WHOO! This took waaaaay longer than it should have. Stupid real life. But regardless of that, here it is now! I hope you enjoy! I had lots of fun. Oh and Cedric is three and Charlette six.

It is the middle of summer and the sun shines uninterrupted in the clear blue sky. It is the perfect day to be outside and away from the scrutinous eye of their mother. At least Charlette thought so.

"Come on," Charlette hisses. She flings her hand out in Cedric's direction.

Cedric eyes her hand warily. A deep frown curls his lips and his brows knit together. "I don't know…" He glances back in the direction of the house. Mother is back inside, just out of range. "Mommy says we aren't supposed to leave the yard."

Charlette scoffs. "Come oooon," She flops over dramatically. "Don't be such a mama's boy. Besides, she's not ever gonna know. We're just gonna go out for a little bit and pick some berries."

Cedric sticks out his lower lip. "I am not a mama's boy…" He grumbles as he averts his eyes. "I just don't like being away from the house." He squeezes the teddy bear in the crook of his arm for comfort.

"Mama's boy! Mama's boy!" She cackles.

"Stop it!" He scowls. His lip trembles faintly.

"Then come on," She jostles her hand in his direction to remind him. "We don't have all day."

Cedric shifts from one foot to the other. "O-Ok…" He slowly reaches for her hand.

Before he can lay his hand in hers she acts. She snaps her hand forward and seizes his hand. "Alright!" She spins hard on her heel and zips away from their house.

Cedric squeals and stumbles. His heart leaps in his throat as he struggles to keep himself on his feet every step of the way. He has no chance to right himself as his sister drags him along at her pace. "Ch-Charlie…c-can't we…go slower?"

Charlette scoffs. "Do you want mom to catch us?"

Cedric grimaces. He does not say a word. He just hugs his bear a little harder to try and assuage his fears. Between his mother and Charlette his mind is in a frenzy.

Charlette tugs him along for five whole minutes before she suddenly stops. She releases him and looks in wide eyed wonder at the masses of blueberry bushes clustered just ahead of her.

Cedric can't stop. He has too much momentum and he zooms past her. Without her steadying hand his tumbling feet come out from under him and he falls flat on his face. He whines as he pushes himself up to his knees. His lip trembles and his eyes well with tears. "You let me fall." He stares pitifully up at her.

Charlette rolls her eyes. "You should have caught yourself dummy." She crosses her arms and looks completely unimpressed as she stares down at him. "And just because you fall doesn't mean you have to be a baby and cry about it."

"I am not a baby." Cedric sniffles and makes a swipe at his face to brush away the tears.

Charlette scoffs. "Yeah, alright." She bends over and hooks her arm through his. "Now come on you big baby." She lugs him to his feet. "You've gotta help me pick the berries. If you don't you don't get any." She retracts her arm and heads for the blueberry bushes.

Cedric glares after her. "I'm not a baby…" He says to himself. Another sniffle leaps forth and growls softly at the sound. He trudges after her.

Charlette drops to her knees and flattens her dress, leaving a good surface to drop the berries. Then she eagerly grabs for the plump berries.

Cedric takes a spot next to her. He leans forward and peers over at her. He watches each movement intently and does as she does. He smooths his shorts and begins to awkwardly pick at the berries as he tries to keep his bear from falling out of his arm.

Charlette accumulates quite a pile before his movements catch her eye. She arches a brow at his strange maneuvers. "Are you serious Cedric?"

Cedric starts and one of the berries go flying. It bops him in between the eyes and he flinches. He tilts his head to look at her. "What?"

Charlette looks at him as if he is stupid. "Just put down the stupid bear."

Cedric's eyes widen and he shrinks back. "No!" He clutches the bear at his chest. "And he isn't stupid. He has a name – Mr. Scom."

Charlette makes a face. "That's not even a real word, let alone a name."

"Is so!" Cedric beats a fist on the ground. "It's the name I gived him so it's a name." He shoves the bear in her face. "His name is Mr. Scom."

Charlette stares the bear dead in its beady black eyes. She scoops a handful of blueberries from her dress and shoves them in her mouth. She gnashes down on them and then springs forward. The remaining berries go flying before she seizes his bear around the neck and jerks it from his feeble grip.

"No!" Cedric shrieks. He leaps for the bear, the berries he collected scattering across the ground.

Charlette hops to her feet and stretches her arm up as high as she can. "Nope!" She smirks. "Mr. Bear doesn't want to be your friend anymore."

"NO." Cedric jumps for it. "Gimme! Gimme him back!"

Charlette steps back quickly and pivots. She races deeper into the woods, farther from home. "You gotta catch me first." She yells over her shoulder.

"Charlie!" He runs as fast as his little legs will carry him. "Stop it!"

Charlette comes up short. She does a quick onceover of the area around her and her gaze settles on a large oak tree just in front of her. A devilish smile curls her lips and her eyes twinkle deviously as she throws a glance over her shoulder. He's still not too close. So she straddles the tree and shuffles her way up the trunk.

Cedric gasps. He scrambles to a stop and nearly falls over himself in his haste. "Don't!" He reaches forward as if he can stop her from this distance. "You'll fall!"

Charlette barks out a laugh. "You wish. But I am no klutz. I won't fall." She continues to make her way up the slowly widening trunk.

Cedric bounces from one foot to the other and shakes his hands back and forth. He grinds his teeth and holds his breath as each passing moment takes her further and further away from the ground. Then he notices it. His eyes bulge as he notices Mr. Scom being dragged along the bark and ruined with her efforts. "Stop! You're messing him up!" He stamps his feet. "YOU'RE MESSING HIM UP."

Charlette sucks in a sharp breath and loses her grip on the bear. She dips backward and snatches the toy from the air. She grins down at the upside down image of Cedric. "Ha." She rights herself with much effort and then makes it to the first branch in the tree. She slings her leg up and over it and seizes the branch with both hands. She twists and turns her body so that in only one minute more she is perched comfortably on the limb. She holds her head high and bobs it side to side. "Now come and get it." She dangles the bear out in front of her.

Cedric clenches his fists and shakes noticeably. His lip trembles and eyes cloud with tears. "You big meanie!"

Charlette glares. "Big baby!" She points a finger at him.

"I'm NOT." He throws his head back and unleashes a wordless scream. He jerks back so hard that he falls on his butt.

Charlette cringes and hisses. "Stop it Cedric! Bad little Ceedric!" She resorts to the mispronunciation that she knows he now hates.

Cedric's hair stands on end at the use of the terrible name, but he does not cease his scream. The only thing that ruins his bellowing is when a sob chokes him and he goes into a coughing fit. Big, fat tears roll down his cheeks and once the coughing dies down there is only the sound of sniffles and sobs.

Charlette lets out a long, overdrawn breath. She slumps over along the branch and stares dully down at Cedric as he falls to pieces. At least out here their mother can't yell at her too. She'll just wait until he burns himself out. She swings her arm and the bear idly.

Cedric blinks as realization sets in on him. Mommy isn't going to come running to save him this time. Charlette took him too far away this time. So he swallows his tears and shoves himself to his feet. He stares the tree down for a long moment and then jumps onto it.

Charlette perks. "Hm?" She lifts her head to see what is happening at the bottom of the tree.

Cedric grunts as he scrapes frantically at the bark. He can't find his traction.

Charlette snickers. "You just aren't big enough to make it poor little Ceedric." She sits up straight again and cranes her neck to continue watching.

Cedric huffs. He scrambles even more furiously. Gradually he moves upward.

Charlette's brows rise higher on her head with every passing moment. Cedric is already halfway to where she is.

Cedric's fingers are raw from rubbing against the bark and the skin is beginning to peel by the time he reaches her level. Tiny red finger prints stain the tree. "G-Gimme…" He heaves. He reaches a trembling hand out toward Charlette.

Charlette scoots farther down the branch. She holds the bear out in the opposite direction of him. "Just a little farther." She teases.

Cedric grasps at the branch. He digs his fingers in with one hand and swings his other arm around to double his strength. Midway through the motion his leg slips and he loses his traction. In his panic he releases the branch and there is nothing but air holding him up.

Charlette sees it in his eyes before she sees his hand off of the branch. She drops the bear and lurches forward, grabbing for his hand. She feels it – the ghost of his baby fingers – but she can not grab them. There is nothing but air.

Cedric plummets. The air rushes from his lungs and the fear strangles him. In that split second before impact all he can see is the terror in his sister's deep blue eyes and sorrow wells in in his heart. Sorry. Then he crashes into the ground and his head smashes into a rock, his world going black.

"Cedric!" Charlette grips the sides of her head. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God." She slides down the trunk and leaps in Cedric's direction. She drops to her knees and leans over her little brother. Her heart beats like a drum and her breathing is erratic. "Cedric…" Her hands tremble over him as she is consumed with indecision. "C-Cedric…"

She slides her hand beneath his head and tilts it in her direction. She nearly chokes on air. Her eyes bulge from her head. A splotch of red stains his forehead and trickles down the side of his face. It paralyzes her. "C…C…Ced…ric…" She runs her hand along the side of his face untouched by red. "C-Come on…W-Wake…wake up…" A sob bubbles in her throat. She lifts him farther off the ground. "Open your eyes. OPEN THEM."

She pitches forward and presses her forehead to his. "Cedric!" She wails. She hugs him tight. Tears stream down her face and sobs choke her. "I'm sorry…so-so…sorry…" She jerks upright and screams to the sky. "MOM-MIE!"

Deep down though she knows they are too far for mother to come running or even hear. So with all the strength she can muster she lifts Cedric's motionless body and picks them both of them up from the forest floor. She stumbles, but she refuses to fall. She uses the tree as a brace and propels herself in the direction of the house. Every step of the way she screams for their mother, hoping and praying at some point she will come running.

Winifred perks at the sound of something that seems so far away. Yet she swears it is familiar. She wanders over to the window by the door and peers through the curtains. Her eyes shoot open as she sees that neither of her children are there. She bursts out of the house and looks wildly about her. Then she hears it again – closer this time. "Charlie…" She sprints toward the sound.

Charlette's legs are heavy. She can barely lift them – one after the other. One misstep and her foot catches on the other. She goes flying and drops Cedric. The both of them skid across the ground, but she is the only one who feels it. The ground rips up skin and dirties the wounds. But she forces the pain beneath the surface, the emotional agony far too powerful. "C-C-Cedric…" She crawls over to his still limp form. "Pleeeease…w-wake up…"

"Charlie!" Winifred bursts onto the scene. Her heart stops dead as she lays eyes on her children. "C-Ceddy…" Her knees go weak and it is all she can do to not collapse right there. She surges forward the remaining distance and throws herself before them. "My baby…" She carefully lifts him from the ground and cradles him. The blood marring his face makes her sick to her stomach and very nearly shut down completely. It is only her daughter's voice that brings her back.

"I-I'm sorry." Charlette shakes her head back and forth. "I-I didn't mean it…didn't mean to." She digs her fingernails into her head. "He-He just…I was…I'm sooooorry." She bursts out into sobs.

Winifred jerks her gaze around to Charlette. "Hush!" She snaps.

Charlette snaps her mouth shut. It takes all her energy to keep from making a single sound. Forcing the noise down only feeds into her convulsions.

"Come on," Winifred knows she sounds harsher than she means to. But her mind is in a frenzy and it is all she can do to keep her world from spiraling out of control. "We're going home. We have to go home." She races the short distance back to their house.

Charlette limps after her. Each step sends electric pain up her leg. But she forges onward. She bites back moans and whimpers because she knows she is nigh insignificant in the face of poor little Cedric. It is a few feet from the door that it overwhelms her. She collapses in a heap.

Goodwin is just outside the door, his hand curled around the handle. He tilts his head in the direction of the shuffling to see a truly terrible sight.

"Goodie," Winifred gasps. "Cedric…Cedric…"

Goodwin spins around and races to her. "Whatever is the matter Winifred?" He glances down and his heart splits clear in half. "Cedric," Startling red stains his face. "What happened?" He grips Winifred's shoulders.

Winifred shakes her head. "I-I…don't…don't…" She crumbles. The tears perched at the edge of her vision pour from her eyes.

"Alright, alright," Goodwin forces himself to breath. "Just give him to me." He strokes Winifred's cheek over and over. "I'll fix this."

Winifred nods weakly. She mindlessly hands her son to Goodwin.

Goodwin turns on his heel and barges into the house. He doesn't look back. He takes Cedric to their bedroom.

Winifred runs after him, then stops just as suddenly. She jerks her head back in the direction of her other child. Her muscles tense and she takes slow deliberate breaths. She forces herself to remain planted and only watch Charlette for a long moment.

Charlette draws her knees close to her. She wraps her arms around them and presses her face into them. She sobs, her tears drenching her new dress. Again she feels forgotten. So alone. But this time it is her fault. This time she deserves it.

Winifred turns wholly around. She takes a deep breath, braces herself, and walks toward her daughter. Don't snap. Don't snap. Don't. She kneels in front of her. "Charlie," Her voice wavers despite her efforts.

Charlette flinches at the very sound of her mother's voice.

Winifred reaches out and cups her daughter's chin, lifting her face from her knees. "Hey," She says with a bit of force. She immediately regrets it as she sees Charlette cringe again. "Are you hurt?"

Charlette's eyes shoot open. What?

"Come on sweetie. Talk to me."

Charlette gives her head a stiff shake. "F-Fine…" She wipes at her eyes. Still she can not hide the pain that flashes across her face when her salty tears sprinkle over her open wounds.

Winifred sighs. "It's alright honey." She employs more deliberate breathing. "Just because Cedric is hurt doesn't mean you have to be. Don't punish yourself," Her voice trembles. "It'll only hurt more." Fresh tears rise in her eyes.

Charlette is set off by her mother's reaction. Her face crumbles and she lurches forward. She throws her arms around her mother and buries her head in her chest. "I'm sorry," She digs her fingers into her mother's dress. "I didn't mean it. I didn't mean it mommy."

"Shh," Winifred wraps and arm around Charlette and runs her fingers over her hair. "I know, I know." She swallows hard, swallows her tears. "It's ok baby. Just tell me what happened."

Charlette sniffles and wipes at her eyes. "H-He fell – from a tree. Cause…cause he was trying to follow me and-" She jerks her head up. "We have to go back! We have to get him!"

Winifred blinks. "Him?"

Charlette shakes her head. "Mr. Scom. That stupid bear." She points with as much emphasis as possible back toward the woods. "We can't leave it out there. Cedric will want it when he wakes up and-and-and…"

"Charlie," Winifred grips her daughter's shoulders. "It's alright. It isn't going anywhere." She runs her fingers over Charlette's face. "Right now you need to get better too." She scoops Charlette into her arms and stands. She stumbles with her daughter's weight, but she manages to right herself.

"But-But mom, no!" She looks frantically back and forth between the woods and the house. "I need it." Her voice cracks. "Cedric needs it."

Winifred pauses. She glances down at Charlette's desperate face and her resolve wavers. She sighs. "Real quick." She changes her course and heads toward the woods.

Charlette instantly relaxes. She rests her head in the crook of her mother's neck and focuses on controlling her tears.

Winifred wanders into the woods, following the ever increasing signs of disarray. She notes the scattered blueberries and knows immediately this is where Charlette took her son's bear. Something she is going to chew her out for later – much later. She continues on for only a minute more before she goes stiff. Startling red gleams up from a rock by the tree. This is it.

"Charlette senses the tension rolling off her mother and lifts her head to peer around. "There." She points to an area just beyond the rock.

Winifred starts and snaps out of it. She shakes her head and the remaining unease is pushed away. "Oh." She hurries over and bends down low enough for Charlette to grab it.

Charlette twists and nabs the bear. She draws it close and squeezes it tight against her chest. "Stupid bear…" She grumbles. Yet her heart is eased by the very presence of the bear.

Winifred smiles to herself. "Come on baby." She treks back to the house. "Let's go home."

They return home and Winifred cleans Charlette up. She bandages the scraps and wraps her twisted ankle. In the end Winifred is just as exhausted as Charlette. But she smiles through it. "Better?" Winifred traces a finger along her daughter's chin.

Charlette forces a smile. "Thank you, mom." Her heart quivers just as terribly as her mother's, she knows it. "I want to see him." She clenches the bear's arm.

Winifred grimaces. "I don't…"

"Mommy," Her eyes shine with sadness and fear. "Please. He needs to have this." She holds out the bear.

Winifred sighs. "He isn't awake yet honey." She tries to reason.

Charlette shakes her head. "It's ok. He just has to have this. When he wakes up he'll want it." She chuckles feebly. A flicker of genuine happiness passes over her face. "He's a baby like that."

"I suppose he will." Winifred lifts Charlette from the couch. "But you aren't walking." She heads for the dimly light room.

"Ok." Charlette curls her hand around the shoulder of her mother's dress. She braces herself for the terrible sight of red standing out in the darkness.

Goodwin is sitting on a stool by the bed. He strokes Cedric's brow. The blood is completely gone and only Cedric's pale skin peeks up out of the pillow. Goodwin peers up as he hears his wife's footsteps. "Winifred," He beckons to her.

Winifred nods. She walks around the bed and sits down at the edge of it. "Is he alright?" She can't help but hold her breath.

Charlette peeks out from her mother's shoulder. She watches with wide eyes as her brother lays motionless. She catches the faint up and down of his chest, yet it eases her mind little. She can't stand it – this space.

Goodwin smiles. "Yes, my dear. I fixed him up."

Winifred lets out a breath. Tears well in her eyes, for the first time out of sheer joy. "Thank God." She half laughs.

Charlette wiggles out of her mother's hold. She slips her head beneath Winifred's arm and crawls across the bed.

Goodwin starts. "Charlette," He hisses. He reaches for her.

Winifred closes her hand around Goodwin's wrist, stopping him.

Goodwin catches her eyes and raises a brow. But he does not fight her.

Charlette crawls to the head of the bed and slides down next to Cedric. She carefully lifts his arm and hooks the bear into the crook of it. She draws her hand back, but stops half way through the motion. She slips her hand into his and locks their fingers. "Sorry Cedric…" She breathes. She nestles her head into the space next to his. They're so close their cheeks touch. "So sorry…"

Winifred smiles down at her children. "Sleep easy my darlings." She looks to Goodwin and shifts her hand so it clasps his hand instead of his wrist. "Come on." She tugs lightly as she stands. "We can sit here." She pulls him to the foot of the bed and they settle on the floor, leaning back against the bed.

Goodwin does as she directs. It is better that they remain as close as possible, it's true. And the way Cedric and Charlette lay make it impossible to lay with them, so this is the next best thing, at least for Winifred. "Don't fret dear." He runs a hand across her cheek. "He's fine. And she is too. We're all fine."

Winifred nods. "I know." She leans over and rests her head against his shoulder. Her eyes instantly fall shut. All the exhaustion comes tumbling down on her.

Goodwin chuckles. "You really do too much." He rubs her arm and kisses her cheek. Yet he wouldn't have it any other way.

Up on the bed Charlette's consciousness is slipping. Her breathing slows and her fears fade into oblivion. All there is is Cedric, so steady against her. "Sorry…" She glides her hand over his tiny body and rests it on his chest, the steady beating of his heart pushing her over the edge and stealing away the remnants of awareness. The throbbing of her ankle means nothing. She slips into a realm of dreams where there is only Cedric and not the slightest trace of red. Only happiness.

What did you think? I struggled with how to handle certain parts of this and maybe rushed bits of it, but maybe not. I have just stared at it so long that I could pick out something wrong with every sentence even though there is probably nothing wrong. lol And next chapter won't be quite so horrible. Hopefully it'll be much sweeter. :) So look forward to that. Any thoughts you have I'd love to hear. Please review!