Disclaimer: I don't own anything Numb3rs, it's all property of CBS and whatnot, so don't sue.

Chapter 10: The Two Elder Eppes Get To See the Tattoos

It had been a good three hours since Don had come barreling home to Charlie's house and brokedown in his beloved brother's arms.

Charlie had spent these hours trying to console a still guiltridden Don.

Then the front door had opened and Alan Eppes had walked in.

He'd stopped dead in his tracks and was now gawking at the sight before him in the livingroom.

Father and youngest son simply gawked at each other before Charlie stood up and walked up to his father and stood at arm's length from him.

" Hi dad." Said Charlie.

That seemed to snap Alan out of his trance, Charlie found himself being yanked by the front of his shirt into another bone-crushing hug, this time by his father.

" Charlie?" Sobbed Alan as he squeezed the living daylights out of his youngest child. Shocked by both his reappearance and new appearance.

From where he sat, Don caught his first glimpse of one of his brother's tattoos, it was a Asian writing character of some kind, solid black with a bright red outline, on the back of Charlie's neck. Don could now see why he hadn't noticed it before, Charlie's curls had always hidden it, now that these curls were restrained in a ponytail, he got the full view and he had to admit, it looked stunning.

" Charlie, where'd you come from?" Asked Alan as he pulled back and cupped both of Charlie's cheeks in his hands, holding his son's face.

" I just got in from Miami." Answered Charlie.

" Well, you seem so different, what did you do while you were clear across the country son?" Asked Alan.

At this, Charlie shrugged.

" I guess I just let my hair grow, held off on shaving, meditated alot, and got some new tattoos, that's basically it." He said simple.

Don stood up from where he'd been sitting and joined his father and brother where they stood. Both Charlie and Don were grinning ear to ear as they watched their father do a double take and then stand slack-jawed at this new information.

" Tattoos?... New ones?... Where!" Asked a disbelieving Alan Eppes.

" On my back." Answered Charlie.

" You gonna show us or what?" Asked Don with a quirk of his eyebrow.

" Right now?" Asked Charlie, his eyebrow quirking.

" What, are you suddenly shy?" Asked Don, now feeling a great sense of joy in teasing his baby brother after so long.

"Okay, fine." Said Charlie with a dramatic roll of his eyes before he gripped the hem of his shirt and lifted it up over his head, revealing an insanely built upper body that caused both Don and Alan's jaws to go slack and their eyes to widen.

" Woah, how did you get to ripped?" Asked Don.

" I was always fit, I just wore loose clothes alot." Answered Charlie before he turned around, his back to his father and brother.

Two pairs of eyes grew impossibly wider as they gazed upon the equally well-built back, now marked with stunning artwork.

Both of the elder Eppes's were in awe at the sight before them. Tattooed across Charlie pale flesh were two beautiful red and black tribal wings that stretched from shoulder to shoulde with the tails of the wings stretching all the way down to the just above the small of his back. In the space between the wings were Japanese letters, a continuation of the symbol on the back of Charlie's neck, these too reached just above the small of his back. Finally, on either side of his lower back were five lines of somekind, which provided a sense of symmetry to the design.

These tattoos obliterated any trace of the innocent Charlie, Alan and Don had always known. Don had hesitantly reached out and ran the tips of his fingers across one of the wings before he returned his hand to his side.

" Charlie buddy, did it hurt a lot when you got them?" Asked Don once he'd regained his voice.

At this, Charlie let a sad little smile grace his lips as he turned his head to gaze at his brother over a shoulder.

" I was in so much pain already when I was getting inked, I hardly felt a thing, hell, the tattoo artist said that I actually fell asleep while he was working."

A look of guilt passed across the faces of both Don and Alan at these words as the events that had driven Charlie away came flooding back.

" Why Charlie, why did you get them son?" Asked Alan.

" Cause I felt like it." Was the simple answer as Charlie put his shirt back on.

Don and Alan were taken aback slightly by the bluntness of this answer. Their Charlie had changed so much in just one month, and it was all their fault.

They had been the ones who'd driven him away with their misguided anger. Them.

" What does all the writing mean?" Asked Don softly.

" The Japanese characters form a sentance that says, Soul Who Will Forever Search For Peace. The five lines on either side of my lower back are five lines of two Bhuddist prayers. One is for Redemption and the other for Forgiveness." Answered Charlie as he turned to face his family once again.

He felt his eyes grow sad as he saw that both his father and brother stood with fresh tears streaming from their eyes.

Without a word, Charlie stepped forward and pulled them both into his arms, Alan on his left and Don on his right.

" We're so sorry son, we hurt you so bad." Whispered Alan into Charlie's hair.

" It's okay Dad, I know I deserved all of it for not being there for you both when you guys needed me most." Said Charlie softly, finally allowing tears to well in his deep brown eyes as he hugged his father and brother tighter. They in turn, tightened their holds on him.

" No... No, you didn't deserve any of it Charlie. Me and Dad were mad at you because we thought you weren't there for Mom, but you were there... You were always there for her. Why didn't you say anything, why did you let us be mad at you for so long, you didn't deserve any of it, you didn't..." Don trailed off as he began to cry harder.

" Why son, why?" Whispered Alan as a fresh wave of tears erupted from his eyes,

Trying, however futile it was, to console his weepy brother and father. Charlie spoke.

" Yes, I did deserve it, all of it. I was there for mom, but what about the two of you, where was I when you needed me? I didn't say anything because the both of you needed someone to be mad at, someone to blame for what happened. I just dealed with it. I'm not mad at either of you, I mean it, I'm not mad at either of you, I was never mad at either of you. Don't ask me to forgive you guys, cause there is nothing to forgive, do you hear me? Nothing." Said Charlie, though he was now crying, his voice was firm and comanding.

Both Alan and Don pulled back to stare at Charlie through there own tears, they gazed into his tearful bottomless pits for eyes, they saw sadness yes, but it was overshadowed by the quiet but powerful strength and love that blazed within their depths.

Then Charlie gave them a small, tearful smile before pulling them back into a fierce hug.

Alan and Don went willingly and tightened their own hold on Charlie as the three Eppes men held eachother.

" I love you both." Whispered Charlie.

" We love you son." Whispered Alan.

" Yeah, we love you Chuck." Added Don.

" Don I swear..." Charlie trailed off as he started laughing.

It was hopeless, Don was never gonna stop calling him Chuck.