"While Charlie is attempting to—and probably succeeding in being the most annoying person on the planet, I need to make sure that we're all on the same page," Santana spoke up, crossing her arms over her chest. "Who thinks that went well for us?" She's not truly surprised that the freshmen and Finn raise their hands, in fact only Blaine, Rachel and the seniors are refraining from raising their hands. "Finn, you wanna tell me why you think that last competition went well for us?"

"We got a perfect score and we're going to nationals?" Finn points out, slightly confused as to why Santana doesn't look thrilled. They were going to nationals, it was the first time that any of them had been there, and they had made a statement.

Rachel immediately held up her hand and Santana groaned, "Rachel."

"While I agree that going to nationals was the end goal, we as a team failed. Charlie got us to nationals, and more importantly everyone, the scouts, the recruiters know that what happened in the first event, was Charlie's doing. We didn't impress them—however, this can also be good news, at least I think."

"We're certainly in a unique position," Shannon piped up, agreeing with Santana's attempt to get the team thinking. She wasn't sure if Charlie had completely thought her actions through, and while her actions certainly had negative aspects, there was a massive upside.

"We are," Santana agreed. "Open Season is an event I didn't expect to see until nationals, but we made it through with our team completely intact. We will be fielding a team of eleven in the next round, which means that unlike every other team here, we not only have a numbers advantage, but the scouts and the heroes are curious about how we'll do without Charlie. So they will probably be watching us closely, whatever the next event is we need to show them the new McKinley Titans. No holding back."

Rachel immediately held up her hand, "Does that mean—"

"Yes Rachel, you can show off as much as you want," Santana groaned, and looked over at Blaine who had been quiet. "You want to add anything?"

"The next event will probably be Heroes vs Villains," Blaine said after a moment. "There's never exactly been a case like this before, usually it's one hero against the remaining students. Heroes generally never lose these events, but in our case I think they're going to try and change things up. If they hadn't planned on doing that just because of Charlie's presence."

"You're probably right, any suggestions?" Santana asks, Blaine had been on this stage before, she'd be an idiot not to use his knowledge right now.

Blaine hesitated for a moment, "I don't have a plan or anything, but if the goal is to get noticed then we really only have one option for this competition. We can't play it safe."

Santana paused, there were several different strategies to earn points in Heroes vs Villains, however there was only one way to get the thousand point bonus. "You can't be serious."

"Only a few teams have ever managed to pull it off. No one would care if we pulled it off with Charlie on the field, but Charlie's not going to be on the field. If we do it?"

"Uh—" Finn coughed, causing both Blaine and Santana to look at him. "What are you guys talking about?"

"There is only one way to get the thousand point bonus, by beating the hero and for every member of your team escaping." Santana explained. "Only a few teams have managed to pull it off—nationally ranked teams. I mean we don't even know who we're facing—"

Quinn cleared her throat, causing everyone to turn to her, "Does it really matter? For the past few weeks you've been training under my grandparents, while also playing survival with Charlie, which really is this event in a nutshell."

"We've never managed to survive against Charlie," Sam points out, shuddering. Charlie would hit them with a stun gun, which would cause their muscles to seize, it hurt terribly.

"I know, but that's because it's Charlie, do you honestly think the association is going to have someone even a fraction as powerful as Charlie? There is a massive difference in power between people like Charlotte Flair and well, someone like The Deep," Quinn pointed out. "Both are considered A-listers, but I mean several of you could beat him. Them being professionals only means that they have far more experience, it doesn't mean that they are far more powerful."

Santana paused for a moment, it was a risk they hadn't exactly done well against other schools in their practice sessions. But Quinn did have a point, and it would make the team look good. "Alright, once we find out who we're facing, we'll make a plan then," there was no point in trying to plan when they didn't know who or what they'd be facing in the next round. "Everyone go and stretch and get ready, and let the support team make any adjustments that they think are necessary."

~ O ~

Brittany tilted her head as she looked at the images on the tablet her father had just handed her, Charlie did not look well. "If she hasn't received any medical attention, she's probably going septic as we speak." Brittany admits after a moment handing the tablet back to her father. Her shoulder looked bad, but there was a yellow tinge to Charlie's eyes, she had probably damaged some of her internal organs as well. She would need to see Charlie to assess the damage.

"How in the world did she manage to injure herself that badly?" Judy demands immediately, her joy from holding her first grandchild had been promptly snuffed out the moment she realized that one of her children was on death's door.

"Probably has something to do with that pulse a couple of days ago," Brittany mused tapping her foot as she began to think.

"What pulse?" Lawrence and Russell said at the same time.

Artemis frowned ever so slightly, "It's certainly nothing to worry about—"

"Mother," Judy interrupts, narrowing her own eyes as she studies her mother. She usually never dug or contradicted her, especially when it came to Charlie, but that was because her mother had always seemed to be honest when it came to Charlie. But she wasn't going to let her mother just brush it aside.

"I'm not attempting to fool you dear, or even lie to you. Charlie will be fine, she's incredibly resilient and more importantly she's strong. Charlie's strong—"

"You know something that you're not sharing," Judy interrupts. She knew her daughter was strong and resilient, but Charlie hadn't had an accident since she was twelve. Her control was just as good as Brittany's and Frannie's. The only people in Ohio who could actually hurt Charlie were Quinn and Cassandra and the damage that she was looking at didn't look like their work, which meant that this had been an accident.

"Charlie was the cause of the pulse, but it was probably accidental. I imagine there will be growing pains, and I'm disappointed that she didn't push through. She was nearly there—"

"Nearly where?" Judy snaps at her mother, growing agitated. She had trusted her mother with Charlie, she had allowed Artemis to take over Charlie's training, and she'd been training Charlie since she was a child. She had wondered if it was too much at times, but Charlie never complained about training, she enjoyed it.

Artemis sighed, "The reason that only Level 5's could feel it is because for the most part we are more in tune with, well, with reality. Charlie's on the verge of breaking through."

It takes Lawrence a moment, "What? Level 6's are theoretical."

"Well not for much longer," Artemis replied, with a pleased smile. She had chosen the right successor to protect this family. Charlie had done what Cassandra had never been able to do no matter how much she pushed. She had always known that her granddaughter was mentally strong.

There was a stunned silence in the room, before Frannie scowled, "So it's Charlie's fault that me and Michelangelo went through that hell?" She inhaled sharply, maybe she should simply throw Charlie into the sun. She was pretty sure Charlie wouldn't be able to survive that.

"It was an accident, and she really had no way of knowing that it would affect every level 5 in the country, if not the continent." Artemis pointed out, coming to Charlie's immediate defense.

"I'm throwing her into the sun the next time I see her," Frannie muttered under her breath.

"Kit—"

"Do not, she's going in the sun the moment I get my strength back up," Frannie snaps.

"Kitkat," Artemis tries again, and she weathers the sharp glare that Frannie sends her way. "We're in uncharted territory here and—"

"The whole point of us moving to Lima, instead of another city, is so the twins could have a normal life, so that they could make friends, so that they could date—not so that they could kill themselves training. Charlie's seventeen, she's just seventeen and neither Brittany or Frannie had to work nearly as hard as she does. She works harder than Cassandra ever did and look at how Cassandra turned out. I'm not against her being pushed, but this—this is too much."

"Judy, she's a good kid, her grades haven't slipped she—"

Judy turned to look at her ex-husband, "Yes that's just it, she's a kid. I'm not going to take her off the team, I know how much it means to her, but getting up at 4 am every morning to train, that's going to stop. She's going to sleep in, she's going to be a normal teenager. Her body is literally falling apart, she's injuring herself, Brittany can't keep healing her, there's going to be a time when Brittany won't be able to heal her. She could have killed herself, and for what? Charlie's already strong, she's already resilient, so I don't know why she needs to kill herself to prove it to everyone."

"We're in uncharted territory here with Charlie's training, but to cut her off from training—this was an accident and I'm sure that Charlie's already dealing with the consequences. I'll tell her that she simply needs to be a bit more—"

"You're not telling her anything, mom, I'm her mother. She can train with the titans, but outside of that she'll do her homework, she'll eat, she'll sleep at a normal time, wake up late, and just be a normal teenager," Judy cuts off her mother, for years Cassandra had been telling her that allowing their mother unrestricted access to the kids—to Charlie was not good. But Charlie had loved her grandparents, and she hadn't minded the lessons that Artemis was teaching Charlie, but this was too far.

"Mother? Are you sure about that? For the past few months you've refused to engage with her. You've been scared of her, and you've treated her as if she's some sort of monster. Instead of encouraging her, instead of pushing her to be the best person she can possibly be, you've held her back."

"Dear!" Lawrence tries to interrupt but is quickly silenced by the dark look on her face, and he takes a step back unsure of who to defend.

Judy sputtered, her cheeks turning a bright red as she opened her mouth to defend herself when Frannie cleared her throat.

"The energy in this room is toxic, I don't want that around Michelangelo. If you want to continue this conversation then I suggest that you leave," Frannie announced just as Michelangelo began to cry. Frannie's brow twitched and she immediately got up to fuss over her baby.

~ O ~

'So, Marley filled me in on your plan, and all I can say is that you guys had better not lose to the fish-fucker.'

Santana's brow twitched as Charlie's voice came through their communication network, it was clear Marley also showed her how to use their communication system, and she shakes her head, choosing to ignore Charlie. "Look, I know that this—"

'Seriously Santana, he fucks dolphins. You can't lose to him. No one will ever take you seriously if you—Marley, let go I'm giving them one of my patented pep talks, it helps boost morale!'

Santana tilts her head as the sound of wrestling over the microphone is heard, and she sighs and looks over at the rest of the team, there were amused looks around and somehow Charlie had managed to ease their nerves, even if she was being an idiot.

'Sorry about that, I had to get Quinn to help me pin her down for a moment. We've banned her from using the comms, so go ahead Santana.' It's Marley this time and even though she's the one talking they can all hear some muffled shouting in the background.

Santana rolls her eyes and looks back at the team, "Alright, our draw actually wasn't that bad. The Deep and—"

The ground beneath their feet begins to quake and shake, as the field begins to part as the ground begins to terraform into what appeared to be an ocean. There were a few sandy banks interspersed throughout the new field. There were also a few boats which were anchored to a floating dock. Before anyone can do anything a killer whale breaches, as the audience begins to cheer and whistle in excitement.

"Beast Boy," Santana finished, as she looked across the ocean field where Beast Boy and The Deep were obviously talking strategy. But that wasn't their current problem all this water—her abilities were fire based. They were basically stuck in an ocean, she was about to be rendered useless.

'Fire beats water if it's hot enough but—Marley I'm giving helpful advice! Let me speak!'

Santana takes a deep breath and removes the communication device from her ear, so she can think. Going as hot as possible wasn't exactly a sound strategy, she needed to remain in control here, and if she went nuts then she'd only hurt her own teammates. This field made escaping a near impossibility, they would never be able to beat The Deep or Beastboy in a swimming competition, and even with the boats, with the water filled with sea life, and the fact that Beastboy could turn into any animal, using the boats was out of the question.

"You okay Santana?" Blaine asks. They needed a plan if they were going to pull this off, and even if they had one they would need to implement their plan perfectly.

Santana took a deep shaky breath, before turning to the team as she replaced her earpiece. "Two heroes, means two teams. Blaine is captain of one, I'm captain of the other. Artie, Tina, Finn, Jake, Kitty and Matt you're with Blaine, everyone else—"

'Wrong.' Charlie's voice caused everyone to pause.

"Wrong?" Santana grits her teeth. Charlie really was the most annoying person on the planet. "Why the fuck is my plan wrong?"

'Matt. Think about it.'

Santana lets out a low frustrated growl, she wasn't in the mood to deal with Charlie talking in riddles, she would prefer the answer right now, before the event started. She quickly thinks about it, for whatever reason Charlie had always paired her up with Matt, she had thought it was because they were fighting but she'd never been able to really figure out why. She thought it was just some punishment, Matt's ability was defensive, the ability to create force fields and—Santana blinks and looks at him. She had thought that Charlie was punishing her, she hadn't thought that Charlie had realized that there was synergy between their abilities. "Matt with me. Blaine, you're taking Beastboy, my team will handle the Deep. Marley are Rachel's speakers waterproof?"

'Yes, but I wouldn't suggest doing a deep dive with them or anything.'

"I can work with that, alright here's my plan," Santana says as the team huddles together.

~ O ~

"Are you seriously not going to watch?" Cassandra asked Shelby, glancing over at her, she had been talking to the four members of Vocal Adrenaline.

Shelby glanced up at the screen for a moment before shrugging her shoulders, "There is nothing to watch. Charlie isn't competing and without her, McKinley is an unranked team that is barely capable of beating the worst schools in our region. The Deep is a part of The Seven, and Beastboy is part of Young Justice, they are both A-listers, and the field has made it impossible for Santana to shine, leaving just Blaine to carry the load. I imagine that this lasts five minutes."

Cassandra raised a brow, and glanced at the television again for a moment, she knew her nieces, not well but well enough to know that Charlie would never allow this to happen without her, unless she believed that they could win. So instead of turning away she hit record, so that they could grab the footage. Shelby would probably thank her later. She's about to turn her attention back to Shelby so she could help her go over a game plan when the final buzzer sounded and the competition starts, before she can take her eyes off the action McKinley moves at a speed that they had no right in moving at, as one of their members steps forward—she had no idea who he was and prevents both Beastboy and The Deep from entering the water. "The fuck?"

Shelby turns to look at what had Cassandra's interest and spots Rachel placing her arms in the water, "What is she doing?"

"Fuck if I know," Cassandra admits as both The Deep and Beastboy are dropped rather unceremoniously in front of the McKinley Titans.

~ O ~

Quinn grabbed her phone which was buzzing in her pocket and glanced at it, even as her main focus was on the television. A picture of a little baby with a blue hat, appears on her screen and she grins and immediately swats her twin.

"Not now Quinn! I need to be ready to—is that my nephew?" Charlie asks when Quinn shoves the phone in front of her, breaking her concentration as she smiles. "Look at those cheeks!"

"He's adorable isn't he?" Quinn agrees. "I wonder if Britt sent his name, hold on."

Charlie waits ignoring the fact that their support team and Beiste are looking at her and Quinn. "Well?"

"Michelangelo," Quinn frowns ever so slightly. It was rather fancy for a baby. She immediately looks at Charlie who has a massive grin on her face, it was rather disturbing. "Whatever you're thinking—"

"Our nephew is a Ninja Turtle! I know the perfect gift for him!" Charlie immediately turns to look at Marley. "Can you make me a pair of Nunchucks?"

Marley blinked twice and looked at Quinn who immediately shook her head no, "Charlie—he's a baby. I don't think your sister would appreciate you giving him a weapon when he's not even a few hours old."

Quinn flashed Marley a relieved smile, hoping that would put an end to Charlie's idea to arm a baby with a deadly weapon. Frannie would probably blame her even though this was Charlie's crazy idea. "What Marley said. Look, we should get him a stuffed—"

"Ninja Turtle," Charlie interrupts immediately. "You're a genius Quinn. We should get him the set. Also even though Frannie clearly named him after the most popular Ninja Turtle, we shouldn't assume. When he's older we should get him the set, a staff, the sai, swords, and nunchucks."

Quinn opened her mouth, and then closed it, and decided it was just best to let her twin live in her fantasy world. "You should probably be watching the competition," she says hoping that would be the end of it.

Charlie glanced at the television for a moment watching as Finn managed to stop a rampaging green elephant that bounced off his body, "I already helped Quinn, Santana and Blaine want to do this without me and I need to let them. Besides, they don't need my help."

~ O ~

Rod Remington was speechless, it was a first for a reporter, but he was witnessing something that he hadn't believed was possible. But McKinley wasn't just surviving, they were thriving without Charlie. The Deep was a bonafide A-lister, one of the more popular superheroes in America, and Beastboy was a member of Young Justice and a massive celebrity. They had saved the world multiple times and yet they were now getting their asses handed to them by a group who up until this year, had never made it to sectionals before.

Sure their movements were rough, and quite a few of them hesitated, but the rumors that he had heard of McKinley failing to impress against weaker schools, had to be just that rumors. "I can't believe my eyes ladies and gentlemen—that's another 50 points for McKinley as both Tina Cohen-Chang and Kitty Wilde managed to get to the exit and escape. This is most certainly an embarrassment for both Vought and Young Justice, as they haven't been able to manage to mount even a semblance of an offence."

Rod flinches as a heavy blow is landed by Blaine, dropping Beastboy who appears stunned. "I can see Charlie Fabray's audacity is rubbing off on McKinley. In case you're just joining us, she started off the day by doing something that has never been done during the Inter-High, she managed to drag McKinley to a perfect score in one of the more daunting and trickier events Open Season. Even more impressive, she did it while sporting what appeared to be a terrible shoulder injury, I've never seen anything like it. Charlie Fabray proved to everyone watching that not only is she the hottest prospect this year, she is a force to be reckoned with."

Rod took a breath and grimaced again as The Deep suddenly dropped to the ground, he hadn't quite seen what had happened but The Deep was clearly out. He didn't quite understand why he wasn't using the help of the multiple sea creatures that were in the waters, there were whales, sharks and dolphins, but after the first Orca had breached, the oceans had been pretty quiet. "I like many other scouts were worried that she decided to sit out the next round, but I must admit that I underestimated McKinley, they're just as absurd and audacious as she is. Artie Abrahms, Jake Puckerman, Ryder Lynn—"

There's a loud boom, as suddenly Beast Boy's blown back landing in a heap in the water, and Rod stares in shock and wonder as Sam and Blaine immediately retreat, heading towards the exit as Beast Boy attempts to get up, but his legs give up from underneath him. The entire arena is quiet as Sam, Blaine pull back and immediately head towards the exit, leaving just three members of the Titans on the field. "Holy shit they're actually going to pull this off—and in record time!" Rod blinked and cleared his throat, "Apologies for the language folks."

Rod can barely take his eyes off the field as The Deep begins to stir, and he looks absolutely annoyed at how the event is going. The Deep turns to the sea and raises his hand, he half expects to see a school of shark fins in the water, but nothing happens. When the Deep attempts again, he is promptly knocked out by Santana Lopez.

The crowd is stunned as Santana turns up the heat, erupting into flames as she motions for both Rachel and Matt to make their escape as she plays defense. She was the captain of this event, it made sense that she would be the last one to leave. And despite the fact that both Heroes are down, Santana doesn't take her time to leave, she doesn't make a statement, she just follows both Rachel and Matt through the exit as the buzzer sounds.

There is no immediate applause, there is still a stunned silence. It takes a moment for Rod to find his voice, but he does and clears his throat. "With a time of 11 minutes, and a score of 1275 points, the McKinley Titans!" Rod announced to the audience watching at home, as the crowd erupts. "I'm sure you can hear it folks, the sound and of the audience responding to what was such a gutsy display! That will certainly go down in the history books, and I'm sure that many people will be going over this performance with a fine tooth comb, including many scouts. Congratulations McKinley, they are going to make their debut at Nationals, which are taking place this year in New York City."