McKinley Towers - Welcome to McKinley Towers.
Glee AU, set in an early 1900s boarding school setting. Based on Enid Blyton's Malory Towers, St Clares and Naughtiest Girl series. Klaine centric. Fluff.
Warnings: None.
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Blaine Anderson has spent his entire school life at the Dalton Academy for Boys, when his parents realized he had become too accustomed to his life of privilege. They decided to send him to McKinley Towers, a co-ed boarding school, to learn that there is more to life than parties and one-upmanship.
Kurt Hummel is an only child doted on by his father. He has always been schooled at home, until his father remarries and he decides to send Kurt to the same school as his new step-brother. Kurt has had little experience socialising with others his own age and finds it difficult to fit in at first.
The name McKinley Towers was a bit of a misnomer, Kurt thought to himself as they pulled up in front of the school building. It was certainly attractive enough, but there was only one true tower atop what served as the front lobby. It was picturesque enough though, with its pale brick walls covered in bright green ivy and the forget-me-nots and bluebells that littered the drive. Kurt thought he might enjoy staying there for the next two or so years. He followed Finn to the back of their car, where his father had already opened the back and taken out both his and Finn’s trunks. He took his own trunk by the handle, when he heard several excited voices behind him.
“Finn!”
“Hey Hudson, have fun during the hols?”
“Finn you pig, you never wrote me once during the summer! I must have sent you half a dozen letters at least!”
Kurt looked around to see his brother smiling sheepishly as two girls and a boy almost as tall as his stepbrother surrounded them. One of the girls was an extremely pretty blonde, lithe but strong looking. Kurt thought she might be athletic telling from her well toned limbs. He was in loathe of sports himself, but was determined to make a good go of it anyway. The other girl was plainer looking, but had wonderfully dark, expressive eyes and dark brown hair that fell in shiny sheets about her shoulders. He didn’t quite know what to make of her as there was a look of perpetual determination on her face, but figured she had to be nice enough if she was one of Finn’s friends. He stood there waiting for Finn to introduce them, but Finn seemed to have forgotten about him as he was chatting animatedly to the other boy about what they did over the summer. He lined himself up next to his step brother and nudged him silently.
“Wha-, oh right, Kurt. Um…guys. This is Kurt. My mum married his dad over the summer, so he’s kind of like my stepbrother.” Finn stumbled over the words. Introductions weren’t his strong point. “Kurt, this is Quinn Fabray, Rachel Berry and Noah Puckerman, but everyone just calls him Puck.”
“Pleased to meet you.” Kurt’s voice was naturally high-pitched, but even more so when he was excited or nervous, and when he tried to bow he dipped down, making it look more like a curtsy. The others just blinked at him, and Puck barely concealed a laugh. Kurt grew red in the face and ducked back behind the car to where his parents stood talking. The voices behind him were now suspiciously low and he thought he heard Finn saying ‘just give him a chance.’ Perhaps fitting in at school wasn’t going to be as easy as he had assumed.
“So, Quinn. Who was that guy I saw getting out of your parent’s car when you arrived? He didn’t look happy.” Puck looked around to see if he could spot the boy in question, but he had disappeared.
“Oh, him. His name is Blaine Anderson. He lives near me but I don’t know much about him. I tried getting him talking in the car but he was really quiet and every time I mentioned McKinley Towers he screwed up his nose like I had just waved something rotten under it. He used to go to Dalton Academy and he seems a bit stuck up to me.”
The others smiled in amusement at Quinn Fabray calling anyone stuck up. She was the prettiest and richest girl in the school, and while she was better than she had been the previous term, she still used every opportunity show it.
“Shouldn’t you be looking after him a bit, if he’s new?” Rachel asked. Quinn tossed up her head haughtily.
“I did offer, but he said he would be fine locating his dormroom on his own. I’m glad he did, I’d much rather be here with Finn than waste my time on some preppy kid.”
Rachel threw Quinn a dirty look, but the other girl missed it completely as she was staring over at Kurt.
“Finn, why is your brother wearing a beret?”
Blaine at that very moment had just found the school Matron. She looked a little taken aback by his first appearance. He had fashioned his hair in a way that made him look more like a London Banker than a schoolboy, with it combed neatly to the side and stuck down with some kind of grease. She would have asked him what class he would be teaching, were it not for the fact he was wearing a uniform and had already handed her his medical certificate.
“All right Mr. Anderson. You will be sleeping in the boy’s dormitory in Oak House. If you could just wait here for a moment, I will find one of the boys to come and show you where to go. Also, do you have your term's pocket money with you now or will your parents be sending it through?”
“I have it here, but why?” Blaine reached into his bag and pulled out an envelope with the crisp pound notes his father had given him the night before. He showed them to Matron.
“My goodness, boy. There must be five pounds in here at least! Students here are allowed two shillings a week to spend in town to buy things as they need, or see a film, but you won’t need any more than that. I collect the student’s money at the beginning of term and give them their weekly stipend. As you have so much with you I will hold on to it for now and you can have the remainder back at the end of term.”
Blaine wanted to protest, but he knew it would do no good to argue with a teacher and that kind of behaviour had been frowned on at Dalton. He felt embarrassed at being treated like such a child however. At Dalton they had free reign over their own finances and there were never any problems. And two shillings! How could these people survive on so little? He would always spend at least twice that whenever a classmate had a birthday, more if it had been someone close like Wes.
Matron seemed to notice what was going on in his head, and she spoke not unkindly. “It is not that I don’t trust you with your own money, only that not everyone in the school has the same finances. This way it is fair to everyone.” Blaine said nothing in response and she turned to the next student waiting to check in with her. “Oh, yes. Mr Evans. Could I please ask you to show Mr Anderson here where the dorm rooms are? He will be in the same dorm as you.”
“Yes, Matron.” The student responded in a Cornish accent. He had sandy blonde hair and a wide, friendly smile that Blaine couldn’t help staring at. He held out his hand, a little stiffly.
“Blaine Anderson.”
The blonde boy took his hand, smiling at Blaine’s demeanour. “Sam Evans. I’m just starting the lower fourth this term. What about you?”
“Lower fourth, same as you.”
Sam looked surprised at that. “Gee, you don’t look it. How old are you?”
“16.” Blaine wasn’t bothered by being told he didn’t look it. People were more mature at Dalton, and that was where he belonged.
“Hey, same! Let me know if you need help finding your way round. I know the place inside out. I’ve been here since second form.”
Blaine listened as Sam chatted animatedly about places all around the school. That was something he had noticed Quinn doing as well, everyone talked about the school as if it were something special, even though it had none of the prestige and high social standing that Dalton had. He figured they just didn’t know any better. How he hated his parents for sending him here.
Sam led Blaine into a large, simple room with 6 bunk beds lined up against the walls, with two separate drawers next to each one. At Dalton he had only needed to share with one other person, and they each had their own separate beds. He didn’t know how he was going to manage sleeping in a room with eleven other people. He swore that if he was any less of a man he might have run away that minute.
“You can bunk with me if you like?” Sam asked good-naturedly. “Do you prefer top bunk or bottom?”
Blaine could see Sam was trying to make an effort, and he couldn’t help but like him. “Top, but I suppose all the old students will want those.”
“It’ll be fine.” Sam slung an arm around Blaine’s shoulders. “If any of the others say anything I’ll say it was my bunk and I chose to give it to you. Oh, and I hope you don’t snore. I’m a really light sleeper and I had Puck on the top bunk last term. I had to keep kicking the bottom of his bed to get him to roll over.”
Sam then offered to show Blaine around the grounds. They walked through the hallways of the class buildings and he was shown where the fourth form would be taking classes as well as the music room. Blaine liked the look of the grand piano that sat in the centre of the room as his fingers ached to touch it. Sam then showed him the sports grounds and swimming pool. There were already students out on the grounds tossing balls and practicing their serves on the tennis court.
“Did you play any sports at your last school?” Sam asked conversationally.
“Yes.” Blaine answered. “I played hockey and lacrosse. I’m not so good at tennis though.”
Sam smiled. “I hope I can get on one of the school teams this year. I made reserve last year for hockey. I didn’t get to play but it was great to go to another school and watch the game. Maybe we can practice together? I'll see if I can help you get on the school teams too.”
Blaine stayed silent. He had already played in away matches for the Dalton lacrosse team, in tournaments that the likes of McKinley Towers would never be good enough to play in. He certainly wasn’t worried about getting into one of the school teams here. He was going to show this entire school what Blaine Anderson could do.
Next Chapter: New Faces
Warnings: None.
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Blaine Anderson has spent his entire school life at the Dalton Academy for Boys, when his parents realized he had become too accustomed to his life of privilege. They decided to send him to McKinley Towers, a co-ed boarding school, to learn that there is more to life than parties and one-upmanship.
Kurt Hummel is an only child doted on by his father. He has always been schooled at home, until his father remarries and he decides to send Kurt to the same school as his new step-brother. Kurt has had little experience socialising with others his own age and finds it difficult to fit in at first.
The name McKinley Towers was a bit of a misnomer, Kurt thought to himself as they pulled up in front of the school building. It was certainly attractive enough, but there was only one true tower atop what served as the front lobby. It was picturesque enough though, with its pale brick walls covered in bright green ivy and the forget-me-nots and bluebells that littered the drive. Kurt thought he might enjoy staying there for the next two or so years. He followed Finn to the back of their car, where his father had already opened the back and taken out both his and Finn’s trunks. He took his own trunk by the handle, when he heard several excited voices behind him.
“Finn!”
“Hey Hudson, have fun during the hols?”
“Finn you pig, you never wrote me once during the summer! I must have sent you half a dozen letters at least!”
Kurt looked around to see his brother smiling sheepishly as two girls and a boy almost as tall as his stepbrother surrounded them. One of the girls was an extremely pretty blonde, lithe but strong looking. Kurt thought she might be athletic telling from her well toned limbs. He was in loathe of sports himself, but was determined to make a good go of it anyway. The other girl was plainer looking, but had wonderfully dark, expressive eyes and dark brown hair that fell in shiny sheets about her shoulders. He didn’t quite know what to make of her as there was a look of perpetual determination on her face, but figured she had to be nice enough if she was one of Finn’s friends. He stood there waiting for Finn to introduce them, but Finn seemed to have forgotten about him as he was chatting animatedly to the other boy about what they did over the summer. He lined himself up next to his step brother and nudged him silently.
“Wha-, oh right, Kurt. Um…guys. This is Kurt. My mum married his dad over the summer, so he’s kind of like my stepbrother.” Finn stumbled over the words. Introductions weren’t his strong point. “Kurt, this is Quinn Fabray, Rachel Berry and Noah Puckerman, but everyone just calls him Puck.”
“Pleased to meet you.” Kurt’s voice was naturally high-pitched, but even more so when he was excited or nervous, and when he tried to bow he dipped down, making it look more like a curtsy. The others just blinked at him, and Puck barely concealed a laugh. Kurt grew red in the face and ducked back behind the car to where his parents stood talking. The voices behind him were now suspiciously low and he thought he heard Finn saying ‘just give him a chance.’ Perhaps fitting in at school wasn’t going to be as easy as he had assumed.
“So, Quinn. Who was that guy I saw getting out of your parent’s car when you arrived? He didn’t look happy.” Puck looked around to see if he could spot the boy in question, but he had disappeared.
“Oh, him. His name is Blaine Anderson. He lives near me but I don’t know much about him. I tried getting him talking in the car but he was really quiet and every time I mentioned McKinley Towers he screwed up his nose like I had just waved something rotten under it. He used to go to Dalton Academy and he seems a bit stuck up to me.”
The others smiled in amusement at Quinn Fabray calling anyone stuck up. She was the prettiest and richest girl in the school, and while she was better than she had been the previous term, she still used every opportunity show it.
“Shouldn’t you be looking after him a bit, if he’s new?” Rachel asked. Quinn tossed up her head haughtily.
“I did offer, but he said he would be fine locating his dormroom on his own. I’m glad he did, I’d much rather be here with Finn than waste my time on some preppy kid.”
Rachel threw Quinn a dirty look, but the other girl missed it completely as she was staring over at Kurt.
“Finn, why is your brother wearing a beret?”
Blaine at that very moment had just found the school Matron. She looked a little taken aback by his first appearance. He had fashioned his hair in a way that made him look more like a London Banker than a schoolboy, with it combed neatly to the side and stuck down with some kind of grease. She would have asked him what class he would be teaching, were it not for the fact he was wearing a uniform and had already handed her his medical certificate.
“All right Mr. Anderson. You will be sleeping in the boy’s dormitory in Oak House. If you could just wait here for a moment, I will find one of the boys to come and show you where to go. Also, do you have your term's pocket money with you now or will your parents be sending it through?”
“I have it here, but why?” Blaine reached into his bag and pulled out an envelope with the crisp pound notes his father had given him the night before. He showed them to Matron.
“My goodness, boy. There must be five pounds in here at least! Students here are allowed two shillings a week to spend in town to buy things as they need, or see a film, but you won’t need any more than that. I collect the student’s money at the beginning of term and give them their weekly stipend. As you have so much with you I will hold on to it for now and you can have the remainder back at the end of term.”
Blaine wanted to protest, but he knew it would do no good to argue with a teacher and that kind of behaviour had been frowned on at Dalton. He felt embarrassed at being treated like such a child however. At Dalton they had free reign over their own finances and there were never any problems. And two shillings! How could these people survive on so little? He would always spend at least twice that whenever a classmate had a birthday, more if it had been someone close like Wes.
Matron seemed to notice what was going on in his head, and she spoke not unkindly. “It is not that I don’t trust you with your own money, only that not everyone in the school has the same finances. This way it is fair to everyone.” Blaine said nothing in response and she turned to the next student waiting to check in with her. “Oh, yes. Mr Evans. Could I please ask you to show Mr Anderson here where the dorm rooms are? He will be in the same dorm as you.”
“Yes, Matron.” The student responded in a Cornish accent. He had sandy blonde hair and a wide, friendly smile that Blaine couldn’t help staring at. He held out his hand, a little stiffly.
“Blaine Anderson.”
The blonde boy took his hand, smiling at Blaine’s demeanour. “Sam Evans. I’m just starting the lower fourth this term. What about you?”
“Lower fourth, same as you.”
Sam looked surprised at that. “Gee, you don’t look it. How old are you?”
“16.” Blaine wasn’t bothered by being told he didn’t look it. People were more mature at Dalton, and that was where he belonged.
“Hey, same! Let me know if you need help finding your way round. I know the place inside out. I’ve been here since second form.”
Blaine listened as Sam chatted animatedly about places all around the school. That was something he had noticed Quinn doing as well, everyone talked about the school as if it were something special, even though it had none of the prestige and high social standing that Dalton had. He figured they just didn’t know any better. How he hated his parents for sending him here.
Sam led Blaine into a large, simple room with 6 bunk beds lined up against the walls, with two separate drawers next to each one. At Dalton he had only needed to share with one other person, and they each had their own separate beds. He didn’t know how he was going to manage sleeping in a room with eleven other people. He swore that if he was any less of a man he might have run away that minute.
“You can bunk with me if you like?” Sam asked good-naturedly. “Do you prefer top bunk or bottom?”
Blaine could see Sam was trying to make an effort, and he couldn’t help but like him. “Top, but I suppose all the old students will want those.”
“It’ll be fine.” Sam slung an arm around Blaine’s shoulders. “If any of the others say anything I’ll say it was my bunk and I chose to give it to you. Oh, and I hope you don’t snore. I’m a really light sleeper and I had Puck on the top bunk last term. I had to keep kicking the bottom of his bed to get him to roll over.”
Sam then offered to show Blaine around the grounds. They walked through the hallways of the class buildings and he was shown where the fourth form would be taking classes as well as the music room. Blaine liked the look of the grand piano that sat in the centre of the room as his fingers ached to touch it. Sam then showed him the sports grounds and swimming pool. There were already students out on the grounds tossing balls and practicing their serves on the tennis court.
“Did you play any sports at your last school?” Sam asked conversationally.
“Yes.” Blaine answered. “I played hockey and lacrosse. I’m not so good at tennis though.”
Sam smiled. “I hope I can get on one of the school teams this year. I made reserve last year for hockey. I didn’t get to play but it was great to go to another school and watch the game. Maybe we can practice together? I'll see if I can help you get on the school teams too.”
Blaine stayed silent. He had already played in away matches for the Dalton lacrosse team, in tournaments that the likes of McKinley Towers would never be good enough to play in. He certainly wasn’t worried about getting into one of the school teams here. He was going to show this entire school what Blaine Anderson could do.
Next Chapter: New Faces