LOST: Rp4

Linear Timeline

Jack woke up abruptly and found himself lying in an outrigger. He looked to his left and spotted Sayid sitting nearby, whittling a stick.

"Welcome to Hydra Island," Sayid said.

"Where's Jo?" Jack mumbled in response, still feeling dazed.

Sayid motioned towards the other side of the outrigger. Jack turned his head to see Jo sprawled on the sand, still unconscious. Chase sat beside her, tending to the wounds she had sustained from Widmore's mortar attack.

"Zoe?"

"She chose to stay on the island," Sayid responded in a lifeless, monotone voice.

Jack demanded more answers from Sayid about what had happened until Locke appeared and stepped in. Locke told Jack that his friends were captured by Widmore's men. "And now we're going to have to rescue them. If we move right now, we can break your people out, run for the plane, and be off this island before Widmore knows what hit him."

"They're not my people. And I'm not leaving the island," Jack asserted.

"Well Jack, I'm hoping you still change your mind about that. But your friends do want to leave. And since they just ran away from me, on my own boat, I'm gonna need your help convincing them that they can trust me."

"Why should I trust you?"

"Because I could kill you, Jack. Right here. Right now. And I could kill Jo and every single one of your friends. And there's not a thing that you could do to stop me. But instead of killing you, I saved your life. And now I want to save them too. So will you help me?"

Locke didn't wait around for an answer. He walked over to Chase and knelt to the ground beside Jo. She now lay between them, moaning slightly as she slowly regained consciousness.

"We can't wait for her to come around," Locke explained to Chase. "Meet us at the plane, but stay behind the tree line and wait for me. It'll be guarded; I'll take care of that part."

Chase nodded his agreement. Jo's eyes fluttered open just as Locke, Jack and Sayid were leaving the beach. Jack glanced back at Jo to make sure she was all right.

"She's in the best hands," Locke reminded Jack as they began their hike towards the Hydra station.

Chase helped Jo to sit up and held a water bottle to her lips. She drank the water greedily. Her head and body ached all over.

"What happened?" she asked. "Where the hell are we?"

"We're on Hydra Island," Chase replied, "and there's something we need to do."

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Jo was grateful that the hike to the plane was fairly short. She still felt the effects of the blast, and thought she might have a concussion.

As they approached the plane, Chase stopped Jo from going too close. He pointed out the armed guards. "Widmore's men," he whispered. They watched in silence. It wasn't long before Locke came striding confidently into view. The guards began shooting but he continued to approach, completely unfazed. He swiftly broke one man's neck and shot the other man. Jo's eyes widened in terror. She clutched Chase tightly. He sensed her fear and held her close.

"I won't let anything happen to you, I swear," he reassured her. "We're in this together now."

Locke had now taken care of all the guards. "You can come out now," he called out to Chase before boarding the plane. Jo and Chase ventured out of the foliage just as Jack, Hurley, Kate, Sun, Jin, Frank, Claire, Sayid and Sawyer appeared on the scene. Jo met Jack's eyes and she smiled at him almost imperceptibly. She couldn't hide her relief, knowing that he was okay. Her immediate feeling of betrayal had faded somewhat by this time. The fact that he had returned to the island, alone, suggested that maybe her words had persuaded him to stay after all.

Locke stepped out of the plane and held up a bundle of C4 that he had found inside. He explained that the plane was rigged, and they would have to commandeer the submarine instead.

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Jo caught up with Jack as they crept towards the submarine. "What changed your mind, Jack? About leaving the island?"

"You were right," he shrugged. "I have a purpose, and I can't leave until I know what it is."

"You've come a long way from your fights with the old John Locke," she remarked. "You always resisted 'destiny.' and now look at you.'"

"Yeah, I did," Jack smiled sheepishly. "Things changed."

"I'm glad," Jo whispered, and slipped her hand into his. "Because I'm staying too."

They prepped their guns as they approached the sub. Sawyer, Sun, Frank, Jin and Hurley scrambled to the unguarded sub first and easily entered. The rest cautiously followed them onto the dock, with Locke, Jack and Chase taking the rear. Jo reached the hatch first and was about to step down the ladder when she saw Jack push Locke into the water. At the same moment gunfire erupted from the treeline. Kate flew to the ground as a bullet tore through her shoulder. Jack ran to her and scooped her up. He carried her to the hatch, where Jo helped him bring Kate down the ladder. She didn't know what happened on the dock after that; she was focused entirely on Kate's wound. Sawyer joined them a moment later, and Jo paled when she realized that Chase, Claire and Locke remained above ground. But she didn't have time to react to the situation; Kate was losing a lot of blood very rapidly and needed her attention.

"Over here, let's put her on this table," she directed Jack as they hauled Kate down the submarine's narrow hallway. "I need your pack! Quickly!"

Jack obliged, and reached into his backpack for his medical kit. They were all stunned when he pulled out the bundle of C4 instead, which now had a timer attached to it. It was counting down from 3:54. "You'll have to take care of it," she told Jack firmly. "Take it in the other room, I need space to work." Hurley, Sawyer, Jin and Sayid followed Jack, leaving Jo alone with Kate.

She knew exactly what Jack was holding in his hands, but refused to panic. Jo followed Jack's ritual of giving in to her fear for only five seconds before resuming work on Kate's bullet wound.

Kate struggled to sit up. "Claire? Where's Claire?"

"She stayed behind," Jo replied in a soothing voice. "Don't woryy about Claire. You're going to be okay, Kate, just relax." She pushed Kate firmly back down on the table. "We have matching gunshot wounds now," she joked halfheartedly, trying to keep both their minds off the C4 that Jack had found.

She heard voices arguing in the other room, and a few minutes later she was startled as Sayid sailed past her with the C4 in his hands. The entire sub was rocked by an explosion at the far end only a few moments later. Water began pouring in immediately.

"Jack!" she screamed, stunned and confused. He appeared by her side in an instant. Hurley was right behind him.

"You have to get out, NOW!" he urged. He handed her an emergency oxygen tank. "You and Hurley, you have to get Kate out of here together."

"What about everybody else?" Hurley asked worriedly. The water was now up to their knees, and climbing rapidly. "I have to go after Sayid!"

"There is no Sayid!" Jack yelled. "Listen to me. Take this tank and buddy-breathe and swim out where the blast hole is, okay? Hurley, you can do this! You and Jo, just stay together. I won't be far behind."

"Don't wait too long!" Jo told Jack nervously, as she and Hurley pulled Kate off the table and moved towards the blast hole at the far end. "Please!"

"Go," was all Jack said, and he returned to the scene in the other room where, Jo found out later, Sun was pinned to the wall by metal bars.

Jo didn't really remember very clearly what happened next. Somehow she and Hurley swam with Kate between them and made their way to the beach. They flung themselves onto the sand, exhausted and terrified. Jo caught sight of some movement further down the beach, and realized it was Jack, dragging an unconscious Sawyer onto the beach. Hurley and Jo carried Kate down the beach to meet them.

"Is he okay?" Hurley asked when he saw that Sawyer wasn't moving.

Jack nodded. "He got hit in the head pretty hard, but he's breathing."

"What about Jin and Sun?" Jo asked.

Jack simply shook his head somberly. Hurley and Kate sobbed aloud, instantly overcome by profound grief. Jack stood up and walked towards the water, alone, coming to terms with his own grief.

Jo gave him a moment by himself, then joined him by the water. She turned her tear stained face towards his. She felt his despair, and it magnified her own. Jack reached for her and kissed her as he cried, pulling her as close to him as he possibly could. They clung to each other, tears mingled with kisses, completely abandoning themselves to their anguish and their desperate need for each other.

Once again, Carrie made her way through the jungle, with Richard, Ben and Miles. She'd gone through these trees so many times. It had been a long time since she had done it hand-in-hand with Richard, since she had been honestly happy. Sure, they would never reach the bliss of their first 5 years together, but she felt a hell of a lot happier now than she had in a while.

"You sure this is a shortcut, huh?" Miles asked after a while.

"I lived in these houses a long time, Miles," Ben replied. "I think I can remember how to get there."

"Well, I lived in these houses 30 years before you did... otherwise known as last week. And I have no idea where the hell we are."

"Guess it's a good thing you're following me."

Richard looked around.

"Mind if I ask how much explosives we have access to, Ben?"

He was being so polite and friendly. But Carrie knew that, secretly, Richard and Ben hated each other now.

"More than enough to destroy that plane ten times over and stop it from ever leaving this island," Ben replied conversationally, as if it were normal to have that much explosives.

"Been a long time," Richard doubted, "you sure it's still there?"

"It's C4, Richard; I put some thought into hiding it." Ben sounded snappy.

"Lemme guess, cookie jar?" Miles chirped in with his usual humour. Carrie laughed.

"Don't be ridiculous," Ben rolled his eyes, "it's in my secret room behind the bookcase."

"It's open statements like that that will get it taken and us killed," Carrie said as they stopped, having finally arrived at the barracks.

As they walked into the village, Miles started twitching. The three men spoke about Alex, while Carrie looked at the old swing set and its white picket fence. She remembered, on numerous occasions, sitting on those swings and talking to Richard. Whenever she sat on them, she had made a promise to herself that one day, no matter what; she and Richard were going to have a child.

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The four of them entered Ben's house. Immediately, Ben set upon opening the secret room and hunting for the C4. Richard, Carrie and Miles followed.

"What's that?" Miles asked, indicating a stone door covered in hieroglyphics. "A secreter room?"

"It's where I was told I could summon the Monster," Ben replied. "But that was before I realized it was the one summoning me."

Carrie, Richard and Miles all exchanged glances over Ben' statement. He opened the safe, to reveal a shed load of C4.

"Okay," he said slowly. "Richard, it's your idea, are we looking to cripple the plane or blow it to Hell?"

"Blow it to Hell," Richard replied, rather ominously.

Ben nodded. "Then we'd better take it all." Richard unzipped his backpack. Carrie helped Ben to load the blocks in.

"Be careful with it, Richard," she cautioned. "Remember Ilana. I don't want you dying on me."

Just as she finished speaking, there was a noise from within the house. Immediately, they all picked up their guns and went to look.

"Don't move!" Richard warned as he heard a noise from the kitchen, making them all raise their weapons. "Show me your hands."

"Calm down, it's... it's okay." A woman with bushy brown hair and an orange tank top stood up slowly. Nobody lowered their weapon.

"Who the hell are you?" Ben asked.

"She's with me," came a familiar deep male English voice. Carrie, Richard, Ben and Miles turned, Carrie and Richard still with guns on the woman, to see Charles Widmore standing in the doorway. "Hello, Benjamin," he said coolly. "May I come in?"

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Casually, Widmore poured himself a glass of water. Ben kept his gun pointed at Widmore, Carrie and Richard having now lowered theirs. Carrie knew of the power battle between Ben and Widmore. But yet, she trusted Widmore just as must as she did Ben. After all, Widmore had saved her daughter's life.

"What are you doing here?" Ben asked darkly.

"Put the gun down, Benjamin," said Widmore calmly. He turned to the woman. "Go to the dock, take our equipment from the outrigger, and then sink it."

"You got it," she replied.

"She's not going anywhere. If you don't answer me, I swear-" Ben began.

"You hoot me, and your last change of survival will be gone," Widmore interrupted. "Go," he told the woman, "he won't do anything." As the woman moved out cautiously, Widmore turned his attentions to Carrie and Richard. "Good to see you made it, Carrie," he said, referring to the meeting they had at LAX. "What are you doing here, Richard?"

"We're getting explosives to destroy the plane on the other island," he replied. Ben lowered his rifle and turned to look at Richard, annoyed.

"And why would you want to do that?"

"None of your damned business," Ben cut in.

"I've had that plane rigged with explosives since I got here! As usual, Benjamin, I'm three steps ahead of you."

"Blimey, you can smell the testosterone," Carrie commented.

"How did you get back here, Charles?" Ben asked curiously.

"Jacob invited me."

"That's a lie, you've never even seen Jacob."

"I most certainly have. He visited me, not long after your people destroyed my freighter. He convinced me of the error of my ways. Why else would I have helped Carolyna here? I have no interest in her or her daughter, yet I helped them."

Ben looked back at Carrie, frowning. "What is he talking about, Carrie?"

"Lynette and my step-mum tried to follow me onto the Ajira plane," she explained, shuffling her feet slightly. "Widmore has some power over LAX, so I asked a favour and he made sure they weren't let through."

"What exactly did Jacob say to you, Charles?" Ben asked, turning back towards him.

"He told me everything I need to know for this exact purpose."

"What purpose?" Ben asked, sounding worried. Before Widmore could reply, his walkie crackled. Over it, his right-hand woman told him that Locke was coming. He told her to get back to the Barracks as fast as possible.

"If you don't want to die," Widmore said to Ben as he put the walkie down, "we need to hide."

Carrie slipped her hand into Richard's, and looked up at him. He looked back at her, and squeezed her hand. As they waited for the woman to come back, Widmore addressed Richard.

"So it's true, then," he said. "You finally moved on from your wife?"

Richard nodded. "That's right. Why hold on to her when I have Carrie now?"

Carrie smiled. It felt like something warm had lit up inside her, hearing Richard admit that he loved her more than Isabella.

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"Charles." The woman, whom Widmore had named as Zoey, came bursting in. "Let's go.”

"There's no time," he replied. "Linus has a hidden room, come on." He beckoned Zoey into the room, then saw that the rest hadn't moved. "What are you waiting for?"

"I'm not interested in hiding," Ben replied. "He's gonna find me sooner or later anyway, I'd rather have it over with."

"These are both great plans," Miles panicked, "but I'm gonna go with surviving." He picked up his rifle. "If you need us, we'll be running through the jungle."

Before Miles left, Ben took Widmore and Zoey's walkies and handed one to Miles, Widmore warning him that it was more than likely the fake Locke would kill him.

"Care to join me outside while I wait for the inevitable?" Ben asked Carrie and Richard.

Richard put his rifle down. "I'm gonna talk to him," he announced.

"Do you wanna die?" Carrie asked him incredulously. "I like Miles' idea. Run."

"Then go with Miles. Listen, I know this man. All he wants is for me to join him. And if I can get him to leave with me, maybe that'll give the rest of you a chance."

"Richard, it's suicide," Carrie warned, grabbing his arm. "Please. You, me and Miles, let's just run away."

Richard shook his head. "I need to do this, Carrie. For reasons you can never understand. Are you with me or not?"

"Richard..." she replied. ”I have always been with you."

"Yeah, well, good luck with that," Miles said hurriedly, before running off. At a much slower pace, Carrie, Richard and Ben followed out the door. Carrie and Ben waited by the little yellow house while Richard walked out into the open. He walked slowly, looking around. Then, they heard it. The all-too-familiar clunking sound you wouldn't expect a killer cloud of black smoke to make.

That word echoed in her thoughts. Killer. That smoke killed, and Richard was right in its path.

"Richard," Carrie warned, frightened for his life. "You might wanna get back here."

He turned to look at her, a heartbroken look on his face. "I'm sorry," he said. "Really, I am. I love you, Carolyna Francesca Copeland."

Suddenly, the Monster appeared and grabbed Richard, throwing him hard against a tree and sending him flying.

"RICHARD!" Carrie screamed, terrified. She tried to run, but Ben grabbed her.

"He's probably miles away," he told her calmly.

"I don't care!" Carrie shook Ben off, so violently that he fell to the ground, and went sprinting in the direction Richard had been thrown. Somehow, she knew where to go and had the energy and speed to get there fast. Eventually, she reached a small clearing, and saw Richard, lying face flat on the ground. She ran to him and turned him gently onto his back.

There was very little light left in his eyes. He was only just alive. "Carrie..." he croaked, his voice barely a whisper.

"Richard," she sobbed, tears overflowing from her eyes. "You knew he was gonna kill you." It wasn't a question. It was a statement.

With little strength, Richard reached up and rested his hand on her face, moaning slightly with pain.

"Don't go," she begged. "Please, Richard, don't go. Stay with me."

"Bye, Carrie," he whispered.

"Don't say that," she denied. "I love you. Please. Look at me." She stroked his face, holding him gently. "I love you, Richard. I love you so much. I can't do it without you... please..."

It took Richard a few moments to find his voice. Blood ran down his face and body, staining both the floor and Carrie's clothes. But she didn't care. All that she could think of was that the only person who ever truly loved her was in her arms, and he was about to die. "Go home... to Lynette..."

Carrie shook her head. "Richard, I am home. This is my home. But I'm not meant to live alone, stay, please, Richard, I'm begging you."

She held him closer to her. Gently, oh so gently, she kissed him. He was too weak to kiss her back, but she could feel his love for her even now. Finally she broke free, and when she did, she looked at him. There was nothing left in his eyes.

Distraught, tears fell down Carrie's face like a waterfall. She bawled her eyes out, screaming at the top of her lungs until her voice broke. She wept and yelled, shouting his name as if it would bring him back. But it was fruitless. He was gone. Carrie felt like a part of her had been ripped out until there was nothing left. Her own screams rung in her ears, her tears stinging her face. She rocked back and forth, clutching onto Richard's body.

There was a snap in the trees. Several people entered the clearing. Carrie didn't even glance up, just kept bawling like a newborn. She felt an arm over her shoulder to comfort her. She half glanced up just enough to recognize Jo, and realize it must be the survivors that had entered the clearing. She accepted Jo's comfort, but never released her grip on Richard. The love of her life. Dead.

Another person crouched in front of her. "I'm very sorry for your loss," he said. She looked up when she recognized his voice. It was Jacob.

'The End'

René walked across the sidewalk when she heard a commotion as the students began to file into the school. She saw Ben yelling at a man and yelling for someone to call the police when he threw Ben into the car and began to beat him mercilessly. She caught herself against a tree as images, like a walking dream, flashed through her mind. Ben being bloodied by another man in a jungle, standing in a house arguing with Ben, crying in a jungle. Memories of her, memories she recognized from another life. Confusion set fast upon her as her heart raced.

She tried to catch her breath as she forgot about what was happening to Ben that moment. "You alright René?" Leslie asked as he walked by looking unkempt as usual.

She shook her head, "I don't know, strangest thing. I think I just need some water, thanks." She pushed herself off the tree and made her way to the classroom. She spent the day in a haze before she headed home to rest. As she sat at her drawing table and began to sketch more memories flushed through her. The pencil dropped from her hand and rolled to the floor and she gripped the table firmly with her hands. The police officer, Caroline, talking with her and being with Alex as a little girl; more doors opened as René's conscious stepped into an unknown realm.

Tears began to stream her face. She sat back in the chair as her confusion made way to a serene calmness.


******

It was night, peaceful and quiet. René had her hair pulled back and wore a simple light blue sundress with pink flowers. She watched from a distance as a very stout man closed the door after saying something to Ben. He sat quietly at a marble bench and table. René walked up the sidewalk.

"Lovely evening," she smiled. He turned and looked at her and smile grew over his face.

"Hello René,"

"May I join you?" He nodded. She tucked her dress neatly underneath as she sat down next to him. "You ok?"

He tilted his head for a moment and nodded, "I think so." He looked down and his eyes had begun to tear up, "I'm sorry, I,"

"Benjamin," she interrupted. "Don't be sorry for anything. I made my own choices, those choices brought me here to you." She smiled and took a cleansing breathe. "You staying?"

"For a bit," he said as his eyes glazed to a familiar look. The father's look.

"I'll wait with you, if it's alright."

Ben's furrow creased with slight surprise, "Why?"

René placed her hand over Ben's, "Because, that's what friends do for each other. As long as it takes," she smiled as a few tears ran along her cheeks. He wrapped his thumb over her hand they squeezed their hands together. Their friendship cemented in time, for the first time, René was at peace.

Original Timeline

Jo, Jack, Kate, Hurley and Sawyer spent the morning on the beach. Jo and Jack did what they could to stitch Kate’s gunshot wound with the materials they had available, then they all began the trek to find Desmond in the well. Jo felt an odd sense of giddy anticipation. She hadn’t seen Desmond since she left him behind on the freighter, but they had become exceptionally close during their short time together on Widmore's boat.

They had been hiking quite a while, and it was beginning to get dark when Jo noticed that Hurley had wandered away. “Jack, wait!” she called out. “Where’s Hurley?” They were beginning to panic when Hurley appeared with a torch.

“Hey dudes, there’s somebody who wants to see you,” Hurley blurted out. Jo glanced at Jack and shrugged her shoulders. They decided to follow him.

Hurley led them to a clearing where Jacob sat on a log before a fire. He smiled and stood up when he saw them, greeting each of them in turn. “Hello Kate…James..Joanna…Jack.”

Kate was the first to address Jacob. She demanded to know why Jin and Sun and Sayid had to die. Jacob remained calm and composed as he responded to her. “Come and sit down and I’ll tell you what they died for. . . I’ll tell you why I chose them . . . and why I chose you. And then I’ll tell you everything you need to know about protecting this island, because by the time that fire burns out, one of you is gonna have to start doing it.”

They sat, and they listened. Jacob explained the mistake he had made, how he created the Smoke Monster, and how he came to choose each of them because they were alone, and they needed the island. Jo sat close to Jack, drawing strength from his presence as she absorbed Jacob’s words.

“Why did you cross my name off of your wall?” Kate interrupted.

“Because you became a mother.” He turned away from Kate to face Jo, addressing her directly. “And you’re going to be one,” he said softly. “Carrie was a candidate as well, but she's a mother now too. It’s just a line of chalk in a cave. The job is yours if any of you want it.”

Jo’s jaw dropped, and her hand instinctively clutched her belly. Jack’s gaze met hers. “Did you know?” he whispered solemnly.

“No,” Jo shook her head, utterly blindsided by this knowledge. She felt an unexpected joy as her awareness of the new life within her grew. She wanted and needed to protect this baby. If she was considering Jacob’s plea before this moment, his words had now changed everything. There was no way she would agree to be his successor. Jo fairly tuned out the rest of the conversation, lost in a dreamy haze.

She was startled out of her haze when Jack stood up. “I’ll do it,” he declared. “This is why I’m here. This is . . . this is what I’m supposed to do.”

Jo scrambled off the log in alarm and grasped Jack by the arm. “Jack, are you sure about this? This is forever! And what if…what if I need you?” Her elation had now turned to tremendous fear. She scanned Jack’s eyes, but she already knew the answer, and there would be no changing his mind.

“I have to do this,” he told her quietly as he gripped her hands in his. “I’m sorry.”

“Then it’s time,” Jacob interrupted gently. Jack tenderly kissed Jo’s hands, then followed Jacob away from the fire. Jo, Hurley, Kate and Sawyer watched from a distance as Jacob chanted in Latin over a stream and gave water to Jack to drink. “Now you’re like me,” he told Jack.

Alternate Timeline

Jo stepped into the classroom. “"Dr. Linus?" she queried. "I'm Dr. Joanna Woodhouse, and I have something to ask you."

Ben smiled as if he already knew Jo. It unnerved her a little bit. He sat casually on top of his desk and gave her his full attention. “How can I help you, Dr. Woodhouse? And please, call me Ben.”

She took a deep breath. “Is your father named Roger Linus?”

"Yes," Ben nodded, and paused a moment. "And I think I know why you’re here.”

Jo raised an eyebrow in surprise, and took a step closer to Ben, eager to hear what he had to say.

“When I was twelve,” Ben explained. “My mother died four days after giving birth to my sister. My father couldn’t handle raising a newborn on his own, so he made the decision to give her up for adoption. It was a closed adoption; I never knew her.”

Jo released the breath she didn’t realize she had been holding. Ben looked Jo squarely in the eyes.

“That baby was you, wasn’t it?”

Jo nodded, choking back the tears that threatened to overwhelm her. “How did you know?” she gasped in disbelief.

Ben shrugged. “I guess I’ve been enlightened.” He held out his hand to her. She reached for it, tentatively at first, then grasped it firmly. She was surprised when he pulled her close and enveloped her in a warm, loving hug. In the same moment, the moment she and Ben touched, she was bombarded with moving images from a long-ago past existence. Suddenly she understood what these unlocked memories meant, and everything she had seen with Boone in the hospital now made perfect sense. She remembered.

Jo pulled away from Ben and saw in his eyes that he, too, had achieved awareness. They spent the afternoon reconnecting and, on her part, forgiving. It was very late by the time she left him for the benefit concert. “I guess I’ll see you in another life,” she smiled at her brother. He smiled back. “Nothing would give me greater pleasure.”

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Jo spotted David in the queue for the concert with his mother and Jack’s newly discovered sister Claire, and rushed to join them. Jo grinned broadly when she saw Juliet. No longer was she simply Jack’s friendly ex and occasional colleague at St. Sebastian’s; Jo knew now that Juliet had been Jo’s best friend and confidante for years on the island. And Claire was somebody she had also grown to love in that faraway past life. Yet Juliet and Claire didn’t know who she truly was just yet, so Jo had to play it cool and wait, impatiently, for them to unlock their own memories.

Jo was with them when Juliet was recalled to the hospital. “I’ll stay with David, don’t worry,” Jo reassured Juliet. “It’ll give me a chance to get to know Claire better as well.”

“All right,” Juliet conceded. “I’ll be back as soon as I can!” she promised, and was gone. Jo found her table, number 23, with Claire and David and settled in, saving an empty seat for Jack.

She was startled by a familiar voice beside her. “Is this seat taken?” Edward asked politely.“I just came from the hospital. Jack isn’t going to make it, so he gave me his ticket. He sends his apologies.” Jo now recognized him for who he really was; he was Richard Alpert, and they shared a long and complicated history.

“No worries,” she responded lightly as she pulled the chair out for him. “Please.” She examined Edward's expression for a sign that he recognized her for who she really was. He winked playfully in response, and she knew. He too had remembered.

Jo wasn’t the least bit surprised when Desmond approached their table with Kate and Carrie a few moments later. She locked eyes with Desmond and nodded very slightly, almost reverently, to thank him for guiding her to Ben. He nodded pleasantly in return and took his seat.

“Edward?” Carrie frowned. She looked utterly confused to see him at their table.

"See Desmond got you here okay," he smiled as he stood up to greet her. They talked quietly together. Edward placed his hand on Carrie’s cheek and she reacted as though she had been shocked by an electric charge. Jo guessed that Carrie was remembering. Moments later, Carrie and Edward were kissing passionately. Jo couldn’t help but grin; she was seeing true love reunited.

Desmond motioned for Jo to walk with him away from the table. “Excuse me,” she apologized to David and Claire. “I’ll be right back.” She followed Desmond away from the tent. They sat on a low brick wall surrounding the natural history museum. She could hear Driveshaft starting up, and from this distance she could see the silhouettes of Carrie and Richard at table 23. They couldn’t keep their hands off each other.

“D’ye understand now?” Desmond pulled her out of her thoughts with his irresistible Scottish accent.

”Yes,” Jo acknowledged, giving him an affectionate hug. “Thank you.”

“There’s someone who’s been waiting a very long time for you to remember.” He gestured toward a solitary masculine figure sitting on the front steps of a church across the street.

Jo nodded, understanding exactly what she was meant to do. “I’ll see you inside?”

“Aye,” Desmond agreed. Jo kissed Desmond on the cheek and left to meet the figure awaiting her. He stood up as she approached and in an instant she had wrapped her arms around him. She gazed into his eyes and saw everything she needed to know: past adventures, mistakes, misunderstandings, joys and sorrows. Most of all, she recognized the most passionate and enduring love that either of them had ever experienced. They were irrevocably connected, and she couldn’t be more elated to be awakened to the truth.

“It’s always been you,” she breathed softly as their lips met and they locked each other in an endless passionate embrace.

Carrie stared in wonderment as three minuscule figures emerged from the forestry, and ran out onto the runway. "What the hell?" Murmured Frank as she squinted to recognize Kate, Claire and Sawyer waving their arms in the air to stop them from leaving without them.

"Open the door," Frank ordered, "we got some late arrivals!"

Carrie, Richard and Miles sprung up and pulled the door open. Miles grabbed a rope ladder and threw it down just as Kate, Claire and Sawyer caught up. Claire was the first one to climb up. Carrie grabbed her hand and pulled her up, before she went to sit in the first class seats. Kate followed, and sat by Claire. Finally, Miles helped Sawyer up. Richard pulled the door shut, told Frank they were all set, and finally they ran back into the seats and sat down.

The plane shook as Frank began to rev up the engines. Slowly, and then quicker, it began to move along the runway they'd built years ago. Carrie closed her eyes tight as she felt the plane's wheels lifting from the ground, and the plane took off into the sky, and began to fly away from the Island forever.

It felt like an eternity ago, to Carrie, that she had been sitting in this cabin, listening to the plane taking off. But this time, her dreams were coming true. She felt Richard take her hand. She turned and looked at him, smiling as she realized it was happening. Finally, after 8 years, the two of them were going to have a normal life together.

"You okay?" She asked him uncertainly.

"Yeah," he smiled. "It's just... it's gonna be weird. I mean, I am from the 19th century."

Carrie laughed. "It'll definitely be different. But you've been off the Island already, you'll be okay. You know we don't use horseback anymore, right? We use a magic machine called a car. It moves you around."

Richard frowned jokingly. "A car? I've never heard of such a thing."

"Just promise me you won't start with the 'back in my day' business," she said. "You've only had one grey hair so far, don't get excited."

"I'm gonna have to buy a house," he replied. "With... doors and carpets and stairs. Imagine me, living in a house!"

"You're gonna have to get a mortgage," Carrie told him in a sing-song voice.

"Oh no," Richard groaned as she laughed. "No, I can't, kill me now, please."

"And a job," she added. "I hear they have an opening at Wal-Mart."

"You think it's gonna be that easy?" He asked in all seriousness.

Carrie looked around at the rest of the passengers. "No," she said honestly. "What do you think they're gonna say when a plane returns after disappearing for a week, with only two original passengers, two survivors who apparently died in a plane crash three years ago - the same plane crash that one 316 survivor was on, the pilot, a man who disappeared on a job three years ago, and a man who apparently died in a shipwreck over 100 years ago and only got his first grey hair this morning?"

Richard nodded. "Yeah, we're gonna have a hard time talking out of this."

"Sawyer!" Carrie called, leaning forwards to talk to him. "You're a conman. Or were. Whatever. If there's anyone who can talk us out of this, it's you."

"We lied about the Island before to protect it from Widmore," Kate said. turning around in her seat and peering over the back. "We shouldn't need to now he's stuck on the Island."

"So, what, you just happened to land on the same Island Kate crashed on 3 years ago?" Miles pointed out. "Oh, and it turns out two of the 815 survivors weren't dead after all. Oh yeah, and those 815 survivors who were also on 316? They didn't come back."

"We could just tell them the truth," Richard suggested.

"The truth never goes down well," Miles replied. "Besides, I don't even know what the truth is."

"I agree," Carrie said, "what just happened?"

"We could go incognito like Michael and Walt did," Claire suggested. "Frank might be able to set the plane down somewhere out of-"

"Like Tinkerbell here said, my whole life I've survived by lying," Sawyer interrupted. "I'll get us out of this one. We got a few hours before Chesty sets her down, I'll think of something by then. Just try to relax."

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Carrie hummed to herself as she walked down the corridor. It had been a year since she had left the Island, and was now a police officer for the LAPD with James and Miles. Richard had, with some help from some shifty Ben-related connections, managed to become a doctor at St. Sebastian's with Jo and Chase, where Jack had used to work.

The station was quiet. A slow crime day. Carrie smiled and nodded as she passed Captain Cortez. Shockingly, Captain Cortez's daughter had been on Flight 815. Even more astounding was that her daughter was Ana-Lucia, the woman Carrie had had a one-night stand with 12 years previously. She'd been in the tail section. Carrie's hadn't any idea Ana had been on the Island.

As she stepped into her office and closed the door, Carrie was taken aback to see a brunette woman standing in her office, waiting for her. Carrie had never seen her before in her life.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

The woman smiled. "Carrie."

Carrie frowned. How did this woman know her name? "Yes..." she replied slowly. "Who are you?"

"My name is Diana." The woman had a friendly face, but a strangely creepy voice. "I'm here because of a man. A man we both have unresolved issues with."

Her interest piqued, Carrie sat down behind her desk and beckoned for Diana to sit too.

"His name is Samuel," Diana began.

Carrie shook her head. "Doesn't ring a bell."

"Didn't think it would," Diana smirked. "I doubt he ever told you his name. You probably knew him better as the Monster."

Carrie froze. That was the last thing she'd expected. The fake Locke... she knew he was dead. Kate had shot him, that's what she'd been told. So who was this woman? And why did she want to talk to her about him? Carrie spotted a small trickle of blood at the girl's temple. "You're bleeding," she pointed out, rather worried.

Diana put her hand to her temple, and the blood immediately disappeared. "Would you believe me if I told you that I died over 2000 years ago?"

Carrie surprised herself with her lack of surprise. "Yes," she relied. "Not hard to believe people were dying back then. What is hard to believe is that you're here now."

"I don't understand it either," Diana admitted. "Last thing I remember is dying, then I was here and knew what to do." Diana leaned forwards, her elbows resting on the desk. "I want you to know that he wasn't always bad. He used to be a man. A good man, sometimes a misguided man, but an oh so good man. He wasn't always full of anger and hate."

Carrie cocked her head to the side slightly, intrigued. "You loved him," she stated.

Diana looked up at her. "Yeah," she admitted. "Yeah, I did. I still do."

Carrie sighed sympathetically. "Nobody's perfect. Until you fall in love with them."

"You're in love too," Diana smiled. There was a pause as both of them thought.

"After Jacob died," Carrie began, "Samuel did something strange. He turned into his smoke form, he killed people... so many people. One of them was a friend of mine. Not a very close friend, more like an acquaintance, but still a friend. He came for me, but he stopped. He sort of... I don't know, it was weird, it was like he was looking at me. I mean, really looking. Almost as if he were rummaging through my mind."

"I don't follow," said Diana. "Why are you telling me this?"

"He knew how to close his mind," Carrie pressed on. "I don't. I'm well aware that I wear my heart on my sleeve. But I did see something... it was small, a glimmer. I disregarded it, I presumed I was mistaken, but I didn't forget it. It was almost as if... as if he were so sad. But he couldn't quite remember why."

Diana perked up. "You think...?"

Carrie both nodded and shrugged. "Perhaps. Why else would he be? I don't know a hell of a lot about him admittedly, but I'm guessing he's not one to have very many reasons to feel sad." A moment passed. Carrie reached out and touched Diana's hand comfortingly. "Look, Di... I know you think he didn't deserve to die the way he did. But he was going to destroy the Island. And he'd just killed Jack Shephard. Kate had no choice. Samuel had done so many bad things, he had to be stopped. But..." she smiled, "it's very comforting to know he was once capable of love."

A look spread across Diana's face, as if she'd finally heard what she needed to hear. It was refreshing and somehow settling for Carrie to know that Samuel, the fake Locke, the Monster, whatever he was called... he was once a man. And he'd been a man in love.

Taking them both by surprise, there was a sudden knock on the door. "Excuse me," Carrie smiled graciously as she stood up and went to open the door.

"Who ya talkin' to in there, Tinkerbell?" James asked, leaning against the door frame.

Carrie turned around and wasn't all too surprised to see that Diana had gone. It was as if she hadn't been there at all. "No one," she said turning back to James.

"Well, someone's on the phone for ya. From yer kid's school."

Carrie grimaced. Lynette was probably in trouble. Again. "Alright, I'll come through." Just as she shut the door behind her, Carrie heard a voice. It was faint and distant, like a breathy whisper in the air.

"Thank you."

Richard filed his work papers away, and sat for a while, smiling as he watched Lynette and Ji Yeon drawing together quietly.

A while passed, before Richard began to wonder why Carrie was still in the bathroom without a sound. While the dangers of the Island had long since vanished, Richard still found himself paranoid. He got up and went into the bathroom, noticing that the door was unlocked. Carrie looked up from the sink, tears brimming in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Richard asked softly.

"Nothing," she replied, turning around to face him, a smile on her face but tears still in her eyes.

"Then why are you crying?"

"Because I'm happy," Carrie half-laughed, amused at Richard's confusion over her smile and her tears. She decided not to keep him in suspense any longer. "Richard, I'm... I'm pregnant."

In the space of two seconds, Richard's face changed from confused to shocked to happy. "Really?" He asked, unable to contain a grin.

"Really really," Carrie replied, passing him the pregnancy test. It was a digital one, and clearly stated the words pregnant.

Richard looked up from the pregnancy test and stared at her in astonishment for a few moments. Then, suddenly, he had her locked in an embrace. It was the tightest embrace either of them had been in. Tears rushed down both their faces as the news set in - they were having another baby. And this time, Carrie wouldn't have to leave, there was no fear of dying. It was just a baby. Their baby.

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Carrie and Richard had both decided that they didn't want to tell people individually, not even Lynette. Instead they settled on a house party, where they would announce the news, hoping everyone would manage to come.

They did.

Everyone was there. Kate and Claire with Aaron, Sawyer and Cassidy with Clementine, Desmond and Penny with Charlie, Sun's mother with Ji Yeon, Jo and Chase with Juliet, Zoë with Charlie Jr... Miles, Frank, Martin, Lorlai, Destiny, even Eloise Hawking had turned up.

"Are we gonna announce it yet?" Richard asked Carrie aside, as Charlie ran past their feet. "You know I'm not good at these things. And having Eloise here is making me uncomfortable."

Carrie raised an eyebrow at Richard's hostility towards Eloise's presence. "Soon," she promised. Just as she spoke, the doorbell went. "Lemme get that," she excused herself, wondering who it was -no one else had been invited.

Down the hall, Carrie opened the door to see three figures standing there - one large, one skinny and one shorter. Her heart skipped a beat as her brain immediately put names to the faces. Unable to stop herself, she pulled the skinny one into a hug.

"Ben!" She gasped as he hugged her back, an awkward air still about his stance.

"Hey, Carrie," he greeted her with a smile as she pulled away.

"Don't I get a hug too?"

"Of course you do!" Carrie grinned as Hurley lifted her into a massive bear hug. "And Walt!" She grinned as Hurley finally put her down.

"Hey, Carrie," he greeted with a friendly smile. She'd been pretty much the only Other who hadn't treated him like some kind of science experiment while he was with them. "I know, I know, I've grown."

"Too right you have!" She laughed. "What are y'all doing here?"

"The more important question," Hurley said in all seriousness, "is why did we not get invited to your party?"

"I figured you had an Island to protect," she replied. "Well, what are y'all doing standing out here? Come on in!"

Carrie showed Ben, Hurley and Walt into the house. "Hey, y'all!" She announced, cursing herself inwardly for picking up her father's common Tennessee abbreviation. "Look what the cat dragged in!"

The response from the gathered crowd was mixed with gasps, cheers and exclamations of "oh my God!" Everyone went to greet the trio - many relieved to see Walt again and excited to see their good friend Hurley. Even Ben was greeted with positive responses by almost everyone.

Amongst the many faces, one stood out. Kate's smile slid off her face as she looked around. Carrie knew whose face she was looking for, the face that wasn't there.

Carrie waved to get Hurley's attention then indicated Kate to him. He glanced at her, and nodded.

"Where's Jack?" She asked, her voice clear above everyone else's.

Hurley paused. "Jack's dead," he told her mournfully.

Carrie couldn't look any longer as Kate began crying into Hurley's shoulder. Subconsciously her eyes moved on to Jo, who had been watching the scene as well, but something told Carrie Jo couldn't hear. She was looking at her friend for confirmation.

Carrie nodded, sincere sadness in her eyes. She hadn't known Jack as well as she'd have liked, and wished, now more than ever, they'd had the chance to get to know each other.

Jo turned to Chase for comfort. Carrie instead looked at Richard, who was having an inaudible conversation with Ben.

"I'm sorry," was the first thing Ben said to Richard. He was fully sincere for once.

"Apology accepted," Richard nodded. "I'm sorry too. I know you had your eyes on her before Jacob even sent me to recruit her."

"Are you forgiving me that easily?" Ben asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.

"I said I accept your apology," Richard corrected him, "I never said I forgive you. You slept with my girlfriend, Ben, that's not something anyone could forgive easily."

Suddenly, Richard felt eyes boring into his face. He looked, and spotted Carrie watching them with a curious look and a satisfied smile on her face. He looked back at Ben.

"I won't hold it against you though, she is hot," he joked, holding out his hand. Ben took it, and they shook. It was the best that was going to happen with them.

Carrie arrived at Richard's shoulder. "Now," she whispered in his ear.

He nodded. Carrie decided to get the gathered party to be quiet with her police blowhorn - that was bound to get everyone's attention.

It did - everyone stopped talking in unison, as if she'd hit the mute button. "Good, you're quiet," she smiled, placing the blowhorn down on the kitchen counter and taking her place next to Richard. "This party isn't for the sake of it, even if I did say that."

She tried to look around at everyone, but she couldn't help locking eye contact with Ben, before glancing back around at the gathered faces.

Richard sensed her hesitation and decided to do the job for her. Gripping her tightly and securely around the waist, he made their announcement, a smile on his face the whole time.