SUMMARY: He kisses her lips softly for the first – and last – time, then picks her up in his arms, gently places her into her grave, then turns around and cries some more as the other men bury her and Juliet wraps her arms around him. She wants so much to be alive again. Charladay.
A/N: At first I thought I wasn't going to post this, but then I thought, eh what the hell. My fellow Charladay shippers deserve a happy ending. It's also kind of different from what I normally write. Not sure what to rate it, but I'm making it a T. Enjoy!
She honestly doesn't know how she got here.
One minute, Daniel is with her, stoking her hair, reassuring her that Desmond and his mother are going to help them and the next it's all black and Daniel is crying, saying her name over and over: "Charlotte, Charlotte, Charlotte." She wishes she could tell him it's okay, hold him, maybe even kiss him like she's wanted to for what seems like ages. She just can't. She realizes when Miles starts talking to her that she's dead. Forever. This means there are only goodbyes and nothing else for her and Daniel.
Obviously, she doesn't tell Miles anything. If she wants to say something important to Daniel, she'll do it herself. They dig a hole, and just before they place her six feet under the rest of the group leaves, leaving just her body and Daniel. He kisses her lips softly for the first – and last – time, then picks her up in his arms, gently places her into her grave, then turns around and cries some more as the other men bury her and Juliet wraps her arms around him.
She wants so much to be alive again. She pleads with the heavenly host to let her go back for him, he needs her. They sadly shake their heads and say they can't, those are the rules.
For the next three years, every day starts and finishes that way.
The first day of the fourth year, she's sitting on the clouds, watching over him, like she always does. They have given her the position of being Daniel's unofficial Guardian Angel, because even God can't kill love. Rumors are that the orders came from the big man himself. There's also another rumor going around that he would have let her become Daniel's actual Guardian Angel, but angels and humans are different beings and it can't happen.
It's one of the few times she's been humbled by another being, but this time, she doesn't mind. She just enjoys watching him.
It grows darker, but she continues to keep her eyes on him even as the others go and meet the new crowd of residents. Some stare at her, listening to the others explain the situation, shaking their heads sadly. She ignores them, as always. All of them understand her situation, except for the little children, who sometimes sit and watch Daniel with her. She tells them stories of a beautiful princess with red hair and blue eyes and a tough attitude and her prince charming, who was awkward and funny and smart and they loved each other more than anything else in the world. Her stories have a considerably happier ending than the real thing.
Her eyes return to Daniel. He's sitting at a desk in his home, writing a letter, slowly, thoughtfully, carefully. For some reason she has a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. To her horror, she's right, because he puts down the pen and steps out of the house and pauses near the VW van he sometimes uses. Gun in hand. One bullet.
The realization hits her like a blow to the stomach. He's going to kill himself over her.
"No. No, no, no, no!" she screams, attracting the attention of several angels. They approach her, wanting to know what's wrong, and they see in an instant. And all don't really want this to happen. Because they know she loves him, and suicides go to hell, instantly making a no-win situation.
She turns to them, tears swimming in her bright blue eyes. "Please, for the love of God, please, let me go back! He can't do this to himself; he has so much life left to live! Please, I'm begging you." The angels turn to each other as she continues watching him (still begging him aloud not to do this); this is a unique situation in itself. They all have a small discussion, then nod in unison. Then the archangel Selaphiel, the intercessor, takes a step towards her, embraces her, murmurs "Farewell, child," and pushes her off the edge.
Into oblivion.
She opens her eyes.
She doesn't believe she's actually here, that they've actually let her go. She feels the grass underneath her fingertips, the cool of the evening, and yet she still doesn't believe it. That is, until her lungs remind her to breathe, thank you, and she inhales the crisp night air, instantly remembering why they sent her back.
She sits up and looks around, hoping that she landed in the right place. Mercifully, she's a few feet away from the van. Daniel is behind it, she can see his feet, but he doesn't see her. Slowly getting to her feet, she steps softly until she is standing at the front of the car. She can't see him, but he can see her.
Daniel contemplates the gun in his hand. He's nervous, and for a split second she thinks he's not going to do it, that he thinks life is worth living. But then he takes a deep breath and puts the gun to his temple, and she moves so quickly that she steps on a tree branch and breaks it with a loud crack!, and he freezes and holds out his gun in self defense, jaw dropping when he sees that it's her.
She knows he thinks he's dreaming; it's a hallucination of some sort, that there's some sort of explanation that she's standing in front of him, breathing, other than the fact that she's alive and not going anywhere anytime soon. So she does the next thing her heart tells her to (logic be damned), takes the next five steps it takes to reach him, wraps her arms around his neck, and kisses him, her tongue dancing slowly across his lips.
He pauses (she wonders if she did the right thing), then suddenly wraps his arms around her waist and kisses her back roughly, winning the battle for dominance in an instant as he shoves her against the side of the van, shoving his knee between her thighs as she gasps into his mouth. She doesn't notice as he sets the gun on the roof of the van (she's too concerned with the buttons of his shirt). He moves his lips to her neck, finding her pulse point and flicking his tongue at the same moment her heart beats and attempting to take off her shirt at the same time. She's a bit embarrassed that the first words out of her mouth are "Daniel, not out here," but doesn't really care when he lifts her up, bridal style, and carries her into his house.
They only make it as far as the couch, falling over it in a desperate frenzy, both of them with their shirts off and fumbling for each other's pants.
And it's fast and messy and sweaty and not at all perfect, but neither of them care. She's still not fully convinced that she's alive until Daniel pauses suddenly (she whines and bucks her hips in protest but he doesn't move) and softly whispers in her ear "I love you." She shatters in his arms at that exact moment, him swallowing her screams with his tongue as he goes over the edge as well. They collapse together, naked, breathless, sweaty, and in each other's arms. He's mentally kicking himself for being so rough and unbridled with her (she knows it), and as she's running her fingers through his hair she tells him "Daniel, that was the best thing I've ever experienced." He looks at her like she's joking, then smile broadly (making her heart flutter) when he realizes she's being honest. He kisses her again, and in two seconds they're both in a deep sleep.
That's how the rest of their lives start off, with kids and jobs and perhaps even rescue to be thrown in along the way.
Neither of them care.
After all, she is his guardian angel.
A/N 2: I inserted some things from Orthodox Christianity in the mix (I am one). If you need to be cleared up on something, ask in the review.
Much love! And review, they're like candy.