We have made it to the end of our adventure. I'd like to thank every single one of you guys who stuck with me throughout this journey. I would like to say a special thank you to Cognitivism, killercereal and yusubassoon. You guys really helped me out with my story and confidence in writing.
Unfortunately I have to say my confidence for this chapter is pretty much nonexistent. I don't know why, but for some reason I'm just not as excited about this as I was with the others. I'm not sure if it has to do with the fact that it's currently 3 in the morning. Or if because my last chapter was my peak and I don't think anything is worth following it. But, I promised I'd post this chapter before I fell asleep so that's what I'm doing. Regardless… I'm not sure about this one.
I would also like to point out listening to the right kind of music REALLY helps. While I was writing Santana I listened to: "Your Guardian Angel" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, "Good Life" by One Republic, "Less Than Perfect" by P!nk, and "Almost Lover" by A Fine Frenzy (( to remind me of what NOT to do )). It definitely got me in the right mind set.
Anyway, thanks again for all the support I got in writing this story. It really means a lot. Good luck in reading this! You'll need it!
"What are you doing?" Santana demanded as she reached up to pull away the hand that was shielding her vision. Brittany was stumbling behind Santana as she struggled to keep her palm plastered to her best friend's face.
"Hang on!" the blonde giggled as she swatted at the Latina's attempts to see. "Just a few more steps… aaannndd … TA DAAAA!" Brittany threw her arms up in a wide V as she revealed their location.
Santana broke into an affectionate grin the instant she recognized the sight before her. The taller girl had led them to the back part of Lima's garbage dump so they were standing in front of their secret entrance. It wasn't so much of a secret entrance as it was a pile of wooden crates piled in front of a metal fence. But the girls knew if they climbed the stack of crates and hopped the fence, the man working in the little tin shed would never notice the break in.
With Santana in the lead, the cheerleaders repeated the task they performed so many times before as children, and soon enough they were on the opposite side of the fence. A few seconds after her feet hit the dirt, Santana felt a strong arm find its way around her waist. She automatically leaned back comfortably into her best friend, closing her eyes in the process. A warm familiarity descended upon the two as they stood facing the never ending piles of trash.
"Do you remember this place, San?"
"Mmmhmm," the brunette mumbled fondly. "How could I forget? Your mom FLIPPED when she finally found you."
"She totally overreacted."
"Brittany, you wandered off by yourself because you got bored of her talking to her friend on the way home from grocery shopping! AND you were wearing a toilet seat around your neck!"
"No. I wandered off because I heard a psycho child shouting orders at her minions to steal the world's largest cotton candy factory. And I was only wearing that thing because we couldn't find a good enough robe. That was the first time I ever got grounded," the blonde pouted.
"Well, I'm glad you wandered off. Otherwise I never would have met you."
"And I'm glad you liked to stalk teenage boys as a child. Otherwise you never would have followed them here and discovered our kingdom. This is my favorite place in the world, you know."
"Yeah, mine too. Come on."
The Latina straightened up allowing Brittany to trail pale fingers along her back until she found the taller girl's hand in her own. The two girls began making their way through the dump. As the cheerleaders passed massive piles of trash, they listened to the quiet echo of little girls' laughter bouncing off the mountains of unwanted treasure.
"AAAHHH AH AAAHHH!" a feisty, brown-headed girl hollered from her spot at the top of a garbage mound as she drummed her chest with fists. "I am the most terrifying dragon in the entire world! Hear me roar!"
"Dragons don't make that noise, silly. Only gorillas do."
Dropping her hands at the interruption, the brunette looked down at the girl who distracted her. "So? I can make that noise if I want to!"
"Nuh uh!" a soft spoken blonde declared as she shook her head in protest. "You can only make that noise if you're a gorilla!"
The girl located at the top of the pile put on hand on her hip in annoyance (an act she would soon come to master). "Dragons are way more scarier than gorillas! Who would you rather have protect you? A big, mean dragon? Or a fat, hairy gorilla?"
The girl sitting on a throne of abandoned tires chewed her bottom lip as she thought hard about the question that was just asked (an act that would ultimately become her trademark). "A dragon!"
"Okay then! Now let me get back to guarding you." The brown haired girl extended her arms as far as they could go above her head as she looked back up and yelled towards the sky. "You have been warned! Those who dare harm Princess Brittany must face the wrath of the Santana Dragon! AAAHHH AH AAAHHH!"
The brunette chuckled to herself and carefully nudged the girl next to her. When Brittany looked, Santana curled her free hand into a fist and lightly beat her chest a couple of times.
The blonde scrunched her nose at the gesture, "Only gorillas do that silly."
"Who would you rather have protecting you? A big ass dragon? Or a lame, cry-baby gorilla?"
"A big ass dragon."
Santana only winked as they continued walking hand in hand.
"Look! I'm flying!" Standing on her toes, on top of a tipped refrigerator, a Dutch girl held her arms like Superman as her hair blew in the wind.
Lying at the end of the overturned appliance, with her legs dangling over the edge, a Latina was tracing shapes in the clouds. "Very impressive."
"I'm gonna fly one day you know," the pale girl announced as she plopped down next to her friend. "They have this bubble powered jet pack and I'm gonna steal it so I can fly around the world. Just you wait and see."
"Oh I believe you." The tan girl stopped her motion of tracing lazy shapes in the sky and made her finger into a definite point, "Hey! Doesn't that cloud look like a hippogriff?"
"Where?" the sitting girl asked as she looked up at the sky and narrowed her eyes against the blinding sun. "What that one? No. It looks like a unicorn."
"Dude, it is obviously a hippogriff."
"No it's not."
"Yes it is!"
"Okay, how 'bout this? When I get the jet pack I'll fly up there and ask what it is for you."
"Well then I'd have to come with you. That way I know you're telling me the truth because then I'll hear it for myself."
"How are we both going to fly up there? There's only one jet pack."
"I'll hold on to you."
The Dutch girl sprawled out on to her back so her head was resting on the Latina's stomach, and her toes were playing with the freezer door handle. "As tight as you can?"
"And never let go."
Tan and pale fingers found themselves being intertwined as the girls studied the clouds overhead.
"Hey San?"
"Yeah Britt?"
"That one's a duck."
"What sky are you looking at? It's a platypus!"
Brittany stole a glance to the girl next to her and couldn't contain the loving smile that danced its way across her lips. Santana could feel eyes on her and when she looked at Brittany (who was still sporting that goofy smile), she felt her cheeks flair up immediately.
"What?" the Latina laughed embarrassed.
The Dutch girl looked down at their hands, that were still clasping one another, and somehow her smile got bigger; making her blue eyes shine in the setting sun. "You're holding me tight."
"And I'm never letting go." Santana pressed her nose against Brittany's shoulder, stumbling a little as she began walking sideways in order to keep the contact with her friend.
When Brittany heard the tan girl scoff it was her turn to laugh, "What?"
"It was totally a hippogriff."
Brittany reached across her body, with the hand that wasn't being accompanied by Santana's, and patted the Latina's head childishly. "Whatever stops the tears."
The two girls continued their walk through the dump as they absorbed the memorable trash around them. They slapped their foreheads in embarrassment as they passed the rusted, old, stationary pick-up truck Santana taught herself how to "drive" in, laughing at the memory of the Latina stubbornly deciding this was car they would travel around the country in together. They stopped and marveled at the fairy town Brittany created entirely out of milk cartons and soda cans, surprised it was still standing completely unscathed after all these years. They pretended to gag as they walked by the shredded mattress they once saw Patches sleeping on, extremely NOT clothed, in the middle of July. They gasped when they saw it: their castle. Or really, the tallest garbage heap in the center of the dump.
Brittany untangled her fingers from Santana's so she could sprint ahead and reclaim what was once hers. The brunette smiled at the familiar sight of her best friend ruling atop a rubber throne. She climbed up behind Brittany and sat on the highest tire (the one she put there as a child so she could always see who was entering their kingdom). With her legs hanging on either side of Brittany, the Latina snaked her arms around the dancer's neck and pulled their bodies close. The blonde let her head fall lazily onto one of Santana's knees as she let the memories of her past come flooding back to her; to both of them.
"Halt! Who goes there? !" a small, brown eyed girl called out from her position at the top of the massive garbage heap. She was covered from head to toe in aluminum foil and was branding a television antennae sword at her intruder.
"Why are you dressed so funny?" a blue eyed girl asked, completely ignoring the question.
"I'm not dressed funny! I'm dressed like a knight!"
"You can't be a knight, you're a girl!"
The small "knight" ran down the pile of trash – so as not to fall over – until she was in front of the girl who was just barely taller than she was. "My mommy says I can be whatever I want!"
"Can I be a knight too?"
"No. I'm the only knight around here!"
"Oh," the taller of the two responded sadly as she kicked the dirt with her shoe.
Suddenly feeling really bad she caused this new girl to be upset, the pint sized warrior quickly spoke up, "But you can still play with me if you want!"
"How? I'm not a knight."
"Ummm…" the small girl bit her finger nail as she looked around at the trash surrounding them. "I know!" she declared before she ran a few feet away to grab something. When she returned she was holding a pink (why it was pink she didn't know) Christmas wreath. Reaching up she carefully perched it on top of the taller girl's head. "There! Now you're a princess!"
The two girls shared semi-toothless smiles with each other for a moment before the newly crowned princess clapped her hands together as a thought occurred to her. "Now we have to get married!"
"Ewwwww!" the little knight scrunched her face in disgust. "Why do we have to get married? !"
"Because that's what they do in the stories! When the knight finds his princess they always get married. It's a rule."
"I don't like that rule."
"If you don't want to marry me then I don't want to play with you," the blue eyed girl huffed as she turned to storm away.
The smaller child stuck her hand out to grab her departing companion. "Fine, I'll marry you. Just keep playing with me, okay?" Clasping their hands together, she led them up to the top of the garbage pile. She looked at the other girl expectedly, unsure if what she was doing was correct. "Are we married now?"
"No. We have to say our wedding vows! You go first since you're the knight and the guy always goes first."
"But I don't know what to say…"
"Okay then, I'll go first. I, Princess Brittany take Knight… what's your name?"
"Santana."
"Take Knight Santana to be my lovely wedded husband. Now it's your turn."
"I… Knight Santana… take Princess Brittany?... To be my lovely wedded wife."
"Now we kiss."
"I don't want to kiss you!" the brown eyed girl shrieked.
"But that's how you make a wedding for real. The bride and groom GOTTA kiss!"
The shorter of the two furrowed her eyebrows as she concentrated on finding a solution to their problem. Her face suddenly softened and she burst into a crazy grin. "Give me your hand!" She grabbed the other girl's hand and separated her little finger from the rest. She then curled her own pinky around the one she was holding and gave it a tight squeeze. "There! Now it's for real!"
The "Princess" beamed at the gesture, lighting up her eyes as she did so. "Cool. Now what do we do?"
"Now we rule over our kingdom. While you stay in the castle and give orders, I go out and fight the monsters."
"How come I don't get to come with you?"
"Because, silly! I'm the knight. The knight has to protect the princess. I have to make sure nothing harms you for as long as I live." Still holding their pinkies together, the self-proclaimed protector tilted her head back and shouted to the world, "DO YOU HEAR THAT? ! If you want to harm Princess Brittany you'll have to get through me first! No one is allowed here! This is OUR kingdom! WE rule this land!"
"Does… does this mean we're friends now?" the tall girl asked shyly.
"Duh! It means we're best friends! Best friends forever! Now come on. We can't rule a kingdom without a throne!"
Sliding down the garbage pile, hand in hand, the newlyweds giggled as they carefully gathered tires to complete their castle.
"Do you ever miss it?" the smaller cheerleader's voice rippled through the quiet.
Brittany, whose blue eyes were closed, slid her head up along Santana's thigh until it connected with the brunette's stomach. She hummed contently when she felt gentle fingers running through her hair. "Miss what?"
"Innocence. The way things used to be. When the most drama we had was when our parents wouldn't let us shave our pets and sell their hair to buy a plan ticket to the North Pole. Before it was all about who knew who, and where you sat in the cafeteria, and how you ranked on the 'Top Bitch Scale'. A time when popularity was based on whether or not you were allowed to watch MTV. Not because you had sex with the most boys. Childhood. Do you ever miss it?"
"Every second of every day. But do you want to know the one thing that keeps me from going completely insane?"
What?"
The dancer lifted her right hand, which had mysteriously latched itself on to the brunette's, and kissed their intertwined pinkies. "You."
At that statement, Santana couldn't take it any longer. She needed to be touching the blonde more than she already was. Carefully lowering herself from the tire she was perched on, Santana finagled herself so she was wedged between Brittany and her previous seat. Brittany habitually adjusted herself to give the Latina enough room to squeeze behind her. When everyone was situated, the Dutch girl spread her weight evenly across Santana's torso.
It was moments like these Santana cherished more than anything. Moments when she was pressed against her best friend, breathing in her scent; trying to memorize everything about her. How she always placed her right temple against the left side of the brunette's neck. How she always made sure they were breathing in time with one another. How she never forgot to tangle their arms and legs together so they were in a comfortable mess. How she subconsciously mapped out Santana's heartbeat with her fingers. Moments when they simply took one another in – not talking, not moving, not doing anything except existing for their other half. Moments Santana never wanted to end. She prayed moments like these would last forever. So she could spend the rest of her life holding on to the one person who made her feel like she was worth something. Moments where no words needed to be spoken and they still knew everything the other was thinking. Well… almost everything.
Santana was still thinking about what occurred only an hour ago. In fact, she hadn't stopped thinking about it since it happened. She couldn't suppress the feeling of overwhelming guilt that slithered its way through her veins. Her job was to protect Brittany with everything she had; even if it killed her. But she knew she had failed that job the moment she lost sight of the most beautiful eyes she's ever seen as her blonde slowly drifted away from her. Her heart completely shattered in that moment. Something was harming Brittany and she didn't know what it was, or how to stop it. The only thing Santana could imagine herself doing from then on was making sure she never let Brittany be attacked that way again; no matter what it took. But in order to fight this invisible monster, Santana needed to know what she was up against.
"Hey Britt? Back at the… at the water tower… what happened to you? What terrified you so much it made you freak out like that?" the Latina whispered. She waited for a verbal response, but the only response she got was the feeling of the dancer's body tensing significantly against her own. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me now if you don't want to. Just know that I'm here when you're ready. Okay? I love you too much to just let that go. And I refuse to let that happen again. I will do anything and everything in my power to make sure you're always safe. Do you get that?"
"I get it. I'm just sorry you had to be there to see that."
"No, I'm glad I was there. I don't know what I would have done if I found out you experienced that alone."
Brittany couldn't help but laugh at the irony of what Santana just said. Here she was talking about not wanting Brittany to be alone, when the blonde knew one day that's just what she was going to be: alone. And all because of Santana too. It all just seemed sort of silly. "Funny you should mention that, actually. Back there… at the… well… the reason I… you know… was because I –" the Dutch girl suddenly cut herself off mid sentence. She was about to let Santana fully in (an act she never thought she'd hesitate in doing before), when something caught her attention. "What is that?"
As the dancer was staring at the "castle" in front of her, trying to find the right words to say, the last few rays of the sun reflected off of something and bounced the light into her eyes. Squinting against the glare, Brittany noticed the sun was shining on a silver latch attached to a carefully placed box. The box stuck out amongst the disheveled mess around it and instantly grabbed Brittany's attention. Using Santana's knees for support, the blonde girl pushed herself up and walked over to the mysterious object with one eyebrow raised in confusion. As Brittany drew closer to the mysterious object at hand, she discovered it not only was a box – it was a treasure chest. The Dutch girl picked it up and examined her find. Written on the front, in bright orange paint, was "S.S.S.S." and attached to the top was a note.
"San! I think we found it! The end to our mystery!" the blonde whirled around so she was facing the Latina, excitement written all over her face.
All Santana's body was able to do was stare gaping at Brittany as she watched her friend un-tape the note from the treasure chest and tuck the box under her arm so she could unfold the piece of paper and read what it said.
"'To my beautiful, blue-eyed, Dutch princess'," the taller girl jerked her head up, her face dropping in shock, meeting the gaze of nervous, brown eyes. After getting a slow, confirming nod from the cheerleader still sitting on the tires, Brittany continued reading. "'Wow. Who'd of thought I would ever resort to being cheesy? I don't do cheesy. But, that's what you do. You make me do crazy things. Things I'd never imagine doing in a million years. I don't know why, but you make me want to be good. And you make me good. I just want to do everything I can to make you proud of me. Because you deserve the best and you shouldn't have to put up with unnecessary crap. Crap that I dish out. You're an amazing person, Brittany, and I only wish you knew how much you mean to me. I find myself constantly going back to the day we met, and thanking God I was smart enough to let you play with me. Seeing those amazing blue eyes of yours light up when we made our marriage for real was the best thing that's ever happened to me. It made me realize what we had was different. Even at seven years old I knew something as extraordinary as you didn't come around every day. From the moment you spoke to me, I knew I had found my soul mate. I…'"
Brittany's breath hitched in her throat as she attempted to keep the threatening tears that were pricking at the corners of her eyes at bay. However, the moment she felt shaking hands cover her own, her tears began flowing freely down her cheeks.
"Keep going," Santana whispered. Both girls were looking down at the piece of paper, too emotional to meet the other's gaze.
Brittany sniffed loudly, not caring about the fact that there was a tremendous amount of snot running down her nose, as she composed herself enough to continue reading. "'I… love you Brittany Susan Pierce. Probably more than you know. You are literally the only reason why I wake up in the morning. Whenever I see your gorgeous smile flashing, I know I have nothing to worry about and that everything is going to be okay. You are my heart, my soul, my will to live, my entire world. I can't even begin to tell you how grateful I am you "picked me". I love you so, so much. Please know that. Love, with all my heart, your tiny, Latina knight."
Brittany couldn't say anything. She couldn't look up from the paper in her hands. She read the note over again to herself to make sure she hadn't just imagined the whole thing. Tears continued to trail down her cheeks as she determined the note was real, that she wasn't making it up.
Santana reached up to brush the blonde's cheek with her thumb. "Happy tears?" she asked nervously.
"Yes," the taller girl laughed nodding her head earnestly. "Absolutely and completely happy tears. Extremely happy tears."
"I'm really sorry it was so stupid. It sounded better in my head. I just have a really hard time saying how I feel, especially when it comes to you. And if you hate it just tell me because I can take it," the Latina rambled.
"Stop," blue eyes finally looked up from the paper and into their other half. "I love it. Okay? It's perfect."
The two stared fondly at the girl opposite themselves, silently soaking in the love they had for one another.
"So…?" Santana spoke up not being able to handle the silence any longer.
"You did all this? Everything we did today? All the clues, the tasks; the whole thing, that was you?" Santana shrugged her shoulders, smiling shyly. "Why?"
"Because I like to see you happy. That spark you get when you accomplish something on your own, that's what I live for. When you danced at Sectionals I have never been more proud of you than I was in that moment. Up until now that is. I just wanted you to be as proud of yourself as I am in you. Is that too much to ask? To see my best friend happy?"
Brittany flung her arms around the smaller girl's neck, dropping the treasure chest in the process (but making sure she still clung on to the note). "No, it most definitely is not. Thank you so, super duper much. Today was the best day ever. But, you didn't have to do this you know."
The brunette pushed Brittany's body slightly away from her own, but being sure she left their bodies close enough so the blonde's arms were still draped over her shoulders. "Yes I did. Look, I know I've said this a million times before. But I need you to understand that I have never meant anything more in my entire life. I will do anything for you. I will dress up like Rachel Berry and do The Chicken Dance in the middle of the cafeteria if you asked me to. I would take a thousand bullets for you without thinking twice about it. I meant what I said when we were kids. I'm the knight, and it's my job to protect you for as long as I live. I'm here to ward off any evil. Whether you like it or not."
"I like it. Please don't ever stop." Brittany pressed their foreheads together, closing her eyes at the contact.
"Don't worry. I won't. You're stuck with me missy. Forever and ever. Now… aren't you forgetting something?"
"Hmmm?"
"You still haven't opened the treasure chest."
The dancer unhinged herself from the Latina and bent down to open the nearly forgotten box. The instant her eyes locked onto the object inside, Brittany squealed with delight.
"I knew it! I knew it, I knew it, I KNEW IT!" Brittany jumped up and down in utter joy as she yanked a stuffed, purple heffalump out of the chest.
Santana giggled as she watched the blonde dance around with her new buddy. When the cheerleaders made eye contact, Brittany immediately stopped what she was doing. Keeping her eyes locked on the brunette's, Brittany slowly walked over to the other girl. The air suddenly became very thin and Santana's heart started sprinting in her chest when the Dutch girl didn't stop advancing until they were practically on top of each other. And the moment their lips touched, Santana was pretty sure her legs turned to jello.
It wasn't a deep, passionate kiss by any means. And when the blonde pulled away, neither girl was out of breath. But, in those quick seconds Santana experienced the sweetest, most sincere kiss she's ever had. Brittany's lips were soft against her own and the emotion behind them was real. In that one moment Santana couldn't think of a single thing she'd rather be doing.
When the cheerleaders broke contact, Santana reluctantly opened her eyes. The smaller girl was met with the sight of Brittany biting her lower lip, her eyes sparkling as a sly smile graced its way onto her lips.
The Latina had to rapidly re-teach herself the alphabet, and then what words were, and then how to make words with the alphabet. Then she had to figure out how to speak rather quickly so she wasn't just standing there like a nerd.
"What was that?" she ultimately spit out.
"Your first clue."
Brittany's smile grew as she brushed passed a gaping Santana to go sit back on her throne, her newly acquired heffalump in tow. The brunette turned around on her spot and had an extremely difficult time containing the childish grin that appeared on her face as she watched Brittany show her purple friend their kingdom.
Step aside Wheels. Santana Lopez is back.
So? What did you guys think?
I'm sorry it was all long paragraphs and so slow and uneventful. It appeared better in my head when I saw it as a scene.
Reviews are welcomed. And any suggestions as to how I should continue their story line together. Because I'm definitely not stopping here!