Hey, everyone!

This is something new. I'm not sure if this will turn out to be a one-shot, or a collection of one-shots. We'll see.

If you haven't seen The Tomorrow People, I strongly suggest you find a way to watch it. They only made one season, but the last episode pretty much wraps everything up nicely, so I was happy with it ending where it did.

One of my favorite relationships in the series was the one between John and Charlotte. There was just something so protective, innocent, and sweet about it. I didn't think the show gave it enough attention. So this is my solution.

Enjoy!

Brother

Screams echo down the hallway. A piercing cry to her right rattles the girl, and she shrinks back, resisting against the strong guards at her sides. They take no notice, wrenching her up further.

Tears prick the girl's eyes, but they don't fall. They stopped falling long ago. Right about the time when she gave up.

The girl trips over her own feet, and part of her doesn't want to stand back up. Part of her wishes that she could stay limp. That they would let her fall. Let her die.

The guards heft her up, yanking on her arms. A small whimper falls from her lips, but she doesn't cry. She saves those for later, when she'll really want to scream.

The men at her sides pause next to a door. One of them slides a key card into a small slot in the wall. A beep, and the red light above the door turns green. The door slides open with a hiss, and the guards pull her inside.

A chair sits in the center of the bland room, cuffs on the arms and legs. She whimpers, and hesitates, causing the men to roughly shove her forward. One of them sets her in the chair, ignoring her shaking breath, and slight cries of fear. He fastens the restraints, testing them slightly to make sure they hold.

He exits, his partner following close behind. Once they leave, the girl sags against the restraints, closing her eyes. She wishes to fall asleep. A few minutes of blissful ignorance. She gets no such gift.

The door opens again, and a woman in a labcoat enters. Her arms start shaking, fear making her heart race. The woman, though her appearance makes no difference to the girl, is dark skinned, her frizzy hair pulled back taut in a bun. She attaches different monitors to her, as the girl turns her head away.

The woman straps a wire to the girls arm, then gives the whole set up a once-over. She nods to herself, and leaves the room. Once again, the girl collapses against the chair, but this time in despair. She's trapped. Trapped, afraid, and helpless. There is no way out of the cycle. No way out of the chair. No way out of her life.

Suddenly, a familiar buzzing in her arm, vibrating out to her entire body, snaps her mind to attention. The electricity increases, quickly turning from uncomfortable to painful. Slowly, the pain level rises, until the girl can't hold her cries inside. She screams, loud and raw, as the electricity tears at her being, filling every cell in her body with the horrible, nausea-inducing anguish.

There is no escape. Not from the pain. Not from this place. Not from her life.

"Charlie! Charlie!" John said sharply, holding Charlotte's shoulders as she twisted, crying silently.

"C'mon, Charlie, wake up." He begged her. "It's just a nightmare. You have to wake up. It isn't real."

Russell stood at the door of Charlotte's room, leaning on the doorframe for support. His face was screwed up in pain, and he hissed when a sharp stab of pain penetrated his mind.

"John, do something." He rasped, closing his eyes tightly.

"Charlie, wake up." John said in a low, desperate voice. "Please just wake up."

The pain was unbearable, searing her whole body, making her lose control. She tried to relax, give them what they wanted, but she couldn't. Too much pain, too much fear.

...Charlie...wake up…

She screamed loudly, the only time she really made a noise. She felt her throat tearing, growing sore, but she couldn't stop, had to scream, had to do something.

...just a dream...not real…

Charlotte forced her eyes open in the chair, taking in her surroundings. The pain was still there, searing away. Her voice still wailed, ringing out like a siren.

She looked at the glass window, where the doctors stood, studying her reactions, scribbling on their clipboards.

...not real...come back…

Each of them was featureless. Like mannequins. Fake. Featureless. Not people. Monsters.

The glass shattered, and the people crawled through the window, slithering along the floor, gaping holes appearing where their mouths should be. Small needle-like teeth stuck out, and the creatures hissed, making their way toward her.

...please...wake up...I'm here...

Charlotte screeched, yanking at the restraints holding her still, as the creatures crept closer and closer, until she could see every detail in their horrid, gastly mouths.

She shot straight up, panic blinding her. Charlotte felt strong arms wrap around her, holding her still. She screamed, fighting for a moment, tears running down her cheeks. Then she heard the voice.

"Charlie, it's John." He said loudly, trying to capture her attention. "You're safe; I got you."

Charlotte sagged against him, relief renewing her tears. She clutched John tightly, desperately hoping this wasn't a cruel dream, or trick.

She heard a sigh of relief by the door. Russell's voice rang out loudly in the small space.

"Thanks, John." He said, sounding exhausted. "I'll go tell the others it's over."

Charlotte reluctantly pulled back, looking up at John. She searched his expression for a sign of fading pain, and remorse stabbed her heart when she located it. Tears welled in her eyes, and she stared down at the bedspread, shame coursing through her.

"I didn't mean to." She whispered. "I don't mean to hurt people."

John's arms wrapped around her again. He pulled her to his chest, resting his chin on top of her head. He gently stroked her hair, his other hand holding her close.

"Shh…" He soothed her. "You're fine."

Charlotte sobbed, a sharp sound that hurt John worse than any pain she could cause him. "I hurt you." She cried. John pulled his head away when she looked up in his eyes. "The other Tomorrow People don't deserve this." She closed her eyes, leaning against his chest, tears falling to the blanket below her. "They don't deserve to be hurt."

John closed his eyes, emotion choking him for a moment. "You're right." He whispered. Charlotte looked up at him questioningly, her eyes glistening. "They don't deserve any more pain than they have already been through."

Charlotte blinked, hurt crossing her face in spite of herself. Quickly, John grasped her shoulders, and looked intently into her eyes.

"But neither do you." He insisted. "Charlotte, you've been through so much. You can't help it if it's hard to recover."

"But I'm dangerous." She cried. Charlotte took a shuddering breath in. "I'd be better off if you let me live on the street." She pulled back, dropping her head into her arms.

"No, Charlotte." John quietly disagreed. "I won't give up on you." He shifted to sit beside her, and draped an arm over her shoulders, feeling her shiver. "And besides, its getting better."

"I still have the dreams." Charlotte whispered, peeking her eyes out from her arms. "Every night."

John nodded, closing his eyes for a moment. "I do, too." He murmured, so quietly Charlotte wondered if he'd meant for her to hear it.

"What do you dream about?" She asked quietly.

John clenched his eyes closed, images flying by.

The man at the comic book stand grunted. A hand tentatively reached up and brushed the red bullet wound in his chest. He looked up, and met eyes with John for a moment, before collapsing to the ground.

John stared at Jedekiah through the glass of the machine, the wires stuck to him icy cold. John saw Jedekiah nod at him in encouragement.

Roger stood with his hands raised, a pleading look on his face. John's finger tightened minisculely on the trigger, and the bullet burst from the gun. Roger jerked, and looked at him in shock, and hurt, before falling to the ground, one hand resting on the spot of blood that was gradually growing larger by the second…

John forced his eyes open and he looked down at Charlotte. She looked up at him in concern, her expression almost innocent. No, not innocent. Charlotte had been through too much to be innocent. She knew what horrors the world contained. She knew what kind of things humans did, supposedly to maintain their humanity.

"I hope you never know." John murmured to her. She wrapped her slender arms around him, tucking her head into his chest.

"I'm sorry you dream about bad things." Charlotte whispered.

"Me, too, Charlie." John said. "Me, too."

Gradually, Charlotte's head dipped lower and caught her as she started to fall, and gently laid her on the bed, pulling the covers over her. John brushed a hand over her long hair, clearing it away from her face. As he was standing up, Charlotte's small hand caught his.

"Wait…" She said sleepily. "Don't leave…"

John sank back down, and intertwined his fingers with Charlotte's. Still clutching his hand, she rolled slightly, sighing with peace, and sinking lower into the mattress.

John smiled. He looked down at her, and pulled the covers up a little more. "Don't worry, Charlie." He murmured. "I'll never leave you."

That's all for now. Just a scenario that's been bugging me for weeks. I had to get it out of my brain.

Review. Let me know what you think. And if you watch The Tomorrow People let me know what you thought of the show. Did I give an accurate depiction of the characters?

Cheers!