(I actually planned on writing a full-length AUstory where Charlotte ends up helping her uncle escape and eventually forms a reluctant, angst-ridden criminal partnership with him. That's also probably not going to happen, due to, A: lack of ideas, and B: lack of general interest of others. I'm weird, I know. Whatever.)
Two Lemons, Unsweetened
by BadMoonlight
For as long as he can remember, he's never liked sugar in his tea; nor in his coffee, for that matter.
To be fair, it isn't really for as long as he can remember. Before that embarassing childhood accident he can't seem to escape, he's sure he probably loved sugar. Not only did he most likely enjoy sugar in his tea then, he probably poured in two, maybe three whole spoonfuls with childish abandon, mucking up the taste of the tea with sickening over-excessive sweetness.
He likes to think that crashing into that streetcar very literally knocked a great deal of sense into him. After the final bandages and stitches were removed, no longer was he listless and obedient; no, to hell with everyone! Life was his for the taking, and he didn't waste a moment of it. When he turned sixteen, much to his mother's chagrin, he dropped out of school and moved across the country to New York to make a life for himself.
New York turned to Paris turned to Rome turned to Boston, and back again, and he finally found himself in Philadelphia by his thirty-second birthday. Six more years passed, and he was on the run.
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Once upon a time, his sister may have understood him, but any chance of that now is long passed up. Charlotte is the only one with any sense, any real worth in that family. He can't forget all that Emma has done, but she'll never know what the world is like, not really. Young Charlie is the one who can.
They're kindred spirits, one and the same... and if push comes to shove, she'll help her beloved, charming uncle out of any scrape he asks her to. There's no need to worry about that, though. Things are blissfully, stupidly peaceful in this town, and he's got plenty of time to stretch out and relax. As of right now, he's going to have as much fun as he can.
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After putting her father in an awkward position at his work and staking claim in a new... investment, he takes her out to lunch. He orders coffee and a hamburger; she opts for a turkey sandwich and cup of tea.
"Sugar?" he offers, raising the bowl in her direction.
"No, thank you, Uncle Charlie," she responds, and squeezes a lemon slice into her cup before stirring it with a spoon. "I never put sugar in my tea. I usually just use lemon." At his surprised expression, she adds, "I know, Mother thinks it's the strangest thing, too, but I've always been that way."
"I don't think it's strange, Charlie," he assures her. Unable to fight the grin that's spreading across his face, he leans over the table and presses another slice of lemon into her hand. "No, I don't think it's strange at all."