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With the full moon bathing everything into a silver light, it was sometimes hard to forget that nothing in Sunnydale was as peaceful as it seemed.
Sure, sitting at the edge of the community college’s campus, overlooking the park, it could be such an iconic experience. Blaine could picture a normal town, people hanging out here in the summer evenings, having a few drinks, maybe someone bringing out a guitar, just music and community and happiness…
People in Sunnydale had this tendency to spend the nights of the full moon inside.
It wasn’t something people talked about, just one of those unspoken things happening in the town with the biggest supernatural activities. And to be fair, they were kept safe from most of the Hellmouth’s eruptions. After all, the Chosen One himself lived here.
And as his brother, Blaine felt an obligation to help as much as he could.
That’s what led him here, on one of the watchpoints the werewolves had suggested.
Four years ago, the thoughts of werewolves being real would have thrown him. But by now, he took it in stride. Between vampires, the fae, sirens and all sorts of demons, it was a bit hard to still be surprised. In comparison the werewolves seemed almost normal.
Most of them were peaceful, or at least smart enough not to do anything too insane under the Slayer’s nose. But every now and then, someone lost control. That’s what had led to a disaster the last two months. A rogue werewolf, who’d spent the last two full moons going on a rampage. Something must have gone wrong, a madness that had the taint of something unnatural. Magic, or a curse. Either way, it had to be stopped. Last month, they were so close to catching him. This month, Sue would take no risks. The Watcher had gotten in contact with the werewolves, and they had decided to work together. And what was a better lure than pretty teenagers?
That was how Blaine had ended up at this point, the least likely from what Cooper had surmised. He wasn’t too happy with the thought that his friend Sam was at the prime spot, though he was being protected by Sue herself, as well as a few werewolves.
Blaine at least had the company of his boyfriend. And wow, was that still a new concept.
Sebastian had laughed in his face when he asked for help. Hunting werewolves sounded extremely boring to him. He had been tempted though by the prospect of spending some time together, and Blaine had also dropped that a werewolf in his Lykan form probably wouldn’t count as a human, circumventing the… boundaries Sebastian found himself in at the moment. He’d still emphasized that the plan was to capture the creature, not kill it, and he really hoped the silver charms Jesse St. James had come up with would do the trick. But he was aware that defense situations could get out of hand.
He tried not to think about which part of that had tipped the scale on Sebastian’s decision.
And now, here they were at a stake-out, and Sebastian was bored out of his mind. Which wasn’t the worst, because that made him start talking. Not only had he the ability to stay totally alert when conversing, he also honestly had the best stories.
Not that Blaine could focus on them at the moment.
“Sure, at that point Andrew kicked me out, but I did manage to give Terry some pointers on what to do with those hips. Curious cat indeed…”
Blaine hummed, trying to sound more interested than absent.
But instead of Sebastian continuing his tale, he seemed to zero in on his reaction.
“Okay, what’s up?” he asked.
“What?”
“Come on,” Sebastian said, rolling his eyes, “I’m telling you I hooked up with the original Broadway Rum Tum Tugger and you’re barely paying attention. So, where exactly is your mind?”
“It’s nothing,” Blaine said. “Sorry, just being distracted. Go on.”
“I mean, if I want you distracted, I’d have a few ideas,” Sebastian said, raising an eyebrow to his obvious implication. “I’m sure you have way better moves than Terry, anyway.”
So that usually might make Blaine laugh, but right now, he didn’t manage much more than a weak smile.
Sebastian frowned. “Seriously, what’s up with you? You’ve been distracted all night.”
It was such a minor thing, just an observation a lot of people might make, had made. But most followed it up with a question on whether it was just him, or if something bigger was going on, some monster, some spell… Even among the Scoobies, that conclusion was never far.
Of course, Sebastian was different. While he had resorted to help them, and by now was a member of the gang, he always managed to appear completely unbothered by any of it. Things better got interesting, or he was out.
Except for whatever they had stumbled into between the two of them. Sebastian seemed to be here for whatever this was.
“It’s nothing,” Baine said. And it wasn’t. He shouldn’t be bothered. It was stupid. But still…
“You know,” Sebastian said, “the wolves did think it’s pretty unlikely the thing would pass here, right? I mean, otherwise your brother wouldn’t have agreed to you playing bait here. Would anyone really notice if we took off? I’m back at the cabin, so there’d even be a bed, and I know how much you like your comfort…”
“We can’t,” Blaine said, rolling his eyes. “I told you, this is important. The wolf has to be stopped, he kills people.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Sebastian said, a smirk on his face. “Blaine Anderson, siren extraordinaire and savior of the poor and helpless of the world…”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Blaine asked.
“Nothing,” Sebastian said. “Except… you tend to get so serious. Come on, killer, relax. The world is going to keep turning without you. Not like you’re the Chosen One. And you’re always so caught up in this whole saving the world business. You need to relax sometimes. I mean, do something normal once in a while. Like sneaking off to hook up with me. Or maybe just do… I don’t know. Normal stuff with normal people. Maybe spend some time not just with your brother’s gang, but maybe your college friends…”
“No,” Blaine snapped immediately.
The reaction was so fast that of course, Sebastian would notice something. Still, he seemed surprised.
“Wait, is that the problem? I thought that went really well.”
It had, in a way. And sure, it had been a bit of a risk to bring Sebastian to that college party, the first time he’d taken him somewhere as his boyfriend. It was an opportunity to introduce Sebastian to new people, his friends from Sunnydale Community College that had nothing to do with the demons and darkness and his brother’s network of people fighting the forces of evil. His normal friends, basically, few as they were. And really, Sebastian had been… perfect. Charming. A bit snarky and sarcastic, which had gone over really well with Jolene… The party had been good.
“I’m pretty sure I didn’t scare anyone off,” Sebastian said, frowning as if he was recalling the party. “I really thought they liked me. The redhead, especially.”
“They did like you,” Blaine said. He tried to sound calm, but he was aware it came out a lot darker than he intended.
“So, what’s the problem?”
For a moment Blaine wondered whether he could still get out of this conversation. It caught him by surprise when he realized that… yeah, he could. All he had to do was tell Sebastian to drop it, and he probably would. He wouldn’t forget it, but he usually had no interest in pushing Blaine into conversations he didn’t want to have. At first, it had seemed obvious to attribute that to him just not caring. An uncharitable assumption, probably rooted in the fact that at some point Blaine had gotten convinced that it was good actually, to be pushed into things he didn’t want if someone caring assumed they were better for him... And wasn’t that something he was still trying to overcome…
But Sebastian didn’t push. He just made it obvious that he noticed something going on, and then gave Blaine the space to either figure out his feelings or come talk to him freely.
So yeah, Blaine could get out of this. But then it would just blow up into something huge, when it really didn’t have to be. Maybe getting it over with would be best for both of them.
Sebastian was still watching him, patient, attentive, and that was what eventually pushed Blaine to talk.
“They liked you,” he said, “but they’re worried about the age difference.”
Sebastian’s eyebrows rose up as if he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. “The… age difference?”
The last words, Blaine gritted out through clenched teeth. “They think you’re too young for me.”
And just as he expected, Sebastian burst out into laughter.
“It’s not funny!” Blaine protested.
“Are you kidding me? This is hilarious! Of all the objections to this… I’m too young for you?”
So, Sebastian clearly wouldn’t be any help.
“You’re like 250 years old!” Blaine said, glaring at him. And it wasn’t like he looked that young. Early twenties, and he’d claimed to be 22, that wasn’t even five years of difference…
“250 and a half,” Sebastian said, winking at him with a smirk that very intentionally showed his vampire teeth.
“Wait, is that-“
“No idea,” Sebastian replied. “But I think it’s closer to 200, actually.”
“How can you not know how old you are?” Blaine asked. “This is insane, you know?”
“Says the time traveler,” Sebastian replied, rolling his eyes.
“That was one time, and don’t act like you had nothing to do with it,” Blaine said. “But fine, be like that. I shouldn’t have said anything, of course you think this is funny.”
“Can you blame me? Now I’m your hot young thing, it is funny.” Honestly, Sebastian seemed more amused than he had in a while. It was a good look on him, carefree and happy, and gorgeous enough that Blaine felt his own distress fade.
It shouldn’t be legal to be this hot.
He shrugged, ready to give up the conversation. “Glad you think this is amusing.”
“It is,” Sebastian said. “And it’s a bit sad you don’t seem to see it. Then again, there’s something I don’t understand either. I mean… you have to admit, this is hilarious. So, why are you so bothered by it?”
Blaine hesitated. Of course, that was the crux of it. It had taken him long enough to figure it out, but now he wasn’t sure whether he could say it without sounding ridiculous, or like an idiot. A dumb child, which he maybe even was compared to the vampire beside him.
Then again… Sebastian had his faults, but the truth was he’d never treated Blaine that way. So maybe, it was worth the risk.
“I wanted them to like you,” he said. “I just… I guess I wanted someone to be on board with us.”
Even as he fought down the urge to take it back, say he was being silly, he could see Sebastian’s mirth disappear, replaced by a more serious expression, so he continued.
“It’s a bit complicated with Cooper, and the others. I mean, you didn’t exactly leave the best first impression. And to be honest, you didn’t go out of your way to make friends, either. Not to mention my brother hates you…”
“Which I still think is super unfair. He was fine with it when I saved your life,” Sebastian said.
Blaine rolled his eyes. “That was before he found out how you saved my life.”
Sebastian snorted. “Incubus, Blaine. A literal sex demon cursed you. Honestly, if he’s naïve enough to believe that bullshit about a super-secret ritual I came up with to save you in a PG-13 way, then that’s completely on him.”
“You’re awful,” Blaine said, although he couldn’t stop himself from smiling, even as he tried to fight down the blush. “Either way, you don’t have a lot of fans there. I guess I just wanted someone to be happy about us.”
“You didn’t mind before,” Sebastian said. “Actually, you were pretty nonchalant that you don’t care about anyone’s opinion.”
The damn vampire was once more too observant for his own good.
“True,” Blaine said with a shrug, trying not to seem too bothered by it. “But it’s different now.” He hesitated. “Isn’t it?”
It shouldn’t be a loaded question, and still it felt like one. He’d been surprised himself how easy it had been to turn his connection to Sebastian into something physical, but even he couldn’t pretend anymore that was all it was. He’d tried, really. He hadn’t wanted to develop feelings. And somehow, despite all that, despite every fiber of common sense screaming at Blaine what a bad idea this was, despite Sebastian’s not even that recent past, and all the complications that came with seeing him, the vampire had burrowed under his defenses, and somehow into his heart. Of course, he’d fallen for him. Maybe he should have seen that coming right from the start, from that very first Hey.
Or maybe that was just him. And hadn’t he gotten used to dealing with unrequited feelings, especially when it came to vampires…
But when Sebastian looked back to him, he sighed, and almost seemed defeated. “It is. It has changed.”
Funny, how Sebastian, mercurial like a cat, never played games with him. At least not when it mattered…
“Fine,” Sebastian said. “I’ll do it. I’ll put in the effort. Give it some time, and your friends will like me.”
Blaine stared at him. “Wait… you’ll try to win over Cooper?”
“Nope,” Sebastian said, a smirk forming on his face. “I’ll win over Tina.”
“What?!”
“It can be done,” Sebastian said. “So, Lopez and Evans, I think I’m halfway there. The fae and St. James couldn’t care less and will follow their respective girlfriend’s lead. Now, Rachel can’t really root for me, she has to be loyal to her bestie, but she cares enough about you that she wants you to actually be happy, so that we can work with. And your brother… well, if the rest of them is fine with us and I’m treating you right, I guess he’ll come around eventually.”
Blaine stared at him. That… made so much sense. It was a solid plan, but more than that, it showed that Sebastian actually had put thought into this. Like he noticed, like he actually cared, and damn, if Blaine wasn’t ridiculously weak for that. He would have given in to the suggestion to just leave, but there was that movement at the edge of his vision, and well…
“Gotta say, it’s kind of hot, you making this kind of effort,” he said. “Although… you know what would be even better?”
Sebastian’s smirk matched his own, and his voice dropped to little more than murmur, as he leaned in close enough to put their foreheads together. “If I turned around and fought that errant werewolf that’s so pathetically attempting to sneak up on us right now?”
“That’s why we’re so great,” Blaine said, unable to keep down the grin, and quickly pecked his boyfriend’s lips. “You just get me.”
The werewolf was almost upon them when Sebastian made his move. When they fought, Blaine got up and retreated. This was a fight he would only be in the way for. Usually, he prided himself in being proactive, but this was aa fight between a fledgling werewolf and an over 200-year-old vampire. Honestly, even calling it a fight felt like an exaggeration, it was over so fast.
A few moments later, Sebastian had the werewolf by the neck.
“Remember the charm!” Blaine called out.
There was a moment of hesitation, and Blaine was worried the vampire wasn’t going to do it, that he’d rather get rid of the monster instead of going for the more humane way Cooper had insisted on – capture, and at least attempting to solve the madness.
But then, Sebastian pushed the silver charm over the creature’s head. For a second, it looked like a muzzle, and then the creature changed, leaving behind a skinny guy, groaning as he fainted. The charm rested around his neck, so close that Blaine hoped it wouldn’t choke him.
Sebastian looked at the whole thing, then turned back. “One disappointing werewolf, special delivery for Anderson?”
Blaine rolled his eyes, though he didn’t feel actual annoyance. “Technically, it’s for the other Anderson brother.”
“Yeah, but you can sign off for him, right?” Sebastian asked.
And against his will, Blaine had to laugh. “You’re awful,” he said.
Sebastian shrugged. “What can I say? I heard that you like the bad boys, honey.”
“Ain’t that true,” Blaine said, a bit more wistful than expected.
“Come on, killer,” Sebastian said. “The sooner we get this thing to your brother, the sooner we can get to the fun part of the night.”
And that was something he could get on board with.
So maybe their relationship was a bit of a mess, maybe it was complicated, and maybe they were doomed from the start. But if he learned anything in Sunnydale, it was the value of seizing the day. Sebastian made him happy, and he wanted to see where this was going, no matter what anyone else said.
And really, he thought, watching the vampire drag the werewolf behind him to Blaine’s car, as far as Sunnydale monsters went, he figured he could do a lot worse.