Chapter Eighteen

"Kurt, it's a new school. They can't just excuse you when you haven't really started," Blaine said, giving his head a shake as he smoothed the shoulders of Kurt's new Dalton blazer for him.

The older boy let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm just still not feeling that great. And the fact that I can't use my magic right now, doesn't really help matters," he said, checking his hair in the mirror. "Normally, it wouldn't be a problem, but what if I pass out or can't concentrate or anything like that?"

"Thad's going to give you a special tea to help you stay alert for lessons today, so you don't have to worry about that. Besides, mine and David's dads worked it out so that you'll have every class with at least one other member of the Circle, mostly Thad. Though I think Beatz is in a couple too."

Kurt frowned. "Now I feel like everyone is coddling me like a baby. I hate that almost as much as admitting I feel weak."

Blaine placed both hands on his shoulders. "It's not really a coddling thing, I promise," he said, looking Kurt in the eyes. "It's actually a Circle thing. We all have classes with at least one other member in the Circle. It has to do with making sure we don't slip up, because as we are still kids, that can happen. And having another member or two around helps us keep our magic in check."

Kurt was still muttering about Thad's 'disgustingly awful teas,' when the boy in question arrived with a mug. "Don't blame me," the other boy said. "I just follow the recipes handed down from my ancestors."

"Well your ancestors could have come up with a way to make them taste less awful," Kurt muttered, taking the mug from the boy anyway.

"Doesn't he look so handsome?" Blaine said.

Thad just rolled his eyes at both of them. "David said to tell you that he will be up in a little bit to stay with you, but you'll be alone for about fifteen minutes."

"Why isn't Wes coming?" Blaine asked.

"Wes had a little bit of an accident last night," Thad said.

"I don't like the idea of Blaine being alone for any amount of time right now," Kurt said firmly. "Either someone stays in this room until David gets here, or I'm not stepping outside that door."

"I'll be fine, Kurt," Blaine assured him. "We already know Andrew can't get in here, and I'm not completely defenseless. I still know how to use protective spells."

"But I know how badly you want to leave this room, Blaine," Kurt said, frowning.

The shorter boy rolled his eyes. "I'm not an idiot. Yeah, I'm starting to get a little bit of cabin fever in here, but I'm not just going to walk out when I know my life is at risk."

Kurt took a step back from him, unable to keep the flash of hurt off his face. "I didn't say you were an idiot, Blaine," he said flatly, before he turned and walked right out the door.

"Well, that went well," Thad said.

"Don't just stand there!" Blaine said. "Go tell him that wasn't what I meant!"

Thad raised an eyebrow. "I'm not going to be the messenger for a quarrel. You'll have to fix it yourself after school."

"Do you think he will actually come back to this room after that? Think, Thad! He thinks I just insulted him. He isn't going to voluntarily return to talk things out."

"And you're so sure that he's going to believe you're really sorry if one of us tells him and not you?" Thad shook his head. "We'll make sure he comes back, but you need to apologize yourself."

Blaine sighed and pulled at his hair in frustration. "Maybe I am an idiot."

…

Kurt had a free period before lunch, and dragged himself to the dining room, feeling even worse than he had the day before.

"Kurt?" came Jackie's voice when she spotted the boy sitting alone at the table. "What's the matter dear? You don't look so good."

He glanced up at her, and sighed. "Just not having a good day, I guess."

Jackie slid into the seat across from him and immediately took one of his hands in hers, patting the back of it. "Why don't you tell me all about it?" she said.

He sighed again, shaking his head. "My head is still throbbing, and every time I turn around, Thad is forcing another one of those nasty teas down my throat. And I think I may have offended Blaine, but he didn't have to be so mean about it."

Jackie frowned. She turned the palm of Kurt's hand over and proceeded to do the same as she had the day before, wanting to know exactly what had happened. She looked thoughtful when she pulled her hand away again. "The problem when you like someone is that every concern seems to be ten times more heightened than normal, because you worry you did something to make them hate you."

Kurt pulled his hand away slowly, and put his head down on the table. "I don't know what I feel about Blaine. I mean, I only just met him, but it feels like I've known him forever. And it doesn't help that everyone keeps comparing us to Ethan and Devon. I mean, look how great that worked out."

She chuckled. "Yes, but Ethan and Devon lived in a time when it was more than unacceptable for two boys to show PDA in public. I know that is a bit of a problem still here in Ohio by human standards, but it's much more acceptable in the wider range of the US. Furthermore, haven't those boys said that Devon was extremely oblivious? You want them to stop comparing the two of you to your heir counterparts, then don't let history repeat itself. Don't let yourself deny what feelings you may have and take a chance. I think you'll find how much less lonely you'll feel."

Kurt looked up at her. "I should apologize to Blaine, shouldn't I?"

"You should. As he should to you," she said.

He smiled weakly at her. "I kind of feel like I dragged you here for no reason. We haven't worked on controlling my magic once since you arrived, and now I can't even use them for two days."

She reached out and patted his hand again. "Life has a funny way of coming full circle," she said. "I promise you, we will get the chance. But right now, there are more important matters. Besides, don't you know being dragged out for no reason is what great aunts are for?"

That actually drew a little laugh from him. "I'm hungry. Would you like a snack and some real tea, or should we wait for them to put lunch out?"

"That sounds lovely, dear," she said.

"Then tea and lemon cookies it is."

…

Blaine was still pacing the room when there was a sudden knock on the door. "Tell them we don't want any," he said to David as the darker boy got up to answer the door.

David frowned. "Wow, your boxers are still in a bunch?" he said. Blaine threw him a glare and he raised his hands in surrender as he approached the door, pulling it open. "Ms. Pillsbury, you're early," he said.

"I know, and I'm sorry if I am interrupting, but it really is important that we speak."

"Do you mind if we include Blaine? Aside from myself and Wes, everyone else is in class and we can't leave him unguarded right now." David glanced at the armchair where he'd made Wes sit and forbade him from getting up.

The other boy nodded in agreement. "If you have news about Clarington, then Blaine has a right to know as well."

"Alright," Emma agreed with a nod of her head as David let her into the room. Blaine stopped pacing and glanced over curiously.

"What's this about Clarington?" he said.

Emma looked between the three boys. "Are you all aware that the Claringtons have a grudge against the Smythe family?"

Wes nodded. "We're aware that there is bad blood between them."

She nodded. "Well, it's no secret that neither party has ever alluded to the reason why. However, I was in attendance at the Grand Council Conference last summer and I overheard an argument between Clarington and one of the Smythes. Apparently, the Smythe family owes the Claringtons money from something they helped them with years ago." Emma shifted. "Clarington demanded that his ancestor was promised payment for the job, but Smythe reiterated that they were not obligated to pay because the job was botched."

Wes and David exchanged a look. "I'm sorry," David said. "I'm not sure how that helps us?"

She looked between the three boys. "The Claringtons have been known to summon demons in the past," she said.

They exchanged a look. "Are you certain about that?" Wes asked.

"Absolutely positive. My family has crossed paths with them several times in our magical line of work."

"So, Clarington's great great whatever may have summoned a demon for the Smythes?" Blaine asked. "Is there any proof that one of the Claringtons was even in the region at the time?"

David shook his head. "I don't know. But that's something we can look up. At the same time, if it turns out to be true, then it fits what we were looking at having happened. But if the job was botched, that means that whatever Andrew was trying to do didn't work out in his favor."

"The question still stands, though," Wes said. "What was Andrew's intent that night?"

"He was after Devon then, and he's after Blaine now, but why?" David said, sounding frustrated.

Blaine was looking slightly confused. He squeezed his eyes several times. "He was making unwanted advances towards Devon," he said several moments later.

They all turned to the curly haired witch. "Was that part of the memory you picked up from Devon?" David asked.

Blaine nodded. "Andrew was openly flirting with him. He continued, despite Devon's clear words that he wasn't interested. Andrew hated Ethan because he was so close to Devon." Blaine blinked. "Which might be why he pretended to be Ethan that night! He knew Devon would never refuse to come if Ethan wanted him there."

Wes and David thought about it for a moment. "Devon wasn't as powerful of a witch as his brother, Johnathan," Wes said. "If Andrew appeared to Devon as Ethan, he might have been able to slip Devon some kind of adoration potion, or used some kind of charm to make him believe he was Ethan, and that he was madly in love with him."

"Demons will grant wishes, for a price," Emma said. "Do you think he might have been trying to summon the demon to get Devon to love him?"

David shook his head. "Andrew didn't believe in love. For him it was all about the physical. He would have made Devon his devoted sex slave."

"The fact is," Emma said, "do you think Andrew wanted to summon the demon to get Devon to want to be with him?"

Blaine was frowning. "The demon was promised a new body, and a soul to torment."

David stood up straight. "What if the intent was for the demon to possess Ethan and torment his soul, while Andrew took over his life, and used Devon until he tired of him?"

Wes' eyes went wide. "We've already figured out that Devon is the one who got possessed by the demon. What if he did it to protect Ethan?"

Blaine's face went white. "Ethan locked away the love he had for Devon in the emotion cage. Maybe he couldn't protect himself from the demon. But because Devon still felt the love he had for Ethan, he made a deal with the demon?"

David shook his head. "But Ethan didn't have the emotion cage that night. We know from Kurt's memory reading that Matthew had already stolen it."

"That wouldn't have mattered," Emma asserted. "He most likely only kept the emotion cage close to him for safe keeping, but in reality, he didn't need to have it physically on him to cage the emotion. The only other time I've heard of a witch using an emotion cage, he locked away the anger he had after his wife's death. He caged the emotion, and then buried the cage with her."

The three boys frowned. "So then, the question is now, what kind of deal would Devon have made with the demon?" Wes said.

"And at what point did Winston interrupt?" David added.

"Probably early enough that it warranted Andrew's decision to kill him," Blaine said. "Clearly Andrew thought Winston knew too much."

They were all silent for a few minutes, each lost in thoughts, until there was a soft knock on the door, and Kurt slipped inside, carrying a lunch tray. His eyes were on Blaine, expression apologetic, until he noticed the woman in the room.

"Ms. Pillsbury? What are you doing here?" he said, completely surprised by the presence of the guidance counselor of his former school.

She smiled kindly at him. "I asked Santana and Mercedes to bring me here yesterday after overhearing them talk about Hunter Clarington."

"Wait, you're a witch?" he said, even more surprised.

"Yes, I'm in the same Circle as the girls. I wanted to warn your friends about the possibility that Clarington may be using them to get revenge on Smythe."

Kurt frowned. "Mercedes and Santana never told me about you. They just said that no one else in New Directions was a witch." He cautiously approached Blaine with the lunch tray. "I don't know anything about Clarington. Wes postponed my vow ceremony because he didn't want me here while Clarington was."

"Well," Emma said, "I'm not the only other witch at McKinley they might not have mentioned. But they were correct when they told you no one else in New Directions was a witch, unless we don't know about them, which could be the case. Some Circles keep their inclusion a secret even from outside witches."

"Why?" Kurt asked, setting the tray carefully on the table beside Blaine. The darker haired boy looked at him, a hopeful expression on his face. Kurt smiled shyly back at him.

"Because," the redheaded witch said. "Unfortunately, some Circles are paranoid about being infiltrated by witches that practice dark magic. So they keep their existence a secret from anyone not a part of their Circle."

Wes frowned. "But if they aren't on the High Council's list, then they are practicing illegally."

"I didn't say they kept it a secret from the High Council. Just from people in the area. Essentially, the High Council are the only ones who do know they exist."

David frowned. "My dad never told me there were unlisted Circles. Of course, he wasn't actually on the council, just an advisor."

"Which would make sense," Emma said with a nod. "Even if he was on the High Council, the unlisted Circles are in the classified files. Which means he wouldn't have been allowed to tell you anyway."

Kurt hadn't really been following the conversation, but did have a question. "Why would Clarington want revenge on Smythe?"

"Because the Smythes owe the Claringtons money," Emma said.

"If Clarington's ancestor did summon the demon for Andrew, Hunter may not want us to free Ethan and Devon," Wes said. "He may be trying to sabotage our efforts to solve the mystery. What if he is the one who cast the discord invocation when he came to examine Blaine?"

The other boys in the room all seemed to go slightly pale for a moment when Emma cleared her throat. "Don't worry about Clarington," she said. "As long as I'm here, he'll keep his distance."

They looked at her in curiosity. "You seem awfully certain of that," David said.

Emma crossed her legs and hooked her hands around her knees. "Of course," she said. "The Claringtons may like to summon demons. But my Line, well, we banish them."

…

Just after Emma Pillsbury left, Wes' phone rang, and he frowned at the caller ID. "It's my dad," He said, raising the phone to his ear. "Hey dad, are you back in town now?"

The other three boys watched as Wes' expression changed from curious to upset. "What? What did they say?" David and Blaine exchanged a look, while Kurt just frowned as the Asian witch stood and began pacing. "They can't do that!"

"They don't really have a choice, Wesley," Lucas Montgomery said. "Clarington is the only heir apparent. If they can't find another living heir to the Dalton Line, it's his right to claim the seat."

"At least tell me you have trackers searching for another option?" Wes asked.

"I convinced them to give us time to hopefully find a more suitable candidate. But I can't make any guarantees, Wes. I'm not any happier about this than you are."

"Okay. You'll tell me what happens, no matter what?"

"You have my word. As my heir to the council seat, you have full right to any and all information not marked as classified."

"Okay. Thanks dad. Love you."

"Love you too, son. I'll be home as soon as I can. And then you can catch me up on all this progress I've been hearing you've made on the Dalton Circle mystery."

"Looking forward to it." He hung up and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

"Bad news?" David asked.

"The worst news," Wes sighed. Behind David, Kurt and Blaine exchanged glances. "Can I talk to you privately for a moment, David?"

"Of course."

Wes looked between the door and the bathroom door, deciding on the latter. "Just put a spell on it so we can't be heard through the door," he told David. He didn't want to risk leaving the room while Blaine was still a target, especially with the news Emma had given them earlier and what his father had just shared.

Kurt and Blaine watched the two boys disappear into the bathroom, before glancing at each other, neither speaking for a moment.

"I'm sorry..."

"Forgive me…"

They both laughed as they spoke over each other.

"I'm sorry, Blaine," Kurt said, shifting from foot to foot. "I wasn't trying to offend you. I was just worried. I knew someone once who was kept in his room for days on end and it kind of drove him crazy." He wasn't about to elaborate. "I know I don't have first hand experience, but it's not healthy to stay cooped up and I just don't want anything bad to happen to you either way. That's all."

Blaine shook his head. "I'm the one who should apologize. I knew that wasn't what you were implying. I just sometimes talk before I think."

"I wish those instances would produce a good result once in a while. But talking before you think never ends well."

They both laughed a little at that, and then stood there in silence for a moment, before realizing this was the first time they were completely alone together since that day on the stairs.

Kurt suddenly felt a bit shy and ducked his head, looking for something to say, but only coming up with one thing. "What do you supposed that phone call was about?" He mentally scolded himself. Finally alone with Blaine and all he can say is more talk on the current situation. What was wrong with him?

Blaine's face went unreadable for a moment, before he shook his head. "I don't know. They'll tell us if it's important."

"It sure upset Wes, whatever it was," Kurt said, moving to sit on the couch. "Join me?"

Blaine nodded and sat beside him, smiling a little. "I don't know if you noticed, but Wes is a bit high strung."

"Really?" Kurt said, feigning surprise. "No, I hadn't noticed," he added, smiling at the younger witch. "But I did notice you don't have any gel in your hair today."

Blaine blushed. "I ran out, and Thad refused to get me any more."

"I think you look good," Kurt said, blushing himself. "Your curls are cute and look very springy." Oh Gaga, what was he even saying?

"Your hair always looks perfect," the hazel eyes boy said.

"That's because I didn't listen to Dakota Stanley when he said to stay away from aerosol cans. I think he thought I would light myself on fire."

Blaine giggled. Meanwhile, in the bathroom, a much more tense conversation was going on.

"They can't be serious," David said, frowning and crossing his arms over his chest. "I wonder if it would help if we tell them the Claringtons have a penchant for summoning demons."

Wes shook his head. "Demon summoning isn't considered taboo, except when used to commit a crime."

"Technically what he did could be a crime," David argued, dropping down onto the edge of the bathtub. "Goddess, I'm so wound up right now."

Wes sighed and moved to stand between his knees. "I know, and I wish we had time to do something about that. But even if we can prove that Clarington's great great grandfather or whatever summoned the demon that led to Winston's death, we can't pin it on Hunter. He has proof that his line is connected to the Dalton Line, and has petitioned to claim Dalton's seat at the Dalton Table."

David groaned. "After all this is said and done, I'm petitioning for the right to an extended getaway, with you along for the ride."

Wes smiled at that. "Oh yeah? And just where are you planning on taking me?"

"Hawaii? The Bahamas? Anywhere we can get a nice beach to lie on and just soak up the sun, and each other."

"I like the sound of that." He leaned down and kissed the darker witch briefly on the lips.

…

A knock on a door broke the silence of the empty halls. It was after hours of course, but the woman had business to handle. She sat at her desk using a pair of scissors to cut faces out of every copy of the McKinley Thunderclap.

"What do you want?" the woman called out.

The visitor apparently decided to take that as an invitation to enter the woman's office. "I want to know what you know about Kurt Hummel," they said.

The woman dropped her scissors and stood slowly from her desk, her tall lean figure seeming to loom over it as she placed one hand on her hip and one hand palm flat on the desk in front of her. "And why should I give you that information?" she said.

"Because," the visitor remarked. "If you don't, I'm going to expose you to your precious Cheerios."

"You think that is a threat? Half of them are already convinced of the truth anyway," Sue said, not even the slightest hint of fear in her being.

"Kurt Hummel is in my way," the visitor said. "If that won't convince you, consider this. If you don't tell me what I want to know, I'll just slit his throat and toss him aside like a Raggedy Ann doll. I have no qualms killing people."