Title: Realm Of Nightmares

Author: To Blind One Gently (Frost)

Pairing: Kurt x Blaine, other various pairings.

Rating: T

Note: This doesn't exactly follow canon. Also, the idea and concept behind The Game is based off of the book, The Forbidden Game by L. J. Smith. This is unbeta'ed.

Chapter One: The First Nightmare

Sebastian. The name rolled around in his head and a chill of pleasure made him shiver. How strange, he thought, these feelings that seemed to flood through his veins in the presence of the taller brunette.

"The… Shadow Man?" Rachel squeaked, her eyes wide open in fear as she trembled against Finn's strong body. Kurt could feel the malice that seemed to emanate from Sebastian as the man studied the rest of the group, but for some reason, he could only feel himself become increasingly more and more calm.

"Indeed," Sebastian answered her, and just the sound of his voice and knowing that he was addressing her, sent Rachel cowering closer to Finn, "and you're in The Game. Well, more like my own little corner of the Shadow World." A snarky smirk fell upon his lips, and his green eyes nearly glowed.

"So, are we like, miniature now? Or did the paper house get bigger?" Brittany asked in her usual, curious way. "I wonder if this is how Alice in Wonderland felt when Lord Tubbington pretended to be the Cheshire Cat and gave her LSD… I caught him dealing again the other day, San. I really had hoped that he had quit, but I might have to send him back to rehab, because if he's dealing, he's doing it too." She looked so sad, and Santana pulled the girl into her arms, trying to stop her own shaking.

Brittany's attention diverted to the pretty Latina, who was rubbing small circles on the blonde's back. Kurt stilled as he saw the barely hidden fear shining in Santana's dark eyes. It took a lot to scare her, and the look she had now was borderline terrified. She nudged Sam, who seemed to catch on to the gravity of the situation, and he began to try to distract Brittany with his impersonations.

"How do we get out of here?" Blaine suddenly asked, tearing his eyes away from the girls. He stood abruptly and moved towards the door. In a flash, quicker than a blink of the eye, Sebastian was in front of the curly haired male, his cold smirk growing just a fraction. Kurt felt himself shiver; both at the loss of Blaine's warmth at his side, and of the way Sebastian held himself. He looked like a cat that was playing with a mouse.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you. The only way you can get out, back to your real life, is if you all make it to the roof after conquering all of the fears and nightmares. You, my pretty players, must win The Game to win your freedom." His expression became even colder as his smirk grew even larger.

Blaine's eyes narrowed, the earlier excitement in them replaced by fear fueled anger, and the golden hue darkened. "So, if we win, we get our freedom... What happens if you win?" A sinister chuckle left Sebastian's lips, and his green eyes rolled over towards Kurt.

"What a prize I am playing for," he whispered, and licked his lips. Kurt's breath caught in his throat, not missing the desire that shone brightly in those stunning green orbs. He felt some more of his fear chip off and fall away, almost as if that gaze was breaking down all of his barriers in some strange, magical way.

Blaine's eyes followed Sebastian's gaze, and then he stiffened to the point that he looked like he was in pain. "No," his voice came out in a low, almost possessive growl, "Kurt is not some prize for you to try to win." All of the eyes that weren't already on him turned to stare, but Kurt's own blue orbs were focused on the Shadow Man.

A scary laugh began to fall from Sebastian's lips, and his eyes flashed black for just a second. And then he was behind Kurt, enveloping the boy's slim body in his strong arms. Kurt sucked in a breath sharply, but all he could register was how Sebastian smelled, and how cold his body was.

At the exact same moment, Rachel began to scream. The shrill screeches went up nearly four octaves after the first one, and everyone except for Sebastian covered their ears. Kurt began to thrash in the Shadow Man's arms, his hands clawing at his own ears as he tried to block the noise out.

The brown eyed girl was clawing into Finn's chest with one hand, while the other was swatting at something that only she could see. "S-STAY AWAY!" She shrieked, her voice cracking. Kurt writhed in Sebastian's arms until they were facing each other.

"Whatever you're doing to her, stop it NOW!" He yelled, clenching his eyes shut as he clutched his ears in pain. Rachel's voice was powerful at her best, but the way her screams resonated through his body and eardrums was nothing that anyone in the group had ever experienced.

And just as suddenly as they had started, Rachel's screams stopped. Only her sobbing could be heard, and if it wasn't for Finn clutching the hysterical brunette to his chest, she would probably be rocking or ripping out her hair. Her brown eyes were still open wide as if she was still witnessing whatever had scared her so deeply.

"That," all heads except for Rachel's snapped back to stare in horror at Sebastian as he spoke, "was merely a glimpse into her deepest fear. She couldn't face her fear, so it only made it worse for her. But such is The Game. Each of you will be confronted with your fear, and if you can't conquer it, it will kill you. Also, if you get hurt or die when facing your fear, it will follow you into the other world."

And suddenly the Oath made so much more sense. "It may be hazardous to your life." And Sebastian seemed so calm about that fact. It was as if he already knew the outcome of The Game, and he was still biding his time. But then again, he was the Shadow Man, the villain of the game... And if he caught anyone...

Before Kurt could even think of anything to say, he was ripped from the arms that had been securely wrapped around him, and was pulled into another body that was much warmer than Sebastian's cold body. Blaine's golden eyes shone with an angry possessiveness. "Stay away from him."

Sebastian's expression remained cold, and his smirk stayed firmly on his face, but his eyes burned with an emotion that Kurt couldn't recognize. "But, Blaine, this IS a game. Chances are that we'll run into each other again. Now, enough talking. Let the Game... Begin." He snapped his fingers, and all of the lights flickered and then went out completely.

Kurt felt the warmth from Blaine disappear again, and when he reached out, he was only met with empty air. Merely a moment later, the lights stuttered back to life, revealing that Kurt was all alone. His eyes widened, darting around the empty living room.

"They're all in their respective rooms, waiting for you," Sebastian said, appearing at the top of the stairs. Kurt looked up towards him, and when Sebastian beckoned him to come up, he did so, following the Shadow Man's lead as if he were in a trance.

"Waiting for me?" He heard his own voice, but it sounded disjointed, not attached to him. Sebastian offered his hand, and Kurt took it, their eyes locked on each other. "Why?"

"Because you're the main player. They only face their fears once you are there with them." He explained, using their linked hands to pull Kurt towards him until their chests were pressed together. A cold but gentle hand reached up and caressed Kurt's cheek, and he leaned into it, still in his trance like state.

"I don't want to play any games," Kurt whispered, clouded blue eyes meeting vibrant green. Sebastian leaned in closer, his lips hovering just above Kurt's. "I only got the game so that Rachel's party wouldn't be bad... I wanted Blaine to enjoy meeting my... Friends."

Kurt's eyes cleared as Blaine's name pulled the brunette out of the fog that seemed to sweep over him in Sebastian's presence. He pulled away abruptly, his eyes widening as anger filled them. "Are you messing with my head?" He growled. To his credit, Sebastian looked a tad bit shocked, his handsome face flickering with an emotion that Kurt couldn't read.

"No, I wasn't messing with your head," his lips turned up in a smirk as he relaxed into a smirk, "maybe I'm just that charming that you let yourself be pulled towards me?"

Kurt scoffed, rolling his eyes. "In your dreams," he crossed his arms over his chest, moving to a safe distance away from the taller brunette. "As if I'd be drawn to someone who looks like a criminal chipmunk and has a bad case of Craigslist stink."

Sebastian's eyes widened just a bit, but his smirk remained firmly in place. "You never know, sometimes people don't know what they like until they try it... And I know your darkest desires, I can see them. You hate the tame life that you live in Lima. You want to get so much more out of life. I could give you that. Anything you want: all of the newest fashionable clothes, lead roles on Broadway, anything. All you would have to do is promise yourself to me," he said, and the seductive tone in his voice made Kurt shiver.

Sebastian wasn't wrong. Kurt did want so much more out of his boring life. But he wouldn't give in to the Shadow's Man tempting offer. He shook his head, a small 'no' escaping his lips. Sebastian's eyes hardened, and a deep seated fear, primal in its intensity, replaced his anger.

"As you wish," Sebastian said, his voice breezy and ice cold, and then his grin became evil, menace radiating from it. "Well, I believe that it's time for you to go face the first nightmare." He gestured to the first door on the right, which creaked as it opened. Had it even been there before? Kurt was shocked to notice that it was the only door in the long hallway.

But then the Shadow Man was gone. Sebastian vanished into thin air, and then Kurt was alone. "Kurt? Was that you I heard?" A feminine voice called out, and his eyes turned towards the door that the Shadow Man had pointed out, and saw Santana, her brown eyes meeting his.

"San!" He said, and smiled in relief to see her unharmed. She hopped up from the chair that she had been sitting on in the middle of the otherwise empty room. But as she went to cross the threshold of the doorway to join him in the hallway, but it was as if she ran straight into an invisible barrier. The girl fell backwards with a short cry.

He ran forward, but he didn't encounter the same barrier that she had. But once he was in the room, he could feel the barrier behind him, blocking their way out. He had a strong feeling that until he and Santana faced and conquered her nightmare, they would be trapped here.

And all around them, the room began to change. The walls melted away and were overtaken by weeds and trees, vines, and other foliage that Kurt couldn't identify. Santana leapt up, her eyes widening, and grabbed Kurt's hand, her breathing becoming rapid and terrified.

"Santana," he tried to get her attention, and after a few more times of calling her name, the pretty Latina finally acknowledged his calls. "San, what was your worst nightmare?" He asked, and her grip tightened.

"Being stalked in a rainforest... By a huge tarantula..." At Kurt's sideways glance towards her, the girl stiffened. "Don't judge me," she hissed, and Kurt pulled her to his chest in a comforting gesture.

"It'll be okay, we won't get caught by it. We'll get out of your nightmare alive, okay?" He felt her nod against his chest. Wary blue eyes looked around, not sure how to get out of the dream, or even confront it. "Is this anything like your nightmare? At all?"

"Yes," her words were barely louder than a whisper, "any minute now, the ground will rumble... And then the spider will show up..." Kurt felt the usually sassy and headstrong girl trembling, and he elf her closer to him. "There is a tribe," she whispered a moment later. "If we get to them, we escape the giant tarantula."

"Do you know which way they are?" He inquired, but before the girl could answer, as she predicted, the ground began to rumble. Loud footsteps were heard, and the hair on the back of Kurt's neck rose. Just how big was the spider that haunted Santana's dreams?

He got his answer a minute later when it appeared. Kurt stifled a scream of his own when he saw the tarantula, at least fifteen feet tall, making its way towards them. It's eyes, tiny and malevolent, were staring directly at them. Santana's trembling increased tenfold, and before Kurt could stop her, she was running into the forest.

NO! Stupid! His mind screamed. You don't run from a predator! Running wouldn't save them. Some part of him knew that if they wanted to get out of this alive, they had to be smart. Don't think like prey. But none the less, Kurt chased after the girl. They would get out of this alive, no matter what, they just had to.

To Be Continued...

To my reviewers: I'm not going to give away what Endgame pairing this is. ;)

Hope that you guys keep reading! (:

-Frost