Character Death.
Mistakes are mine and there might be many.
-RCV
LJ glanced at them as if they were insane.
"Let me see if I have this correct," he said. "Not only is someone trying to kill Sue but that someone might be in the same location as Sue at this very moment. That location is a weird cult-like church in the middle of downtown where Quinn has been roped into some type of ceremony? Did I miss anything?"
"I think that's it, though it would be nice to know why Dad was over here in the first place," Tori said pointedly.
"Handling my business," Leroy sighed.
"If you say so," Tori added. "I'm not trying to pry, just trying to make sure I have my story straight when the police show up asking why a fifty-
"HEY!"
"-year old bisexual man is hanging out with an eighteen year old lesbian while her absent father is at work," Tori finished.
LJ pinched his sister on the hip and said, "Stop it."
Tori held up her hands and plopped down on the couch next to Rachel, who then punched Tori in the arm.
"What the fuck was that for!"
"For trying to get a rise out of Dad so he can tell us his secrets," Rachel scolded.
Tori rubbed at her arm. "No need for violence," she grumbled.
"Can we please focus here?" Santana said. "Quinn might be in trouble and you're so worried about why your father was here. That's literally the least important thing right now I can assure you."
Tori narrowed her eyes but said nothing.
"We have to go to that church," Emma said softly.
Everyone turned to glance at her standing by the window. She had fresh tears pouring down her cheeks and her hands clasped over her chest.
"We can't stand here arguing and speculating. We should just go there and see what's happening for ourselves," she added.
"That's a big chance we would be taking," LJ said.
"Who cares? I'm with Emma."
The group faced Puck who was leaning against the wall on the other side of the room. The scar on his head matched with the look in his eyes gave Rachel the chills. He was a different person after the attack, and no matter how hard she pushes, he refuses to tell her who it was. But Rachel had an idea, and she was afraid of what that meant for Puck in the future.
"Same. I'm with Red and Jewish James Dean over there," Tori said.
Puck shot Tori a look and she met his stare evenly. Puck broke first but only because Santana called his name.
"You sure you want to go in there? After what they did to you?" she asked.
Puck visibly ground his teeth. "They ain't do it, I keep telling y'all that!" he exclaimed. "Now stop fucking mentioning it."
Santana rolled her eyes, but Rachel could see his comment bothered her. Emma moved away from the window and headed towards the front door. Leroy immediately put his hand on the door and got in her way.
"You cannot just go there with no plan," he said.
"Then come up with one on the way because I am not waiting anymore," she hissed.
Leroy sighed and glanced around the room. LJ and Tori were already grabbing their jackets while Santana was rifling through a drawer in the back. He saw her take out a gun, but she gave him a dark look when he opened his mouth to say something. Santana started to tuck the gun into the waistband of her pants, but Puck grabbed it from her.
"Hey-
"They catch you with a weapon that's a case, San," he said sharply.
"You too!"
"Who do you think would last longer in prison?" he deadpanned.
She folded her arms against her chest and dropped the conversation. Puck walked over to the couch and pulled Rachel up.
"You in?" he asked.
"Yes," she said.
"Rachel!" Leroy exclaimed
"It's Quinn, Dad," Rachel sighed.
Leroy was outnumbered. He moved out of the way and Emma gave him a sharp nod before she opened the door. Tori stole Santana's keys from her pocket, a bad habit she picked up as a child, and Tori rushed after Emma.
"I'm driving!" she screamed.
"You don't even know-
Tori was gone. Leroy turned to Santana and winced.
"I am so sorry," he said.
"Don't worry about it, but please tell me you know something might be severely wrong with your child," Santana said.
"We had her tested. The test results were inconclusive," he sighed.
"Which is code for insane," LJ chimed in.
Tori spun around suddenly, and the group took a step back as she fixed them with a cold smile.
"I can hear you. For the people who sleep under the same roof as me, I would be very careful what you say about me behind my back," she warned.
Tori turned back to the car. Rachel came up to the group and whispered, "You guys are in trouble."
"I'm always in trouble," LJ whispered back.
"Scaredy-cats," Santana said.
Rachel and LJ looked back at her and said in unison, "Spend the night with us."
"Don't ever do that again," Santana said.
"Least Tori wasn't with them. Now that is creepy," Leroy said.
A car horn honked impatiently and the group hurried to the respective cars.
Sue bounced her leg and chewed on her lip as another child was "baptized." It was obvious the only people enjoying it were the ushers and the preacher. After the fourth teen went under, the crowd became restless. The massive tub in the center of the stage was filled with water and based on the way the teens screamed out told her it was hotter than it needed to be. She saw the looks on some of the parent's faces, how the mothers hid in their husband's necks or how siblings cried in unison with their brother or sister. Each teen came out of that water bright red and whimpering so loud Sue could hear it all the way in the back.
It was horrible.
The line moved and Sue had tears in her eyes as Finn stepped forward. He looked out into the audience, and whatever he saw had him changing his mind.
"I'm not doing this," he said.
The preacher frowned.
"Pardon?"
"I'm not doing this," Finn repeated.
The ushers stepped forward and started to physically drag Finn to the tub.
"NO! LET ME GO!" he screamed.
"Shush, my son. It will be over soon," the preacher soothed.
The preacher gave someone in the background a look and one of the ushers took a cane to the back of Finn's knees. Sue saw Quinn step into the light but was held back immediately by a familiar looking Cheerio. Finn went down hard, and they held him over the tub. Unlike the others, they dunked him headfirst. They held him down, even as Finn flailed on the floor. She heard Finn's mother yell and jump up from a nearby pew, but Burt kept her from going far. Finn rose from the water sputtering, gasping, but they pushed him back down.
Sue couldn't do it anymore. She stood up and shouted, "LET HIM GO!"
Silence fell in the sanctuary. The entire congregation turned and looked at her. She only had eyes for Finn. He was sobbing and calling out for his mother. Sue walked into the middle of the aisles and pointed at the preacher.
"You are no man of God. You are a fraud for what you are doing to these children!"
"How dare you! Bring her to me."
The ushers moved in unison, but she stood strong. Two grabbed her by the arms and led her to the stage. Sue kept a brave face, even in the presence of someone she classified as pure evil.
"You should be rejoicing in what we are doing. We are preparing the next generation for battle, for War. All you are doing is interfering with what is destined to happen."
"The only thing you're doing is torturing a bunch of children and convincing their parents that this is the best and only way for what you deem as 'purification'. You're nothing but a racist and bigoted prick with a delusional idea of the world."
The preacher grabbed a cane from one of the ushers and raised it above his head. Sue had no idea where he was aiming, what he planned, but she closed her eyes and accepted whichever.
As soon as they walked through the door, things happened so very fast. Santana had never seen Emma move that fast. When they saw Sue on that stage, preacher with a cane aimed for her head, Emma was a red blur of fury. Santana and Puck were right behind her. Emma flew up the stairs while Puck and Santana took care of the ushers. She tackled Sue as the cane came down. The two tumbled to the floor and that sent the entire crowd into a frenzy. Parents rushed the stage and grabbed their teens. Ushers were overpowered. The preacher was lost, angry, and stared at the crowd with disgust. Rachel looked on the stage and saw Finn, bright red and still crying, and she vanished into the crowd. Santana saw her, but she also caught sight of a familiar head of blonde hair in the distance.
"Quinn!" she called out.
The girl ran towards her. Santana caught Quinn mid-jump and spun her around. Their celebration was short-lived as a yell echoed through the sanctuary. All action stopped. Santana and Quinn both froze as they looked to the stage. The preacher had Rachel by the neck with a gun to her head.
"Where the hell did he get a gun?" LJ hissed to Tori.
"Rachel!" Leroy shouted.
"Be quiet!" the preacher said.
Rachel pulled at the arm constricting her neck, but the preacher tightened his grip.
"Everyone, sit down," he said.
Some remained standing. Others immediately sat down. Puck silently moved in the shadows. Finn knelt behind the preacher. He and Puck met eyes. Finn nodded, Puck hesitated, but nodded as well. The preacher was foaming at the mouth in anger. Unfortunately, someone got bold, and ran. But instead of running to the preacher, they ran to the door. That sparked a stampede. Crowds sprinted to the door, and Santana held Quinn close to avoid being ran over. While the crowds departed, Puck stormed the stage, gun aimed at the preacher. Finn came from behind. The distraction worked, and Rachel went flying forward as the preacher pushed her out of the way. She crashed into the podium and barely managed to get a piece of wood stuck in her chest.
A shot rang out, and Rachel covered her ears. Another shot ran out, and she risked turning around. All she could see was Finn falling. He dropped to his knees. Puck rushed to catch him, and Rachel was frozen to the spot. Finn met her eyes and he smiled sadly.
"I'm sorry," he mouthed.
Rachel moved into action. She scrambled forward and put her hands on the stomach wound.
"Finn," she said. "Don't you dare. You're going to be okay."
There were footsteps. She didn't need to turn around to know that it was her growing family. Rachel pressed harder on the wound. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Santana staring at Finn with haunted eyes. When Rachel looked back, she saw Finn staring at Santana. Something passed between them, and Finn gave another pained smile.
"Forgive me," he whispered.
Santana gave a short nod, tears streaming down her face. Finn gave a strangled sob and closed his eyes. Puck shook Finn's shoulder.
"Hey, man, open your eyes," he said. "Finn!"
Puck kept shaking him. Rachel could feel his chest rise once, and when it fell, it didn't rise again. She wrapped her arms around Puck. He tried pushing her off but she held on.
"He's gone," she said in his ear. "He's gone."
Finn's mother and step-father stepped forward. Rachel got Puck to his feet and they took a step away from the body. Carole's sob was heart-wrenching. In the back of her mind, Rachel wondered where Kurt was in all of this. She brushed the thought aside and moved to stand with her family. Emma was holding Sue as the woman cried. LJ and Tori stood with Leroy a little further away. Rachel looked down at the blood on her hands and she stared at them. Flashes of the night with Issacs went through her mind. She trembled and pushed off Puck.
"Rae?" LJ called out.
She ignored him. She walked off the stage and out of the church.
Santana and Quinn looked at one another before they followed Rachel out of the church. Behind them, Puck smashed the remnants of the podium. He screamed and screamed and screamed until his voice went out. As they walked out of the church, they found Rachel in the parking lot, staring at the sky. They came up on both sides and despite the blood, they grabbed her hands. They stood there in silence.
No one could believe it.
Finn was…dead.