Current mood:	giggly
Current music:	where it is _ carrie underwood

212 - Fire + Water (A Charlie Episode)

Mini Recap: Coming soon.


---

The painting “The Baptism of Christ” by Verrocchio hangs on a wall in a home. A little boy wearing bunny slippers hurriedly runs down the staircase to find his brother already opening his Christmas presents. A young Charlie looks for a present for him to open, but finds that the tags all read ‘Liam.’ Liam opens another present—Voltron, woah! But where are Charlie’s presents? Suddenly, their mother comes down and tells Charlie his are right over there. She pulls some blankets away to reveal a beautiful wooden piano. Charlie’s eyes light up. Is it his? Yes. Father Christmas must know how talented he is. He hugs her around the legs. She tells him he’s special. One day, he’ll get them all out of there. Now, play them a tune. From the sofa, Liam tells Charlie to play them something. Young Charlie looks and sees the adult Liam sitting there, playing with Voltron, sitting in a diaper. He can’t save them if he doesn’t play. Confused, he looks back to himself—he’s no longer a child, either. Mrs. Pace urges him to play again. He turns to do so, but a man talks to him. He ain’t saving no one, he says. He ain’t. Music. Music never got nobody nowhere, Charlie boy. Charlie looks and finds the man—his father—chopping meat in his butcher shop, which is blended into the living room where Liam sits, playing with his toys. He puts a baby doll on the chopping block and points the cleaver at Charlie, telling him he needs a trade. With one fair stroke, he chops the baby’s head off and it rolls to the ground. Do it, baby bro, Liam says. Save them. Save them, Charlie. Save them. He begins to play the piano. There are sounds of the ocean and now Charlie and his piano are in the surf. He hears a baby crying and stops playing. Aaron? The sounds are coming from inside the piano. Charlie stands and tries to open the lid, but it won’t budge. Aaron?! He turns from the piano for a moment to see the moving trees and when he turns back, it’s floating out to sea, with baby Aaron trapped inside. Aaron! Aaron! Charlie wakes up on the beach and immediately runs to Claire’s tent to see if the baby’s okay. He finds the cradle empty and rushes over to Sun. He asks her if she’s seen Claire and Aaron—they’ve gone. Confused, she points and tells him they’re over there. Is Aaron okay? Yes, he’s fine. Charlie runs off and sees that both Claire and Aaron are perfectly fine and standing at the edge of the water. Locke comes up beside them and plays with the baby while Charlie looks on from a distance.

Claire multi-tasks by writing in her diary and rocking Aaron in his cradle at the same time. Charlie approaches carrying some home-made diapers and cautiously greets her. He shows her the ‘nappies’ and sets them down for her. She thanks him and he looks at the baby. Has he been asking about him? Don’t, Charlie. He’s sorry. He should have told her about the statue, he says, what was in it. He just wishes things could go back to the way things were before. There was no before. They were strangers on a plane and they became friends. Now Locke’s her friend, huh? Please, Charlie, just give her some space, okay? Yeah, space. He looks at the baby again. Take care of Claire, okay?

FLASHBACK. Charlie stares at a baby in the hospital nursery. A woman comes up to him and they hug. He tells her she should be lying down. She just needed to see her again, she says. Isn’t she brilliant? She’s beautiful, Karen. She named her Megan. Where’s Liam? Charlie is at a loss for words. He’s not there? Look, it wasn’t his fault, Charlie explains. They were leaving the club in Dresden—he took a cab—Liam rode in a van with the gear. They blew a tire on the way to the airport. He missed his flight. He’s on the next plane, okay? He’ll be there soon. But he’s okay? He’s great. He looks at baby Megan. He’s a dad.

Charlie enters his apartment to find a cigarette burning on his piano. Immediately, he throws it into an ash tray and rubs the piano. He spots Liam passed out on the sofa and wakes him up. He removes a tourniquet from his arm and asks him what the hell he’s doing. Hey baby brother, Liam says. He’s supposed to be cleaning up, Charlie scolds. Get up. He told Karen he missed his flight. She’s all alone at the hospital and he’s there fixing? What’s the matter with him? He’s cool, he’s cool. He just needed to get right. Charlie picks up the needle and the drugs. Don’t worry, Liam tells him. He left some for Charlie. Get right? Why doesn’t he get up? Take a shower, get dressed, and get to the hospital. Alright, alright, he’s on it. Alright. Oh, by the way—he has a daughter. Her name’s Megan. Liam smiles. After Mum? Yeah, after Mum. Now clean up. He’s a sodding father now.

Kate helps Sawyer do some physical therapy for his shoulder while Hurley sits a little ways away, watching them. He asks Sawyer how well he got to know the tailies when they were walking across the island. Well enough, why? That Libby chick seems pretty cool, he says. Is she? What, he got a little love connection brewing over there? Nah, just asking. He hears him asking. Hurley leaves. Forget it. Kate asks Sawyer what’s with him—he’s acting like he’s in junior high. He spots Jack and Ana come out of the jungle and he smiles. Looks like Ana-Lucia’s getting the twenty dollar tour, he says. That’s the third time he’s seen them walking out of the jungle together. Suggestively, he asks what Kate thinks they’re doing out there. Her smile fades. Just do the exercises.

Charlie sits on the beach, tuning his guitar. Suddenly, he hears Aaron crying and looks up to see his cradle in the ocean, being carried out to sea. He calls out for somebody to help, but no one is around. He takes off his shoes and shirt and dives into the ocean to get the cradle. He manages to pull it back to the beach and he takes the baby out, holding him close. He looks up and looks confused—the scene is set up exactly like the Verrocchio painting from his childhood home. His mother and Claire are dressed as the angels. They talk at the same time, telling Charlie that the baby is in danger, he has to save him, he’s in danger, only Charlie can save him. They continue repeating the message as Charlie hears the sound of a plane and watches the Nigerian plane crash in the jungle. There’s a flash of light and a dove comes flying out of nowhere to the sea. Aaron starts to cry. Suddenly, Hurley comes out of the jungle, dressed like John the Baptist in the painting. He asks Charlie what he’s doing and Charlie gets confused. All of a sudden it’s nighttime and Hurley—dressed normally—is standing just outside of the jungle and Charlie is standing in the surf, holding Aaron. Hurley again asks what Charlie’s doing. Charlie looks at him, confused. What’s going on? It’s the middle of the night. What’s he doing with the baby? He doesn’t know. From elsewhere, Claire screams out that somebody’s stolen Aaron—her baby’s gone! Hurley calls out to her that it’s okay, they’re over there. She comes running toward them, asking if he’s okay. Charlie hands the baby over to her, telling her he doesn’t know what happened. He’s sorry. He’s okay, though. He-he had this dream—Claire slaps him hard across the face and walks off, leaving Charlie standing there in front of the other survivors.

Hurley and Sawyer are playing cards on the beach. Clearly, Sawyer is trying to teach Hurley to play a game, but he’s not getting it. Sawyer is irritated. He sees Libby carrying some clothes a little ways away and smiles. He tells Hurley he should go over there. He’s kind of waiting for his moment, he says. Sawyer stands up and heads toward his tent. His moment is now, Hoss. Hey, Libby! Sawyer ducks into his tent as Libby turns around, leading her to believe Hurley called out to her. He waves. She smiles at him. Hey.

Charlie’s standing in the jungle, just outside the hatch. The door opens and Locke exits. Charlie asks if he can talk to him for a second. Yeah, what is it? He heard about what happened last night, right? If he means Charlie taking the baby out of his cradle in the middle of the night, then yeah. It was a big misunderstanding, John. He was sleepwalking. He doesn’t know why or how—is there something he wants from him? Can he talk to Claire for him? Put in a good word? Is he using? What? Heroin—is he using? Kate sees a horse—nothing. Pretty much everybody’s seen Walt running around. But when it’s Charlie, it must be the bloody drugs, right? Funny, he didn’t answer his question. Remember the plane, John? Him and Eko burned it. They burned the whole thing—the drugs, statues—it’s all gone. Destroyed. All of them? All of them. Trust is a hard thing to win back, Locke tells him. Claire needs time. Leave her and the baby alone for a while.

FLASHBACK. The members of DriveShaft are sitting in director’s chairs, wearing robes. Liam looks terrible. Charlie asks him if he can do it—he looks green. Sod off, Liam growls. He’s fine. The director tells them it’s time to give it another go. Standing, Charlie tells Liam to get it together. They need this. The director asks if they’re ready. Yeah, they’re ready. Good. Try not to blow it this time. The guys take off their robes to reveal them wearing nothing but large diapers and pacifiers around their necks. They get into a giant crib, holding packages of Bubbies Diapers. They start taping and the group does a small dance routine with the packages, singing “You All Every Butties” the whole while. Liam is noticeable off from the rest of them. They run to the front of the crib and stick their butts through the slats of the crib, but Liam falls through. Cut! Charlie tells the director it’s alright and helps Liam up. That’s it, the director says. They’re done. He starts to leave and Charlie runs after him. He throws his robe back on as the director exits the studio. He gets into a truck and Charlie asks him to give them another chance. He wants another chance? Take his advice—he points to Liam—and ditch that one. He’s a bloody disaster. He’s not ditching anyone. That’s his brother. Right. Well, then, he’s fired.

Hurley and Libby are doing laundry in the hatch. Libby asks if the washer and dryer are newer than everything else in there, as they're shiny and high-tech. It washes clothes, Hurley shrugs. That's all he needs to know. Ah, Libby says. Finally, someone who keeps it simple. Hey, look at this. She holds up a silky camisole and tells Hurley she found it in the abandoned luggage. He think she can pull it off? Hurley just stares at her. Let her give him a hand—when a girl asks that kind of question, she's looking for validation. Hurley studies Libby's face. Does he know her from somewhere? He means other than the flight? Flight...? Okay, turn around. Huh? Turn around. She wants to try the shirt on. Turn around. He does and she tells him no peeking. She starts to change and tells him she can't believe he doesn't remember stepping on her foot. He did? Yes, he did. And it was hard. She knows because she remembers he was the last one on the flight and he was all sweaty and he had headphones on—and crunch! He stepped on her foot. She finishes putting the top on. Okay, turn around. What does he think? It's awesome. She smiles. Thanks.

Eko marks an X on a tree. Charlie finds him and asks him what he's doing. He's marking trees, he says simply. Why? Because those are the ones he likes. Did he tell Locke he gave him one of the statures from the plane? Why would he do that? He knows, man. Bald wanker knows something. Something wrong, Charlie? Apart from him losing his mind? No, everything's just peachy. Why would he say he's losing his mind? How about the fact he's been sleepwalking? Stealing babies from their cribs? Oh yeah, and then there's the vivid dreams that make him feel like he's completely awake until, of course, he wakes up. What are his dreams about? Variations on Aaron being in mortal peril—trapped in a piano, drifting out to sea, there's the flying dove, and Claire and his mother dressed as angels telling him he has to save the baby. Eko is silent. What? Has he ever considered that the dreams mean something? Like what? What if he does need to save the baby?

Charlie walks forcefully up to Claire's tent. Kate stands up to intercept him. He tells her he has to talk to Claire. Now's not a good time, okay? No, he has to talk to her. She'll want to hear it. Kate physically restrains Charlie from getting to Claire. Okay, so, tell her and she'll tell Claire. Kate. No. Claire! She said not now! Charlie pushes past Kate and tells Claire to please wait. Listen to him. Aaron's in danger. What is he talking about? The baby's in danger! Look, he's been having dreams. He knows what they mean now. Charlie. Kate! Claire, listen, they have to baptize Aaron. What? They can do it! Eko's a priest! They can do it. Kate gently pushes Charlie. It's time to go. No, wait, he's not finished. Claire, they have to baptize Aaron! Kate pushes him harder. It's time to go. Now. From afar, Locke watches the scene.

Ana is attempting to build a shelter. Jack approaches her holding a tarp and hands it to her. For when it rains, he says. Thanks. They drape it over the frame she built. So, when is he going to tell her what happened in the jungle? He already did. Referring to the tarp, he tells her to pull it tighter or it will sag. He told her what that guy said. He didn't tell her why he turned around—what made him come back. He had a gun at Kate's head. Is he hitting that? What? Plane crash—they both survive—nice beach—she's hot, he's hot. It's what people do. He chuckles. He's not hitting that.

Charlie goes to his stash of Mary statues. He takes one out and breaks it open, sending him to a FLASHBACK to his and Liam's apartment. Charlie's at his piano, composing a song, when Liam enters, looking terrible. He heads to the sofa, telling Charlie Karen kicked him out. What? What happened? She, uh, she thinks he's dangerous. Why would she think that? Because he dropped her. Liam begins to cry. He dropped Megan! Oh. Hey, Charlie consoles his brother. He's sorry. He's got no money. He's got nothing. What are they going to do? They'll get through it. How? He's writing again. He's got a new song. It's about two brothers. Two brothers who should be butchers, Liam mumbles. Don't say that! It's a good one. He feels like it might be the one. Listen to it, okay? He plays the piano and starts singing the song. 'Funny now, you finally see me standing here/Funny now, I'm crying in the rain.' Liam likes it and joins Charlie at the piano. 'All alone, I try to be invincible/Together now, we can be saved.' Liam joins in at the end with harmony until Charlie stops playing. Nice. This could work, Liam says. It's good, right? They could make it work. Write all night just like the old days. Alright. Liam looks at Charlie. So, baby brother... got any?

Back on the island, Charlie has got some. He holds the heroin in his hand and runs his fingers over the bags with a hungry look in his eyes. Suddenly, a voice tells him he's disappointed in him. Charlie turns and finds Locke standing in the clearing. He's following him? How long has he been coming out there? Look, he's got the wrong idea, man. He said he destroyed them all, and yet here they are. How is that the wrong idea? He came out there to finish the job. He's going to get rid of them right now. Yeah, that's very convenient now that he found him. Locke goes to the statues with his pack. Charlie asks what he's doing. He starts putting the statues in his pack. There was a time when he let him choose whether or not he was going to do it to himself. Now he's making that choice for Charlie. Oh, he doesn't believe him? Give them to him. Give them to him right now; he'll destroy them. Look. He rips the baggies in his hand up and throws them down. He'll throw them to the sodding wind. Look, John, he knows he lied. Locke starts to walk away. Wait, wait, wait. Remember all those talks they had? He said everything happens for a reason—the island tests them. That's what it is, John, a test. This is his test. That's why the statues are there. They're there because he put them there. Locke heads off again. Wait, John, wait. Charlie grabs his arm, but Locke angrily pulls away. What is going to do? Is he going to tell Claire? He can't. If she sees them, he's done. She'll never trust him again, and she has to, John. It's about the baby, alright? Aaron's in danger. He has to believe him. Locke stares pointedly at Charlie. He's given up the right to be believed.

Locke stops at Claire's tent on the beach. He asks how Aaron is. Oh, he's good. Can she ask him something? Sure. Does he think Aaron and her could stay in the bedroom in the hatch for a while? A pretty loud alarm goes off every hour and a half. It's not the best place for a baby to sleep through the night. Oh. Yeah, sure. How about if he moves his stuff down there for a couple of nights—set up right next to her tent? That would be great, thanks. Consider it done. Hey, John. Does he know anything about baptism? Not a whole lot, why? Charlie came by her tent and told her Aaron had to be baptized—he was in danger. His understanding is that baptism is about making sure that children get into heaven—should anything happen. Call it spiritual insurance. There isn't any danger, Claire. Charlie is just... Locke looks into his pack and sees the statues inside. Charlie just feels like he has to save the baby because he can't save himself.

That night, Charlie walks through the jungle quietly. He starts a fire and walks away. He comes across Sayid and another person moving something and Sayid asks him if he can give them a hand. He continues walking. Now's not a good time. Sayid and the other person try to lift the thing until he spots the fire. He runs through camp, yelling about it, telling people to grab tools, containers for sand, anything they have. If they don't stop it, it's going to burn right through camp! Locke wakes up and tells Claire to stay at her tent with the sleeping Aaron. Everybody runs off to put the fire out. Claire watches them from her tent and, unbeknownst to her, Charlie approaches from behind, heading straight for Aaron's crib.

FLASHBACK. Charlie arrives at home and looks around—his piano is gone. He finds Liam and quickly asks where it is. Liam looks at him. He sold it. He what? Liam walks by and Charlie gets in his face. Hey, wait! Where's the money? Is it up his sodding arm? He's clean. He hasn't used in two days. Two days? Well, happy anniversary! Well, how long has he been clean? Charlie ignores him. Where's the money? She was going to leave him, Charlie. She was going to take Megan. What did he do? Karen's got an uncle in Australia. He's going to get Liam a job. There's a rehab clinic in Sydney. He just needed the money to get them there. He has to do it. He has to take care of himself for them—for his family. Charlie stares at him. He's his family! Liam leaves and walks down the street, Charlie following behind him. Wait. Will he just wait? He can't. What about the band? What about the song? Try to understand. He has to go. He has to. Look, he'll give him a call when things settle down for him. He leaves. For him? What about him? What about his family? What about his family?

People are working to put out the last of the fire. Charlie quietly takes Aaron out of his cradle, but he starts to fuss, and Claire turns around and spots him. She asks him what he's doing. He's doing what he has to do. He walks off towards the ocean. Claire calls out to the others. He's got her baby! Stop it! No, Claire, it's alright. It's not—Charlie, stop! Help! Somebody help! He's got her baby! Locke hears and runs to help. Help! Come on, Charlie, please. Stop it. He just wants to save him. Locke shows up. Charlie! Give him the baby. Everybody gathers around the confrontation. Eko, tell them, Charlie says. Tell them what he told him—that the baby has to be baptized. This is not the way, Eko tells him. Charlie, come on. Give Locke the baby. Who the hell is he? Aaron's not his responsibility. Where was he when he was born? Where was he when he was taken? He's not his father! He's not his family! Neither is Charlie. He has to do this. He starts to get teary. He needs to. He's not going to hurt him. Claire looks at him with tears in her eyes. He's hurting her. Charlie finally gives the baby to Locke who gives him to Claire. She starts to leave and Charlie tries to go to her, saying he's sorry. Suddenly, Locke punches Charlie three times in the face, knocking him down into the surf. Everyone leaves Charlie lying alone on the beach in the cold water.

Charlie sits on the beach the next day. Jack approaches him and tells him, emotionless, that he needs stitches. He starts working on one of Charlie's cuts. Try to be still. He starts the fire, Charlie confesses. Yeah, he knows. He was desperate. She—he needs to know he's never going to do anything like that again. Ever. He knows what it looks like—what people think. It doesn't matter now, but he didn't use. He wanted to. He really wanted to. But he didn't. That's not what he asked. Charlie looks him in the eye. It's not going to happen again.

Eko walks through the burnt part of the jungle, recognizing the trees as the ones he marked. He sadly runs his hands along them as Claire comes up to him. Charlie told her he was a priest, she says. Yes. He said that he told him that she has to have—he did not tell Charlie to do what he did. He's sorry if he misunderstood him. But, does he think the baby has to be baptized. Does she know what baptism is? It's what gets you into Heaven. It is said that when John the Baptist baptized Jesus, the skies opened up and a dove flew down from the sky. This told John something—that he had cleansed the man of all his sings. That he had freed him. Heaven came much later. She hasn't been baptized. Does that mean that if he does it to Aaron and something happened to them that they wouldn't be together? Not if he baptizes them both.

And so he does. Meanwhile, Locke changes the combination on the gun vault. He goes inside and removes the Mary statues from his pack. He lines them all up on a shelf inside the vault, then exits and shuts the door. And Charlie sits on the beach, all alone.

Fire + Water was written by Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis.