Title: Caligo Nox Noctis
Author: AoiTsukikage
Rating: R overall
Characters/Pairing: Finn/Kurt overall; some minor Blaine/Kurt and Blaine/Sam
Chapter: 37/38-ish
Word Count: 2646
Spoilers: Let's say everything to be safe :)
Summary/Warnings: (Vampire!Kurt, so completely AU) The good news about all of this is that there's a cure. The bad news, of course, is what the cure actually is.
Disclaimer: I, unfortunately, do not own these characters, no matter how sad that makes me. I do, however, promise to return them when I'm done with them. :)
Caligo Nox Noctis
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Blaine knows what to expect when Kurt and Finn finally get home but he still starts a bit when the door to his room slams open and Kurt's standing in the doorway, arms crossed and smirking like the proverbial cat that got the cream.
"Details," he says, tone indicating that he's not taking 'no' for an answer, and Blaine sighs and runs a hand through his hair. He hasn't even gotten a chance to change yet and with Kurt's overly sensitive nose he's sure the other boy can still smell the sex on him, so he sees no reason to explain anything.
"You can smell it," he replies, going back to unpacking some books out of his bag, and Kurt leans against the door and raises an eyebrow.
"Yes, but that's beside the point."
"Oh, God, you can actually smell it?" Blaine looks at him curiously, because suspecting it was one thing but actually hearing that Kurt can is another altogether.
"Of course. You haven't changed yet, have you?" Kurt's still got a rather sly smile on his face and Blaine knows that no, he hasn't, and he really wishes Kurt would leave so he could.
"No, and it'll be hard to do that when you're in the room. Did you actually need to tell me something?"
"The Club knows about you and Sam. Santana made a joke about the two of you grinding in Sam's truck…"
And Blaine tries really, really hard not to blush at Santana's rather accurate assessment of what they were doing, but by the way Kurt narrows his eyes he figures he's failed miserably at that.
"…And I suppose those of us that do know about you did a poor job of hiding it because they figured it out."
"Well, better now than later, I guess," Blaine shrugs and resists the urge to adjust his pants, because this is just getting disgusting now. "I know none of them will judge us, so I'm okay with that. Now can you please leave so I can get changed?"
"Sure," Kurt lingers in the doorway for a few moments (and Blaine knows this is probably the vampire's influence; Kurt's not usually so prone to teasing about things like this) before finally leaving and closing it, and Blaine gratefully strips his pants and underwear off and hopes that nobody will look into the stains too closely.
000
Kurt knows he's been acting odd; he certainly wouldn't normally be pestering Blaine about what he did with Sam (okay, maybe he still would about that. But really, nobody can blame him for wanting more details).
Regardless, ever since he's gotten home from school he's had a bad feeling; and it's not the stomach-turning, nausea-inducing feeling he got whenever Mr. Brown was around, but just a vague sense of unease that's really starting to take his toll, because right now he should be sound asleep but it's 2:30 in the morning and he can't seem to get his eyes to stay closed.
Finn's wrapped around him like normal and usually there wouldn't be anything in the world that could make him feel safer but tonight not even that's enough to calm his racing mind.
He knows Mr. Brown's still out there, just waiting to have an opportunity to kill him again. And this time, he won't make the mistake of thinking Kurt's mortal; no, he'll be looking to kill a vampire, which means, most likely, fire or a stake to the heart.
Neither of which sound like a pleasant way to go.
He shifts again, knowing Finn's going to wake up soon, and as the taller teen's arms tighten around him and he snuffles against Kurt's neck it's clear he's already awake.
"Hey."
"Hey," Kurt replies softly, not turning around. "Go back to sleep."
"You're not."
"Can't."
"Why not?" Finn presses, and Kurt should have known it would go this way. Finn's horrible at reading moods some of the time, especially when he's still half-asleep.
"Go back to sleep, Finn," Kurt repeats.
"Are you mad at me?"
"No."
"Who're you mad at?"
"I'm not mad at anyone," Kurt growls, feeling Finn flinch against his back.
"…You sound mad."
"I'm not mad, Finn," Kurt promises, reaching to settle his hands over the other boy's and stroking gently to reassure him. "I'm just…on edge. I can't relax."
"Is it 'cuz of Mr. Brown?" Finn asks after a moment, eerily perceptive again although it wouldn't take much to guess this is what Kurt's afraid of.
"Yes. I know he's out there, just waiting, and it's driving me crazy," Kurt admits, sighing as Finn wraps him up even tighter.
"Don't worry about him, dude."
"Finn, I know you're trying to be supportive, but you telling me not to worry about the man who's proven that he wants to end my life is not helping," Kurt knows he sounds snippy but sometimes Finn is hard to deal with, and when he's low on sleep is definitely one of those times.
"Oh. Sorry. Um…do you want to sleep alone? I can go to the couch or something," Finn offers, rather sweetly, and Kurt feels all his irritation slipping away.
"No, sweetie. I'm just cranky; don't worry about it. And I should be the one offering to leave; after all, I don't think I'll be getting any sleep tonight," Kurt makes to get out of the bed but Finn pulls him back and doesn't let him go.
"Stay. Even if you can't sleep, I like having you here."
And yes, Kurt thinks, only Finn has the unique ability to have Kurt feeling irritation, endearment, and complete love in less than twenty seconds. It's a rare talent.
"Okay," he concedes, turning around so he can look at the other boy. "But really, Finn: go back to sleep. It's not worth you getting no rest over."
"If I can," Finn shrugs like it's no big deal and leans in for a kiss, which Kurt happily returns. "You feeling better?"
"Not really, but having you here helps. Really," he insists as Finn looks at him skeptically, but Kurt figures that by now Finn's used to his weird mood swings.
"Cool," Finn kisses him again and Kurt lets himself melt into it, feeling slightly more at ease than he was before. It's not perfect; it won't be perfect until Mr. Brown is out of their lives for good, but it's okay, and that's all he can hope for at the moment.
000
"So, we'll have the house to ourselves?" Finn clarifies, a smile spreading across his face as his mother and Burt try to backpedal furiously.
"Yes, for a few hours, but…"
"Don't worry, Carole; we won't do anything we'll regret," Kurt promises. "And I've no doubt that while your trip to Columbus may take a few hours Blaine's date with Sam won't take nearly as long so we won't have a very large window of opportunity."
"Okay," Burt looks unconvinced but Finn's mother puts a hand on his arm and shakes her head. "Just…behave yourselves."
"We will," Finn and Kurt say at the same time before sharing a smirk, but Finn knows neither of them want to disobey their parents like this and they'll more than likely just spend the night cuddled on the couch watching television.
Which is fine with him; he likes to cuddle.
He'll like it even more when it's not like cuddling a snowman, but it's only a matter of time, now.
"Anyway, be good. We'll be back before you boys are in bed," Burt warns them before the two of them leave, and Blaine sweeps out of the house about a half-hour later with a, "Don't do anything I wouldn't," directed toward the two boys on the couch.
"We won't," Kurt promises, raising one hand in wave as the dark-haired boy leaves. Finn laughs and buries his nose in Kurt's hair as the other boy leans farther against him, and he thinks absently if things are always going to be like this he could get used to it really quickly.
Kurt's so pliant and accepting, letting Finn pull him into his lap and mouth along his neck, and Quinn and Rachel would only be complaining that he was doing something wrong (admittedly, it's a lazy enough evening that Kurt's wearing old sweats and one of Finn's McKinley shirts or else he'd be whining about Finn creasing something. But still, it's an improvement).
They, as Finn suspected, watch television for a while; Kurt half-dozing because he's still obviously lacking sleep, and when the doorbell rings Finn lifts him off (it's easy, he weighs like nothing) and goes to answer it.
"Ye-ack!" he cuts off in a rather strange yelp as he sees a gun pointed at his face, reaching a hand up to cover his eyes (and, he thinks later, that really wouldn't have been helpful, but it's a reflex thing).
"Where is he?" Mr. Brown looks crazed, dangerous, and Finn can see a stake in his free hand.
Well, crap. So much for their quiet evening.
"Where's who?"
"Don't play dumb with me, you ogre! I saw you in the hallway with him!"
And Finn's feeling mildly offended only that's not what's really important. "He's not…"
"Finn?"
Double crap.
"There you are, vampire! This time I will kill you," Mr. Brown shoves Finn aside (and really, he shouldn't be able to do that, but maybe it's that, like, crazed adrenaline burst or whatever) and heads toward Kurt, who looks utterly terrified, and he tries to back up only to hit the wall in the hallway.
Finn's frozen, completely lost as to what to do, and he thinks he blanks out for a second because when he comes back to reality Mr. Brown has Kurt clamped to his body, holding him with the stake pressing against his chest and his free hand keeping the gun leveled on Finn.
Kurt looks like he's about to sob, chest heaving with breath, and his eyes are locked on Finn's like they're trying to tell him something.
But what?
"Now, vampire, I'm giving you a choice. I can kill you right here in front of your little boyfriend or he can go into the kitchen and not watch it. Up to you," the man jabs the stake a little harder against Kurt's chest and Finn can see him flinch; see the stark terror in his eyes that has them almost rolling back and he knows that Kurt won't be of any more help to him.
He's gotta figure this one out on his own, and that's a little hard with a gun pointing at him especially because he's never been, like, the smartest guy out there.
But this is bigger than that: this is about Kurt, and he'll do anything for him.
Anything.
"So? What's your choice?" Mr. Brown's clothing is all disheveled and he looks like he's been living on the streets since the last time he attacked Kurt, and Finn wonders absently why he has the time to notice this when Kurt's life is hanging by a thread right now.
"Kitchen," Kurt says instantly, still looking absolutely petrified but his voice is surprisingly steady. "He should…kitchen."
"Go," Mr. Brown waves the gun toward the kitchen and Finn stares at it curiously, blinking, because he thinks he may have just found his out. Maybe.
"Kurt, I…"
"Just go, Finn," Kurt growls and Finn nods, trying to stay strong for the other boy as he heads into the kitchen, knowing he has to move fast because it can't take terribly long to stab somebody through the heart.
And that's just not gonna happen on his watch.
So. Mr. Brown probably didn't look at the house closely enough to realize that the kitchen led into the living room from both sides, meaning that he can essentially come out the other door and end up almost directly behind Mr. Brown.
He just has to move quietly, and for him that might be the biggest challenge.
He pads almost silently across the floor, reaching the other doorway and stepping out behind Mr. Brown who's still muttering about "been waiting thirty years for this" and "nothing's gonna save you this time, vampire," so Finn takes his chance and comes up behind him, thankful that he's considerably larger than the other man.
He grabs his arm, causing the other man to start, and somehow manages to wrench the gun away as Kurt takes the opportunity to slip out from under Mr. Brown's arm and rush to the side, moving farther into the living room.
Finn watches him out of the corner of his eye as he raises the gun and points it at Mr. Brown, trying to ignore the fact that his arm is shaking like mad.
It's just like a video game, he tells himself. Just a video game.
Mr. Brown, despite having a gun leveled at him, looks strangely unconcerned. "Tell me, vampire-lover, do you honestly have the guts to pull that trigger right now? Could you take the life of an innocent man?" And Finn snorts at the word 'innocent' but doesn't move his arm, keeping his entire focus on the crazed man. "I don't think you can. I think you should be a good boy and put the gun down."
"I can," Finn's own words surprise him, his voice hoarse from the tightness in his throat. "For him, I can. I'll do anything."
"So brave. So loyal. So stupid," the man spits. "That monster doesn't deserve the type of love you're giving him, so hand the gun over and we can rid the world of him forever."
"No," Finn shakes his head. "No, I'm not gonna…"
"Then I'll come take it from you, because I know you won't shoot me. You'd never…"
Finn watches with wide eyes as Mr. Brown slumps to the ground, unconscious, and Kurt breathes out slowly and lowers the rather large pepper grinder he'd grabbed from the kitchen.
"Biggest thing I could find," he admits with a short, shaky laugh. "And I figured with the vampire's added strength I'd have a chance. Guess I was right."
"Kurt…"
"We can cry about this later, Finn," Kurt tells him sternly, but Finn can see his eyes are already wet. "Right now we need to call 911. Can you do that?"
"Um…yeah. Definitely," Finn scrambles for the phone and makes the call, watching as Kurt sinks to the ground and buries his face in his hands, shoulders shaking and breath hitching with silent sobs. He gives the information over the phone, dropping the gun by the man's body, and goes to wrap his arms around Kurt, clutching at him tightly and feeling the other boy cling to him just as fiercely.
Right now, he never wants to let Kurt go again.
000
Carole and his dad want to come home immediately, of course, but Kurt and Finn reassure them that they're fine and everything's been taken care of so there's no reason to rush.
The police had shown up remarkably quickly and while they still can't tell them the truth about why Mr. Brown is so intent on killing Kurt, there's enough evidence here plus the fact that he forcibly entered the home with the intent of violence that he won't be a threat anymore, which Kurt is immensely grateful for.
Chances are he won't be gone forever, but chances are also great that he'll be admitted to a mental institution after a psychiatric assessment because that man is not sane.
He knows Blaine and Sam will be back soon but he can't bring himself to care right now; the adrenaline from the whole ordeal is still wearing off and he can't quite believe they've made it out alive even though he's so proud of Finn for thinking on his feet and getting them out of that situation.
Finn seems to sense his thoughts and tightens his arms around Kurt, hot breaths hitting the back of Kurt's neck, and suddenly he can't wait anymore.
And now there's no reason to.
Mr. Brown isn't a threat anymore.
The new moon's in less than a week.
Really, the only thing he'll miss about being a vampire is how much he can feel when he can Finn are together, and he knows in his heart that even if the physical experience lessens the emotional side of things won't and that's more than enough for him.
It's time.
"Finn?"
"Yeah, Kurt?"
"I love you."
He can hear Finn suck in a breath as he turns around on the couch, straddling Finn's lap and staring into his eyes. "You're sure?"
"Yeah. I just…want to put this behind me. I'm ready," Kurt promises, draping his arms around Finn's neck and moving close enough that they're sharing breath.
"D'you think when you change back it'll be like in 'Beauty and the Beast' and there'll be, like, this funky light and stuff?" Finn asks with a laugh, and Kurt can't help but smile.
Finn Hudson will always be Finn Hudson, no matter what.
"Right. Serious time," Finn clears his throat and pulls Kurt farther into his lap. "I love you, too."
Kurt surges forward and presses their lips together, letting go of everything he's been holding back and pouring it all out through the kiss.
He starts to feel a strange tingling in his limbs, like they'd get if they'd fallen asleep, before a rather violent head rush hits and he gasps, throwing his head back and digging his fingers into Finn's shoulders even as blackness swallows him up and he slumps forward, unconscious, into Finn's arms.
Notes:
1. Sorry it's been a while, guys! But between some request fics I've been writing and the end of the school year I've been swamped so here's the next chapter! And for those of you who are still waiting for request fics from me I promise I'm working on them; I just have a lot of things on the go at the moment!
2. If anybody's interested, one of the request fics I did fits into the vamp!Kurt universe (it's Blaine/Sam), and it's kind of an…AU of this fic? Regardless, what happens in there doesn't happen in the actual fic, but it theoretically could have, if that makes any sense! It's here if you're interested: aoitsukikage(.)livejournal(.)com/112135(.)html#cutid1
3. So, this story is almost at an end, as sad as that makes me. I've loved writing it so much ^_^ I have one more kind of wrap-up chapter and I'm also willing to do an NC-17 rated epilogue if anybody would be interested in that? Let me know! Also, mogamus-ii did amazing fanart for this fic, so go check it out! mogamus-ii(.)livejournal(.)com/33603(.)html#cutid1
4. Once again, thank you so, so much for the support this once-little fic has received; it means the world to me (also: 400 reviews? That's incredible!)