My fourth fic, and first stab at a Glee fic. *I do not own Glee or Glee characters* This is an AU western set in 1907. In the settlement of New Lima in Oklahoma (and when I started this fic I didn't even know there was a Lima Oklahoma, talk about luck...) Any questions you have feel free to leave in comment or pm me. I always welcome constructive critism and, of course, undeserved praise. ^_^ Speaking of praise, I'd like to thank my best friend and beta reader, invisimeg, once again for taking on the colossal task of helping me find errors in my stories.

Somewhere That's Green

Quinn Fabray sat impatiently at her desk with her hazel eyes staring blankly ahead; instead of reading the titles on the new world map their teacher had pinned up, she was absentmindedly following the thickly drawn lines up and down the paper. The blonde didn't care about states, territories, or what countries bordered them and frankly she couldn't see why Miss Pillsbury would waste their time with it. Out of the handful of students in the class, Quinn could only think of one or two that would consider going to university, and even at that, they would be right back here to take on their family businesses. Now that she thought about it, she couldn't see why their teacher went through the effort of teaching them at all; she was struggling to remember why she still attended classes this year when her family had given her the choice. Quinn felt she knew everything she needed to know already; she knew that when the year was out, she would marry Finn Hudson, she knew she would move into the large house on the ranch he had inherited when his father died, she knew they would raise a family and enjoy the good life, and she knew that aside from the mayor, they would be the most prosperous people in the settlement of New Lima. Now that the blonde thought about it, it seemed silly to be wasting time in school—wasting her time learning the names of places she'd never see.

The classroom erupted with laughter when Puck lazily answered Miss Pillsbury with a lewd guess at the capital of some foreign country. The redhead stammered as she tried to compose herself and regain the attention of the classroom. A few moments later, Finn began to chuckle and Quinn was reminded of why she had decided to bother with another semester of classes; he looked back at her with a dopey grin. She smiled and nodded, letting him know she had understood his best friend's joke, and turned her attention back to the still stammering woman, who was nervously wringing her hands at the front of the classroom. She almost felt sorry for Emma; the woman wasn't very well suited for teaching and her students didn't make it easy, least of all Puck. No one really understood why Puck showed up to class every day. He certainly didn't seem to care about learning and often left early and only ever opened his mouth to crack jokes. She smiled to herself as her hazel eyes glanced over to him—she knew.

"Good try," Brittany said encouragingly to Puck before adding brightly, "but I think that's in France."

Quinn rolled her eyes; sometimes she didn't know what to do with the other blonde and other times she didn't know what she would ever do without her. She scanned the room with one eyebrow cocked and ready for anyone who might be laughing at her best friend; several students were struggling to contain themselves, but by now they all knew better than to openly mock the simpler girl. From her desk in the center of the room, she spotted Santana, who was making the same, if not more aggressive, scan of their fellow students, and her smile faltered for a moment. Their eyes locked briefly and Quinn sighed shooting Brittany a quick smile before pretending to be interested in the open book in front of her. The blonde felt stupid to be bemoaning the past when there was such a bright future ahead; things used to be much simpler when the three of them were children—before things went wrong. She squeezed her hazel eyes shut and took a deep breath before turning the page and continuing to pretend to read. No—there was no sense feeling bad, especially when she was on the winning side. Besides, Santana always could take care of herself; she was strong. Quinn glanced across the room to see the brunette still staring at Brittany, who was giving her a soft smile and happy wave.

Before Miss Pillsbury had finished dismissing class, Puck was already up and ready to go; he flipped Quinn's book shut before she had even realized he was there.

"Don't read so much Quinn," he crooned. "It'll give you a head ache." He gave her a sleazy smile before yelling to Finn. "I'm heading out to the ranch, I'll get started on the back fence."

"Alright," Finn answered with a nod.

Puck gave Quinn another lopsided smile before rushing out. "Don't drag ass! I'm not gonna break my back out there alone," he called behind him.

Most of the students left quickly; most of them had chores to do or jobs to get to. The two blondes hung back at the door while their classmates emptied out of the one room schoolhouse. Finn met them at the door and leaned in for a kiss. Quinn turned her head so that his lips gently brushed her cheek and she let out a little laugh.

"Awe." Finn groaned. "Your dad can't see us."

Quinn stood up on her tiptoes and placed a quick kiss on his cheek before backing away.

"You never know," she said teasingly.

"But we're practically engaged." He continued to pout as he held the door for the two girls.

"I know," she soothed, "but we don't want to be tempted to do more, do we? You wouldn't want my father to think badly of you, do you?"

"No," Finn mumbled, a look of defeat settling over his face.

"Why don't you walk us home and say hello to him?" Quinn suggested.

He shifted uneasily for a moment. "I ought to get back to the ranch…" He shrugged.

"Puck's already there by now. He can get started without you," she insisted, batting her hazel eyes at him.

"Yeah…but Ma worries…" Finn protested weakly as he made his way over to his horse and climbed into the saddle.

It was Quinn's turn to pout. "How are we ever going to actually be engaged if you avoid talking to my father?"

He fidgeted with the reigns, his face locked in an all too familiar dazed expression as his mind fumbled for a solution. Brittany had already crossed the street and was waiting for Quinn to join her in front of the large white church that sat opposite the little beat down school building. The blonde sighed impatiently.

"I'll see if Ma'll invite ya'll to dinner on Sunday," he promised cheerfully.

"Sounds lovely." Quinn forced a smile, though no one would ever have been able to guess it wasn't genuine, and nodded before joining her friend on the other side of the street.

Their family's stores were connected and the two blondes always made their walk home together. It never took very long; New Lima wasn't exactly impressive, but the Fabray's were convinced that someday it would be. Quinn didn't remember anything about Ohio or the journey out west to Oklahoma territory since she was a baby when they moved. All she knew about life before New Lima was stories her sister had told her. Frannie had married well and promptly moved back east, often sending letters and charming photographs of her quickly growing family. Her parents would beam proudly as they put the pictures up for display, her father priding himself on finding his daughter a fine Christian man in good standing and her mother brightly assuring her that one day her life would be as full and wonderful as her sister's.

She smoothed a few wrinkles out of her light blue, cotton dress while Brittany chattered away at her side as they walked past the church and stepped up onto the wooden planks of the sidewalk.

"I still don't see why he won't treat Lord Tubbington." Brittany sighed as they passed the doctor's office. "It's not fair."

Quinn smiled gently and patted her friend's hand; the girl was simple, that was undeniable, but that was exactly why she liked spending time with her. There was just something pure and sweet in the other blonde that made her irresistible to be around. Quinn couldn't help but envy the fantasy world the girl seemed to live in; her blue eyes seemed to just see things no one else could while at the same time they missed a lot of the uglier bits of life. Once again, Brittany's face lit up with a smile as she waved and Quinn looked ahead to see Santana waving back from in front of the general store.

"What's wrong?" the blue eyed girl asked when she heard her friends irritated sigh.

"She's always staring at you," Quinn said.

"So?" Brittany shrugged. "We're all friends."

"Britt—" she said a little sharper than she meant to; then she added softly, "not anymore."

"Well I'm still her friend," Brittany said defiantly. "Why aren't you?"

"Hello, Miss Sylvester," Quinn called, waving as they passed by the sheriff's window. The woman gave them both a slight nod as they passed.

They remained silent as they passed the bank, the click of their heeled boots on rough wooden slabs seemed to echo louder in front of the empty building, and she was happy for a chance to change the subject.

"The new banker and his family should be here soon," Quinn stated.

"I don't understand why," the other girl insisted, staring at her friend as they stopped in front of the Fabray house.

"Because things are different now." She sighed.

"Why?" Brittany asked innocently.

Quinn couldn't think of a way to explain to her friend why their situation was different; none of the reasons would make any sense to her. She could say it was because Santana was from the wrong side of the tracks, because her family didn't have as much money as them, because the girl was practically Brittany's employee, and because they weren't kids anymore and they were expected to grow up and socialize the way their parents did—with politics in mind. None of those things would mean anything to Brittany. So instead, she shrugged and repeated herself for what seemed like the hundredth time—because that's just the way it is.

"I know you still like her," Brittany insisted. "I can tell by the way you smile when she snaps at people in class. You almost died laughing when she told Kurt Hummel that they were out of pink silk, so his order had to be put on hold."

Quinn suppressed a giggle. "Well it was funny."

"Want to come in and see the new patterns?" the blue eyed girl offered as she headed for her family's shop.

One of the best things about Brittany was that negative conversations never lasted long; she either got distracted or simply refused to dwell on them. The Pierce family ran a clothing shop connected to the general store Quinn's father owned and operated. Between the two businesses, the girls always had the newest and best of everything.

"Not right now; I should check in at the store first. Maybe later." Quinn smiled as her friend disappeared into the tailor shop.

Quinn stood outside the general store for a few moments; she could tell there weren't any customers inside because she could hear her father's voice rising as he complained to her mother. Russell Fabray never yelled in public. The entire community knew him as a well-mannered and good-humored gentleman; he had keen business sense and broad shoulders, and he was very nearly as well respected as the mayor. His gruff words wouldn't be heard over the hum of sewing machines next door and the house on the other side of their store was empty for the time being. The blonde listened quietly as she stood nervously in front of the main door. He was grumbling about the empty building across from the Sheriff's Office; he had planned to buy it and expand the general store, but the previous owners had accepted a higher offer. It was old news, but apparently today he had discovered that not only had it be snatched from him by strangers from who-knows-where, but it was going to be made into a saloon. Quinn could hear her mother gently trying to calm him as he ranted about the evils of liquor and the erosion of common decency in the world today.

As if on cue, Quinn's attention was jolted away from her father's voice inside to the sound of wagons clattering down the street. She turned to see two wagons come to a stop across from the Sheriff's Office; one was a very simple horse drawn cart filled with furniture and crates of supplies while the over was covered and had clearly served as shelter as well as packing. People were already milling about, anxious to get a look at the newcomers, which made it hard for Quinn to get a good look at either of the drivers; a few boys from school were already offering to help unload. The blonde smiled a little to herself at the thought of her father meeting them; no doubt he would put on a pleasant smile and offer them a firm handshake—because after all, they would soon be new customers. The first cart was emptying fast and one of the drivers split off from the crowd and headed to the back of the second wagon; he offered his hand to steady someone inside. Quinn's jaw dropped a little when she saw the short brunette emerge; the girl made an awkward little hop down to the dusty street and looked around wide eyed at the town.

Quinn Fabray stared down the street at the girl; something about her seemed magnetic and the blonde couldn't shake the sense that there was something larger than life bundled up inside the petite figure, who was still gazing around as though she had landed on some strange and mysterious land. Her warm brown hair hung loosely around her shoulders and swayed with every turn of the girl's head as she seemed to be trying to look everywhere at once. It had been years since Quinn had worn her hair down; it wasn't lady like her mother had always said, and she reached up to smooth her painstakingly styled blonde curls now. When the new girl spotted her, she started waving cheerfully. Before she could wave back, her father opened the door loudly behind her and called her into the store.

Rachel Berry woke up to the jostling of the wagon over uneven terrain once again; she felt as though she hadn't had a solid night's sleep in nearly a month—maybe longer. When they camped at night, the sounds of the open wilderness made her nervous and kept her awake, and the roads were far too rugged to allow her much rest during the day. Her fathers did their best to keep her in high spirits; they would all sing together around the campfire, they would talk about New Lima and the business they would open there, and about all the friends she would make in their new home. They always talked about the future and despite her nature, she managed to hold her tongue about the past. This was the fourth time they had moved on to bigger and better things.

LeRoy and Hiram never talked about why they were moving—not to her; they would tell her the town was beginning to feel crowded and she had long since learned that meant someone had found out about them. They wanted to protect her from it, but she knew more than she let on to her fathers; she knew they moved because of her. If it were just the two of them, they would stay in one place and let people think what they wanted about two men who wanted to spend their lives together. Rachel knew that the reason they were all jostling down a prairie road was because of her. If they stayed then she would be tormented; people would make fun of her, hurt her to hurt them, or they would try to take her away. She remembered the first time a city had become crowded; LeRoy hadn't wanted to leave.

"This is our home!" he had shouted. She remembered the trembling of his voice even though she hadn't been old enough to even realize what was going on. "It's her home; it's where we…where we became a family…"

Rachel rolled over and took a deep breath, hoping she could fall back to sleep, but her mind was already too busy and she was too conscious of the motion of the wagon. All she could do what lay there and think about the past and the future. She was determined to will herself to believe that this time, this town, New Lima, would be better. She could make friends and no one would bother them. They could stay there and she could keep singing—she would be famous someday. Soon she would be old enough to move back east; she would go to Broadway and leave her mark on the world like other visionaries had been doing. Someday she would fill audiences with the thrilling awe and wonder that she had experienced when her fathers used to take her.

She sat up quickly and combed her fingers though her long brown hair; she missed her routine. Traveling made it impossible to keep tidy and groomed, at least to her standards. The wagon shuddered to a stop and she popped her head out the back flap; it was still midday and they rarely made stops until sunset.

"Dad," Rachel called; hearing no answer her voice quickly became more urgent. "Daddy! Is something wrong?"

Hiram came around with a smile. "Everything's fine dear. There's no need to panic."

Rachel climbed out of the cart and stretched. The panic rapidly melting away as her muscles relaxed.

"I was only concerned because it seemed a bit early to stop for the day. A wheel could have broken or…or…" she defended herself.

"Well it's nothing so drastic as that," he said cheerfully, giving her a quick hug. "We're close now and we thought it would be nice to stop. Let you get cleaned up, since we know impressions are important to you, and have a bite to eat before we arrive."

The brunette smiled and gave him a warm hug. "Thank you."

"Be sure to thank your father too," Hiram said.

Rachel quickly rounded the wagon and caught LeRoy up in a hug. "Thank you," she said brightly. "Would you like me to help with lunch?"

"No, no," he sighed, "I think your old dads can handle lunch. There's a creek over there. It's not much, but we work with what we have, right?"

Rachel scurried back to the cart to grab her toiletries and her father followed behind her.

"Once we get to New Lima you'll be back to your famous routine," he promised cheerfully.

"It's perfectly fine, daddy," she assured him.

"She's been a little trooper," Hiram said as he wrapped LeRoy up in an enthusiastic hug.

She smiled as she made her way down to the water to get washed up. She could hear her father's laughing, which made her happy; they didn't get many chances to be like this and once they got into town, the likelihood of them having times like would be slim indeed—at least until they had the money to build a house farther out of town. All their money was in the building they had purchased, the supplies to get there and get started, and enough to keep them comfortable for a while. They would be depending a lot on the success of their Alehouse and Inn.

The water was cold and she bathed as quickly as she could; her hands were shaking, but she couldn't be sure if it was from the chilling stream or nerves. She couldn't help but feel excited and anxious; soon she would see their new home. Normally she would be fretting over what clothes to wear, but fate had already taken care of that; she only had two clean outfits, so she was able to decide quickly.

She decided not to return to camp for a while to give her fathers a little more time alone. On the other side of the creek, there was a large, open field; the flowers and grass swayed in the breeze and she decided to take a walk to warm up while her hair dried. The field was alive with vibrant but simple flowers; their smell filled the air and mixed with the scent of earth and the brook she had bathed in. Rachel couldn't help but think this place seemed like a song. I wish I knew it, she thought to herself. She decided right then that this time was going to be it. New Lima would be a better place—all her dreams could start to come true.

"I'll make friends, I'll keep singing, I'll be famous…" the brunette chirped to herself as a bright smile spread across her face. "I might even fall in love."

Rachel spun around in the sunlight, enjoying the freeing feeling of the open field and the bright blue sky. It felt good to take a break from being practical and just feel the magic of the moment. The brunette hummed to herself, a song she didn't quite remember—just a tune she vaguely recalled from when she was little—as she began collecting flowers.

She let out a little yelp when she turned around to see two young men staring at her; they were both leaned against the other side of a fence. She hadn't realized how far she had wandered from the creek. Rachel's cheeks flushed bright red as she faced them.

"Oh…uh…hello," she stammered.

The boys remained silent; the taller one stared slack jaw at her while the other's eyes shrewdly scrutinized her. Her cheeks burned ever hotter in the silence.

"Hello. My name is Rachel Berry. My family and I are headed into New Lima to open up a business. Are you from there? It's really beautiful here. Is this your land?" The brunette continued to babble desperately as she tried to break the embarrassing quiet. "It's nice to meet you."

Puck elbowed Finn roughly and laughed a little.

"You know it's quite impolite to stare like that." Her voice pitched a little. "You should introduce yourself. The least you could do is say something."

"You're a little off aren't you?" Puck volunteered with an amused look on his face.

"I…excuse me?" Rachel faltered, her temper flaring but rapidly retreating again.

"Never mind," Finn said, suddenly snapping out of his daze. "I'm Finn…Hudson. This is Puck…Puckerman…I mean Noah."

"Puck." His friend shrugged, giving her another curious look, before stepping back from the fence. "We're done here, Finn. Let's go."

With that, the gruffer boy turned and sauntered away, along the fence, towards their horses. Finn continued to stare and Rachel stepped a little closer to the railing.

"Your friend certainly isn't very friendly," she said.

"Yeah, Puck's like that…sometimes," he answered. "Don't mind him."

"Is he a native?" The brunette asked, quickly flushing red again. "Goodness, I'm sorry, that was rude…I didn't mean…of course it doesn't matter I just…"

The tall boy chuckled. "Nah…he just likes to keep his hair like that."

Puck called loudly from the horses and Finn jumped a little, as though he had forgotten the other boy was there; he turned to Rachel and shrugged.

"Well…I gotta go…" he mumbled. "Uh…welcome to New Lima…uh…what was your name again?"

"Rachel." She smiled. "Thank you. It was a pleasure to meet you."

"Alright…well…see ya…" Finn smiled back before heading off to join his friend.

Rachel watched them ride away and suddenly realized her fathers were probably worried. She rushed back through the field and across the creek, picking up her belongings quickly, and made her way back up the little hill to their wagons. Luckily they had not panicked, simply assuming that she was taking her usual time in her habitual grooming regimen. With lunch finished, Rachel cleaned up while her fathers packed a few supplies back into place and inspected the wagons.

LeRoy offered for her to sit with him while they road into town, but Rachel decided to ride in back; she had a nagging feeling that she may want to change her outfit after all, but she abandoned the idea quickly when she realized the uneven road beneath them would make it impossible. She was relieved when the vehicle finally shuddered to a stop.

Rachel ran her fingers desperately though her hair as she headed to the back of the wagon, but once she reached the flap she paused, her nerves taking over her. The eager sound of people's voices filtered through the canvas covering and it was apparent that a small crowed had already gathered outside.

Hiram tapped lightly at the flap. "We're here darling. Want to join us?"

"Of course…" Her voice trembled. "I just need…uh…"

"Your public awaits," her dad encouraged her quietly.

The brunette closed her eyes for a second and imagined the rough, plain canvas to be a rich draped Broadway curtain; she took her father's hand and climbed out of the wagon. She gazed around as she tried to memorize the new town. Directly across from their building was a sheriff's office; its large front window framed an intense looking woman with a severe mannish haircut. Rachel waved, but the woman remained still, her face set in an almost comical grimace. She turned her brown eyes away from that side of the street; to the right she could see a blacksmith shop that seemed to be where most of the young men who were helping them now had come from. Beyond that, an empty looking store front—she could see people peeking out the back windows and determined there was an attached house. Beyond that was a large, official looking building that was clearly the court house; she could see a beautiful garden beyond that, but the court house itself obscured most of it.

Rachel turned her attention back across the street; a pleasant looking house, then a tailor's store attached to a general store. Her dark eyes caught sight of a tall blonde staring at her and she gasped; Rachel suddenly understood the term breathtaking—this girl definitely was. There was something alluring in the girl's smile, and everything else about her for that matter; before she realized it she was waving at the blonde. The door to the general store swung open and the girl disappeared inside. The street seemed dimmer out of the blue, as though a cloud had abruptly drifted across the sun, and the brunette wondered what time it was; it must have been a least four in the afternoon. She turned her attention back to the town.

To the left of their building, at the far end of the road, sat what she determined to be a small school house with a patchy little play area along its side. Closer to their building was a fairly new looking post office; a man was making his way from there now, a small bundle of letters tucked under his right arm. He greeted LeRoy cheerfully and handed over the correspondence. Rachel strode over to them to take the mail for him.

"Most of it came in yesterday," the man explained. "Sorry to bring it over while you're busy, but I was just closing up and figured you would want it sooner rather than later. I'm Will Schuester."

"It's no trouble," LeRoy assured him as he handed the bundle of letters over to his daughter.

"Looks like you have a lot of help here already," Mr. Schuester commented. "But I'd be glad to pitch in if you'd like."

Rachel liked the tone of his voice; she could tell right away he had a well trained singing voice. She prided herself on recognizing talent quickly in others.

"I'm sure they will call you just the minute they run out of pomade or sheet music, William," a sarcastic voice interjected, "but I don't see how anyone could make use of your scrawny little excuse for a body."

Everyone jumped; no one had seen the Sheriff cross the street to join them.

"Just being friendly to our new neighbors Sue…Miss Sylvester," Will said gently. "There's no need to…"

"That's Sheriff Sylvester," she corrected as she turned her attention to LeRoy. "I hear you're opening up a saloon here in my little town."

"Actually," Hiram answered as he joined them, "it's an Alehouse and Inn."

The sheriff's eyes narrowed as she looked over Rachel's fathers for a moment. The brunette held her breath; this woman made her very nervous, and she felt as though the angry looking lady could see right through them.

"Alehouse." Sue huffed. "Mighty fancy word for boozed soaked whorehouse. Class it up all you want, but I'll have my eye on you. I'm a law around here and no one crosses Sue Sylvester."

"I feel safer already," Hiram answered smoothly. "It's good to know the law is so invested in public safety."

LeRoy held out a hand to the sheriff, who recoiled a little bit before gripping it in a none too friendly handshake. "You should stop by after we're set up; our selection is tasteful, and the food is good as well."

Sue retracted her hand quickly and gave them a stiff nod before locking Rachel in a hard stare.

"Welcome to New Lima," the sheriff spat.

"Thank you," Rachel squeaked as the woman stalked back across the street.

"Don't let Sue get to you," Will volunteered. "She's been especially tense since the bank…well…she'll warm up to you I'm sure."

The brunette shot him a grateful glance before following her fathers into their new home. There was still a lot to do; she hoped to have her bedroom unpacked and in order before sunset—she was in a hurry to be settled in. Once she had her room as she wanted it, things could start to become normal. She had two days to get things in order, then it would be Monday and her first day at a new school—the beginning of her new life.

I am trying to keep historically accurate; however, I will not be dealing with issues of race in this story. Some of the character dynamics will be a little different in this AU (at least at first) and some characters will not exist. Like I said, I am trying to keep accurate to technology but it's possible I will make a few mistakes here and there. I am trying to balancing creative flow with quick internet searches; but I promise to try my best. If you are a History Major/Buff, fair warning, you are probably going to get irritated with me. That being said - I hope it's enjoyable. I greatly appreciate any and all comments and reviews - so if you have the time please leave a little feedback. (Succumbed to tumblr, see profile for link of you're interested.)