AN: Hello klainers! Happy Sunday to you. I've been struggling this weekend to stay on task and I have to thank the sweet kathorakiryu who gave me the motivation I needed to get this posted. :)
Of course I also have to thank my amazing beta TheatreVicki for helping with this chapter and pointing out a few plot holes I needed to fix. She is the best!
And thank to all of you who are reading and commenting and rebloging this fic, it means the world to me! xoxo

Enjoy!


"Falling for someone is easy, getting back up after the fall is the problem." – Unknown


Blaine was sitting on Kurt's couch, a plush cream colored sofa that you sank down into and didn't want to get up from, watching as Kurt paced the room, his phone to his ear.

Kurt's plan was to ask his boss if he could have the third floor mirror as part of a bonus he had coming. Blaine felt awful that Kurt was giving up his hard earned bonus, but Kurt had insisted, "Really Blaine, it's fine. Taking care of magical objects is kind of what I do."

Still, as Blaine watched Kurt make the call, he couldn't help but feel apprehensive. Everything was happening so fast; he had thought that he was rid of that cursed mirror years ago, and now he'd been magically swept away and was sitting in the New York apartment of his high school crush, anxiously waiting to know the fate of a mirror he hated. It was all too weird to take in; besides, he was still so tired. He really needed a good night's rest.

"Hi Nathan!" Kurt smiled into the phone, his eyes bright and a wide grin on his face. Blaine's heart skipped a beat.

Kurt made general chit-chat for a moment, laughing a lot and… was Kurt flirting with his boss? He certainly seemed less hesitant talking to Nathan than he had been talking to Blaine. Blaine looked away for a moment, his heart suddenly pounding a little faster and his throat feeling dry. What was wrong with him?

Blaine glanced back up when Kurt laughed again and then Nathan Britton said something from the other end that made Kurt's cheeks flush a pretty pink and Kurt cleared his throat, shot a glance to Blaine and then lowered his voice, "Um… we don't really have to talk about that right now," before slipping out the sliding glass door to finish his conversation on his balcony.

Blaine sat on the couch with a weird heavy feeling in his chest. He could still see Kurt outside, and while he tried to tell himself to look away – that it wasn't his place to pry –he couldn't help but notice the smile that stayed on Kurt's face while he talked to his boss.

His boss, Nathan Britton, co-owner of Britton House International. Millionaire and eligible bachelor.

Blaine remembered reading about him once in GQ. He swallowed uneasily, trying to understand why he was feeling the way he felt right now because…. because he felt jealous.

Blaine tore his eyes away from Kurt and glanced down at his hands. That was this heavy feeling in his chest, the reason his hands felt clammy. He wanted to excuse it as being overly tired, but it was more than that.

Yes, he used to have romantic feelings for Kurt years ago, back when they were teenagers, but he didn't realize he still felt that way. He had no right to be jealous – they'd never been anything other than friends – and it was Blaine's fault that communication between them had stopped. Still, as he stole another glance at Kurt, he couldn't deny the fact that all his pent up feelings from years ago were coming back full force now.

It didn't help that Kurt turned out to be absolutely breathtakingly beautiful.

Kurt had once described himself as, "ordinary looking with chubby baby cheeks and wide hips". Blaine had no idea where that boy went; in fact, he suspected Kurt didn't have a clue of how he truly looked because god – Kurt was tall and lithe and had perfect skin and perfect hair and his eyes? Blaine's heart fluttered a little just thinking about how blue and energetic they were.

Blaine already knew that Kurt was smart and brave and kind; the fact that he was stunning as well was more than Blaine could handle right now. Especially when he was just feet away, outside flirting with a rich eligible older man.

Soon Kurt came back to the living room, smoothing his immaculate hair and giving Blaine a guarded smile, "One enchanted mirror on its way."

Blaine lifted his eyebrows in surprise; he half expected getting the mirror to be more complicated, "He just let you have it?"

"Yeah, it was fine," Kurt said, shrugging it off as if it wasn't a big deal, his cheeks still rosy from his conversation with Nathan Britton.

"Ah," Blaine nodded and looked down at the sweatpants he was wearing, they were soft and comfortable and too long on him. He was sitting cross-legged and started playing with the hem, not making eye-contact with Kurt, "So you and your boss… Nathan… are you two…" He wasn't sure how to ask this without being too forward, "Um… do you. Are you together?"

"No," Kurt answered quickly.

Blaine's head came up, "No?"

Kurt let out a dramatic sigh and then flopped down on the couch next to Blaine, his long legs stretched out in front of him as he tipped his head back on the cushion, which of course arched his lovely pale neck and made Blaine's breath stutter.

"Nathan and I used to have a… thing."

Blaine nodded, "Oh."

He watched Kurt, trying to read his mood, but he was unaccustomed to actually looking at him when they talked – his body seemed relaxed, but his lips were pursed tight.

"It was a while ago and it is over now."

"Is that why you blush so much talking to him?" Blaine teased, trying not to show any unjustified jealousy.

Kurt quickly turned his head to look at Blaine, his eyes wide in surprise. Blaine just smirked at him and Kurt's surprised expression morphed into a grin as he grabbed a decorative pillow next to him and threw it at Blaine, "Hush you."

Blaine caught the pillow and laughed, "That blush ruins your poker face you know."

Kurt rolled his eyes, "If I was blushing, it is only because Nathan might sometimes suggest that he'd like to start things up again."

"And?" Blaine asked, wishing he didn't feel so invested in Kurt's answer.

"And I think it's a bad idea."

Blaine nodded, his face breaking out in an irrepressible smile. He was relived, it was dumb to care when he hardly knew the man in front of him, but he had to admit he was relived. And he used to know Kurt well; once upon a time, Kurt was his best friend and maybe something more…

"I had a huge crush on you," Blaine blurted out; he never had been good at holding back his feelings.

Kurt sat up straight to look right at him as his mouth fell open, "You…. What?"

"Back when we used to talk," Blaine explained, "I had all these ideas in my head about how one day we'd run into each other and I would just know it was you and…" Blaine cleared his throat as he felt his own cheeks heat up, "Yeah I had it bad."

"You did know it was me," Kurt said quietly, his expression unreadable, but his eyes glistening. "In the basement you knew it was me."

Blaine let out an awkward chuckle and rubbed the back of his neck bashfully, was it getting very warm in here? "Your voice," Blaine said, his heart beating heavily in his chest, "I'd recognize it anywhere."

Kurt arched an eyebrow, "It is distinctive." He relaxed back into the couch, somehow sitting closer to Blaine now. "I had a crush on you too."

"Yeah?"

"I could hardly wait for summer time just to have the chance to talk to you for a few weeks."

"We never had long."

"Still, you were my best friend."

"Mine too," Blaine said with a silly grin, things were feeling easy with Kurt again, this is what he wanted, what he had missed for so long.

"And then you disappeared on me."

Blaine's smile slipped. "I…"

"Sorry to bring the mood down," Kurt added, his voice and posture stiff, "Actually, I'm not sorry. I just… I didn't know what happened to you for six years Blaine." He looked up, all traces of his blush gone. "And I understand your aunt got sick and that's horrible, I hate it… And okay, you don't care for magic all that much… but why cut me out?"

Blaine sighed; he owed him a full explanation, he knew he did. Besides, the expression on Kurt's face told him it was the only way for them to move forward. "After Aunt Helen… lost herself," Blaine said, forcing the words out, "I was so angry with magic that I just gave up on it, Kurt."

"But why?" Kurt scooted even closer, his hands twitching forward, as if he wanted to take Blaine's hand in his own, but he placed them back down in his lap instead. "Aunt Helen got sick? I feel so bad about that, but why blame magic?"

Blaine looked at Kurt's hands, smooth skin and long fingers – he reached out, twisting their fingers together, waiting to see if Kurt would pull back, but thankfully, he didn't. Blaine couldn't look Kurt in the face as he spoke; instead he kept his eyes on their clasped hands.

"Helen stopped caring about anything else in her life; she could only think about magic and Saffron and those damn mirrors. She worked herself sick, not sleeping, barely eating, trying strange spells and potions that only made her worse. The doctor put her on bed rest and then…" Blaine glanced up and swallowed deeply, finding Kurt's clear blue eyes watching him with concern.

"She disappeared. One morning, Millie went in to check on her and bring her breakfast, and she wasn't there. She was missing for three days before they found her wandering around the third floor in her nightgown, which was torn and muddy. She was muttering about mirrors."

"Missing? For three days?" Kurt said his voice shocked, "Where was she?"

"No one knows and she never recovered after that. My mom sent her to all the best doctors, but her mind was just gone… she was put in a home for the mentally ill in California where we could all be close to her." Blaine's voice cracked but he pushed on, "I had hoped that when I got old enough, I could get her out and take care of her myself… but the doctors don't recommend letting her out of their care and…" Blaine paused to take a deep breath, his throat filling choked up and his heart twisting in his chest. He shrugged, "I don't think it was just her obsession with magic that drove her mad; she was found in the room with the mirror on the third floor, and I think it did something to her."

Blaine watched Kurt, waiting for a reaction as he took a deep breath, "I hated Callaway Place after that. I hated magic, and… and myself for letting it happen to her."

"Blaine." Kurt's face had gone pale, his lips pressed together tightly as Blaine clung to his hand. He couldn't read Kurt's expression and felt silly just sitting there with Kurt's hand in his, but at the same time, he really didn't want to let go. Finally, Kurt sighed, his eyes looking a little teary, "I am so sorry. I… that's awful. I'm sorry, but what happened wasn't your fault." He shook his head as if not knowing what else to say; he leaned slightly forward as if he might give Blaine a hug, but then didn't follow through.

"I felt like it was my fault." Blaine confessed, "I knew about the mirror and did nothing." He'd thought that for years, but was never able to tell anyone before, "So I told my parents to sell the things from the third floor, broke the mirror in my room and swore never to use magic again."

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hands and looked like he might cry, "Oh Blaine." And Blaine recognized that kind tone; it was the same one Kurt had used to comfort him after the Sadie Hawkins dance all those years ago.

Blaine sighed, feeling a little better having told Kurt. He never really had the opportunity to share this with anyone else; Kurt was the only person to know about the magic at Callaway Place. "But, of course, somehow that mirror ended up with you and then dragged me here. I can't seem to get away from it and I doubt that's a coincidence."

"Definitely not a coincidence," Kurt said, as he folded his legs up on the couch and sat so close that their knees touched, "but I can't explain it any more than I can explain how our mirrors connected in the first place or how you came through the mirror today."

"I just want to find a way to end this, Kurt. I owe my aunt that."

Kurt nodded earnestly, their hands still clasped, "I'll help in any way I can. I know a lot more about magic than I once did, and there is information in my book – Oh god." Kurt's eyes grew round and he let go of Blaine's hand suddenly and stood from the couch, "My book!"

Kurt ran to the kitchen and Blaine stood and watched him. Kurt's messenger bag was lying on the counter, still damp. "Oh no no no." He cried as he opened the bag and pulled out the large, black leather-bound book Blaine had seen in the basement.

Blaine walked over to the counter as Kurt opened the waterlogged book. The pages were soaked through, and when Kurt tried to flip the first one, it ripped; Kurt sucked in a breath and froze. "Okay, okay. I can fix this, I can fix this." He carefully shut the book and grabbed his phone, looking shaken.

Not knowing how to help, Blaine waited on a barstool at the counter as Kurt had a hurried conversation with someone named Jane about her taking a look at his book. Blaine glanced down at the title; he couldn't make out all of it, the gold lettering was worn, but it had the word 'witchcraft' in it. Blaine shivered.

Kurt hung up and leaned against the counter, looking drained, "Jane will take a look at it; she does art restoration and specializes in manuscripts. Working at Britton's comes in handy."

"I hope she can help, but Kurt…" Blaine glanced down at the book, pushing it away from him gently, "What is this? Witchcraft? Really? " His stomach rolled at the word; the only witch he knew of was Saffron and he didn't even like to think of her.

"It's just another word for magic." Kurt explained, "Magic has been associated with all kinds of things in the past, witches, wizards, fairies… but it is all just magic."

Blaine let out a long breath of air; he'd almost forgotten how excited Kurt got about magic. In all these years, it didn't seem like his enthusiasm had faded.

"This book opened up the mirror at Britton's and closed it. It has the spell that allowed me to talk to you in the first place. Plus, there is a whole section on mirrors and communication and transportation… It isn't bad Blaine… it's just…"

"Magic." Blaine finished for him.

"Magic can be good, Blaine," Kurt said, his expression sincere, "it can be so good."

Blaine nodded slowly, but before he could argue, his stomach interrupted them by growling.

Kurt's eyes lit up with his smile, "What if I made us some lunch? And then we can talk more about this… about your aunt, if you want, or about anything. We have a lot to catch up on and the mirror isn't being delivered until tomorrow, and Jane will stop by this afternoon for the book. If you don't have to get back to Maine right away…"

"I don't."

Kurt tilted his head and shrugged a shoulder, "You could stay here."

Blaine looked at Kurt, his face nonchalant but his fingers drumming nervously on the counter. Staying here with Kurt seemed like a wonderful idea.

"Okay." Blaine nodded.

Kurt's eyes flitted up to meet his as he smiled, "Okay."


"Kurt Hummel, what have you done!" Jane stood in Kurt's kitchen that afternoon looking down at his sodden book with an expression of horror on her face, "Did you dump it in the Hudson?" She looked up at him, her eyes accusing, "I would have thought you of all people would know to treat an antique with more respect."

"It wasn't on purpose," Kurt said, shifting on his feet and feeling properly chastised.

Jane shook her head and gently lifted the leather cover, "This is at least 100 years old and seems to have been in good repair until you dunked it in water."

Kurt glanced over at Blaine who was leaning against a counter with a completely unhelpful smirk on his lips.

"I'm sorry." Kurt said, not knowing what else to say; he couldn't tell Jane how he ended up soaking a rare manuscript. "Can you save it?"

Jane tsked but nodded her head, "I think so. Maybe. The ink doesn't seem to be diluted so I need to separate the pages and get it dry. It may never be like it was before but I don't think it is completely ruined."

Kurt sighed in relief, "Oh god, thank you! I'll pay you for your time. I just really appreciate this."

Jane looked up with a smile, "I heard that you asked for that old mirror in the back storeroom?"

"Yes."

Jane shot a glance at Blaine, "Um well… consider that my payment, you getting that thing away from me."

Blaine lifted an eyebrow, "You don't like it either?"

Jane shook her head, "You know about the mirror?"

"Yeah, it's awful."

Jane laughed, sounding relieved, "That seems the right word for it."

Kurt looked back and forth between Jane and Blaine and smiled watching them, but he felt a little envious. Blaine seemed like someone easy to get along with; Jane obviously liked him. Kurt, however, was still struggling to know how to feel about him. "Have you been in that storeroom by chance?" He asked, still glancing at Blaine, "Since the auction?"

"I was there this morning."

"How did it… look?" Kurt asked, looking back at Jane. The mirror had sucked everything back in – water, seaweed, sand… but Kurt had left so quickly that he didn't really know what kind of shape they'd left the room in.

Jane shrugged, "The electricity in that area is being fixed and some of the furniture has been moved… nothing out of the ordinary. Why? Did something happen?"

Kurt shook his head.

Jane nodded slowly like she didn't quite believe him but didn't want to ask, and then she very carefully placed Kurt's book in a thick plastic ziplock bag.

Kurt hated to see it go; now of all times he needed it, but this was the only way to make sure it wasn't destroyed.

"I'll get it back to you as soon as I can," Jane assured him. "Blaine, it was very nice to meet you. Please keep Kurt from doing anything crazy with that creepy mirror he has coming."

"I'll try, but you know Kurt," Blaine said with a wink and Jane laughed and nodded in agreement.

"I'll walk you out." Kurt followed Jane to the door and then out to the hall.

"Your friend is gorgeous," Jane remarked as they waited for the elevator, "How have I never heard you talk about him?"

Kurt cleared his throat, "I… um, haven't seen him in a while."

"Mmm, is something going on there?"

"Something going on?" Kurt asked, arching an eyebrow and pretending to not understand what Jane was implying.

"There just seemed to be some heavy air between the two of you. And you look at him a lot."

"I…" Kurt's cheeks flushed; he really didn't have a poker face. "I don't-"

Jane lifted a hand and smiled, "That's all the answer I need."

Things between him and Blaine weren't what Jane seemed to be assuming, not anymore at least, but there was no reason to argue the point. They said their goodbyes and then Kurt made his way back to his apartment.

Blaine was in the living room glancing over the books in the inset bookshelf that made up one of the room's walls.

"A Historical Index of Magical Objects," Blaine pulled the small purple book out and turned to smile at Kurt. "I remember you reading me passages from this book."

Kurt nodded and toyed nervously with the hem of his shirt, a warm feeling expanding in his chest at the memory, "You liked the part about Orpheus' lyre."

"I did. How could I not like an instrument so beautiful it could tune out the siren's song?"

"I can't believe you remember that."

"I remember all the things we used to talk about," Blaine said quietly, looking down at the book.

Damn this man and his bashful looks and his sweet reminiscing
. He was breaking Kurt's iron resolve to still be mad at him.

"Oh!" Kurt walked to the shelf and grabbed the folklore and ballads book that he got from his mother, "Remember this one? I think I made you listen to the Ballad of Tam Lin more than once."

Blaine laughed and reached for the book, "I do remember. You loved it. I thought it was a little disturbing."

Kurt shrugged, "I just love magic."

"I know you do." Blaine nodded, growing more solemn.

Kurt bit his lip and studied Blaine's face; it was tired and sad. It had been a long day and Kurt couldn't imagine how Blaine felt taking this all in and stirring up feelings about his aunt. "We should order in," Kurt said, taking the books and placing them back on the shelf. "How to you feel about Thai?"

"I could go for some green curry right now," Blaine said with an easy smile.

"Great, I'll get the menu."

Over dinner, they discussed their childhoods and how things had gone for them since then. Kurt in Ohio and Blaine in California, how they both thought they'd be performers, but Kurt's passion of history and magic had led him to study at NYU and Blaine's experience with his Aunt Helen made him want to do something to help people with mental illness.

Blaine seemed as compassionate and smart and charming as he'd ever been. And he listened to everything Kurt said with a sharp expression and an eagerness that made Kurt feel like there was nowhere else Blaine would rather be than sitting in Kurt's little Soho apartment, hanging on his every word. It was flattering and sweet and broke Kurt's heart a little – reminding him just how much he'd missed Blaine over the years.

They cleared up after dinner all while sending each other shy looks, and Blaine asked if Kurt had any old photo albums that they could look through from when he was younger. Kurt grabbed an album from his bookshelf and they sat down next to each other on the couch.

"Oh my god look at you." Blaine smiled as Kurt flipped through some pictures of him in middle school.

Kurt groaned, covering his face with a hand and looking at the picture of him as a floppy haired, freckled thirteen-year-old, "This is embarrassing."

"Not at all." Blaine shook his head. "I used to try and picture you when we talked to each other, and here you are. I love this."

"That's because you have no pictures of yourself to show me. Look at my hair Blaine." He'd been such an awkward child that looking back, he thought maybe it was okay that Blaine couldn't see him when they'd first "met."

Blaine just laughed, "When I first met you, I was still learning to tame these curls; trust me, you haven't seen bad hair until you see my 6th grade class picture. Oh god! Or the way I used to shellac it down in high school. What a nightmare. "

"I'm going to have to see pictures sometime down the line then."

Blaine's eyes sparkled, "Okay."

Kurt chuckled and cleared his throat, flipping to a page of photos from his Glee club days, "I always wanted to get out of Lima," Kurt said, remembering his aspirations throughout high school. "After being rejected by NYADA I thought I'd lost that dream."

"I remember that summer. You were heartbroken," Blaine said, his golden eyes round and earnest.

Kurt gave him a smile and pushed down the fluttery way his heart seemed to react to Blaine's gaze. He wouldn't let himself fall for Blaine. Not again. "I was heartbroken, but it's an old wound now," Kurt said. A wound healed over by how happy he was with how his life had played out, "You encouraged me to go to New York anyway, which I did. I ended up at NYU and haven't looked back. I love my life."

"It suits you," Blaine said with a warm smile.

They talked late into the night like they used to do, catching up and discovering new things about one another. They had grown up on opposite sides of the country, Blaine closer to Kurt when at his Aunt's house, but their younger years had been similar. Struggling to be out and proud, singing in Glee clubs, planning big futures. Blaine gushed about his job as a music therapist and Kurt couldn't help but picture how kind and patient he must be with his patients.

Eventually, the day's events wore on them; Blaine seemed particularly tired, even though it was Kurt who hadn't slept in 24 hours. Kurt pulled out the folding bed from his sofa and grabbed a new toothbrush and some fluffy blankets for Blaine.

They needed their rest because the next day Kurt was going to perform a spell to destroy the biggest most powerful magical object he'd ever dealt with. He had to admit he was intimidated by the prospect.

Kurt made sure Blaine had everything he needed and then headed towards his own room, turning back for one more glance at the entryway of the living room. Blaine was climbing into bed, looking young and boyish. Kurt took in a deep breath, wishing for the again that he'd known Blaine, known him in person, when they were younger. "Goodnight Blaine," he whispered.

Blaine smiled sleepily at him, "Goodnight Kurt."

Kurt crawled wearily into his own bed, and it didn't take him long to fall asleep, his mind peacefully fixated on the charming, curly haired man asleep in his living room.

True to his word, Nathan had the mirror delivered the next morning. It arrived after Kurt and Blaine were up, had gotten ready for the day and had already had breakfast together. Kurt made French toast and tried hard not to keep stealing glances at Blaine. It was difficult.

Blaine was wearing more of Kurt's clothes and had worked on his hair a little more today, his curls shiny and perfectly styled. He seemed better rested too, his golden eyes sparkling and making Kurt's stomach do funny things.

Blaine had only been in New York a day, but already, the bond they once shared seemed to be reaffirming itself. The conversation over breakfast had been carefree and easy; Kurt just wished they'd had the last six years like this. The hole in their friendship still rubbed at Kurt like a sore wound, even with knowing why Blaine had done what he had.

Kurt could understand Blaine being angry at magic, from Blaine's perspective it made sense, but if he had just reached out, Kurt could have been there for him, as a friend and a comfort if nothing else.

When the couriers deposited the mirror in the living room, a heavy feeling filled the air. The easiness of the morning evaporated. The mirror was wrapped in cardboard and plastic for protection, and Kurt and Blaine quickly started unwrapping it, tossing the packaging to the side, both eager to get to the mirror.

Once it was opened, Kurt stood back and just gazed at it. It seemed much larger in the small confines of his apartment living room. Tall and gleaming. Beautiful yet daunting. He saw Blaine shudder beside him.

Blaine had a history with this mirror, but even without that, Kurt could feel what Blaine had described all those years ago, a kind of menacing sensation permeating the room.

He hadn't felt it at first back at Britton's, but that was before he'd tested to see if it was dark. And honestly, he had been so excited about finding a magic mirror that he probably wouldn't noticed any warning signs anyway.

"It's gorgeous," Kurt said.

"It makes my hairs stand on end," Blaine replied beside him, and Kurt looked at him through the reflection in the glass; his brow was creased and his lips a flat, tense line. "I can admit it is beautiful, though. It's like a wolf in sheep's clothing."

Kurt walked up to the mirror, placing his palm on the glass, "It's vibrating."

Blaine took a deep breath and moved to stand next to him. He tapped the glass, four rhythmic taps that were immediately repeated. "All the mirrors at Callaway Place do that."

"Do they all make you feel as nervous as this one does?"

"No." Blaine tore his eyes away from their reflections in the mirror to look at Kurt directly. "I don't know if they have dark magic or not, but if they do, they never made me feel the way this mirror does. I'll be happy to have it destroyed."

Kurt sighed and looked back at the expertly hand-forged mirror. He didn't want to have to destroy it; there was still so much he didn't know about the mirror and it held so much magic. Kurt was fascinated.

"You aren't backing out now are you?" Blaine asked, chuckling, but Kurt could hear the worry in his voice.

He turned to face Blaine, giving him a reassuring smile. He knew what had to be done with dark objects. "No, I'm not. I just… I hate destroying it when we don't really know anything about it. Why it has so much magic? What its origins are? What it can do? I told you about what happened with my dragonfly brooch, and the mirror transported you all the way here. Oh and look!" Kurt pointed to the initials on the side, "I think someone purposefully endowed it with magic… Saffron Callaway maybe?" Kurt just put that together, "It is just so intriguing."

Blaine's breathing hitched as he looked at the initials, "S.C.?" His face paled. "I never noticed those before. But, of course, I was always trying to get away from this mirror as fast as I could."

"Do you really think it could have been her?"

"Does it matter? You said yourself it was dark magic," Blaine answered, looking away from the initials as if they made him ill.

"I know. I know." Kurt shrugged, "I just wish it was safe enough to keep around for a while – I still have so much to learn."

Kurt tried to ignore the way Blaine was so carefully watching him, looking instead at the intricate weaving vines of the mirror's frame. He had his brooch from yesterday with him and held it out on the palm of his hand, waiting to see if the mirror would transform it again. Nothing happened, and Kurt pocketed the brooch with a sigh.

"I'm sorry," Blaine said.

"For what?"

"That you can't get the answers you want, but Kurt, trust me when I say it's better this way."

He knew Blaine wanted to be rid of the mirror right away, and Kurt understood what he needed to do; he just didn't like it. "You really think it has something to do with what happened to your aunt?" Kurt asked. When Blaine had told him he thought magic had driven his aunt mad, Kurt had been sympathetic, but skeptical. Now, though, feeling the power radiate from this mirror, he wondered if it could be possible.

"Kurt," Blaine moved closer to him, looking him directly in the eyes and reaching out to hold his hand. Kurt swallowed deeply, still getting used to how tactile Blaine seemed to be, "I know this mirror had something to do with Aunt Helen's illness. I don't know what happened to her, but it was because of this mirror. She was gone for three days and came back… changed. And now that we know that this mirror can transport people… anything could have happened to her and I…" He closed his eyes and took a steadying breath. Kurt squeezed his hand reassuringly. "If I had made her get rid of the mirror years ago, maybe it wouldn't have happened."

"I should have told you how to destroy it when you asked," Kurt said, his chest heavy with remorse.

Blaine opened his eyes, "No Kurt." He let out a long sigh, "We were just kids – we didn't know what we were dealing with – but now we have the chance to do the right thing. To make sure this mirror never hurts anyone else." Blaine's eyes were pleading, and Kurt found he couldn't say no to them. Not that he would have anyway; he knew the mirror had to be destroyed.

"Okay," Kurt said, nodding and feeling resolved. He squeezed Blaine's hand again. "We're going to do this."

Blaine smiled in relief and then quickly leaned in and gave Kurt a soft peck on the cheek.

Kurt sucked in a hitched gasp and laughed breathily – for a moment he felt like he did as a flustered teenager talking through a mirror to a boy he'd never met, feeling so happy he could burst. Blaine didn't seem embarrassed or shy about the kiss at all; he just grinned at Kurt with those eyes of his and made Kurt want to wrap him in a tight hug.

He didn't do that, though; Kurt wouldn't let his guard down that easily. He couldn't. He let go of Blaine's hand and they both turned back to the mirror.

They ended up scooting the mirror towards the back of the living room so that they both had space to sit on the floor in front of it; then, Kurt gathered the supplies he would need. He'd only ever performed magic to destroy an object of dark magic twice without his mother, and his hands were shaking with nerves. He tried not to show it, though; Blaine was counting on him.

"Don't you need your magic book to do this?"

Kurt shook his head, "No this is a spell my mom taught me, it isn't in the book, it's in my journal. I just worry about my book because it does have a lot about cursed objects and mirrors if this doesn't work."

"Wait, there's a chance it won't work?" Blaine's eyes grew round.

"It's always worked before Blaine." Kurt reassured him, "It will be fine." Kurt hoped he was right. This mirror was different than any dark object he'd destroyed before.

Kurt went to his room and opened the wooden chest of drawers where he stored all of his spell ingredients. He pulled out rosemary sprigs, hemlock root, matches, salt, dried toadflax flowers and a jar of cellar spider legs.

He carried them all to the kitchen where Blaine watched him with wide eyes as he mixed his potion in a bowl with water and then returned to the living room.

"Okay, so we need to use the rosemary to brush the mirror with the potion and then recite the charm." Kurt opened his journal to where he had the charm written out. He had it memorized, but as nervous as he was feeling, he wanted the words in front of him as well.

"That's it?"

"It's worked for me before."

"I'm not complaining." Blaine continued to watch as Kurt smeared the mirror with his mixture. "I like that it is simple."

Kurt nodded and sat down cross-legged on the ground in front of the mirror, Blaine moving to sit beside him. Kurt took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. The actual steps were simple, but he was going to have to channel powerful magic for this to work.

"You said this was dangerous?" Blaine asked suddenly, "Back when we first talked about it years ago?"

Kurt knew he must look tense, shoulders high, brow creased. "It can be dangerous."

"How?"

Kurt worried his lip and held his journal tightly, "I don't know for sure. I mean, I know the magic could…" He cleared his throat, "Fight back, but I'm not sure what that would look like."

Blaine's face went a little pale, "Kurt."

"Actually, maybe you should step out for a while? No reason for us both to be here."

"Like hell am I leaving you. I'm staying here."

Kurt was stunned for a moment by Blaine's immediate insistence. Stunned and warmed. Maybe Kurt should try to change Blaine's mind, ask him to leave, but the truth was he really didn't want to be alone right now. He smiled shyly and looked down at his journal, not able to meet the intensity of Blaine's gaze. "Okay, here we go."

"What should I do?"

"Just stay next to me and I need quiet."

Blaine nodded and made a motion as if he was zipping his lips.

Kurt would have laughed at how adorable Blaine was if he weren't so nervous. He reached out and placed a palm on the wet, cool glass, closing his eyes and tuning out all sound; Blaine's breathing, the cars on the street below, the mirror as it started whispering, Kurt ignored it all. He waited until his mind was cleared and then took a deep breath, not needing his journal after all, as he pronounced the spell.

"From wind and shadow and dark did rise, evil called forth shall now demise. Earth and salt and light take hope, thy powers called forth we now invoke."

Kurt expected that he'd have to repeat the words a few times before anything would happen–he was completely taken back when the mirror immediately let out a deep bellow. His eyes snapped open just in time to see the glass morphing, pushing out and arching forward. He let out a shocked gasp and quickly scrabbled backwards, Blaine doing the same.

"From wind and shadow and dark did rise, evil called forth shall now demise! Earth and salt and light take hope, thy powers called forth we now invoke!" He recited louder.

A deafening crack split through the air.

"KURT!" Blaine shouted.

Kurt's whole body was thrown backwards by a forceful invisible blow; it propelled him through the air until he collided with something behind him, his head banging hard and making his vision swim.

The air in the room felt electric, zapping with sound for a moment, and then it grew completely silent. Kurt lay on the floor on his back, too sore to move right away. His eyes were closed and his breathing fast. He lifted a hand to his head and groaned, blinking open his eyes to stare up at the ceiling.

He heard a hiss of pain from beside him and that made him move. He sat up quickly, too quickly; his head was still swimming, but he glanced over to find Blaine. Blaine was slowly sitting up a few feet away from him next to Kurt's side table, which was toppled over, the lamp broken on the floor.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked urgently, crawling over to Blaine much as he had the day before in the basement at Britton's.

Blaine's hand was on his right shoulder and he rolled his neck, "Yeah I think so. Are you?"

"Bumped my head," Kurt said, touching the back of his head and wincing. "Nothing major."

Blaine scooted closer to him, looking him in the eyes. "You're sure?"

"Yes."

Blaine held onto Kurt's shoulders and studied his eyes for a little while, probably checking for a concussion, "Okay, good." He finally nodded, seemingly satisfied.

Kurt pulled himself away from Blaine's gaze and looked around the room. Everything in front of the mirror had been knocked over; even his couch was lying on its back. That must have been what Kurt had been hurled into. The pictures on his wall either had shattered glass or were knocked to the floor. Kurt glanced back at the mirror… still and quiet and untouched.

"Did it work?" Blaine asked, slowly getting to his feet. He was a little wobbly but reached a hand down to help Kurt up.

"No."

Blaine looked at the mirror, "How can you tell?"

Kurt blew out a long breath and rubbed a hand over his forehead, "Well, for one thing, the mirror is still standing. When I said we were going to destroy the mirror, I meant destroy it, Blaine. But it's still intact."

Blaine nodded slowly, looking small and nervous, but trying to put on a brave face, "I guess we know how magic fights back now."

"Yeah." Kurt turned away from the mirror to fully face Blaine, "Are you sure you're alright?"

Blaine nodded and then reached forward, brushing some hair back off Kurt's face, "I guess that could have been worse." Kurt trembled pleasantly at the touch and then watched Blaine as he took in the state of the room. "God Kurt, your apartment!"

"It could be worse," Kurt said, echoing Blaine.

They took the next hour to clean up – righting furniture, sweeping up broken glass. Hanging pictures that weren't ruined back on the walls. The damage wasn't too costly, and at the moment, Kurt really couldn't care less about it. The mirror still standing strong and indestructible in his living room did concern him.

He stood and studied it for a long time.

"What next?" Blaine asked from behind him; he was anxious and fidgety and it was putting Kurt on edge.

Kurt just sighed before marching into his kitchen, kneeling down to open the cabinet under his sink and pulling out a tool kit.

"What are you doing?" Blaine asked, watching him.

Kurt only answered by lifting up a heavy hammer.

"Kurt." Blaine's voice held a warning in it, but Kurt walked past him to the mirror and lifted his arm.

"Kurt!" Blaine shouted just as Kurt brought the hammer down hard on the glass. The glass vibrated and the hammer snapped back, bouncing off the surface; Kurt stumbled with the force of it. Blaine was beside him in an instant, holding his elbow to help him balance. They both stared at the mirror; besides the crack already in the glass, it still looked perfect.

"What was the point of that?" Blaine asked roughly; hand still on Kurt's arm.

"Just testing."

"Even if you broke the glass, it wouldn't have helped! The magic would still be there. I told you about the mirror I broke; it just made a bunch of smaller magic mirrors. " Blaine's voice had an edge of panic to it.

Kurt sighed. Okay that had been foolish. But for a moment, his anger at the mirror couldn't be contained; he wanted to hurt it. "Sorry," he mumbled, feeling deflated.

Blaine walked up to the mirror and traced down the crack with a fingertip. "Kurt, what could have made this crack if a spell and a hammer does nothing to it?"

Kurt shook his head; he had no idea. He had started to tremble as he looked pleadingly at Blaine, "I don't know what to do." Blaine was counting on him; Kurt was meant to fix this, but he'd done the one and only magic destroying spell he knew and it had backfired.

Blaine ran a hand through his hair and then placed his hands on his hips, "Right. Okay."

Kurt could practically see the wheels in Blaine's head turning. "We need help."

"Yes, we do." Kurt agreed.

"Can we get your book back?"

"Even if we did I couldn't flip through it with the pages wet and stuck together."

Blaine's jaw tensed, "What can I do?"

Kurt shook his head, "We need help from someone who knows about magic."

"Do you know someone like that?"

Kurt crossed his arms over his chest and thought about it. Shelia. The only other person in Kurt's life, besides his father, who knew about magic. "I know a woman back in Lima. She owns this mystic shop, and we've never openly talked about it…" Kurt worried his lip, "but we both know the other one knows."

"I guess that's a start," Blaine said, looking as worried as Kurt felt.

"Oh sweet goddess of mercy," Sheila breathed through the phone.

Kurt glanced up at Blaine; they were on speakerphone so they could both hear what Sheila thought of their problem. Kurt had hurriedly explained the situation, that he could detect magic items and they had found something dangerous that needed to be destroyed, but he didn't know how. She hadn't been surprised by any of it until he got to the part about the indestructible mirror.

Sheila had gone quiet over the phone. Blaine shrugged his shoulders, lifting his brows in question.

"Sheila?" Kurt called, "Are you still there?"

"Moon and stars above," Sheila continued.

"Sheila?"

"Sand and earth beneath! Kurt, I don't think you understand what you've gotten yourself into!"

"I know I don't understand what I've gotten myself into, but I have to do something."

"And you called me? Kurt, I'm all about healing spells and spiritual wellness."

"Please, Sheila, any suggestions you can give us here," Kurt replied, resolutely not looking behind his shoulder at the mirror he felt was staring him down.

"I suggest getting that mirror out of your home, Kurt. Get as far away from it as you can!"

Kurt finally glanced back at the mirror, still in view from where he and Blaine were sitting at the kitchen counter. "I don't think that's an option. It isn't safe." He looked back at Blaine who was worrying his lip and also cautiously glancing back at the mirror.

"Messing with cursed objects and expecting me to help." Sheila grumbled under her breath. "Children."

Kurt chose not to mention that he was a 25 year old man; he felt like a child right now. "Can you help?"

"You say your spell didn't work?"

"It didn't."

"But it has in the past?"

"Yes." Kurt nodded. Blaine leaned in closer to the phone.

"I guess I have heard that some curses can't be broken outside of their origin of magic."

"What does that mean?" Blaine chimed in.

"It means that when this mirror was infused with magic, it happened somewhere special, somewhere powerful, and in order to destroy it, you may have to bring it back to that location. Do you know where it came from? Can you think of any place it's been that might hold magic in it?"

Blaine and Kurt met each other's eyes over the phone on the counter, "Yes." They answered in unison.

"Then my only suggestion is to take it there and try again."

"Thank you Sheila," Kurt said quickly, feeling grateful that at least they had something to try next.

"I don't want to be thanked Kurt. This is very risky and I wish you wouldn't attempt it."

"I don't know what other choice I have."

Shelia sighed, "Call me when it is done so I know you're okay."

"I will."

They hung up with hurried goodbyes and Kurt leaned his elbows on the counter, resting his chin on his hands and looking at Blaine.

"Kurt… would you like to go to Bluespruce, Maine with me?" Blaine asked with a tentative smile.

As if Kurt would actually say no. "I have always been fascinated by what you've told me about that house. Not just the magic but the history of it."

Blaine's nervous smile grew sincere, "Then it seems like we are going to Callaway Place."