Charlotte's Knowledge: Charlotte Doesn't Know

Chapter 5

The marked day came quicker than expected as Charlotte and Moon learnt to maneuverer around each other’s polar opposite personalities. Opening up to each other and beginning to trust themselves not to hurt the other.
On the morning of the marked day, Charlotte woke up with a spring in her step. She was excited to have her most trusted companion back. From his wise words to his peaceful atmosphere. His being gave Charlotte true serenity.
She swept and cleaned every inch of the little abode she lived in; dusting every surface, scrubbing every stain. She even polished the glass of her beloved picture of her grandfather and her, till she was almost seeing sparkles off every surface. Stretching after she finished, she felt that happy with her hard work. It wasn’t everyday she cleaned this hard, but she wanted everything to be perfect for her grandfather’s arrival.
Then, after cleaning, she prepared a meal consisting of wilting vegetables she kept in one of the many cupboards in the kitchen.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Moon had learnt to knock on the bedroom door to tell Charlotte that she was awake and about the house, as to not startle her. This worked greatly for the two girls.
Coming into the kitchen, Moon noticed Charlotte chopping carrots. “I didn’t know we had vegetables”.
“I get them from the local vegetable patch. Our complex has a community garden for all of its tenants” Charlotte explained as she placed the cut veg into a bowl. Moon smiled; it was nice to know that the city had a community just like her village did.
“I wish I knew that before. Kinda getting sick of eating instant noodles” Moon commented as she stole a slice of carrot. She moaned in happiness as the carrot attacked her taste buds. “This stuff is good”.
Charlotte smiled as she batted at Moon’s hand; who was ready to steal another of the colourful veg. “Wait, I’ll have the salad ready in a bit”.
Moon leaned against the counter top, her arms folded. “So, when does he usually get here by?” she asked even though knowing he wouldn’t show. Better to keep Charlotte’s hopes up than crushing the poor girl.
“Usually he arrives home in the late afternoon. He likes to eat a large salad and then sleeps till the next day”.
Moon nodded. It definitely sounded like an old man’s routine.
After finishing the salad, Charlotte covered it with plastic film to try keep the dying vegetables fresh. She then turned to Moon. “It’s still quite early in the day, so I’m going to go for a walk”.
Moon raised an eyebrow. This is the first time Charlotte had taken the initiative to leave the apartment. Was she feeling ok? “Would you like me to come with you?”
Charlotte shook head. “I won’t be long”. With that Charlotte wrapped herself up for the cold weather outside and left the apartment.
Moon watched as Charlotte left the tiny home. Once she was gone, Moon tore away at the plastic wrap and began to devour the flavourful salad. She wasn’t that big on vegetables but she was really sick of eating instant noodles, it's powdered flavour barely made the dish more interesting.
Suddenly, Moon’s ears pricked up as if she was hearing an intense sound. Standing straight, Moon turned to looked at the sitting room window. “So, he has passed....”
The large red circle on the calendar marked the day of his death, not the day of his arrival home. Poor Charlotte.
Charlotte hummed happily to herself as she began her trek to the local suburb park; it would be quiet enough for Charlotte to enjoy herself.
Entering through the gates of the park; Charlotte moved along the concrete path through the planted trees and flowers that gave atmosphere to the surrounding area. Auburn and orange leaves scattered the terrain while the petals of the departing plant life were withering away with the change of season.
She watched the other people she passed; mothers pushing their young children in strollers. Joggers using the crisp air to keep them awake as they exercised. People walking their dogs of many shapes and sizes.
Coming to a clearing; she spotted the small pond, surrounded by a diversity of birds.
Taking a seat on a bench near the pool of water, she pulled out a secret biscuit package from her pocket. Tearing it opened, she noticed that the biscuits had gone stale. Hopefully it would not upset the animals’ stomachs. She shrugged in sadness, upset that she could not offer them any better food. With determination she scattered the crumbs from her fingers.
Charlotte smiled as they approached her, noticing her snack. The park was a nice, quiet place to go when she needed time to think. Especially this area; she felt drawn to this place as if this was important to her before she got amnesia. But her grandfather would never disclose any information on why this place felt so important to her. But then again, he never disclosed any information on barely everything she asked about.
She smiled as the ducks circled her ankle, picking up as much of the biscuits as they could. This would probably be the last time she could feed them, before they set off to the warmer south. She shivered as the cold wind nipped at her fingertips. She wished she could also run away to the warm south; the cold English winter was no fun.
She couldn’t wait for the return of spring; excited to see the bright flowers and new ducklings the park would have to offer her.
Realising the wrapper was empty, she shook out the remaining crumbs and binned the waste. She blew into her cold hands as she watched her feathered friends attack her gift with vigour. They mustn’t have been fed by the other park goers in a while; it was much too cold to be leisurely outside.
She shivered once more, the cold finally getting past the barriers of her heavy coat. She decided that it would be best to go home, she didn’t want to be sick when her grandfather came home.
When Charlotte arrived home, she realised she had lost track of time. Spending nearly over an hour or two with her beloved ducks. “Has he come home yet?” Charlotte asked as she entered the sitting room. Moon was lying on the floor, her head propped by her arms that faked a pillow. She seemed asleep as her eyes were closed but they instantly opened up as Charlotte spoke.
She shook her head as she sat up. “Not yet”.
Charlotte sighed with a nod. She was so excited that her grandfather was coming home. He never was a day late but there was always a first time for everything.
She then suddenly sneezed. “Cold?” Moon asked. Charlotte nodded in response.
“Go have a hot shower, I’ll make you some warm tea while you wash”.
Charlotte thanked Moon for kindness and left to warm herself up with some fresh water.
Moon gripped the countertop once she entered the kitchen. Her brow furrowed as she thought hard and quick. “C’mon Moon. You need to plan how to work around Gardwin not coming back”. She had been thinking about this problem all day but was able to keep a façade up around Charlotte.
She looked up at the ceiling as ideas moved through her mind. She needed something where Charlotte wouldn't get too upset but no such thing was coming to mind. Just then, Moon got her eureka thought. She knew what she had to do.
“Hey Charlotte, I just have to pop out for a sec. I’ll be back soon” Moon called out before she left the apartment. Reaching the ground floor of the complex, Moon ran into the mother and toddler she had met the other day.
The child began to wiggle in their mother’s arms, trying to get closer to Moon. “Doggie, doggie” she called out, making grabby hands at Moon.
The mother laughed to herself, “I guess she likes you”.
“Guess so” Moon laughed as she waved goodbye to the toddler.
“Going out again? I wonder where she’s going this time” Charlotte thought as she groomed the shampoo through her deep brown locks. She relaxed as she enjoyed the feeling of the warm water cascade down her skin. Showers were like being surrounded by a bubble of warmth, something she truly enjoyed.
Finishing her shower, Charlotte towelled her body dry. Suddenly she heard her a beeping noise come from outside the bathroom. Dressing herself in the fresh clothes she had brought to the bathroom, she went to find what the noise was.
Finding her phone buzzing on the kitchen counter, she noticed an unread message. Opening it, she was surprised to see the sender was her grandfather. He never texted her, only called if he needed her. Reading the message; she learnt that he was experiencing difficulties with coming home, so he told her to expect him to be late with his arrival.
Laying the phone back on the counter, Charlotte bit her lip. It wasn’t like her grandfather to be late. He always made it back on time. Through rain or shine, not even snow could stop him. She looked at the salad that was still waiting to be eaten, it would go to waste.
She sighed, hopefully Moon had a big appetite.
She moved to the cupboard, where her crackers hid. Taking a handful, she found a comfortable spot in the sitting room. She enjoyed the salty taste of the crispy treat, unlike most food that had too much flavour. She just couldn’t enjoy them as much as she enjoyed the blandness of this food.
All of a sudden, a meow sounded. It was Shadow. He had gone hiding since Moon’s arrival but must have sensed her leaving the apartment earlier. He disliked her for some reason, but Charlotte would never know because frankly, she just didn’t understand the cat's conversations.
She petting the black animal as it purred against her hand. Charlotte loved all types of animals but she really enjoyed the company of her friendly black cat. He was always happy to see her and loved to get all sorts of affection from the sweet girl.
The two listened to the outside world through the large window of the sitting room; Dogs barking, children playing, cars honking, all the noise of the city.
“Grandfather isn’t coming home today” she explained to the cat that sat beside her. “I hope he’s ok” she continued. Yawning, she realised how tired she had become.
Setting out her bed, Charlotte drifted into a deep sleep.
Moon entered the home late in the evening. “I hope that she has made her accepting to her situation” she talked aloud to herself.
Entering the sitting room, she noticed Charlotte sound asleep in her futon. Bending down to her, Moon smiled. “You’re a sweet kid” she complimented the girl as she placed a caring hand on Charlotte’s cheek. Stopping when she felt how cold Charlotte’s skin was. “You’re freezing. Are you always this cold, sleeping?”
Moon took not a second to leap into action. Stripping to her bare skin, Moon’s body began to contort and grow long, fluffy hair. Her fingers curling into her palms, becoming more paw-like. Large dog ears, placed on top of hear still wore her silver hoops. A long, white tail sprouted from her tail bone as her face elongated and became more canine like. Her now long tongue stuck out to lick her chops.
Moon stretched as her body finished its contortion. Her now, white wolf form lay down beside Charlotte’s sleeping body. The small girl turned, cuddling into the warm fur of Moon’s body. Moon wrapped her large tail around Charlotte’s form, keeping her close and protected from the dangers of the awake world Laying her head on the floor, the two fell asleep.