Hey everyone! Thanks so much for the response so far too this story. And just to reassure everyone the boys will move past all their angst and get it together soon (although not in this chapter—sorry! Just couldn't suddenly make them pull their heads out of their As%es…but soon!) Harry is a little ooc in this chap—a bit bitchy and jealous (at least to start with). And it deals a little with Harry and ptsd (because no one could go through what Harry's been through and come out all happy go lucky). For those of you waiting for fluff and smut—I promise there will be a wee bit in the next chapter and large amount in the chapters after that! Hope you enjoy, leave a comment and I'll adore you!

_OO_

Chapter 6: November spawned a Monster

-oo-

Sleep on and dream of Love
because it's the closest you will get to love
poor twisted child, so ugly, so ugly
poor twisted child, oh hug me, oh hug me

November spawned a monster

-00-

November

Harry rolled over onto his stomach filled with annoyance and perhaps, just perhaps a twinge of something else…not that he was going to acknowledge that twinge. Doing his best to ignore the insistent twanging coming from Sebastian's cell phone he once again forced himself to try and concentrate on the blur of equations and formulas staring defiantly back at him.

He could honestly say that he had finally found something that he hated more than potions—and considering how much he despised that wretched subject (okay, so the resentment over potions had more to do with the dour man who had taught it most of his school career, because while he could understand and even respect Snape for his sacrifices it didn't mean he suddenly adored the deceased man) it was saying a lot. He just could not get his brain to care about anything math related; it was like there was a block that just made him want to give his textbook to fluffy as a chew toy.

Of course his irritation was not helped any by the quickly forming headache that was a direct result of both the confusing equations and Sebastian's never silent phone. The brunette had left about half an hour ago to go do something or other—if he recalled it was a shower, and his bloody cell phone had been beeping at random intervals ever since.

Deep down Harry knew just why he was so irritated with the device, and unfortunately it had a lot more to do with just who was texting his husband constantly then the noise it was creating (okay, so maybe it was split 70-30…the chimes were rather grating after all). Harry swallowed thickly, his throat suddenly suspiciously constricted. Why did he care that 'the Blaine Anderson' had suddenly taken to texting his husband fairly regularly over the past few weeks? He shouldn't—or at least that was what his head kept telling his churning stomach.

Unfortunately it appeared that his head was losing the battle as he couldn't help but feel resentful towards the other teen. It didn't help that whenever he spent ANY time with the warblers or warbler affiliated Dalton boys that all he heard about Blaine Anderson was how 'wonderful, dreamy, amazing' the other boy was. Honestly it kind of reminded him of his own obsessed fan-club back home—of course that just made him wonder if he could possibly pawn Creevey off on 'the Blaine Anderson'.

Sighing he chucked his textbook to the end of his bed giving it up for a lost cause—maybe he could convince Trent to lend him his assignment tomorrow before class—really all he had to do was give him a Snape patented glare and the nervous boy would probably do it for him. But no, sadly he still had that annoying thing called a conscience so likely he would just have to wake up an hour early to try to wade through it again. Sometimes he really hated his life.

'Ping'

Harry grabbed his pillow and stuffed it over his head, starting to hum to himself in hopes of drowning it out.

'ping'

Nope- he could still hear the damn thing…if only a little more muffled. Groaning, he tossed aside the pillow and forced himself up from his previously prone position. He did not care at the moment that Sebastian would likely flip out on him for 'invading his privacy' or some such malarkey (because really they shared a room little over a hundred square feet—there was no such thing as 'privacy') as he snatched the devil device off of Sebastian's bed, flipping it open in order to find a way to silence the stupid thing.

He knew he shouldn't but he just couldn't stop himself from glancing at the message box and felt his stomach drop. Curiosity killed the cat and all that- he had suspected that it was Blaine texting but seeing proof was somehow so much worse; especially when Sebastian's entire inbox was filled with texts from just one recipient.

Viciously he smashed down his body's traitorous reaction to what he shouldn't even care about, before scanning the phone; finally finding the volume button on the side and pressing mute. Tossing the phone back on Sebastian's bed, he moved back to his own side of the room and grabbed the novel he had started reading yesterday (he had given up on mandarin; apparently he wasn't about to discover he was a secret language prodigy after all) anxious to get himself back under control before Sebastian returned.

He didn't know why he was reacting this way-it wasn't as if he hadn't suspected that Sebastian and Blaine had history that was obviously not entirely history as of yet; but yet again he felt as if he had been sucker punched. Honestly it was pathetic.

Closing his eyes he focused on increasing his occlumency shields (after Sirius's death he had finally gotten his act together and made himself learn the mind art—turns out that he wasn't half bad at it when given proper instruction) quickly becoming lost in the relative calm of his mind and magic.

So lost in his own mind was he, that he failed to notice Sebastian come back into the room.

He also missed the slightly concerned look the brunette shot his way entirely.

-00-

"….and then Rachel decided to pair apricot colored pillows with the alizarin crimson throw I brought! I mean don't get me wrong I love that girl but honestly Finn, she is completely hopeless when it comes to the feng shui of a room" Kurt finished with an irritated huff.

"Fen what now? Why don't you just get pizza?" Finn asked the crinkle between his eyes illustrating just how confusing he found their current conversation.

Kurt didn't even know how to answer that….which unfortunately happened fairly often when talking with his step-brother over skype. He loved the big oaf but love didn't erase the fact that they were not the best conversational pairing to be had—and to think he had once had a crush on this boy. Shudder—thank Madonna his tastes had matured since then, and he had managed to bag himself a boy who was both easy on the eyes and knew what was going on in current fashion trends (not that you would know it from his wardrobe mind you—but hey no one was perfect. Well, outside him that is).

Although Blaine was the whole reason he was currently talking to his step brother in the first place. Despite the two of them having put a large effort into keeping in touch since Kurt moved up to New York—which in Blaine's favor, the curly haired brunette had been very supportive about; almost eager in fact- Kurt couldn't help but notice that his boyfriend had become more and more distant in the past month. At first he wrote it off as an adjustment period for both of them—after all they were used to seeing each other almost every day if not a few times a day, so to be living so many hours apart was going to take some time to get used to. But as one week became two, which morphed into three, Kurt had started to become a tad worried.

While sure, he had been quite busy himself since moving up here and landing an intern job at vogue (something that may have been mentioned in everyone of his facebook posts in the last month—along with his daily attached wardrobe and critique of several other people's wardrobes….like come on Blaine—socks anyone?) and meeting and 'befriending' Adam… he had still expected Blaine to be waiting eagerly for his updates; dying to know just how exciting life was up here in New York. Instead his boyfriend was not waiting patiently by his phone for Kurt to call—in fact even when they did manage to connect there was something off. True, Blaine listened and made the right comments in the right places but it seemed more of an automatic response then one he made because he actually wanted to know.

He couldn't' stop his suspicious mind from plaguing him with cruel taunting little thoughts. What if Blaine had decided the distance was too much? What if he had met someone else? Would his boyfriend cheat on him? What exactly was Blaine up to these days?-(well besides hanging out with Tina and Sam and attending that lame superhero club—honestly sometimes he worried about Blaine's maturity).

But anyway getting back to the original point he was trying to make…Blaine's change of behavior was one of the main reasons that he was being forced to endure conversing with his less then brilliant step-brother,** he needed to convince Finn to keep an eye on things. Easier said than done of course, as he knew Finn would object to spying on anyone (even if it was Blaine-whom his step brother had never really warmed up to, even after they had semi-reached a truce).

Deciding it was time to turn the conversation in a direction in which he could bring up the topic he cleared his throat, "So….how are things back in Lima?"

Despite really not giving two tweets about Lima, the garage or whatever was going on between Finn and the gas station attendant, the huge smile on Finn's face almost made it worth asking-almost. After listening to a few minutes of truly tedious information, Kurt decided to intervene.

"hmm…that's lovely Finn, I'm sure she is really going places what with her illegitimate child and minimum wage job—sounds like a keeper" thankfully Finn either didn't recognize the derogatory sarcasm the statement was said in, or just chose to willfully ignore it—with Finn you could never really tell. "Hey, how is Blaine doing? What's he been up to?" Kurt asked voice full of innocence.

There was a long pause, and he saw his step-brother's eye brows scrunch back up in confusion, "Shouldn't you know? I mean you talk to him way more then I see him…" a small amount of suspicion creeping into the question.

"Of course!" Kurt defended quickly, "…it's just that we usually talk a lot more about New York and what is going on with me….you know how it is-there is only so much time we have to talk and such…." Kurt trailed off before clearing his throat to try again when the crease between Finn's brows didn't leave, "I'm just worried about him is all….he sounded…well, different the last few times I talked to him. I'm worried that our distance is affecting him more than he is letting on." There that sounded appropriate for a worried boyfriend to say—not something a paranoid suspicious one would say.

"I'm just worried—what with Symthe being back in town….you know how the meekrat is; how he likes to play head games" Kurt added infusing the perfect amount of concern and worry into his voice. And it worked, just like that Finn's expression changed from uncomfortable and suspicious to concerned and sympathetic.

"I get it….I worry about Rach too…even-even though we aren't, well we're no longer together" Finn admitted, causing Kurt to force himself to resist rolling his eyes. He had not brought up this topic to hear more of Finn's angst over the Rachel-Finn breakup saga….honestly!

Kurt made a sympathetic hum before taking hold of the conversation again, "I completely understand….hey, why don't we help each other out—while helping them out!" Kurt exclaimed, eager to lay out the bait and have it grabbed. And bless Finn—grab he did.

"Um sure…..wait, how do we do that?" Finn's excited face morphed back into the fast becoming familiar confused expression.

Resisting the urge to sigh Kurt plastered a smile on his face, "Well…..why don't I keep an eye on Rachel for you—let you know what she is up to, who she is spending time with etc….and you do the same with Blaine?"

Finn looked a little unsure but Kurt could see the desire to take Kurt up on his suggestion flickering across his face, "But…but wouldn't that be an infestation of their-their you know private stuff and such?"

"invasion Finn," Kurt corrected before continuing, "and no, we are only doing this for their own good…I mean Sebastian is poison….I'm only looking out for Blaine, as for Rachel she is a little naïve….she doesn't understand how city guys operate. So really we are only protecting them" Kurt said in a confident voice seeing exactly when he won Finn over—really if he wasn't so sure he was going to make it big in fashion and Broadway he should have become a lawyer.

"o-ok…you're right…..so how should I do this?" Finn agreed still sounding a tad unsure but determined none the less.

Kurt sent him a real smile for once, "well….when I last talked to Blaine he said he was having coffee with the Warblers on Wednesday…"

And so they began to plot.

-oo-

Blaine twisted the strap of his school satchel (or as Tina had taken to calling it; his man purse) nervously as he entered the Lima Bean. Really, it was ridiculous that he was getting so worked up over something as simple as a coffee….a coffee with his old friends for that matter. But of course it wasn't going to only be his old friends—no, Thad had assured him that Sebastian was coming along, which of course made sense considering he was one of the co-captains* of the Warblers now.

While they had resumed what Blaine wanted to call friendship via several text messages (perhaps of a slightly flirty nature) they had yet to meet up face to face. And to be honest Blaine wasn't sure if he was dreading or anticipating seeing the other boy. Of course there was also a solid weight of guilt lodged in his stomach over the whole meeting as well…..

He told himself that he was being ridiculous, there was absolutely no reason why he should feel guilty about going for coffee with friends—even if he had maybe avoided mentioning to Kurt that a certain someone was included in said coffee date. Not that it should matter of course, after all Sebastian and him were barely friends; there was nothing wrong with him seeing the other boy….at least that was what he had been attempting to convince himself of since he had woken up this morning. Shaking his head mentally he resolutely dismissed these thoughts as he caught sight of a several navy blazers.

He didn't even try to hide the smile that found its way onto his face at the sight of his former team. While sure, there had been a bit of tension between him and the rest of his former friends since the slushie incident—they had all apologized profusely and begged for forgiveness, which he had long since granted. They might still be a little awkward and unsure around each other but it would take more than one horrible incident to truly crush the kind of friendship that they had developed in their time together as Warlblers.

"Blaine!" Trent cried out when he caught sight of the former lead soloist before rushing forward in greeting. It didn't take long before Blaine found himself the center of a warped vertical warbler doggy pile. It could be the reason that he failed to notice the extra bodies for as long as he did.

When the rest of his former team mates finally parted enough so that they could all make their way over to one of the larger tables in the room, he finally noticed, not only Sebastian standing slightly off to the side but two other boys as well. One was a slighter boy who in all honesty looked like he needed a few good meals, not to mention how friggen pale the boy was—despite that it was easy to tell that the boy was rather striking. And odd mix of beautiful features tossed together with razor sharp ones—it gave him an oddly exotic and unique look. The other boy that Blaine didn't recognize ran much more along the lines of Sebastian's look and build—very Abercrombie; he too was not hard on the eyes. With a slight sinking feeling in his gut -which he did not care to examine or explain- Blaine came to the conclusion that these were the two boys that Kurt had been bitching about seeing with Sebastian….which meant that one of these boys was Sebastian's husband. And didn't that thought feel like a kick in the gut.

One thing was for sure, the dark haired boy did not look very thrilled to be there. Doing his best to ignore the strange urge that had him wanting to squirm uncomfortably when he met the unknown boys green eyes, he turned towards Sebastian fighting down the second annoying urge to blush. But dammit Sebastian had always had that affect on him—of course his 'innuendo laden commentary' had done nothing to quell this urge.

"Sebastian, how are you?" Blaine asked politely feeling rather awkward at his formal greeting.

"Hey Killer, looking good" Sebastian replied with his trademark smirk. Too busy blushing at the relatively mild comment Blaine missed the slight narrowing of the one boy's eyes and the gleeful satisfaction in the others.

"Aren't you going to introduce us love?" the green eyed boy asked innocently stepping forward and batting his admittedly long eyelashes at Sebastian.

The urge to squirm in discomfort increased as Sebastian shot what could only be a called a poisonous glare towards the boy. "Of course" he bit out before turning back to Blaine, terse smile straining his face. "Harry, Hunter this is Blaine...he's…" Sebastian paused to find the correct word to describe who exactly Blaine was.

It wasn't needed as Harry step forward a half step and extended his hand, giving Blaine a sharp smile, "he's THE Blaine Anderson of course…..I've heard so much, pleasure"

Blaine gave him his own shaky smile somehow very much doubting the sincerity behind those words. Sebastian coughed before resuming the introductions, "and Blaine this is Hunter"—he gestured to the Abercrombie wanna-be still standing slightly behind Sebastian and Harry, "… and Harry" he finished.

It was Hunter this time that interrupted, "…the other co-captain" he gestured to himself "…and the husband" he supplied helpfully pointing to Harry, though once again Blaine had reason to doubt just how helpful he was trying to be judging from the tick in Sebastian's jaw.

The quartet stood there is strained silence for a few second before Jeff bubbly (perhaps a tad forced) interrupted, "well….now that introductions are out of the way, why don't we all sit and catch up!"

It took a few minutes of shuffling and sugar coated insults but soon enough the trio, along with the rest of the Warblers (aka: Thad, Trent, Jeff, Nick, James, Beat and another recent edition Cam), and Blaine were all seated with their favored beverage. Blaine couldn't help but agree with Kurt's assessment of Sebastian's husband given his icy demeanor and sharp jibes at everything from the quality of the coffee to Sebastian's face (okay, so that last one wasn't literal but it might as well have been given the amount of tension stretched out between the two of them). If he was being honest with himself he could not help but feel thoroughly intimidated by the fey looking boy.

The next half an hour passed with relative ease, easy questions concerning how the warblers were doing, how the new directions song choices were coming along, and how the graduated Warblers were. Overall Blaine was feeling pretty good with the whole affair—and if he snuck a few more peaks over at Sebastian than was strictly necessary, then no one was the wiser….or at least he hoped so, though judging by Harry's continued aloofness towards him, he wasn't so sure his interest was entirely unnoted.

"So, you've told us about how your 'glee' club is….but how are you surviving in the barbaric halls of McKinley now that the princess is gone, ready to come back to good old Dalton yet?" Sebastian asked his tone teasing, although perhaps a little less so on the princes part.

It just so happened that this was the comment that caught Harry's attention, "Barbaric halls? Princess?" he asked arching an eyebrow in question.

"Yes, if you had been following along you would know that Blaine here goes to McKinley" Sebastian replied a tad snippy, while wrinkling his noise in distaste at the mention of McKinley.

"And?" Harry asked again his tone indicating he had no idea what that had to do with anything.

"McKinley is Lima's public school" Nick offered, and while it was clear what he thought of such a thing as public schools; he did manage to hide his contempt better then Sebastian at the idea.

Blaine was not the only one who was startled by the bark of laughter that came from the British teen, "Seriously?" Harry asked incredulously, causing Blaine to bristle with indignation—while he was all too familiar with the Warbler's, and more so, Sebastian's opinion on McKinley (and to be honest his own) that gave the teen no right to mock it when he hadn't even been there! He was about to open his mouth and state just that when his mental-planned-to-be-verbal tirade was cut off.

Still chuckling in disbelief Harry took a sip of his coffee, "honestly dear I had no idea you were such a snob….tell me is it the lack of blazers that offends your sensibilities so?"

"no it's the general lack of education, the disgusting hygiene of 90% of the student body and the blatant bullying by teachers and students actually" Sebastian shot back, "why? it's not like you have ever experienced a public school to be able to defend it so" he added the last bit with more than a little bite.

Instead of making the teen shrink back in chagrin however his comment just made Harry smile wider—although the smile was not the friendly kind, "…didn't you know Sebastian? you married a commoner more or less. I was entirely what you would deem a commoner up until my sixteenth birthday. Not to mention, wasn't it just the other day that some poor little freshmen was found crying in the bathroom because one of the teachers told him that he was a disgrace to the Dalton establishment and that he should look in a mirror before coming to class?—correct me if I am wrong, but I am pretty sure there is bullying regardless if you attend a public or private school. It's just better covered up in the latter."

As it was, his comment just made everyone gape at him but Blaine for his part was marginally impressed—so perhaps his and Kurt's assessment was not entirely spot on; although the teen was still incredibly cold and unfriendly, not to mention in possession of an acid tongue.

Ignoring the looks he was getting (some ashamed, others angry and indignant—most likely for having dared to compare the private and public school in any manner) Harry took another sip of his coffee and opened his mouth once more, "and the princess comment?"

Sebastian seemed to wrestle with himself on whether or not to addresses yet another one of Harry's disrespectful comments or whether to shrug it off as Harry just being Harry (aka: rocking the boat as much as possible given any opportunity). With a sigh he apparently went with the second option, "Blaine's boyfriend, Kurt….you met him…" Sebastian supplied sullenly, "We don't exactly get along you could say"

Again Harry arched a brow but this time he turned to Blaine, "boyfriend?

Blaine shifted uncomfortably under the other teen's scrutiny, knowing very well that he had not been exactly acting as though he had a boyfriend since he had arrived at the coffee shop. While true, he hadn't been out right flirting with Sebastian or Sebastian with him (not like last year when Sebastian had been forthright about his interest), he could not deny that either of them had been entirely appropriate in their subtle (or not so) looks at one another. And while deep down he knew that this was wrong and incredibly rude (considering the other teen was not only married but that his spouse was present—not even touching on his whole having a boyfriend thing), he couldn't help himself. Seeing Sebastian again—especially with how stifling and boring his relationship with Kurt had been for the past several months was like a breath of fresh air…. Well, fresh air tinged with danger and excitement—which as wrong as it was, was only enhanced with the whole illicit married thing.

"mmm….yeah, Kurt Hummel….we met when he transferred from McKinley to Dalton two years ago" Blaine admitted feeling like a child in front of a disproving parent.

"hmmm…" was all the dark haired teen had to say in response to that.

"How did you convince Kurt to let you come for coffee with us anyway?" Jeff asked his voice full of curiosity.

"er…what do you mean?" Blaine asked, although he was fairly certain he knew exactly what the blond met. Oh Jeff; eternally bubbly and optimistic if not a little dense in how to avoid bringing up uncomfortable and possibly volatile subjects….

"…it's just that Kurt is a little um….protective when it comes to who you see and spend time, especially when it involves certain Warbler members…." Nick joined in when it looked as though Jeff wasn't sure how to answer.

Blaine shifted again entirely uncomfortable with the direction this conversation was going, "Imighthavefailedtotellhimwhoallwasgoing" Blaine mumbled blushing slightly when his guilty conscious reared its head again.

The look he received from the Brit did nothing to ease it. "Is there something I am unaware of?" Harry questioned, "Why would you need to hide going out for coffee with friends from your boyfriend?" he asked all too innocently.

"He just doesn't like certain people….he's protective as Nick said" Blaine snarked back his ire at the teen's condescension and coldness finally bubbling over. Who did this teen think he was questioning his and Kurt's relationship as he was? It was none of his business! He shoved down the inner voice that was asking him the same question in regards to Harry and Sebastian.

"Sounds controlling. One would wonder why you are with him if that's the level of trust he has in you. Almost as though he is questioning your commitment or something" Harry stated the picture of nonchalance.

Blaine glared back at Harry, seething in righteous (or perhaps not entirely righteous) anger, "He trusts me" he ground out.

The green eyed boy only gave him a sardonic smile in reply.

-00-

Finn hunched down in the uncomfortable metal backed chair that the Lima bean seemed to favor, doing his best to remain discrete and unnoticed. Of course it wasn't exactly an easy task for someone of his height and weight but he figured he managed to do so remarkably well-like a super spy or something….all he needed now was one of those little robots that would zoom up unseen on his enemies and then BAM!

Ok, he was getting distracted again—that was bad, Kurt hated it when he got distracted; of course he used those big fancy designer words to make it sound like he really didn't mind but you could tell that he did. Because despite what many people might believe Finn was not stupid.

Ok….well not entirely stupid, he knew things where it counted anyway; his brain just worked a bit differently, kinda like Brittany's did though perhaps not to the same degree—but what he was trying to say was that he was not entirely oblivious towards Kurt's intentions in having him come to the coffee shop to spy on Blaine for his 'protection'. Sure, what Kurt said about taking care of their 'loved ones' and all that made sense but Finn knew his step brother well enough to know that there were parts of this that his brother wasn't telling him.

Most people would wonder why he was going along with it then. Well, the easiest answer was that there were several reasons—each different and somewhat separate from one another. For one; like he said before, what Kurt said did kind of make sense—Rachel and Blaine were both without their significant others (even if Rachel technically was no longer his significant other—but details) and both would be particularly vulnerable to the influences (aka: taints) of less moral men. So, yes he could see the logic in both him and Kurt helping each other out while protecting the other's partner from the likes of Sebastian Symthe and New York 'performers'—or as Finn was convinced gigolos (Brody just sounded like a hooker name in his fine opinion).

The second reason might surprise some people but it really was the main reason he went along with Kurt's schemes despite knowing he might come to regret his part in them. The second reason was simply that he felt that he owed Kurt. That's right… it all came down to guilt.

Finn knew that he hadn't been the most stand up guy through their high school years, what with first participating in the toss queers into garbage bins thing, then his poor reaction to finding out about Kurt's crush on him, and finally the most damning of all his actions, his failure in standing up for his step brother during the Karofsky showdown…

It was true that he tried to console himself in the fact that if he had stopped Karofsky then Kurt would never have transferred to Dalton and therefore never met Blaine; who his brother told anyone who would listen was the love of his life etc ect (though with the way his brother had been talking about this Adam he had met, Finn had to wonder). Either way he would believe Kurt so by this logic, he was (in his mind at least) basically compelled to do something to help Kurt protect his relationship (even if he had not realized this until recently and had actually been kind of an ass to the ex-warbler at first). But that was the past—this was now!

So, long story short here he was sitting in the Lima Bean in order to spy—er keep an eye on Blaine and the Warblers (because really who trusts anyone in a blazer? Just screams criminal masterminds—bet they even had a fluffy white cat!), when he could be stalking—hanging out with Mandy from the gas station instead.

He sighed and wiggled a bit trying to ignore how numb his ass was getting from sitting in this position and turned his attention back to the table of visiting Warblers—really, he had always thought being a spy would be a life full of intrigue and excitement—somehow he was not getting either of those currently.

Fortunately, or unfortunately—depending on whom you ask—he tuned in just in time to hear a partial comment coming from the British teen that Kurt had complained about during one of their skype conversations.

The smooth somewhat melodic accented voice wafted just far enough for him to catch what it was saying, "Sounds controlling. One would wonder why you are with him if that's the level of trust he has in you…" The teen went on to say something else but Finn missed it; far too angry at the part he did hear.

How dare this snobby, new comer talk to Blaine about Kurt behind his back?! Just who did he think he was? –because even though he hadn't heard a name mentioned he knew that it was Kurt that was being discussed.

Well he wouldn't stand for it! he had failed his step-brother far too many times in the past, he would NOT sit back and let this snooty teen come in and place doubts in Kurt's boyfriend's mind—hell no! He was going to go right over there and tell that puny runt just what he thought—call him out on his lies!

So, flushed with anger (because unfortunately Finn had always let his anger and emotions get in the way of what little sense he did possess) he pushed back his chair and marched over to where the teens were currently sitting. He reached out to grab the Brit's shoulder (since he was facing away from where Finn had been sitting and he needed to get his attention if he was going to give him a verbal dress down) but just as his fingers brushed the dark Dalton blazer several things happened at once.

He didn't even have time to register the vice like grip on his wrist—which honestly felt like it was going to snap—before the previously seated teen had somehow managed to spin and vault out of his chair and to cause Finn slam back into the floor. Pain ricocheted up his back and centered around the part of his head that had hit the floor on landing, knocking the breath out of him with a large "umph."

When the world stopped spinning, he didn't even notice the cold hard metal pressed to the side of his neck, he was far too preoccupied with the pair of murderous green eyes glaring down at him.

-00-

It took Sebastian a few seconds to register what he was seeing, for this outcome had most definitely not been anticipated when he had heard Hunter convince Ha—no, Potter to come with for coffee and conversation.

What was even more disconcerting was how….well, cough turned on he was by the sight of Harry dominating someone that much larger than him with such apparent ease. Really, he should not be paying more attention to the way all of the raven haired teen's muscles seemed to tense and coil underneath the white Dalton issued dress shirt (that was now just visible thanks to the Brit's blazer being pushed up during the tussle…okay, lack of tussle since it basically consisted of Harry slamming…Finn was it?...to the floor in a blink of an eye) than the fact that his bonded was currently pressing a fork to the unfortunate teen's carotid.

This really did not have a whole lot of positive outcomes—and despite a tiny-little voice in the back of his head finding it rather amusing that the large ex-footballer was so easy to take down, he didn't really want to see the idiot die because he startled Harry….which was apparently a very bad idea.

The entire group had fallen silent in shock, only able to gape at the scene before them—and Sebastian thanked every deity he knew for the small mercy that the coffee shop was basically deserted outside their own group and Finn Hudson (he wasn't counting the staff because—well, they were servers and really didn't count in his opinion—especially given that they were in the back smoking what smelt like a joint at the moment).

It was the rigid tension and absolute stillness that Harry's body held crouched down over Hudson that finally made Sebastian act. It was obvious that the wizard was no longer aware of his surroundings or the lack of threat in front of him—it was like his rational mind had shut down and was simply reacting like a cornered animal—lashing out in a desperate attempt to protect himself. Sebastian didn't even know why he did it—what insane instinct had him slowly approaching the two fallen teens. Looking back on it, it really was a rather stupid thing for him to do. But he did it anyway.

And the crazy part of it all was that it seemed to work.

"Harry" he said quietly but firmly. When he got no reaction positive or negative he continued his slow advance, careful to move closer to the ground so that his head was at the same level as Harry's. "Harry" he said again, "Harry look at me"

Still no response… although there seemed to be a slight easing in the tension of the teen's shoulders. By now Sebastian was well within touching distance and from this angle he could clearly see Finn's wide eyes—pupils dilated in fear. Sebastian was honestly surprised that the moron hadn't wet himself—not that he could exactly blame him; the dead look in those green eyes was one of the most terrifying sights Sebastian had ever seen.

Throwing what little sense he had left—along with his self preservation out the window, Sebastian reached out slowly and wrapped one hand around the wrist that was currently holding the fork-turned-weapon and the other around the teen's slim waist. "come on Harry let go….look at him, he's not a threat. He won't hurt you…." Sebastian whispered soothingly into Harry's ear.

He could see the exact moment clarity came to his husband, Harry's whole body going slack the fork clattering to the floor. The teen's face dawning a look of horror as he realized what had happened-what he had just done.

"Oh…merlin" Harry choked out face pale, eyes filled with regret and embarrassment. Sebastian could feel the Harry's slim body press back against him in panic, trying to put distance between himself and the supine Finn.

Sebastian slowly let go and moved backwards to allow Harry movement, sure that whatever had just happened had passed.

"I- I'm so sorry…I-are you okay?" Harry managed to stutter out looking down at Finn face flushing in humiliation.

Finn sat up slowly and somewhat cautiously giving his head a shake as though to clear out his confusion, Sebastian somehow doubted that would help, "er….yeah? I think so?" Finn answered still sounding rather dazed.

"I…" Harry started again his panicked eyes darting from face to face…."…sorry" he whispered before turning abruptly and walked as fast as humanly possible out of the coffee shop.

There was a silence that seemed to stretch out and strangle everything within touching distance as Sebastian watched Harry's fleeing back….he should see if he was alright—he should find out what the hell that was—he should….

"Go after him" Hunter said quietly, pushing gently on Sebastian's shoulder.

And for once Sebastian agreed.

-00-

Harry could feel him following. Slowly as he gained some distance from the coffee shop and everyone staring at him his heart rate steadied and his panicked breaths slowed. He was being completely and utterly pathetic…he just couldn't get rid of the overwhelming guilt and embarrassment that seemed like it was waiting to swallow him whole.

What the hell was that back there? He knew he had been teetering on the edge of well…sanity since the moment he raised his wand and faced the being who was more monster then man, but he had thought that he was slowly healing—getting better. The last half an hour blew that theory to hell-that was for sure.

He was so far from okay; the very thought of what he had just done and what he could have done if Sebastian hadn't pulled him back terrified him. The teen who touched his shoulder had no idea how close he had come from becoming a corpse—the very thought made it difficult for Harry to draw in a breath. Thank merlin he had stopped carrying his wand around with him since he had come to Ohio….there's no telling what might have happened had he had it on him.

Merlin, maybe all those people back in his fifth year were right; he was a danger, a menace…unstable. Perhaps it would be better if they locked him up…at least that way he wouldn't accidently murder some poor muggle teenager.

He sighed, running a hand through his ever messy locks as he sank down onto the ice coated park bench, staring morosely at his hands. He didn't bother to look up when he felt the warmth of another body sit down beside him….he knew who it was—the bond ensured that he could recognize his bond mate anywhere.

They sat in silence, the slightly muted hum of traffic passing mixed in with one brave little song bird's trills were the only sounds breaking the cold winter air. The silence was neither comfortable or uncomfortable; it just was.

"What are you doing here?" Harry finally asked, weariness leaking into his voice, "You should be back with the others"

When Sebastian didn't answer Harry risked a peek, looking over at the other teen through the fringe of his bangs.

Sebastian wasn't looking at him, instead staring straight ahead as though the empty park in front of them held all of the secrets of the universe just waiting to be revealed. "Are you okay?" he finally asked.

Harry felt something akin to surprise only to be followed by a deeper wave of shame….merlin he was a mess, a mess that because of their bond, was not only dragging him down but Sebastian as well. While he had sat here wondering how in the world he was going to be able to face the group he had left back in the coffee shop again, he hadn't factored how his actions would reflect on Sebastian.

Sebastian's team mates—his friends, had no idea that neither of them had a choice in this marriage, they didn't know that Sebastian hadn't willingly married a nut-job like him….and as much as he had enjoyed annoying and irritating the brunette; no one deserved to be saddled with him.

Even while suffocating in his own shame and remorse he picked up on something different in Sebastian's tone—the brunette almost sounded concerned about him. The moment he thought that he mentally slapped himself; of course Sebastian was concerned—likely worried that his 'husband' was going to lose his shit again and attack some other poor soul. Not that Harry could blame him for this worry.

He sighed again, rubbing his eyes wearily, "Yeah….I-I just need a few minutes to calm down" he finally answered the other teens question. He wasn't lying exactly, he wasn't alright no,—but he was no longer in danger of losing himself, at least of that he was sure.

Sebastian turned his attention from the deserted jungle gym to study the wizard beside him before shifting, a look of discomfort pulling at the corners of his eyes, "W-What was that?" he asked so quietly that Harry almost missed it.

What was that? –and wasn't that a good question? The problem was that Harry had no idea what that was. Well, no that is a lie…he had some inkling….it had happened once before; a week after the final battle.

At the time Harry was still operating on adrenalin, his injuries were not entirely healed and after months on the run it was fair to say he was a tad twitchy and trigger happy; one particularly annoying and persistent reporter learned that the hard way.

The man—no vulture (as Ron had taken to calling Rita's replacement; a nasty breed of human by the name of Garth) listened to the newly coined vanquisher's request for privacy and promptly ignored it. His stalking had kicked up to the point of obsessive when he had made the mistake of leaping out at Harry and flashing a camera in the saviors face….the movement and flash had startled the battle weary wizard, and similar to what had happened in the coffee shop Harry's mind had taken a back seat to his war instincts. The man was hospitalized with a broken femur, dislocated shoulder and several broken ribs.

Of course being who Harry was and having defeated Voldemort not even a week earlier had been enough for the whole incident to be swept under the rug—Kingsley reassuring him that it was natural and nothing to worry about. That he was simply tired and stressed out after fighting for so long and that with time and distance there would be nothing to worry about. Of course Hermione had nagged him to go and see a mind healer—to get help to process and move past the rather numerous trauma's he had experienced in his young life. At the time he had chosen to believe Kingsley over his friend….now he wondered if he had made a horrible mistake.

"I….I don't know" he finally settled on. He could sense Sebastian giving him a skeptical look and he sighed again, knowing that he had to give the brunette something, "look….being the center of a war wasn't all sunshine and unicorns, my head's not the nicest of places….I-I didn't mean to snap like that. It-It won't happen again" –and it wouldn't, he would make sure…if it took him pushing aside his pride and taking Hermione's advice then he would do it. He wouldn't, no he couldn't, risk continuing to walk around like a ticking time bomb—it was only a matter of time before he blew up and who knows who he could hurt next time?

Sebastian continued to look at him, the creases at the corner of his eyes not disappearing with Harry's words, "…can I.." he started before stopping clenching his fists in a nervous tick, "look….I know we don't really know much about each other, or even like each other…but-but if you need help…." He trailed off looking away from the wizard.

Harry sighed to himself, as much as he would love to take the other teen up on his offer of help, of getting to know each other—he knew that he wouldn't, that he couldn't. Sebastian was already at risk just for sharing a room with Harry; even if the teen had somehow managed to pull him out of 'the zone', there was no guarantee that he would be able to do it the next time Harry lost his shit…so no, distance was better—safer.

"No, I'm fine…really. Thank you for the offer but I just need to be alone right now. Please just go back and finish your visit with your friends….It's better if you just leave me alone" Harry said infusing his words with steel.

Sebastian looked like he was going to argue for a moment but the look that Harry shot him had him backing down. He stood up and shot one more look at Harry before turning and walking back towards the coffee shop.

He would not second guess his decision—he had always been alone, it was better for everyone this way.

Harry closed his eyes and ignored the way the bond was suddenly aching.

-NOTEs-

**Finn never joined the army in this timeline, instead he stayed in Lima and took a job helping Burt out at the garage. Also Kurt moved up to New York later in my story—late October, early November.

*I am not actually sure if Sebastian and Hunter were ever co-captains or if Sebastian simply resumed his prior post after Hunter was kicked out for the whole drugs scandal. For this story I am completely disregarding the drug-stealing trophy etc story arc (because they were stupid in my opinion) and am making hunter and Sebastian share the captain spot ;) don't like it—too bad, suck a wooly sock. Jk….but seriously it's just how it's going to be so don't send me a howler (see what I did there? Using harry potter refences….smirk).