Fic: Part Of Your World (2/3)

[imogen_lefay]

Title: Part Of Your World
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: Kurt/Blaine (with mentions of St. Berry)
Spoilers: -
Warnings: -
Word Count: 17,700
Summary: The Little Mermaid inspired AU. Nobody knows how Kurt Hummel ended up as the only survivor of a plane crash. After all, who would believe that an invisible boy had brought him to safety, comforted him and sang to him? Enter Blaine, a strange, who seems to have stepped right out of a fairy tale - and unfortunately is unable to utter a single word. But could he still be that same boy?
Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, The Little Mermaid, or the lyrics used, which are from "Part of your world (reprise/final)" from The Little Mermaid and "Not while I'm around" from Sweeney Todd.

Part 1
Part 3


After two weeks, Kurt had given up on solving the mystery. He had tried calling the police and all hospitals nearby several times in the last few days, but there had been no further result. The police had at least kept notes about Blaine, just in case anybody would file a missing person report, but Santana had already told him that it was futile. Blaine himself hadn't seemed too concerned with the whole thing. In fact, he seemed pretty happy with where he was. And Kurt had to admit that he felt the same way.

Blaine fit seamlessly into the loft and their living arrangements. Rachel was quickly drawn to somebody more prone to listening than actual talking, and to Kurt's surprise Santana had somehow taken him under her wings. It was amazing, really, that Santana, who had the shortest temper of everybody Kurt had ever met with the possible exception of their cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester, showed so much patience whenever Blaine was puzzled by something completely mundane, be it the stove, computers or the concept of coffee shops.

By now, Kurt was half convinced that Blaine had come either from another planet, another time, or possibly a fairy tale. It was a theory he carefully kept to himself. He assumed Santana would laugh at him and Rachel would think he had snapped under the stress. He had suggested it to Blaine himself, but he had only tilted his head and frowned. Eventually he had shrugged, as if the answer was neither yes or no.

Eventually, Kurt had just accepted the fact that Blaine would be part of their lives. He was living with them, he accompanied Kurt to his shifts at the diner, and once Kurt had taken him to Isabelle when she needed a model for a few new designs that she was uncertain of. She had dressed him up in several outfits while Kurt had tried his best to concentrate on the article he had to write. The attempts had been in vain, but the view had been great. Afterwards, Kurt had taken Blaine to the mall and bought him several outfits of his own, and only part of that hat been to play some more dress-up.

They had come to some weird form of communication, just with looks and small gestures. Kurt couldn't help but smile when he thought of it, how easy it had become to read Blaine. It was even nicer to know that it was just something between the two of them. Rachel still didn't get Blaine most of the time. Santana had more luck, mostly because she was pretty good at guessing the things that confused Blaine, but it wasn't the same level of understanding.

By now, Kurt spent almost every free minute with Blaine. The boy had a calming influence, and even if it still felt a bit weird to share the bed with somebody he hardly knew, he couldn't remember sleeping this well since the plane crash. They spent hours watching movies - Blaine seemed to have taking a special liking to Disney movies, but he was also one of the few people he could watch horrible reality shows with - listening to music, or with conversations. Obviously, Kurt did the talking while Blaine listened, but he still managed to communicate through expressions. Kurt was starting to read his smiles, with their varying intensities and degrees of tenderness, his frowns, that head-tilt, and those times when he bowed his head, frustrated by all the things he couldn't communicate. Those were the times that had Kurt reach out for him. They were almost heartbreaking.

And the more time he spent with the boy, the harder it was to ignore what Santana had said. He tried to tell himself that this was ridiculous, that he didn't know this boy, no matter how familiar he felt or how well he fit into his life. But that reasoning felt weaker with every day. He felt as if maybe he did know Blaine, as if he could understand the boy just from the way he behaved, from the gentleness he showed when listening to Rachel's worries about her relationship, or Santana complaining about her day. Kurt felt as if he knew Blaine from the smile he wore when he walked through the streets, the delight with which he fed the ducks in Central Park that positively flocked to him. There was compassion, and joy, and Kurt wished he had the content he saw in Blaine in his own life. He still couldn't shake the that thought, that just maybe Blaine was the boy from his dreams, the one who had saved him - but no matter the answer, he just felt happier than he had in ages.

Tonight was one of the few occasions when Kurt and both of his girls had the night off, and as usual, they celebrated it by visiting a bar that one of them had chosen - which meant that two out of three times, they ended at Callbacks. Tonight was one of those nights.

Kurt had fallen in love with Callbacks the first time he set foot into the place, so he really hoped that Blaine would like it too - no matter how much Santana had smirked when he let it slip around her. But now that they entered the bar, he felt his concerns lessen. Blaine looked around the bar with an expression of wide-eyed awe that Kurt had seen several times throughout the last week. It was a good expression. While the went to the cable, Kurt felt Blaine's hand slip into his. After their first meeting, he hadn't casually taken Kurt's hand, only sometimes when he was overwhelmed by something in the city, and once during a firework, that had been overwhelming on a completely different level. Tonight, Callbacks was filled with more people than usual, so Kurt understood how it could be a bit much for somebody who wasn't used to crowds.

He navigated them to the table where Rachel and Santana were already waiting.

“Oh god, finally!” Santana cried out when they sat down. “Please talk about anything else than her stupid boyfriend's stupid play.”

“It's not stupid,” Rachel said and glared at Santana, “it's iconic.”

“I thought he was doing a comedy show,” Kurt said with a frown. “Or did he get fired from that?”

“He just got a better role, he was not fired!” Rachel insisted.

“Don't encourage her,” Santana said darkly, “let's just not discuss this anymore? How is your boy doing?”

“He's not my boy, Santana,” Kurt said with a sharp tone in his voice. Of course, at that moment Blaine looped an arm through his and looked at him with a raised eyebrow, as if to challenge that statement. “Oh, I see where this is going. You're on her side now?” Kurt asked and rolled his eyes in a faked exasperated manner. He could tell from the grin that appeared on Blaine's face that he understood perfectly.

“Of course he's on my side, I'm always right, remember?” Santana asked.

“That is not true, and you know it,” Kurt said drily.

“Yeah, well, but I just signed a contract for a new commercial, which means today? I win, at everything. Also, this time, I read the contract before signing it,” Santana said.

“Oh my god, that's amazing!” Rachel said. “Congratulations.”

The conversation obviously centered on Santana now, and it took Kurt a moment to realize that Blaine wasn't paying attention. “Are you okay?” Kurt asked softly, while Santana and Rachel were involved in a half-heated discussion about the value of commercials for pharmaceutical companies for a television career.

Blaine looked at him in surprise and then nodded slowly. But his eyes had been a thousand miles away. Kurt followed his gaze to the small stage and the piano standing there.

“People sometimes do performances here,” he explained, “mostly NYADA students, but everybody can get up and sing something.“

Blaine's mouth opened, but by now he had stopped trying to say anything and remembered his inability to do so in time. He frowned and looked upwards, an expression that Kurt had come to understand as he didn't know how to explain what he wanted, and it was usually followed by that frustrated bow of his head.

“Did you sing, before?” Kurt asked.

Blaine blinked, then he nodded. He bit his lower lip and got a faraway look, as if he remembered something. With a soundless sigh, he shook his head and looked up at Kurt. His eyes were softer now, and there was a note of sadness there. Kurt wished he could take it away.

“I'm sorry,” Kurt said. “I wish I knew what happened to you.”

Blaine shook his head, and then, after a moment of hesitation, took Kurt's hand. His expression was serious now, and yet there was still that tenderness that was usually in his eyes when he looked at Kurt. It made his breath hitch to have this intense, warm gaze on him.

“I'll find it out somehow,” he said softly.

There was the tiniest smile on Blaine's face. It was lovely, but it wasn't enough. They both looked at the stage. Kurt followed Blaine's gaze again, and ended up looking at the piano. “Do you play?” he asked.

This time, the nod came immediately. For Kurt, there was no hesitation. He took Blaine's hand and led him towards the stage. After a few words with the barkeeper, he pulled the boy to the piano and gestured at him to sit down. Blaine stared at him in disbelief, and for a moment Kurt wondered if he had made a mistake. What if Blaine didn't want to perform and just played in private? Was he alright with Kurt putting him on the spot like that? But then, a smile formed on Blaine's face, still incredulous, but somehow... grateful. Kurt found himself squeezing Blaine's hand shortly. And then, Blaine sat down, without letting go of Kurt's hand. He still looked to his right at Kurt, with a question in his eyes. Kurt wasn't sure what he wanted, but he stayed close and put a hand onto Blaine's shoulder as he put his fingers onto the keys. He took one more visible breath, his eyes not leaving Kurt's, and then he started playing.

It wasn't an arrangement he had heard before, so it took Kurt a few moments until he recognized the song, but then he felt his breath hitch. He knew this song, and combined with the way Blaine was looking at him, intently, and with hints of despair that Kurt didn't understand... and suddenly he realized what Blaine had asked for silently. With his hand still on Blaine's shoulder, and without breaking their eye-contact, he started to sing.

“Nothing's gonna harm you, not while I'm around. Nothing's gonna harm you, no sir, not while I'm around...”

As he kept singing, he couldn't take his eyes off Blaine. Under the music, he came to life in a way Kurt hadn't seen before in him - or anybody, really. There was passion, as the one he himself felt for performing, and happiness over the way Kurt's voice waved into the piano's notes. The music itself seemed to give him life. Kurt could just imagine what it would feel like, to love music and singing so much, and then to give it up. He swore, the next time Blaine accompanied him to the diner, he would set him down at the piano and let him play through the whole shift, if that was what he wanted.

He had barely noticed, that they had already arrived at the last chorus. By now, Blaine was mouthing along to the lyrics, and Kurt wished he could hear his voice, to sing this as a duet with him... and wondered, if he'd already done so...

For the last verse, he put a hand on Blaine's cheek and stroked over it softly. The boy's eyes fluttered shut, still not missing a single key, but then again, he hadn't looked at the keys once since he started playing.

“Nothing's gonna harm you... not while I'm around.”

Applause followed, but Kurt hardly noticed it. He stared at Blaine, and there were tears standing in the boy's eyes. Kurt's hands were shaking, and he kept stroking Blaine's cheek. All he could think of was how much he wanted to kiss him in this moment. As if he could read his mind, Blaine's eyes went down to his lips for a second, before looking back up again. Despite the noise around them, for this moment Kurt felt as if they were completely alone, as if they were in a bubble and everything outside was just muted.

Blaine slowly stood up, and their hands found each other. It would be so easy, all he had to do was lean forward... Damn it, Santana had been right after all. He was in so much trouble...

He made a conscious effort to step away from Blaine. He regretted it the instant he saw the other boy's expression fall. There was more of the despair he had seen earlier, but Kurt still didn't understand it. He wished he had just taken the chance and gone in for the kiss, but now the moment was ruined. They went off the stage and back to their table in silence. Kurt noticed how Blaine showed a wide smile at the people complimenting them on the way. The smile didn't reach his eyes though. Kurt bit his lower lip. Great job he did there, really...

Santana looked at him with some sort of mocking pity and slowly shook her head.

“You're an idiot,” she muttered when he sat down beside her, not loud enough for anybody else to hear.

Kurt sighed. “I know.”

***

A few days later, Kurt still hadn't come to a conclusion on what he should do about the feelings for Blaine that he had undeniably developed. To his surprise, he had found that he was almost frightened of these emotions. He had had crushed on people before, but this was different. His feelings for Blaine were stronger, even though they hardly knew each other. He still didn't know the other boy's full name, he didn't know where he was from or what had happened that rendered him mute and so unfamiliar with everyday events and appliances. He didn't know anything about him...

...except his first name; and that he loved to play the piano; that he used to sing once and missed it like crazy; that his eyes seemed to glow from the inside when he was happy; that he loved seeing new things, new people; he liked Kurt's bow ties; he loved watching Disney and musicals and reality TV and comic book movies; he was smart, he got the hang of machines and other things that didn't require reading ridiculously fast; he was gentle and kind to people and animals; when they were outside there were always songbirds around him; he made Kurt feel calm and safe and happy...

Was he actually in love?

Kurt tried to tell himself that it was because in his head there was still that connection between Blaine and that mysterious boy that had saved his life. But that was a ridiculous notion, and he figured it wasn't fair to Blaine either to put such high expectations onto him. He had enough problems of his own, he didn't need Kurt to cast him as his personal savior.

Blaine for his part had lost a bit of his positive, happy energy. Every now and then, Kurt found the boy looking at him, a sad, almost resigned look in his eyes, and sometimes with that same despair he had seen at Callbacks. Kurt hated it, when he looked like that. He just wanted to embrace the boy when he caught that look, but he wasn't completely sure if it was welcome, or what he could do about it.

So now, Sunday noon, Kurt was standing behind the diner's counter sorting the salt and pepper packages. It was a mindless task, and exactly the thing Kurt needed, since his thoughts were once more occupied with that strange boy that had fallen into his life. It was surprisingly hard to get over just how weird every circumstance about Blaine was. It was also confusing. Did he really like Blaine, or was he obsessed with his image of that boy who had saved him? Were they the same person, or had his savior just been a hallucination? There was probably no way of ever finding out, but Kurt didn't know how to let go. He couldn't exactly ask Blaine if he had been around for a plane crash... Or could he? Maybe things would be easier if he just knew once and for all.

“New customer, can you take that one, Kurt?” one of the other waiters asked.

Kurt sighed. “On my way,” he said and looked up. He saw a young man sitting at a table near the window. He was on his own and looked around in the diner, as if he was looking for somebody. Well, he was probably looking for someone who'd serve him a drink.

As Kurt approached, he got a better look of the guy sitting there. His hair was black and swept up in an elaborate style, and he was wearing a long black coat that seemed to be covered in dust. Around his neck, there was a strange amulet. It was round, like a ball, but it looked thin and fragile, and there were dark red specks on the white surface. It reminded Kurt of a bird's egg.

Kurt put up his best stage smile before he rattled off his usual text. “Hello, my name is Kurt, and I will be your waiter tonight. May I interest you in our specials for tonight?”

The guy smiled at him. “Hello Kurt, it's very nice to finally speak to you.”

Kurt froze and stared at him, as his smile got wider until it reminded him of a cat. He knew that voice, that deep, comforting voice. He would recognize it everywhere.

“You're... Oh my god, it's you,” Kurt whispered and stared at the guy in front of him.

The guy nodded. “It's me. I'm sorry I didn't get in touch with you sooner, but it took me longer than expected to find my way here. I hope you have been well?”

“So it was real,” Kurt said. His knees felt weak and he had to sit down. “That crash, it happened just as I remembered? And you... you saved me.”

“I did,” he said, “and you're welcome.”

Kurt stared at him. “Oh my god, of course, thank you, thank you so much, I can't... I can't ever repay you, it's... this is overwhelming.”

The guy shrugged, still smiling. “It's fine,” he said. “Really, I'm just glad you're alright. Our kind is usually forbidden from interfering, but when I saw you...” He shrugged. “Well, I couldn't help myself. The name is Starchild, by the way.”

Kurt inhaled deeply and tried to bring his pulse under control. So it had happened, and this was his savior. There was no mistake, not with that voice. He felt excited, restless... it was strange, if he was honest with himself, he had always connected the person who saved him with calm and comfort... Now, faced with him, Kurt felt the opposite of calm. He could have explained that, of course it was unnerving, it brought everything about the crash back into his mind. But to his own surprise, he also felt disappointed and maybe a bit upset. So it hadn't been Blaine after all.

“Anything's on the house, of course,” Kurt said, then he hesitated. “Wait, what did you mean, your kind?”

Starchild looked at him as if he felt guilty. “This will all seem very strange to you,” he said with hesitation in his voice.

Kurt snorted. “Everything about this has been strange,” he said. “I just want to understand what happened.”

“I'm one of the fair folk, Kurt,” Starchild said. “A Fae, or fairy, if that is a word that comes easier to you.”

Kurt stared at him in disbelief. Fairies existed. This man who had saved his life just told him that fairies existed, as if it was nothing of interest.

Was Blaine one?

“So you saved me with magic?” Kurt asked.

Starchild nodded. “Fairy magic, although I broke some rules of the Fae. I've received quite the punishment for it. But I'm here now, in your world, and that's all that counts.”

“Is it hard, to come to this world?”Kurt asked. What if passing into this world hurt the fairies, and that was the reason Blaine couldn't talk? Once upon a time, Kurt would have had more of a problem with accepting the realities of fairies this easily, but with everything that had happened in the last months, it seemed to be the most sensible thing he had heard in ages.

“There are only a few who can pass through the realms. Obviously, the King and Queen are able and allowed to, and I've heard that occasionally, the crown prince travels here to do their bidding. But not even the rest of the royal family can travel freely. The only way for anyone else to safely cross into this world is the Lady Terri.”

“Who is she?”

“She's the most powerful witch I've ever known,” Starchild said. “It took me time to find her, and then some more time to pay her price. But here I am, I've finally found you.”

“What kind of price?” Kurt asked.

Starchild looked at him confused. Maybe he had expected a warmer reception, and Kurt felt bad about it. This guy had saved his life, he deserved more gratitude then that. But still, he answered.

“I had to find something for her,” Starchild said. “A tiara, a powerful artifact.”

“Is it always jewelry?” Kurt asked. He wasn't trying to be rude, but a thought had formed in his mind. What if Blaine had come here from the fairy world... what if not all prices were material?

“It's something significant, usually,” Starchild said. “But in the end, she has always been good to me.”

“I'm glad,” Kurt said, but his thoughts weren't completely with Starchild. Something was going on here, something he was missing...

He was almost relieved when he was called to another customer, although he promised to check in with Starchild before he left. He felt nervous, although he couldn't have said why that was. But when he turned back from the new customers, the table Starchild had been sitting at was empty.

Kurt felt a shiver run down his spine. He wasn't sure if he should be disappointed or relieved.

***

Even before his shift had ended, Kurt had sent a text to Santana. He needed to talk to someone, and now that he thought back on their conversation almost a month ago, the day she met Blaine, Kurt hoped that she might understand.

Santana had told him that they were in Central Park. He didn't even need to guess to know that Blaine was with her - he loved plants and every piece of green he could find, and he had found him there a lot, sometimes with Santana or Rachel, sometimes on his own, and sometimes Kurt came with him.

And as he expected, he found the both of them at the half-frozen pond. Other people would go to the pond to feed the ducks. With Blaine, Kurt had the impression he went there to pet the ducks. And again, he was surrounded by several birds, and some kids, who were probably impressed by how docile the usually shy birds had become. Blaine was sitting there in the snow, as if he didn't even notice the cold, and was currently stroking through a goose's gray downs. Santana was standing a few yards away and pretended to be bored by the sight, but Kurt didn't fall for it. She looked up and as she saw him approach, she went over to him.

“Are you sure his name isn't Snow White?” she asked with a frown in her face. “You should get behind that, maybe he can get some of these critters to do our chores.”

“I think he's a fairy,” Kurt said. He had planned a more careful approach, but the words had just burst out of him.

Santana looked at him as if he was being particularly slow. “It took you this long to figure that out?”

Kurt glared at her. “Not like that, Santana. What I'm saying is he's an actual fairy tale fairy, like... I don't know, Tinkerbell.”

Santana snorted. “Fairies are not like Tinkerbell, and of course he is one. Am I supposed to be surprised now? Just look at him!”

Kurt stared at her. He had hoped he would be able to talk to her about this, but he hadn't expected her to accept it this quickly.

Santana sighed. “Let's say he's not the first fairy I've known, so maybe it was more obvious to me.”

And suddenly it clicked. “Brittany?” Kurt asked.

There was a rare, tender expression on Santana's face now, as she nodded. “She knew nothing about our world when she came here... she got better, though. She wasn't allowed to come here in the first place. Fairies are supposed to stay in their own world, and eventually, they get back everybody who escapes.”

“I thought Brittany went to MIT,” Kurt said.

“She didn't. Her deal was always limited to a few years, afterwards she went back into her own world. I'm not sure how things are for your boy, though. Maybe he got a deal that let him stay forever... or maybe he'll have to return eventually, too.”

“There's something else,” Kurt said. “There's another fairy, I talked to him, and he saved my life.”

Santana stared at him. “Okay, I definitely need to hear more of that.”

Kurt took a deep breath, and then he started to tell her the whole story. He told her about the crash, about the invisible boy who had saved him, who may or may not have visited him in his dreams beforehand, how he had been warm and safe and comforting, and how he couldn't get him out of his mind, even when he thought it had been nothing but a hallucination. Then he told her about how he had found Blaine, how at first he had hoped that it might be the same boy, but had given up on that theory when he found out the boy had no voice. He spoke about how he had started to believe that maybe Blaine had just lost his voice, but still might be the boy who saved him, how he had developed feelings for him. At last, he told her about Starchild, the boy who had actually saved him, and who had just dropped into his life.

“So now, I have no idea what to do,” Kurt said.

“That's because you're an idiot,” Santana said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Honestly, what is your problem anyway? So this guy saved your life, that's awesome. You still know nothing about him.”

“You don't understand,” Kurt said.

“Oh, I understand,” Santana said and directed her gaze at Blaine, who was still completely immersed in his little bird show. “That boy there is just as crazy for you as you are for him, and that's what freaks you out. So you tried to explain your feelings away, to tell yourself that you just like him because he might be the guy who saved you, even though you weren't even sure that actually happened. You've put a nice label on it, because that way you can ignore how scared you are of actually falling in love with someone. Think about it, forget every idea you had about Blaine being the one who saved you, and just think about the last few weeks. Would you still have fallen in love with him?”

At that, Kurt closed his eyes and let his mind wander through the past few weeks. The more he thought of it, the more details came to his mind, tiny things he remembered, smiles and gestures, small moments, shy, stolen glances... But most of all he remembered warmth, and comfort and happiness. When he thought about the past few weeks, there really was only one answer.

“Yes.”

He looked up to find Santana smiling at him. “Then what are you waiting for?” She turned away from him and walked a few steps closer to the pond. Blaine had seen him now, and with a last wave to the kids and birds, he went over to him.

There was nothing to wait for now, except for the right moment. Still too overwhelmed from his epiphany, Kurt stepped towards Blaine and pulled him into an embrace. The boy's arms went around him as if on instinct and Kurt let himself sink into the warmth of it. There was a small part of himself that still compared it to the one he had gotten the day of the crash from his mysterious savior, but really, he understood now that it didn't matter. Illusions and fairy tales aside, this, right here, was where he felt like home.

He took a step backwards and looked at Blaine, who met his eye with a hint of confusion, but still so much tenderness.

“Let's get home,” Kurt said. “There's something I need to tell you.”