A/N.: Edit 17/08/2014
Chapter 6 – About blood and family.
Rachel was sitting next to Brittany since they were the first ones to get to the cafeteria.
"I feel bad eating before everyone gets here." Brittany said with a pout.
"They will be here soon, don't worry." Rachel said with a small smile "And you can always wait for them."
"Yeah!" The blond agreed, but without her usual enthusiasm.
Rachel noticing that, and assuming that she just missed Santana or was really hungry, takes initiative and changes the subject hoping that it will distract the blond. "So what kind of Nymph you are exactly? I was wondering here…"
"Oh, I'm an Epimeliad. You know? An Apple tree nymph… I can be related to sheep too, which is really weird, right?" Brittany explain, being successfully distracted.
"I thought they had white hair…?" Rachel contemplates with a questioning undertone.
"They have! But I'm half Muse. But my hair does turn white during the flowering season…" the nymph adds with a shrug
"A Muse? Really? I love them! What kind of muse?" the kitty girl asks getting really excited with where the conversation was going.
"A direct heir of Terpsichore! That's what my mom says. The muse of dance! You know, muses are a type of nymph too, they're all protectors of some kind. They're also only female that's why they can have babies with each other. San's kind can do that too." She claps her hands "Maybe one day we will have our own!" she add giggling and hiding her blushing face before looking at Rachel again.
"Yeah… I heard about that. Aren't gorgons a 'females only' specie too?" Rachel inquired getting a nod as an answer "I wonder… how you get other people pregnant?"
"Something about our seed. Nobody knows what really happens because it's more of a divine gift than a scientific thing." Rachel frowned at Brittany.
The kitty girl was about to say something when they're interrupted by the arrival of the other girls. Santana and Quinn included.
The lioness was fast at sitting next to Rachel and smiling proudly at her little stunt. Santana was, of course, hardly amused by it and simply sit beside her girlfriend and in front of Quinn.
"So what you were talking about?" Quinn asks.
"'Bout making babies." Brittany hums against Santana lips, who retreats after that was said, making the girl pout.
"What the hell!?" Santana inquires, almost cracking her neck with the sudden movement.
"Rachey asked what kind of nymph I was, then I told her I was half muse, then I told nymphs were only girls and she said: 'Gorgons too, right?' and I was all like, yeah and then we started talking about how nymphs make babies." Brittany answers still confused by San's previous reaction.
"Oh…" the gorgon blushes embarrassed with her over reaction.
"It's like we're hermaphrodites, but without changing our sex like clown fishes do. We don't actually have male parts either. It's just… it's has more magic involved then biology. And we have our fertile cycle, kind of like when you pussies get in heat." Santana says still flushing a little but trying to play it off. "Other species can have kids between woman too, they just need an outside help like potions or whatever. I thought you knew these things since your dad is a doctor and all…"
"We don't talk about the mating process or something like that." Rachel huffs "And it's not like I don't know… I was more like wondering how all this magic worked."
"I don't really have an answer for it…" Santana frowned.
"Hey, hey when you were told that Rachel's dad is a doctor?" Quinn asks putting aside her food.
"Oh, she met him." The kitty girl answers, unaware of Quinn's bubbling annoyance.
"What!?" She exclaims staring Santana down, who gulps before adorning a fierce glare.
"I had to fetch her this morning. Coach's orders." The gorgon says with a wicked smile starting to creep on her lips. "He opened the door and invited me in, sending me to her room so I could wake her up."
Quinn was just getting madder with each word that was coming out of Santana's mouth. She was baring her teeth, clenching her fists and her hair was bristling. She looked like she was about to pounce.
"I was really surprised that you sleep only in your panties, however." Santana said
Quinn growled beside Rachel. A lot of people stopped eating at the sound and looked at them. The latina whore the most proud smile. Brittany just gave her girlfriend a stern look.
Fights between San and Q were never pretty. The nymph was about to interfere when she sees Rachel putting her hand over Quinn's and petting her.
"I remember you being so embarrassed that you didn't even look my way." Rachel shoot back "And, also, I don't know what exactly you're bragging about since pretty much every girl in the squad saw me completely naked in the showers after the practice."
At this point Quinn looked more calm and was sending Santana a smug smile while mouthing 'Owned!' to her best friend.
"I was respecting your privacy…" Santana mumbled under her breath.
The entire room relaxed when they saw that the fight was avoided.
"What about Rachey dad? How is he?" Brittany asked clapping her hands really curious and eager to know.
"He is a dog… like, a Jack Russell. I didn't saw the other one…" Santana answers not really interested in her food and just playing with it.
"The other one is a Doberman." Rachel supplies.
"You're adopted then?" Quinn asked.
"Hm... not exactly. You could say I'm half dog in a way… They used a surrogate mother." The girl shrugged. "And she is a cat. I just got so much from her… that I look like a cat instead of a hybrid."
"Oh, and do you know your mom?" asked Brittany while eating one of her grapes
"Yeah, we didn't see each other in person much, but we talk a lot over the phone." She tells with a sigh, before looking up and pointing Quinn and Santana. "What about you two?"
"I'm a pure blood." Quinn says with a disgusted frown.
"Me too." Santana adds not upset about it.
"So you have two moms too?" Rachel asks with a smile.
"No… not really. Sure my papá was born female but he is cursed… A very strong wizard fell in love with him when he was still a girl, Papá rejected him of course. Gorgons are essentially a homosexual specie, straight gorgons are taken as odd cases. The wizard got so mad that he cursed papá to make him male. But my mamá accepted him anyway. They didn't found a way to break his curse though." Santana told with a frown, they were able to ease the curse, but he would never be truly well until it was broken. It also seemed to make it impossible for anyone to regard him as female. Unfortunately the caster of the curse was already dead and nobody ever found out if he had an heir who could help them.
Rachel just stared at Santana. Her mouth hanging open and words failing her. The gorgon lets out a dry chuckle and plays the girl's reaction off with a shrug.
"My father's family tends to be rather purist." Quinn changes the subject taking the attention away from Santana, who just give her a thankful smile. "Sometimes they even exaggerate a little. Dad tried to kick me out of home sophomore year because I was dating someone from another species. In the end he was the one being kicked out. Mom said she was really relieved that she was free from him though. Apparently he wasn't operated and I'm traumatized for the rest of my life for being told that." The blond added with an unpleasant shiver and a disgusted frown.
"Operated?" Brittany asked really confused.
"Male felines kind of have thorns on their penis. Intercourse can be really painful for their partners. They're also really small." Rachel explained and Quinn looked at her really shocked. I mean who said the word penis in the middle of the cafeteria? "They already have surgeries to remove the thorns, however lots of men tend to think the surgery will affect their sexual life in a negative way…"
"Ok… ok… ok! No need to go on, Berry. Man, I sure didn't need to know that!" Santana said interrupting Rachel's ramble. "I see Judy in a whole new light now."
"Can we change subjects now?" Quinn pleaded.
Rachel just shrugged and Brittany clapped her hands not really minding what would happen next. Lunch was a less polemic affair after that. They talked mostly about the cheerios and their practices, other cheerleaders even butted in making themselves part of the conversation.
The day wasn't much eventful after that. Sure, some jocks, who were at the football practice, tried to play with her, but they were quickly driven away. Most of the times by Sam, who was always close by. Other times it was one of the cheerios who would help, even if not on purpose, since they probably just wanted the jocks to pay attention on them instead of her.
"Maybe I should just say that I only fancy females…" Rachel mumbles washing her face with clear fresh water.
She hid herself in one of the bathrooms after the third boy coming after her. All that just because she was forced to go to practice wearing only the spanxs and a shirt? Bunch of pervs. They probably thought she was easy and trying to show off just to increase her growing popularity, which was pretty annoying, by the way.
Because seriously, it was her third day there! And it felt like she was there a whole year. 'So tired…' she thought before being startled by the sound of a door being opened.
"Now… that is really interesting." Santana said standing in front of the stall she just came out from.
"Why you say that?" Rachel asked with raised eyebrows.
"And here I thought you were messing with lizard boy." The gorgon spoke going to one of the sinks. "Does he know about that little detail about you?"
"Yes, we're just friends." Rachel deadpanned
"No fun!" the latina scowled with a pout making Rachel giggle.
"You know? You try so hard to antagonize and make people believe you're a bitch, but you're such true friend and really nice under all this grumpy façade." Rachel said, getting closer to the other girl, who was washing her hands.
"I don't antagonize…" Santana said I the word in a mocking voice "I keep shit real! And I'm not a bitch, I have snakes for hair!" she ended making Rachel truly laugh at that.
"I know… these insults sure should be revisited, right?" the kitty girl said bumping her shoulder with Santana's.
"Totally." The other girl agreed. "Now I gotta go! See ya later, kitty."
After the bathroom encounter Rachel still had two classes left. Or that's what she thought until she was informed that her last class for the day was canceled. Something about the teacher being sick and they don't having a substitute teacher available.
She would have to wait for her dad though. Sam said that some days he had club meetings so he wouldn't be able to take her home. Luckily her dad usually could afford taking time off his work just to do that. Like today, for example. She had to wait though.
Rachel was so tired that she just looked for an empty classroom to take a nap.
And, that's when she found the choir room. She looked through the glass on the door. The hallways were empty since the other kids were on their classes, or went home if they had theirs cancelled like Rachel's. Rachel smiled entering the room. It had a beautiful black baby grand piano and others musical instruments on a corner.
There were risers and a bunch of burgundy chairs around the room and also some stools. On another corner you could find amplifiers and next to it, holders for microphones and folded music sheet stands. The room was cozy with its gray and maroon soundproofed walls.
Rachel smiled liking it there. She then just transforms to her animal form, a little cat almost reaching adulthood, but yet too much like a kitten. She got up on one of the chairs and curled up to sleep while waiting for the last class to finish so she could meet with her daddy who would pick her up.
She was woken up by a happy shriek and not the school bell like she expected. Before she could even move she was lifted in the air by two hands only to be brought to a crushing hug.
"Look, San! A kitten! So cuuuute!" Brittany's voice ringed close to her ear right before she was roughly trusted forward, still being held by the blonde, in in the direction of Santana's face.
"Where did you find it, B?" Santana asked looking suspiciously at the cat.
"On one of the chairs!" she answered.
The other members of the club where slowly entering the room. Quinn was already sat and looked at her friends with an amused grin. The others looked up but soon shrugged it off as if it was nothing.
Rachel recognized Kurt and Mercedes on the risers, Finn was also there. There were other four kids. A gothic girl with a bewitched feel about her. A duende, the small kind of elf and not the tall and 'eternal' ones. A boy who looked like a white fox if you didn't knew better, he probably was a kitsune, a legendary Japanese – even though he looked like he was Chinese – fox spirit who grows a tail every 100 years, but he was very young since he had only one tail and was still on school. The fourth boy was a faun or a satyr, he used glasses and his goat like horns were small yet. She had some classes with some of them, but couldn't remember their names.
"Hey! What's Rachel doing here?" Sam asked entering the room accompanied by Puck.
The whole room looked confused at him and them around the room. Was the girl invisible for some reason and only him could see?
"Oh yeah! Look it's her." Puck said smiling and waving.
The whole room now looked at San's and Britt direction since the two newcomers where looking at them too.
"What you're talking about?" Santana inquired harshly
"The kitten, it's Rachel. What are you doing here by the way?" Sam asked the cat ignoring the others.
"Rachel's is way older, Lizard-boy, this is just a…"
"I was sleeping." The cat answers interrupting the latina.
"Holy shit, it can speak!" the gorgon yelled.
"Rachel!" Brittany and Quinn yelled at the same time, though Britt's was more like a squeal than anything else
"Why you're still transformed? Are you naked? Didn't you say you could transform with your clothes?" Kurt asked trying to show some disdain, but failing due to his curiosity. "How can you speak while transformed by the way?"
"I'm dressed…"
"Damn." Puck mumbled interrupting the kitty girl making Quinn glare angrily at him.
"As I was saying… I'm dressed. I can speak the same way I can maintain my clothes, a small and simple natural magic. I didn't transform back because Brittany stills holding me." The kitten explained.
"Can I hold you a little more?" the nymph asked hopefully making Quinn frown wanting to hold Rachel too.
"Uh… my daddy is coming to pick me up." She answered. "Sorry."
Brittany just shrugged sadly putting the kitten on the ground. Rachel immediately turned back hugging Brittany and giving an awkward wave to the other kids. Quinn's pout for not getting a hug was enormous, but Rachel didn't noticed it since she was saying goodbye to Sam and avoiding Puck's outstretched arms that tried to catch her.
She was already a little late so she ran to the cheerios locker room where she had left her bag to get it and went to meet her father.