Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 13th cycle. Now cycle 14!

"Daughter of Mine"
Shelby (& Rachel)
Companion to "Mother of Mine"

It wasn't that she didn't think about her before… She'd see little girls, walking with their parents… laughing, running, playing, and she'd wonder… Maybe that was her? It would always manage to catch her off guard, right when she didn't need the added stress. Still, it would usually bring about her same old question.

She had to wonder, she had to… Did her daughter, wherever she was, like music? Did she sing like her? She'd always figured that she had to. Music, song, it was her true defining quality, the thing that had molded her path in life and so many of her actions and thoughts. If she was to expect anything to have been passed on, beyond physical features, it had to be that passion, that thrill.

She'd been perfectly able to pick herself back up and let the thoughts fade into the background once more. It was all it ever was…

It was only normal for her to keep an eye on the competition, the other clubs. It was usually the same ones, the usual suspects… She still kept her mind thinking on the others… up-and-comers, potential threats…

It had taken a little time before she'd been made aware of McKinley High, more than it should have, considering the way they kept 'checking in on them.' But then they had invitationals, and she figured it was best to check it out, knowing of the change in leadership.

The show started, and though the woman singing on lead was excellent, as a whole she hardly saw this as a problem. She was now considering bailing out on the rest of the show, and she turned her head to see how she'd fare in squeezing out of her row. That was when she saw her, standing at the back, staring quietly back at the stage instead of sharing in the applause.

There was something in her eyes, she couldn't explain it but she felt… something. She kept on watching her, and when she exited the auditorium, Shelby sat back, lowering her head. She didn't understand, her heart was racing… She didn't connect the dots though, not yet.

The second number kicked off, and immediately she noticed several things: First, the older blonde was gone. Second, already in a few beats this number was faring a whole lot better for them. And third… Well, there she was… the girl who'd been standing at the back, now standing on the stage among the others and… She shined, pure and simple. She stood out among a dozen and Shelby knew she could stand out in a crowd.

That was what they'd been telling her all her life, that she had this way about her to stand out, that it was… in her blood…

She shifted in the seat, practically perched on the edge. It couldn't be, could it? Of all the schools, the nights… But looking at her, it just… She could well have been staring at a ghost image of herself at that age. The girl had looked so blank, staring at them all before, but now she had come alive, she was radiating. Shelby's heart was ramming violently against her chest… It was her, it was really her, she'd bet her life on it.

After the show was over, her legs were just too shaky to drive yet, so she'd gone ahead and made calls. She had to get to the bottom of it. That search had led to her being read off a list of names. And then it was said… 'Rachel Berry,' and she had her confirmation. She hung up and sat back, she… she absently smiled.

That was her; that was her daughter. She'd always wanted to put a face to her, and now she had… practically her own face. And her voice… oh, her voice… She couldn't let it go, not like before… It'd break rules, some of them her own, but she couldn't do nothing.

THE END

[A/N: Attention, reader! If you're at all skilled in helping crack fic-planning conundrums, give a big ol' shout! :D]

[A/N: This is a one-shot ficlet, story alert won't get you anything! ;)]