O wow! Sammi here and I've gotta say... I am on a roll! I was literally typing this and the second chapter of Priority Adjustment simultaneously because the thought just came to me and I didn't want to forget it while it was still fresh in my mind :D

This is #2 in my Mama Bear Series, the first being Hell Hath No Fury. Hope you like it...


Disclaimer: Glee's not mine, I'm just borrowing the characters for a little bit of mindless entertainment :D


She had always been an exceptionally light sleeper. It was a quirk she had always attributed to her keen hearing, a talent that was often utilized and came quite handy in her line of work. However her self proclaimed blessing was also a curse. Especially when one lived in a relatively old house with a teenager that was quite the restless sleeper. So whether it was the steady drip of the kitchen tap or the rustling bedsheets from Rachel's room down the hall, Shelby often found her eyes fluttering open several times a night at the most insignificant of sounds.

Yet as she opened her eyes on this particular night, she realized that tonite was different. Very different. And when she turned to the clock on her side table, she realized why. She had gone to bed around ten-thirty and had managed to get a solid four hours of sleep without interruption. Gone were the leaky faucets and creaky floorboards. While those were sounds she could very well do without, she felt an odd sense of unease. And as she listened closely to the sounds of the night, she realized why. Rachel was quiet.

Throwing off the duvet currently covering her lower body, Shelby briskly made her way to her daughter's door and promptly knocked before peeking inside. She took note of the quiet, unmoving lump lying on the bed and felt her nervousness dissipate. Her daughter was just fine. She shook her head and chuckled at her overly dramatic presumptions. She knelt quietly at the bedside to retreive a discarded teddy bear that had fallen from her daughter's side. She stood with intent to replace it in her child's arms and tuck the blankets tighter around Rachel, when something else caught her attention. Her 'daughter' wasn't moving. At all. What the hell? Shelby lifted the blankets and gasped. Her 'daughter' was nothing more than a few well placed pillows and a stuffed elephant. She ran throughout the house, searching the various rooms and even the backyard for her missing child. Her previous feelings of apprehension returned after her search came up empty and Shelby suddenly felt a very strong sense of trepidation.

Where was Rachel? Was she okay?

As she entered the kitchen, more questions bombarded her mind and Shelby had to fight the tension headache she felt building. Taking a few deep breaths, she organized her rampant thoughts. She grabbed the cordless phone that was sitting on the island in the center of the room and speedily dialed a familiar number. After all six of her calls to Rachel (and even a few to Finn) went straight to voicemail, Shelby felt her unease grow into full fledged panic. She was unsure of her next move. Calling the police seemed reasonable, but she was hesistant to do so in case Rachel showed up in the time it took for them to get here. She made up her mind and opted to call her daughter's fathers. Hiram and Leroy Berry were currently in Hawaii celebrating their 26th anniversary, hence the reason Rachel was with her in the first place. Once she got Hiram on the phone, thankful she hadn't disturbed them too much having forgotton about the ten-hour time difference, he was adamant they hadn't spoken to Rachel since the four of them had gone out to dinner four days prior. They suggested that she should drive around to Rachel's usual hangouts as well as friends' houses in search of the collective's missing offspring, agreeing that calling the police so prematurely might not be the greatest idea just yet. After Shelby ended the call, once she agreed to update the fathers Berry every hour or so, she scrambled back to her room to throw on a pair of sneakers and a sweatshirt, prepared to search the entire state of Ohio for her missing daughter.

In her haste to place her arms in their appropriate holes of the uncooperative hooded article, her doorbell rang. She groaned in frustration before tugging the sweatshirt into place, slipping on her shoes and proceeding to run down the stairs into the foyer. "Rachel, where have you—" The rest of her statement died on her lips and her blood ran cold as she took note of the police officer currently standing at her door. Images and thoughts of her baby hurt somewhere or worse immediately came to the forefront of her mind and Shelby found herself fighting tears as she greeted the officer.

"Morning ma'am. Sorry to disturb you so late. Is this the Corcoran residence?" All Shelby could manage was a nod in the affirmative, as she had seemingly lost her ability to speak. "And are you a Ms. Shelby Corcoran?" Once again a simple nod. The officer turned back to his vehicle, that
Shelby could vaguely see was sitting in her dark driveway, and gestured to who she could only assume was a fellow officer. She noticed some movement as he opened the back door to the police cruiser and began to escort someone up the darkened path. Shelby felt her heart drop at the sight of her babygirl in handcuffs. "Do you know this young woman, Ms. Corcoran?"

In an instant, Shelby's voice was restored. "Yes Officer…she's my daughter."

At the sound of her mother's voice, Rachel's eyes lifted from the ground and caught her gaze. No more than a second later her eyes averted back to her feet. Despite the quickly shared glance, the conversation between mother and daughter had been sufficient enough to get one thing clear in Rachel's mind: She was in serious trouble. In hopes of delaying her mother's wrath, she scurried off to the side of the door, out of her mother's line of sight, and allowed the officer to explain just how he managed to retain custody of her in the first place.

"Well Ms. Corocran, it appears a few of the seniors decided to get a bit of a jump start on their senior prank this year. We got tipped off around midnite from a passerby who noticed a few cars in the parking lot and some lights flashing over at McKinley High while he was walking his dog. My partner and I patrolled for a bit and it was only about an hour ago that we noticed anything. We found about twenty of them filling the halls with bales of hay, spray painting Coach Sylvester's office, dumping gelatin into the swimming pool and attempting to break into the administrative offices. I've also confiscated about three dozen chickens and at least a hundred mice and hamsters from the back of one boy's truck…"

Shelby pinched the bridge of her nose as she continued to be regaled by the officer with stories of her daughter's late nite adventure. By the end, not only was she fuming but she felt the familiar throbbing in her temples. A tell tale sign that the headache she had been fighting for so long was on its way and probably going to advance into a migraine. She sighed. "Will there be any charges brought up against the teens?"

"No ma'am. In lieu of any formal charges or complaints, I've been assured by Principal Figgins that in addition to whatever punishment the parents are sure to dish out he will deal with the students individually on Monday."

"Oh trust me, she will definitely be punished," Shelby muttered.

The officer chuckled. "If I may say so Ms. Corcoran. Her record's clean and she wasn't all that involved, based on what her peers are admitting, ma'am. More of the lookout really. I wouldn't be too hard on her. Kids will be kids, after all."

Shelby offered the officer a tight smile. It was only after she watched him remove the handcuffs from Rachel's wrists and return to his vehicle that she released a shaky breath, she only just noticed she had been holding. She sighed once more attempting to secure the control on her frayed nerves and spiralling emotions. She soon realized that her attempts were proving ineffective, and released what sounded like a low growl of frustration through her clenched teeth. "Rachel?"

Her daughter's head slowly came into view. Rachel offered a tense smile and nervous wave. "Hey Mom. It's such a nice night, huh? The stars are out and the moon is shining so brightly. So romantic. It's almost poetic and—"

"Inside. Now." Shelby ordered. She watched the younger girl practically up and run into the house at the command. Shutting the door behind them, she led Rachel in to the kitchen. Pulling out a vacant stool, she placed it in the center of the room. "Sit."

Rachel did as she was told and her shoulders slumped almost immediately. Based on her mother's clipped tone and brief sentences, she knew she was probably going to be on the receiving end of one of Shelby Corcoran's infamous tongue lashings. While her mother's students and the VA kids had all experienced at least one of these on a daily basis, it would be a first for her. Throughout their fledgling relationship, Rachel had never even heard a dip in her mother's usual tone. She found herself biting her lip, a nervous habit she'd apparently inherited from her mother, and watching as her mom slowly paced in front her. Before she could be banished to her room and grounded for all eternity, she opted to at least get in a word. Or two. She knew it was probably going to come out as babbling, but she felt she had to say something in her defense. "Mom. I'm so sorry. I didn't—" Her apology was interrupted by the ringing of the cordless phone.

Shelby once again picked up the phone from the counter and put it to her ear, turning her back to Rachel in the process. "Hiram! I was just about to call you…Yes, well, seems she's been home the whole time…"

Rachel quirked an eyebrow in confusion. Did her mom just lie to her fathers? She felt her shoulders perk up as well as her current mood. If her mom wasn't telling her dads, maybe, just maybe, she wasn't in as much trouble as she suspected. She continued to listen in to half of the conversation as her mother concocted a rather believable story, her elation slowly growing with every word. As the conversation continued to play out, Rachel was left amazed at her mother's quick thinking and even her imagination.

"…but yes. It was silly of me really. I searched the entire house, except for the basement. Apparently she couldn't sleep and was down there watching a movie because she didn't want to disturb me upstairs. Well. Imagine my surprise as I was on my way out the door and we run into each other as she was coming up for a bottle of water. Anyway, I apologize that I worried you both and interrupted what I'm sure is turning out to be a wonderful vacation…Yes, well kids will be kids, right?...Enjoy the rest of your evening and tell Leroy I said 'hi'…Of course. Bye." Shelby ended the call and replaced the phone in its cradle. With her back still to her daughter, she took another moment to organize herself. When she turned to face Rachel, she pulled out another stool and sat opposite her. She began to think of just how she would begin what was probably going to end up being a very extensive lecture. And most significantly, the very first lecture she'd ever given as a parent. Shelby couldn't help a sense of pride at just how far the pair of them had come and yet she was also battling a sense of disappointment at her daughter's actions. Allowing a few more minutes to go by, she hoped to use the silence to allow Rachel to stew in her own guilt but when she looked up from where her hands were resting her lap she found Rachel staring back at her with a slight smile. "What?"

"N-nothing," Rachel mumbled out at the sharp retort. She too looked to her lap and began to wring her hands. "It's just—I—or you…what I mean to say is…why did you lie to my dads?"

Shelby ran her fingers through her hair, if only to give her hands something to do. "Would you have preferred I told them that their trustworthy, responsible little girl, who would never sneak out of the house in the middle of the night to vandalize public property, took advantage of her fathers' absence, not to mention her mother's trust, did just that? Because if you'd like, I can call them back right now and you can tell them everything." Shelby smiled wryly as she watched the young girl before her shake her head emphatically. "Didn't think so. But to truly answer your question, I saw no reason to disrupt the otherwise blissful time your dads are more than likely having on their vacation by telling them you were arrested, especially if I can handle the situation just fine." Without much notice, Shelby watched as her daughter's face seemed to crumple in on itself and she began to cry. She immediately stood up and took the two steps forward before gathering her daughter into her arms.

"I really am sorry Mom. I'm not even sure why I did it, well I know why…but I don't know why. I just have this insanely pathological need to fit in. And with it being my senior year I just thought this was my last chance y'know," Rachel cried, her words muffled against the cotton of Shelby's sweatshirt.

"Oh, Rach. Honey, don't cry. C'mon, it's okay," Shelby soothed, rocking her little girl till her sobs subsided. "Look, I was a teenager once upon a time too, okay? Admittedly, it was a while ago, but I understand the pressure and the anxieties and everything else that is thrust upon you day in, day out. It's not easy and I get that, Baby, I do. So please, please calm down and breathe. You know I hate it when you cry."

Rachel nodded as she sniffled into her mother's shoulder. "Soo, I'm not in trouble?"

Shelby smiled down at the girl in her arms. "No, you're not in trouble," she answered lightly. She gave Rachel a moment to celebrate before continuing. "Not with your dads anyway." Shelby released her hold on her and dropped a kiss in the hair of the now stunned teenager before her. She made her way to the main staircase and threw a smirk over her shoulder. With her daughter's outburst and her oncoming headache, she knew that three in the morning was certainly not the right time for a long talk about anything and thus decided to let it slide. For now. "I'm going back to bed, and I suggest you do the same because come tomorrow morning you and I will be having a little chat on why sneaking out of the house and attempting to scare your mother half to death is simply unacceptable. Until then, sweet dreams Babygirl."

Rachel, still dazed from Shelby's speech, remained seated as she listened to her mother make her way up the staircase and into her room. She waited a moment before following the same path, returning to her own room and falling back on her bed. As she stared up into space, she found herself unable to sleep in anticipation of the talk she'd be having in a couple of hours. I wonder if it's too late to call Daddy…


Who'd have thought...Rachel sneaking out tsk tsk lol

Anyway you know the drill...

Good? Rotten Tomatoes? or just plain ehh? Lemme know.

Till next time...