Glee-Fic: Caligo Nox Noctis, Chapter Two (Finn/Kurt, Slight Blaine/Kurt)

[aoitsukikage]

Title: Caligo Nox Noctis

Author: AoiTsukikage

Rating: PG-13 for now

Characters/Pairing: Finn/Kurt overall; some minor Blaine/Kurt

Chapter: 2/?

Word Count: 2982

Spoilers: Let’s say everything to be safe :)

Summary/Warnings: (Vampire!Kurt, so completely AU) The good news about all of this is that there’s a cure.  The bad news, of course, is what the cure actually is.



Disclaimer: I, unfortunately, do not own these characters, no matter how sad that makes me.  I do, however, promise to return them when I’m done with them.  :)

Caligo Nox Noctis

Chapter Two

Kurt’s fading fast by the time they make it to Lima proper and Blaine is, quite frankly, worried for his safety.  He’s pale, barely breathing, and only the slight flutter of his eyelids tells the older teen that he’s still among the living at all.

He’d guessed, reading those articles, that when the weakness struck it struck fast, but he had no idea it’d be this fast, and he pulls up to the Hummel-Hudson residence hoping that Finn’s home and thinking he should have phoned ahead.

“Kurt?  Kurt,” he calls softly, and when Kurt doesn’t answer, he barely takes the time to turn off the Navigator before he’s out the door and up the front steps of the house (he can’t lift Kurt or else he’d take him with, but please, God, let Finn be home).

Luckily, Finn himself answers the door, looking like he just woke up from a nap and wearing what amounts to pyjamas, but Blaine’s never been happier to see him.

“Blaine?  What’s up, man?”

“It’s Kurt.”

“It’s…”

“This is going to sound really, really strange, but he needs your blood.”

“He what?”

And yes, Blaine thinks ruefully, Kurt’s life would be in the hands of the dimmest person in Lima.  Just his luck.  “Kurt.  Needs your blood.”

“Okay.  Why?”

“I can’t…there’s no time.  He’s dying, Finn.”

And Finn’s eyes widen at that, going into ‘protective big brother’ mode immediately as he nods and runs back into the house, coming back a second later with a kitchen knife and a glass.  “You’re gonna explain everything to me later, right?  When he’s…when he’s okay?”

And now Blaine’s almost thankful that Finn isn’t thinking this through properly because he’s so eager to just make sure Kurt’s safe that he believes the story without questioning it.  “I promise.  We’re running out of time, though.”

“Okay, just…I really hate pain, and if you…”

“Trust me,” is all Blaine says before he takes the knife in one hand and Finn’s arm in the other, hoping against hope that those stories on the Internet were true.

If they aren’t, he really doesn’t think he can do anything to save Kurt’s life.

000

Kurt opens his eyes slowly, barely feeling like he can move, and notices that the vehicle is parked and that they’re sitting outside of his house.

He tries to open the door, finally getting it and falling out of the SUV, groaning as he attempts to lift himself off of the pavement.

“Kurt!”

Kurt looks up, blinking, as Blaine rushes up with a glass of red liquid in his hand.  He drops down to his knees beside Kurt, sitting him up and bracing him before he hands the glass over.  “Wh…”

“Drink it.  Please.  You’re dying.”

“Guessed that,” Kurt smiles weakly before sniffing at the glass, the metallic tang of iron making him wrinkle his nose.  “Is this…”

“Yes.”

“That’s disgusting,” Kurt tries really hard not to think about what he’s drinking and does it quickly, not tasting much of anything but almost immediately feeling strength creeping through his body, and he sits up on his own as soon as he feels able to.

“Woah.”

“That’s incredible,” Kurt admits, staring at his hand carefully before looking up at the sky.  “And I think it’s safe to say that sunlight isn’t going to burn me.  I’m not sparkling, am I?”

“No,” Blaine laughs, hugging him and kissing his cheek.  “I was worried.”

“I know, babe,” Kurt hugs him back, stiffening when he sees Finn stumble out of the house, a bandage wrapped around his arm and looking pale.  Kurt immediately feels guilty because he knows that the human body doesn’t replenish blood instantaneously and both of them could end up dying if he takes too much too fast.  “Blaine?”

“Yeah?”

“Is it always going to…come on that suddenly?  The …” he gestures to the glass and Blaine ponders for a moment.

“It shouldn’t, I don’t think.  Your body just went through some major changes last night and so the need was a little more urgent, but from what I read…you’ll know long before you get to this point.  And you won’t need that much blood, at least not as much as what you had today,” he assures the other boy, who nods, feeling a little better about that, at least.

A couple of ounces every two weeks should be safe enough, he thinks, based on what he knows about donating blood and the like.  It hardly means he’s going to take advantage of Finn, though, and he’ll wait as long as he can before asking for more.

“Kurt?” Finn asks softly, stumbling a bit, and Blaine clicks his tongue disapprovingly.

“Finn, I told you to rest…”

“I’m okay.  I’m big, right?  So I have, like, more blood than most people.  I’m okay,” he repeats, crouching down, and Kurt wants to reach out for him but it just doesn’t feel right.  “So, why’d you need the blood?  I mean, you look like crap, man, but Blaine made it sound like you were really hurt and needed a translucent…a transmog…a…”

“Transfusion, Finn,” Kurt croaks, deciding he’ll just reach out a hand and smiling when Finn takes it immediately.  At least, until his eyes fall on the blood stained glass and the (probably) obvious redness staining Kurt’s lips and teeth and he wrenches it away, falling back onto his rear as he sputters and points.

“You-y-you drank it?!”

“Finn, calm down,” Blaine hisses.  “We’re outside.”

“You…you drank my blood!  What are you, some kind of vampire?!”

“Finn…”

“No, that’s…that’s…”

“Finn, please,” Kurt’s feeling weak again, knowing that it’s just the after-effects of everything but really not having the energy to deal with Finn’s ‘this-is-another-one-of-your-plots-to-turn-me-gay’ attitude right now.  “Can we go inside?  Blaine will explain everything.”

“Okay,” Finn calms down a little as Blaine helps Kurt to his feet, bracing him as they head into the house, and Kurt makes his way to the couch before collapsing and curling up in a corner while Blaine sits down beside him and Finn takes the armchair across the way, consciously avoiding coming too close.  “Somebody tell me what’s going on.”

000

“And you’re serious.”

“Completely,” Blaine looks over to Kurt, who’s half-dozing against the cushions, and lowers his voice.  “I know about…the two of you, and I know that your first instinct is probably to assume that this is some ploy of his to get into your pants, but believe me when I tell you it isn’t.”

“I know,” Finn sighs and runs a hand through his hair, messing it up even more.  “And yeah, that was my first thought, but…I know he’s over me.  He’s been, like, snapping at me all year, or at least up until the wedding.  But now you’re saying…”

“Yes,” Blaine nodded.  “And I know it’s probably a lot to take in, but…I don’t know what else to tell you.”

“I have to fall in love with him,” Finn says carefully.  “I have to fall in love with my stepbrother, who is also a boy.”

“Right.”

“Why couldn’t you have met him three years ago?” Finn looks a little lost, and Blaine can’t blame him, although he definitely agrees with Finn’s last statement.  “I mean, you and he…you’re pretty much dating, right?”

“Well, we were, but that has to be put on hold now, at least until everything is sorted out.  Possibly longer,” he looks at Finn expectantly, and Finn shakes his head.

“Dude, I can’t just fall in love with a guy!  I’m straight!”

“Well, you have to try,” Blaine said coolly.  “Sorry, Finn, but it’s either this or you’ll be stuck with him your whole life anyway, because he needs you to survive.  Unless you’d rather let him die…?”

“Man, never,” Finn shakes his head rapidly, eyes darting to Kurt.  “When you…when you came in here before?  You were terrified, and it scared me, because he’s family, dude.  I’d never…I told him I’d always protect him, and I will, no matter what.  I just don’t know if I can do this.”

“He’s not entirely excited about it, either,” Blaine admits, resting his chin in his hand as he stares across the room vacantly.  “After all, he’s finally gotten over you, and now…”

“And now he…God, this is a mess,” Finn huffs and flops back against the chair.  “I mean, I don’t know what he saw in me anyway, but after everything, I really wouldn’t blame him if he never spoke to me again.”

“He cares too much about you to let you go,” Blaine reaches to gently brush Kurt’s hair out of his eyes, the other boy’s skin icy to the touch, and bends to lightly kiss Kurt’s forehead before sitting up straight again.  “And I care too much about him to not help, no matter what the outcome of this is going to be.”

“Why does the world keep trying to screw us over?” Finn groans.

“Funny.  He said almost the same thing,” Blaine keeps lightly stroking his fingers through Kurt’s hair, thinking about what their next step could be.  “Okay, so you’re going to try?”

“I’ve gotta, man.  I can’t let…I’ll never let him die,” Finn decides, looking a little nauseous at the idea, but Blaine figures he can let it go this time.

“Okay.  So, we don’t tell anybody.”

“But they’ll think it’s…”

“Kurt doesn’t want anyone to know,” Blaine cuts Finn off.  “And I agree with him.  I don’t have every class with him, but I can keep an eye on him through lunch and Warblers practice, and you’re pretty much always around him at home.  If he…if he gets ill like that again and nobody’s around, I don’t even want to think about what could happen,” he admits softly.

“It won’t.  We’ll take care of him, dude,” Finn promises, holding out his hand, and Blaine reaches to shake it with a firm nod of his head.  “We’ll figure this out, somehow.”

Kurt chooses that moment to open his eyes, looking at both of them before giving them a thin smile, and Finn’s immediately by his side but still looking reluctant to touch him.

“Can I get you anything?  Food, drinks…”

“Coffee?” Kurt croaks.  “I’m in serious need of a caffeine boost.”

“Coffee.  Yeah.  I’ll…”

“I’ll get the coffee,” Blaine stands up and brushes imaginary lint off of his pants before striding for the door.  “Your usual, Kurt?”

“Please.”

“Talk,” he gestures between them before grabbing the keys from a bowl on the entrance table and exiting the house, wondering if they’re actually going to follow his directions.

He knows Finn’s about as good a guy as you can expect to find, and he knows Finn’s going to try.

He just doesn’t know if it’ll work out.

000

“Hey.  So.  Should we talk?” Finn asks hesitantly, and Kurt forces himself to focus (apparently, while he felt okay right after drinking the blood, he needs a little time for it to work its way entirely through his system.  Right now he feels like he’s been run over by a truck).

“If you want,” Kurt shivers, absolutely freezing, and weakly gropes for a blanket until Finn hands it to him and he wraps it around himself, still shaking.  Their fingers accidentally brush in the process and the taller boy jerks his hand back, staring at his stepbrother in shock.

“Dude, you’re freezing.”

“Side-effect of the vampirism, I’d wager,” Kurt smiles, his chattering teeth ruining the effect somewhat, and Finn shakes his head and moves onto the couch.

“I could…”

“No.  I wouldn’t ask you to,” Kurt curls away from him instinctively, closing his eyes.

“Kurt.”

“No, Finn,” Kurt pulls the blanket tighter, still shivering and unable to generate any warmth from it, and a second later Finn’s clambering beside him and yanking him into his arms, wrapping the blanket around both of them as Kurt finds himself in his stepbrother’s lap.  “F-Finn?”

“Shh,” Finn replies, pulling Kurt’s head to rest comfortably on his shoulder.  “I’m here for you.  We’re gonna try and figure this out, okay?  I promise.”

“I know,” Kurt assures him.  “I just don’t know if I can let myself love you again.”

“Well, tough,” Finn teases gently.  “I’m not going to be your personal blood bank for any longer than I have to.  That’s kinda gross, man.”

“Tell me about it,” Kurt snorts.  “It’s not something I’d choose of my own volition, that’s for certain.”

“Relax,” Finn urges him again, and Kurt nods and lets himself sink farther into Finn’s embrace, feeling warmth beginning to seep back into his body.  “There.  Is that so bad?”

“No, of course not,” Kurt lets his fingers grip at Finn’s shirt, relaxing even farther until he’s nearly boneless in Finn’s strong arms, and it would be so, so easy to fall in love again, but he’s still not sure if he can afford that.  He knows he can’t afford to have his heart broken again.

“So…”

“So,” Kurt repeats, closing his eyes and inhaling, and yes, his senses must be slightly enhanced, because while everything all mixed together amounts to ‘teenaged boy,’ he can discern the differences between Finn’s normal musk and his aftershave and what has to be Biofreeze.  It’s nice, in a way, because Finn isn’t trying to make himself smell like anything in particular; he’s just being himself.  Kurt, of course, makes sure all of his scents coordinate before he chooses cologne and shampoo and shower gel, but that’s hardly going to change.

“So.  We’re trying this?”

“It’s up to you.  Honestly, Finn, I won’t push you into anything,” Kurt promises.  “Whatever you want.”

“Like I said, I’m gonna do everything I can to help you with this, and you’re awesome, Kurt.  I don’t…I’ve never thought about whether I’m, like, bi or anything before?  But if there was anybody…I mean, if I had to pick one guy that I could see myself…going gay for?  Totally you,” Finn smiles at him, but it’s that twisty-nose smile that he only gives when he doesn’t quite believe what he’s saying.

Nonetheless, the sentiment is rather sweet and Kurt appreciates it for what it is.  “Thank you.”

“Of course, man.  Hey, you think Blaine left us alone so we’d work this out?”

“Really, Finn?  Really?” Kurt can’t keep the sarcasm out of his voice on that one, and Finn presses his nose into Kurt’s hair and nudges him gently.  It’s such an animalistic display of affection but it’s something that Kurt’s never really seen from the other boy and, as such, it makes something in his stomach flutter.  He refrains the urge to tamp it down, because he’d always known he was chasing the impossible and had never allowed himself to feel for very long, but this time he can and he revels in that simple fact.

“You tired?”

“A little, still,” Kurt admits.  “But I’ve slept a lot and I don’t feel like sleeping anymore.  I want my coffee.”

“You want anything to eat?”

“Mm.  Maybe.  But I’d rather just stay here with you for now,” he says without thinking, worried a second later that he’s gone too far, but Finn hugs him tighter and Kurt thinks that this is okay.  He can live with this.

“Okay.  We can do that,” Finn gropes for the remote and turns the television on but Kurt pays little attention to what he’s watching, content to lie in Finn’s arms and half-doze until Blaine comes back with his coffee.

“Everything okay?” he asks softly, handing the cup over to Kurt, who thanks him with a nod.

“Yeah,” Finn answers for both of them.  “We’ll be fine.”

“Hopefully,” Kurt mutters, inhaling the rich aroma of coffee and chocolate before taking a sip and sighing happily.  At least being a vampire hasn’t taken the basic enjoyments of life away from him altogether; he supposes he can be happy about that.

“Stop worrying,” Finn does that nudging thing with his nose again and Kurt’s going to have to talk to him about that if he continues with it.  But then, he supposes, it’s obviously a big step for Finn, and he can hardly fault him for trying.

Blaine notices and gives both of them a smile before heading for the kitchen.  “Why don’t I throw a pizza in the oven?  Get some food going?  I know I haven’t eaten all day.”

“And Finn’s always hungry,” Kurt teases, causing Finn to sputter indignantly until Kurt waves him off.  “You are.  Tell me you won’t eat pizza if we make some.”

“I…can’t,” Finn admits.  “I’ll totally eat pizza.”

“Pizza it is,” Blaine nods.  “Kurt, do you have any idea when your parents are getting home?”

“Finn?”

“Um…I think they went out for dinner or something?  So probably late,” he shrugs.

“Fair enough.  I’ll be back in a few minutes,” Blaine heads for the kitchen as Kurt blinks, realizing that it’s Saturday night and he’s been in the same outfit since the night before and…

“Oh, Gaga, I haven’t done any of my routines today and I’m wearing day-old clothes.  Finn, help me to my room, I have to…”

“You’re not going anywhere,” Finn clamps his arm tightly around Kurt’s waist and holds him steady.  “And you’re fine.  Who’s going to see you?”

Kurt has to admit he has a point; after all, the two people he really care about showing off for have already seen him at his worst today, so maybe there’s no harm in letting himself go.

For tonight.  Being a vampire is no excuse to let personal appearance and hygiene go to pot.

Kurt lets himself relax back into Finn’s embrace, cradling his coffee and taking a sip every so often as Finn watches the television intently, and while Kurt still can’t bring himself to fully believe that this is all going to work itself out, he’s more hopeful than he was.

And that’s something, at least.

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Notes:

1. Thank you all so, SO much for your kind reviews/comments on the first chapter; I had no idea this idea would even be popular, so it’s great encouragement :D

2. Because some readers have been asking, this will be Finn/Kurt in the end, so if you were worried about that, never fear :)

3. Updates probably won’t come this frequently all the time, but I have the week off school and while normally I’d be somewhere warm for the vacation this year I’m stuck at home where the temperature is around -15 Celsius (or about 5 degrees Fahrenheit), so there’s not much to do except stay warm and write.  ^_^.

4. That’s all for this time!  Hope everybody enjoyed!