Santana's head bounced against the window as she stared aimlessly through the glass. She moved her tongue around in her mouth, making the now-flavorless Tootsie Pop clack against her teeth. She turned carefully against the rough leather of the seat and glanced over at Lena. She was sleeping soundly, slumped against Santana's side, her bangs fluttering on her forehead with each outward breath.

Santana reached over and brushed a stray strand of hair off Lena's pale, serene face. The bus went around another bend and Lena slammed up against Santana, hard enough to wake most people. But Santana knew from experience that Lena's sleep was like a living death; nothing could wake her, not even the time Santana knocked her stack of hardcover books onto the ground, hard enough to wake even the girls in the adjacent cabin.

Another sharp bend pushed Lena harder into Santana, and she winced and wiggled to relocate so that most of Lena's featherweight rested against her shoulder instead. Lena muttered something that sounded like "Malfoy" and crinkled her freckled nose.

The overhead speakers crackled with static and then the pleasant, mellow voice of the driver chimed through the bus. "Attention students." Santana groaned. So they'd officially made the transfer from "campers" to "students."

"We'll be disembarking in about five minutes. Please gather your bags and get ready to step off the bus."

Santana poked Lena lightly in the side. No response. She jabbed harder. Nothing. Lena rolled over and slumped over the edge of the seat, hanging up by the seatbelt like a rag doll. Sighing, Santana wrapped her arms around Lena's slim waist and squeezed. Lena's eyes fluttered open slowly, as if the lids were almost too heavy to lift.

"Morning." Santana couldn't help but crack a smile. Lena's marble-blue eyes were always so wide and animated. In response, Lena yawned and stood up, completely ignoring the fact that the bus was still in motion. She smoothed her skirt down, and Santana admired the turquoise blue of the fabric. Lena always had the prettiest dresses, white and blue and purple silks with empire waists, dipping necklines and flattering cuts. The day before the big move, she'd handed Santana all her red clothes, claiming that they didn't suit her at all and clashed with her hair. Normally Santana would have scorned the offer as charity, but the clothes were just too beautiful to turn down.

Today she was wearing a newly acquired, fire-red tank top made of amazingly comfortable, clingy silk, tucked into a pair of crisp white shorts. She'd accessorized with her own red velvet wedges and a gold tennis bracelet, studded with white diamonds. They were definitely the most turned-out girls on the bus. Everyone else was in sweaters and jeans as a concession to the changing weather. A few people had thrown them looks of envy, and they reminded her fondly of walking the halls with Quinn and Brittany as a Cheerio, when she was practically wading through a sea of jealousy. It made her feel good despite herself.

Santana blinked, realizing that the bus was emptying quickly. Lena was nowhere to be seen, and the only people left were a group of kids in the back and a flushed and grinning Bill, who was disentangling himself from the arms of a blond boy Santana didn't recognize. (They were obviously making up for lost time on the blessedly unsupervised bus ride.)

She smirked at him as she grabbed her bag, feeling another pang as she thought about Brittany. She'd managed to avoid recalling the blond all week by constantly distracting herself and throwing herself viciously into her exercise routines every day. Her body was back to her smokin'-hot Cheerios prime now. At least no one could say she was letting herself go.

Swinging her bag over her shoulder, Santana raced down the bus and jumped from the steps, landing hard on her feet. She took a deep breath, smoothed back her hair, and looked up at the place that she'd soon have to call home.