I'm sorry this update has been such a long time coming! School has been very busy, but I've finally hit the holidays so I'll have much more time to write! Thanks for you encouraging reviews!

Kurt was beyond furious by the time he stormed back to the brothel. The sign that read "The King's Castle" swung dangerously as he slammed the door on his two guards, ignoring their annoyed exclamations. Kurt was glad it was halfway through session time, meaning everyone was shut up in the rooms upstairs and there was no one to see his stormy entrance. He'd be in trouble if they did. Kurt was meant to be constantly pleasing. He stomped across the grand entrance hall and down the corridor that led to Madame's office. Just before he slammed a fist down on the wood of her door, he remembered himself and suddenly stopped.

Damn Blaine had thrown him off. It had been a while since he'd properly lost his temper. But it really hadn't been the best of days. First he was informed of his upcoming sale, causing his already unstable mood. Then he met a stupid little farmer who somehow made Kurt interested. Well at least Kurt could forget about Blaine easily. He could always forget men easily. In fact, he guaranteed that by the next day, he wouldn't even remember what colour (Golden-brown syrupy and flowing with curiosity) the boy's eyes had been.

So Kurt took a deep breath and calmed as quickly as he could. He gently relaxed all his muscles and straightened his spine. Lastly, he schooled the frown from his brow. Only then did Kurt knock on the door.

"Come in," Madame's bored drawl grated on his nerves as he stepped inside the plush office.

"Madame, we're back. May I return to my room now?" Kurt asked. Her eyes flickered over the papers in front of her one more time before she bothered to look back up. She smiled with a falsely maternal softness that had never reached her eyes. Kurt felt really sorry for her future husband. The poor man had no idea what sort of a woman he was marrying. Not that the man would be any better. He must know that she had owned a brothel of slaves before she'd decided to sell it and move in with him. What kind of person would be okay with that?

"Little Princess," She greeted him. "That was a long walk, but you're here before five and I guess that's what matters."

Kurt's heart sunk. Surely she wasn't making him take clients after the news that she was selling him so soon. Yet he couldn't think of any other reason he'd need to be ready by five.

"You're next client will be here at five on the dot, so you've a moment to fix your hair." She regarded the bangs that were starting to fall over his forehead and Kurt pushed them out of his face quickly.

"Can't we please tell them I'm sick?" Kurt sighed, keeping a tight grasp on his temper with great difficulty. He just wanted to rest. Was that too much to ask?

"Of course not!" Madame had the nerve to look offended by this statement. "These customers have been faithful to you for years, returning time after time. They deserve the chance to say goodbye. Your price tripled since the news that the brothel is closing anyway. I knew I was right to save the news until the last minute; otherwise I may have only received double. You have three more tonight, and then nine tomorrow. You'll be done by later afternoon, and we'll finish getting you ready for sale day then. It's fast approaching!"

"Twelve people?" Kurt asked dully. He should have known she would do this.

"Most of them are your regulars, and there's a few one's who struck it big in the goldfields recently and wanted a chance with you before you get sold and possibly taken from them forever. You're very popular, you should be honoured." As usual she gushed as if she'd done him a favour.

"Honoured," Kurt echoed, giving her a false smile of gratitude that immediately brought satisfaction to her face.

"Well I guess I'd better send you off." She said, and then suddenly seemed to remember something. She grabbed the papers she was studying, her call stopping him as he turned the doorknob. "Look! I have all the ownership transfer papers ready. If I'm pleased with your performance with these last twelve clients, you can bet you'll have a very handsome new owner signing them tomorrow."

Kurt hardly turned back to face her, but made sure he nodded respectfully.

"Thank you Madame." It was a great effort not to spit the words at her.

…

"Blaine!" The bell called Mike out from the back of the store fairly quickly, and Blaine was finally face to face with his beaming friend. Immediately the tension in the air seemed to lift. That was one of Mike's many talents. He always put Blaine totally at ease. "Good to see you!"

"You too," Blaine was pulled into a hug as he smiled in return.

"We wondered when you'd be coming to town. Tina's been trying to get me to send you some mail but the cart never goes your way, so we've had to wait on you. Actually, I'm shocked you arrived so close to market day," Mike grimaced.

"Yeah well my supplies ran out. I definitely won't be staying for the market." Blaine assured him.

"Why don't you come round the back? Tina's going to go crazy when she sees you. She was just complaining this morning over how long it's been. Again." Mike said with a fond grin. "She's just in the side room taking out some bolts of cloth from the last shipment."

Blaine followed Mike's pointing finger, but paused as he spotted the slightly distracted look on his face.

"Hold on one moment, I'm sorry." Blaine watched as Mike stepped around the counter, calling out as he went. "Kurt is there anything you need? I'm just taking a friend back to- oh."

Mike's brow furrowed at the absence of the beautiful boy as he turned back to Blaine. "Um, have you seen Kurt?"

"His name's Kurt?" That was all Blaine could really focus on. Somehow it was wonderfully satisfying to know his name. After all, there was no way he was calling him 'Little Princess'. Mike however, paled.

"Oh god I'm not supposed to tell you that." He looked very guilty as he took one last look at the place Kurt had disappeared from and then re-joined Blaine, ushering him through to the back. "Don't tell him I told you that."

"I doubt I'll see him again anyway," Blaine's cheerful mood vanished once more.

"See who?" Tina's voice startled him at first, and he broke into a chuckle as she held her arms open for a hug.

"Good to see you." She ruffled his curls as he hugged her and made him scrunch up his nose and pull away. "We were starting to worry you'd died alone on that farm of yours. It's been over two months since we last saw you."

"Good to see you too." Blaine sighed, trying to flatten his hair as he followed Tina into their parlour. Mike laughed cheerfully behind him and gestured for Blaine to take a seat.

"So who do you doubt you'll ever see again?" Tina asked as she and Mike took the small faded loveseat opposite Blaine.

"Oh, I just met Kurt in the store back there." Blaine said, crossing his legs.

"He told you his name?" Tina gasped. Immediately, Mike's head snapped up and guilt flooded his features again.

"Uh…" Blaine stammered awkwardly, trying not to look at Mike and give him away, but Tina was already turning to hit him on the arm, exasperated.

"Mike Chang you have no self-control!" She berated.

"Sorry!" Mike held up his hands in mock defense. "I'm just used to calling him Kurt. Sometimes it slips out!"

"He'd be absolutely horrified if his real name got out. It's the only piece of his old life he has left. You're lucky most people that overhear it think it's a nickname." Tina shook her head, and then turned to explain that to Blaine. "Because he's so curt,"

"I see," Blaine tried very hard not to laugh at this apt description. He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face through. Tina's eyes narrowed as she cocked her head at him.

"What's that look?" She asked shrewdly.

"What look?" Blaine replied. He tried to appear as normal as he could, but now he was flushing.

"That look." Mike chuckled in agreement as Tina's face split into a huge smile.

"You like him." She accused, seeming pleased.

Blaine ducked his head, trying to think of some sort of response. But when he looked up again, he saw Tina's smile drop.

"Oh Blaine," He was startled by the suddenly serious tone she adopted. Then he realised that Mike looked grave as well. They exchanged a look. The previous spark of approval had suddenly vanished, leaving only concern. "That's a complicated way to go if I ever saw one."

"I know," Blaine assured them. "I'm not going there anyway. He's getting sold right? That's why he's here. So I'll never see him again."

"Well actually Blaine," Mike looked grim. "He's already owned."

"Then why's he here?" Blaine asked, a little distressed at the idea that Kurt might be staying in the town. It would be hard to avoid him and forget his beautiful face if he was in the spot Blaine had to come back to everyone month or so. Although he'd done a good job of never spotting him so far.

"He um- he- well he works in the town." Mike stammered. He looked like the very thought of Kurt's job made him sick.

"He works in the… oh," Blaine stared down at his lap, embarrassed. "In a- a brothel?"

"Yes," Tina answered quietly. "So it's not exactly a good idea to fall for him. And God knows how much I wish Kurt could have someone like you. But the thing is… he just can't. And he doesn't want it either. He makes things work where he is. He has his life at the brothel and that's all he wants. It's all he's ready for. You can't interrupt that."

"Maybe if he was freed, he might find a way to move on. But that won't happen. And at least he's found a place where he can actually be happy at times." Mike added.

"I get it. It's okay." Blaine very deliberately tried to remove all thoughts of Kurt from his mind. "So how's the shop going?"

"Blaine," Tina's wet eyes were full of sympathy as she ignored his attempt at a subject change. "You'll find someone one day."

"I know." Blaine sighed, before changing the topic again. He wondered if he was crazy to think that if things had been different, that someone might have been Kurt.

…

Kurt was glad to finally shut the door on the last client of the day and let the willing smile drop from his face. He shuddered as he grabbed the sheets and threw them into the basket in the corner so they could be washed later.

Now he could finally sleep.

Kurt pulled a robe on and turned to walk through to the small sparse room that held his actual bed (and stood in high contrast to the luxuriously furnished room he saw clients inside). But before he'd taken more than five steps away from the door, there was a loud knocking.

"Yes," Kurt said, keeping the annoyance from his tone.

"It's me, Honey! Madame sent us up!" Brittany's voice made him smile despite himself as he walked to the door. He hadn't though he would talk to her until the next day, and he knew as soon as he heard her voice that her company would be just what he needed to calm his nerves again. Brittany was the only one left in the King's Castle brothel who could calm Kurt. He always suspected it was one of the main reasons Madame had kept her around so long. When Kurt was in a mood, Brittany was sent up to wash his hair and keep him company for a bit. He knew it was just manipulation, but he liked Brittany so much he really didn't care that Madame was using their friendship.

Kurt quickly swung open the door, but his expression turned sour as he realised she wasn't alone. The girl with her, along with the other prostitutes, falsely believed that Kurt thought himself above everyone. So she hated him.

"Brittany," Kurt greeted, choosing to ignore the sulky figure beside her. He pulled her in by the hand and narrowly missed shutting the door on the other girl's heel. She glared at him, but said nothing. Instead, she quickly moved to the cupboard off to the side of the room and opened it. She wanted to get her job over and done with, so she had to quickly find the bathtub inside and help wash Kurt's hair.

"I'll miss you so much," Brittany said without delay, and squished him into a giant hug. Kurt relaxed a little against her, breathing deeply and making sure he wasn't about to cry.

"I'll miss you too." He said firmly. And god he really would miss Brittany. Life was so unfair.

"Madame will sell you to someone nice, right?" Brittany asked, tugging him over and pushing him backward into the plush armchair in the corner. Kurt was glad he hadn't used it with a client today, or he wouldn't have wanted to sit on it.

"I really don't care." Kurt sniffed disdainfully, casting a glance at the other slave, who had just finished bringing the wooden tub from the cupboard and set it in front of the fireplace.

"Yes you do." Brittany said softly, "I'm scared as well. But I know we can both make it just fine."

She tried to smile encouragingly, but Kurt could tell she was afraid. He quickly pushed back the last of his own fear and focused solely on comfort.

"Britt, of course everything will be okay. I'm sure you'll be treasured by whoever buys you." Kurt promised. He watched Brittany quickly push a tendril of hair back and head over to the window. It was hard to talk as they worked on filling his bath, but Madame had certain time constraints that they had to meet. They'd learnt how to fit conversation around those limits.

The other girl joined Brittany by the window and they lowered the rope where the guard below would attach buckets of water for easy transport to the top floor.

"And even if they're totally blind and can't see what a treasure you are, I know you're strong. You have hope, and friends, and you'll get out in time." Kurt always found the 'comforting others thing' hard, having so little faith in anything himself.

"What if I don't have friends, Kurt?" Brittany asked. He voice wavered, just a little, and he felt something in his chest clench. Kurt blinked carefully to make sure he was keeping dry-eyed. "What if they all leave me like… like Quinn and Santana?"

"Brittany you know you're friends would never leave you intentionally." He fought the urge to kick the other girl as he spotted her rolling her eyes. "Madame sold Santana and Quinn because she got good offers for them. But wherever they went, I know they still love you. And you'll always have them with you…"

"In here." Brittany finished for him, holding a hand over the wrong side of her chest. Kurt smiled and nodded, but his friend still didn't look entirely comforted.

She turned away and tipped the first bucket of water into the large pot that the other girl hung over the fireplace.

"Thank you," Brittany said to Kurt, before turning to her helper. She jabbed a thumb toward the window, indicating for the other prostitute to go and collect the second bucket. "But Kurt what if he's mean?"

"Your new owner?" Kurt asked gently, and when she nodded he quickly continued. "I won't let Madame do that. She'll get specific instructions from me. You'll go to a good man, with credibility. And if she refuses to give her word that you'll go to a good home, I'll mess up with tomorrow's clients."

Brittany giggled. "You're so naughty."

He smirked and shrugged. "I get away with it."

There was a scoff from the window and, rapidly getting angry, Kurt turned to make eye contact, sporting his sneer of superiority.

"I'm sorry, did you want something?" Kurt asked blandly.

"It's just nice to confirm what an arrogant bastard you are once again. I hope you get sold to someone who'll beat you up every night." She responded without missing a beat.

"Aw," Kurt cooed, tilting his head to the side. "Are you jealous of me? Still?"

"No one is jealous of you." The girl said, fists clenching. It was almost too easy to push her buttons.

"Says the girl turning green with envy. Now hurry with my bath, Madame wouldn't like it if I told her that you were the reason it took so long." Kurt waved a hand. Just as the girl opened her mouth to retort, he watched her mind catching up with her actions. She snapped it shut again and whirled back to the window, yanking the rope up and yelling shrilly at the man below to hurry with the next bucket.

"Honey," Brittany looked sad. Kurt remembered how she hated confrontation. He still recalled the way his friendship with Santana and Quinn had begun, with a vicious cat-fight backed by the sound of Brittany calling for them to "stop the violence". The memory quickly became bitter as he considered the two years since he'd seen the girls.

"I'm sorry, keep talking." Kurt said.

"I'm not just scared of getting sold. I know you don't want to go either." Brittany said.

"I'll manage." Kurt said stiffly, eyes flickering back toward the slave by the window. He had to show no weakness. "I'll just go to another brothel and continue the same life there."

"I wish I could go with you." Brittany said sincerely, checking that the water wasn't boiling and removing the pot from the flames for a few seconds. Kurt watched her ruefully.

"You know that probably won't happen. It would be highly unlikely for us to be sold to the same place. Remember that I love you though." He said. He ignored the chortle from the window. "And wherever you go people will love you. If someone doesn't, you're stronger than them. In your own way, you've always been able to cope. I know you'll find a place wherever you end up. And you'll make that place beautiful."

This at least Kurt had faith in. Brittany was good at that. She always made her life beautiful just by being herself. He, on the other hand, turned everything into a world of ice.

Sometimes, lying alone at night, he wondered if he hated himself for it.

"You're the only true friend I have left." Brittany told him, eyes welling with tears.

Kurt swallowed the lump of grief in his throat. "Same with you,"

"We'll be okay." Brittany echoed, as the other girl joined her and poured two more buckets into the pot. She replaced it over the fire and the girl went back to draw more water.

After that they talked about other things; which important people were coming to town, whether the robins outside Brittany's window really were laying eggs, some interesting client Kurt had seen that day. It felt good to joke about those things. It helped him feel detached from his work, and involved with life. Focusing on other people was good.

By the time the bathtub was full, Kurt had forgotten the sulky little helper and relaxed again.

"Okay, we're ready!" Brittany told him, pushing up her sleeves and testing the water temperature. "Hop in!"

"You can leave." Kurt waved a hand at the other prostitute.

"Madame instructed me to help with the whole thing." She said through gritted teeth.

"Well I'm instructing you to go." Kurt's voice was dangerous. This only made her more defiant.

"Don't see why she even wants you cleaned up!" She growled, aiming to hurt his feelings. "You only fetch a good price because of the hype around your name. Not like you're anything more than a dirty little whore."

"I find it ironic that you are calling me a whore." Kurt tipped his head to one side, regarding her. He was so sick of these fights. "And as for not living up to the hype. Well, that's easily proved wrong."

He chuckled dismissively and carefully slipped his robe off, revealing the creamy skin beneath as he stepped into the bath. He didn't even make eye contact again as he sunk beneath the water and settled there. It was wonderfully warm. He took a moment to roll his shoulders and lean back before he opened his eyes again.

She was gaping at him from the doorway, eyes still roving over what she could see of his body.

"Leave now." Kurt said carelessly, waving a hand. He hated the look in her eyes actually, hated all those looks. But this was about proving a point and he wasn't about to let his own victory bother him. Kurt pushed down the sick feeling in his stomach. Immediately, the girl seemed to remember herself. She turned and stormed out, slamming the door behind herself.

…

Blaine ended up staying with the Chang's that night after all.

Someone had thought it would be funny if they slammed against his wagon wheel until it snapped to pieces.

After a lot of frustrated tears and futile attempts to reattach the wheel, Blaine realised that even with Mike's help, they wouldn't be able to fix the wheel themselves. So while it was off being fixed by the proper professional, Blaine carried his supplies into the Chang's home behind their store. They had the spare room ready in a moment. And he had to admit he wouldn't mind staying with them.

Even though the slave market started in in two nights, the wagon would hopefully be fixed by the end of the next day. Blaine would be out by that morning as the market began.

The conversation remained casual. No one dared bring up Kurt, but a few times during dinner Blaine found his mind wandering as he caught sight of the tea cup that was now sitting in the kitchen and he remembered the rosy lips that had drank from it.

Finally, after dinner was over and the fire was slowly dying, the conversation quietened, and Blaine carefully approached the topic of Kurt again.

"What's h-his life like?" He couldn't help asking. He didn't need to clarify who he was talking about, the Changs knew.

They could see the curiosity in his face. After years of avoiding anything to do with the slave trade, Blaine was suddenly curious about what things might be like for Kurt. He couldn't help it. Five hours of trying to forget Kurt had proved that wasn't happening, so Blaine may as well find out about him. Maybe what he heard would even put him off.

"Dreadful," Tina said sadly. Mike reached for her hand as he realised tears were already starting to well up in her brown eyes. She always cried too easily, especially over Kurt. "It's absolutely dreadful."

"H-how long has he…?" Blaine asked.

"He was in the brothel already when we moved here. He doesn't tell us much, but we know enough. I-" Tina paused and glanced and Mike. "I don't know if I'm allowed to tell you. It was in confidence."

"Oh of course," Blaine flushed. "I'm sorry I was just curious. He-"

But this time it was Blaine who broke off. Mike smiled encouragingly at him. "Go on."

"He's not like anyone I've ever seen before." Blaine finished in a rush.

"Well that's why he's worth so much." There was bitterness in Tina's voice now. "He's a rarity."

"Tina," Mike warned gently. He'd seen enough of her rants on the subject of Kurt's enslavement to spot when her wet eyes and clenched fists were leading to another one. "It's okay, this is Blaine we're talking about. He's not interested in Kurt because of that. Breathe."

They exchanged a long look, and Blaine quickly looked away. They said everything just by watching each other, with no words. He could see the way Mike tried to plead with Tina, and the way she calmed just looking at him. He could see that Mike understood why she wasn't willing to tell Blaine about Kurt, and he could see that Tina knew Blaine would never use that information again Kurt. They slowly came to a joint decision. The moment was so intimate he felt intrusive… and incredibly lonely.

"Look Blaine, the thing is Kurt's situation is crazily complicated. You know he doesn't even- he doesn't legally own himself. He never can again, now that all legal records of him have been converted into property ownership papers. He's not really considered a person anymore. He's a slave." Mike spoke with disgust evident in his tone, and Blaine watched his thumb trace across the back of Tina's hand as he spoke. Tina was sniffling quietly, and she gripped Mike's hand like a lifeline. "It's disgusting, we hate it, but Kurt made sure we understood there was no way of changing it. As soon as we starting getting close, he made sure we knew that he wasn't in charge of his own life. He could disappear at any moment and we'd never know what happened. He warned us not to be friends with him, but you could practically taste his relief when we insisted we'd remain friends no matter what other people treated him as. He… He really doesn't have many friends, and he doesn't easily let them in. He cherishes the ones he has, but he's resigned to his fate. That's something you have to understand. The real Kurt is locked deep inside him. Everyone else gets the cold mask. That's how he protects himself."

"I understand," Irrational anger against the government in general was building in Blaine as he remembered the quiet boy from downstairs, who had held himself with such forced arrogance, like a shield.

"He never lets strangers in. Most people out here want him for money… or s-sex. That's how the world sees him. It sucks, but Blaine, he wouldn't be good for you. Don't fall for him. You're attracted to him, I'm pretty sure he'd have seen it, and so he could never trust you." Mike was searching Blaine's eyes. "He doesn't trust men who are interested in him that way. For him, it leads to only one thing."

"That's really unfair." Blaine wasn't sure what else he could say. He just wished he could fix this. And not just because Kurt was beautiful and Blaine thought he deserved to be saved, but because the whole idea of slavery always sickened him.

"Kurt has the right to push people away if he doesn't feel safe." Tina said indignantly, and it took Blaine a moment to realise that she'd misinterpreted his statement.

"I mean the Slave Trade. That's unfair. Not- not Kurt being opposed to trusting me. I get that." Blaine amended. The fight left Tina's face right away.

"You should forget him." Mike continued. "We would love for Kurt to have someone like you, Blaine. But he just isn't ready and he'd be so mad if he knew we were telling you any of this. He just wants to remain anonymous. He says he can be happy as long as he has his walks and his books. He doesn't want company. Other than a few trusted friends."

"He must want to get out of the brothel though." Blaine said.

"I don't think he does anymore." Tina's breath hitched. "He's so used to it. He's made a life that works for himself. Kurt knows his life isn't changing anytime soon. He's made it work. So that's why we have to ask you to leave him alone. If you start trying to see him, or anything or that sort – especially if you fall in love with him – that will mess up everything he's been so careful to build up."

"I'm not going to fall in love with him." Blaine told his mug of warm tea, refusing to look Tina in the eye, because now that she was warning him, he understood why he'd needed the warning.

He saw a whole possible future unravel. He saw the way he would have gone home thinking about the elfin boy, and after some time of never forgetting him, come back to Laurel Hill. And maybe he would have tried to see Kurt. Maybe he would have become desperate and even paid for a night with him. And Kurt would have slowly begun to despise Blaine as Blaine moped around the edges of his life like a lovesick puppy. There was a strong possibility Blaine would have fallen head over heels for Kurt. And Kurt would only be disgusted in return. He'd feel uncomfortable around him. Blaine would be heartbroken. Kurt's carefully organised life would be shattered by the annoyance of having an obsessed admirer.

Blaine knew he couldn't do that. And so he was glad for Tina's warning. Without it, he might have thought he was doing Kurt a favour. He might have gone to the brothel, paying fee after fee, and begged Kurt to come home with him during each time slot.

Now he knew he wouldn't be saving Kurt if he tried any of that. He would only make the boy's life harder. If Blaine couldn't forget Kurt, he'd have to go back to the Mainland and find himself a different husband. That way he'd still find love, and get over the fantasy.

"But thank you," Blaine added. "I guess you're right."

"Blaine you will find someone. I just don't think Kurt wants someone." Mike reached out and gave Blaine a pat on the shoulder.

"Thanks guys," Blaine stood and walked over to rinse his cup in the kitchen, his tone became lighter as he looked back at them. "I'm glad I have some friends here among this town of ruffians."

"We're glad we have you too Blaine. Always come and talk to us if you need anything." Tina's tears had finally stopped as she smiled at Blaine.

"Goodnight guys," Blaine gave a little wave, and then headed off to his guest bed. He could hear Tina laughing softly through the thin walls as the couple got ready for bed together, and Mike's fond replies.

All over again, loneliness hit Blaine.

…

"Was that bullying?" Brittany asked Kurt. Her sweet face was creased with concern. "Calling you a whore? It was, wasn't it? Are you okay?"

"It was Brittany, but I'm alright. We're used to it." Kurt forced a smile onto his face. At least this kind of smile was the one he didn't mind faking. It was a smile meant to make someone he cared about feel better.

"We are." Brittany agreed. She started to wash his hair, and Kurt let the atmosphere sink into a companionable silence.

Now that Brittany was here, he never wanted her to leave. He couldn't stand it that he was never seeing her again. Maybe they would both be purchased by another brothel. And then they could stay together. He hated the idea of what might happen if Brittany didn't have his protection. She was so fragile, like a child. When they'd lost their other friends, she'd cried for days. Especially over the loss of Santana.,,

Kurt didn't like to think about Santana. He didn't like thinking about any of the people he'd lost. And he didn't want to lose another person.

Suddenly the bath wasn't so relaxing.

"Are you done?" Kurt asked. Brittany hummed softly in affirmation, taking a bowl of water and pouring it over his head to wash the suds out of his hair.

"Kurt, do we have to get sold?" Brittany asked suddenly, right as he wiped the water from his eyes. Kurt blinked rapidly before meeting her gaze. He searched her vulnerable face.

"Fuck," Kurt sighed. This is why he didn't like to make friends. He could comfort Brittany a million times that her new life would be okay, and she'd still want to stay with him, and he'd still want to stay with her. So everything just hurt. "We really have to be sold. It's not up to us."

Brittany's face fell, though he could tell that she'd already known the answer.

"Can't I just stay with you?" She asked. "One more night."

"Madame won't let you." Kurt pointed out, standing and grabbing a towel, wrapping it around his waist in time to hug Brittany. "But you'll be okay without me Britt, I know you will."

She started crying in earnest then, clinging to him, and Kurt feel his blood run cold as a loud knocking began on the other side of his door. He was a little proud to find his eyes were still completely dry though. All his emotions were in deep inside, choking him, but not escaping him. Where they were meant to be.

When no one answered the first knock, the door swung open and he looked up to see one of the guards standing there.

"The Butterfly Girl needs to come with us now." He said gruffly. Kurt's arms tightened around Brittany as he gave the guard his best are you kidding me? face and kept hugging her. She was becoming hysterical.

"I don't want to go." Brittany's whimpering, her fingers digging into his back. Kurt hushed her gently, watching as the guard left and returned a moment later with company.

"Britt it's okay." He promised, trying to calm her down. But the guards each grabbed an arm and started to tear her away from Kurt.

"Fuck off!" Kurt growled. "Give us a moment."

They just yanked on Brittany harder and one of them got in Kurt's way as he tried to keep hold. He debated giving up, keeping the front of detachment. But instead Kurt threw his weight against them, because now Brittany's screaming.

"Britt it's okay!" He yelled, hating that he sounded a little scared. He stopped struggling and hung out of his door as they dragged her down the hall to her own room. "Brittany!"

"Please!" she sobbed, reaching out toward Kurt. He saw other doors opening and suddenly he was being watched. Kurt stopped his chest from heaving and leant casually against the doorframe.

"It's okay," He said steadily, retaining eye contact with his only friend. Brittany squeezed her own eyes shut and gave in at last. The guards slammed the door after her.

Kurt hoped it wouldn't be the last time he saw her.