Author's Note: So, I hate leaving cliffhangers as much as everyone else hates it being left on a cliffhanger, so I didn't make you wait too long! Thank you all for your reviews and support! It is so greatly appreciated!


As Santana lay on the ground, trying to fight through the pain in her side, the entirety of the audience had gone silent, and all she could hear were her own horrifying thoughts. Everything felt just the slightest bit fuzzy around the edges, everything but the sharp need to get up, the sharper need to somehow get her phone out of her Spanx and get in touch with Brittany and the others. She wasn't even sure they needed her to tell them that Hummel was coming (God, she hoped they did, if they didn't suspect that, they weren't in the trouble she believed they were), but as she tried to push up on her hands and get into a sitting position, she saw Roz Washington standing above her, face coated with deep concern.

"Don't get up Lopez, you just fell off a damn pyramid, don't you move until these paramedics move their slow asses and get to you."

"I'm fine, Coach." Santana tried, wincing as she moved to roll over.

"Do you have medical training? Because unless you went to medical school without telling me, you're not getting off the ground until you're checked out. What are you, a damn fool?"


"Damn it. Damn it. Damn it." Quinn seethed, the banging against the door breaking her concentration each and every time she felt like she was getting close to manipulating the lock. She couldn't figure out what the mechanism was made of, couldn't get her mind to pry it apart as easily as she was used to.

"It's not going to budge. Do you think I didn't try?"

"Shut up. I need three seconds of silence, I'm close."

"Oh, let me tell that to the deputy out there, hold on." Sam snipped, his desire to get out of there skyrocketing with every metallic bang.

"What if we try to do it together?" Brittany suggested. "Sam, do you think you can hold the door alone?"

"I don't have much of a choice, do I? Go, hurry."

Nearly leaping the six feet over to where Quinn stood, Brittany immediately put her hand beside the other girl's and tried to concentrate as hard as she could, tried to tune out the increasingly threatening shouts from the other side of the door. She was almost there, she knew their combined efforts had just about cracked the lock, when she felt a sharp stitch of pain in her side, a pain that temporarily tore her from her task and caused her to curse out loud. It wasn't the physical aspect of the agony that made her leap back, it was the unmistakable sensation of knowing where it came from, knowing, somehow, deep within herself, that something had happened to Santana, something she was too far away to protect her from. Temporarily losing all control, Brittany released a sound that she'd never made before, a sound so inhuman that it caused Sam and Quinn to freeze in their spots, and Brittany to bring both hands up to her own mouth, trying to hold it inside.

"What the hell, Brittany?" Quinn snapped, recovering first and taking matters into her own hand (literally), grabbing Brittany's to place it back beside hers.

"Ouch. Ugh." Brittany squeezed her eyes tightly shut, knowing she had to block it out, knowing that if any of them were going to make it out of what they'd gotten themselves into, she'd have to power through the pain, and more importantly, trust that the best way to fix whatever had happened to the girl she loved was to avoid getting locked up in a government lab, but it was near impossible, this rabid animal-like instinct controlling her in a way she'd never before experienced.


"It doesn't look like anything's broken." The acne-scarred paramedic informed Roz, ignoring Santana's insistence that she was fucking fine as he pressed hard into her side, causing her to writhe in agony. "But I'd say your ribs are going to have one hell of a bruise."

"Thank you...Captain Obvious." She managed, trying to sound so much more okay than she actually felt. When Ronald McDonald's goofier looking younger brother had unzipped her cheerleading top and pulled down her Spanx to check the injury, she realized why the force had felt concentrated in a small area. Indestructible phone cases, good for saving iPhones from dying an untimely death, not good for cushioning falls.

"You had your damn cell phone in your underwear, Lopez? Have you lost your damn mind? I have half a mind to take this thing and throw it down the sewer. Who the hell's gonna call you that's so important that you damn near got yourself killed?"

"It...it wasn't the phone." Santana sputtered. "I just...didn't lock my knee and fucked up the execution."

"Damn right you did! Girl, you lucky you the best one on this squad or it would be your ass benched with Stern." Roz glared at her, throwing Santana's earlier words to Kurt back in her face, and waving the device in the air. But Santana didn't care, she could kick her off the squad, kick her out of school for all she cared, and she'd deal with it later. In that moment, all she wanted, no, needed to do was to pick up her not shattered cellphone and call Brittany before she lost her damn mind.

"Can I...get up now?" She nearly pleased with the paramedic, the wind seriously knocked out of her, and the pain still radiating harshly when she tried to move.

"Go slow." McDonald Junior advised her, bracing her under her armpits as she moved to sit up. "I'm not going to take you to the hospital, but you need to go see your doctor, and watch tonight for signs of internal injury, vomiting blood, extreme swelling, lightheadedness. If any of these things happen, you need to get to the nearest hospital immediately.

"¡Mija! ¡Mija! ¿Estas bien? ¡Dios mio, mi bebé linda!" Maribel Lopez cried out dramatically, finally bursting though the crowd of people and out onto the field.

"Ma'am, you'll have to step back and give her a little space."

"Don't you tell me to give her space! This is my daughter, and she's injured! I need to look at her!"

"Mami." Santana groaned, the anxious itch growing stronger and stronger by the second. "I'm...fine."

"Fine! She tells me she's fine and she can't even breathe!"


Once Brittany had successfully pushed down the strange desire to flee from the building and get to Santana (as if she were that lame vampire guy from Twilight and could somehow defy space and time and get to her in an instant anyway), the lock suddenly became easier to handle. Forty-three seconds later, both she and Quinn felt it open simultaneously, and when the door to the safe swung open, Brittany felt like for just one second, even with the threatening and the banging, the excruciating pain in her side, and the fact that they were almost as good as caught, she could breathe again. It wasn't even much, it was a plan Manila folder, nothing identifying about the cream colored stock, but on top of it lay a pendant encased in glass, a pendant that she immediately recognized, though the reason how was still buried deep within her. Everything froze, just for a fraction of a second, and as she reached out the grab it, the glass shattered, startling her. Quickly, she closed her hand around it the strange yellow stone set in dull metal on a broken chain, to own it again (because somehow, she knew that it had, at some point, belonged to her), and then she was jarred back to reality by the hell breaking lose all around her.

"Grab whatever it is that's in there and let's go." Sam hissed, the metal hinges of the door beginning to give under the pressure behind him. It was no secret that Tanaka loved to spend time at the gym, and whatever it was he was using to pound against the door was working faster than they'd expected."

"Slam it shut, move the stuff back." Brittany ordered Quinn, who, for once in her life, didn't argue. Even though the instant Hummel got back, he'd know that someone had taken what he held dear, they needed to buy just the smallest fraction of time, needed to keep the secret safe hidden from Tanaka.

"Are we good? Can we go?" Sam asked, and Brittany just nodded, moving quickly to the window and making sure the others were right beside her.

"On three, we're jumping into that dumpster." Quinn directed as Brittany breathed through the pain in her side. "Then we're going to run like hell and hope we're out of his sight before he breaks down that door."

"We are so fucked." Sam groaned.

"One. Two. Three."


When Santana finally managed to make it into a standing position (she was glad she couldn't remember how much pain she was in when she had been shot, because if bruised ribs hurt that much, she couldn't imagine what a gaping bullet wound felt like), she realized that everyone was staring at her; her team, the other team, the people in the bleachers, and it was making her feel even more anxious than she already was. She took a second to gasp in some air before turning to her team and snapping at them to get off the field. Even though she really didn't care at that point about saving face, she just needed them to stop looking at her, needed to get away from the clutches of her mother and get in touch with Brittany. Out of the corner of her eye, Santana watched as Kurt was quick to mobilize the girls, his earlier pep replaced by a quiet anger, probably at the realization that his father was nowhere to be found. Had Santana not been preoccupied with the emotions that were attacking her from Brittany, she probably would have actually felt bad for him, but as it was, she had a one track mind. Reaching out her hand to Roz, the coach sucked her teeth before slapping the phone down in Santana's opened palm and shaking her head.

"Mamí...I need to...go to the bathroom...before we go." Santana huffed, pressing her hand into her side, though she wasn't sure that did anything to make it feel better.

"I'll walk you there then."

"Por favor, Mamita...I'm making enough of a scene...as it is. Estoy bien, lo prometo...It's just, it's right there."

"Fine, but I'll be waiting right here while your father pulls the van closer. You are not taking the bus home."


Standing in the alley, Mercedes anxiously alternated between staring at the screen of her phone and looking over her shoulder. Although she was expecting it to ring, she still jumped at the sound in her hands, and seeing it was Santana, she was pretty sure things were about to go from bad to worse.

"Hummel...Hummel's coming."

"Fuck, fuck, fuck. Santana, Tanaka is in there, and they're still not out. Brittany, she wouldn't listen to me, and she went in after them." Mercedes confessed, against her better judgement.

"What?" Santana shrieked, then was taken by a painful coughing fit as she breathed too much air into her sensitive chest. "Do...something. Go to the diner...start a fire...or break a window."

"Do you hear yourself? We're not committing more crimes! That's what got us into this in the first place!"

"But...Brittany!" Sobs immediately came out of Santana's chest, and Mercedes could hear the sound of her head banging against the wall.

"Stop! Just, stop! Why do you even sound like you're dying?"

"I...fell off the pyramid...bruised ribs...'Cedes get them out, please."

"Oh, Sweet Lord, this is a clusterfuck." Mercedes brought her hand to her forehead, pretty positive that none of them would get through the day without being maimed or arrested. Then, as if by some miracle, she saw a flash of blonde, and immediately upon hearing the crunch of garbage in dumpster, she took off running, faster than she ever thought possible, towards her car. "They're out, I'll call you back!"


"Pull it together...come on...pull it together." Santana spoke to herself in the mirror, the panic in her chest still not abated, so she knew that Brittany wasn't yet to safety. "You've gotta...get in the car with...your parents. She'll be...okay. Ugh! Fuck!"

Santana knew that she needed to leave the bathroom, knew that she needed to get back to Roswell, to where she could see Brittany, hopefully safe and sound, with her own eyes, but she also needed to stop crying before she could go out there and see her parents again. Slamming her hands back against the tiled wall that was holding up her injured body, she groaned, a combination of both pain and frustration and then furiously scrubbed at her face with her fists. Checking her phone for the hundredth time in about sixty seconds, Santana didn't know what to think, she just prayed to whoever was out there in the vast universe that Brittany and the others had not been caught. A knock on the bathroom door startled her, and immediately after jumping a bit, she winced at the pain the sudden jolt caused her.

"Santana, it's Kurt! Your mother asked me to help you get to the car."

"Jesu Cristo, Mamí." Santana spoke to the air. "I'm fine, Hummel...go get on...the damn bus."

"Coach Roz told me to do what your mother said. Drop the pride act, I saw you almost crawl your way in here."

"Ugh." She pressed one arm to the underside of her ribs, trying to hold in the agony, trying to stop her heart from racing, and gave her face one last harsh wipe before slowly opening the door, revealing Kurt Hummel, changed out of his uniform and into sweatpants, with his arms crossed over his chest.

The walk to the car felt like an eternity, with one of Kurt's arms supporting her, and the strange looks he kept shooting in her direction. She wanted to sprint, so bad, wanted to sprint all the way back to Roswell, if she could, but she was lucky enough she could take the small, pained steps that she was managing with great, great effort.

"Take a picture...it'll last longer." She tried to snap at Kurt, but bitchiness definitely loses it's effect when you have to stop halfway through and attempt to catch your breath.

"You were distracted." Kurt didn't look at her, and she felt him almost physically cower away from her (a difficult maneuver when he was holding her up) as he spoke the words.

"Excuse me?"

"You were distracted up there, you've been distracted for over a week now."

"No...I wasn't...Don't get too big for your panties...or you'll be back at the bottom."

"Santana. I've known you since we were in diapers." He said gently. "I know we're not friends, but I feel like I've always sort of looked up to you. You were the first one in our year who, you know, came out, and you never cared what anyone thought. I don't know, my dad, he asked me to look out for you, he thinks you might be in some kind of trouble-"

"He what?" Santana felt white hot fear assault her system, fear that was hers this time, fear that just compounded on top of what she was already feeling from Brittany.

"He didn't say what kind of trouble, but if you need help, he'll help you. Santana, if it's drugs, or whatever it is, you don't have to be afraid to go to him."

"Well thank you...for your concern..." She said sarcastically, trying, trying not to let her emotions show. "But I'm not...in trouble. School and college...applications and work. If I'm distracted...that's why. So drop it. Now."

"Okay, fine." He told her unconvincingly. "But if you ever need anything, I'm here for you. And my dad too. I know some kids at school think he's the bad guy, because he busts up parties and pulls them over for speeding, but he's not."

"Stop...just stop. You're...exhausting me."


"Goddamnit drive faster Mercedes!" Quinn screeched from the backseat, where she'd found herself piled with Brittany and Sam.

"Relax, Angelina Jolie! I'm not about to have a low speed chase in a Ford Taurus. No one is following us anyway! I'm not drawing attention to the car!"

"Just hurry the fuck up! You don't have to do fifteen miles an hour, grandma!"

"I'm following the speed limit!"

"Stop! Stop yelling!" Brittany screamed over the two of them, hugging their stolen goods close to her and leaning into Sam to try to put pressure on her side.

"Britt, what's the matter with you?" Sam asked her, concern coloring his face.

"Mercedes! You're sure Santana is okay?" Brittany asked, temporarily ignoring Sam's question, because if Santana was fine, then she really didn't know why she was in agony.

"Yeah. I mean, she fell off the pyramid, but she did that once before. Hummel isn't-" Mercedes stopped realizing what was going on. "Tell me you're not feeling that pain in your ribs right now."

"I am." Brittany nodded, squeezing her eyes closed to keep from crying out, especially as it was confirmed that Santana was feeling the same pain, and maybe worse, since she was the one who'd actually been hurt.

"Talk about Santana's tragic cheerleading injury when you get us safely home!" Quinn demanded, not catching on, but Sam looked at Brittany, Sam saw the myriad conflicting emotions in Brittany's eyes, and Sam knew.

"What is even going on?" He asked no one in particular.

"I have no idea." Brittany answered.


"Santana, I'm sorry." Javier stood at the back of the diner's cargo van. "Had we known you were coming home with us, we'd have brought the car."

"It's fine...Papí. I need to lie down...anyway."

"I tried to make it comfortable for you, mi corazon." Maribel patted the pile of blankets she'd made on the old bench seat and frowned. "We'll try to avoid the bumps and potholes."

"I don't care, I just...want to see the doctor and...get home and to bed."


Brittany couldn't believe it, when she entered her own home through her back door, Quinn and Sam following close behind after Mercedes dropped them off, not wanting her car parked at the Pierce's to arouse suspicion in the investigation that was bound to happen. She couldn't believe that they'd made it home without getting caught, couldn't believe that they were in possession of all of the evidence Hummel had on the fourth alien, that they (she, her mind kept claiming) were in possession of the pendant that came from their home planet. Even with the ache in her side, even with the knowledge that Santana had been hurt, probably because she'd been distracted by what was happening in Roswell, she couldn't believe that they had actually successfully retrieved what they'd gone in for. Immediately, she went upstairs, wanting to shed the black clothes she'd donned for the break in, wanting to hide what they'd taken as best she could, until they could find a more permanent place, and wanting, more than anything, to hear Santana's voice and know she was okay. Almost beyond her control, she pressed the buttons on her phone, finding the number stored within.

"Hey." Santana breathed through the phone before the first ring even finished. Unbeknownst to Brittany, they were both sighing the same relief at knowing the other was safe.

"Hi."

"You're okay." It wasn't a question, it was a statement, because even still thirty-four miles outside of Roswell, Santana could feel it.

"And you're hurt." Brittany lied down, the pain somehow fading into more of a dull throb on her end as she spoke to Santana.

"It's not so…bad. Just a fall."

"Santana, please don't lie to me. I can hear it in your voice, you can hardly breathe, and I felt it, your pain. I still sort of feel it, a little, and I don't know how it's possible, but it's true."

"I…I know it is, real…I mean. I felt how scared…you were." Santana closed her eyes, trying to block the memory of those feelings from resurfacing. "And you're right…it hurts like hell. But did you-"

"Yes." Brittany finished, giving Santana a rest from the struggle it took to speak. "It's all here, but I haven't even looked at it yet. I just wanted to make sure you were okay first."

"I am…don't worry, okay? Go see what's…there. I'm sure Quinn…ugh, sorry…is ready to bang down the door."

"She's changing, actually, in Sam's room." Brittany actually found herself able to laugh, feeling the giggles bubble up uncontrollably inside of her, since less than a half hour earlier, she'd been convinced she was as good as dead. "Will you text me when you get home so I know you're resting your ribs in bed? And then I'll call you when we're done and let you know what we got?"

"Of course. I'm sorry I have to…cancel our date. I'm…sure my mother will lock me in the house though."

"She's probably right about doing that, Santana." Brittany chastised a little, then softened her voice. "But do you think it's maybe okay if I come by later? I just feel like I really, really need to see you after all of this."

"Yeah." Santana smiled in spite of the pain at the thought of being able to lie next to Brittany. "I think I really need to…see you too."

After pulling on high waisted shorts and a tank top, Brittany made her way into Sam's room. The folder of papers was pressed tightly against her chest, like she was carrying a small child, but the pendant she kept tightly clasped in her palm, shocked that even in the heat of her hand, the strange metal never warmed. It surprised her, when she opened the door and sat down at the desk how neither of them, not even Quinn, chomped at the bit to tear through the papers, they just sat silent for several minutes, recognizing the magnitude of what was about to happen. There was no turning back, the answers to their universe were suddenly so much more accessible than they had ever been, and that was a lot to take.

"So is Mercedes coming over or..." Brittany trailed off.

"No." Sam shook his head. "She wants to see Santana before her shift starts, and mostly, she thinks this should be something that the three of us do together."

"Right. Okay."

"Let's just do it." Quinn finally said, and Brittany and Sam both were surprised to hear the smallest twinge of hesitation in her words. "Give me the folder."

"Here." Brittany passed it over to the bed, still keeping her hand closed around the other object. She knew that Quinn had seen it, knew that Quinn was going to want to touch it, but deep from within her, she felt an almost violent opposition to that.

The held their collective breaths as a Quinn first lifted out the images that Hummel had shown to Santana and Mercedes, that overwhelming evidence that the one whom they sought had, and the very least, been present at the time of death for the corpse in the photos. Brittany was sure she'd heard Sam curse under his breath, and she herself had to close her eyes for a moment, a prayer, of some sort, that she wasn't getting the ones she loved into a world of trouble. Beneath the images were pages and pages, probably close to one hundred, of notes, not in Hummel's hand, but his father's, perhaps, about the crash site, now such an unassuming area out in the desert. About strange metals that would unfurl themselves when crumpled, that were primarily unaffected by human touch (Brittany squeezed her palm again around what she held and wondered, if it were indestructible, how the chain had broken), about a big eyed creature that squealed out in anger (or maybe fear, Brittany thought, imagining the sound that escaped her own lips earlier) when approached, about an escape, an escape that was covered up "for the peace of mind of the citizens of Roswell." Even after over an hour of reading through the pages, what struck Brittany the most was that the senior Hummel had been there, he'd seen this elusive alien, in true form, he'd touched, perhaps, the ship they'd come on, made eye contact, maybe, with the one they searched for, but when the government tried to cover it up, he was branded as crazy, again, for the peace of mind.

Beneath the careworn and faded notes, beneath the crude drawing of a spaceship, not entirely unlike the ones in science fiction movies (there had to be some basis in fact, Brittany guessed, especially with the influx of movies of that type after the '47 crash), there was a singular sheet of paper with a list of names. Brittany thought of her history class at that moment, where they were learning about the Red Scare, McCarthyism, and she cringed as she read down the list of ten names, finding, at the very bottom, her own.

"Well, at least we know he got one right." She tried to joke, but the laughter caught in her throat. It wasn't funny, it wasn't funny at all, but she could at least hope that maybe, just maybe, there was some accuracy to another name on that list.

"So what do we do now?" Sam asked quietly, still the most skeptical about the entire operation, but truly, more than a little intrigued (a huge fan of mysteries, anyway) by what lie ahead.

"I think that we should start at the beginning, and as ridiculous as it sounds, we do some research on the internet, see where they live, and go from there."

"We come from a planet that makes indestructible metal and can send it's inhabitants across the universe, and we're using Google? Cute." Quinn rolled her eyes, but even she knew that as ridiculous as it was, that was, at the moment, their only option.

"And then what, we just show up on their doorstep, hey, so, are you one of the Roswell aliens?"

"I think..." Brittany paused to take a breath. "I think that if they really are who we're looking for, they'll have been waiting for us to come for a long time."

"Well then why not seek us out, Britt? Why leave us here with no answers? None of it makes any kind of sense at all."

"Yeah, I know Sam, but I don't know, I just have this feeling."

"You seem to be having a lot of those lately." Quinn mumbled bitterly, eyeing Brittany's side. Rather than engage her-because really, what was she going to do, apologize for being able to feel Santana's pain?- Brittany just let that one go, let Quinn feel, for just one second, vindicated by her need to make ridiculous comments. "Let me see the thing."

"What thing?" Sam asked, and Brittany's hand squeezed tighter, until her knuckles whitened.

"A necklace." Quinn's face hardened as she watched Brittany's eyes avert. "Stop fucking around, Brittany, it's not yours."

But it is. Brittany's mind called out silently. You can't let them have it.

"Oh awesome! I bet it's made out of that metal Hummel's dad talks about, let me see!"

"Okay." Brittany bit her tongue, bit down the voices in her head, and slowly unfurled her fingers, revealing the prized possession to the others. When Quinn reached out to take it, Brittany fought against every fiber of her being to keep from recoiling, but then suddenly, Quinn jumped back, and Brittany felt a sense of peace wash over her.

"Ah, fuck." Quinn shook out her hand as if she'd been burned. "What the hell did you do to it, Brittany?"

"I didn't..." She didn't...right?

"Sam, try to take it from her." Quinn ordered, cradling her invisibly wounded palm with the other hand.

"I don't think I want to." He furrowed his brow and noticed the possessive look in Brittany's eyes.

"Stop being such a goddamn baby and try to touch it!" She spit, and tentatively, Sam outstretched his hand, then quickly pulled it back.

"Ow! What the hell? How are you holding that thing?"

"Doesn't hurt me." Brittany shrugged and cradled it back to her chest. "I...I'm pretty sure it was mine."

Before Quinn could say something that was sure to be dripping with fury, the doorbell rang, and Brittany felt her heart lurch in her chest. Susan and Evan Pierce had left early that morning, off antiquing, like they did on Saturdays in the fall, and since neither Brittany or Sam were expecting any sort of company (not that they ever were), any one of the three aliens in the room would have bet all their very lives on who was at the door.

"Sam." Brittany sounded monotone as she spoke as calmly as she could. "Take the old computer box out from under the dirty clothes in the bottom of your closet. We're going to put everything in there, you're going to put it back where you found it, and I'm going to answer the door."

"What? You can't be serious right now, Britt, mom and dad aren't even home! He could take us in right now and they'd never find us again."

"He's got no proof we did anything. He's not going to search the house. Just do it. Tonight, I'll get everything out of here."

"Now!" Quinn reiterated Brittany's order, and Sam moved quickly to get the box out.

Carefully, Brittany dropped her necklace in between the styrofoam packaging that remained in the box, hyper-reluctant to let it out of sight, despite the way it seemed to be untouchable, and left Sam and Quinn to deal with the rest as she slowly made her way down the stairs. When she swung open the front door, she paused for the briefest instant to catch her breath, maintaining her carefully practiced emotionless face and looked Sheriff Burt Hummel directly in the eyes.

"Oh, hi Sheriff."

"Mornin' Miss Pierce." He tipped his hat, his own mannerisms so carefully regimented. "Your parents home?"

"No, sir. They went down to Carlsbad for the day, there was some kind of auction at an antique dealer, and mom's been trying to find some old Tiffany lamp."

"Sounds like a nice way to spend a Saturday." Hummel attempted to surreptitiously look around Brittany and through the doorway. "Might've passed them on 285, I was down in Artesia for my boy's cheer competition this morning."

"That sounds fun. Did they win?"

"You know, I'm actually not sure." The smallest amount of bitterness came through his words. "Had to leave before it was over, had a little trouble down at the station."

"Did you want to come inside? Can I get you something to drink?"

"Britt, who's-" Before Hummel could answer, Sam bounded down the stairs with wet hair, looking like he'd just stepped out of the shower. "Hi Sheriff Hummel."

"Hello, Mr. Pierce. I was just about to tell your sister that I'm stopping by to make sure everything's alright here. We had a break in at the station, and given the fact that it's the second crime in this town in less than two weeks, Deputy Tanaka and I are doing our part to ensure the peace of mind of the citizens of Roswell." Hummel told Sam, and Brittany nearly shivered at the words, wondering if he'd intentionally used his father's words to see if she'd react. "I'm glad I did, too, hearing that your parents are out of town."

"Thank you, sir." Sam nodded. "Of all the places in town though, why would someone rob a police station?"

"I'm wondering that myself. Nothing was taken, even though my arms case was knocked over and broken, and they could have had themselves a mess of guns. Seems strange that this happens so soon after a gun went off at the Lopezes' diner without a robbery too."

"It's good though, right?" Brittany asked. "Nothing got taken and nobody got hurt both times."

"Crime is never good." He shook his head. "Even victimless crime has a way of instilling fear, and distracting law enforcement from bigger things at hand. Anyway, neither of you happened to be out and see anything, did you?"

"No, sir." Brittany shook her head, and Sam followed suit, both falling under the scrutinizing gaze of Hummel. He was trying to intimidate them, they both knew that, they both knew that he could do nothing to them without any proof, to Brittany, in particular, but it didn't mean he wasn't going to try to make them squirm.

"We've been here all morning, were thinking about going down to have a burger later on." Sam added.

"Alright then. If you do end up out of the house, be careful, never know what kind of trouble will come next."

"Right, will do, sir." Sam affirmed. "Thanks for checking in on us, we'll let Mom and Dad know you stopped in. I hope you find what you're looking for."

"Yeah, me too, son, me too."

With a final tip of his hat, Hummel turned away from the Pierce siblings and began making his way down the driveway. Brittany, continuing to use the manners her mother had taught her, waited he had reached his car, parked on the street, and gave him a quick wave before closing the door and collapsing against it. Her heart was racing, faster maybe than it had been at the police station, and she inhaled quickly, trying to catch her breath.

"Nothing was stolen from the station." Brittany repeated Hummel's words, just because she needed to hear them come from her own mouth. "I guess that has to be the official story, since the only things we took, he'll never admit to having."

"Were you seriously going to let him in here? Where we have the stuff?" Sam asked in a whisper, even though Hummel was long out of earshot. "What, were you going to cook him a roast too?"

"No, recipes are confusing for me." Brittany deadpanned, but Sam was unamused. "Yes, I invited him in, we're not acting suspicious."

"We need to find a place to hide it all, Brittany, bury it out in the desert or something. What if he gets a search warrant? We're so screwed."

"A search warrant for what? Nothing was stolen, remember? As far as anyone else is concerned, there's nothing to search for. But I'll take care of it."

"You're bringing it to Santana." He didn't question, he just knew.

"Yes, no, I don't know. I'm going to see what she thinks, and then go from there."

"What is even going on with you guys? It just seems like it gets weirder every day. You literally felt her pain, what does that even mean?

"I don't know, Sam. Honestly, there's nothing I'm really sure about right now. Maybe it's a weird aftereffect of the healing, I have no idea. I'm hoping that once we find this other alien, maybe they will be able to tell me."

"I hope so too. And I hope we find them before Hummel finds a reason to lock us all up."

"We will." Brittany nodded, her jaw set, because she couldn't, no wouldn't, even if it was the last thing she did, let them get caught.

Quinn was like a caged animal after Hummel's visit, pacing the floor of Sam's bedroom, compulsively checking outside the window, like she was being watched. It wasn't until Brittany pulled down the shades and went back into the closet to pull the box out that she finally calmed down, though her senses were still on high alert. Once she opened the box, Brittany couldn't help but immediately snatch up the pendant again, slipping the chain over her head and holding the back closed, letting the cool foreign metal fall between her breasts momentarily. She didn't understand why (did she really understand much of anything anymore?) but something about having it there calmed her, quieted her racing heart more than it had been all throughout the day. Even Quinn's fleeting glare hardly fazed her, she just wanted to delve into investigating the names on the list, to get a step closer to gaining answers to her increasingly confusing existence.

Searching the internet for the names on the list was easy, shockingly easy, Brittany thought, as she crossed the fourth name off the list, joining three others among the deceased, and she realized that like she, Sam and Quinn, they probably figured it was safer just to hide in plain sight, probably just safer to hide amongst humans and hope they'd go undetected. The thing was, they probably would be, if it weren't for the prying eyes of Hummel, and Brittany was glad that if they were able to find them, they'd also be able to inform them of the danger. Three hours and compulsive cross checking (thanks to Quinn) later, there were only three names that remained, only three suspects that weren't dead, or entirely far fetched (J.J. Abrams, really? They were all pretty sure that Hummel only added that for his own amusement). Three names, it was hopefully one of those three people, who's addresses were carefully written in Brittany's hand beside their aliases, who could unlock so many secrets for three clueless aliens. April Rhodes, age forty-nine, lives in Ruidoso, Howard Bamboo, age undetermined, lives on a reservation near Lincoln National Forest, and Dustin Goolsby, age fifty-three, lives in Las Cruces. The thought that they could actually know the location of someone for their planet made Brittany buzz with excitement, Sam's stomach feel tight with anxiety, and drove Quinn to nearly begin packing up to head out on their quest.

Of course, they couldn't, laying low after the robbery did not mean immediately heading to one of the locations on their stolen list, it meant waiting, it mean more planning, and it meant, apparently, heading over to the diner for burgers, since Sam had told the Sheriff (rather conveniently, Brittany thought) that they'd be over there at some point in the day. By the time they'd finally decided to go, and by the time Brittany hid the papers inside of her history book and the pendant in an inside zip pocket of her backpack, the dinner rush was in full swing. Brittany kept her backpack nearly glued to her body as they sat down at the table, Sam, taking his turn at mooning, watched Mercedes shuffle around from table to table (want a burger to go with that shake, Brittany teased him), while Quinn kept mostly to herself, pretending to be interested in her math homework on a Saturday night. It was Santana's parents that Brittany couldn't help but watch, her dad, who had his hands full at the counter, and her mom, who swung through the front door, carrying bags from the pharmacy in her hands, making, of course, Brittany's skin prickle.

"Maribel, you're already poured a gallon of witchhazel on the girl, leave her be." Javier Lopez chastised his wife. "She wants to sleep, leave her to sleep."

"Don't you tell me what to do." She pressed her hand to her hip, in a very Santana-like way, Brittany thought. "All you men today, you try to tell me how to take care of my baby, but you don't listen to me when I tell you she needs me."

"Amor, of course she needs you." He switched to a softer tone, reaching out for her hand. "But she also needs rest. You spoke to Dr. Morlind yourself, if she's sleeping and you keep waking her up, she's not going to have time to heal."

"She's only been injured for ten hours! It's not going to miraculously heal! For now, I'll baby her a little."

"I know that's what you want, but you know our Nita. If you fuss too much over her, she'll get angry and ask you to leave her alone completely." He spoke quietly and firmly, and Brittany couldn't help but smile to herself over the texts she'd sporadically received from Santana throughout the day (when she wasn't falling asleep from the pain medication Dr. Morlind had given her). Her mother definitely was driving her crazy, but Brittany thought it was really sweet.

"Fine." Maribel huffed, glaring at her husband. "But I'm going to say goodnight to her, and check one last time if she needs anything."

"Of course."

"Brittany." Quinn snapped her fingers in front of Brittany's face. "Have you listened to one word I've even said?"

"No...I...sorry, I was listening to Santana's parents."

"We really need to find a new place to eat. She's not even here and you're practically drooling into the ketchup, and I had to get a mop to clean up underneath Sam."

"Shh, be cool, Mercedes is coming over here." Sam waved them off and grinned as Mercedes approached the table for the first time.

"Good evening, welcome to the Intergalactic Diner." She said formally, then subtly looked around before pulling out an order pad. "Anything?"

"We've narrowed it down a lot." Sam whispered. "We're just um, making plans and stuff for what to do next. If you want to come over tomorrow..."

"Yeah, sure." Brittany was sure she could see Mercedes' blush, and Sam was darker than the ketchup bottle. "So what can I get you guys, the usual?"

"Sounds good." Sam nodded, attempting a terrible wink, but Mercedes just laughed, subtly placing her hand on top of his.

"I'm losing my appetite." Quinn snipped.

"Sure you are, Quinn." Mercedes rolled her eyes. "Tell me that again when your Spock burger and banana shake come. I'll be back."

"I thought Santana would be the one to out bitch you." Sam teased. "But Mercedes is definitely holding her own."

"Whatever. Can we get back to what I was saying and neither of you were listening to? We need to go on the school camping trip next week."

"Ummm. Why?" Sam asked, as Brittany looked at her phone, smiling at a text from Santana saying that her mom claimed she was going to let her rest, and that she'd asked her to open the window because it was stuffy in there (a second invitation for Brittany to come over, and she felt like she couldn't get her food and eat it fast enough). "I mean, I love camping, so does Britt, but you, not so much, the one time you came-"

"Because the campground is only three miles from the reservation." Quinn hissed under her breath. "It wouldn't be weird for us to be out in the desert then, and we could go on a hike, or whatever people do on those trips, talk to the Bamboo guy, and be back before anyone knows we're gone."

"I don't know, Quinn. Suddenly we're going to take an interest in after school activities?" Brittany stirred the ice in her water nervously. "You don't think that's strange."

"College applications. Isn't that what everyone's worried about now? Team building, or whatever crap I'm going to have to roll my eyes through, looks fantastic on those, if anyone asks."

"Yeah I guess."

"Britt, Quinn's saying we can actually behave like normal kids for once in our lives, and I'm sure Santana will jump at the chance to come, you know, if her ribs are better."

"Fine." Brittany smiled in spite of herself, hearing Quinn suck her teeth and mutter something about not really the point in the process. "Mom and Dad will be glad anyway, they always want us to take part in things like this. I bet Dad'll even take us to get new hiking boots and stuff, I'm pretty sure mine are wrecked from when I fell in that creek last spring."

"Oh, goody! You two are going on a family shopping trip, did you completely miss my point and get all caught up in the lameness of the whole thing."

"No." Sam sneered. "We didn't, we just want to have a little fun in the midst of possibly getting ourselves killed, okay? Can't we at least have that?"

"Whatever, I don't care." She scowled, though it was obvious she did care, so much. "Just don't get so caught up in your kumbaya, marshmallow roasting bullshit that you forget why we're really there."

"Right, like you'd let us."

When Mercedes brought the food over, Sam did some more of his painful flirting, and much to Quinn's ire (though Brittany wasn't sure why, since it was pretty much a given anyway) invited her on the camping trip, promising he'd explain the details later, if it was cool that he called her. Brittany didn't pay much attention to their interaction, she just doused more hot sauce on her already spicy Area 51 burger and basically inhaled it in three bites. Of course, she knew if she darted up from the table and around back immediately, she'd not only hear it from Quinn, she'd possibly arouse suspicion, so she waited, her whole body aching to see Santana, aching to see with her own eyes that she was okay.


When they had finally finished (Brittany was convinced that Quinn intentionally ate more slowly than usual, just to drive her insane), Brittany tossed Sam the keys to the car, and when they walked out of the diner, did a quick scan of her surroundings before slipping into the alley next door and over to the ladder than led up to the balcony of Santana's bedroom. Brittany didn't waste any time climbing up, figuring she'd be in an extremely awkward, and potentially dangerous situation if she got caught by Javier Lopez, and when she made it up there, she gave a quick tap against the window, before sliding it open and slipping inside.

"Hi." Santana stirred from sleep at the sound of Brittany's feet, her heart quickening, and a slow smile appearing on her face at the other girl's presence.

"Sorry I woke you up." Brittany frowned, kicking off her shoes and finally setting her backpack down, tentatively taking a seat on the edge of Santana's bed, not wanting to jostle her whole she was in pain.

"S'okay. I've been sleeping half the day away." Santana slurred a little, breathing much easier once it didn't feel like her body was on fire with every inhalation, but definitely sounding a little woozy from the painkillers. Her eyes locked with Brittany's, and she felt all the air leave her body, the shuddering relief she needed finally coming to her, seeing her alien in the flesh, with her own eyes, knowing she was truly safe. "Come closer. I need to...I just need you near me."

"Okay." Brittany felt the smile spread wide across her face, and slowly, carefully, she moved toward Santana, cupping one cheek with her hand and pressing the softest of kisses on her lips. "I was so scared when I knew you got hurt."

"I was so scared when I thought...when I felt how terrified you were." Tears filled Santana's eyes, and as they rolled down her cheeks, Brittany brushed them away with her lips. "I'm so mad at you for going in there."

"I didn't have a choice. They needed help."

"Yeah. I know. I'm not really mad at you, I just...I can't handle thinking something bad could happen to you, it hurts me so much, more than these...stupid ribs."

"Santana." Brittany shifted her body so she was lying down, cradling the injured girl's face against her chest. "I understand that, I do. But I can't promise something bad won't ever happen to me."

"I know." She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the visions that kept coming to mind.

"But I can promise that I'll fight like hell to try and prevent it."

"Okay. I can handle that."

"Thank you, for understanding. I'm really sorry you got hurt today in the midst of all this. How are you feeling?"

"Right now, I'm not feeling much." Santana tried to joke, absently indicating the bottle of medication on her nightstand. "Just really happy you're...here."

"Can I...see how bad it is?" Brittany asked tentatively, and Santana nodded slowly, letting go of Brittany's hand so she could sit back up.

Tenderly, and with her eyes closed, Brittany peeled Santana's black t-shirt back from her stomach, little by little, exposing her skin. When she finally felt her fingertips brush the underside of Santana's breast (making the human girl shudder, even though she knew there should be nothing arousing about Brittany assessing her injuries), Brittany opened her eyes, trying to keep her gasp inside, trying to keep tears from springing to her eyes when she saw the yellow ringed purple and black bruise that spread from below Santana's left breast, across the entire side of her rib cage and down almost to her belly button. Pale fingers twitched, aching to take the pain away, aching to return the beautiful skin to it's previous caramel color, but she knew that she couldn't. Instead, she traced the very tips over the injury, feeling for herself that no ribs were broken, feeling that Santana would really be okay. When Brittany finished and brought her lips down to ghost just above the lowest rib. Below her, she felt Santana shiver, and fearing that she'd hurt her, Brittany quickly looked up and was met with dark, tear filled eyes and a tiny nod, urging her to continue. Once she was sure that it was okay, Brittany placed featherlight kisses over the entirety of the area, hoping, somehow, that they'd dull the pain when the medication wore off.

"I wish I could fix it." Brittany lamented, returning Santana's shirt to normal and accepting the kiss she could tell the human wanted to give her.

"I know you do." Santana's voice was surprisingly raspy, the effects of watching Brittany kiss her body so reverently having an obvious effect on her. "But since my mom practically gave me a shower today, and everyone saw me fall, it's not a good idea."

"Yeah. But the doctor said you're okay?"

"He did." She told Brittany, although she'd already told her in a text message, she understood that sometimes you just needed to hear the words out loud. "Roz is going to be pissed- well, more pissed, because I'm benched until further notice, but the x-rays were fine, and it doesn't look like there's any internal bleeding. I mean, he told me the symptoms to watch for, and my mom is being like a hawk, so it'll be okay."

"Okay, good."

"You could...nevermind." Santana trailed off, feeling a little foolish.

"What?"

"Stay the night. I mean, if you wanted to. My mom swore she would let me sleep...until morning. But, you don't have to feel like you have to, or anything."

"I'd like to, a lot." Brittany smiled softly, and Santana brought her fingers up to her lips to kiss them. "If you're feeling up to it, I want to show you...everything."

"Wait, what." Santana sputtered a little bit, because as much as she'd love to, she didn't want to see everything when she couldn't touch, and taste, and- then she realized, everything from Hummel's obviously, and her cheeks flamed. "Right, I'm sorry, I totally forgot, you're just here, and I get all..." She waved her hands around a little and Brittany just grinned at how Santana could be laid up in bed, sort of high on pain killers, and still be the most adorable creature she'd ever seen. "I want to see everything you got, and hear...what you've figured out, and what's next."

Temporarily detaching herself from Santana, although the alien girl found it so hard, because drugged up Santana was so sweetly clingy, and she mostly just wanted to hold her until she felt better, Brittany followed Santana's instructions on where to find some sweats to change into and locked the bedroom door. After going into the bathroom to change into Santana's clothes (Santana was grateful she'd done that, she wasn't sure she could handle seeing a naked Brittany, her breathing had finally gone back to somewhat normal after the fall), she got back up into the bed, and Santana, who'd turned on the television as an extra precaution to cover their speaking, curled up against her body, immediately finding that place for her head to rest against Brittany's chest. So cautiously, Brittany opened her backpack, sliding the history book out and opening it to the center, revealing Hummel's father's notes.

"My grandfather was friends with him." Santana said softly, trailing her left pointer over Summer, 1947 printed in careful hand on yellowed paper. "He wanted him to stop talking about the aliens, said he should let it go...or he was going to get himself locked up."

"It's sort of sad, you know? His whole life's work written off like insanity."

"I'm glad it was though. If they took him seriously..."

"Yeah." Brittany nodded, knowing the end of Santana's thought. "Only three of the people he suspected are still alive. I guess we just hope that one of them really is the fourth alien."

"How do we even start?"

"We found where they live." Brittany pulled out the list with the addresses that she, Sam and Quinn had created. "Quinn wants to go on the school camping trip next week, we can walk out to this guy." She pointed to Bamboo's name. "Mercedes is coming, if you wanted to come too."

"Of course I want to come!" Santana nearly yelped, then covered her mouth quickly, and grasped at her ribs with the other hand. "I'm going to have to beg my mother though, I'm pretty sure she's going to be over...the top with me for the next month or so."

"She's right though, if you're not feeling up to it, you shouldn't come." Brittany couldn't resist the pout that formed of her mouth.

"It's a week away, I'll be fine. Hey, this April woman lives...right by my Aunt Sara."

"Really? Do you know her?"

"No...but I could visit my aunt, and then-"

"Santana, do you really think I'll be okay with you going to check out a potential alien on your own?" Brittany raised her eyebrow, her nerves fraying at just the thought of that.

"Of course I don't, but what if you came with me?"

"To meet your aunt?"

"Why not?" Santana asked, and Brittany couldn't help but feel giddiness bloom inside of her. Meeting Santana's aunt, that was kind of a big deal, but- "We're really close, like way closer than her and my dad, and she always keeps my secrets. Plus, it's outside of Roswell...and she doesn't know anyone here. I don't know, it could be like, something real for us, if you wanted...to. And then we could go see what the deal is with April Rhodes."

"Okay. I'd really, really like that. And maybe we can find some way to get Quinn and Sam to check out Goolsby, that way I don't have to hear it from her that she's not being included."

"That's perfect. We'll cover more ground. Brittany, we might...really find them, really soon."

"I know." Santana's wide, though tired grin was infectious, and Brittany couldn't help but smile as well after she pointed it out. "Thank you so much for encouraging this, and for being a part of it. I know you don't have to, but it makes me really happy to have you along."

"It makes me happy too. I want you to know this stuff, you...deserve to. Sam and Quinn too. And now that you and I have this...whatever it is that makes me see your memories, and makes us feel each other's pain, I kind of want to know for me too."

"Yeah, I don't...I wish I had the answers right now, especially for that, but I don't know." Brittany shrugged, looking away briefly, though she still continued trailing her fingers up and down Santana's arm. "This was also in the safe."

Santana watched as Brittany liberated the pendant from the pocket of her backpack, handling it like it was a newborn baby. It was beautiful, by far the most beautiful thing Santana had ever seen in her life (well, with the exception of a certain blonde alien), and something deep within her actually ached to touch it. Surprising herself, and momentarily forgetting about the supernatural barrier that had prevented Quinn and Sam from touching the piece, Brittany slowly extended her hand, moving the jewel closer to Santana. With the most cautious tip of her finger, as if she feared she'd do irreparable harm to it, Santana reached out, stroking the pure yellow stone, and looking into Brittany's eyes as she did so.

"You can touch it." Brittany marveled, her voice scarcely above a whisper. "It's letting you touch it. Quinn and Sam, they-"

"Britt, look." Santana gasped, interrupting her as a citrine glow emanated from the center of the stone, bathing both of their faces in golden light. "What is it doing?"

"I don't…I don't know." Brittany's eyes were wide, taken aback by what Santana's touch had caused. "See if you can hold it. But be careful, it, it zapped Quinn and Sam when they tried."

"Okay." She breathed, holding out a shaking hand for Brittany.

Almost glacially, Brittany lifted the necklace from her own palm and placed it into Santana's. The glowing continued, seeming brighter somehow, even if it truly wasn't, and Brittany wanted to burn the picture of Santana's awestruck, yellow-hued face into her memory forever, believing that she'd never again see something so amazing, like the dark haired girl was the moon, the stars, the sun, everything all wrapped up in one. Santana's eyes slipped closed, and Brittany was gripped, for only a fraction of a second, by fear, until she saw the expression of pure, unadulterated bliss take over her features.

Almost as if if the stone were an extension of Brittany, Santana felt those familiar tingles begin, and she knew she was about to see something from another world. She was glad that so much of her body was still touching Brittany, glad that she could lean some of her weight into her (she was still weak, and maybe the medication made her more susceptible to the flashes, she wasn't sure), but she gave herself fully to the power, happy to see those gorgeous yellow skies again when her eyes slipped closed. Off in the distance again, Santana could see those beings, this time, the forms of only two, pressed together to become almost one. Instead of radiating grief, like the others had, those two gave off an aura that Santana wasn't sure she could describe, something pure, something so beautiful that it was almost painful. She watched for a long while, entranced by it, until she suddenly felt like she had to snap her eyes back open and pull away from that world, beginning to feel that she was intruding on some special moment that didn't belong to her.

"It's the same color as the sky." Santana told Brittany absently, because she just didn't know what else to say, and she couldn't stop picturing those beautiful, happy forms under the same light that was radiating from the pendant. "That's what it looks like on your planet. The little sparkly flecks and everything."

"Beautiful." Brittany murmured, not just talking about the sky, but thinking about how essentially, she was looking at what Santana would look like on her planet, bathed in that xanthous glow.

"I think your kind must experience emotions that are really, really intense. This time it was…happy isn't the word I can use, Britt. I saw…something through this thing, and these beings were like…just beyond."

"Wow. I wish I could feel it." Brittany, for some reason, pressed her palm against Santana's heart, as if maybe somehow, in feeling it beat, she could understand more fully what she was trying to describe.

"Why didn't this try to keep me away like it did to the others?"

"Add it to the ever growing list of things I have no idea about." Brittany shrugged. "Maybe it's because I wanted you to touch it. For some reason, I don't know, I really felt possessive about it around Quinn and Sam. I don't know why, but I just felt like they weren't supposed to touch it. But you, you're different. I don't even know why I feel this way, but I feel like if I could, if I didn't think it would get us all in a whole world of trouble, I'd give it to you, I'd want you to wear it, because I- I care about you. A lot."

"I care about you too." Santana felt another word on the tip of her tongue, but she didn't say it, as true as the feeling resonated in her heart was. Instead, she just took Brittany's hand from her chest and pressed the stone against her own skin there for the briefest instant (an action she wasn't sure why she needed to perform) before giving it back. "Maybe someday…"

"Yeah." Brittany exhaled sharply, wishing for that someday. "I wish it wasn't broken. I wonder how it happened."

"It makes me feel...I don't know, sad." Santana ran her finger over the broken links of the chain, feeling a strange twisting in the pit of her stomach as she did.

"Maybe I'll try to fix it...eventually. Right now though, I need to figure out where to hide all of this. Sam is losing his mind, Hummel came over, and-"

"Hummel came over?" Santana gasped, the momentary bliss she'd felt with Brittany broken as reality came crashing back down upon her.

"He told us about the break-in, and that nothing was stolen."

"Right. Because none of this exists."

"He's trying to scare us, and we're just trying to act normal, which is getting harder and harder as things become increasingly not normal."

"What, glowing stones from far off galaxies and free flow of pain and emotions between you and some human girl isn't normal anymore?" Santana joked a little, and Brittany couldn't fight the smile that came to her face as Santana tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "There's a loose brick in the wall under my night stand. If you want, you can put everything in...there, and like, seal it up so no one can get in but you. I mean, I know it won't be that close to you, and I'm not sure if-"

"Thank you." Brittany cut her off, giving her the softest kiss on the corner of her mouth, and looking into her eyes, trying to make her understand the magnitude of her gratitude for that. "You…I trust you to keep it safe."

"And you'll have another reason to come over here, to visit it, or whatever."

"I don't think I need another reason to be here."

Lowering Santana back onto her mountain of pillows, Brittany got up from the bed, careful not to jostle the injured girl, even though the painkillers were still working to mask the pain of the harsh bruising. She lied flat on her stomach on the floor and slid out the brick, reaching her hand inside to feel how much space was in the small hole. Satisfied that everything would fit, she pushed the folder in, then squeezed the pendant one last time (no longer glowing, Brittany noted, finding it so strange that it only did so under Santana's touch) before lying it on top and setting the brick back in it's place. Though she was sure she'd feel some sense of loss, leaving behind what they'd worked so hard to get, Brittany was strangely contented, knowing that it would be right below where Santana slept, knowing that while she trusted Quinn and Sam with her life, there was just something about the human girl that she trusted more, and it (especially the necklace) would be safe in her care.

"You really should rest, like the doctor said." Brittany told Santana, after she'd sealed off the wall and got back into bed, letting Santana use her body as a human pillow to get more comfortable, glad that her head fell back against her heart.

"Mmhmm. I know." She hummed contentedly, taking Brittany's hand and playing with her fingers as sleep edged her voice. She knew they needed to talk more, knew that she needed to tell Brittany about Kurt, knew they needed to make plans to go to Sara's, but it could happen in the morning, after she rested. "Thanks for staying with me, I just want to know that you're here."

"I'm here, and tomorrow we'll start figuring all the rest of it out." She kissed a warm forehead, and quicker than she'd expected, Santana, hearing what she needed, drifted off into sleep, comfortable hearing Brittany's heart beat, comfortable with her fingers intertwined with Brittany's that rested over her sensitive ribs. Brittany closed her own eyes, feeling oh so much better than she had all day, having Santana safe in her arms, knowing that just for the night, they were far enough off from all that lie ahead, isolated, if only for a few hours, from what was sure to be more suspicion from Hummel. "Good night, Santana."