Chapter Eleven
A/N: All of the characters contained herein are the property of people other than me. The story is a collaboration between myself and my best friend Heidi. Enjoy!
"When the potential mate involved is a human, any infractions of the mating laws involved shall fall under the jurisdiction of the human government until such time as the claim is made official. Once an official declaration of intent has been made and accepted and the potential mate officially becomes the chosen one of a vampire, vampire laws and regulations take precedence."
-Article 22 Section 14 of the Treaty of Ohio between the Government of the United States and the Sovereign Clans of the Vampire Covens
Kurt and Nick pulled into the driveway at the house.
"Thank you for coming with me tonight." Kurt looked over at his friend as he turned the car off. He was internally steeling himself for facing the family and anyone else that might be there.
"Nonsense. Blaine didn't want you coming here by yourself and since he was a little worse for wear thanks to Jeff, you're stuck with me." Nick wasn't about to disregard an order from the prince and his friend.
"You're wonderful company, Nick, and one of my best friends. I'm glad you're here with me, but listen, don't pay any attention to anything Carole has to say." Kurt told his friend. "She is going to take this opportunity to do everything in her power to humiliate and embarrass me tonight."
"I've dealt with people like her before, Kurt. Nothing she would say or do could bother me. You are my friend and she is just a jealous bitch." Nick reassured him as they walked up the driveway. "Let's do this."
"Here goes nothing," Kurt muttered as he opened the front door.
The party was already in full swing in the living room. The house was filled with more people than Kurt had thought would be there. He introduced Nick to some of the guys from the garage as he made his way around the groups of people. Everyone they had met so far was very welcoming of Nick, but as he spotted a few familiar faces, Kurt had a feeling that was about to change.
"That is certainly interesting." Kurt motioned to Nick as Rachel and Quinn glared at each other across the room. At the moment, Finn was carefully avoiding both girls.
When Carole spotted Nick and Kurt, she bustled over to them looking less than pleased. "Kurt, what are you doing here?"
"It is my father's birthday, Carole. Where else would I be?" Kurt resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"You didn't ask if you could bring a guest." Carole snapped. "Perhaps you should have run that by me first instead of just assuming it would be okay. Do you know how hard I worked to plan this party on my own? Don't you have any respect for other people's hard work?"
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Hummel. I don't mean to intrude," Nick apologized, a little surprised at both her rudeness and the level of vehemence in her voice.
"You don't need to apologize Nick, besides Finn has two guests here. Who is he dating this week, Carole? Rachel or Quinn…or are they all 'together'? That's a little kinky, don't you think? I didn't realize this was a sister wife thing. Does my dad know because I'm sure he could find someone, too." Kurt said innocently, not quite able hide his smirk.
Carole's mouth gaped open in shock as Nick chortled a laugh behind his hand.
"You are a sick and disgusting little boy, Kurt," she sneered. She glared at him hard and stormed off, plastering a smile on her face as she talked to other guests.
"That was sort of amazing. I didn't think you had it in you, Kurt." Nick said, wildly impressed.
"I usually try to refrain from behaving like that. If my dad hadn't mentioned the party to me earlier in the week, I wouldn't have even known about it and honestly I have about had it with her." Kurt was a bit ashamed that Nick had seen his bitchy display.
"Hopefully the evening will get better." Nick suggested lightly. He was pretty sure the evening was only going to go downhill from here as he caught glares from Rachel and Quinn and Finn.
"You have way too high of hopes, you know that?" Kurt laughed depreciatingly.
"Someone has to look on the bright side." Nick remarked.
"I don't even think looking on the bright side could help this out, Nick. Oh look, it must be time for presents." Kurt acidly remarked as he watched Carole hovering over his dad with a sickly sweet smile plastered on her face.
"This is from all of us." Carole said cheerfully to her husband as she gave him an intricately wrapped box.
"Thank you dear." Burt took the gift with a smile, wondering if Kurt had been the one to wrap the box. Frowning, he noticed that the card on the top had only been signed from Carole and Finn. It was with a heavy heart and a sinking feeling in his stomach that he opened the gift.
"I thought you would enjoy seeing pictures of your family and the happy moments you have shared with them." Carole beamed.
"It's a…thoughtful gift, Carole." Burt placed the photo album to the side after flipping through it, realizing there were no pictures of Kurt in the album at all. He continued to open gifts, resolving to have yet another serious talk with his 'wife' later when Kurt had returned to Dalton for the evening. He was rapidly losing his patience with this behavior from her.
Kurt watched his father continue to open his gifts and was thrilled that Burt seemed excited about the gift from Kurt, declaring it his favorite one of the evening. It was just a simple clock for the garage that he'd had personalized at a boutique in Westerville. Once gifts were opened, it was time for cake. Kurt and Nick retreated to a corner of the room to talk.
"Nice to know that I was included in the family gift selection." Kurt murmured as he viciously stabbed his cake, nearly going through the cheap Styrofoam plate. Nick heard the whispered words and threw an arm around Kurt to comfort his friend. Kurt gave him a grateful smile.
"Really?" Finn complained, overhearing Kurt's bitter words. "Can't we just get through one night without your drama? And are there any of those Dalton guys you aren't doing?"
"Oh, we're just friends and for the record, Kurt isn't 'doing' any of us. Although that does remind me, I forgot to tell you, Finn. Jeff sends his regards. He's really looking forward to seeing you again. You really should come to Dalton and visit." Nick smirked, knowing the thought of Jeff would send Finn running in the other direction.
"Do you mind?" Carole hissed seeing the confrontation between the boys. "We are trying to have a birthday party for Burt and you are just being rude."
"I'm being rude, Carole? You're the one who gave him a family photo album and didn't include the whole family." Kurt glared at her.
"Kurt, I said I was including happy memories and you've never brought your father anything but grief. I bet he regrets the day you were born." Carole snapped.
Nick was ready to tear her dyed roots from her head. Kurt put a restraining hand on Nick's arm when he saw the vampire's eyes go that flat angry red. "Don't Nick. She's not worth it. Besides, she knows if my father heard what she was saying…she'd be out on her fat ass with nothing."
"Don't you talk to me like that. I am your mother. You will respect me." Carole snarled.
"My mother is dead and you lost any chance of respect from me a long time ago." Kurt worked to keep calm because he did not want to upset his father and ruin his birthday.
"When are you leaving?" Carole asked. "Because as far as I'm concerned, you are not welcome here." She spun on her heel toward her husband and proceeded to fawn over him, playing the part of the devoted wife.
Nick was livid. "Kurt, this isn't right."
"I know, but at least I had the good sense to bring my own gift for dad tonight." Kurt had planned for this because he didn't trust Carole for a second. "As much as I would like to slap the taste out of her mouth, I would never dare to ruin his night like that. My father may be blind to her right now, but at some point, he will wake up and see her for what she is."
"Ready to go back to Dalton? Blaine will be awake by now and is probably worried sick." Nick asked when Kurt was finished with the cake he had mutilated.
"Yeah, let's go home." Kurt sat down the plate on a table and went in search of his Dad to tell him good-bye. He found his father in the kitchen, blissfully alone for the moment. "Dad, Nick and I are heading out."
"So soon?" Burt asked because he hadn't gotten a moment alone with Kurt for the entire party.
"I think it would be best to head back now." Kurt answered honestly, ready to be out of a house he didn't feel was home any longer. His dorm room with Blaine felt more like home right now.
"Don't let them drive you out of here, bud." Burt sadly said moving to hug his son, wishing desperately that there was something he could do….anything to make it better.
"I love you dad, but they already have." Kurt hugged his father back briefly and left him standing silently in the kitchen. He headed up the stairs to his room to grab his coat and was shocked to find Finn waiting on him. He was so sick of this.
"What are you doing in my room Frankenteen?" Kurt said tiredly.
"Waiting for you. You can't treat my Mom the way you do and get away with it," Finn glared.
"Treat your Mom the way I do?" Kurt asked in disbelief. "What about how she treats me?"
"She's just trying to help you Kurt," Finn defended.
"That's bullshit and you know it. She hates me, almost as much as you do. She's been trying to cut me out of my father's life for months. She is nothing but a manipulative bitch," Kurt growled, gasping as Finn grabbed him slamming against the wall.
"You take that back, Kurt, or I will fucking kill you. I swear to God I will," Finn growled. Panicked, Kurt did what came instinctively after all the years of bullying he'd faced. He brought his knee up sharply into the other boy's groin causing him to release Kurt and double over in pain. Kurt quickly darted out of the room, down the stairs and out the door to the car where Nick was waiting. He got in slamming the door behind him and buckling his seat belt before taking off.
"Kurt? Are you ok? What happened?" Nick demanded.
"Nothing, I'm fine, just a fight with Finn," Kurt said his voice sounding shaky even to his own ears.
"He didn't…" Nick began.
"I said I was fine, Nick," Kurt snapped. Nick raised an eyebrow in shock at the tone in Kurt's voice. Kurt took a deep steadying breath. "I'm sorry. He just makes me really angry sometimes, but I really am fine."
Nick nodded, not really believing him, but understanding that Kurt would tell him what was really going on when he was ready. In the meantime, he would make sure that Finn Hudson kept his distance from his friend.
Kurt had almost forgotten about the incident by Monday morning, but it was brought sharply back to the forefront of his mind by a startled gasp from Blaine. He was in his dorm room changing into his shirt when his roommate walked out of the bathroom.
"Oh my god, Kurt. What happened to your back?" Blaine asked.
"Oh, I tripped." Kurt lied and continued to get dressed, already feeling vulnerable.
"Kurt, you know I can tell when you're lying to me, right?" Blaine raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing happened, I'm fine. It's just a couple of bruises." Kurt tried to shrug it off.
"You have fingerprint marks on your arms. Who did this to you?" Blaine growled low in his throat.
"Look it was really no big deal and it was just as much my fault as Finn's. Sometimes, I just can't stop myself from saying things I know I shouldn't." Kurt tried to explain it away.
"Are you hurt anywhere else? Do you need to go to the doctor?" Blaine was genuinely concerned about his friend's health and well-being. Kurt had already been through so much and he didn't deserve this.
"It's not that bad. Believe me, I've had worse."
"That doesn't make me feel better Kurt. What happened? And don't sugar coat it."
"Fine…we got into an argument at my dad's party over the 'family' gift. I called his mother a deceitful bitch. He grabbed me and slammed me against the wall. I hit the light switch. It's not like he got off scot free…he'll be lucky if he's able to reproduce. I don't care how big you are, a knee to the crotch will take you down."
Blaine was incredibly angry at the situation. "I can't believe you're being so blasé about this. Someone in your family attacked you. He's supposed to be your brother."
"Finn hasn't ever been a brother to me. I've always suspected that he knew what Karofsky was doing to me, but I could never prove it." Kurt admitted with a frown.
"It's not right and someone should do something about it." Blaine answered, already formulating a plan in his head.
"Please, Blaine. I have enough problems with my family as it is. Just let it go." Kurt couldn't take anymore family issues.
"Kurt, I can't just stand around and let someone hurt you. It's not in my nature. It's instinctive for me to protect the people I really care about." Blaine said.
"If it makes you feel any better, I don't plan on going home any time soon and if I do, I promise I will avoid being alone with Finn." Kurt offered the compromise.
"It's a start," Blaine muttered, determined to make sure that this was the last time Finn laid his hands on the boy he loved.
Three days later….
Finn sauntered to his car after a date with the new girl, April. He smiled to himself because he was rather pleased that she'd put out so easily and he didn't even have to bring her flowers or candy like he did Quinn, even better, she wasn't interested in conversation, like Rachel. In his stupor of happiness, he didn't notice that all the street lights were out or the heavy silence in the neighborhood. He tossed his letterman's jacket over his shoulder smiling as if he didn't have a care in the world. His first clue that something wasn't right was the tickle of breath on the back of his neck just before he felt himself being slammed into the side of his car.
"What the fuck!" Finn shouted, picking himself up off the ground and looking around for a perpetrator, but his eyes couldn't penetrate the inky darkness around him.
There was a menacing chuckle as Finn was slammed into a nearby tree. "Okay this isn't funny anymore assholes!" Finn shouted whipping his head back and forth, trying to see anyone or anything, but failing miserably.
"I don't know…I'm finding it quite amusing." A voice said just before he was grabbed yet again and thrown back into his car.
"Come out where I can see you! Fight like a man, you coward!" Finn shouted, scrambling painfully, holding his ribs, to the driver's side door.
"Oh but we're not men. We are sooo much more than you," a different voice purred coldly. Finn was becoming truly scared now.
He was almost to the door, when a hand caught the back of his shirt and shoved him face first onto the rocky pavement. Finn felt his face scrape across the ground and tears came unbidden to his eyes. "Stop…please stop…just leave me alone."
He was pulled up off the ground and shoved across the trunk of his car hard enough to leave a dent. Yet another voice hissed in his ear. Finn would always remember the menacing sound of it. It was the voice that he would hear in his nightmares.
"Every time you hurt him, we will come back and hurt you tenfold. Consider this a warning…next time, we won't be so gentle. Remember, keep your hands to yourself, Hudson. I know where you sleep at night and nothing you can do will stop me. Am I clear?"
"Yeah." Finn managed to stutter, just before a stony hand made contact with his face.
Finn didn't know how he'd managed to get home, but limped through the front door only to be met by his distressed mother. This night which had started out so wonderfully had ended up a disaster. He'd been attacked and beaten, lost his letterman's jacket, and now, had to deal with his mother.
"Finn! Oh my goodness baby! What happened to you?" Carole shrieked, running to her son's side.
"I got mugged." Finn said between painful breaths.
"We have to call the police and report this." Carole was dismayed at the state of her son. She knew in her heart that he hadn't been mugged, but bought his story for Finn to save face.
"Mom, I'm fine." Finn painfully insisted.
"No, you are most certainly not okay, Finnegan Christopher Hudson!" Carole shouted at her son who had moved to the bottom of the stairs.
"Don't mom. I want to go to bed. I'll be fine in the morning." Finn barked at his mother. He trudged up the stairs to his room, each step he took becoming more painful. He blindly fumbled for the light switch, turning it on, and stumbling for his bed, stopping short and beginning to tremble. There folded neatly and placed in the center of his bed waiting for him like a final reminder that they knew exactly where to find him was his lettermen's jacket. He nearly ran out of the room. He'd sleep on the couch tonight.
"Mornin' Mrs. H," Puck said as he sauntered in the next morning with a smirk on his face. "Finn home?"
"Yes he is, but I'm not sure…" Carole began.
"It's fine, Mom," Finn said, coming painfully down the stairs, his face a mass of scrapes and bruises. His hair was still damp as if he'd just gotten out of the shower, but Puck could smell the lingering traces of blood in it.
"Dude! What the hell happened to you?" Puck asked in faux concern.
"I got mugged leaving April's house last night." Finn practically spit out the words.
"Dude, that sucks. Someone beat you like a dog man, but I did try to warn you. That girl is bad news." Puck said shaking his head because karma was a bitch.
"I really don't need someone telling me that, Puckerman." Finn growled.
"Then you learned your lesson? About dating trash, I mean." Puck schooled his face. "It could be really dangerous to your health next time."
"Trust me, I got the point and won't be doing that again." Finn answered.
"Good, never know what could happen out there." Puck reminded his friend.
"Let's play." Finn turned on the game system, wanting to get what had happened the night before off his mind by killing mindless zombies.
Puck busied himself setting up his controller so that Finn didn't see the satisfied smile on his face.
Regionals…
Kurt paced around the green room they'd been given to wait until they were called to the stage. He couldn't help but be nervous. He'd never performed a solo in front of an audience before and the guys all seemed to think that he was going to win the whole thing for them.
"I can't do this. It's going to be a disaster. I'm going to forget the words and we're going to lose and all those idiots at McKinley will realize they were right," he said his voice panicked.
"Kurt, you need to calm down. You're going to make yourself crazy." Nick just wished that Kurt would take a breath.
"This is my first solo, ever. I think I have a good reason to be nervous, Nicholas." Kurt snapped.
"Kurt, honey, you are going to do fine." Jeff said, trying to put the other boy at ease. "You will stun them with those golden pipes of yours."
"It's…it's just…" Kurt couldn't even form words.
"Kurt, we all understand how difficult this is going to be for you, but we all have confidence in you." Wesley reassured him.
"There is a Mr. Hummel out here that wants to talk to Kurt." One of the bodyguards Blaine's father had insisted accompany them stuck his head in the door and called out. "He okay?"
"My dad is here?" Kurt was so pleased. "Send him in."
"Hey, kiddo." Burt smiled as he walked into the room. "I feel like I'm visiting a celebrity with all the muscle outside. You okay?"
"They're here to protect Wes and Blaine and I am a nervous wreck." Kurt admitted.
"Just do your best, bud. That's all anyone can ask of you." Burt told his son.
"Your father is right Kurt. Winning would be amazing, but it's not like the world will end if we don't," Blaine said
"I just don't want to disappoint anyone," Kurt responded, biting his lip nervously.
"We're a team Kurt… almost like our own little mini-coven. Rise or fall, we do it together. The responsibility isn't on any one man's shoulders. No one will be disappointed with you if we do lose ok?" Blaine told him.
"Thanks Blaine." Kurt smiled at the other boy blushing. Burt watched his son and the kid he'd found studying with him a few weeks ago. He saw the way the other boy looked at his son and, more importantly, the way his son looked at the other boy. He cleared his throat awkwardly.
"So umm… I should probably head back out there. Carole's waiting," he said. Kurt nodded.
"Yeah, better not keep her waiting. Thanks for coming Dad. It means a lot," Kurt said hugging his father.
"I wouldn't have missed it Kurt. Good luck boys." Burt called out before leaving the room.
The boys were dressed in their costumes, running through their songs one last time when the bodyguard stuck his head in with a cross expression on his face. "You have some more 'visitors' out here that want to come in and see Kurt. They are demanding to see him."
"Who is it?" Wesley demanded an answer, not having a good feeling about any of this.
"Finn Hudson and Rachel Berry."
"No freaking way." Blaine growled.
"I don't…I can't see them." Kurt shook his head.
"All right." The bodyguard nodded and Kurt could hear Rachel screeching all the way down the hall, very unpleasant words coming from her mouth.
"What do you mean he won't see us? Who does he think he is? That ungrateful, selfish, no-talent little… slut!"
With a low growl, Blaine yanked open the door and hissed a few curt words to the guards at the door. Within seconds, Rachel's screeching was rather abruptly cut-off. Blaine smiled a coldly satisfied smile.
"Shall we pick up where we were before we were so rudely interrupted?"
Kurt stepped onto the stage and into the light. He had a moment of feeling rather like a deer in the headlights, but then he caught Blaine's gaze. He completely tuned out the audience and his fear and nervousness melted away. He took a deep breath, opened his mouth, and sang. He poured his emotions into every word of his duet. He knew he'd never sounded better. Blaine gave him a smile and launched into his own parts, his eyes never leaving Kurt.
Burt watched as his son sang to the other boy. He'd always though that his son had the voice of an angel. This just proved it. It was an amazing performance and the audience was completely entranced, until some members of New Directions started booing and hissing at the boys on stage. He glared at them, especially when he realized Finn was one of the ones doing it. He started to rise and give those kids a piece of his mind, but was beat to it by their teacher.
Will Schuester had never been more ashamed of his kids than in this moment. He couldn't believe that Finn and Rachel were booing another school's choir, especially one which contained one of their former members. He glanced at the judges who were casting disapproving looks at them. Will knew in that moment that they had just lost it all because of their rudeness and their hate.
Blaine heard the booing before Kurt and it only inspired him to sing better with Kurt. As for Kurt, he never faltered just held his chin high as the crystal clear notes poured from his mouth. Blaine felt himself swell with pride and love for the blue eyed human. The applause at the end of their duet was maddening and drowned out the booing from the one section of the audience. Ignoring the rudeness from Rachel and Finn, they went right into their closing song, finished, and took their bows before exiting the stage.
"You were amazing out there." Blaine impulsively hugged Kurt.
"Thank you. It was so much fun. I've missed being on the stage." Kurt admitted.
"Let's go wait in the green room." Nick suggested. "Unless you want to sit in the audience and listen to New Directions..."
"I can honestly say I have no desire to see them or hear them at all." Kurt answered, having no desire to see people who were so angry and hateful toward him. The group waited quietly in the green room until Thad came back to report that results were in and that New Directions performance was met with an almost deafening silence afterwards. They made their way to the stage, Kurt pointedly ignoring his former friends, although he couldn't quite hide his shock at Finn's bruised face.
"I wonder what happened to him?" Kurt murmured quietly to Blaine, who shifted nervously and shrugged. Kurt narrowed his eyes at Blaine and opened his mouth to question Blaine further, when the emcee for the event took center stage, immediately taking his attention away from both Blaine and Finn.
"Now, we come to the end of our contest. Please wait for all winners to be announced before leaving the stage." The announcer said, reaching for the envelope. "Third place goes to the New Directions from Lima, Ohio."
Rachel's screams of outrage nearly drowned out the announcer. "Second place is awarded to the Finches from Findley, Ohio. So, that means, The Warblers from Dalton Academy in Westerville are our Regional Winners and will go onto Nationals in New York. Congratulations to all our schools that participated. You all were wonderful and may leave the stage to celebrate. Thank you all for coming. We'll see you next year."
Kurt had never been hugged so much. He couldn't believe that he would be going to New York after all.
The Warblers formed a protective circle around Kurt and Blaine as they made their way off stage, getting more congratulations from both the judges and the Finches from Findley. As much as Blaine wanted to carry the trophy, one of the other Warblers got that honor, so he could stay right beside Kurt.
"YOU STOP RIGHT THERE, KURT HUMMEL!" Rachel shouted loudly backstage. The Warblers didn't stop and kept moving towards the exit from the stage.
"I SAID STOP!" Rachel shouted once more. "COWARD! YOU RAN AWAY FROM MCKINLEY AND NOW YOU'RE RUNNING AWAY AGAIN." The Warblers paused for a moment as Nick spun on his heel and marched over to where the New Directions were all standing.
"You stupid self-centered little bitch." Nick hissed. "You have no right to call anyone a coward when you're too afraid to stand up for a person you once called your friend because you're too worried about your reputation. You know what happened to Kurt was wrong. You know the way you've treated him is wrong and to call him a coward when he's survived all he's been through and come out of it stronger is possibly the most disgusting thing I've ever heard."
"Don't you talk to my girlfriend like that, vampire." Finn stepped in front of Rachel.
Jeff stormed over to stand beside Nick. "I can drain you dry before anyone would even be able to touch me. You lay one finger on him, that's exactly what will happen. Are we clear hot stuff?"
"You are just mesmerized by him." Rachel hissed from behind Finn. "Kurt will betray you just like he betrayed us."
"What in the world is going on here?" Will asked, walking up to the group, having caught the end of the conversation.
"They started it, Mr. Schue." Rachel batted her eyes at him. "The vampires were the ones who wouldn't leave us alone."
"Somehow, I don't think so, Rachel." Will glared at the girl. "I think you owe The Warblers an apology for your deplorable behavior during their performance. Since when do we boo others on stage? Since when do we stoop to those kinds of levels? This is not what I expect from any of you and it will not happen again."
Rachel looked horrified at the idea of being chastised in front of the Warblers. "But, Mr. Schue, Kurt betrayed us like no one else. You can't seriously expect us to be happy for them."
"You may not be happy for them, but you will act like you have some brains in your head from now on." Will said, before turning to the other boys. "You guys gave a great performance and deserve to go to Nationals and Kurt, I've never heard you sing better. I'm so proud of you, not just for your performance today, but for all you've overcome. It's good to see you happy."
"Thanks Mr. Schue, that means lot." Kurt was touched by the man's words.
"You all performed exceptionally well today and good luck in New York." Mr. Schue said before turning back to his own choir. "You guys to the bus… NOW!"
"Thank you, sir. We appreciate your lovely words." Jeff said waving tauntingly at Finn and Rachel. "We will be taking our leave now."
"KURT!" Rachel shouted ignoring her teacher. She darted between Trent and Thad and made a grab for Kurt's shirt. She never even got close. Blaine stepped between them, hissing at the girl, baring his fangs. His eyes had gone from warm hazel to feral red in seconds as he glared at Kurt's attacker. Rachel backed up, her eyes wide and fearful. He then put a protective arm around Kurt and ushered him from the building.
Hope you liked it guys! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed. We hope you will continue to do so. Next update will be Monday or Tuesday.