Charlotte ran as hard as she could away from the house, the wind whipping her hair back, and her feet seeming to barely touch the ground. Her arm ached a little from the staking, but it didn't affect her stride.

Of course, she could hear the girl's trying to call her back, but blocked it out. She didn't want to see them right now. How would they react to her? Sure, she had saved Rikki's life, but what if they saw her as some kind of threat again?

Then again, as she raced through gardens and lawns to her house, with her blood pumping and the adrenaline racing through her veins, Charlotte had to admit that she had never felt more free, or powerful, or amazing than she did at that moment.

She slowed down at the end of her driveway, amazingly, not even breathing that heavily.

The cut on her cheek stung something fierce, but she ignored it as she ran through the door. In the bathroom off of the kitchen there was a first aid kit that she could use.

She had saved Rikki's life! They were safe. Everything was fine, she told herself as she rooted through the bathroom cabinets, looking for the kit. In the back though, her fingers brushed up against it, and she quickly pulled it out, then went to the kitchen.

Of course, there were still vampires out there, no doubt, but for now, Rikki, Cleo, and Emma were safe.

Maybe now she was worthy of forgiveness, Charlotte mused as she ran her sore and reddened knuckles under the cold water.

"Charlotte! What on earth happened to you?"

She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound her mother's voice. Oh god, how was she gonna explain this to her? Would the truth be enough?

"Mum!" She exclaimed, trying to cover her face, but it was no use, she had already seen everything.

"Oh my god, what happened? Did someone attack you?"

"No, not really," Charlotte tried to explain, gripping the marble edge of the kitchen counter. There was no plausible way of explaining this, was there?

Her mother took the first aid kit from her and opened it, getting the hydrogen peroxide out. She began to dab it on a rag, placing it against a small cut Charlotte didn't even realize she had on her forehead.

"Sweetheart, please tell me what happened," Annette whispered.

There were tears welling her in eyes. Oh god, why was she crying? What on earth was the matter with her?

"It's… it's kind of what I've been wanting to talk to you about," Charlotte whispered, holding the counter even tighter. "But I don't think you'll believe me." Wouldn't believe her, have her sent off to some looney bin, or something even worse.

Annette took her daughter's hand into hers. "Honey, I will believe whatever you tell me. You've never been one to lie."

"I know, Mum." God, sometimes she wished she still was. Charlotte took a deep breath and wiped away the tears on her cheeks. "Okay. You remember that girl from the other day? Willow?"

"The one who was tutoring you in English?"

"Yeah, her." Charlotte put the Band-Aid on her forehead. Already though, the pain was fading. "She's not my tutor. She came from America, she was looking for me. There was something she needed to tell me."

"What did she have to tell you? Charlotte, you're worrying me."

Charlotte took a breath. "She came from America to tell me that I was born a Slayer, a girl chosen to fight and kill… vampires." She didn't look at her mother while she explained this in a rush. Even to her own ears this sounded like a ridiculous story, a horrible lie. But when she drew a breath, she did look up.

Annette stood up a little straighter, but didn't take her hand out of her daughter's. "Charlotte, whatever you're talking about, it's not funny. I want the truth, right now."

"I am telling you the truth! It happened just before I came home!" Charlotte exclaimed, standing up. "I went over with Rikki to Cleo's house, and a vampire attacked us, and then I killed it!" Her eyes were wide and pleading; please believe me, she wanted to beg. She almost wished a vampire would bust through the door or something, if only as proof.

Annette closed her eyes briefly and put her hands on Charlotte's shoulders. "Charlotte, this isn't funny. You've been acting strangely these past few weeks, but I tried to give some space for you to work it out yourself. I didn't want to push you away. Have you been doing drugs or something?"

"What?" Charlotte asked incredulously. "Of course I'm not, and I'm not making this up!" Charlotte could see where this was going; just like how she didn't want it. Her mother was gonna send her to the very least, a psychiatrist, who would then probably send her to the mental hospital.

"I'm trying to help you, Charlotte-"

A loud crack interrupted the both of them. The two women looked down in surprise. Charlotte had been holding onto the marble corner of the sink the entire time, and without realizing it, she had been gripping it tighter and tighter until a small piece of it snapped clean off, leaving her holding it.

She looked up, and her mother continued to stand there, her mouth slightly agape.

"Charlotte, how did you do that?" Annette whispered. "That's impossible, that was marble..."

Charlotte held the chunk out to her. "That's another thing about this job," she murmured, "I've gotten really strong."

Annette shook her head and backed away. "I'm going to bed, sweetheart. I think you should to. A good night's sleep would make you feel a lot better; I've heard you."

For a brief second, Charlotte considered bringing her back, forcing her to understand if need be. But ultimately, she just followed suit up the stairs. Too much, too soon. It did make her wonder how her mother would have reacted if she had told her that she used to be a mermaid before this.

"You're right," Charlotte agreed in a quiet voice. "I've been having trouble sleeping the past few nights."