Thanks go to my friend and beta, Toots.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
*****

By the time Saturday came around Rachel was mostly recovered from her ordeal with Jacob Ben-Israel. Currently she was trying to talk Quinn into coming to the overnight party.

"I don't know, Rachel. I don't think their parents would get the right idea if a six months' pregnant girl showed up for an overnight stay," Quinn stated stubbornly.

"Quinn, you have to come. This is a Glee outing. You are an important part of New Directions. We need this extra practice time to make sure we're ready for Regionals. You really don't have a choice. And I might remind you that not one of the Pallas siblings has commented on your teenage pregnancy in a negative way. Now, I've already packed your bag, and it's time to go." Rachel turned on her heel and walked out of Quinn's room and headed for the stairs.

Quinn scowled for a full minute before getting up and stomping down the steps following after the girl that one day might be her sister.

Finn and Puck had arrived to drive them, and once all goodbyes were made the four teens were on their way. The drive would take a few minutes, and Rachel talked a mile a minute about the different songs and sheet music she'd picked out for them. Her speech stopped abruptly when they pulled up in front of the home of their new friends. The house was huge.

"This was the Van der Bridge house," Puck murmured.

"It was?" Quinn whispered.

"Yeah," he nodded. "I recognize it from the show they did when those ghost detective guys went through it. The one guy pissed his pants when a tree branch hit a window."

Finn snapped his fingers. "Oh yeah! I remember now, we were making Sarah watch it and she had nightmares."

Rachel gaped at the boys. "The two of you are truly barbaric! That poor girl, I find myself amazed that she can still speak and hold conversations with all the trauma you've put her through."

"Trauma I've put HER through?" Puck looked surprised. "I'm the one who actually has to watch the little toad all the time."

Rachel would have gotten angry over this as well, but she knew Puck adored the little girl. Instead she got out of the car, grabbing her own and Quinn's bag.

Then Puck got out and took both of the bags from her. "What? I'm trying to be nice."

"We're just not even used to you trying to be human yet, Puck. Then you go and add in nice, it kind of freaks us out," Quinn quipped.

"Oh, ha ha," he snapped. "Laugh it up. You're my baby mama, I'm gonna carry you're shit… and Berry's a midget and shouldn't carry anything that's around the same size as she is." Smiling widely now, he used his long legs to stride up the front steps and ring the bell.

Rachel and Quinn looked at each other since Finn had already followed Puck. "He's such an ass," Berry muttered.

"Tell me about it…I'm his baby mama," Quinn sighed with displeasure.

The door was opened by Athena, who was beautiful in a bronze bikini, with matching sarong around her waist. Her masses of auburn hair had been pulled up into a messy bun on the top of her head and for a moment the four Glee kids were struck mute at her beauty. "You're here! I'm so glad. Everyone else is already here. They're in the pool, come on!"

"It's a bit cold outside to go swimming," Rachel began.

Athena giggled. "It's an indoor pool, Rachel. Come along. We'll find you some suits on our way in."

The quartet followed her in mutely as she moved across the white marble tile flooring. Rachel and Quinn were both looking at the furnishings and decorations around them as they went. The walls in the large family room they were moving through were covered in dark blue silk. "I don't believe I've ever seen fabrics used as a wall covering," Rachel managed to sound nonchalant.

Athena nodded. "One of our mothers is constantly decorating around here, but I think the blue is quite stunning with the floors and lighting." Then Athena was opening a set of double doors and laughter could be heard.

"Cool, must be soundproofed," Finn nodded.

They all moved out into the pool area and Athena had been telling the truth, everyone was out there. Tina, Santana, Brittany, Matt and Mike were in the huge pool, along with Didi, Honey, Hermes and a few others that the quartet didn't recognize. Rachel automatically moved over to where Mercedes, Kurt and Artie sat with Pollo, Artemis, Ari and Gus were all sitting at a round table along with a tall, muscular blonde boy. On one wall of the room there was a buffet and it was filled with what looked like delicious tidbits. On the other wall there were two doors, both open, one led to a restroom, and the other led to what appeared to be a closet.

"Thea, dear, are you going to introduce me to your friends?"

Athena and the four turned to see a lovely woman approach them. She wore a simple white dress with black flower patterns splashed liberally around. Her dark brown hair was pulled into a French twist on top of her head and she looked at them from green eyes that resembled Ari's. Athena smiled and hugged the woman tightly. Her hug was returned. "Mother, these are the last four of the Glee club we've been waiting for. Rachel Berry, probably one of the best singers I've ever heard; Quinn Fabray, who also has a lovely voice and is obviously very beautiful; Puck, whose real name is Noah Puckerman and is on the football team as well as in Glee and he plays guitar; and last but not least is Finn Hudson, also in football and sings a lot of the male lead parts."

"I'm Helena Pallas," Hera introduced herself. "It's such a pleasure to meet you all. I had heard about you already, but now, having faces to put with names, is nice. My children speak highly of all of you." Her eyes landed on Quinn, and for a moment Quinn felt as though those words were directed towards her specifically. "Some more of our children have arrived, so I hope that won't be a problem. We didn't think they'd finish with their studies abroad so quickly."

Finn turned wide eyes to Athena, "You have MORE brothers and sisters?!"

Athena laughed. "You have no idea."

"Quinn! Finn! You're here!" Didi yelled from the pool.

"I will let you young people have a good time." Helena smiled and after giving a small wave, she left the pool/rec room.

"She was a total MILF," Puck blurted out before he could think about it, and then proceeded to turn dark red as everyone began laughing at him.

"That's my mother you're talking about," Ari teased him.

A good-looking male with shaggy brown hair and blue eyes exited the pool and headed towards the table where Athena, Finn, Quinn, Rachel and Puck had ended up. "Hi! I'm Lee," he introduced himself, and pointedly ignored Ari's snicker. "We haven't had a chance to meet since I just got into town today!"

"Who all arrived today?" Rachel asked politely.

"Well, me of course, and Pierce," he pointed to a boy with a dark haired buzz cut and eyes so dark they could have been black, "Phoebe," a lovely girl who looked like a shorter, curvier version of Helena who was chatting with Brittany and Santana, "and Ian." Ian sat at the table with Ari and Artemis.

"We are trying to entice Mercedes into the pool, however she will not agree," Artemis explained.

Mercedes was frowning. "I'm pretty sure you all don't have a suit to fit me, and I'm a little self conscious…"

Didi had moved from the pool to the table, and stopped near the lovely black girl. "Mercedes, I promise you there are several lovely suits in the changing room that would fit you. Will you not try one?"

"Even I'm going to try one, and I look like I swallowed a beach ball," Quinn teased the diva.

The next few minutes were spent with the teens all changing, and surprisingly there was quite a selection of stylish and flattering swimsuits. When Mercedes came out of the room dressed in a beautiful orange and tan tankini Pollo stood and moved to her. "You are beyond beautiful," he murmured and kissed her hand.

Mercedes blushed and moved over to get into the pool. Quinn had found a two piece and now she sat next to Rachel on a cushioned bench. "The baby, she's kicking," Quinn murmured, grabbing Rachel's hand and placing it on her belly. Gus, on her other side, seemed fascinated. "Would you like to feel?" she offered.

"You would allow this?" he looked hopeful.

She nodded, and held his hand as it rested on the side of her belly. Her daughter was turning and kicking with passion. Quinn called Puck over Rachel got up, moving to the changing rooms as Puck joined Quinn. Tears came to the teen's eyes to feel his daughter move. Quinn didn't mention that even when Rachel traded places with Puck, Gus had stayed where he was.

Rachel walked a bit timidly towards the stairs in the shallow end of the pool. In the changing room she'd found several suits to try on, and for some reason she'd allowed Artemis to talk her into the two piece red and black checkered suit. Artemis was right though, it did look a bit like a sweater she had at home… and that was her favorite sweater.

"Do you not know how to swim then?" the blonde boy, Ian asked with what sounded to Rachel like an Irish lilt.

"Oh, no, I know how to swim. I just don't much like cold water."

"Ah, then ye'll be likin' this 'ere water. Father keeps it heated."

Rachel smiled, and stepped right in. He was right. It was warm and felt great. "This is great!"

Puck splashed up to them hurriedly. "Come on, Berry! You're my partner! We're playing chicken and it's you and me against Kurt and Finn."

She blinked at him once before grinning. "We'll destroy them."

"That's what I'm sayin'," he motioned, letting her know he wanted her to hurry.

Rachel turned to face Ian, "Please forgive my abrupt departure, but Noah and I must show our unworthy opponents that we are clearly the superior warriors." Then she was off heading to Puck's side.

Ian swam to his brother, Ari's side and the two watched the group play their game. "She's quite the lass."

"Yes, there is clearly battle in her heart."

Ian, also known as Orion, shrugged, "There's somethin' in each of 'em that declares them fighters."

Ares nodded, "And everyday they come closer to what they need to be… they come closer to what we need them to be."

Perseus, introduced as Pierce, had moved over to Ares and Orion. "They are everything I expected them to be," he murmured. His dark eyes looked away from the others, his face gaunt. "She shines so very brightly; so worldly, yet still so innocent."

More Glee clubbers had gotten in on the 'chicken' action. Santana was on Mike's shoulders and Brittany was on Matt's shoulders. Artemis and Apollo decided to join them, and it started pulling in more of the Greeks. Eventually there wasn't a serious game going on, but it seemed that Puck and Rachel were the overall winners. Once she was off his shoulders the two were knuckle-bumping.

"That was great guys!" Mr. Schue's voice came from the door.

"You know it's because we're totally hot Jews, Mr. Schue. And we're totally badass," Puck smirked.

The other Glee kids began laughing, and Finn rolled his eyes. "I'm pretty sure it's because Rachel's ruthless."

Rachel preened and couldn't help the wide smile. "I must admit, I do tend to do quite well at this competition. Years of dance and gymnastics classes have given me very good balance no matter what direction I have to lean into. But, I also have to give Noah credit. He had a good grip on my legs, so I never felt as though I was going to fall."

Quinn sat on the first step in the shallow end of the pool and smiled at the antics and protests of the others. Every day it felt more and more like they were becoming more than friends; they were becoming family. She supposed that was a naïve thought. Really, she and Rachel were the only ones becoming family… and Puck, and it seemed maybe Finn now too from the way he'd been acting the past few days. But looking at them, even Santana, they looked like a cohesive unit. Like nothing could break them apart. Quinn felt like she was looking at what they were supposed to be, and it was the strangest moment of her life. Stranger even than ending up pregnant, or ending up friends with Rachel Berry.

"You look as if deep thoughts steal your mind," Gus's soft voice broke her from her thoughts.

She smiled at him. "I was just looking at the others and it seemed as if they were all the way they were supposed to be… friends, ya know… or maybe something more… it seemed like it should be something more, and I know that seems crazy."

Gus smiled and it lit up his entire face. His eyes, an icy blue, ringed in darker blue, like those of a Siberian husky, shone with his smile. "I have thought the same since coming to your school and joining your club. The twelve of you… you make a very special dynamic. Each of you excels at something that one of the others does not. You are all very special."

"Gus… may I ask what happened to you?" she asked softly. Quinn looked at the scars that covered the entire left side of his body. She couldn't imagine what could have happened to him. She did hope he didn't take offense to her question.

He looked down for a moment, but then looked back up to meet her eyes. "There was a horrible accident. My family has always been very busy in outdoor activities. I was fairly young, and we were rock-climbing. One of the pitons holding my ropes broke and I slid down the mountain on my left side. I broke my left leg in six places, my pelvis, several ribs, my left arm, and was fortunate not to break my neck."

Quinn couldn't help it. The tears had started as soon as he'd begun listing the damage. "You could have died," she whispered.

Gus chuckled wryly. "Nah, too lucky for that."

Quinn put her hand on top of his. "I'm so glad you're still here. I'm glad you're here in Lima, Gus."

"I just appreciate that you are all willing to look at my ugly mug every day."

She shook her head. "You're beautiful. Your scars, they don't make you ugly. They make you unique."

Eventually all of the teens decided to get out of the pool, get cleaned up and grab some food. Once they'd eaten the Greek teens led them through the house into another large room with lovely dark hardwood floors. The room was obviously a ballroom, and the girls were automatically in love with it. Rachel started doing pirouettes across the floor, while Santana began stretching and Brittany began doing flips across the room. Matt and Mike started doing dance moves, Mike's famed 'pop and lock', and Puck moved over to the musical instruments and pulled out his acoustic guitar.

"I take it you like the space?" Didi called out, grinning widely

Rachel stopped spinning, staring at Didi with wide eyes. "This is AMAZING! I could only dream of having a space this wonderful. My neighbors have filed two lawsuits regarding my practicing at home. They dropped the first one, but they're being really stubborn with the second," she sighed as she finished explaining.

"Well, you can practice here any time you like!"

They all turned to see a very handsome older man standing at the door. He stood just shorter than Ari's six foot two; his body was lean and muscled, dressed in a beautifully tailored charcoal gray suit with white linen shirt and cobalt blue tie. His hair was silver and cut short, with a matching mustache and goatee. His eyes were the same color as the tie. He smiled and his teeth were white and shining. "Greetings!" His voice held a heavy accent, and he stepped forward putting one arm around Ari and the other around Artemis. "Welcome to our home. I'm Zenobios, but please call me either Zeno, or PaPa," he chuckled. "I have so many children that calling me PaPa is just a compliment."

Rachel looked at her new friends' father and she could suddenly understand how so many women ended up giving him children. She looked over at Quinn, who met her eyes and the pregnant girl gave her a slight nod in acknowledgement. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Zeno."

He turned his smile on her and tapped his chin, "You are Rachel Berry? Yes, I remember seeing you at your Sectionals competition. Amazing, all of you." Everyone began saying their thanks, and moving to shake the man's hand. "So you will be staying over, and beginning to practice new songs for your next competition?"

"That's right," Mr. Schue explained. "We have to come up with six songs to perform for the judges this time. Four to compete, and then, if we make Finals, two for placement."

Helena had entered and Zeno had moved to her automatically, his arm wrapping around her waist. He shook his hand at them. "I do not even worry about this. I heard you. I saw you. Magnificent. Make sure all six songs are perfection!" He looked at Rachel. "Will you be singing a ballad again?"

Everyone looked at Rachel, as if they knew what she would say. She surprised them all when she spoke. "Actually, during the last competition Mercedes was supposed to sing the ballad, but because our competitors cheated, she didn't get to. I figured she would get to sing at Regionals since she missed her chance at Sectionals."

Now there was silence, until finally, Mercedes looked at Rachel. "Seriously?"

Rachel blinked and her eyebrows furrowed. "Of course. I mean, you gave me the chance to sing Barbara, why shouldn't you have the chance to shine?" She turned to look at Zeno and Helena. "You should have seen her, she took my breath away. I also sort of had an idea for a duet, but… I'm not sure the other person would sing it with me."

"What's the song, Rachel?" Mr. Schue asked.

"I wanted to sing 'For Good' from Wicked with Kurt," she announced. Kurt's eyes widened and he looked intrigued. "I just figure that, well, sometimes we're friends, and sometimes, we're frenemies… who else could pull that song off with me than him? And I think the mix of myself and him singing it would certainly get the judges attention."

"So, a ballad from Mercedes, a duet from you and Kurt, and two group numbers. Then we have to find two more for placement."

"Maybe instead of two for placement we should have four in reserve just in case," Finn stated.

Again silence.

"That's actually… a good idea, Finn," Mr. Schue said.

Finn shrugged. "I was just thinkin' that when we went to Sectionals we weren't prepared for the cheating. This time, there shouldn't be any cheating, but just in case someone did one of our songs we could have something in reserve."

Rachel grinned, "And that's why he's Co-Captain… even if he did stand me up on picture day."

"Okay, I thought we were past that?" Finn whined.