Author's Note: As you may have noticed there was a small gap in between this chapter and the last; this can be attributed mainly to the fact I just started my job and there is a lack of internet service at present. I largely do nothing at this job, however, and can spend a lot of time writing. I also have been playing the new Legend of Zelda game for the 3DS, so that's been keeping me pretty distracted as well. Never fear, I will still be updating, just at a slightly less rapid pace than before.
Just wanted to address something I got in the comments for the last chapter in regards to the last line of the chapter, Quinn's reference to Rachel being Jewish is a lapse on her part, not mine. I'm aware that there are angels in the jewish faith, but it was meant to act as a little mood lightener.
I don't think there are any more notes I have for this chapter, so as usual if you like what you see, leave a comment and let me know.
I don't own Glee, their characters, or anything else related to this story.
After their trip to Shelby's, Rachel and Quinn kept in contact. Rachel was off doing research with most of her free time, often reporting her findings to Quinn via short snippets of text messages. The vampire was somewhat bemused at Rachel's eagerness; she was obviously excited about her newfound status, but any further powers had yet to develop. If anything Rachel was lucky to have gotten any powers at all; Rachel had told Quinn about Shelby claiming "their kind" not being able to pass on their genes. It was very much like Rachel to throw herself into such endeavors as learning more about her abilities, but aside from basic vampire repellant, which they had already discovered, it didn't seem like there was much literature on the subject.
About five days after their trip, Quinn woke up one evening to find herself starving. She hadn't had blood since Cuppa Feel, and that was over a week ago. She should have been hungry days ago, she realized as she looked in her bedroom mirror, poking at her sunken face. Something about Rachel made her forget her hunger, however. It was possibly some sort of defense mechanism to avoid sucking down any more angel blood.
Whatever the case, she had prolonged it for too long; now she would have a night to herself. Rachel was back in Von Wert for the weekend trying to learn more from her mother, meaning she wouldn't be back to share her findings until Monday. Santana would be working tonight, which meant Brittany was probably with her. Leaning back in her chair, Quinn began to think about where she could go for a quick meal. There was always the blood substitute at Cuppa Feel, but that seemed so very boring. She could almost feel Rachel's look of disapproval as she considered going for a hunt. Then again, the last time she did that she wound up worse off than when she started.
Her thoughts wandered, leading through her usual list of donors. She didn't dare ask Finn after their last interaction, which still brought a bad taste to her mouth. Surprisingly Rachel had been quiet about Finn since they got back from Von Wert, when any other day she would have given the blonde a hard time about him. Luckily, both girls had other things on her mind.
Quinn then considered going after Puck, but considered the repercussions of horning in on Zizes' man. Back in the day Puckerman had found the market for hungry vampire girls in the school and practically went anemic trying to corner it, trading his blood for sex and all manner of favors. Quinn had chosen to avoid being outed as a vampire in this manner, knowing that once Puck found out the entire school would know. Her reputation was too important and her status as human was too prized at the time. Going to Puck for blood was an act of desperation even she wouldn't fall for, and the entire scheme was all too obvious; even if she had been human hanging around him for too long, people knew that he was in league with vampires and would talk.
Even still, Zizes got hold of Puckerman and the vampire chicks of McKinley High fell back into obscurity. Zizes was human as far as Quinn knew, but not even a vampire messed around with Lauren Zizes' man. The only bites that Noah would be getting would be hers, and he'd take them graciously.
Finally Quinn's thoughts turned to Sam. She still hadn't heard from him since the incident with his father, and he would more than likely not want her in his house with his younger siblings around. Still, her pool of willing subjects was waning, and even if he didn't give her some of his blood they would need to talk eventually. She wanted to make sure they weren't on bad terms after what had happened. Better late than never.
Picking up her phone, she scrolled through her contacts, finally coming to Sam's name. She thought it over, her phone dancing between her fingers, and then she hit the talk button. It rang twice before he answered.
"Hello?" He didn't sound groggy; he must have still been awake.
"Sam, it's Quinn."
"Yeah, I know. Caller ID," it sounded as if he shrugged. "What's up?"
He was rather nonchalant. His tone caused Quinn to hesitate, suddenly unsure if she wanted to ask him this on such short notice. The last time they had spoken was because she had put his father in the hospital. "I just – we haven't talked in a while. Can I come over?" She asked, slightly thrown.
He was quiet for a while. "Have you eaten?" He finally asked. She knew what he meant; he wasn't asking her out to breadstix or anything like that.
"Not in a few days," She admitted, and then realized how stupid it was to say so.
"Quinn—" he began, but she knew what he was going to say. She could hear it in the way he said her name.
"I just wanted to talk to you, I wasn't going to…" She tried to explain, but trailed off.
"You and I both know you couldn't promise that." It was true; right now in the sanctity of her own room she could say she wouldn't bite him, but face-to-face would be a different story. She would be able to hear the blood pumping in his veins and smell it on him.
For a moment the only sound she could hear was the ticking of the clock downstairs, then she nodded. Knowing that he couldn't see her nod over the phone, she spoke up. "Yeah. I'm sorry," she said quietly. She could hear Sam give a heavy sigh on the other end of the line.
"Tonight just isn't a good night, Quinn. Sorry." He seemed ready to hang up.
Before he hung up she quickly interjected, "How's your dad?"
To her surprise he laughed, but the laugh was nervous. "He's doing better, but I dunno how much longer that'll last. He and the guys are out in the woods again tonight."
"What? Why?" She asked, alarmed. Last she had heard, Sam's father had lost about two liters of blood and was recovering in the hospital, and now a few weeks later he was on a romp in the woods?
"They've been in there ever since they took down the checkpoint, looking for that thing from last time. I think they decided they have bigger fish to fry than vampires," Sam said, causing a chill to run through Quinn's spine. They were hunting for the werewolf. "Well, just be careful out there if you do go out tonight. See you around."
The other end of the line went dead and Quinn put her phone down on her desk and opened her laptop. Sam had said they'd been out there since the last sighting of the thing. It was possible they didn't know what it was, meaning they were just hunting a rather large bear. If it were a true werewolf, it would only come out during the full moon. She quickly googled a lunar calendar and found the next full moon wasn't for three days. If it were a werewolf, the hunters would be safe for the next three days. She bit her lip, trying to think of what to do on the matter. They were only human, and she had nearly ripped them apart last time they ran into each other. Warning them was out of the question, at least directly.
Something else came to mind as she thought back. Brittany had said something at Cuppa Feel about how the werewolf didn't attack despite vampires and werewolves being against each other in all manner of lore. In theory it would have gone after her first, but something prevented it. A new thought in her mind, Quinn picked up her phone and scrolled through her contacts once again, quickly coming to the number she needed.
"Hey Quinn," Brittany greeted. She sounded as if she was awake as well. Why was everyone still up?
"Brittany, are you with Santana?"
"No, she went to work. What's up?"
"Good, don't tell her I called. I want to talk to you about something. It's important."
"Do you want me to come over? I'm at my house right now," Brittany offered. That was a surprise; the two had hardly left each other's side since the summer started. Brittany's house was about ten minutes away, two for a vampire.
"No, I'll meet you there." Quinn put her phone in her pocket and grabbed her jacket. Her mother had already gone to sleep for the evening, meaning she had no one to answer to.
She left the house and dashed in the direction of Brittany's, arriving in minutes. Brittany was already on her front porch when Quinn turned the corner onto her street. Vampires were always pretty timely; Brittany must have learned that from dealing with Santana. Quinn began to climb the steps to Brittany's porch but immediately stopped as a smell came to her. It was the smell of blood, but there was a tinge of something else; it made the smell even more alluring to the starving vampire.
"Hi," Brittany greeted, and then she noticed Quinn's sunken eyes. They were glowing brightly in the darkness, giving the vampire the look of a cat caught in headlights. Her fangs were already visible, catching the light and glistening in the glow of the streetlights. Quinn covered her mouth with her hands, not trying to seem threatening to her friend.
"Quinn, you know you don't have to hide that sort of thing from me," Brittany said, standing up and making like she was going to come towards the vampire. Quinn could see the various scars Santana had left along nearly every inch of her skin, some wounds more healed than others. It looked like some of then would never fully heal, parallel holes marring the dancer. Quinn stepped back as Brittany stepped forward, backing against the banister on the porch steps.
"I don't want to hurt you," she said quietly.
"You're starving, Quinn. You can have some of my blood if you want, Santana wouldn't mind. You need it," Brittany said, rolling up her sleeve and offering a bare wrist. There were already three fang marks, two horizontal and one vertical between them, running along the main blue vein of her arm. Quinn felt an ache in her fangs; she wanted to strike that vein and drain it for all it was worth. She would take as much of Brittany's delicious blood as possible and leave none for—
Quinn shook her head quickly, dispelling the thought. She looked back into Brittany's eyes, seeing the innocence that she embodied. Even as she held out her wrist to a violent bloodsucker she had no fear, she had complete trust in Quinn. Far more than Quinn had for herself.
"I… I just came to ask about the werewolf," Quinn glanced away. Brittany kept her arm out a moment, and then pulled her sleeve back down. With the object of temptation gone Quinn felt the darkness in her eyes somewhat recede, allowing her to concentrate. The beat of Brittany's heart still echoed in her mind.
"What'd you want to know about it?" Brittany asked, sitting down on her front porch. Quinn remained standing several feet away.
"When Santana invited me for coffee that night you said that werewolves and vampires were enemies," Quinn stated. Brittany nodded once, and Quinn continued. "You said it would have attacked me if something didn't stop it. What could have possibly stopped a werewolf?"
Brittany shrugged. "Obviously it knows you from its human form. If it knew you it's possible it would be able to stop its animal side from attacking, even if instinct tells it otherwise," She was repeating what she had said the last time the two had spoke, on the patio of the coffee shop. There had been a lot on Quinn's mind that night; perhaps she had forgotten.
Do you know who's still in town?" Quinn asked, looking back to Brittany.
The blonde thought a moment, listing people off of her fingers. "Let's see… there's thirteen members of Glee club. You, Santana and me are three. Mike and Tina are both at Asian camp again, so they're not here. Puck's in town, I saw him and Lauren at the mall the other day. Mercedes is away for the summer; I think she went to visit family. Kurt and Blaine are still around; Santana saw them at the coffee shop. Oh, and Artie's here."
"Finn and Kurt are both on a camping trip this week with Mr. Hummel, they won't be back until next weekend," Quinn recalled, filling in the blanks. Rachel had mentioned Finn's upcoming trip before they had gone to Shelby's house. "Oh, and Rachel is visiting her mom until Monday," she added. Save Mercedes, Tina and Mike, everyone else was in town for the summer. Based on logic, Brittany wasn't the werewolf, and neither was Santana or Rachel.
Quinn thought about what Brittany had said about the werewolf for a moment, sitting down on Brittany's front steps. If the werewolf really was someone that knew her, then they had to be warned before the next full moon. The only question was who it could have been.
A single car passed as she thought this information over. "How do you know all this supernatural stuff?" she finally asked. Brittany was never the most gifted individual in the thought processes department, but Quinn had found herself talking to the dancer quite often recently. Brittany's words of wisdom hadn't steered her wrong yet.
Brittany shrugged once again. "I read a lot of twilight," she admitted confidently.
She then looked at the vampire again, her face turning concerned. "Quinn, are you sure you don't want some?" She asked quietly. Quinn looked back at Brittany as she lowered the neckline of her shirt, exposing pale skin to the glow of the streetlights. Quinn could see the impression of veins amid the crater-like landscape of her friend's neck, and could practically feel the pulse between her lips.
Suddenly she was behind Brittany, fangs hovering just short of flesh. Brittany's eyes closed as she anticipated the bite, having felt it so many times before. Quinn winced and tried to struggle against her instinct to bite down, but the new proximity to her target had filled her senses with stimuli; she could smell the blood clearly and hear the beat of Brittany's heart, quickening with the surprise of Quinn's movement. Quinn's breath was ragged, as she resisted for no more than a moment before her fangs plunged into Brittany's neck. Warmth filled her mouth as the blood flowed around her fangs. Brittany gasped as her neck was punctured and closed her eyes, knowing this feeling well. Quinn sucked deeply, drinking the sweet-tasting blood hungrily. Her features began to return to normal, her sunken face receiving its color back. Quinn couldn't help but continue even after she had her fill, her hands clenched on Brittany's upper arms.
The blonde squirmed as she began to feel lightheaded, a calming euphoria coming over her as more of her blood drained. Her face began to become pale, and her mouth opened slightly, weakly groaning her protest. Her moans fell on deaf ears as Quinn continued, her fangs entering Brittany's neck a second time, and a third. The blood flow increased with each of the holes made, satisfying her hunger. Quinn's eyes opened just for a moment before two firm hands grabbed her by the arms and threw her aside, sending her down the flight of steps and face first into the street. She could feel several large gashes open in her face from the texture of the pavement.
Quinn looked back with a snarl to find Santana on her knees on the porch, still wearing her apron from the coffee shop. The light blue fabric was now stained with the blood pouring from Brittany's neck as Santana cradled Brittany's head in her lap. Santana glared down at Quinn before taking a bite out of her own wrist, placing it against Brittany's mouth. The vampire's blood spilled into the human's mouth and Quinn watched from a distance as the wounds she had caused seconds ago immediately closed. Santana placed a loving hand against Brittany's forehead, then turned her attention to the vampire she had thrown into the street. In a flash she was at Quinn's side, picking her up by her arm.
"How dare you?" She hissed, her fangs bared and bloody. She threw Quinn again, the vampire hitting a cobblestone wall on the other side of the street and crumpling to the grass beneath it. She was already healing the scrapes to her face from being thrown down the stairs, putting the power she got from Brittany's blood to use. Santana was at her side again, leaning over her.
"Don't you ever lay a finger on her, Fabray," Santana snarled, and Quinn could feel clawed hands wrapping around her arm again. Santana had both her strength as a vampire and adrenaline on her side, throwing Quinn back across to the other side of the street, into another retaining wall. "Do you know how much self-control I have to have with her?" she roared. "You could have killed her if I hadn't sensed something, you bitch!" Santana began screaming in Spanish, and Quinn couldn't say anything to defend herself. Her head was all kinds of scrambled from being thrown so many times.
From the porch, Brittany mumbled something, coming into consciousness. Santana was immediately at her side, a hand on her forehead. "It's okay, Brit-brit, you're all right," she whispered as Brittany came to, the vampire blood in her system healing her gradually.
Quinn slowly got to her feet, looking back up at the two in time to receive a final glare from Santana. She was the protective type; Quinn had nearly lost control of her hunger and could truly have killed Brittany. Throwing her so many times was a bit more than necessary, but it had stopped her from taking any more blood from the fairy hybrid. Quinn whispered an apology that only a vampire would be able to hear before she turned and slowly began to walk back to her house.
Santana resumed calming her lover, her voice carried as far as the street corner.
"It's okay, Brittany. I'm here. It's okay."