A/N Hello everyone! Just wanna say a thank you for all the fav's, follows and the reviews you left. It encourages and excites me to write on this story. I'm still struggling with chap7 but it'll all work out. I'm also looking for a new Beta cuz the other two stopped talking to me... So if you're interested, please send me a PM

Here is the long overdue meeting between the three girls. Hope you enjoy this chapter

R&R

XOX

Chapter 4

The couple slowly walk closer to the little Latina, Santana takes the lead and carefully and slowly sits down in front of the girl, making sure to keep a comfortable distance between them. Britt follows her lead and they keep their hands interlocked on the blonde's lap.

"Hi sweetie." Santana starts off in a very soft and soothing tone. The girl immediately lifts her head at the raspiness she hears in the voice, but she doesn't show any emotion and just kinda stares at the two before focusing on the necklace Britt is wearing.

The two notice how the girl doesn't make eye-contact with them, just like Susan had told them, and it saddens them to think that the girl is too scared to do so.

"I know Miss Susan told you who we are and we know who you are but we'd just want to introduce ourselves," Britt states in a soft tone as well, she waits for any kind of reaction but gets nothing so she just continues, "I'm Brittany and this is Santana."

The girl just looks between them again in silence, her eyes narrow a little at them and it makes San smile a little. She knows that look, she made it a lot too when she was younger… Hell, she still does it now.

It's a look of calculation. A silent observation. A way to try and get a read on people, strangers mostly.

After a few more minutes of silence where they just let the girl look them over, they get a shock of a lifetime. A soft angelic-like voice softly whispers out a 'Hi'.

They weren't hoping or expecting much so this immediately relaxes the two and small smiles make their way onto their faces. Since Isobel didn't speak much at all to even Susan, it was quite a pleasant surprise to hear her offer that soft greeting.

"I heard your name's Isobel. I really love that name, it's really pretty." Santana states with a smile and watches as the little girl shows a second of a smile before it leaves her face again. At least they got some kinda reaction.

"I agree. I kinda wish I had a beautiful name like that too." Britt jokes out a little with a soft smile and again they get the same barely there reaction. A fraction of a smile.

The couple exchange a look with each other and share a smile. They are both thinking that this is going better than they thought it would go and their eyes convey that; no words are needed between these two lovebirds, a simple look is enough.

"I think Brittany has a pretty name too, right Isobel?" Santana tries to get another reaction out of the girl and it takes about 5 long and silent minutes but they get a timid nod in reply.

"You too." Isobel softly offers and again the two are shocked at hearing the girl speak.

"Really?" San asks and smiles, "Thank you, princess."

Isobel lets a smile slip out and this time it lasts longer than the previous two. Then her eyes widen and a focused look crosses her face as she stares at San's lap. The two look down and both smile.

Santana slowly lifts the little purple monkey and shows it to Isobel. She makes the animal wave and it makes the girl smile again. The two both make sure to commence that smile to their memories, it's a beautiful smile and the girl should smile like that at all times.

"This is for you." San simply says and watches with an amused look as the girl's eyes widen. Wow, those eyes…

"Me?" The girl asks in a whisper tone and the couple nod. San slowly reaches her hand forward to her and keeps it there while Isobel keeps staring at the stuffed animal as if it's a foreign object. But also with wonderment, the girls notice.

"You can take it." Britt softly states as she sees the apprehension cross the girl's face.

Isobel very slowly and carefully reaches her little hand out and grabs the monkey, she looks up at the two of them before focusing on Santana who softly nods her head with a smile as encouragement for the girl to take it.

It takes another minute for the girl to take the monkey and pull it against her chest. She cuddles it into her chest as if it's a prized possession to her, which it most likely is. The couple watch on as the girl cuddles and inspects the stuffed animal.

Britt leans against San and softly whispers while keeping her head against the brunette's shoulder, "She is so cute and just really precious, babe."

"I know, baby." San whispers back, both of them never letting their eyes stray from the small Latina in front of them.

They watch for a few more minutes and continue to talk a little more about themselves before switching to subjects like favorite things, Disney and of course… Princesses.

Susan has been watching the couple ever since they walked in, she was in for a few shocks when she saw them interact. She has a proud smile on her face and she is just happy that the girl seems to connect to them, well to San mostly but still…

She wasn't expecting much from this meeting. She was actually expecting that the girl would hide away or maybe even have a panic attack… But the girl didn't, instead she smiled and even said a few words.

It were only about 5 words but it's a big improvement from ´normal´. The girl is actually interacting with the couple, listening intently even though she is mostly focusing on the monkey she had gotten and nodding along to whatever her two daughters were saying.

She looks up at the big clock in the little open hallway slash waiting area and sighs… She hates that she has to break them up, especially with this great progress the girl is making, but as always all good things must come to an end.

She softly knocks on the window and it grabs the trio's attention, mostly since the girl jumped a little from the unexpected noise. Susan offers a sad smile and internally smacks herself at making the girl scared.

Santana and Brittany share a look before turning back towards Isobel. It's Santana who speaks up again, the two had noticed that the fragile girl was taking a quicker liking towards her so she had been doing most of the talking.

"Sweetie, I hate to say this but our time is sadly up." She says with a small pout on her face which makes the girl smile, again just a fraction of a second, before a sullen look takes place on her face which breaks the couple's hearts.

"Kay…" Is the soft reply they get and it really tugs on the girls' heartstrings.

"We promise to be back as soon as possible. Cuz you are an amazing and very pretty little girl. We would love to keep hanging out with you, would you like that too?" San softly asks her and they wait in silence for the girl to reply.

A slow timid nod answers their question and the two break out in smiles.

"I know it might be way too soon and very scary, and you don't have to do anything but… Could I maybe get a hug? Just a little one?" San asks yet again and playfully pouts a little.

The girl lets out a small, very small, giggle before nodding her head. San waits for the girl to make the move even though she gave her permission. It only takes a minute before the little girl slowly moves forwards and tentatively hugs Santana.

San wraps her arms slowly and carefully around the girl, she places a careful kiss on the girl's head and feels her squeeze her neck a little. Isobel breaks the hug and slowly moves over to hug a shocked Brittany as well.

The two slowly get up as Isobel sits down again in between the two chairs, they wave at her and get a small wave in return.

"See you soon." Britt states with a smile before the couple walk out of the room and towards Susan.

XOX

"Wow…." It's San who opens her mouth first after at least 10 minutes of silence between the three since they had walked back towards Susan's office and sat down, "That was… I don't really know…"

"Not what you were expecting?" Susan throws in and both the girls shake their heads, "I know… I couldn't even dream of that. She really reacted good, no greatly, to you. Especially to you, Santana."

"I know. My wife is just amazing." Britt states with a grin before leaning down to kiss San's cheek.

"Thanks babe," San shyly says as she looks fondly down at her hands in her lap, she hears the other two in the room chuckle and she can't help but shake her head with a small chuckle as well, "She is really cute. The way she was with the monkey… Like she had never gotten anything before."

The two blondes share the sad smile that falls on Santana's face. The truth in the statement she just made punctures through all their hearts. It´s quite possibly the most true and honest thing in this whole situation. Beside all the hurt the girl has gone through… To even think she had never gotten a hug or a present…

And it's Britt who actually brings it up as a question to her mom, "Did you see that hug?"

Susan simply nods and Britt continues, "She was so apprehensive taking the monkey but that hug… I could see and literally feel her nerves radiating off her body. Kids should not be like that. They should never be scared to get a gift or a hug…"

"I don't think she knows anything other than 'getting punished'. When I first saw her… that look in her eyes when she saw other kids here getting hugs and playing with toys… It was like she just found out about a magical universe." Susan softly tells them as her eyes start to tear up a little.

It was a look she will never forget. Besides the obvious fear and nervousness in the girl's eyes, the look of what could only be described as pure shock was very present as well. It reminded her when her daughters were little and it was Christmas morning.

Only, this was slightly different. Instead of a shock from happiness it was a shock from questioning, something unknown. If the girl could've talked, she would have most likely fired off questions like:

'What are those? What are they doing? Why are they doing that?'

And to be honest, Susan would have no idea how to explain that to the girl. It's something that most people take for granted. How would you start to explain something that is supposed to be the most normal and natural thing in life to someone who doesn't even know what it is?

An angry grumbling pulls Susan from her thoughts and she watches as Santana gets up and starts to pace up and down her office. She looks towards Britt but sees her focused on her wife's pacing.

"Please keep all the info you have on her parents away from me cuz I will beat their…" Santana starts as she balls her hands into tight fists; as if she were getting ready to really hit someone.

"San. Please take a deep breath and come sit down again." Britt tells her softly and after a few minutes of taking deep breaths to get rid of the anger San feels, she takes a seat next to her wife.

Britt immediately wraps her arm around her shoulders and pulls her into her side, she starts stroking her arm and places a few kisses on the brunette's head to calm her further, "My feisty wife… I do not intend on visiting you in jail."

San lifts her head and shoots her a look but Britt just leans down to kiss her nose before speaking again, "Trust me when I say that I would love nothing more than to kick them were the sun don't shine but that's not how this world works. I hope they never see the light of day again, just like we all do, but violence is never the answer."

San closes her eyes and lets out a deep and long sigh, as usual her genius wife is right. She keeps her eyes closed and tries to keep her mind from going to the angry place by listening to her wife and mom talk.

"Those two will get what they deserve, we have enough evidence against them to keep them in jail for a long time," Susan starts and takes a breath before continuing, "But we have to focus on Isobel. She is gonna need a lot of time to heal and trust again. Time to become a real kid."

Susan stands up and grabs her agenda to check her schedule for the upcoming weeks, she sits down again before flipping through the pages.

San finally opens her eyes again and places a kiss on her wife's collarbone, she doesn't want to move so she leans even more into Britt. Okay fine, snuggles. Snuggle Bug San is out in full force, but she would never admit that she´s one.

"We all saw how well she reacted towards you two. And I really think it's going to help her be herself, whoever that may be, and having a chance at becoming a kid again. So I would like to suggest that you could come visit and just talk for about an hour or so with her, say every two weeks?" Susan asks the couple.

San lifts her head a little and the two stare at each other for a few seconds before Britt speaks up, "I think that's a great idea. We could start off with every two weeks and then every week maybe? Depending on how it goes of course."

"Sounds good to me, I talked with Brenda when you were with Isobel. She was passing by and after a few minutes of watching you interact she told me that you had a lot more progress than she made in the months she has been working with Isobel."

The couple share a shocked look which makes Susan chuckle a little. Those two are so in sync you'd think they were the exact same person sometimes.

Susan continues before either one can open their mouth, "We will plan a few 'hang-outs', as I like to call them, and we will just see where it leads us. Okay with you two?"

"Yea, good for us." San says still with some shock on her face. Did they really make progress? They were only interacting for about 40min or so…

XOX

After the trio aligned their schedules and wrote down their next couple meetings with Isobel in their schedules, making sure that they will keep those days free, and making a little small talk about their jobs, they leave again.

All sorts of thoughts swirl through their heads as they think back towards everything that happened so far today. It's mostly nerves, happiness and worry that is keeping them busy. The meeting went a lot better than they dared to hope for but the road that is yet to come will be very hard and difficult.

"We should focus on the good and happy things that happened," Brittany speaks up as they stroll around the park that they decided to go to before driving back home, "We can worry later."

San nods and mumbles out a soft 'You're right' as she snuggles back into Britt's side. It really is one of her favorite spots to be in when they are taking a walk. Her snuggled into her wife while the blonde has her arm tightly around her.

"Did you see those eyes? And that tiny smile? She should smile like that at all times." Britt speaks again with excitement which makes San smile and fall even more in love with her wife.

"How could I not?! Those eyes have the same effect on me as yours do. They just pierce through you."

"Well I certainly pierced through you, alright." Britt teases and San gapes before hitting her wife in the stomach.

"Hey! I'm supposed to be the pervy one here," San eventually chuckles out before adding while rolling her eyes, "And fine. You did pierce through me."

Britt just grins proudly as she moves her hand down to cheekily squeeze San's butt before quickly moving her hand up to her waist again. San just squeals at the touch before poking her wife's stomach.

The two share a laugh while walking back towards their car again. Both enjoying the playfulness surrounding them as they think back to the little girl and her tiny smiles.

XOX

After getting a few groceries from the store, the duo is back home again. They are both relaxing outside on the back porch, that has a small roof to protect them from the hot afternoon sun, while sipping their drinks.

They had decided to just take the rest of the day off and relax in their backyard. Santana made a pitcher with her famous Margarita recipe, but using slightly less alcohol in it than usually, while Britt got out the snacks they bought earlier for them to feast on as they sat outside.

They also changed into their bikini's to cool down in their big pool. San going with her trusty black bikini while Britt put her light pink one on. Today had started of relatively cool but once the sun came out it was so hot… you'd think you were melting.

"So you really think we could be good for Isobel?" It's Santana's shaky and nervous voice that pulls Britt away from the book she is currently reading.

"What you mean, babe?" She asks as she looks at her wife next to her who is nervously playing with her fingers in her lap. She moves her hand to cover her wife's hands and waits until the girl looks up at her.

"Well… uh…" San stumbles over her words and Britt just smiles at the adorableness sitting next to her as she waits patiently for her wife to gather her thoughts, though she has a good idea what's going on, "They think we are good for Isobel… Like we helped already but…"

"What are you trying to say San? Are you afraid to screw things up or what?" Britt asks her with a small knowing look and the blush making a way up on the brunette's cheeks tells her enough.

San slowly lifts her head up to look at her amused wife and rolls her eyes at herself but it quickly turns into a smile again. She is still amazed at how her wife can easily pick up on what she is really trying to say.

"Aww, cutie," Britt coos and San just shyly ducks her head making the blonde giggle a little before continuing, "They told us how she was before and then we both experienced her interacting with us after only just meeting us. I know it was a big surprise at how well she seems to take to us, mostly you… but I don't think we have a lot to worry about right now."

"I know but I can't help it. I feel like this is a big responsibility, which it so is, and I don't wanna damage the kid even more… You know how I am and-" a hand covering her mouth stops San from continuing.

"I'm gonna stop you right there. You are the most amazing and kindhearted person I know. You're selling yourself short once again…," Britt leans in to place a soft kiss on her wife's mouth and presses their foreheads against each other while staring deeply into those brown eyes she loves so much, "You need to start to believe in the awesomeness that is you."

"But I-"

"No. You need to listen, baby," Britt starts yet again and makes sure that she has Santana's full attention before continuing, "I know you don't have much faith in yourself when it comes to certain things, and it saddens me. You are really amazing."

Santana just keeps looking at her wife before nodding her head slowly, "I just don't think I'll be good enough… I really don't wanna cause her more pain or hurt her. You know I can be a real big bitch, I've done it to everybody… My friends, my family… You…"

As San trails off with a sad and hurt look on her face, Britt can feel her heart break. When she met Santana in college she was very confident, but soon after hanging out she noticed that it was all just an act. A guarding system so she wouldn't be hurt and so that others wouldn't notice how insecure she truly was.

It saddens her that after all these years, her wife still feels so insecure about certain things. She realized quickly, after hanging out together a few times in college, that she also was a perfectionist. She would do things over and over until she felt good enough, until she felt it was perfect.

Britt knows it has mostly to do with how Santana grew up. And she kinda hates her family for that part. She will never speak it out loud; she doesn't want to create more problems in the Lopez family or in her own family.

All of what her wife went through made her a worrier. And it sometimes gets frustratingly bad when she has one of these episodes of self-doubting. She knows her wife can't help it and though it is really heartbreaking to watch, she wouldn't want her wife any other way.

The blonde gives her wife a sad face before pulling her into a tight hug, she places a few kisses on a tan shoulder before turning her mouth to her wife's ear, "You are so much more worth than you give yourself credit for. My little worrier…"

Santana chuckles a little at the old 'nickname' before letting out a deep sigh. She holds her wife tightly and just breathes in her lovely scent. She lets a soft smile slip out in amazement of her wife... She always knows just what to say or do to calm her down again.

They break their hug but keep their hands connected to one another. They stare into each other's eyes before Santana leans forward and kisses her blue-eyed beauty softly on her lips.

Britt smiles into it and it makes San smile too, before they know it they are giggling into each other's lips. They rest their foreheads together and slowly open their eyes. San watches as those perfect blues focus on her deep brown ones, a smile graces her lips yet again.

"Thank you." She softly whispers out as she keeps looking deeply into her wife's eyes. She can't help but giggle when the blonde scrunches up her face in confusion.

"For what?"

"For knowing what to say. For always being here for me. For agreeing to be my amazing and genius wife… Just… thank you for loving me." San whispers out with a slightly shaky voice and Britt moves her right hand up to cup her wife's cheek.

"I adore you… so much. You are so strong and awesome," Britt shakes her head a little and smiles before placing a quick peck on a tan nose, "I have loved you since I first saw you, I loved you when we just started to hang out. I loved you throughout our long and sometimes rough journey, and I will continue to love all parts of you until infinity."

Britt wipes the silent tear that is rolling down San's cheek away with her thumb. San has no idea what to say and even if she did, she'd doubt anything would come out so she goes for the next best thing and leans forward to give her wife a kiss that is filled with all the love she feels for her.

No matter what is going through her head, no matter how insecure she feels, no matter how weird or distant she gets… Brittany, her beautiful and amazing wife, will always be there for her.

She is honestly the luckiest person on earth… No. In the Universe… Together they can get through anything; this thought excites her for the next journey they are gonna partake in and she can't wait to start it.