Title: Winged

Pairings: St. Berry, Hummelberry, Klaine.

Rating: M

Current word count: +70,000

Status: In Progress

Synopsis: In the world of Jesse St. James things are never quite as they seem and the rules of morality are faint and blurry. When he gets given an Angel, a beautiful, unearthly creature, by his parents, he thinks nothing of it. Until suddenly he finds himself falling for her and his world and everything he has ever known is turned on its head.

Warnings: Dark themes.

XXX

The next morning, as they walked their way through the gardens again, steering clear of the lawn, Jesse turned to Rachel and said.

"Here, follow me, I want to show you something." She took his offered hand and he walked with her through the formal gardens until they came to a high green gate. Pushing it open, Jesse ushered her through and into the walled garden inside. It was the scent that hit you first. Sweet and sugary, like the expensive sweets you could buy from a town a few miles away. Then the colours; yellow and pink and red and orange all fusing together to create a watercolour scene of vibrant shades. The roses were climbing the walls, twisting and turning together in their battle for space, but they all blossomed perfectly.

"Wow," Rachel breathed as Jesse led her towards the stone bench by a small fountain, helping her on her hurt ankle.

Sitting beside her, he reached gently for her foot and brought it up to rest on his knees as he smiled at her. "I'm glad you like it. This is the rose garden; I like to come here sometimes to just… think."

"It's beautiful," Rachel breathed, reaching out to caress one of the closest roses, rubbing her thumb against the velvet petals.

"It's mostly Blaine," Jesse joked, smiling softly and watching her.

"My mother always told me that roses were significant. Their colour I mean." She withdrew her hand, turning to look at him.

"You have roses on the outside?" He asked, curiously and she shook her head.

"We found some once," She explained. "There was a rose bush."

"What colour were they?" He asked.

"Red," She told him, flushing a little.

"And what does that mean?" He quirked an eyebrow knowingly.

She flushed further. "It means… love… desire…" She ducked her head, her long hair swinging in front of her face.

"Does it now?" He grinned gently at her, trying not to laugh. "I heard that yellow roses," He reached over to pluck a buttercup yellow rose from the pot beside the bench. "Signify happiness." Reaching out he slotted the flower gently in her dark locks, where it sat, contrasting beautiful with her mahogany coloured curls. "You should be happier." He told her softly and she flushed again, turning away in embarrassment.

"Would you tell me more about your family Rachel?" He asked her, watching as she looked up at him, surprise covering her features.

"My… my family?" She asked. "Why?"

"I'm just interested." He shrugged. "Start with the people who were there last night," He smiled dryly. "Tell me about them?"

"Oh, okay," She cleared her throat nervously.

"Tell me about San?" He prompted, picking up on the name she had mentioned last night.

"Santana?" She plucked a petal from the flower beside her and rolled it thoughtfully between her fingers. "Santana is my cousin and… well… she's very tough."

"I'll say," He commented wryly, smiling at her.

"You have to be out there," She defended her cousin lightly. "I guess that's why I was always a liability."

"You are tough," He argued, frowning at her.

"Not like my cousins. Not like my mother and my uncle. They're used to it, they're not afraid…" Her voice dropped. "Not like me."

"Fear is a good thing," He reached over and took her hand, meeting her gaze as she looked up. "It tells you that there's danger."

"San's different though." She shrugged, obviously wanting to move away from the topic. "Santana could do anything she put her mind to, I'm sure of it. She's always been there for me, always stood up for me to my uncle and Puck."

"Puck?"

"Her older brother," She smiled slightly. "Puck's… big… he's really big. And protective. He looks after me too, keeps me safe." Her eyes wandered, "it broke his heart leaving last night."

Jesse sighed, sitting back and watching her, waiting for her to go on. When she didn't he prompted her, saying. "There was another too, the boy last night?"

"Oh," She flushed, red seeping over her cheeks. "Finn."

"Finn?" His interest piqued. "Who's Finn?"

"Just, somebody that joined to our group." She sighed unwillingly, but explained to him. "He and his father joined us a few months ago. Finn was a good… friend."

"Just a friend?" He pressed and she flushed further.

"He… he wanted more," She admitted softly. "But I didn't. Still… he's always made his interest in me very clear."

Strangely, although he knew that she was his now, the chain around her neck proved that, he felt a twinge of jealousy for the boy who had known her for so much longer, seen a completely different side to her than he expected he ever would see.

"He was interested in you huh?" He smiled smugly at her.

"Yes," She rolled the petal between her fingers and he let up, saying.

"And your mother?"

A soft, intimate smile lit up her face as she thought to herself for a moment. "My mama is my best friend." She told him softly. "She always has been. She loves me and I know it. She was the first to know when they came," She gestured to her wings. "Because they came late and surprised us. Everyone else was afraid of them. They wanted me to keep them hidden. But mama said… she said that they were beautiful, that I was special."

"She sounds nice," He said gently.

"She is… she was." Rachel corrected herself softly and Jesse watched as she crushed the petal in her hands, the dark colour rubbing off on the pad of her thumb. The ruined petal floated to the ground and Rachel clenched her fingers together, looking down.

"What about your uncle?" Jesse frowned, curiously. "You've mentioned him- where was he last night?"

She flinched a little and shook her head slowly. "My uncle doesn't really like me…" She confessed softly. "I don't know why."

"What do you mean?"

She shrugged awkwardly, refusing to look at him. "He's just never liked me. I think he thought I was a burden… a liability to them."

"Why would he think that?" He frowned, disapprovingly, his hand ghosting over her ankle in his lap.

"I stuck out like a sore thumb out there." She smiled wryly at him but her eyes were sad. "I'm younger too, so I was slower than everyone else. He used to shout at my mother and me to hurry up and say that they were going to leave us behind."

"Did he ever?"

She shook her head, her curls bouncing gently like springs. "No, my mother was his sister so he didn't want to leave her. I don't think he would have had the same qualms about me though."

"What did you do? Out there I mean, how did you survive? Did you have a home?" He could almost picture her wandering around a house, calling her family down for supper.

"No," She laughed softly. "We moved around a lot, by foot. We'd make a fire at night and take turns keeping watch."

"What did you eat?" He had seen her reaction to some of the things that he had eaten, but he couldn't imagine them being able to cater easily to her non-meat diet on the outside.

"Anything we could find really. Berries and roots often. Fruit sometimes. There are traders out there, people who travel with things to sell. We got clothes from them and sometimes bread and vegetables. Puck and Santana are good at catching things so there was always meat but I can't eat that."

"But what did you do for fun?" He shifted in his seat, enjoying the comfort of her warm, heavy legs over his.

She smiled at him, almost patronizing, although he was pretty sure she didn't know how to be patronizing. "There wasn't a lot of fun. I guess… mama used to sing to me and then later she'd sing with me. My mother had a beautiful voice." She smiled fondly at the memory and said, her attention obviously wandering. "We used to go to the gatherings… they were huge, almost like council meetings… people used to get together and share things, sometimes food but mostly information. Cures for illnesses and stories and information about places further north or south. My mother sometimes sang there and people would give us food because her voice was so pretty. There aren't a lot of pretty things out there and people are grateful for whatever they can get." Her smile dropped slightly. "I always had to hide at those. Mama would wrap my wings and I'd wear a large coat."

"Why didn't you just come into one of the Areas?" He asked, frowning in confusion. It seemed the logical solution. She painted a picture of such poverty on the outside that he wondered why they didn't just come into the Areas.

She looked at him thoughtfully. "Mama always said that they told you things in here. Things that weren't true. That was before I got my wings and she'd tell me that people in the Area don't know what's real and what isn't. When I got my wings it became a case of what they did to people like me in here…" She trailed off, glancing at him uncertainly, obviously worried she had said too much.

He watched her as she reached for the flower in her hair, pulling it out and examining it, turning it over and over in her hands, holding it delicately, like it was a baby bird. He thought of his own childhood. He may have lacked a mother and father but that was all he had lacked. He'd had everything he could dream of having at the snap of his fingers. He'd had enjoyment and happiness and thought nothing of it. Rachel's childhood must have been very different from his own. No home, constantly moving around, constantly afraid and hungry and trying to avoid her uncle's ire. He looked over at her again, handling the rose carefully. If there hadn't been man pretty things in her childhood, he intended to give her as many of them now as he could.

Xxx

A few mornings later he reached over the bed to shake her gently awake. Rachel groaned softly, wrinkling her nose in distaste as she rolled over and looked up at him, blinking through her weariness.

"Morning sleepy head," He joked softly, encouraging her to sit up. "Come on, get up, we're going out."

"Going out?" She repeated, her eyes widening as she looked at him.

"Yep," He popped the word, unable to keep his excitement at bay. "It's a lovely day so we're going to the beach, but it's a long way away and I want to make the most of the day so we're leaving early."

"Okay…" She stumbled out of bed, rubbing her eyes and he ushered her into the bathroom, having already used it himself.

"Go on, wake up, I'll pack."

She agreed easily, shutting the door behind her and he heard the shower go on a few moments later. Grabbing a bag from the wardrobe he shoved some of his beach things in, along with swimming clothes for the both of them. Dressing in shorts and a lose t shirt, he ran a hand through his tousled curls. Usually he got a few honey strands over summer but he had been inside so much with Rachel he hadn't had much of a chance. Today would be a good chance to remedy that.

Grabbing the bag he slung it over his shoulder and went downstairs, meeting a tired looking Kurt in the hallway.

"Oh good, Kurt." He called the boy over and said. "I wanted you to go and tell Rachel what to wear, okay? We're going to the beach… make sure she'll be cool and comfortable."

A small smile stole across Kurt's face that Jesse didn't quite understand but he didn't have time to decipher it as Kurt hurried upstairs.

Shaking his head Jesse made his way into the kitchen, where the picnic basket was sat, already packed by the staff. Grabbing it, he lugged it out of the door, climbing down the few steps up to the front porch and out into the sweltering morning air. Despite the early hour it was already set to be one of the hottest days of the year, the sun beating down on the gravel of the drive way, that crunched beneath his shoes as he walked, glad to get into the cool confines of the garage. Blaine was already up as well, although just barely it seemed, his hair rumpled and sipping a cup of what smelled suspiciously like coffee.

He opened the door to the back seats of the Range Rover for Jesse, helping him squeeze the picnic basket in the back and said, smiling.

"Are you doing out today sir?"

"Yeah," Jesse pushed the door shut and stood for a moment, leaning back against the cool metal. "I thought that Rachel and I would take advantage of the nice weather and head down to the beach."

"Sounds nice," Blaine nodded in approval. "Well I hope you guys have a good day."

"Thanks Blaine, keep an eye out around here okay?" Blaine was honest and well respected by the rest of the staff, Jesse knew that if anyone would look after the place in his absence it would be Blaine.

"Sure," Blaine agreed easily, taking a long sip of his coffee. "Have a good day sir."

Nodding, Jesse clambered into the car and started up the engine, blasting the air conditioning, glad of the cool breeze it provided. Pulling it out of the garage and into the hot sun again, he stopped by the front of the house and glanced out of the window just as Rachel emerged hesitantly from the house, peaking out of the front door uncertainly. He gaped at her in surprise.

Kurt had put her in a light skirt that ended above her knees and a pink tank top that clung to her, revealing far more of her than he had ever seen before. The gold chain sat around her neck and she was wearing brown sandals on her feet, golden buckles glinting in the sun. Her hair was styled in a long braid down her shoulder and she had a large, floppy white hat on.

He leant over and pushed the door open for her in obvious invitation and she hurried through the sweltering heat and into the cool car, smiling gratefully.

"Hot isn't it?" He looked over at her and she nodded.

"Very," She agreed softly and he started the car, the engine rumbling quietly, the only sound in the otherwise silent vehicle. As they started out of the gate, he pushed a button and turned the radio on, glad of the chatter and music. The streets were quieter than normal, only a few people out at the early hour, boiling in the heat.

They drove in silence, the radio filling the car with sound and he watched her as she gazed out of the windows at the houses they passed by.

"Have you ever seen anything like this before?" He asked and Rachel startled, glancing over at him.

"Not really no," She went back to looking out of the window. "They always put Angels in trucks when they're moving them, with no windows."

"So this is your first time ever really seeing a town?"

"Yes," Her eyes widened when they passed a high rise block of flats, rising ten stories off the ground and he smiled in amusement as she craned her neck to see out of the window.

"I'll take you to the capital one day," He told her, watching the road in front of him. "The buildings there are at least twice as high."

"Wow," She breathed softly, sitting back in her seat and the smile on his face remained as they drove onwards.

They stopped an hour or so later at a small roadside diner and he smiled over at her, pulling up in the small parking lot.

"Shall we grab some breakfast?"

She nodded, as he knew she would and he climbed out of the car, opening the door for her and helping her out. Locking it, he took her arm, leading her towards the door.

"Stay near me," He told her, softly and she nodded again, her grip slipping down to his hand and holding on tightly. He was surprised, but didn't try to break the contact. He knew he probably shouldn't let her take liberties like that, that he was the one who controlled their relationship, but he couldn't quite bring himself to push her away. Instead, he squeezed her hand back and said. "It'll be fine."

Pushing open the door, he smiled a little when a bell tinkled above them, signalling their entry. The place was mostly empty, save for a few people eating alone and one couple and Jesse led her to a booth, sliding in beside her and passing her a menu.

They read through in silence for a few moments before a perky waitress appeared beside their table.

"Hey there, how y'all doing? My name's Patty and I'm'a gonna be your waitress today," She told them with a sharp southern twang, her pigtails bouncing. "What can I get y'all?" She looked to Jesse.

"I'll have pancakes and maple syrup thanks, with a black coffee." He smiled at her politely and Patty nodded, jotting it down on her notepad.

"Sure! And what about-" She turned to Rachel, who had been hidden behind her menu up until that moment, and her mouth fell open. "I… oh… wow…" She turned back to Jesse. "I'm sorry sir, I didn't know you had your Angel with you. Should I get her something or…?" Patty cast another nervous glance at Rachel.

"No," Jesse shrugged her off. "She'll order for herself." He turned to Rachel, who was looking at him uncertainly. "Go on," He encouraged her and Rachel cleared her throat softly.

"I… um… can I just have toast and butter please?" She could barely look at Patty and her cheeks were flushed a deep red.

"You sure that's all I can get you?" Patty asked, taking down the order. "We got lots of choice."

"That'll be fine," Jesse said and then added. "Actually, bring some water and your fresh fruit selection as well please."

Nodding, Patty slotted the notepad and pencil into her breast pocket and made her way back to kitchen, unable to resist glancing back at Rachel once more.

Jesse looked up at the curious faces around the diner, which had perked up at the word Angel, gaping over at them, and glared until they turned away in embarrassment. Cautiously, he reached for Rachel's hand, which was lying on the table top and laid his own gently over the top of it.

"You okay?" He asked quietly and she looked up at him, flustered.

"Yes, of course."

He knew what she was thinking. She had no real right not to be okay. Patty had been perfectly right to check with him whether she would be having anything or not; he was, after all, her owner.

When their food arrived Jesse slid the water and fresh fruit towards her and starting cutting into his pancakes.

She looked at them, fascinated, and he grinned at her.

"Want some?" He offered her a forkful of pancake that was dripping with maple syrup and she nodded tentatively. Opening her mouth, she leant forward and he manoeuvred the fork into her mouth, letting her chew slowly through the sugary breakfast.

"Like it?" He asked finally and she smiled in reply, nodding fervently.

"It' so sweet." She said, once she'd swallowed and he grinned at her.

"But it's good right?"

"Beats roots and berries," She smiled shyly at him and he let out a sharp burst of laughter as he realised that she'd actually just made a joke.

"It sure does."

XXX

So… it's uh… been a while hasn't it?

I'm so sorry guys, I've basically been ill and buried under work and I'm just so terribly sorry. I would have liked to have given you a longer chapter but planning just wouldn't allow it.

Um, on the up side I have a project planned for November for NaNoWriMo, which is a fic that michemistic challenged me to write, which I'm going to try to do for NaNoWriMo… I also have one that I'd love to at least start posting over Christmas because it's set during Christmas and it just feel right, y'know? So yeah, those two are completely planned and ready to write, as are most of my fics at the moment.

If you go to my tumblr (onemilliongoldstars) you will find an amazing piece of artwork that my wonderful friend Poppy did for me which is from this fic. It's incredible, please go and look at it, especially if you're a fan :)

I was asked whether I have an update schedule and the answer to that would be um well… no. Frankly it depends on the time I have and the amount of reviews I get. These are the two factors that my update will boil down to.

So, please leave me love (or hate) darlings and go and check out Poppy's painting, as it is INCREDIBLE.

Thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter: Guest, MusicalLover17, universalbeat (I love that song and you're so right!), Rotem BD, Green and Hearts, Roxy555, tennis14321432, britchick77, avonya, Kasumi Izukawa, michemistic, ebony, .408, iheartjesse, kauraREX, Broadwayfreak5357, thunderbolts-lightning, bueller806, Soyli Oliveira, Guest, NinjaGleek21, sillystarshine, assgroff and EmZ711. The response was incredible and really motivated me, so thank you all so much, I love reading your comments so much and feel free to come to me with any questions, I swear you won't be bothering me!

Until next time dearies!

Love,

Ray

xxx