture Labs had to be created in order to gather these minds and study this form of travel with a watchful eye over their shoulders. The White Rabbit, however, is the thing we've feared since the start of all these inventions. To have an outsider learn of reality travel, and then use it for their own merits is dangerous. Even more so with him because with his abilities he could easily go mad with power in another reality should his memories of Carole's nurture disappear. And he's still fully evolving…"

Kurt's eye twitched. He turned to Schuester derisively, "I suppose you're going to tell me what she means by that."

The Scion president fidgeted with clear discomfort. "Venus wanted a prototype for a new line of Products that didn't bother anyone's moral code. Experiment 19 was supposed to be that. Their descriptions requested a slim, androgynous Product that complied easily to the client's demands. It was meant to be the perfect companion to both male and female partners. The Hudson's were Scion's most respected scientists, so we gave them the assignment," he grimly shook his head, "we didn't count on Christopher Hudson's PTSD to affect his work – we didn't even know he had issues until it was too late…"

"The creature they made was everything Venus didn't want in physical attributes," Carmen finished for him, "even worse, Christopher gave it trace genes of Xaber." At Kurt's blank look, she went on, "Xaber's an ancient and suppposedly extinct race of the star Rigel. While they are fairly normal in their home, it's theorized that like Emma, their attributes change drastically when in other atmospheres. This is what's giving the White Rabbit his abilities. Super speed is only the start, and because his DNA shares genes with other species meant for Venus's needs, he's a hybrid of Product, Human, and Xaber. It explains why his hypnotism relies on lust to get victims to comply to his needs."

And that trick with his spine… Kurt fought back a blush.

Traveling through time would have grave effects on the present, however jumping into an alternate reality was even less clear. If he believed he was right, it shouldn't have any effect at all in this reality. The traveler would simply vanish from this universe much like Carole had, and her disappearance had proven that nothing changed. At least none he was aware of.

"Why is he fascinated with Alice in Wonderland?" he found himself asking, "is it because it describes visiting another world – even if it was a dream?"

"We first believed it was a psychosis of a lonely man in search of his self-worth," Carmen said smoothly. "Given his current abilities and a second look at the research done to create him…we found it to be a play with poetry."

"Poetry?" Kurt repeated flatly, crossing his arms. "That's it? He's just taking the identity of a fictional character because he thinks it's cool? The White Rabbit isn't even interested in traveling, the character's just a constant reminder in the story that the red queen's barbaric in her methods when dealing with her subjects."

"Yes, but who was enticed by the Rabbit to follow it to a new world?" Emma asked, her voice light with unashamed amusement.

"Alice," he was quick to reply. They stared at him and he backpedaled. "Wait you're…you're saying I'm his Alice? I don't want to travel to another reality!"

"You're going to have to." Schuester snatched his attention.

"Excuse me?" he shot up from his chair, anger building up.

"The White Rabbit's origins could be identified by his DNA and abilities. You, however, have no flaw other than scars of a less than stellar childhood," Carmen said, not at all offended by the officer's reaction. "We had to make sure so we did a blood test and came up with the same thing. You have Xaber blood in your veins. Dormant, and a very small portion – but still there."

Kurt was incensed. "I'm human!"

"Not much is known of the race, they died out shortly after humans started putting myths behind constellations," Carmen ignored him. "We're only just touching the fragments they left behind. Artifacts that tell stories of travel and worlds needing their protection. For a time, they were the Guardians all the planets had so long worshiped. They are the creatures Earth glorified in its various religions."

"How could they…" Kurt shook his head at the Trinity, "I'm human…"

"At this point only ten percent of 'human's are actually purely that. The rest have traces of other species within them, too faint to be detected by our technology. Your DNA had that one particular spike that was needed to trace your origins," Schuester answered easily. "In this reality you live and act as a human, the Xaber blood in you is just that, blood – nothing more. If you were to go to another reality with your body in tact…that dormant gene can wake up."

This was confusing Kurt more. First reality travel, then Alice in Wonderland, and now he was part ancient alien?

Alien?

As in, he wasn't human at all!?

"What we're asking you to do," Carmen followed, as Kurt paled. "Is that you stop the White Rabbit from bringing about the end of whatever reality he ends up in. There is a high possibility that he won't psychologically survive the travel – he will grow mad and he will destroy everything in existence. Losing a reality would upset the balance of the system. We want you to stop it from happening."

"Kind of hard to ask since he's tied to a chair and looking for a way out of this universe," Kurt cracked, hiding his nerves.

"No restraint will keep him from achieving his goal," Isabelle shook her head sadly, "But for the sake of giving him a chance to find his parents, I ask that you follow him and take swift action if he is to ever show any sign of madness. This will be asking a lot, you are the only person we can turn to…for the sake of the universe. You must kill the White Rabbit. Only you have the power to do it."

"And if I go mad?" he murmured apprehensively.

"You won't," Carmen said with a strange warmth in her eyes, "we chose you to know the truth behind Venture. Brought you here to tell you everything we know regarding reality travel. We trust your heart. You won't go mad."

…

When Finn woke up the following morning, it was to an aching body and a sore as hell ass. Wincing as he turned to the side, his hand fell over a warm and smooth chest.

And. Well. The events of last night flooded back.

"Ohmygod," Finn sat up so quickly he almost fell off the bed from the inertia that swept over him. "Oh. My. God." He stared at the stirring body of John with wide eyes. Darting over the hickeys that dotted his pale skin.

Surfacing into consciousness, John hummed a little, cracked an eye open, then groaned and shut his eyes again. "If you're going to flip out I suggest you do it in your room."

"This is my room!" Finn squeaked.

As an answer, John turned to his side and settled in again, happy to drift back to sleep so he could ignore the other man.

"Dude! You…we…fuck!"

"I tried to stop you," John mumbled sleepily.

"Why didn't you try harder!" his voice continued to squeak to an ever higher pitch. He was panicking. He was going to have a panic attack. This was all John's fault. Not his. Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!

Huffing, John sat up immediately, face coming so close to Finn's that for a second the frightened man feared he would kiss him. "Because you kept begging for it!"

If there was ever an opportunity to punch that impish face, now was the time. However, Finn held back because…John was right. All horror aside, he did beg for it. He said and did so many things he thought he'd never ever do in his life. He…he lost his mind and…

It felt so good…

Finn swallowed thickly. The close proximity of John reminding him just how mind blowing their night had been. How John ran his hands all over him, stroked him…stretched him…filled him…

His body reacted at the memory and he flushed.

John leaned back an inch and looked at him skeptically. "Dear lord, are you horny again?"

"No!" Finn's face turned red, and he bunched the sheets over his lap.

"You are," John looked somewhere between impressed and horrified. "Jesus, how can you have this much stamina?"

"I'm not!" But the memories of John fucking him kept filling his head, his body was tingling from all the touches and kisses it experienced. Like tattoos. Permanently on him whether he wanted it or not.

John didn't believe him for a minute. "Okay…you're having a gay crisis. You figured I was the best shot at testing it out since I'm gay and available, and bam, you've become an addict. That explains it perfectly."

"I'm not…I mean…" there was no way he could say he was straight now. Last night would now make him the guy in the closet with the door wide open if he denied everything. "You did something to me!" he said suddenly. "I lost it because you…you touched me on my back or something and made me all – "

"That was by accident, and for the last time I'm human!" John hissed. Tossing aside the blankets, he got off the bed in all his naked glory and stalked off for the door, "I'm done with all your blind accusations. I should have stayed in New York!"

"No, Kurt wait!" he shot out after him and grasped his arm, suddenly terrified at the idea of being apart from the other man. Even if only a second ago he didn't want to see his face.

"Who the hell is Kurt!?" John wrenched his arm away, glaring up at Finn. "You kept calling me that all night! Am I some replacement for your closeted feelings for some boy? My name is not Kurt! It's…" his anger deflated, and a lost look swept over his face. "Oh. No wait it…it is my name…"

The two stood there as the world continued without them. A million emotions pulsed out of Kurt in waves as he struggled to take in and accept that after all this time, he finally knew his name. His name.

His eyes glistened, lips thinning in a tight line just before he covered them with his hand. Finn watched awkwardly, not sure himself why he started calling him Kurt. His only explanation was that it just felt natural. Familiar to his tongue as if he'd been whispering it long before he met the alien.

"Kurt," he repeated, testing the name out and his chest warming when the man shut his eyes and let out a shuddering sigh. Some tears falling. "Kurt…" he said it many times before. Something in him knew it. Knew that he said it many different ways…so many different emotions…

Kurt gently pressed their lips together, neither passionate, nor stale, just loving. Finn didn't want it to end.

Later, when they finally managed to get downstairs for breakfast, Finn had another memory flash.

It was of Kurt again. Back in that strange uniform he first found him in, and with a gun pointed to his head.

Though the image pictured Kurt the bad guy, somewhere deep in Finn knew it was the opposite.

…

The White Rabbit had escaped his prison. It only took Kurt to go off planet for a few days to see the Trinity when the thief took his chance. His powers had developed further in his short time of incarceration. One officer passing by was all he needed. One look and the unfortunate officer was completely under his control.

In a nutshell, the White Rabbit left prison without lifting a finger. He even left through the front door with a little wave to the security camera.

The chase was on again.

There were no more false robberies. No more being stationary in New Venice. The truth was out, so why bother with red herrings?

Kurt raced him back to Venture Labs. Blaine and Sam beside him and fully aware that the White Rabbit no longer had prison to look forward to once they got him. As far as they were concerned, he was making a universal offense by attempting to use time traveling technology. Such an offense was only punishable by death.

Kurt couldn't tell his comrades the truth of his own assignment directly from the Trinity. John was a criminal. One he loved and had to follow. The potential end of all things in existence. If Carmen was right, he would eventually have to kill him and live out the rest of his life with that knowledge in a reality that would be strange to him. He was going to leave everything he grew up with. The imperfect earth, memories and places of his childhood. Friends…his small apartment…everything. If this was what Kurt had to do to save the universe, he was going to do it. He made a pledge to the Forces. The badge on his belt stood for everything he strived to be.

Everything his father would have been proud of.

"What did you learn while you were gone?" Sam asked, all playfulness of his nature gone for the severity of their current mission.

He wanted to tell them. Needed to hear their advice on the craziness thrown at his lap. He was part Xaber. According Dr. Schuester, that meant he was part…part alien. He spent his whole life getting kicked around by the narrow minded people of Little Lima. Thrown from school to school while all the time praying that his dreams of fame would be realized. Trying to find ways to keep his father healthy, only to mourn his loss shortly after a Neo Barx attack that had nothing to do with his father's heart, but destroyed half of Old America. He'd been through so much…fought for so much, and not once did he feel any less human than the people around him.

He couldn't remember ever having any kind of abilities like John. He was so plain and ordinary, it was ridiculous to fathom having alien blood within him.

But would Blaine and Sam understand?

Sam was more open minded and eager for a supernatural mystery. Blaine however, would be more skeptical. Just like Kurt.

"All I learned is that when we get to Venture, John has to go down," Kurt said grimly. "His existence is a danger to all of us."

…

It was two weeks since the incident that Finn left the house and never came back. There was no note, no phone call. No indication that he would return. None of his friends knew where he was, and local authorities gathered search parties in hopes of finding the young man. Carole was a mess throughout the whole ordeal. Everyday no news of her son's whereabouts chipped away at her bit by bit. Try as he might, Burt couldn't bring her away from her misery. John would have comforted her.

But John had vanished too.

What no one knew, what they weren't even aware of, was that they not only had one alien in their world. They had two.

Two who were standing in front of an old cabin deep in the woods of some obscure place in Ohio.

Finn had been hiding out in the cabin – an old childhood haunt of his when he used to be a boy scout. Ever since he slept with Kurt, more and more memories flooded in. It was distressing him. Remembering a completely different life. A life that didn't include Rachel, or Quinn, or any of his friends.

There was only Kurt. Kurt and his staunch moral code. His NVPD uniform with its buckles and endless supply of pockets and weapons. His warm eyes and witty mouth.

Kurt who was now standing in front of him with his colorful and tasteful attire, his stylized hair so unlike the Kurt in Finn's memories, but the cold eyes and set jaw just as he remembered.

And the gun in the slender yet firm hand, pointed at him with deadly intent.

Finn couldn't find it in him to be afraid. He knew Kurt was capable of pulling the trigger. Knew he was capable of killing. It was trained in him since day one at the Academy. Finn was fully expecting a bullet to the head. He almost wanted it if only to quell the confusion in his head of two lives from two different worlds.

"Do it," he said softly, breaking the silence.

"Was it worth it?" Kurt pulled the safety with an ominous click. It wasn't the kind of glock he was used to in his world, but it would do its job in the end. "Coming here and living a listless life in the basement of your mother's house?"

"Guess I can never be satisfied," Finn shrugged. "You came all the way over here just to ask that? I thought you wanted to kill me and ask questions later."

Kurt scowled. "They ordered me to kill you."

Finn rolled his eyes, conveying all the carelessness he didn't have, "dude, we're in another reality and you're still going to follow the orders of three saggy old women? You know what they are here? A high school counselor, drama school dean, and magazine editor. They're nothing here – "

"If you're trying to change my mind, you're out of luck," Kurt hissed. "All this time you've been lying to me. Pretending to be the innocent small town boy. Made me fall for you – "

"This reality has just barely touched space travel, Kurt," Finn glared, "there's no magic here, nothing to order you around. You can be your own person here."

"You didn't even have to use hypnotism to get me did you? All you had to do was whore yourself at me and I was under your thumb – "

"I LOVED YOU!"

The forest echoed with Finn's thunderous roar. It didn't shake Kurt one bit. He simply narrowed his eyes at the angry man, his icy eyes not believing him.

"I loved you," Finn repeated more brokenly. "So much that all of my instincts were conditioned towards you. I never wanted anyone else but you."

"And here comes the flattery," Kurt droned unimpressively. "What's next? A bouquet of roses?"

"Shoot me then!" Finn balled his hands into fists, his calm composure gone completely. His face was torn with despair and anger, a longing for Kurt and grief that the other man refused to believe him. "Get it over with! Be the big hero!"

"Shut up!" Kurt's composure snapped. Angry tears in his eyes. "Do you even know what you are? What you can do to this world?"

"Do you think I care?" Finn laughed shortly, waving his hands around him, "I've had to look everything up myself while I was stuck in that laboratory. They were going to kill me! All because I exist!" his hands dropped to his side. "Do you know how many times I tried to kill myself?"

There he goes with the sympathy again. Kurt's hand started shaking, his fingers clenching and unclenching around the trigger.

In a split second Finn was right in front of him, his hand wrapped around the gun and pulling the trigger without warning. Kurt flinched as the crack of the blast cut through the quiet forest, the taller man's head jerking back from the bullet.

Kurt's eyes widened, the excitement of what just happened leaving him gasping for air.

Finn didn't fall. He remained standing, staring back at him with a squashed bullet hissing smoke from his forehead, and dropping uselessly to the ground. Kurt stared at his forehead, no sign of even a bruise.

"If you remembered everything before I did, you would have been able to kill me," Finn said softly. "I guess it's too late now."

…

They found Artie unconscious on the entrance way, his chair a few feet away and tipped to its side. Holly was hanging by the collar of her coat on a hook on the wall. She'd been knocked out too.

Sam stayed behind to help them while Kurt and Blaine went on to Artie's department. He'd only been showed to it once, but Kurt memorized the path in case Finn would come looking for it. This department would be where the prototype pods were kept.

"Aim and shoot. That's all we have to do. No negotiating. No change of heart," Blaine reminded him firmly, holding his gun to his side at the ready as they ran down the hall.

Kurt nodded, stopping in front of the door labeled Experimental Prototypes, and kicked it open, aimed his gun around first before cautiously going in. Blaine followed suit, his back to his.

The lab was a maze of strange machines and lights. They cast shadows around the room, making it hard for the two officer's to pinpoint their target. Hyper aware for any sign of movement or sound, they crept further in.

"I'm over here."

Both men aimed their guns to the voice and came upon the White Rabbit standing by Artie's prototype, a vial with red liquid in his hand. Blaine was the first to fire, but the criminal held up his hand and the oncoming bullet stopped in mid-air, then clinked on the floor.

Crap.

He had telekinesis now. Kurt bit back the sigh of relief. Talking would have to suffice then.

"John, you don't know if that pod works," he said sharply, never lowering his weapon, "Artie hasn't tested it on living beings yet, the trip could kill you."

"I'm a little hard to kill, Kurt," John sighed exasperatedly, "if you haven't noticed."

"Wait…" Blaine glanced at his partner, "it could kill him."

"Gonna talk me out of it, Squirt?" John arched an eyebrow.

"Fine, get in." Blaine ignored the insult. "And stay wherever you're going."

John looked at Kurt, his easy confidence cracking slightly. He'd never heard a cop letting him go willingly. Blaine must be hoping really hard that the trip would kill him. Kurt lowered his gun, eyeing the vial in John's hand.

"What is that?" he blurted out.

John looked at it and smiled. "Suppressant."

The two men watched as he uncorked it and drank it in one gulp. At first it seemed that nothing changed until Kurt started getting the sense that the man seemed somehow…human.

John's smile brightened, looking refreshed and genuinely happy. He looked straight at Kurt and the difference was immediate. John's eyes had turned a warm brown.

Human.

He was human now.

"John…" Kurt felt like he was staring at a stranger.

"Finn," he said, earning a blank look, "my parents. They named me Finn."

…

"How long have you lived here?"

The gun lay discarded in the dirt. They stood so close, yet neither made a move to end that distance. The anger and sorrow had diminished. The proximity of their bodies making them shiver with nostalgia.

Longing.

Finn gazed into ocean eyes. "There was…a mishap with the pod. Messed with my body. I came here as a baby when my mother found me…I'm eighteen now. I've been here for eighteen years. I don't know what happened with my pod."

"Eighteen," Kurt murmured. Finn hadn't changed at all. He was the same young man he loved in New Venice.

"I've been waiting for you for eighteen years without even realizing it," Finn shook his head, "I've…been so lost without you."

"And Rachel?"

"Rachel?" it seemed he completely forgot who his ex-girlfriend was for a second. "She's like you in some ways. That's probably why I was attracted to her. But then…she pulled away," he ducked his head, "I got clingy. She was the only thing that was closest to you and I didn't want to let it go…"

"I couldn't let you go either," Kurt quietly admitted, finally reaching out and resting his hand against Finn's chest.

"Are you going to take me back?" Finn asked, pink eyes mournful.

"Does the Trinity exist here?"

"No."

"Are you going to destroy the world?"

"I don't want to."

"Good." Kurt wrenched Finn closer and meshed their lips together. Their arms wrapped tightly around each other, lips tugging and sucking, their tongues reunited in the long missed dance they eagerly desired.

When they finally pulled apart once oxygen became a necessity, they were a few feet off the ground, floating gently in the air.

Kurt looked at Finn with alarm. "Y-you can fly!?"

"No," the White Rabbit slid his arms away from his lover, backing away until their fingers could no longer be linked. Kurt remained in the air, looking down at himself in awe. "We both can."

…

Artie found him in his department some weeks later. He called him a few hours ago with news of improvement on his second prototype of the pod. Since Finn stole his original, the intern worked fast with Dr. Holiday in making a second better one. The Trinity had given Kurt orders personally, and he was set on completing them.

They were unprepared for Finn's escape from New Venice. A second pod wasn't ready when they tracked Finn back to Venture Labs. So as agonizing as it was to see him go without him, Kurt was forced to handle his nerves while he waited for Artie to make a second pod.

This one was supposedly better equipped to handle the bridge that Kurt would use to jump from one reality to another. He would probably have some physical changes and a mind wipe. But he would have a much higher chance of recovering his memories than Finn would.

Supposedly.

"Be careful," was all Artie could say as the officer set his shoulders and slipped into the snug pod, the top closing over him and putting him in slumber.

Deep down, Artie knew Kurt wasn't going to go through with it if Finn showed the slightest hint of madness. He wasn't a killer.

He loved Finn too damned much to get rid of him.

…

This world had no traces of ancient alien blood, nor legends of godly creatures with physical proof that they once existed. The closest they got to their own tale was Superman, and he was a fictional character from a fictional world. They had stories of gods that dealt with the daily chores of life, but none mentioned aliens who protected them.

The two walked back to their home. Their parents welcoming them with open arms and cries of joy. They'd been gone for a month, supposedly dead. A reaction like that was expected.

Now truly appreciating the warmth of his father, alive and in good health, Kurt let himself cry in his arms, the part of him that had long been broken mending itself bit by bit.

"I remember everything, kid," Burt said in his shoulder, his voice trembling with emotion. "I'm here, Kurt. We're a family again."

Later, after they settled themselves and dried their faces, they began to see why all of this 'remembering' was happening.

"We're from another reality," Carole said after Kurt explained everything to her, the four gathered in the living room, "Burt passed on naturally, and I came here by accident – both of us were reborn. You two, however, remained in your bodies because of the protection the pods provided. Because of that your souls were still retaining the memories of the last reality. Since you were around us the most, we began to remember as well – a nostalgia that became clearer the longer we were all together. At first no one remembered anything and probably wouldn't have if you two hadn't rekindled the relationship you had before this world. It brought back memories, and slowly we started remembering things as well." She looked so amazed, years younger now that she was in her element. "We've passed on and yet we still remember – we're the only ones in existence who'll remember two worlds!"

"So…" Finn turned to Kurt. "How come you weren't a baby?"

"Artie's pod protected me," was the answer, "it still made me a little younger, but not by much." Kurt turned to his father. "I thought I was human. I have Xaber blood in me, dad."

"Me too," Burt shrugged. "I wouldn't worry about it, Kurt, humans have been around for a while, it'd be unavoidable if they at one point hooked up with aliens. It's in movies all the time."

"I see…"

"I was right though!" Finn pointed at Kurt gleefully, "you are an alien!"

The man scowled at him. "Says the Superman experiment."

The happiness in the young man's face melted away, and for a moment Kurt feared he insulted him.

But then a grin slowly crept in Finn's face and his eyes sparked with a wild idea.

"Superman…"

…

The three women met up at Star for the first time in many years. As promised, Dr. Holiday reported Kurt Hummel's voyage out of their reality.

They looked at each other, finally letting out the breaths they'd been holding.

"We'll have to discuss Hummel's fate with Sylvester," Carmen said grimly. "His team will not be pleased with his disappearance."

"Thank you, for allowing this," Emma said to Carmen, who shut her eyes with a nod of acknowledgement.

"It's the safer alternative," she murmured, walking away towards the large window that overlooked her planet. The two other women watched her quietly, knowing she was still not fully onboard to what was done.

"They'll have better lives where they are," Isabelle assured the dark woman. "They can't travel realities, so disrupting the system further won't occur. Not if Kurt is there to buffer Finn's madness."

Carmen nodded, still grim. "What worries me is how he'll execute his abilities. Even without growing insane with power good intentions can sometimes have unfavorable repercussions."

"And Kurt will have to adapt as well," Emma added quietly, though not at all concerned.

"Earth 345 has sobered the White Rabbit," Isabelle reminded them. "He loves that world even if his life is not how he pictured it to be. Kurt will have a better chance in gaining his dreams as well. They're both happy. There's no intention for destruction." She smiled wryly. "They've proven so. They're still proving it."

"Let's hope so," Carmen held her hands behind her back. "They have a lot to prove to that world."

…

New York was a beautiful city with a colorful mesh of personalities and opportunities. Kurt had settled into this life easily, and helped Finn find his place as well. He tried fitting in before when he visited Rachel, but there was something about his boyfriend that made him feel at home no matter where they went.

Finn smiled softly, recalling memories of their first few days in the city. The flabbergasted yet acceptance of Rachel whom he never would have imagined to have become a much closer friend to him than she was as a girlfriend. Kurt's classes and his own were so awkwardly scheduled that it was hard to find real time for each other, but they worked around it – they already made plans to set up their classes better by the next term. For now though they'd meet up at the apartment for the briefest ten minutes, have some cuddle time, then start over again like every other day. No sense of boredom had yet to touch them. Finn supposed that was because their extracurricular activities helped keep the excitement in their relationship.

Like right now.

His powers had fully matured. Kurt was still going through the baby steps of controlling them. Flying he got down pat. It was the super speed that had him on edge, as well as the heightened hearing that gave him migraines. But it would pass with time and practice, Finn would be there every step of the way.

"It's disgusting knowing the problem New York has with rats," Kurt scowled beside him. They were standing on the roof of One Times Square, hidden safely away from the security camera's as they observed the bustling city below. "I hear their feet like a constant marching army. It's even more horrifying when I'm in the subway."

"It's worse with the roaches," Finn pitched in, earning a gag from his lover. Laughing gently, he took his hand and pulled him closer to kiss him on the cheek, "it'll get better I promise."

"We're standing over one the most iconic areas in the world and we're talking about rodents," Kurt rolled his eyes, a grin curling his lips. "Oh joy."

"Could be worse," he snickered, "we could be talking about all the sex that goes on in the city – not to mention our own building."

Kurt's scowl returned, "I hate you."

Finn was about to tease him more, but their light banter was cut short by a cry of despair sounding off a few blocks away. They turned to it sharply, tugging identical domino masks over their eyes. This was the part where Kurt had a little of an advantage over Finn. Their lives may have been different than the ones left behind, but deep down, Kurt was still a Forces police officer. He knew how to handle criminals, time sensitive situations, and most importantly – his own moral code. Finn, however, was like a demon trying to earn his wings.

"Remember not to rile him up," Kurt said offhandedly, floating a few inches up.

"Who says I want to fight?" Finn asked innocently. Kurt gave him a Look. "No Hands Atomic Wedgie sound better?"

The young man rolled his eyes. "Better than you flirting with a stranger? Yes, much better." They flew off into the direction of the scream, Finn's laughter drifting behind them.

The people nearby who spotted them in the sky watched with a silent relief in their hearts. The first appearance of the two mysteries creatures had frightened them. Police had sent out armies and squads to find the pair, but as the weeks sped by with no capture, they began to see that these guests might not be as terrifying as they initially thought.

How can one be scared of someone who saved them from falling off a building? Or from a speeding bullet?

So it was with recognition that the citizens watched the mysterious men fly past their skyscrapers, knowing that they were off to continue protecting them.

"I'm thinking about expanding," Finn said conversationally as they flew down to 34th.

"Already?" Kurt drawled with an arched eyebrow.

"Yeah, like…India or China – or third world countries in need of a hero."

"Some societies would put us on the God pedestal," Kurt winced, "nice as that sounds, I don't think I'm up for that kind of responsibility…"

"I mean more like…I don't know, if something like an earthquake or volcano messed up a whole city or country, we could be there to help out," his voice softened, "we could save so many lives…"

Kurt glanced at his lover with consideration. "That would be nice."

"We'll need costumes – bulletproof, and water proof – OH! And good against electric shock – they need to be flexible too, and stealthy 'cause bright red and blue are just gonna make us targets, and not for bullets. I have my pride," Finn said seriously, then bubbled up again, "we need names too! Something epic like…Valiant or Spearhead – or does that sound retarded? Phantom Man? Alien X?"

"Oh god…" Kurt sighed, tuning out his boyfriend's rambling and smiling affectionately. There was no way he was going to squeeze into a spandex suit with a ridiculous name and an even more ridiculous pose. That was better left in the comics.

Then again.

As they landed in front of the crime at hand, effectively startling the mugger and rescuing the victim…

They were in a new world, in a new life, with their lives a happy mystery before them. Kurt was no longer an officer, and Finn was no longer a criminal. They had what they'd been searching for. Their Alice in Wonderland race now behind them…

Being a superhero might not be such a bad idea after all.

...

To Era and Epidemic readers: I'm afraid I'm at a crossroads right now. While writing Kinn has helped deal with the tragedy, it's also a double edged sword in that it's tough writing about Finn. I'm not sure how it is for you guys (whether it's hard or easier to deal when reading Finn fics) and I know that while I'm asking this, the decision is ultimately mine. Epidemic will have an ending, I'm too close to finishing it that giving up on it would be silly at this point. The fate of Era however, and two other fics I've been working on before the tragedy is now left unsure. My question is, would you guys be interested in reading these fics at all? Or would it be too hard? I rarely ask for reviews anymore, but I would love your opinions on this because I'm actually kind of stuck right now. Thank you.