Disclaimer: See First Chapter
A/N: Turns out I got on a small roll, but I wouldn't expect this all of the time. The less you expect of me, the more likely you will be pleasantly surprised! Anyway, Hope you all enjoy this! It is going kind of slowly for now, but keep in mind, most of these are important details for later. Let me know of any other characters you would like to see or storylines you would like me to pursue or explain, and I will see what I can do.
This is all un-beta'd, so excuse any mistakes. I try to go back and fix them, but I always miss something. If you see anything, please let me know, and I will try to remedy it immediately. Thank you for all the follows and faves already. It gives me encouragement. And thank you to quinntanarivergon4life for the review! On to the best part!
Santana woke up warm and comfortable in what had to be her favorite position. In Quinn's warm embrace. She would deny it if anyone asked because she had to be the tough heir to the throne, but Quinn would never tell anyone. She loved to cuddle with Quinn, too. Yet another thing that the gorgeous girl holding her tight would keep to herself.
She stretched briefly, but nuzzled back in when her muscles felt well-stretched. Quiet mornings with Quinn were the best. Her father was out hunting with some guests and a few guards, which meant they would be gone all day, and she could get up when she wished. Since her mother had passed away mere years after Santana was born, she basically had full reign of the castle while her father was gone.
Quinn stirred, but wrapped her arms tighter around Santana before her breathing returned to its even pace.
Santana couldn't help herself when her hand reached up to caress the exposed skin of Quinn's neck that so contrasted her own. It would never cease to amaze her. They were so different, and yet, so similar. Her porcelain skin was so beautiful. She placed her hand down gently on Quinn's neck so as to not disturb her sleeping beauty. Her thumb moved across Quinn's pulse point of its own accord. She felt Quinn's slow heartbeat, and moved her head slightly lower on Quinn's chest to hear it as well. Her breathing became synced with Quinn's, and she slowly drifted back into the dream world.
When she woke again, she realized it was much lighter than it had been when she last awakened. The windows, closed and locked at night with super thick wood and reinforced with metal for protection, were leaking much more light through the small cracks. She guessed it was only about nine, though, since no one had come to check on her yet.
Santana wondered how many other princess' had kind fathers like hers. He gave her servants, but treated them as his own children. She silently pondered what life might be like without her Quinn. Her heart dropped even further into her stomach when she wondered what might have become of Quinn. She was thankful every day for the best friend and most faithful servant that was hers. She slowly glanced up at her beautiful angel sent to save her. Her face was so tranquil in her sleep. So relaxed. She studied every curve of her face, every line, every wrinkle.
Suddenly, she began to get a strange feeling in her stomach. Her body started to involuntarily lean toward Quinn, bringing her face ever closer to the girl's. Her lips parted of their own accord, but, last minute, her brain clicked and she rerouted, what she had realized was going to be a kiss, to peck the corner of Quinn's mouth.
She could feel her cheeks burning as she quickly tried to cover by shaking Quinn gently and softly whispering, "Time to get up, Q."
Quinn stirred a little, but did not awaken. Santana's heart sped up when Quinn pulled her closer in her sleep and mumbled, "Okay, baby."
The smile that spread across Santana's face like wildfire was accompanied by a blush. She was confused as to why, but she found she loved it when Quinn said that. She almost wished Quinn would call her that when she was conscious. Almost. She was afraid of the consequences for both of them. She knew her father was kind and loved Quinn, but she needed to produce an heir. So, even if she loved Quinn and Quinn loved her back, which were both BIG ifs, and even if Quinn were a princess instead of a servant girl, which she wasn't, she knew it was the longest shot in history.
Once again, she felt confused when her heart sank and her stomach twisted at that realization. Might she love Quinn? No, she couldn't. And yet…
Quinn's breathing sped up rapidly, and she began to squirm and whimper. Santana knew immediately what that meant. Another nightmare. Quinn had them at least weekly. When Santana heard her through the thin doors between their rooms, she would often go sleep in Quinn's bed with her.
"Q, baby, wake up." She startled herself when she called Quinn "baby", but quickly pushed that thought to the back of her mind for later consideration as Quinn tossed and turned more violently, but still failed to wake up. Santana half sat up, leaning over Quinn, causing Quinn's arms to fall loose of her, which seemed to send her further into her dark dream. "Quinn," she shook her much harder now. Quinn was sweating and tears were streaming down the sides of her face, but she still failed to wake up as she now began mumbling unintelligible things. Santana was really worried now. Normally, Quinn had snapped out of it by now. "Wake up, Lucy," she said firmly, hoping a command would chase away the nightmares and bring her consciousness. It worked.
Quinn's eyes shot open as she violently sat up, grabbing Santana in a rough hug and whimpering as she let the remaining tears leak from her eyes.
Santana returned the hug while whispering reassurances to her. "It's okay. You're here with me now. I won't let anyone hurt you again. I promise."
Quinn's sobbing slowly petered out until she was able to talk. "This… time… it wasn't me."
Santana held her closer and settled her head on Quinn's shoulder. "It's okay now. It was just a dream."
"But it was so real. You were…" Quinn suddenly stopped and stiffened like she had inadvertently given away a state secret.
"W-what?" Santana was shocked to say the least. All this fuss over a dream about her? Normally, the nightmares were about childhood memories that had resurfaced that Quinn didn't understand or that scared her or something general from her past. Especially the branding each slave received as they left her country.
Santana's hand moved down to Quinn's left hip as she thought about it, and gently worked her thumb over to her abdomen, just a little, under the gown, that had ridden up in Quinn's violent thrashing, to the scar, and began to rub it.
At first, Quinn's breath hitched at the almost intimate gesture, then, as usual, she calmed considerably and relaxed into Santana's arms. "Just a dream," she whispered as she buried her face into Santana's shoulder.
"Yes, just a dream," reassured Santana as she rocked Quinn slowly and continued to rub the scar on Quinn's lower abdomen. A tear rolled down her own cheek as she thought about all that little Quinn must have gone through, though she rarely ever opened up about it. She had been so young when she came to live with Santana. Santana had vowed to herself to take care of the young woman and never let anyone hurt her again as long as she was alive. She had done so only a few years back, when Quinn's nightmares had become more frequent and vivid as the memories of her past had come surging back into her mind.
Quinn sighed and leaned more heavily onto Santana. Her breathing calmed to the occasional hiccup stage of crying, and then soon it ceased altogether.
Santana ceased her rocking motion and separated her body from Quinn's just enough to look into her eyes, but continued to hold her close and rub her still slightly rough brand mark. "You want to talk about it?"
Quinn shook her head, "I just…"
They were interrupted by a banging at Santana's door which was soon enough followed by Brittany's voice. "Come on, girls! Time to head out for the ride you promised me this morning! Sir Lardsworth needs a good run to let out his frustrations because of Mira's unfaithful behavior! Sam's getting all of them saddled up right now! Be at the stables in five minutes!" Brittany had named her favorite horse Sir Lardsworth for some reason. She often told crazy stories about him that no one understood or questioned, but Sam always seemed happy enough to listen to anything she said intently. She apparently believed that she could talk to him or something. She even claimed she had cured him of his addictions to gambling and cigars.
"Coming," Santana sighed. Then she realized something, "Wait, how did you know we were both in here? You said 'girls'."
"Oh, did I?" Brittany said way too innocently, even for her. "Huh," they could almost hear the shrug before they heard her footsteps echo down the large long hallways.
Santana sighed again, then looked back to the girl she was still cradling. "You were saying?"
"Oh, nothing," Quinn quickly covered with a smile. "It was just a dream." She moved out of San's arms and got off of the bed. Santana couldn't help but take notice of Quinn's flawless movements as she made her way over to Santana's closet and opened it. She turned and caught her staring, but, other than a slight smirk, which somehow turned Santana on, feigned innocence. She turned back to the closet as she asked, "What would you like to wear today, milady?"
'You,' Santana thought, then shook her head. Did she really just think that? "Uhm, you choose." She was flustered now, and it showed. She could feel what must've been a blush with all the heat that rushed to her face.
Quinn quirked an eyebrow, which, when seen by Santana, just caused her to become even more flustered. The princess's sudden mood change threw Quinn off. Was that a blush lighting San's cheeks? 'What could have changed her mood so quickly?' Quinn wondered. "Okay?" She turned to look at all of Santana's garments, pondering what would be best for riding in AND what she would like to see Santana wearing.
Santana watched the side of Quinn's face as she weighed the options of each garment. Her concentration face was so adorable that it made Santana want to squeeze her like a giant teddy bear. And, yet again, she had no idea why.
Quinn found a beautiful, flowing red gown that would not make Santana uncomfortable in the saddle. That was, by far, the most important factor in choosing this particular dress. The second reason for the dress was that Santana always looked hot in that dress. She looked radiant in red, plus, the top was just a little lower to show Santana's luscious cleavage. Quinn smiled to herself as she pulled it out. Too bad she wasn't a rich prince, then she would've done anything to win Santana's love. She wasn't though. She was the lowly servant girl whose responsibility it was to dress the beautiful princess right now. She tried to clear her face of any betraying emotions before she turned around with the dress. "Is this alright, milady?"
Santana knew when Quinn was intentionally hiding her emotions, so she knew there was something on Quinn's mind. "That's fine, but are you alright? I know there's something on your mind. Tell me? Please?"
"It's nothing, milady. I am alright. We should really get ready to ride. Brittany's waiting with Sam, who knows what they might get up to without us," Quinn chuckled, putting her own concerns to the back of her mind as she remembered recently interrupting Sam and Brittany at a very inopportune moment.
Santana knew Quinn had a point, but she also knew that Quinn was, once again, brushing herself aside to keep others happy, and San didn't like that at all. She got out of the bed and moved over to where Quinn was standing, still in her own mind. She placed one hand gently on the side of Quinn's face and the other on her arm to gain her attention. "Whatever it is, you can always talk to me about it," she looked deep into Quinn's captivating eyes, and, cliché as it was, began to feel short of breath, almost like she was drowning. Her voice lowered to a whisper as Quinn's whole body turned to face her. "I will never judge you or hate you. Not for anything. Not ever. You will always be my best friend, my favorite person, my equal… hell, in many ways my superior. There will only ever be one you. My Quinn." She smiled.
Quinn felt the tears stinging her eyes. Since when had Santana become such a softie? Damn it, she was the one crying. That made her a softie, too. What had happened to them? Quinn nodded, chuckled, and cracked a genuine smile.
A single tear escaped Quinn's eye, and Santana wiped it away with her thumb, slowly lifting her gaze to return to Quinn's. Realization dawned on her. "Shit. What has happened to me? If you tell anyone," she used the hand previously placed on Quinn's arm to point at her emphasizing her threat. The only problem was, she couldn't come up with a good one. Not a threat she could possibly mean. Not for Quinn, whose beautiful smile was even reflected in her eyes. Not when those beautiful eyes she adored were staring deep into her own. Not when tears, or rather tear, had been shed. Not when Quinn was so beautiful. "You know, the usual threat. Everyone else still has to think I'm a bad ass princess."
"Not a word," Quinn's eyes twinkled as she crossed her heart, causing Santana's to race a thousand times faster than it ever had before. Watching Santana struggle to find a threat was not only hilarious, but somehow sweet and endearing.
After Quinn had gotten Santana and herself ready, they headed out to the stables with arms linked, chatting about which horses and trails were their favorites.
Sam and Brittany were talking and waiting patiently by the horses, though the straw pieces Sam was taking out of Brittany's hair said that wasn't ALL they had been doing.
Before the girls were in earshot of their friends, Quinn pulled Santana to a stop. Quinn unlinked their arms, running her hand down Santana's arm before leaning forward and kissing Santana on the cheek near hear ear, being careful to do it on the side facing away from Brittany and Sam, though they were too engrossed in whatever they were talking about to see, and whispered, "Thank you. For everything," before rushing off to get Santana's horse by the mounting platform, leaving behind a very stunned, but very pleasantly surprised Santana.
