Returning to the Nest

The next morning dawned bright, sunny and warm. The memorial for Wes was not due to commence until 2pm, but that fact did not mean that anyone could sleep in until mid-morning, at least not if they were one of the Warblers. The only exception to the rule was David, who was still adamant in his refusal to sing; and none of the others would have dared to challenge him on it. So he still slept as the others began to converge on their old school, still standing strong and unchanged. The main difference as they walked through the doors just after 8am that morning was that they had the place more or less to themselves; all the boarders had now been relocated to newer buildings and the last of the dorms in the old school, those that had been allocated to the Warblers, now stood out of use, but still furnished.

Nick and Jeff were the first to arrive - they had spent the previous night in Jeff's old bedroom at the Sterling house; they had found themselves sharing Jeff's old bed, this time with the full blessing of his parents. Standing alone at the foot of the main staircase, under the dome, they could not resist the temptation to climb them, and open the door to Room 36, their old home. It was completely unchanged - it looked as if they had just popped out to class. Nick was curious when Jeff headed to the closet; even more so when he got down on his hands and knees and lifted up a loose piece of the floor. He pulled out a yellowed piece of paper and handed it to his husband, who could only smile when he saw the heart drawn on it with an arrow running through it, and the words 'Jeff loves Nick' written on it. Then his eyes alighted on the date in the corner - 2010. He laughed, and pulled a pen out of his pocket. Turning it over, he wrote carefully on the back 'Nick married Jeff 2014' inside a similar heart. With a broad smile, he handed it back to a grinning Jeff, who placed it lovingly back where he had found it. They had their own small time capsule set up at Dalton.

They suddenly became aware that there was someone in the room next door. They left the room quietly and pushed the door to Room 35 slightly ajar. They knew who should be there, and to their delight, it was Trent; he was sitting on the bed, an arm round Rory's shoulders. He was telling him all about his former roommate, Mitchell. He had graduated at the same time as Wes, and had stayed in touch with Trent until the steroid scandal had become public knowledge. Since then, there had been nothing, not even a brief Christmas greeting.

"I don't blame Mitch," Trent was saying as Nick and Jeff arrived. "He had parents in high places, and knowing what their reaction would have been to having a son with a connection to such a tarnished group - he'd have been given no choice in the matter. Anyway, in my Junior year, I was given a freshman roommate - Seth. The two of us rubbed along together well enough; then he was removed at Hunter's orders to Thad's old single when I refused to take the steroids. He didn't want me to contaminate him. Hunter tried his best to have me evicted from this room, but I refused and they could do nothing about it. I have some bad memories from that time here; after I was forced out of the Warblers I would come up here whilst they were rehearsing and cry my heart out - but I was always sure to be ok again by the time they came back. Mostly though, things in this room were good…" He tailed off as he realised that Niff were standing in the doorway, both looking heartbroken at the idea that their friend had been crying here all that time. "Of course," he continued, on a happier note, "after it all came out, Sebastian moved in here for the rest of my senior year. He snores…" That caused the other three to laugh.

"That's true," said a voice, announcing to them all the arrival of Dave and Sebastian; the former was rewarded with a tap on the arm for his candour.

"I told Thad you'd be up here," said Sebastian. "He is ready to commence rehearsal shortly, but first of all he wants all of us to confirm exactly what we will be singing tonight, just so he knows what is what. Then he wants to rehearse our two songs for the main memorial, before a final run through for our finale tonight, which I still can't believe we are going to do…" The others all nodded, including Dave. He was taking part in it, and he had to admit that when he was first played the song, he had gasped in shock and surprise. They all proceeded down the stairs again and along the corridor with the murals, in the direction of the Senior Commons. Inside they found Ethan, Drew, Jasper, Brad, Beats and Flint - but no Thad.

"He had to pop along to the auditorium to check something," Drew volunteered. They all took a seat, Dave and Rory to one side, and waited for the new Head Warbler to return.

Thad stood alone on the stage in the deserted auditorium. He knew that in just a few hours time, the room would be filled with friends, all there to recall the life of Wes, his one true love. The empty room had given him a chance to hide something that he would need later in the day, out of sight from anyone but him. He shivered slightly as he thought of what lay ahead, then composed himself. Right now, he had a job to do.

The rehearsals ran well, apart that is from one major hitch. When Thad had told the other Warblers that they would be performing Bye Bye Blackbird he had noticed their uneasiness at once. It had been the audition song that Wes intended to use that day; it contained his bird name; it was perfect - and oh, so very flawed. It needed a strong lead on vocals, and in the end, Nick had been chosen after Thad had declined the part himself. Nick had run over the song on a nightly basis ever since - he knew the notes, the lyrics, the tempo. He had even managed it in the Senior Commons. But once they had moved to the auditorium and he actually had to perform it there, the knowledge that he would have to sing it in front of an audience bigger than Jeff and Mike; of the Warblers; on stage, at Dalton - well, he just plain fell apart. It was all too much, and after a number of attempts had ended in tears, he gave up, and Jeff refused to let him try anymore. Thad had feared that this might happen, so he had learnt the part too - and thus he found himself upfront.

With the rest of the songs perfected, Thad sent them all off for lunch at 12.30. There was a virtual stampede in the direction of the dining hall, which had been opened specially by Principal Lefevre for the day. Thad however found himself walking in that direction at a far more sedate pace with an apologetic Nick, Jeff, Trent and Sebastian - both Dave and Rory had left about halfway through the practice. Thad had made a plan to meet David in the Senior Commons first, and the other four had decided that they would join him. None of them had seen David since the night of the wedding, and they all wanted to greet him. They saw him as they neared the door of the Senior Commons, walking towards them. What made them all stop and stare was the fact that he had someone with him. Someone that they all knew, but had not seen for so long…

It was Trent that broke the silence with one word - "Mitch!" Then he was running forward to throw his arms around his old roommate.

"Someone hasn't changed," said Mitchell, with a smile on his face.

"This is a surprise, Mitchell," said Thad, with the tiniest hint of cold steel in his tone. "Word had it that you disassociated yourself from us entirely after the emergence of the whole steroid affair."

"Guilty, but not out of choice. My parents told me that I had to, and it seemed like I had no other option at the time. I was called up before the dean at school, questioned about whether it was a new thing; they made me take drug tests… So I just forgot all about the good times; threw myself into my work. I heard about the trial, and I nearly came then, but in the end, I feared it was too late. That I had blown it and I would not be welcome. Then I got a call telling me that Wes was dead from a mutual friend of ours that had just finished his studies at M.I.T. Another ex-Warbler. As I was just telling David, he is already in the Senior Commons…"

With that, Mitch walked forward, and the others followed. The scene that awaited them all was surprising. There were three people sitting behind the council table, all wearing Dalton ties. "Oh, my, God!" said Jeff. Trent could only stare. As for Sebastian, the slightly uncomfortable look on his face that had developed on seeing Mitch increased.

"Ok," said Nick. "As the newest of all of you here - who are they?"

The oldest of the three men at the table laughed and smiled. "I could ask the same, but given that you are so close to the wonderful Jeff, you must be Nick. First Warblers to marry each other, to my knowledge. My name is Gabriel; the guy on my right is Connor; the one on my left is Louis. We were the council on the day in 2007 when a young freshman named Wes Montgomery walked in and blew us all away with his audition song. We all stayed in touch with him after we graduated, at first be E-mail and then Skype. We had a lot of long chats on Skype when the whole steroid affair first came to light, Wes and I. You all came to him for advice; and sometimes when he needed it, he came to me. If I didn't know what to do, then these two would enter the equation. We rarely met in person, even when we were both so close in Boston. I graduated from college this year, and was appointed to a very junior teaching post at Harvard about six months ago. Wes was, of course, away in New York by then. The whole business of the trial - it shock all three of us. When I heard exactly what had been done in this room…." he paused, and his eyes alighted on Nick, Jeff and Sebastian "by one Warbler to another - if he hadn't died, then I would have helped any of you in a plan to kill him. It was just after all of the details came out that Mitch called me up, feeling so guilty that he had not been there for you all. I had arranged to meet up with Wes on Sunday afternoon; I was going to talk to him about what Mitch would need to do to get back into your good books. I heard all about the accident, but didn't put all the pieces together until I was walking past the spot and saw half the Hasty Pudding Club there…. The Warblers have lost so much in the past year. I think that it is time for bygones to be bygones. If there is one thing that I am sure of, it is this - Wes would not have wanted there to be any grudges held amongst his boys…"

"He's right," said Thad, turning towards Mitch. "Wes would have forgiven you - we all know only too well how controlling our families can be over our lives. They seem to forget that we are adults now, and capable of making our own choices and our own mistakes. We try our best to please them, but sometimes it is better to rebel and say 'They are my friends and they need me.' I'm sure that had he still been here, Wes would have said more or less what I just have. Mitchell, there have been quite a few changes amongst us since you were last in touch. As Gabriel said, Nick and Jeff are married now, and are the Sterling-Duvals. Trent is engaged to a lovely Irishman by the name of Rory - he is here, and we will introduce you to him later. Wes made him an honorary Warbler too… Oh, and Sebastian has a boyfriend too - yeah, I was as shocked as you look when I heard that too." As a ripple of laughter rang out, Sebastian just shook his head. "Also, after all the chaos of the trial, it was decided that an alumni Head Warbler should be appointed. That was, of course, Wes. Now, he has passed the role to me. He appointed me as his successor by giving me the gavel. As you know…"

"Whoever holds the gavel is Head Warbler," said Mitch. "I just don't understand…"

"Why it isn't me?" said David. "Because Wes knew that I could not do the job without him to back me up, so he passed it on, with my blessing, to his boyfriend."

There was a moment of silence as David's words were digested; Mitch looked stunned; Louis and Connor looked upset. And as for Gabriel… "Ok you two, that's $50 each you owe me. I told you that Wes was gay on the day he auditioned, and you both said No Way! Money to charity, of course."

"Some things never change," sighed David. "Trent got $50 off four of us by betting that Nick and Jeff would get together before they left Dalton…"

Suddenly the room rang with laughter again, as almost everyone joined in. One person did not. He had to speak privately to two of the people in the room - and then introduce them to a third…

The whole group now made their way to the dining hall. Inside, lunch was in full swing in a room that seemed full of Dalton ties and even the odd blazer. As they walked in, David was the first to be spotted by his closest friends. Then Beats suddenly exclaimed "Mitchell!" Moments later there was a cry of "Louis? And, my God, Connor!" They both jumped out of their seats, along with Ethan and Drew, to warmly greet the three returnees that they knew, and to be introduced to Gabriel for the first time.

Trent made his way over to Rory, and pulled him out of his seat, dragging him over to Mitch. "Rory, my old roommate Mitch; Mitch, the love of my life, my fiancé, Rory," he said with a huge grin on his face.

"Hey, Rory, nice to meet you. So, our Trent managed to bag himself a gorgeous guy, who had better take good care of our Robin…" Trent gave Mitch a playful punch at that line; he had always been protective towards the younger boy, and Trent had missed him so much when he went incommunicado. Now he had him back in his life, he was determined to keep him around. Now, however, it was definitely time for lunch…

As Trent headed off to grab some food, with a blushing Rory right behind him, Sebastian walked towards Mitch, with Louis in tow, a determined look on his face. Mitch knew exactly what this was about. "So, Sebastian, is your boyfriend here?" he asked as the two walked up, "Or is it just us two, your ex-fuck buddies, that are here today?"

"He is here, and before you ask, he knows all about the two of you," hissed Sebastian. "How Louis was with you, but after two years of taking it, your straight side was becoming more dominant, and so you wanted it to stop. How you seduced me, then threw Louis into the mix, making me the one that took it instead. I have often wondered - what happened when I left? Did the two of you go back to your old arrangement?"

"Without you, dearest Seb," said Louis, "it all just fizzled out. I had decided that I was going to stop as my finals were coming up in any case; and Mitch had met a girl at Crawford County. After Dalton, I went to college, and met few guys there. Discovered I liked to take it sometimes too. Had two serious boyfriends; and second one and I are still together, both of us working in Philadelphia."

"As for me," said Mitchell, "I have a girlfriend that I love very much, and that I hope to marry in time - and before either of you ask, she is aware that I am bi, and has no problem with it, largely because she is too…"

At that point in the conversation a voice interrupted them. "Hey, Sebby, who are your friends?"

"These two guys are the ones that I told you about; my two 'friends' in my freshman year. The shorter guy on my left is Louis, who is now happily shacked up with his long term boyfriend in Philly; the guy to the right is Mitch, who now has a long term girlfriend. What can I say - after me, who comes close?"

Louis laughed out loud at that, whilst Mitch just rolled his eyes. "I take it that you are the man that managed to tame our Sebastian?" he asked.

"Yeah, that's me; and since he didn't bother to give you my name, I'm Dave Karofsky. I'd like to think that I helped him curb his wild ways and become a more rounded human being; but then again, I think that every guy he has ever slept with has left their mark upon him; all however many of us that has been…" Mitchell laughed first this time, as Sebastian just looked wounded. "Then again," continued Dave, "I was hardly a blushing virgin myself. Let's just say that both of us have lived, and now we have found the right person for us - because I love my meerkat more and more each day…"

"And I kind of like him too," said Sebastian, leaning in to give him a quick kiss. "So, lunch before there is no food left? We can share a table and the three of you can compare your experiences with the one and only me…" As the other three pondered if that was such a good idea, and more importantly, how he still had these moments of sheer gall, they headed off to find a table.

After lunch, Thad found himself alone with Principal Lefevre and her predecessor in her office. He had been inside this office only on a couple of occasions during his time as a student at Dalton; once when he had been attacked outside the school by a long forgotten assailant in his freshman year, and then again after the incident with Sebastian and the slushie. Now he stood there again, two years after he had left, back in the blazer. In the end, they had decided that wearing them again was a sort of tribute to Wes too. There was something unfamiliar poking out of his top pocket. He had placed it exactly where Wes had kept him; had even run a line of tiny stitches down the pocket, as Wes had done on his own blazer, to keep it firmly in place. That had been the first thing that Principal Carmichael had noticed when he had walked into the room. Thad was otherwise unaltered to his eyes; the same neat, tidy young man. And if he was honest, that worried him. He had always known that Thad was deeply in love with Wes, just as he had known that Jeff would end up with Nick in their sophomore year. So, given that David Thompson still looked as if the whole of his world had collapsed around him two weeks on, he had expected Thad to be an emotional wreck too. He resolved there and then that he would keep a close eye on him today - something was wrong. He looked far too calm and too content. After the memorials were finished, he would invite him to take coffee with himself and Mrs Carmichael, something that Wes had regularly done. If he couldn't get to the bottom of what was wrong with Thad Harwood, then she certainly would.

He had been so caught up with his concerns that he failed to notice that Principal Lefevre had begun to run through the order of the memorial with Thad. As well as the two songs from the alumni, the current group of Warblers would also be singing twice, once on their own, and once with the current New Directions - the bond between Dalton and McKinley had grown strong, and he was glad that his successor had encouraged it to do so. The New Directions alumni would also be singing. He himself would be making a speech, as would Burt Hummel and Will Schuester. For the boys, it had been decided that a speech would be made in which all of them present would say a few words; that one speech had been written by Trent, always the most literate of them. All, except David, who had declined, even though a part had been written for him; instead, Thad was now saying that Gabriel would read it; as it was the final part, he had also asked if he could add some words of his own at the end. Finally, there had been a last minute request to speak from Mrs Thompson - one that they would all be only too happy to grant. Thad left to tell her, and the two Principals began to prepare themselves for one of the toughest days they had ever faced at Dalton.