IT WAS THE NIGHT OF THE FULL MOON, and Charlie was dreading it. Not just because she had to go through the extremely painful transformation where every single bone in her body breaks, but she also realized that she left all of her chains at her old house. So, she was going to have to sneak in and steal it without anyone noticing.
It had been a couple weeks since she set foot in the upstairs of the house. She had been in the downstairs as a party guest and an escort. Now that she thought about it, the amount of events they hosted at that mansion was a little bit alarming.
So, there she was, in her old room that looked exactly the same as she left it. Her duffel bag of chains, locks, and wolf's bane was thankfully still buried deep in her closet, and she was almost out the door when someone burst in.
Tyler was standing in front of her with a baseball bat above his head, and he was getting ready to swing. She put her hands up to block him and jumped back. "Hey, hey, hey. It's me. It's me."
"Charlie?" he exclaimed when he realized it was his sister, and he dropped the wood, breathing out a sigh of relief and running a hand through his hair. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Oh, I, um, I'm just grabbing some clothes. Why are you not in school?" She had intentionally chosen that day and time because Tyler would be in school, Carol had a function, and her father would be at work, but her brother just ruined her plans.
He caught her attempt at trying to change the subject and raised his eyebrows as her bag clinked when metal hit metal. She winced when he looked down at it with a confused expression. "I'm skipping. Those are some pretty loud clothes you have there."
"Well, there's other stuff, you know? Jewelry and whatnot," she explained, glancing down at the black bag. She sighed, looking up at him with pleading eyes. "Just please don't tell Mom and Dad that I was here."
"My lips are sealed, and by the way, Dad invited you to dinner tonight," he informed her like it was no big deal after making the motion of zipping his lips.
She was about to walk out of the room, but his words caused her to whip around to face him, her eyes widened in shock. She stared at him in disbelief, confused as to why he was being so nonchalant about this. Why the hell would her father invite her to dinner? What did he have in store for her? "What? What are you talking about?"
"He wants you to come here for dinner tonight," he repeated as if she didn't hear him and that was why she was confused. Clearly he was a little out of it because this was a huge deal. "Says he has something to talk to you about. It sounded important."
"What kind of something?" she questioned with furrowed eyebrows, taking a step closer to him like her was interrogating him. She was a little — a lot — worried about what that meant. Judging from the past of the Lockwoods, it was most likely not anything good.
He shrugged, and he seemed a little bit annoyed. "I have no idea. He doesn't tell me anything. I know about as much as you do at this point." It was true. Richard Lockwood was not the best at keeping his children informed about what was happening.
"That doesn't sound good," the younger sibling muttered, scared for what her father was planning to do. She assumed he was probably going to shame her again or tell her that they were officially disowning her.
Tyler shook his head in agreement. "No, it does not."
"I'm not sure if I can make it tonight," she sighed, remembering what she was there for. If she was in that house when the full moon came up, she was royally screwed. As much as she hated her father, she wouldn't be able to bear knowing that she hurt him.
"Why not?" Her brother frowned, furrowing his eyebrows at her. He knew that she knew this was a huge deal, and she definitely wouldn't miss something like that for the small plans he thought she had. "Do you have a date or something? Can't you rain check?"
No, she could not. If she could rain check on the full moon, she would've done it a long time ago. In fact, she would've just completely cancelled it. However, she was unable to do that, so she was cursed with turning into a werewolf every single full moon.
Charlie groaned, tilting her head back as she tried to think of an excuse, but what she said only made her seem even more suspicious to him. "I just have something that I need to do."
"Are you dealing drugs?" he questioned skeptically, and she realized that it did make her sound like she was planning on committing a felony later that evening. As far as she knew, what she was doing could be considered a felony.
"Why would I tell you?" she joked before turning around and grabbing the doorknob as she got ready to leave. She just turned her head to look him in the eye and shot him a reassuring smile. "Hey, I'll try to make it tonight, okay?"
He nodded, smiling at her as a goodbye, and as she walked down the huge flight of stairs, he called after her, "Hey, make sure you let Mom know if you're coming because she'll freak out if she doesn't make the perfect amount of food."
"Got it!"
☾❄☽
CHARLIE TOOK A DEEP BREATH BEFORE ringing the doorbell. She had no idea why she was even there. She already had a pretty good idea of how that night would turn out — her leaving in a hurry both because of her father insulting her and because she had to head out to the cellar to turn.
Carol's eyes widened when she swung the door open and saw her standing there, even though she had informed her that she was coming. "Charlie, come on in."
"Thanks, Mom," the Lockwood girl replied, smiling at the woman before stepping into the mansion. She looked around and heard some whispers from the kitchen as they stood there awkwardly.
The older female exhaled before clearing her throat. "Shall we?"
"Sure," the girl responded before following her mother like she had never been there before into the dining room where the male Lockwoods were waiting for them.
"Charlotte," Richard said, lifting his head to look her confidently in the eye. She could still see that he was nervous though, and she wondered why. "I see you got our invitation."
She furrowed her eyebrows at how formal he was being. "Um, yeah, I did. What did you need to talk to me about?"
"Have a seat," was all the man said, gesturing to the spot right across from him, which confused her even more. For as long as she had been alive and even before that, Richard had set at the head of the table, and Carol sat opposite him, leaving the two children on the sides. That had never changed until now.
She pulled the seat out and sat down hesitantly as the rest of the family joined her. "...Okay."
"How have you been?" Richard questioned once they were all settled in. They began to pass around the food as they made pointless small talk. It was like she was part of the family again.
"Good," she muttered, glancing over to Tyler in confusion . "How about you?"
The man just nodded at her. "I'm fine." Then, they all fell into an awkward silence, Charlie shooting looks at her brother while Carol did the same with her husband.
Finally, the youngest of the family was the one to speak. "Dad, what the hell is going on?"
"It has recently come to my attention that I may have been a little rude and not as open-minded as you would've liked when you told us about your girlfriend," the man admitted, and Charlie's jaw completely dropped. It was basically touching the floor at that point. That was not what she expected him to say.
Playing it cool, she scoffed, "You think? You practically kicked me out."
"Well, I changed my mind," he announced, putting his fork down so that he could look her in the eye. "I would like for you to move back in with us. We're your family, and family doesn't turn their backs on one another."
"That doesn't sound like an apology," the brunette girl muttered, rolling her eyes at his pathetic attempt of trying to get her back. It was more than she expected, though.
The mother sighed, "Char..."
"No, Mom," Charlie argued, leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed as she stared expectantly at her father. "If he really wants me back, he can say sorry. It's not that hard."
The mayor gave his wife that said, 'Do I have to?", but when she just nodded encouraging at him, he exhaled deeply. "I am truly sorry, Charlotte. Would you please move back in here?"
"Tomorrow work for you?" she asked with a smirk.
Carol smiled excitedly, clapping her hands together. "Yes, of course. That's perfect. I can come by and help you get packed if that's okay."
"Sounds great," her youngest daughter told her before checking her watch. Her eyes widened when she saw what time it was, and she quickly stood up. "Uh, I really have to go. I'll see you guys later."
"What? Where are you going?" the Lockwood woman questioned, getting up with Charlie with a panicked expression, worried that someone said something wrong.
Tyler answered for his sister. "She's dealing drugs."
"What?" Carol exclaimed, her eyes flicking between all of the family members with a concerned look before her eyes finally landed on her daughter once again. "He's kidding, right?"
"Yes, mother, he's kidding."