Aurora had always known that Andersons go to Dalton, she just didn't think that she would be included in that legacy. But after the incident at the Sadie Hawkins dance left she and her half-brother in the hospital, their father told them that Aurora would be the first female student in Dalton history, regardless of what she wanted. Of course the Dalton Brotherhood had always been her family, and being with her closest friends was exactly what she needed, but when a spy shows up in their midst, she knows that her home is going to be changed forever.

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee, or any character other than Aurora. I only own my own worldbuilding for Dalton and the Warblers, Aurora herself, and my plot

Warnings: This chapter does not touch on it but this story does include past sexual assault and hate crimes, as well as underage drinking, parental abuse, and biphobia. This story is also not going to be friendly towards Kurt, Rachel, or Finn

Somewhere Only We Know

Like Silent Raindrops Fell

Aurora straightened her jacket, glancing towards the doorway to the Commons. Blaine still wasn't there. It was three-thirty, and Blaine wasn't there. It wasn't like Blaine to be late, especially for a concert, and she had to wring her hands together to hide their shaking. She wasn't worried, she really wasn't — except that she really was. Not only was it completely out of character for Blaine – and her mind was already racing with all of the different things that could have delayed him – but she couldn't help but also worry about the performance. Their first song was a duet, and her partner was nowhere to be found. Their second song was a duet too, technically, but she couldn't worry about that yet.

She jumped when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder, twisting around to see Nick standing behind her.

"You okay, Rory?" he asked quietly, carefully unclenching her hands to hold them in his own.

"Blaine's not here," she told him, wincing when her voice cracked.

"I know," he told her, "David was going to try calling him."

He looked over to the windows on the far wall, where the senior stood with his fellow council members. Wes caught his eye and shook his head subtly, before tilting his head and his gaze shifted to Aurora — Blaine won't be here, is she okay? Nick waited until the older boy was looking at him again, and offered a slight tilt of his own head — she will be.

Had Aurora followed his gaze, she would have known exactly what was being said – or unsaid, as the case may be – but she had shut her eyes in a desperate attempt to push back against the impending anxiety attack that threatened to swallow her.

"Stop being psychic and tell me what's going on," she insisted.

"David got a hold of Blaine but he won't be here for the first song – not sure about the second yet. Wes wants to know if you're okay to keep going."

"It's a duet, Nicky. I can't sing two parts at once."

"You don't have to," he told her. "Do you trust me?"

"Of course?"

"Then just focus on me, and on your harmonies."

Aurora took a deep breath and nodded, turning to face the windows and watch as Nick caught Wes' eye and nodded firmly. Wes nodded back before whispering something to David and Thad – she couldn't hear them from the other side of the commons, but she could see when his posture shifted. She watched him transition from Wes to Wesley Montgomery, and she could see the rest of the Warblers see it too.

The group shifted, spreading around the room so casually that it looked natural, and soon Wes nodded at her. Whenever she was ready.

She took a deep breath, wishing that Nick were still beside her but knowing that he needed to be in position too, instead pulling at the hem of her navy skirt and straightening its matching sweater to comfort herself. The front of her hair was carefully pinned back on each side, but she still brushed away phantom curls before pasting a bright smile on her face.

Hello, darkness, my old friend

I've come to talk with you again

Because a vision softly creeping

As the Warblers started to "ooo" all around the room, Aurora's smile turned genuine, and she turned around to face the rest of the school. The room had fallen completely silent as soon as Aurora had begun singing, and it was easy, so easy, to lose herself in the performance. For just a moment she could forget that Blaine was MIA, she could forget all of her anxiety, she could forget everything that wasn't the music. It was just her and the song, and that was all she ever needed.

Left its seeds while I was sleeping

And the vision that was planted in my brain

Still remains

Within the sound of silence

As her first verse came to an end, the anxiety returned — muted by the comforting blanket that was the song, but present nonetheless. Blaine wasn't there, and it was his verse.

Nick's voice echoed in her head. "Do you trust me?" she could hear him asking, just as he began to sing.

In restless dreams I walked alone

Narrow streets of cobblestone

'Neath the halo of a streetlamp

I turned my collar to the cold and damp

When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light

That split the night

And touched the sound of silence

Aurora looked over her shoulder as the rest of the Warblers continued to"do-do", smiling softly as her best friend stepped forward. Of course he wouldn't let her fall, he would never let her fall. He smiled back before raising an eyebrow — oh. That was it. She turned forward again, continuing to sing what should have been Blaine's verse, with Nick and Jeff joining her to fill his void.

And in the naked light I saw

Ten thousand people, maybe more

People talking without speaking

People hearing without listening

People writing songs that voices never share

No one dared

Disturb the sound of silence

She felt, rather than saw, Nick step back into formation while Warblers harmonized across the room, their "sound of silence" echoing around the room, more perfect than it had ever been in rehearsal. She made a mental note to buy Nick coffee after the performance, waiting patiently for her cue.

"Fools," said I, "You do not know

Silence like a cancer grows

Hear my words that I might teach you

Take my arms that I might reach you."

But my words like silent raindrops fell

And echoed in the wells of silence

The song had settled into her chest, a heavy, reassuring weight brought to life by the support of her friends. It filled her, brought her to life, and suddenly she found herself understanding why Wes had chosen that particular song for her. He had always known her better than she knew herself, after all, of course he would know that this was exactly the song she needed. With the vocals building behind her, she felt invincible, like a weight was being lifted that she never even knew she was carrying. She could have — she would have — floated away, if it hadn't been for the boys surrounding her, grounding her.

It was almost overwhelming, and only Beat's familiar rhythms kept her steady to continue singing, voice soaring above the breathtaking harmonies.

And the people bowed and prayed

To the neon god they made

She worried that the last verse would fall flat without Blaine, even though she could feel Jeff and Nick stepping forward to join her. But it wasn't just them, this time. It was them. It was Nick and Jeff, but it was also Trent and Thad, and Wes and David. It was different than it was with just her and Blaine, but as the seven of them came together to close the song, she couldn't help but feel that this is what they should have been doing from the beginning.

And the sign flashed out its warning

In the words that it was forming

And the sign said, "The words of the prophets

Are written on the subway walls

And tenement halls

And whispered in the sounds of silence."

The room fell completely silent as they finished, before bursting into uproarious applause. Aurora beamed, letting Nick and Jeff pull her into a tight hug.

Suddenly Nick tensed, and the other two froze.

"Don't look yet but Blaine's here, with a New Directions spy."

Aurora fought the urge to turn and look, instead focusing on trying to remember every member that had been in their Regionals performance.

"Which one?" she asked.

"The one whose dancing you said, and I quote, made you want to gouge your eyes out with a rusted spoon."

Jeff chuckled, pulling Aurora closer against his side. "A great line, for the record."

"It's a talent," she teased. "And let me guess, he doesn't even look like he's trying to fit in?"

"He looks like he's trying," Nick corrected. "He just looks like he failed miserably."

Aurora giggled at his dramatic eye roll.

"Well," she said, "looks like Blaine is doing a solo today."

"Ror–"

"We all know the old harmonies, Jeff," she told him. "And I just… I really don't want some dishonourable spy to take the project that I've poured my heart and soul into."

Jeff sighed. "Yeah, I hear you. But you're telling Blaine."

Aurora shrugged, unconcerned. "It's a deal, Sterling."

She pulled away from the two boys, flitting between the crowd with ease to get to Wes.

"Solo, right?" he asked as soon as she was within hearing range.

"I told Jeff that I'd tell Blaine, but–"

"But you need me to activate the phoneless phone tree?"

Aurora made a face at that, folding in on herself. "I mean, if you don't mind?"

"Of course I don't mind, Aurora," he told her, squeezing her shoulder gently. "I would have made the call if you hadn't. I'm not sure why Blaine decided to bring a spy in, but that's why we have backup plans. I'll get the word going."

Aurora gave him a small smile. "You're the best, Wes. Love you."

"Love you too, Aura."

Her smile brightened and the boy turned away, exchanging quiet words with the closest Warblers, and Aurora could see the whisper travelling among the boys. They had all fallen silent, and fallen into position, by the time Blaine approached them with a wide smile.

Aurora grabbed his sleeve before he could start singing, pulling him close so that she could whisper without being overheard.

"You've got a solo," she hissed, letting go as quickly as she had grabbed him and falling into her own position between Wes and Blaine.

She watched the confusion wash over her brother's face, but to his credit, he didn't miss a beat as he spun around to begin the song.

She joined in on the "da-da-da-das" mindlessly, the simple side step requiring no real thought. Instead she concentrated her energy on not rolling her eyes at the constipated look that the spy was giving her brother.

She liked Katy Perry, she did – though not quite as much as Blaine – but she was relieved when the song came to an end.

The applause wasn't quite as enthusiastic as it had been for the first time – that was often the case in impromptu performances – and soon Trent was dragging Aurora over to join he, Nick, Jeff, Thad, David, and Wes. Aurora tried to listen to their conversation, she really did, but she couldn't drag her attention away from Blaine and the spy.

She was just starting to tune back into her boys – oh, they were talking about fall break – when she noticed the boy turning to leave.

She didn't stop to think, and she would be the first to admit that that was out of character for her. But before she could talk herself out of it, or even process what she was about to do, she found herself splitting away from the group.

"Hey!" She called out, loud enough that most of the room fell silent. "Hey, spy! Hold up, would you?"

The entire room fell quiet as Blaine and the spy turned around. That sort of a scene wasn't normal for Dalton, and all eyes were on Aurora, waiting to see what she would do next.

She froze.

She couldn't move. Couldn't think. Couldn't – she couldn't breathe. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't breathe.

Wes stepped forward, standing beside her and throwing a faux casual arm over her shoulder — to those who didn't know the inner workings of the inner circle Warblers it would look like nothing more than a show of support, a way of aligning himself with her, but the select few who knew how the Warblers really worked knew better. It was support, yes, but it was so much more. It was forgiveness; for causing a scene without permission. It was a promise; we all have your back. It was security; we've got you, you can breathe, you're safe.

"What Aurora means is," Wes started diplomatically. Aurora breathed. "Welcome to Dalton, we recognize you from New Directions at last year's regionals, can we buy you a coffee?"

END —

Thank you so much for reading! Aurora comes from an idea that I started working on about ten years ago, and a couple of months ago I decided to rework and update the concept, and I fell in love with her all over again! I really hope you all love her as much as I do, and I have plenty more Aurora content on my tumblr, randomestfandoms-ocs, so feel free to come check it out!

Songs Used:

The Sound Of Silence, Pentatonix Cover

Teenage Dream, Glee Cast Version