Disclaimer: I don't own Lost.
An Unexpected Reunion
Charlotte heard Daniel calling her name, but her mind was jumping again and she couldn't answer him. She began to fight to get back to where she should be, to him, but it was getting harder and harder. She knew she couldn't take much more. She finally returned to where she should be, just in time for another flash. She would've cried out, but she didn't have a lot of energy left. Her head felt like it was going to split in two, and she passed out.
Charlotte woke up and realized that she was being carried. She thought that the person carrying her was Daniel, but when she opened her eyes she didn't recognize the person. Gathering her remaining energy, she tried to remove herself from the man's arms, but she was still too weak. All of her thrashing tired her out, and she again succumbed to unconsciousness.
When she woke up again, she was lying on the ground of what appeared to be a tent. The second thing she noticed was that her headache had disappeared, and she felt perfectly fine again. She sat up, but when she tried to stand she realized her hands and feet were bound together.
Charlotte sighed. "Well, that's just bloody great. I feel normal, but they have me tied up so I can't escape. Just my luck"
Someone must've overheard her talking to herself, because the tent flap opened to reveal a man that she had last seen in 1954.
"Hello. I must say, you look as surprised to see me as I feel to see you" the man stated.
"Who are you? And what happened?" Charlotte asked. She wasn't in the mood for a pleasant conversation.
"My name is Richard Alpert. And as for what happened, I was hoping for you to tell me" he bent down and untied her feet.
"Well, Richard" Charlotte spat out his name. "Why do you want me to explain what happened. The last thing I remember, I was nowhere near any of you. I wake up, and I find out that I'm a prisoner?"
"Let's make things simple. Who are you?" Richard was still pleasant, which irritated Charlotte more.
"I don't see how that's any of your business" Charlotte replied. "You don't know anything about me, and I don't think I should divulge any information about myself now. I'm not in a sharing mood at the moment"
"I have to disagree. I know the last time I saw you was twenty years ago, when one of your companions admitted he was in love with you. From the look on your face when he said it, I assume you feel the same. Then, you disappear, and I didn't see any of you again until now" Richard sat down on a chair. "Are you hungry? I can bring you something to eat"
"I'm not hungry" Charlotte said. She actually was, but she was used to not eating when she was hungry. She didn't want to take anything from these people.
"What do you want?" Richard seemed to want to make her comfortable, but all Charlotte wanted was to find Daniel.
Charlotte knew that they wouldn't let her go, but she could try for something that would make it easier for her to escape. "I'd like to have my hands untied" She knew instinctively that the time skipping was over, so she couldn't wait for another flash to get her out of this situation.
"All right, but I'm going to put someone outside to make sure you don't escape" Richard untied her hands, and left the tent.
Charlotte scoffed. Did he honestly think having a guard would keep her from trying to get away? An unfamiliar woman brought her food, but she refused to touch it even though she was starving. When the person started to walk out, she grabbed the tray and slammed it on the woman's head. The woman hit the ground and Charlotte walked to the tent entrance. She composed herself, and burst out. She used the tray to knock the man guarding the tent unconscious as well, and she took off running to the trees. Just before she reached the tree line, she was grabbed and carried back to the tent, her fighting every step of the way.
When she was set down in a chair, she realized the man carrying her was Richard. "Why didn't you just let me go?" Charlotte demanded to know.
"Because your companions probably think you're dead" Richard said simply.
"What do you mean?" Charlotte was distracted from her thoughts of escape.
"When my men found you, they thought you were dead. You weren't moving. It didn't even look like you were breathing. They decided to bring you to me to see if anything could be done to save your life, but on the way you woke up. They realized then that they had made a mistake taking you, but they thought that if they turned back they'd be killed. They thought you were a member of the Dharma Initiative, and so they brought you here to find out what they should do" Richard explained.
Charlotte was confused. "So what are you going to do?"
"I know you're not a member of the Dharma Initiative, considering they didn't exist twenty years ago. I'm going to their compound tonight, though, and I want you to come with me. Two of my men were found dead, and I want to talk to someone there about what should be done to maintain our truce. Your group may not be there, but they'll end up there eventually. If they're not with Dharma now, you can use Dharma's resources to find them" Richard said simply.
"You're going to let me go?" Charlotte asked, hardly believing what he said.
"You're going to come with me, yes" Richard replied. "You really should eat something. I promise, we've done nothing to the food. I'll bring in some soon. We'll leave once the sun goes down"
Richard was true to his word, and returned with food. Charlotte grudgingly ate some of it, knowing she'd need energy if they were going to be traveling across the Island. Once the sun set, Richard entered the tent carrying a bag and a piece of rope.
"I don't want to do this, but I don't want you to be able to lead anyone back here. I'm sure you understand" Richard explained. "A few other people will be traveling with this. They will guide you" Richard explained while tying Charlotte's hands. He led her out of the tent, and then placed the bag over her head.
Charlotte wasn't sure how long they had been walking, but she was grateful when they stopped. She heard Richard say to his people "Keep her here until my signal. Then, push her out of the trees. I'll walk over and get her. Also, put these in her ears"
She felt people putting what felt like earplugs in her ears. Then, silence surrounded her. Time passed slowly for Charlotte, but that was probably just because she wasn't aware of anything that as taking place. Then, she was shoved roughly out of the trees. She stood there, wondering what was going to happen. If everything went well, she would see Daniel again. She wanted to make sure he was all right. She thought she was going to have more time with him. Waking up with him nowhere in sight scared her more than she wanted to admit. She thought something bad had happened, because earlier he had refused to leave her side. She never got to tell him how she felt, and promised herself that when she saw him she'd tell him.
She was caught by surprise when someone that she assumed to be Richard grabbed her arm. He led her a few feet, and then stopped and removed her earplugs. Then, they began to walk again.
They stopped a second time, and Charlotte heard Richard speak. "Two of my men brought her to me. I believe she's one of your people" He removed the bag from her head, and Charlotte found herself face to face with Sawyer.
Sawyer looked as if he had seen a ghost. "Son of a bitch" he breathed in shock. "Richard, I thought she was..."
"Dead? As you can see, she's alive and well" Richard appeared bored. "Now, where are my people?" Sawyer appeared as if he was going to refuse to answer. "If you don't tell me, I'm taking her with me. If you do, she can stay with you"
Sawyer caved, and revealed where the men had been buried. "Is that all?" he finished.
"Almost. I know that one of the Dharma members was killed in the encounter. I would like his body as well"
"I'll see what I can do" he looked at Charlotte, then addressed Richard. "Can she come with me?"
Richard nodded. "Yes, you've kept up your end of the bargain"
"Then come on, Red" Sawyer said, and he led her to the house. "Danny Boy's gonna be shocked to see you. He thought you were dead, and he almost went off the deep end. We saw a little girl with red hair earlier, and he was convinced it was you"
Charlotte didn't say anything in return, and when they entered the house a man stopped them. "Who's she?"
"She's one of my crew members. Eyeliner guy's group got ahold of her, but he gave her up. Said she was too much trouble cause she kept trying to escape"
"Charlotte, everyone else is in the kitchen. It's right through there. I need to talk to Horace and Amy" Sawyer said.
Charlotte nodded and walked into the kitchen. Daniel was the first to notice her entrance. He looked at her wide eyed, half expecting her to disappear. "Char - -Charlotte?" he whispered.
Everyone else looked up, but Charlotte barely registered their presence. Her eyes were glued to Daniel.
She thought heard Juliet whisper "We should give them some time. We'll find out what happened later" but she wasn't sure. Then, she heard them leaving the room.
Her eyes still hadn't moved from Daniel. He looked almost broken, like he was barely holding himself together. Charlotte had thought Sawyer was exaggerating when he said he thought Daniel was about to go off the deep end, but seeing him made her realize he was telling the truth.
Daniel stood up slowly, and walked over to her. He reached out to touch her face, and she noticed his hand was shaking. "Charlotte, is - -is it really you?"
"It's really me, Dan" Charlotte replied softly, hiding her happiness at seeing him again.
"I…thought you were dead. There was another flash, and you - -you were just gone" Daniel spoke softly.
"The others grabbed me. I guess you were still blinded by the flash. One of them brought me here earlier" Charlotte explained.
Daniel was caressing her face, and he began to smile. "You're…really here?"
"I'm really here. I'm not going anywhere. I'm fine now" Charlotte reassured him.
"But - -but how do you know?" Daniel wasn't sure how she could guarantee it.
"I feel really good. My headache's gone. My nose isn't bleeding. My memory's fine" Charlotte was concerned about how he was acting.
Daniel didn't say anything, and pulled her into a hug. He held her, stroking her hair. Charlotte was surprised at how she felt in his arms. She felt happy, safe, and something else that she wasn't sure she could describe. She was just as relieved to see him as he was to see her. Ever since she had woken up in the tent, she thought something terrible had happened to him.
Daniel finally let her go, and he stepped back. "If you had really died, I don't know what I would've done. I was lost without you, could barely hold myself together. I - -I stopped caring" He took a deep breath, and continued speaking. "Charlotte, I love you"
Charlotte smiled. She thought she would never hear that again, and this time she believed him. He wasn't trying to convince a man he wasn't going to cause something to blow up. There was no one else around. "Dan, I love you too. I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier, it just never seemed like the right time"
Daniel walked towards her, and gently pulled her into an embrace. "Can - -can I…can I kiss you"
Charlotte didn't answer. Instead, she leaned forward and kissed him. When the kiss ended, she couldn't stop smiling. "You don't have to ask, Dan"