c-harlesemerson

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie cocked an eyebrow in challenge to the statement he had almost made. He wasn't about to admit it, but Ruby leaving hadn't exactly been a picnic for him either. He had made a promise to Karen to look after them if anything happened to her, and he couldn't even do that. Continuing to train Danny had been the only useful thing he'd really done in the last six months. Charlie's jaw clenched when Corey asked the question and he was at a loss for how to reply. The answer was no. He hadn't found a way to move on and he wasn't sure that he would. His plans had been interrupted- first by the Revolutions, then by William- and he hated that. Maybe the importance of those plans had been lost somewhere along the way, but they were his plans to change. Not Edward's. Not William's. His. "I'll move on when William Rebelo is dead. What's your plan? Mope around in here and hope she comes crawling back?"

Abandoned. Corey's jaw twitched. "She didn't-" didn't she though? He let his interjection trail off, pressing his lips together as he listened to the remainder of Charlie's answer. There was no grief in his voice but the sentiment held true. Charlie had lost Karen, possibly the only person he had had a connection with down here, if one could call it that. It wasn't far fetched to think that he did feel this loss, and Corey could relate to that. He could empathise with that. Empathise with Charlie Emmerson. No one could've convinced Corey that was possible in the many years preceding this conversation. "Yeah, we both lost. Have you found a way to move on from that?"

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie had waited until the kitchen was empty before making his move. The last supplies he had gathered for Karen were slowly dwindling and, unfortunately, humans needed actual food to keep surviving. Somehow, as per her wishes, Charlie had managed to keep the resurrection of Karen McReid a secret, but it had come at the expense of him being uncharacteristically quiet and unantagonistic.

He was in the process of gathering various snacks and sandwich ingredients, when someone entered. At full vampire speed, he abandoned his bag and turned, leaning casually against the counter. "Evening."

@havensdalestarters

[c-harlesemerson]

If his heart could beat like a human, it would have been pounding out of his chest. Something inside him was screaming at the sound of his name on her lips; he thought he would never hear it again and now his ears were ringing with it- granted, it could have also been the implosion.

"I'm here." Charlie didn't flinch when she clawed at him. He patiently waited with his hand outstretched while she figured it out and cleared the dirt from her vision. When her hand found his, he gripped it tight and pulled her towards him- pulled her the rest of the way out of her grave. Charlie stood with her, gripping her tightly against his chest, as though she would fade away if he relented his hold even a little. A part of his brain was trying to tell him that she wasn't here- that it was his mind playing tricks on him- but her scent surrounded him and her nails carved tiny crescent moons into his hand, and he knew this was no illusion.

When she pulled back, Charlie didn't fight her. She released him, but his hands stayed stretched out towards her in case her legs couldn't support her weight. Even when she hit him, he held his position; waiting to catch her. He let her get it out of her system- this wasn't about him- before daring to gently grip her arms. He looked into her eyes as she demanded answers and he could only shake his head, brow furrowed. "I don't know..." There was a fury burning behind his eyes as he spoke; someone did this... and he would find them. "I don't know, Karen. This wasn't us..."

Everything was too loud, too bright, and she couldn't focus. Her vision was blurring as she coughed, her fingers curling into the dirt. She felt like she was free-falling. She didn't feel real. Why was she back here? She winced in pain, willing it to stop. Take me back. Take me back. Take me ba--- "Ch- Charlie?" she didn't sound real. Her voice was hoarse and felt unnatural coming out of her mouth.

She tried to look up at him, desperately waiting for him to come back into focus. Wishing that he wouldn't. This was a nightmare, she was living in a nightmare. That's when she saw his outstretched hand. She swiped at it, almost feral. But then she tried again, her dirt covered hand wrapping around his. Solid. Real. Damn it.

Karen let him help her up, falling into his chest with a strangled sob. She pressed her face against him, her nails biting into his hand she was still holding. Karen pulled back, really seeing him again. "No," she whispered, letting go of his hand to ball hers into fists. She hit them against his chest with little strength behind it- "No, no, no." She stopped hitting him, barely feeling the tears streaming down her face as she looked at him. "Why?"

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie cocked an eyebrow and smirked when she almost smiled at his joke. Could it be that she was actually becoming comfortable with him too? Surely not. The world, it seemed, was well and truly upside down and maybe nothing really mattered until they fixed it. Maybe he could be the good guy and she could be the monster, and no one had to question it until they saved the world. Maybe he didn't need to think about who he was becoming, or about how the thought of a world without her in it scared him... or how he could smell Ryan Mitchell's vile mango lip balm on her.

He could feel it at the back of his throat; a possessive growl that threatened to give him away, but he pushed it back down as he stepped closer to her. Again, he found himself thinking of a time when she would never have allowed him to get this close, but here he was, and there she stayed. Charlie smiled, teasingly. "You know me better than that..." But he was worried. Cripplingly so. "Make sure you do. You have too many people depending on you, and I certainly can't be trusted to keep them alive."

He was too close to her, he knew that, but that lip balm was driving him insane. He wanted to scrub it from her mouth; to erase any claim Ryan Mitchell might have on her. Karen was his. 'Mine. Mine. Mine.' The word echoed in his head as he hesitantly reached a hand up to caress the side of her face. His brow furrowed, his own behaviour- his desire- confusing him. But maybe he didn't have to question it until they saved the world. And abruptly, Charlie's lips were on hers.

Karen let out an unexpected laugh, twisted as that was, when he said that. A call back to one of their previous encounters. The beginning of the end, really. Karen had learned a long time ago that she had to draw a line in the sand, set a hard boundary for herself when she was hunting. She didn't want to be a monster. Oh, but she could be. "Yeah, yeah, twisted minds - I remember. I'll wait for the podcast, thanks." She wouldn't dwell too long on how surreal this was. How wrong. They had to do anything it took to survive now. To win.

She rolled her eyes at him, the ghost of a smile almost crossing her lips. Karen looked up when he said that though. Anything can be killed. Words she'd once threatened him with. Words that had spurred her on to try and take him out, to take out Piper. Karen McReid knew all too well those words were true. No matter how powerful, how ancient, how evil... Everyone has a weakeness. "Smartest thing I've ever heard you say," she half-heartedly joked. Don't be a hero. Wasn't that the point? Wasn't that why McReids met tragic ends. She looked away from him, taking a steadying breath before nodding. "Yeah, one way or another. Whatever it takes. Don't worry so much, Charlie," she said, letting herself smile, "I know how to take care of myself. If things go south, I'll make sure we all make it out."

[c-harlesemerson]

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie stopped dead in his tracks when he heard Amara's voice, almost dropping a suspicious sandwich. His head spun around to make sure that it was, in fact, her and his jaw also dropped. She couldn't be... Could she? "Take a wrong turn?" He asked as he tried to compose himself. If she hadn't switched sides, Charlie was screwed.

Six months ago Amara had approached her most loathed adversary with an offer and the taste of bile in her throat. Lillian Khaldun made Amara sick. Okay, so that was a little dramatic but she did try to straight up murder her! Several hundred years ago now but still. Anyway, Amara had landed on Lily's doorstep. And she offered her help. No one else knew, only Lily. They would have kept the secret going too while Amara played the other side but then the school blew up. Big womp, right?

So now here she was. Standing in the middle of enemy territory, looking fabulous and definitely scaring the shit out of her onlookers. "You can pick your jaw up off the floor now." @havensdalestarters

[c-harlesemerson]

The second that happens, you know I'll be there. I'll slip in. Have myself a real good day.

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie didn't startle easily. He liked to think that he was always aware of his surroundings, always ready for anything that may come at him- something that was required when you were capable of antagonising every living being you came into contact with. But when the obsession of your life came screaming out of the earth, it simply wasn't something you could prepare yourself for. A scream of his own erupted from him as he pivoted into a fighting stance, scrambling to be ready for whatever was coming for him.

Nothing could have made him ready for this.

His stance relaxed, the implosion behind him forgotten completely. It wasn't important anymore. Nothing else mattered anymore. Charlie stumbled forward, not sure if he could let himself believe what he was seeing. Maybe he had drank more than he thought he had? He dropped to his knees at the edge of her grave for the second time that night, wanting to reach out to help her, but not sure that he should- that she would want him to.

Charlie didn't even think to question how this was happening. He had been alive long enough to know that pretty much anything was possible, so who was he to look a gift horse in the mouth? Instead, he did the only thing he could do and held a hand out to her. She had dragged her way back to this world, the least he could do was pull her the rest of the way. "Karen?" His voice was a whisper, softer than it had any right to be. "Karen, I'm here. I've got you."

Karen was planting the device. Locklyn was on her way to save her sister, Ryan and Danny were causing their carefully planned commotion. Her girls were holding the line. This was going to work. Xavier had explained the ins and outs of the device to her a hundred times, he'd promised there would be minimal damage. It would implode, there would be no accidental causalities. They would take Edward out, get their town back. This would finally be over.

In her lifetime, she had killed a lot of vampires. She'd stood toe to toe with monsters, walked in the darkness and come out bloodier than them. Alive. There were so many things she had survived. She had to survive, there was no other choice. If she had to go though, she'd have to go down swinging. But it had to mean something. Damn it, it had to be for something. A saviour. A martyr. It only mattered if she died for them for a reason.

They had to be okay. Without her.

After that... she couldn't remember anymore. Where she was. The feeling of peace, of closure, was fading fast. It was cold, suddenly. And painful. She was dying, she was dying, she was dying. The magic slowly, cruelly, brought her body back and dragged her up, up, up. The dirt around the top of her grave started to shake, started to crumble around itself. Karen was suddenly thrust out off the earth, bursting through her so-called final resting place with a scream.

She was clawing, clawing at the ground, dragging herself out. She coughed and coughed, tears filling her eyes while the air violently filled her lungs. What was happening to her? Why was this happening to her?

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie couldn't stop the smirk that tugged on the right corner of his lips at her words. "Karen, baby. Have you not been listening to every one of my monologues? Do I need to do my bit about our masks again?" It was still strange; the way they were with each other now. They had always bantered in their own way, but now it was laced with nostalgia and something akin to camaraderie. Maybe things would have been different if he had never been taken by the Institute. Karen inadvertently caused the insertion of the chip in his brain, but would they have let him down here without it? Did he prefer this alliance with Karen or did he crave the games they used to play? Would Clary have stayed? Would Karen have helped him save her? He tried not to think about any of it.

"You're just scared I'll do your job better than you." He teased, but she was right; he would get in the way. The chances that they would be fighting humans would be slim, so his chip wouldn't be a problem in that sense, but if he was to see Piper... Attack dog protocol would be triggered and the only way they would get him back would be to knock him out too. Not to mention that his cover would be blown. No, it was better that he stayed here. When this was all over and everything was back to the way it ought to be, then he would consider what his time with her meant. "Anything can be killed." His words took a more serious turn, echoing what she had told him years ago. "Including them. Whether the plan tonight works or not, you'll find a way, but you're not untouchable. If things go south, don't you dare be a hero, Karen McReid."

Karen scoffed at his joke but couldn't help noticing the way his grin faltered. That was a bad sign. An apocalyptic sign. Charlie Emerson both at a momentary loss for words and not laughing at his own antagonistic, morbid, jokes. She watched him then, waiting for the next blow to land. It was worse than she could have imagined. The 'with you' might not have passed his lips but she could hear it - feel it - between them now. Karen McReid wasn't afraid to die if it could mean something. If it could save them all.

"It's funny... Strip it all back, everything that's happened, and sometimes I think that no one has ever known me like you have," she said, unexpectedly. "And no one should ever know me like you have." Karen looked away from him then. "You'd only get in the way," she said, a smile almost twitching onto her lips- "And annoy the shit out of everyone."

[c-harlesemerson]

Whiskey in hand, Charlie lazily wandered past the McReid house. It was currently occupied by Lily, her pack, and whoever her little friends were. There was a time when they would have stopped him from coming back here, but you visit a place enough times without killing anyone and people stop asking if you have nefarious motives. He took a swig of the whiskey and dropped to his knees. "Hey, Karen."

Charlie adjusted himself so that his back was pressed up against the gravestone of Karen McReid and closed his eyes. He stayed like that for a long time, only breaking from the stillness to drink more whiskey. "Your niece has quite the swing on her." His hand stroked the grass beneath him affectionately, tilting the bottle to pour some liquor into the dirt. "You know, I told you they'd find a way to blame me. Surprised it took them this long, honestly." Charlie opened his eyes and spiralled into a rant about that night. He didn't really have a point and his thoughts were scattered, but who else was he going to talk to, right? "You were my favourite... I think you knew that, but I don't know if I ever told you. You were going to be my masterpiece. You-... Damn it, Karen! You weren't supposed to die like this!"

The bottle was empty. He wasn't sure when that happened, but he threw it in the direction of the house and watched it shatter against the balustrade before dropping back, now fully lying down on her grave. His hands were in his hair, eyes closed again, "You should be here. We should've-..." The sound of the implosion cut off the end of his statement and he was instantly on his feet. Staggering just a little, Charlie looked out in the direction of the smoke. "Well that's unfortunate."

@kmcreid

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie nodded, still trying to keep his brow from furrowing. He hadn't actually meant to mention William. The name just... slipped out. Before the incident, William was a mild annoyance at best. In fact, it was pretty entertaining to ruin his day, but now, all Charlie could think about was the fact that he had killed Karen. "Well, at least we agree on that." Corey moved towards him and he hadn't been expecting it. Even more so, he wasn't expecting this line of questioning. "Sure. I mean, not exactly the same. You're in love with a woman that abandoned us all and my favourite pastime was murdered. Either way you look at it, yes, we both lost a McReid. Hence, I know how you feel." Charlie's tone was still jovial, but he had stopped making eye contact with him around the time he started replying.

"My apologies. I suppose I'm still his brother, too." The mention of William did not sit easy with him. He was all too aware of the atrocities that creature had committed. "He's beneath him, even now." It wasn't a claim he could make confidently, but Corey hoped he was right. He finally moved, if only to close some of the distance between them. He'd like to see it - the proof. The loss. The grief. Just a glimpse of similarity to his own suffering. "You already know how it feels then? How I feel?"

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie could have retaliated, in fact, he would have if Carrie hadn't spoken. You killed her. Despite the fleets of women he had killed over the century, he didn't have to think too hard to know that she was talking about Karen. He knew before she had even said her name. Carrie's words continued to spew, each one feeling like a dagger to the gut- and not the fun kind! Charlie just stared up at her, a somewhat pained expression on his face, but it was also twisted with anger. At her? At himself? At the fact that he still gave a damn? Who knew? He didn't kill Karen, but maybe if he hadn't given his out of date information, she would still be alive. He continued his devastated glaring until he saw a table leg coming for him, and he swiftly moved his head to the side. Shockingly, he still had nothing to say to her, but her last statement was just rude.

And then, suddenly, she was being lifted from him and Charlie had the opportunity to narrow his eyes at Genevieve Huang as she guided Carrie from the room. In what world was this human strong enough to restrain an enraged vampire? Whatever. He'd consider the implications of that later. Getting to his feet, he left to find the nearest bottle of whiskey, and headed above ground.

@cmcreid-warriorprincess

His cackle made her skin crawl and her blood boil. If it was worth a damn, she'd use the broken coffee table's wooden leg to stake him. Instead, she met his delighted, entitled, evil face with her fist. Once, twice. She let out a gasp then, looking down at him as if she'd been suddenly struck with what she was doing. Carrie felt the tears well in her eyes and she hated it. "You killed her," she snarled, venom dripping from each word as she said it. It was something she'd never said out loud before. "You knew and you did nothing. You hurt her, you broke her. You killed Karen." The rage started to bubble up again as she grabbed the wooden leg of the table, slamming it down beside his head. Missing. "You should be dead, not her."

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie's eyes narrowed a fraction before quickly relaxing. Corey wasn't taking the bait. He was throwing some of his best annoyances his way and was getting nothing but a wisp of nostalgia? Between this guy and Carrie, this place was becoming a manic nightmare. Maybe Carrie would be able to get a reaction out of him. "Okay, the past tense just hurts, Chris is still my best friend. Like who is the alternative? William?" Charlie scrunched up his face, trying to get his train of thought back on track. "You think because I'm... well... me that I don't have a heart?" He scoffed, "Corny, please, you're not the only one who lost a McReid."

Corey watched as Charlie sampled his dinner. Normally commentary on his endearingly termed 'Bambi diet' would annoy him, but he couldn't argue with Charlie on this as of late - it tasted vile. It all tasted vile. He'd not managed to finish a single meal in weeks without being ill, and the thud of the bag hitting the desk was nearly enough to make him retch. "It's all I need," Corey said, his eyes following Charlie's movements across the room as he systematically displaced his belongings - the type of petty behaviour he knew all too well having grown up with brothers. The mention of his given name nearly made him snicker, reminding him just how long ago it was since they were just dumb kids, "I haven't heard that name in a long time," he mused, but the thought of Chris rained down on his nostalgia. "Yeah, Chris was your best friend. I was his brother. I don't think we need to dwell on that." He mimicked Charlie's hand movement to his own chest with a look of genuine wonder, "which part of this do you know, Charlie?"

[c-harlesemerson]

Admittedly, a little chill ran down Charlie's spine when she looked at him like that. For a second, it was twenty years ago and they were on the verge of another tussle, but then she looked away. Just like that, the moment passed. Charlie wasn't sure if he wanted things to go back to the way they were, or if he preferred the strange truce they had now, but it wasn't often that he found himself getting nostalgic.

Karen turned back to him before he had too long to think, and he couldn't keep the playful grin from his face. "Could I get that in writing? Anything could happen to you out there and I'd like the rest of the lemmings to know that I'm cleared of all charges." His smile dropped almost immediately. Sure, part of him was being serious, but it was still intended as a joke. A joke where the punchline was the very real possibility of her death. There was a long pause as he tried to sort out his feelings about that. "I wish I could go-..." He left the 'with you' unsaid.

It was strange now to think about how afraid Karen had once been of him. Paralyzing fear. Indescribable hatred. Both were still in her, of course but her priorities had shifted. Everything had shifted since the dome came down. The lines that Karen had promised herself she wouldn't cross, were long gone. No matter what, she was going to get this done. Whatever it takes. Charlie Emerson was a necessary evil.

Karen took a deep breath, slowly looking up to meet his eye. Her gaze was steel. "Then I'm going in blind. Is that acknowledgement enough for you?" she barely kept the sarcasm from her tone even though she meant it. Karen looked away from him, balling her hands into fists. There had been a vote. Not everyone was on board.

She let out a sigh then, rolling her shoulders before turning her attention back to him. "What do you want Charlie?" Karen didn't want him to answer. "Do you want to be absolved? Fine. You're-," she waved her hand in front of him- "Absolved."

[c-harlesemerson]

Okay, so Charlie had expected Carrie to be embarrassed by his comment. Maybe she would partake in some verbal sparring with him, at most perhaps he would get a punch out of her. He hadn't been expecting her to launch herself at him, so he wasn't prepared to be knocked to the ground, breaking the coffee table on his descent. Honesty? He didn't hate it, and he did cackle delightfully on the way down, but he couldn't take all the credit for this. Charlie knew that he was an antagonising bastard- he lived for irritating these people- but this reaction was a bit excessive. Should he be... concerned? He laughed again, "Are we feeling a little-..." His words were cut off by a fist to the face.

Carrie never would have taken the bait before. In fact, she'd gone out of her way to avoid Charlie Emerson before. Karen never would have let him step his toes out of line in her direction anyway but still. She never would have taken the bait. Now, she was like putty in his hand. She practically snarled as he kept talking. "Someone should have shut you up a long time ago," she hissed, the fire extinguisher clattering around the floor. She was going to tear off his damn arms! Without thinking, she charged towards him, fangs bared with every intention of doing just that. Nevermind he had hundreds of years on her. Nevermind that she was acting like a monster. She wanted him gone.

[c-harlesemerson]

[c-harlesemerson]

Charlie watched her from the other side of the room, for once not immediately opening his mouth to antagonise whatever Resistance member crossed his path that day. He watched her breathing; watched the pulse in her neck steady. She really believed in this plan. The plan that he had set in motion by providing intel on the situation inside the Montgomery home. How many times had he told them that he hadn't been in there for well over a year? It was too risky when he could be triggered to attack Piper at any given moment. There was no way for him to guarantee that his information wasn't useless, and bad information could get her killed.

Honestly, Charlie would adapt either way. If the plan succeeded, his world could go back to normal. If they failed, he could easily join the so-named 'Bad Guys' like he hadn't been living down here for over two years. There wasn't really any risk for him... except her. Either this would work or it wouldn't, but the latter would mean he would lose her trust. If his intel fucked up the plan, she would blame him... If she was still alive to do that.

Charlie straightened when she spoke to him, daring to approach her. "Just here to remind you that I still don't think you should trust that they're operating the same way as I last saw it. You're going in blind and you need to acknowledge that."

Flashback: November 2016, Underground

This plan was going ahead, come hell or high water. Karen wasn't sure which one she was going to be. They'd gone over it a hundred times, prepped and planned until they were blue in the face. Everything was set in place.

There was only an hour or so before showtime. Karen was loading her weapons, finishing off a couple of things before meeting up with everyone else. She was taking a moment to herself. Remembering to breathe. All going well, this could be their last damn night underground. The hope of it was almost unbearable. She clung to it tighter than ever. She knew she'd gotten tougher, rougher around the edges down here. She knew she'd become obsessed with getting them out. But now it was finally coming to a head.

When she heard a sound behind her, she didn't turn. "If you're here to convince me to back out, you're a little late." @ryyyan-mitchell @c-harlesemerson