Charlotte's Law

"I don't regret bein' born female."

A/N: So for ease of writing's sake, I'm gonna refer to the Camden from the messed up timeline as Lost Camden and the one from the normal timeline as Found Camden. Good luck; this probably makes no sense.

~~**~~

Camden opened his eyes and he was back in 1768. His hair was still long and he still wore his ugly dress, but he was where he needed to be. Before he even had time to think, he saw himself about to duck inside. Camden grabbed himself by the collar and dragged him back to the alleyway.

"'Ey!" he protested, yanking away and turning to face his other self. His eyes widened and he paused, looking himself up and down.

"'Ello, Camden, I'm Camden," Lost Camden joked halfheartedly, smiling crookedly. Found Camden glanced at the ring on his other persona's finger and sighed.

"I knew somefin' would 'appen," he admitted. "Well, what was it?"

"I- I can't r'member," Lost Camden hesitated, staring at himself in confusion. "I don't rem'ber an 'ole lot at all. I just know I 'ad to stop ya from doin' somethin'."

"Was Landyn hurt?" he asked. Lost Camden stumbled backward, his vision blurring.

"I- I can't-" he ran into a wall and crumpled to the floor, holding his throbbing skull in his hands. "'O- 'o are you?"

He was disoriented and afraid. He couldn't remember anything except for Landyn's face and Charlotte's final message to her brother. Seconds later, he fell over sideways and lost consciousness, pain flaring through his chest and head. Found Camden rushed to his side, but his stomach lurched and he fell to his knees. He vomited onto the uneven pavement, narrowly avoiding his future counter-part, and also fell sideways, losing consciousness.

~~**~~

Lost Camden woke up first. He looked around groggily, the alleyway becoming clearer around him. He had a sick feeling in his stomach and his throat felt like he'd drunk acid, but he was alive. He had no clue what had happened, but he didn't really know if he wanted to find out.

He stood up and went to walk away, but he stepped on something. He looked down and gagged, stepping away quickly. He had stepped on Found Camden's hand, and a dissatisfying crunch made Lost Camden want to vomit.

He sat down Indian style and watched his sleeping self until he finally began to stir. Found Camden sat up suddenly, looking around wildly. He locked eyes with Lost Camden and groaned, laying back down on the pavement.

"Me 'and 'urts like 'ell," he complained. "What 'appened?"

"Well, yer 'and 'urts 'cause I accident'ly stepped on it when I woke up," Lost Camden replied. "I 'ave no clue why we fell asleep, though."

"Great, just great," Found Camden sighed. "I gotta get back to me time."

"Well, I shouldn't even exist anymore," Lost Camden pointed out. Found Camden furrowed his brows and nodded slowly.

"You're right," he agreed. "So why do ya?"

"I 'aven't a clue, honest."

"Maybe it just takes a minute," Found Camden suggested. "Is there anythin' ya need to tell me?"

Lost Camden shrugged and told him Charlotte's final message. They looked around expectantly, but nothing happened.

"Maybe I'm starting to disappear?" Lost Camden held his hands up and inspected every inch of his body, but he remained solid, real. They sighed in exasperation and ran their hands through their hair.

"God, I'm glad I don't still 'ave that," Found Camden commented gratefully. "That 'air gets ev'rywhere. And those dresses are no good fer runnin'."