Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, or the lyrics to 'Defying Gravity'.
A.N. My thanks as always go to all those who continue to read/review and add this story to their alerts.
I would also like to thank xXLittle Rose AngelXx for agreeing to be my beta :)
The next day came sooner than anyone thought possible. Even though Finn's brutal assault was four days ago, to those it had affected it felt like weeks, not days, had passed. Both Emma and Sue had stayed late at the Berry residence, making plans, reassuring Rachel that one way or the other she would get justice, and providing comfort to all the gleeks.
Now as several alarms woke the family, D-day had arrived and the house was once more alive with activity. Blaine and Britt prepared breakfast for all, Kurt and Quinn helped Rachel get ready, and the rest of the boys plus Santana and Lauren, tried to unleash their anger outside so that they could be calm while at school. A knock on the door announced the arrival of Mercedes, Tina and Sue, come to get the glee convoy on their way to the school early so they could all avoid the majority of the student poplutaion and get themselves settled in the choir room.
Rachel was eerily quiet as she made her way downstairs. She hadn't so much as hummed in the previous four days, but once she saw Naoh talking with the cheerleading coach she relaxed enough to eat a small meal, and speak to her fathers who called religiously each day. She was still keeping them in the dark until their return on the weekend, and while she knew they would be angry, selfishly she didn't feel strong enough to deal with their inevitable reaction.
"You're overthinking things again Rach. Don't start second guessing yourself now." Blaine spoke quietly but firmly. He was going to be at McKinley to support his adoped sister; Sue had arranged the visitor's pass. Speaking of the teacher, Rachel noticed her deep in conversation with Quinn and Brittany. The girls were holding a clothes bag and a folder; Sue seemed very happy to see them and whatever they contained.
"Ok kids it's time to leave, Emma's just sent the signal that the coast is clear. As we discussed last night she is meeting Schue, Finn and his mother at their house." Sue checked her phone again when a second message arrived, and added, "Kurt it seems your absence has been noticed by your dad, has he tried making contact?"
Kurt cursed under his breath softly checking his phone, and sure enough he had a few missed calls from his dad. He quickly called Burt's personal line, spoke briefly to him and ended the call.
"I told him a white lie. He'll understand when he hears the full story. Now, let's get moving."
With that, the gleeks gathered up their belongings, checked the house was properly locked up and that the alarm was set before jumping into their cars, Rachel tucked up beside Noah in his truck.
Finn was starting to feel anxious as he tried to listen to Burt's conversation with Kurt. Up to that point things had gone as he had planned. Mr Schue had outlined the bullying he was suffering, and Ms Pilsbury was recommending an all day group session for the whole club to take place today. Burt return to the kitchen table where they were sitting and seemed impressed that the counsellor could organise something like that so quickly. Carole wanted to be there to see the kids try to defend themselves but Finn thought he would be better able to control the situation if it was just the teachers present, so his mom agreed to stay away.
"Why don't you finish getting ready, Finn?" Ms Pilsbury said as she stood up from the table. "I need to get to the school to finish the last minute details but I'm sure that Mr Schuester can drive you. Perhaps you can get your thoughts together; figure out what you want to say to everyone?"
Finn gave the red-head his trademark smile, internally applauding his manipulation of yet another adult and missing the brief flicker of anger that crossed Emma's face.
"Mr and Mrs Hummel, thank you for your time and for allowing us to deal with this issue within the club," Will began only to be interupted by Emma.
"Sorry just one last thing: are you both available later if we need parents to enforce the decsions made today? It will really help ensure a successful outcome."
Carole and Burt exchanged a quick look. "Of course we're available, our children come first, we need to show our support to them," Burt said slowly.
Hearing Finn's footsteps on the stairs, Emma moved quickly to the door, pausing to say goodbye before jumping into her car and calling Sue.
The convoy of gleeks had reached McKinley without incident, and made their way to the choir room that Emma had set up for their group session. Two cameras had been placed where they would capture all that was said and only one of the doors was unlocked, meaning there was only one entry and exit to the room. Sue had taken steps to ensure that the classrooms and hallways in the immediate vicinity of the choir room were out of bounds for the duration of the day so that there would be no unexpected disruptions to the proceedings.
To everybody's relief, Jacob had been away for a few days and so no information or photos were in danger of appearing on his blog, and to maintain the privacy of the group the boy was being isolated under the watchful eye of Coach Beiste, per Emma's request.
Taking their seats, Sue noticed how the kids looked after each other at all times, and how chairs had been assigned so all the gleeks felt comfortable and in control. In the last twenty-four hours she had gained a new found respect for these students; there was no doubt in her mind that in ten or twenty years time they would still be as close knit as there were today. Though there was an undeniable air of anxiety and tension in the room, Sue watched their interaction with fascination. The majority of it non-verbal communication; a hand on a shoulder, linked pinkies, absentminded hair rubbing and reassuring smiles.
There was also a small buzz of sound that was slowly growing in volume. Rachel was humming quietly to herself; lost in her thoughts, Sue guessed. Soon enough Kurt and Blaine picked up the tune, joining in just as softly. One by one all the kids added their voices to the melody, harmonising with each other and watching the light growing in Rachel's eyes as she softly sang for the first time in days.
"And if I'm flying solo, at least I'm flying free. To those who'd ground me, take a message back from me. Tell them how I'm defying gravity, I'm flying high...and you can't bring me down."
Emma watched the impromptu performance from the choir room door, knowing the importance of both the song itself to Rachel, and also the fact that she was singing at all. Catching Sue's eye, she let her know that Will and Finn had arrived, and, as previously agreed, Sue left the room for the time being, in case her presence caused Finn to become suspicious of how the day was really going to go. Sue's departure alerted the kids that it was almost judgement time for their fallen male lead. The sound of footsteps close to the door saw the noise levels in the room drop considerably. It was showtime.
A.N. Did anyone else act like a giddy fool when Puck winked at Rachel in the first few minutes of 'Choke'? The promo scene for next week with Puck and Becky looks like a super cute moment as well :)
As always I welcome your comments,thoughts and ideas on this chapter. There will be an update on Sunday for ye all to look forward to as well. Til next time, thanks for reading ~Carrie
