If you were wondering if the last chapter was based of Harry Potter and his death and meeting with Dumbledore… You are absolutely right you just won ten points! Too bad you can't use them for anything because they don't count. Either way this is another chapter like Chapter 19 where it's another filler before something BIG! I would put the said BIG event in this chapter but just felt like making you all wait so, enjoy the filler.

*Chapter 22: Eastern Camp*

"He looks like he was tossed around a lot when we found him Sam."

"Yes, and he looks extremely tired too, can't you tell?"

"Didn't he and some of the others in the Western Camp go on a mission earlier today?"

"Yes, they didn't return back except for Kurt."

"From the looks of it the mission was not a success."

"I do hope the others are all right if that is the case."

"We can only hope."

"Not meaning to be rude but… Get out. All of you."

"Gosh Samuel, we're just worrying for him."

"I understand that Mercedes, Rachel, and you too Karofsky, but I need to get to work and I really need silence and a calm air thank you."

"Oh fine then. Call us when he comes too next can you?"

"Yes, after I make sure he has more than enough sleep."

"Sam!"

"Rachel!"

"Oh fine! Mercedes, come on. We have to clean the clothing again."

"Ugh… What a hassle."

Samuel shook his head as the two human females left the medical tent, or at least one of them. This one was one of the largest though for the sake that Kurt is the General and deserves such space. Karofsky lingered behind and from Kurt's semi-conscious state he could feel the air change from what was a tense atmosphere to a more relaxed yet strained atmosphere. "Sam, what seems to be his problem?"

"Exhaustion, some bruises, scratches… I don't think he has any broken bones though. I'm feeling around and nothing seems to be too horribly out of place."

"So he should wake soon, hypothetically speaking."

"Hypothetically speaking? No. One cannot judge an injured person's want to wake up. This may be minor wounds but he may not want to wake up quickly."

And that is exactly how Kurt felt. He just wanted to sleep, wanted to think in his subconscious and in his dreams. He wanted to think about the past events of his life and that was all. This was something he could not really do awake since it is to be known that he will be bothered by his army and friends. So that is exactly what the Fated One did. He re-slipped into unconsciousness.

*Chronicle of the Mystics*

When Kurt once again came to he found himself still in a medical tent with Karofsky in the corner of the tent. It was obvious the human had not yet realized the shifter had awoken for he continued to take a knife to a piece of wood. Kurt's eyes strained as he tried to see what Karofsky was working on. He could not actually see what it was but he could see that it was very detailed and was being worked on for a long time. It took a moment for Kurt to realize that the human captain had once made his own furniture years before the war. Karofsky himself had mentioned that he was getting back into the whittling and such sometime before the war started. Kurt was beginning to think back then. When was the last time he really saw and talked to Karofsky? He and a few selected others were told to move out to the east to make a new camp since the original had been bursting out with survivors and fighters from that fateful day. That happened four years ago, just a year after the war started. Then as the war progressed, camps were established throughout Dalton, and then later Lima, and after no time small towns were being produced in these camps. And somehow, while all this happened, Kurt had lost contact with one of his most beloved of friends, despite the rough beginning the two had. Kurt even lost contact with his friends in the Western Camp since he had gotten so obsessed with the war and beating Sarver.

Kurt inhaled sharply and suddenly felt guilty for mistreating his friends all these years. With that intake of air Karofsky lifted his head and looked over to the bedridden shifter. "General? General, are you awake?" He asked him as he edged closer to the Mystic.

"Yes, I'm awake Karofsky." Kurt answered as he tried to sit up only to be stopped by Karofsky's hand gently pushing back on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry to say General that you are ordered to stay down by Sam."

"Sam… How is he?" Kurt turned his head to look at the human.

"He is fine." Karofsky replied, a slightly shocked expression on his face which only further increased the guilt within Kurt.

The Mystic nodded. "And you two? How are you both?"

Karofsky sighed and nodded once briefly. "Fine."

"Not fine captain." Kurt said instantly. "It is obvious to be that something is severely off about you two. I can see it in your expression and movements." Karofsky opened his mouth as if he was going to speak but kept it closed. "Come now David. Tell General Kurt what is the problem." Kurt joked lightly.

The human captain's face stayed flat as he repositioned himself beside his general. "It is just… Samuel has been so busy lately. We hardly have any time together and whatever time we do have he brushes me off to do work."

"Like what I did to all of you…" Kurt softly commented.

"What did you say General?" Karofsky asked.

"Nothing Karofsky." There was a pause as Kurt observed Karofsky more. Then he spotted it. On his left ring finger, a silver Celtic knotted ring with four or five, Kurt could not tell, green Tourmaline gems around the ring. "David… The ring…"

Karofsky, shocked completely by the mention of the ring looked at it with a faint sense of wonder. "Oh… Yes… Well…"

"David Karofsky, did you two get married with—?" Kurt yelled suddenly which Karofsky silenced with a hand to the shifter's mouth.

"Quiet! You'll screw something up with your system."

Kurt gave Karofsky a look and shook the hand off his mouth. "My system? The only part of my system that is anywhere near screwed up is my heart! Why didn't you send word that you two got married? You did get married didn't you?"

"Yes we did…" Karofsky said strongly. "On both things. We technically eloped and we sent a letter to you and your camp but Finn told me you never even bothered to look at it or hear what it had to say because it didn't pertain to the war effort."

The guilt rose more. Kurt shut his eyes tightly. "By the God of Light… I am so sorry Dave. I was just—"

"Look." Karofsky interrupted; obviously upset that Kurt did not bother to hear to Sam's and his matrimony the first recorded marriage between a human and a Mystic in almost three centuries. "All you should know is that we've been married for three years now and it hardly feels like a marriage. And you know what else? You are a fucking prick for ignoring all of us your whole—"

"I know."

"Don't interrupt me Kurt! I'm very mad at you! You've been ignoring—Wait what?"

"I know." Kurt replied with a little laugh. "I know. I am the biggest, largest, fucking prick in the whole world right now."

The human blinked and then smirked softly and shook his head. "Nah… I think Sarver and DeBastard have you beat out for that. Sorry."

Kurt erupted into laughter and at that moment Sam came into the tent, his eyes wide and his facial expression quickly turning from shock to anger. "Karofsky! You didn't even bother to get me when he awoke?"

Karofsky quickly hid his wood creation behind him and moved away from Kurt as Sam took his spot. "He was not awake for long Sam. I was going to get you. It was just that Kurt was talking to me."

"Don't put this on him Karofsky. It takes two to have a conversation." Sam replied briskly and Karofsky slightly conformed into himself. Kurt then started to not only feel bad about missing out on the information that told of the two's marriage but now started to feel bad for Karofsky who obviously wanted Sam to give back some of the love Karofsky gives out fully to the half breed. "How do you feel General?" Sam said speaking towards the shifter.

"Fine thank you Sam. I just feel a little stiff in areas."

"It's probably from being in bed the past few hours. You weren't too severely banged up from whatever happened to you but still, you needed rest. It looked like you had an exhausting time."

The shifter sighed, knowing from this unspoken rule that he cannot tell anyone about his encounter with the God of Light, Shimshon, no matter how much it was eating him inside to tell someone. But he cannot. "You could say that."

"The mission was a failure?" Sam inquired softly.

"That and then some…" Kurt quietly stated, hoping that half breed would soon drop the subject.

Luckily he did. "I apologize for that. And for this. I must leave you. I have others in more need that you. I was just coming to check up on you. In about an hour or so you can walk around for a bit, maybe get cleaned up a bit. You can sit up though if you wish." Then to his husband. "Karofsky, help him up if so."

"Sure Sam."

"I'll see if any food can be sent in for you General."

"Don't bother Sam." Kurt waved him off. "I'm far too out of it to eat right now."

The merman nodded his head. "I'll see you soon then." Then without another words he walked out of the tent.

The two waited for the sounds of his footsteps to recede before talking once more. "Would you like to sit up Kurt?" Karofsky started, inching closer to Kurt once more.

"Yes please. I hate being on my back for too long. It's a form of submission."

The human chuckled faintly and helped the Mystic into a sitting position. In this form Karofsky could finally see what Karofsky's mini project was. It was a merman, Sam, sitting on a rock and Karofsky had started to carve out an inscription into the rock. "That's beautiful David." Kurt said, his eyes pointing to the miniature project.

"Oh…" The human sounded with a degree of sadness. He reached for it as he did so he spoke about it. "It is supposed to be for our anniversary soon. I'm doing it all purely from memory you see. When we first came over here we scouted out the land and Sam changed to scout the waters of the river and there was this boulder he climbed upon to take a breather so…"

"It is very nice Dave." Kurt said when Karofsky stopped. "What is the inscription going to say?"

"It's a bit embarrassing actually…" Karofsky muttered as he started to blush softly. Kurt could not help but smile at the blushing human since it was very rarely the man did showed an excess amount of emotion such as this. "It's going to say, 'Samuel Evans, the love of my life, my savior'."

"How is that embarrassing?" Kurt teased softly. "I've heard much more embarrassing things between couples." The human shrugged. "How is he your savior Karofsky?"

"I'm pretty sure that if he didn't come into my life Kurt, I would have remained the same old Karofsky you knew when you first met me. I would have been controlled by Sarver on that first day and probably killed."

"That's true. But even now you can get killed; it is a war after all."

"Yes but…" Karofsky sighed. "Despite Sam being distant and focusing on his work, I still think that he would do anything in his power to save me if I were dying. He loves me Kurt, I know he does, he just… He's just…"

"Being an enormous fucking prick?"

The two laughed. "Yes… But as big as you Kurt, sorry to say."

"Nah…" Kurt sounded waving the play insult off. "I don't think anyone can beat my prick-ness."

"Except for, once again, Sarver and DeBastard."

The two laughed once more and continued to talk, quickly re-patching up their once broken friendship.

*Chronicle of the Mystics*

Once Kurt felt better to move, he walked out of the tent, wearing a simple ensemble. Karofsky remained behind to clean the tent and perhaps finish his gift to Sam for he still needed to put in the last details as well as paint the thing. Kurt enjoyed the solitude that was offered though. He walked through the camp; speaking a greeting to every being he walked by. It had seemed that his encounter with Shimshon had shown him so much about himself that he had forgotten. That was when his two best friends found him.

"Kurt!" The two women screamed as they ran to meet him with a big hug.

"Mercedes! Rachel!" Kurt said their names in the same happiness they had when they called out his name. "You two both look well."

"And you look far better than you did when we first found you." Mercedes commented as the humans released the shifter.

"Are you sure you are feeling better Kurt? We don't want you to pass out again." Rachel said softly in concern.

"I'm quite fine thank you." Kurt replied bowing his head towards her. "Though if anything I require a bath."

"And a haircut." Rachel added, Kurt merely nodded.

Mercedes clapped her hands together. "This just reminds me of the first day you came to us Kurt. Where we gave you a bath and a haircut! You looked a hundred times better from being inside that nasty cage!"

"Mercedes!" Rachel scolded. "I'm pretty sure he doesn't want to hear anything about his past! Especially since it was just so horrible."

"Not all of it was horrible." Kurt commented faintly. The two women looked at him. "I was saved by Blaine wasn't I?" Kurt said, being careful not to fully give away that he was still alive and hurt the feelings of the women who had once served and cared for him. "I met you two and Wes and everyone else. I learned to read, write, speak most importantly and I fell in love. All that was great and in my mind's eye, that is more than enough happiness to make up for everything before."

"But then this war started…" Rachel said sadly. "And everything was taken away from you, from all of us."

"Yes but we are fighting for it aren't we?" Kurt asked them. The humans both nodded. "Then that settles it. We will win this war ladies."

"But," Mercedes began, "didn't the mission to the Dark Castle come out to be a failure? Kurt, while you were out of it Sarver began taking back the lands in McKinley, he's seemingly more powerful than ever."

"But he has a weakness." Kurt said affirmatively. The shifter paused to think. "And I think I know what it is." After another short moment his eyes widened. "This isn't a war…" Kurt whispered under his breath.

"Say what?" The women said quickly, slightly hearing what the shifter had said. "What about the war?"

A burst of laughter escaped from Kurt, shocking the women for a moment, as Kurt finally answered Shimshon's last question to him. "This is…" Kurt was chuckling out, completely loathing the reason for the war. It was then that the memories he had of his great, great grandmother's were starting to finally come together and make sense. "Oh…" He groaned out. "I want to murder that Sarver…"

"Isn't that what you have been trying to do this whole time?" Rachel asked, flabbergasted.

"Yes… But now I just want to—Oh! El maleït punxada estúpid, xuclar la polla!" Kurt cursed colorfully in Mystic.

"Oh!" The women reacted, not understanding a word, but feeling the overall degree of the words.

"Ladies," Kurt began, "I need a haircut, now!"

"Yes Mr. General Sir!" The humans shouted.

The three went off to the river after stopping to collect a few things to cut hair as well as some soap so that Kurt could wash. Much like the first time Kurt bathed himself while the women prepared the scissors and shears. Once Kurt felt that he was adequately cleaned he put on some fresh clothing, even though his other clothes were still fairly clean, and moved over to where his two friends stood, awaiting him. "Just cut it in the way it was before please." Kurt said as he settled onto a chair.

"Yes sir." The women said in reply as they began to cut Kurt's long, wet hair once more.

It took minutes until finally the Fated One's hair was now short once more. Kurt this time shook out his head with a towel and bushed off the loose hair from his body rather than having a cold bucket of water be dumped on him like the first time. Kurt looked at himself in a chipped hand mirror, the best hand mirror in the camp. "Looks good ladies. Good job." When Kurt looked up he saw that the women had their arms crossed before their chests. "What?"

"Last time we did this you bowed to us." Rachel said thickly yet with tease clear behind her voice.

"Yes." Mercedes agreed. "And now all we receive is a 'good job ladies'? What? Too high and mighty now to bow?"

Kurt chuckled and placed the mirror down. "No I am not. If you require a bow as a token of thanks—"

"Oh no Kurt!" The women said together, shaking their hands at him. "We were only—"

He raised a hand, silencing them instantly. "Nonsense. I would be happy to bow to you, my best friends." With that said he dropped to his knees, extended his arms out and placed his hand over the other hand in the Mystic way to show appreciation and thanks. The women sighed and smiled faintly as this continued to remind them of the first day they all met. Kurt rose to be meted with the women giving him a bow of their own. Then all at once the three moved closer together and hugged each other at one moment.

*Chronicle of the Mystics*

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Eastern Camp, Karofsky finished carving out the block of wood he would give to Sam. He found it then that because he does not have a tarnish to protect the wood and the fact that the wood he used was poor at best, it was possible that after a week or so the gift would be useful only for wood. Karofsky sighed. All that work and it was not something that Sam could keep forever. Despite that thought Karofsky exited the tent he had finished cleaning half an hour before and went to his own tent, the one he shared with Sam. He went in without a fear, knowing that Sam would not be there but rather at work helping patients. Karofsky sat crisscrossed in the tent and pulled out his paints, the ones he had either kept from before the war or ones that he or others had found throughout the years. Karofsky immediately began to mix colors to try to get the right colors. He had a very limited range of colors but was able to figure out ultimatums for some colors. Once the colors were mixed he began to paint cautiously, being careful not to mess up and in the event that Sam might appear before the wood figurine was complete.

Despite Karofsky being so attuned to the areas outside of his tent, he eventually lost his focus on the outside world as all his focus was placed upon the figurine. Because of this he did not notice Sam entering the tent nor did he see him since his back was turned to the entrance of the tent. Sam blinked and tried to look around his husband to see what he had in his hands and to see what he was doing. He could not quite see and their tent was not large so there was no where he could move to to get a better view. Whatever it was Karofsky was working on, Sam could see that it was taking all of the human's focus. Sam cleared his throat softly and Karofsky jumped up slightly and turned his head to look at Sam. Sam sighed as he fell from a half crouched position to sit on his legs. "Karofsky… The soldiers are asking for you. They want to go over the battle plans."

"Oh… Right, I was supposed to have a meeting with them." Sam nodded once. "I'll be with them shortly." Karofsky turned back on the figurine and tried to hide it away from the half breed.

"What is that?" The said half breed questioned as he once again tried to view the object Karofsky was so diligently working on.

"It is nothing."

"It must be something Karofsky. You were working so hard on it."

Karofsky sighed and changed the subject. "Why do you call me Karofsky Sam? I'm Dave to you…"

The merman blinked and sighed. "It's a work thing Kar—Dave. I'm sorry."

"I hate your work." Karofsky honestly stated as he turned around to fully view the merman. "It keeps you away from me. Not even my job as a captain could keep me away from you. And even so, it seems as if you want to be away."

"I do not David." Sam said thickly. "It is not myself your men keep on getting injured."

"It isn't my fault either Sam!" Karofsky snapped causing Sam to flinch. The human sighed once more. "I'm sorry Sam… It's just that I miss you… You know?"

"Yes. I know. I miss you too…" An awkward silence fell between the two husbands. It was Sam that broke the silence. "So… What is that thing there?"

Karofsky shook his head. "It's not done yet and I refuse to show it to you before it is completed."

"So it's for me?"

"Yes."

Sam chuckled. "If you show it to me now I promise I won't tell me."

Karofsky laughed and shook his head. "I can't do that."

"Sure you can. You can trust Samuel Evans."

"That's another thing! You didn't take my name!"

"I thought we went over this."

Karofsky chuckled. "I don't remember having this conversation."

"Whatever human. Just let me see the thing, whatever it is."

"No."

"I promise I won't tell him!"

Sam was moving forward to reach for the figurine when Karofsky intercepted by pushing the half breed back and kissing him full on the mouth with months of repressed love for him. Sam's mind instantly switched gears, he too holding back the love he felt for the human since he was just so busy with everything. The two kissed passionately until the need for air was too great. "I love you Sam."

Sam sighed unnervingly, the sudden declaration of love rocking him to his core. "I love you too Dave." They both moved in together and kissed once more, this one being quickly broken by loud calls from outside the tent.

"Sam! Sam! The dragon's having a heart attack! Sam!"

"Captain Karofsky! Captain Karofsky! You're needed in the cabin! Captain!"

The two laughed softly before pecking each other once more. Karofsky let Sam leave first, since his was more urgent and so that he does not see the figurine. Karofsky then put up his paints quickly and hid the half painted wood figure in a place that he thought Sam could not find it but taking in the size of the tent and the fact that between the two of them they did not have a lot of items, Karofsky knew that if Sam came back to the tent first he would surely find it after some searching. Karofsky smirked to himself as he exited the tent, his name echoing throughout the woods as his soldiers searched for him. "I suppose that this next meeting will be the quickest one yet," Karofsky said to himself before running towards the cabin.

PLEASE REVIEW! Next chapter: Return to the Dark Castle. PS: Approximately 1-2 chapters left before the longest epilogue you will probably ever read! PLEASE REVIEW!