Author Note: The Girl Who Fell Out of the Ocean is a first draft and yet to be edited

Present Day -Charlie's Cottage

The days that followed were the hardest yet.

Charlie returned to his empty cottage in Manchester and the Gregory family swooped up their Lavinia like she was an injured bird with a broken wing and took her home.

The Gregory's didn't know what had really happened on that cliff they didn't see it, not the way Charlie had, from time to time it would bother him, why had he been the one to see her, why had he been allowed to see the dead? But the thoughts would never stay long they were often replaced by an aching, an aching for a friend who had just walked away from him, Charlie knew it was something he was going to have to live with.

It had been three weeks since the departure of Dolly, that's how he had been referring to it in his head, a departure, because it wasn't death what happened to Dolly and it wasn't life either.

Charlie pressed his head hard against his kitchen wall.

This was something that had been happening more and more over the last weeks, Charlie would press his head against his wall and try to forget about Dolly, about Lavinia but instead, the thoughts would flood through his mind. Today was no different he kept seeing Will in his minds eye and the words that he'd heard so many times before 'follow the sunflowers, Charlie,' in a desperate bid to get out of his own mind Charlie left his cottage slamming his heavy wooden door behind him.

May had gone back to Marxby village, she and the children had already moved into the small cottage on the edge of the Marxby estate May said it was up to Charlie now weather or not he would join them or not. What really was there left for him in Manchester? Subconsciously Charlie had started boxing up his possessions he even started looking into renting his cottage but something was holding him back something was keeping him tethered to this life. Charlie marched through town, through the busy streets, it was the end of September there was a warmth to the air but still, a fast wind spun around him almost pushing him through the streets and through the door of his office.

Charlie hadn't started packing up the office if any part of him was still holding on to his life in Manchester it was this part, the part where he and Lavinia would talk about Dolly. She would sit in the leather chair clutching her sketchbook, her hood always up. He sighed when he thought of her, his friend. His lost friend.

It didn't matter where he looked he couldn't find her in this room now, Dolly really was gone. He was still looking round the room trying to find some evidence that she had ever been there at all when his office door opened with a start. Charlie's body went cold as he stared opened mouthed at the woman who entered the room, it was Lavinia, the real Lavinia she moved towards Charlie and he backed away from her. In her hand she was holding a large heavy looking brown envelop she ignored Charlie's skittish behaviour and through the envelope down on the desk with a thud.

The real Lavinia, looked striking, no longer a prisoner on her own body and no longer Dolly living a life that wasn't hers Lavinia stood tall, lean and proud. Charlie had never noticed just how tall she was before, how could he not have noticed? He couldn't take his eyes off her hair, her once glorious but hidden tresses had been cropped off into a short pixie cut, revealing just how bright and green Lavinia's eyes really were. Lavinia's eyes moved differently now she was finally in control of them, she was serious and stared long and hard at Charlie with her arms across her chest.

"It was the first thing I did," she said finally.

Charlie went to open his mouth but Lavinia just carried on speaking.

"Cut my hair, I think... Dolly spent years wanting to cut it maybe something inside me just stuck I don't know," she shrugged.

Lavinia was silent.

"You're not like her..." said Charlie.

Lavinia unfolded her arms and lent casually on Charlie's desk.

"No, we are after all two different people, not just that we are very different people, two souls that should never have been pressed up against each other for so long,"

Charlie was silent again.

"Look, Doctor Charlton, I want my own life, I don't want  this weird unwanted half-life that Dolly left behind I want my life, the life I am owed, the life I've never had. But I feel like I have some loose ends to tie up first. Dolly and I, we don't even know each other we have never even had one conversation yet I know everything there is to know about her, I know all her thoughts, how she feels, her desires and what's more, in a funny way I care about her, and I care about what happened to her family and I think you do to. But the thing is Doctor Charlton, that puts me in a funny position because like a said before, I want my own life, I want to be free and I want to forget that I was ever Dolly's prisoner. So I'm giving the responsibility to you," said Lavinia.

She nodded to the brown folder she had thrown on Charlie's desk.

"What is that?" Said Charlie.

"That is everything, Anna and George has on the Marxby Family, before Dolly as born and after, there are photographs there, all sorts, a lot of it is recent research pieces they have collected this year, since Dolly started going downhill. Other pieces like some of the photos they have had for a while."

Lavinia emptied out the envelope and on top of the mixture of papers documents and photographs one photo stuck out to Charlie, it was a picture of Violet.

"Do you know what happened to her?" Said Charlie clinging tightly to the picture of his friend's child.

Lavinia nodded.

"Fay and Thomas, they escaped with Violet and made their way to India, Thomas was too young to be too called up to fight in the war so he never had to fight. After that I don't know what happened, the trail on Fay and Thomas it just runs cold," said Lavinia looking again at the mass of papers now in chaos on Charlie's desk.

"And you don't want to find out? What about Niall what happened to him, did he go to prison? And Percy?"

Charlie's eyes were wide and out raged with the realisation that he didn't have the answers to any of these questions.

"Look Doctor Charlton, you saw what happened, what really happened when Dolly...left, not just the way we separated but I know, you saw her didn't you? You actually saw Dolly and Will didn't you?" Lavinia pressed.

Charlie said nothing.

"Sam, Andrea they didn't see or feel what happened to me, that the ghostly spirted of a dead woman left my body, that's crazy, how could I expect them to believe me? But you saw her, I know you did, I don't know why but something inside me tells me you're special, that you are meant to do something, Doctor Charlton. Now, I cannot help you find out what that thing is, I need to be free, I need my own life, but that's why I brought you the folder, I thought maybe there was a mystery to solve, and maybe just maybe you are meant to be part of it,"

"A ghostly saga," said Charlie with a smirk.

"Indeed," said Lavinia.

There was nothing left to say between the two, they were after all complete strangers, Lavinia made her way to the door and Charlie followed, she turned to him before leaving.

"Are you?" She said.

"Am I what?" Said Charlie.

"Going to follow the sunflowers?" Said Lavinia with a smile.

Charlie thought of the cottage at Marxby and the garden full of sunflowers and in that moment he knew he would move to Marxby to be with his family and at the same time he would dig a little into the Marxby's and find out what happened to Violet, somehow it felt like his duty, to find out what happened to her she was the daughter of his friend after all.

"I think so yes," he replied.

Lavinia smiled again and left the office, as the clouds broke the sun shone brightly through the windows Lavinia took it as a sign, she had done the right thing and now she was on the road to her new life and nothing would stop her.

Hi guys sorry about the slow arrival of this chapter I have been ill with flu so writing went on the back burner this past couple of weeks! All better now please comment and vote if you enjoy! Thanks for all your on-going support :-)