Title: Found
Author: bookworm835
Category(s): Drama/Mystery/not-so-much-Angst-this-chapter/prob'ly others too
Summary: Ooh, Locke knows! Yup. Or is he just trying to be a smarty-pants? Haha, just kidding. Anyways, Locke knows, Charlie's pissed cuz - ehem. I'M NOT TELLING:laughs manically and runs off:
Disclaimer: I don't own Lost :sob: But if J.J. Abrams (is that how you spell it?) kills Charlie off I WILL OWN LOST, I'LL TAKE IT OVER AND BRING CHARLIE BACK TO LIFE! Anyways, I do not own and I'm not making any money. In fact, I'm LOSING money by spending all my time on this computer. Darn electric bills.
A/N: Sorry for the long wait, I haven't felt very - erm, inspired lately. That also explains the short, crappy chappy. Haha! That slays me... :wipes away tear: So, here we go, the crappy chappy!


Charlie stared for a moment, his mouth dry, before exclaiming loudly and increadulously, "You know what happened?" His eyes bulging, he quickly pocketed his baggie of drugs and blinked a few times, mouth opening and closing like a fish's.

Locke gave Charlie a small smile and a shrug. "I said I think. I'll have to ask - er, check it out."

After a few more minutes of gaping, Charlie blurted testily, "Well?"

More waiting.

Tick, tick, tick...

In the silence Charlie could almost hear Locke's gold wrist watch. The birds in the distance had quieted themselves and there was no wind whatsoever. The stillness was eerie.

Charlie blinked rapidly, his face flushing.

Locke had to tell him. Well, tell him that he couldn't tell him.

"You have to figure it out on your own, Charlie," Locke said, "otherwise things won't go back as they were and everything will remain this way. You're the only one that can fix this..."

"Me," Charlie spat out, waving his arms around wildly. "I can't do anything, Locke, I can't even get my best and only friend to remember me! I am a bloody has-been rocker scum! You are the one who always knows everything, absolutely everything. How can you expect me to 'fix this' when I don't even know what we're dealing with?"

Locke gave a small smirk. "Until you believe in yourself you won't be able to do anything."

Charlie lowered his voice a little. "But... I don't know what I'm supposed to do, you're supposed to help me, you've always helped me when I had to do something important, I can't do it on my own."

"I think you can, and I think you have to."

Shaking his head disbelievingly, Charlie mumbled, "Why me, though? Why not Jack or Kate? I'm nothing special."

"'Special', Charlie, that's the key word there," Locke said, leaning forward in his wheelchair, his face somber and utterly serious. It was a bit unnerving. "Everyone on Flight 815 was special to this whole mess. It wasn't coincedence that those certain people gathered on the plane... it wasn't coincedence that they were the only to survive. There's a reason why we're the only ones who remember but you can still make others remember too." He suddenly reached down and swiftly brought Charlie's hand up to his face, examining the tapes wrapped around each finger closely. Charlie was looking absolutely bewildered, giving Locke odd little glances. Locke knew what was running through the young man's mind. Charlie thought he was crazy... and maybe he was... but it didn't matter, he had solved the mystery already. He had solved the mystery of the island as well and he hadn't been able to tell anyone else then either. Was that his new job or something? Ah well, it didn't matter, Charlie would be the one to report it all... if he could ever just trust the supernatural.

Charlie shook his head again. "I still don't get it... Locke, why can't you just tell me instead of talking in riddles? It'd be faster, we could fix this all today."

Pause.

Tick, tick, tick.

Waiting, impatience, confusion, anger, sadness, just waiting...

"Locke!"

"Look, Charlie, look!" Locke said suddenly, making Charlie jump. He twisted Charlie's hand about. "This is the answer. Look, it is fate!"

Charlie, flustered and a bit panicked from Locke's unexpected outburst, obeyed and glanced at his hand. His fingers spelled in bold, black lettering, F A T E. Nothing unusual...

"I wrote that a long time ago... on the first night on the island," Charlie explained, still perplexed by Locke's excitedness.

"Exactly!" Locke said, grinning widely, shaking Charlie's wrist violently.

Charlie looked away slowly, chewing his lip, slightly afraid. "Erm..."

Locke flashed another smile. "Watch it, Charlie, eventually you'll see what I mean. It'll all make sense when you believe! I can't help you, but someone will. You won't know when you meet them, though, you'd never expect it'd be... this person. I have to go now... but you'll be fine, Charlie, I know you will be... you'll be the one to save us all."

Charlie's eyes widened in alarm. "No, you can't leave now! Idon't get it, Locke - can't you at least give me... I dunno, some sort of... uh, hint or something? Please, I need as much help as I can get. This isn't a joke... we're really dealing with fate or something here..."

Nodding, Locke said solemnly, "Or something, Charlie. You can change fate, you can change your destiny."

"No, you can't change destiny. That's what makes it destiny, right? What's my destiny that I'm supposed to cha - Locke?"

Locke was gliding off. Without even looking at Charlie, he replied, "You think fate is already chosen for you... but you can still change it, Charlie. A man woke up one morning and was very sick. Thinking he was just about the unluckiest person in the world, he settled down in his easychair and propped his legs up and turned on the news. Turns out his office building burned down, killing none but injuring many. He might've been the first to die if he hadn't been ill. Was it pure luck, destiny, or... something else? Sometimes you can change the worst of a situation into the best. Don't look at this whole ordeal as a curse, Charlie, think of it as a gift! Trust me... it'll help you out... in the end of it all. And I'll be waiting. Until next time, Charlie. Until next time."

And as Locke rolled away, Charlie pondered it all, and heard an odd noise in his ear echoing around his head.

Tick... tick... tick.

Until next time.


Sorry if there were a ton of typos or anything, I tried to fix as much of it as I could, but when I uploaded the document all the commas and question marks and spaces and dash thingies disappeared! Sooo... again, sorry! Let's hope that those little problems weren't distracting, though... But I toldja it was a crappy chappy! Just don't kill me for not telling what Locke knows :squeaks and hides in the corner:

Esmarelda Gamgee: :blush: Thanks! Umm, yeah, suspense but with a very disappointing answer... You'll hafta keep reading to figure out the secret of the - ehem. ;)

Rockin' FluteTrumpet: Haha, I'll buy you a straightjacket cuz I prob'ly made you mad by making Locke stubborn here! Uh, if that made sense... anyways, the update was soonish... just not soon:D I'll try ta be faster next time! Glad you liked!

frodosam4ever: Hope you liked, even though Locke is being stupid! Oopsie, did I just say that out loud? Ehem. I do not like Locke. Why? I dunno. But he's interesting enough I suppose... :)

szhismine: Yesss, Locke knows, and I know, but we're the only ones :crazy laughter:

Harper's Pixie: Aww, thankees! Glad you're luvin' it, sorry you're gonna hafta wait a good while before you figure out what's happening! I'm so evil.

Mina aka: Mockingbird:huggles back until you figure out that I'm not telling what's happening; you kick me, you kick Locke, you cuddle Charlie and drag him off and all fangirls get in a wild fight over poor Dom who has been squished beneath all the crazed fans:

Uh oh, got to go before I get grounded again! Then there won't be another update for awhile again! Reviews, please?