Charmed: Heritage - 102 - Stolen Souls

[StoryGirl83]

Charmed: Heritage
Episode 1X02 - Stolen Souls

Chapter One - Underworld Plots and Forgotten Jobs

Monday, January 4, 2027

In the underground, dimly lit by torches, a small group of demons and warlocks had gathered. They were lead by one warlock. He was dressed in blue jeans, a white T-shirt, and a black, leather jacket. In the back of the group a beautiful young woman called Trae listened intently to his words.

“Two days ago a darklighter friend of mine realized that demonic powers worked, again. This is a two edged sword. Out powers work, but so do the powers of witches. My friend decided to take a chance by going up against the sons of one of the Charmed Ones.”

Boos and groans came from his audience as he continued on. “He went up against them and he lost. Before he left he asked me to avenge him if he lost. I will need your help. We have lost any advantage surprise might have given us, so we must think smart. These Charmed sons cannot continue to be a nuisance. Who is with me?”

Cheers came from the audience this time. The demonic woman in the back smiled and shimmered away.

---

Far from the underworld, or as far as San Francisco can get, Chris Halliwell was sitting on a couch in the apartment he shared with his older brother, Wyatt. He was fingering a power stealing athemé gained from the very attack the warlock was speaking about. Wyatt was sitting in an armchair looking at a bookshelf on the other side of the room. It was almost empty. There were books scattered through out the room. Blue-white orbs enveloped a book and it disappeared. It reappeared in his outstretched hand. Chris looked up. Wyatt blinked and the book orbed to an end table next to the couch Chris was on.

Wyatt looked at the athemé in Chris’ hands. “Why did you keep that thing?”

“I’m not sure. Memories I guess. You should have seen Aunt Phoebe. She used one of these and to get it out of her Aunt Paige had to stab her.”

There are ways to get someone’s undevided attention. That was one of them. “What?!”

Chris shrugged. “She was being pretty obnoxious and Dad healed her afterward.”

Wyatt continued to stare at him. “That’s not the point. Why did she use it in the first place?”

Chris was silent. There were so many things he wasn’t yet prepared to tell Wyatt.

“Chris, what are you hiding?”

Chris sighed. “They threatened you. Mom and her sisters wanted to make sure that they got the point to leave you alone.”

Wyatt was silent, now, thinking about what his brother just said.

“You asked,” Chris offered.

“Why did they tell you? That’s pretty stupid. They had to know you would come after them if they told you they wanted to hurt me.”

This time Chris smiled. “They didn’t. They announced it on Witch Wars. At the time we knew about the show and we were watching trying to figure out what to do to stop them.”

Wyatt orbed another book of the bookshelf. It landed in Chris’ lap. “Are you ready for work?”

Chris looked down at the book. It appeared to be just a random book. “This will be different.”

“I guess that’s a no. Do you want me to orb you there, so you know where it is?”

Chris looked at the clock which said 7:40. “What time am I expected?”

“Eight.”

“Just directions. I’ll drive.”

Wyatt orbed a set of keys off the top of the bookshelf. They reappeared inches above Chris’ hands. Chris caught them as they fell.

“Here are your keys.”

Chris looked at him, eyebrows raised. “Did you hide them?”

Wyatt stood, stretching his long legs. “You don’t remember so don’t worry about it.”

“What?” Chris asked, clearly annoyed that his brother was doing exactly what Chris did, hiding something. “Why did you hide my keys?”

Wyatt shrugged. “It’s just something we did. Last week you hid the remote. The week before that I hid all the pens in the apartment . . . well, all the pens I could find.”

Chris held out his keys and smiled as he stood. “How about directions?”

Wyatt orbed a pen and paper from another room. He scribbled something down on the paper and then orbed the paper to Chris. “The address for Centennial. Have fun.”

Chris glanced down at the paper and then back up at Wyatt, “What will you do?”

“I’ll be at the hospital,” Wyatt told him offhandedly. “I volunteer there and I need to be there by eight also.”

Chris stood and pocketed his keys. The paper was still in his hand. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Wyatt orbed back the paper out of Chris’ hands. He wrote something else on there and orbed the paper back into his brother’s outstretched hands. “Here’s the number of the hospital. In case something comes up.”

Chris folded the paper and pocketed it before Wyatt could take it out, again. He walked toward the door and turned around. “Bye, Wy. I’ll be fine.” Chris walked out the door.

Credits Roll

---

If you haven't read the first episode, click here and enjoy.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Two – Strange Illnesses and Missing Memories

Fifteen minutes later Wyatt walked into the information area of the hospital. He was dressed in hospital garb. He walked up to the counter where Julia Knepp, the receptionist was on the phone. Leaning against the counter was Trae, the beautiful demon from the back of the demonic meeting in the underworld. She is dressed in similar attire to Wyatt. Wyatt glanced at her as he reached the counter, but otherwise he ignored her.

She put on her best smile and turned to him. “Hi, I’m Trae.”

Wyatt turned back to look at her. There was something about her that made him uncomfortable, but his mom raised him to be polite. “Wyatt. Nice to meet you, Trae.”

Trae held out her hand for him to shake. Wyatt looked at her hand and grabbed it with his, shaking it. “Been here long?”

Trae released his hand and gave him a fake smile. “No, second day.” Trae turned and walked away a look of annoyance on her face. Under her breath she mutters. “Pity. I would have liked to have him.”

Wyatt frowned as he watched her, not sure why she bothered him. Deciding to ignore it as unimportant he turned to look at Julia and smiled. “Hey, Julia. Do you have a list for me?”

Julia looked up and smiled. “Hi, Wyatt. You sure are happy today.”

Wyatt gave her an easy grin. “Just a good morning with my brother.”

Julia pulled a stack of papers and started flipping through them until she finds one with his name on it. She pulled it out and handed it to Wyatt. “Hope this helps.”

Wyatt smiled and looked down at the paper. He looked back up at Julia. “Thank you Julia.” Wyatt walked away.

---

About the same time Chris stood in front of a building. There was a look of disbelief on his face. He looked down at the paper in his hand and backed up at the building. He sighed, folded the paper up, and put it into his pocket. David Vandemark, a young man around his age is heading his way.

Chris didn’t see David, instead he continued to look at the building. To himself he said, “I work here.”

David answered him. “Not only do you work here, but when the boss is gone, you practically run the place. I heard you were sick, but are you okay? The assistant manager doesn’t usually forget where he works.”

Chris looked at him. There was no recognition in Chris’ eyes though it was obvious that he should have known who this was. “I was really bad. I’m doing better now.”

“What happened?” David wanted to know.

Chris hesitated before he answered. “I’d rather not discuss it.”

With a shrug of his shoulders, David dismissed it. “Your choice. You coming inside?”

Chris sighed and headed inside through the glass doors. David followed him inside the building.

---

Back at the hospital, several hours later Wyatt was walking down the hallway when some people in docotr’s clothes came up from behind him and rushed passed. He turned to Helen Hensley, a nurse, standing out of their way with a cart full of hospital food. She is facing the direction the doctors came from.

“Helen, what’s going on?” Wyatt asked her. “That’s the third time they’ve passed me in a hurry. I thought the patents in this ward weren’t serious.”

In front of them the doctors that passed them entered a nearby room.

Helen sighed. “Several patients have gone into comas. Their bodies are there still working, but it’s like the life, who they are, is gone. I think this one makes eight.”

“That’s awful,” Wyatt told her concerned. “Do they know what’s causing it?”

Helen shook her head. “Sorry, that’s all I know.”

Wyatt nodded wearily. “Thanks, Helen. I’ll let you go.”

Helen pushed the cart in the direction that the doctors came from. Wyatt walked away in the opposite direction toward the room he saw the doctors enter. As he neared the room the two doctors exited. As they walked away from the room, they talked.

The first doctor was shaking his head. “Just like the others. Such a shame.”

The other doctor sighed. “His chart said that he was going home tomorrow. Now, we tell his wife what?”

“The same as we told the others,” the first doctor said resigned. “That we will do everything we can, but it doesn’t look good.”

The doctors walked out of hearing range. Wyatt looked at the door and walked in. Inside he found a man lying in a bed. The heart monitor attached to him was steady. He was breathing steadily. Wyatt got closer and looked at him. His eyes were opened, but glazed over. Wyatt held his hands over the man attempting to heal him. When it didn’t work he looked at his hands in frustration. “I’m sorry. I hope for both our sakes this is natural, but if I can fix it, I will.” Wyatt looked at his hands and at the man, again. “That should have worked.” Wyatt looked down at the man for a moment more. Then he left his side and exited the room.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Three – Break Room Chats and Rising Coma Stats

About the same time at Chris work he is watching several people talk inside the office break room. Two women, Rose Laughlin and Jody Powell, were standing in one corner, holding coffee cups, discussing something. Rose, was pretty with long blonde hair and an innocent look to her. Jody was more on the cute side, also with blonde hair, though it was shorter, and she looked more long a curly haired tom boy. David was talking to a guy named Brian Heitzman, who was new to the company. Chris watched wearily as David pointed toward Chris and the two walked over toward him.

“I was telling Brian here, that you were the best person to show him the ropes,” David said as he and Brian reached Chris.

Chris’ mind bulked at that idea instantly. He couldn’t remember anything about this job. He couldn’t remember David, couldn’t remember what kind of person David was. “Perhaps you would like to show him what to do instead.”

“Chris, I’ve only worked here a week longer than you.” David attempted to remind him with a frowned. “You clearly are more qualified. You are the one that got the assistant manager position when Alex quit.”

Trying to gain any tiny piece of footing, Chris requested, “Remind me why Alex quit again.”

David looked at him strangely. “Are you sure you are okay? You know Alex quit because her husband got that promotion that they had been hoping he would get. She never wanted to work here in the first place. When she didn’t have to, she quit.”

“I’m fine,” Chris tried to reassure him. Chris didn’t know if it was working with David, especially since he had already told David that his memory was kind of shot. He knew it wasn’t working for him.

Brian didn’t seem to notice any tension. “I would be honored if you would show me the inner workings of Centennial. This guy says you actually memorized the handbook.”

Chris looked at David startled. That didn’t sound like him. “That had better be an exaggeration.”

David shrugged. “How would I know? You are the one who always seems to know the rule for every occasion. Seriously who knows that it is required to use number two pencils to fill in comment cards?”

Chris did his best not to gape at him. “You’re pulling my leg. Even if I did say that, it can’t possibly be a rule.”

David allowed a grin to spread on his face. “I have to admit I did try to look that one up in the book and didn’t find anything, but the book has to be thirty pages long.”

“That’s it?” Chris asked dryly.

David held out his hands to show the size of an eleven by eight piece of paper. “The pages are at least this big.” David turned to Brian. “Brian, I need to talk to Chris before we get back to work. Go ask Jody or Rose to help you. After lunch one of us will show you anything else you need.”

“Okay,” Brian grinned easily. “Talk to you later.” Brian walked over to the two women. He tapped Jody on the shoulder and started to talk to her.

David turned back to Chris, concerned. “You said you were fine, but you aren’t acting fine. Something in seriously wrong here. You act like you don’t remember any of this.”

Behind them Jody exited the room followed by Brian. Rose sat down on a chair and sipped her coffee.

“Do you trust me?” Chris asked unsure of the answer David would give him and unsure of if he should trust David.

David looked at him wearily.

“Do you?” Chris asked, again.

Reluctantly David nodded his head.

“I almost died Saturday,” Chris told him. “I almost died.”

David stared at him shocked. “Are you okay?”

Chris nodded hesitantly. “I’m fine, but some things are missing, memories. They have been coming back, but a lot’s still missing. I think I will get it all back, eventually, but right now, I’m a little lost.”

“Now, I know you aren’t okay,” David told him. There was less worry on his face. “You don’t admit weakness, even to me.”

Chris wondered how well he knew this guy. It seemed to him that David was concerned about him, but he also sensed some rivalry on the part of the other man. Chris decided to just play it by ear. “After what I’ve been through, I have leaned that sometimes you have to talk about it or your mom is going to kill you.”

David stared at him for a second. Then, he started to laugh. “Your mom?” David laughed a little harder. “You have me going there for a minute. I thought you were serious, but your mom? She wouldn’t kill you.”

Chris nodded, smiling. He knew better. “Oh, yes, she would.” He knew a couple of times his mom was pretty mad at him. Of course in most of those times, she didn’t know he was her son, but he knew his mom a lot better than David. After all, there was no way David knew anything about his mom’s life as a Charmed One.

Behind them Rose stood and headed toward them. She stopped and put her mug down on the counter by the sink and then continued toward them. Neither man saw her coming.

“Fine,” David said with a slight smile. “I’ll play along with you for now. If you have missing memories, does that mean I can have your job?”

Definitely rivalry, though Chris heard some kidding in the man’s voice. “That depends.”

“On what?” David’s voice was curious.

Chris grinned. “Does my brother have a paying job? We need money for rent.”

David laughed until he saw that Chris wasn’t joining him. “You’re serious?”

Before Chris could answer Rose reached them. She wrapped her arms around David and smiled up at him. “We only have five minutes left. You said you’d help me out with my display. Are you coming?”

David turned his head and looked at her. He slung his arm around her shoulder and smiled down at her. “You go ahead and go there, I’ll meet you there in a minute, Rosey doll.”

Rose gave him a pouting look. “You said you’d come.”

“I will,” David told her giving her an adoring, but annoyed look. Chris wanted to roll his eyes, but refrained. David didn’t notice, but kept talking to Rose, “but I need to finish talking to Chris.”

Rose sighed. “Fine, but be quick.”

“I will,” David assured her.

Rose unwrapped herself from David and grinned at the guys. “Later, Chris. Be quick, David.” Rose walked out of the door without waiting for a response.

David turned to look at Chris. “Sorry,” David said, apologetically. “Did I tell you that I was dating Rose?”

Chris shrugged. “I can’t say that I remember that conversation. You’d better go. She seemed to want your attention.”

“Something really is wrong though,” David commented, “something you don’t want to explain.”

If you only knew, Chris thought before he answered. “It is a really long story, but I am missing memories, David. Forgive me, but all of this is one giant gap.”

The look on David’s face was serious as he said, “You haven’t a clue whom I am, do you?”

Chris shook his head. “No.”

A thought popped into David’s head and he stated, “The only reason you know my name is because she just said it.”

Chris nodded. “That would be correct.”

“Wow.”

Chris smiled in spite of the situation. “In that case, your brother does have a paying job and if he hasn’t mentioned it you have school at seven-thirty on Tuesday and Thursday nights.”

Chris blinked in surprise. That was one scenario he hadn’t thought of. Work was one thing, but school? “School? As in college?”

David smiled. “Yeah, as in college.”

“Thanks. You’d probably better go before Rose wanders back here.”

“I’ll see you later. I hope that memory returns fast.” David walked out the door, leaving Chris in the break room alone.

You aren’t the only one, Chris thought as he looked around. I wish I could remember. Chris headed out the door and back into the job he didn’t remember.

---

Back at the hospital Wyatt was walking out of a hospital room. There was a frown on his face. He saw two doctors running by again and sighed. “Ten.” Wyatt walked down the hallway for a moment before a sound caused him to stop. He looked around. The hallway had empties and he was alone. There was a door nearby that was slightly ajar. He heard the sound again and quickly closed the gap between him and the partially open door. He pushed it all the way open and looked inside.

Trae, the beautiful demoness he met earlier was inside. She had her hands held on either side of the head of a little girl. The little girl was struggling as what looked like electricity flowed between Trae’s hands and the little girl’s head.

Wyatt swung his hand in Trae’s direction and she went flying across the room. Wyatt looked at his hands. “Cool.”

Trae stood and glared at him. “I should have known you’d cause me trouble.” Trae held her hands out in front of her and electricity came out in Wyatt’s direction. He ducked and it hit the wall behind him. Wyatt glanced back at the scorch mark. “Great,” he mumbled sarcastically.

Trae attempted to get close to the little girl’s bed.

Wyatt swung his arm in a large gesture that sent her across the room and away from the girl. “I don’t think so.”

Trae stood once more and glared at him. “This doesn’t concern you, witch.”

Wyatt smirked. “Haven’t you heard? Saving innocents is the family business.” And he was rather proud of that.

“Stupid witch,” Trae ridiculed. “You don’t know who you are dealing with.” Trae attempted once more to reach the little girl.

Wyatt once more sent her flying. “You’re right. I don’t know who I am dealing with, but I do know I can deal with you. You aren’t going to hurt that girl.”

“You can’t stop me, witch.” Trae looked over at the little girl, her hands clutching in front of her. With an annoyed look at Wyatt, Trae shimmered out.

Wyatt ran to the little girl’s side. Like the other victims she was breathing and her heart was beating strong, but her eyes weren’t completely glazed over. Wyatt glanced at the chart by her bed. “So your name is Hannah. Can you hear me, Hannah?”

Hannah Merrill’s eyes moved in the direction of his voice. “I hear you. Why are you fuzzy?”

Wyatt frowned and held his hands over her eyes. Nothing happened. “I don’t know, but we’ll fix that. Okay?”

“Okay,” Hannah replied easily.

Wyatt looked around and sighed. “I can’t just leave you here, can I? I don’t know why she wanted you or when she’ll be back.” Wyatt reached into his pocket and looked down at the cell phone. He sighed and plunked it back into his pocket. “No cell phones. I’ll have to get a land line.” Wyatt looked down at Hannah. “And that will just be a waist of time. I can’t walk out of here with you and I can’t leave you here for her to attack, again.” Wyatt looked at Hannah’s chart, again. This time when he looked back at her his eyes settled on a cast on her leg that was suspended in the air. “Hannah?”

“What?”

“Do you remember the person that tried to hurt you?”

Hannah nodded her head.

“Well, I can protect you, but I need you to do something for me.”

Hannah looked at him with hazy eyes. “What’s that?”

“I need you to trust me and let me pick you up.”

“Don’t know you,” Hannah protested.

“I know,” Wyatt told her. He couldn’t leave her, he had to convince her. “The bad lady might come back. Please, Hannah.”

“Are you a doctor?” Hannah asked. “I can trust doctors. Mommy said.”

“I’m a doctor’s assistant,” Wyatt told her honestly.

“Okay.”

Wyatt shook his head in amazement. “That was way too easy.” Wyatt glanced down at his hand. He looked over at the door and waved his hand in the direction of the door, swinging it closed. Wyatt smiled and looked back at Hannah. Wyatt leaned down and took the little girl into his arms. He didn’t bother disconnecting her from the stirrup holding her leg up. Instead he orbed her out of the stirrup and them out of them room.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Four - Fuzzy Vision

Wyatt orbed into the empty break room holding Hannah. He sat her in one of the chairs and picked her back up when she began to slide out. Next, Wyatt leaned down and put her on the ground. He glanced around, but he didn’t see any comfortable cushions to lean her on. “I’m going to get someone who can help. Will you be okay?”

“Fuzzy,” Hannah told him.

“Will you be quiet for me?” Wyatt asked softly.

“Quiet,” Hannah repeated.

Wyatt smiled and stood up. He walked over to the door and pulled it open. Wyatt looked out into the hall. He saw no one. He turned and looked back at Hannah before exiting the room and hurrying down the hall.

Before Wyatt reached the end, Jody turned the corner and entered the hallway. “Wyatt! What are you doing here?”

“I need to talk to Chris,” Wyatt told her. “Would you get him?”

Jody gave him and odd look. “I’ll go see if I can find him. How are you doing?”

“Please hurry,” Wyatt urged. “It’s important.”

Jody frowned, but she turned around and walked off. Wyatt turned around and hurried back down the hall and into the break room. He knelt down next to Hannah. “Hannah? I have someone getting him.”

Hannah looked at him with partially glazed eyes. “Who?”

“You’ll see,” Wyatt told her, not wanting to give her anything that might identify him and his brother later.

“Your name?” Hannah asked.

“Sorry, Hannah. It’s better if you don’t know. Just know I’m here to help.”

“Name,” Hannah repeated softly.

Behind Wyatt, Chris opened the door and came in. He walked up behind Wyatt.

“Hannah . . .” Wyatt began.

Chris interrupted him, “Wy, who is this and why is she here?”

Wyatt stood and looked at Chris. “This is Hannah. She was attacked.”

Chris grimaced.

“If my facts are right,” Wyatt continued, “she is the eleventh victim.”

“Did you see who did it?” Chris asked. “Was it demonic?”

Yes to both. I stopped her or at least I chased her away.”

“Her?” Chris queried.

“Yes,” Wyatt nodded, “can we go check the book and find out what to do before some else gets hurts?”

“What about her?” Chris asked looking at Hannah.

“She comes with us, of course. I didn’t dare leave her there to be attacked, again.”

“Why come here? Why not just call me from the house?”

Wyatt gave him a look. “And risk not getting through? Quit stalling. Let’s go.” Wyatt squatted down and picked up Hannah, who appeared to have fallen asleep. He raised up and looked at Chris.

Chris sighed and nodded. “I’ll meet you there. I have to tell someone that I’ll be gone. I’ll join you in a couple of minutes. Start searching the book without me.”

Wyatt nodded and orbed holding Hannah. Chris walked out the door quickly.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Five - Hide From My Mother's Eyes

Later, Wyatt was in the attic, standing in front of the podium, flipping pages of the Book of Shadows. Hannah was lying on the couch.

Chris orbed in by the stained glass window and walked over to his brother. “Sorry, I took so long. David’s covering for me. How do I know David?”

Wyatt looked up long enough to answer, “From work.” Wyatt looked down at the book. He flipped some more pages.

“Can I trust him?” Chris persisted.

“To cover for you?” Wyatt asked not sure what his brother was getting at.

Chris shook his head. “To drop my guard while talking.”

“Nope,” Wyatt told him, understanding now what his brother was getting at. “He’s not open to magic.”

“Otherwise?”

“He’ll cover for you.” Wyatt stopped and looked at the page the book was opened to.

“I guess that’s a no,” Chris said disappointed. “Anyone we can talk to?”

“I think I found her,” Wyatt told him, completely distracted from the conversation.

Chris walked over to look over Wyatt’s shoulder. “Soul Thieves? Are you saying this demon tried to steal the little girl’s soul?”

“Could be,” Wyatt admitted thinking. “Helen, one of the nurses at the hospital, described the victims as being alive, but having who they are missing.”

“Okay. That works,” Chris admitted. “Did she appear human?”

“Yeah, why?”

Chris pointed to a phrase on the page. “Unlike most demons, soul thieves have a decidedly human look to them.”

Wyatt nodded. “She looked human. She was posing as a hospital volunteer. She introduced herself to me this morning.”

Chris read another passage, allowed. “Soul thieves locate their victims by physical touch. They like victims who are strong, but there has to be some weakness they can use to get in.” Chris turned to Wyatt. “Did she touch you?”

“We shook hands,” Wyatt repeated. “She kind of insisted.”

“I guess she was trying to find her next victim. You didn’t fit the bill.”

Wyatt gave him a look. “She didn’t like the fact that I ignored her at first either.”

Chris smiled and looked back at the book. Chris read down the page and stopped. The smile slid from his face. “It says here that Soul thieves steal thirteen souls at a time. Once they capture the thirteenth soul they perform a ritual that permanently separates the soul from the person and ends their lives completely. Until this happens they keep the body alive.” Chris looked up at Wyatt. “That seems to indicate that if we can stop her, we can also get back the souls of the previous victims. How many others did you say she got to?”

“Ten,” Wyatt told him solemnly. “Hannah would have been eleven. So what’s to stop her from picking three more victims and just forgetting about Hannah?”

Chris looked back down at the book and pointed to another spot on the page. “It says here that a soul thief cannot choose a new victim once one is chosen. For this reason they try and chose their victims carefully, so they won’t be caught and stopped in the middle. Once a soul thief has their thirteen victims and completed the ritual of the separation they come to full strength. This lasts for twenty . . . years.”

“In other words,” Wyatt said by way of paraphrase, “it’s been longer than that and every soul thief out there is bound to want to find victims since they couldn’t use their powers for over twenty-years.”

“Yes,” Chris replied in a monotone.

“I don’t suppose it gives us a ball park figure of how many there are?”

Chris shook his head slowly. “Not precisely, but it says that the earliest soul thieves known to this family were twins, Kador and Firan with their little sister, Trae.”

“Only three?” Wyatt asked skeptically.

“That’s what it says,” Chris confirmed, “and your soul thief if in there.”

“She’s not my soul thief,” Wyatt mumbled annoyed.

“It seems to indicate that they are the only soul thieves unless they have children. Also there is a notation at the bottom. It has the name Firan Crennor followed by a date. I think he’s been vanquished. And based on the date, I’d say he was vanquished by Melinda Warren.”

“In that case there may only be two soul thieves.”

Chris nodded. On the couch behind them, Hannah started to toss and turn.

“Does it say how to vanquish one?”

Chris glanced back down at the Book. “There is a potion listed with a summoning spell.”

Behind them the end table next to the couch was overturned by Hannah’s thrashing, causing a loud crash. Chris walked over to the couch and began to pick up the table.

From downstairs a voice called out, that froze both brothers in their tracks. “Hello?”

Wyatt and Chris looked at each other. Then, they looked at Hannah, who was once more lying still on the couch. Chris pushed the table back up.”

“Mom,” Wyatt stated in a quiet tone.

Chris frowned and started thinking.

“We can’t let her see Hannah. She’ll worry about us.”

If there was one thing Piper Halliwell was good at, other than cooking, it was worrying. Chris didn’t really want his mother worried so he chanted a spell. “Hide from my mother’s eyes, what I wish to disguise. When vision should return, let this spell overturn.”

Wyatt looked at the couch and back at Chris. “I still see her.”

Chris shrugged. “You’re supposed to, just not Mom. Now, quiet.”

“You wrote a spell . . .” Wyatt began.

“Shh,” Chris warned him.

Piper Halliwell walked into the attic. “Oh. Boys. What are you doing up here? I though maybe Paige was over.”

Chris moved in front of the podium, trying to hide the open book from his mother’s eyes.

Piper eyes him and turned to Wyatt. “Wyatt? You want to tell me what’s going on?”

“Nothing you need to worry about,” Wyatt assured her.

“Wyatt Halliwell, I don’t like it when you avoid the question.”

“I though you were at the restaurant,” Wyatt commented, trying another diversionary tactic.

Wyatt really wasn’t good at that. Piper answered in like kind. “And I thought you were at the hospital. Unlike you, I own the restaurant. Since you are not in charge of the hospital, what are you doing here?”

“I’m done for the day,” Wyatt assured her.

“And you Chris?” Piper asked, turning her attention to her younger son. “Why aren’t you are work?”

“I’m on break,” Chris told her without blinking an eyelash.

“At the manor?” Piper gave her son a look.

Chris shrugged. “Is that a problem?”

“And in the attic,” Piper continued. “You are two are up to something.”

“Just research, Mom,” Chris assured her. It was after all the main reason they were there. “Nothing too exciting, but since I’m on my break my time is limited.” Chris winced inwardly at that one. It was basically a lie, and something in him rebelled against lying, something he couldn’t remember.

Piper looked at her sons suspiciously. “All right, but make sure you put anything away when you are done.”

“Sure, Mom,” Chris agreed easily.

“See you later, Mom,” Wyatt added.

Piper walked out of the room. Both Wyatt and Chris breathed a sigh of relief as they walked back to the Book.

“Return to see, make vision free. Let every eye, Hannah spy,” Chris chanted, undoing his earlier spell.

“Are all your spells so strange?” Wyatt asked. It was, after all, a new thing to Wyatt, hearing his brother say spells.

Chris shrugged. “Hey, I don’t have a lot of time to worry about spells hiding Hannah.”

“How do we know it worked?” Wyatt wanted to know, casting a curious eye on the little girl on the couch.

“Well, if it didn’t,” Chris reasoned, “the only one who can’t see her is Mom.”

“Fine,” Wyatt acquiesced.

“Let’s work on the soul thief,” Chris suggested, wanting the topic over. “We still have a vanquish to do.”

---

Downstairs in the front hall, Piper was on her cell phone, heading toward the front door. “Leo, they are up to something,” Piper told her husband over the phone. “Can you try and find out what’s going on?”

On the other end, Leo was sitting next to a sink with tools spread out and the pipes exposed. “I think I’m about done here,” he told her. “Hank had some questions for me,” Leo added, referring to her teenage nephew, “but I don’t think that will take very long either. I’ll see if I can figure out what they are up to.”

As she listened to him speak, Piper opened the front door and walked out.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Six – Teasp oon or Tablesp oon

Upstairs Chris was standing in front of the Book.

Wyatt was carrying some vials from the shelves to a table set up near the couch. “Isn’t garlic a cooking supply?” Wyatt asked curiously looking at the Book.

“So you were listening when Mom told us about potion ingredients,” Chris commented with a chuckle.

Wyatt shrugged it off. “Without our powers Mom figured it was about the only thing that would protect us, that and orbing, and running from a fight is not to my liking.”

Chris chuckled as he went down the list with his finger. “Well, it says we need garlic, so I’ll go down and see if we have any in the kitchen.”

“Our mom is a cook,” Wyatt reminded him with a scoffing sound. “What do you think?”

Chris grinned at him. “I think I should send you, so that we get the right measurements into the potion.”

“Hey!” Wyatt protested immediately. “I resent that remark. I can measure just as good as the next guy.”

“Right,” Chris looked at him skeptically. “I’m sure that is so true. Will there be an attic when I return?”

Wyatt scowled at him. “That was once and I was only eight. How was I to know those would react so violently?”

Got you, Chris thought as he responded without missing a beat. “Well, maybe if you’d paid more attention to Mom’s lessons, you might have learned that. I’m sure it was covered.”

Wyatt looked up at him suspiciously. “Do you remember that or did I just walk into that?” As Chris grin widened, Wyatt groaned. “I can’t believe I fell for that.”

“I can,” Chris told him easily. “Now, can I trust you to put the right amounts of those ingredients in the potion? It will only take a minute to find the garlic.”

Wyatt picked up one of the measuring sp oons and looked at it. “One teasp oons of . . .”

Chris rolled his eyes and sighed before interrupting. “That, my dear brother, is a tablesp oons. You get the garlic. I’ll work on the potion.”

Wyatt scowled at him as Chris headed toward the table. With a harrumph Wyatt orbed out of the room and into the kitchen. He walked over to the cupboards and reached his hand up to open the doors. A chill ran up and down his spine, causing him to drop his hands to his side and turn around. He looked around the room, frowning. After a moment he shrugged and turned back to face the cupboards. He opened doors and started looking through the cupboard. Not finding the garlic, he closed the cupboard doors and went to the next cupboard. This time he actually found spices. As he looked he mumbled to himself. “Let’s see. Cayenne Pepper, Dill Weed . . . there it is. Garlic.” Wyatt pulled out the small cylinder and closed the cupboard. With one more frowning glance behind him, he orbed back out of the room.

Chris was sp ooning some sort of black powder into the potion as Wyatt orbed back into the attic. He looked up as Wyatt orbed into the room. “Did you find it?”

Wyatt held out the container. “Right here.” Wyatt looked down at the container in his hand and it orbed onto the table next to Chris.

Chris looked up frowning. “Quit playing. This is serious.”

“I am well aware of that,” Wyatt informed him, “but I need to practice.”

Chris gave him a looked. “I think you have a handle on your powers, Wy.”

“Maybe the ones I know about,” Wyatt retorted. “Did you know I have telekinesis?”

Chris sighed. He opened up the contained of garlic and started measuring. The only indication that he heard his brother was the increasing tension in his body.

“Chris?” Wyatt questioned, suddenly worried.

“Bad memory,” Chris stated, brushing it off. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Hey, I’m the older brother here. What is bothering you, Chris?”

Chris didn’t reply at first. Then he looked at Wyatt, a mask of indifference on his face. “It’s something from the other timeline. Don’t worry about it.”

“It bothers you,” Wyatt said cautiously. “Please tell me why?”

“We have a demon to vanquish,” Chris reminded him, trying once more to change the subject.

---

“I’m serious. He’s gonna be different. Good. He’s not gonna remember he wasn’t. So if you really want to change the future, you gotta start with a clean slate.”

---

Good plan except for the part where Wyatt wasn’t going along with it.

“Christopher Perry Halliwell!” Wyatt exclaimed exasperated. “What did I do to you?”

Chris’ shoulders drew up as he drew in a ragged breath and then they just sagged. “You tried to kill me.” Chris looked down at the Book, not wanting to see Wyatt’s reaction, and checked the ingredients list once more.

Wyatt stood completely still looking at his little brother. There was a stunned look on his face. “I tried to kill you? You are my brother. Why would I try to kill you?”

Chris looked at the confused look on Wyatt’s face. “I don’t know. You had been turned evil. You tried for years before that to change me to the side of evil as well. I don’t think you wanted me dead, but when I went to the past to stop whatever turned you evil, I became more than just a threat. I became the main threat, perhaps the only real threat. You are good now. I died to make sure you were good and then I almost died, again.”

“When I found you on Saturday, it was because of that, wasn’t it?”

Chris nodded.

“And this is what you didn’t want to talk about on Saturday, isn’t it?”

Chris nodded a second time.

“I’m sorry.”

“It wasn’t you, not exactly and it isn’t who you are, so I didn’t see any point in bothering you about it.”

Wyatt walked over to the table and stood next to Chris. “Bother me all you want. You’re me little brother. Little brothers are made specifically to bother older brothers, so it’s in your job description.”

Chris looked at him and smiled. The smile lasted only a moment before a serious mask replaced it. “Now, that you know, can we get onto vanquishing this demon?”

Wyatt looked over at Hannah lying on the bed. “I am more than ready.”

Chris poured in a tablesp oon of garlic. A cloud of spoke appeared and dissipated. “Good, because this potion is ready. Why don’t you find the summoning spell while I put this in a vial?”

Wyatt walked over to the podium holding the Book of Shadows and looked at the open page discussing the Soul Thieves.

Chris picked up a vial and started putting some of the potion into it.

“It needs a little reworking,” Wyatt commented as he silently read the spell. “This one is written for Firen. Also it says that in order for it to work you have to either be touching a living victim or have made physical contact with the demon yourself.”

Chris corked the vial and brought it over to the podium, stopping to stand next to his brother. “No problem, then. You shook hands with Trae. She must not have known that you were a witch when she shook you hand. Does it mention how they choose their victims other than the whole physical strength tempered by a slight weakness.”

Wyatt looked down at Hannah. “How does Hannah qualify as physical strength. She’s healthy other than a broken leg, but I don’t think she’s strong.”

“Well, then maybe it’s physical health. Does the Book say anything useful on how they select victims?”

Wyatt searched the page, but found nothing. He looked at his brother and shook his head. “Sorry nothing here.”

“Figures,” Chris said with a slight shake of his head. “I guess it doesn’t matter since we are going to vanquish her. You want to rewrite the summon spell or should I?”

“I can do it,” Wyatt informed him. “You made the potion. Besides she’s my innocent.”

It was so unexpected a claim that Chris couldn’t keep himself from laughing, just a little. “We claim ownership of innocents?”

Wyatt made a face at him. “Be quiet. You know what I mean.”

Chris just shrugged, laughter still in his voice as he said, “Yeah. Whatever.” Chris walked the few steps to the couch and squatted down putting the back of his hand against Hannah’s forehead. The thing about having an attentive mortal dad with medical training was that you learned medical stuff, and this was just common sense stuff. Chris couldn’t really remember anything very specific about his dad teaching him, but he felt a smile tug at his lips as he thought of him. Eventually Chris would remember. Eventually, but not yet.

Behind him Wyatt orbed a paper and pen into his hands and started writing on it.

“Her temperature seems to be at least close to normal,” Chris informed him without looking behind him.

“Probably because she wasn’t fully affected,” Wyatt commented, “and Trae needs to keep her victims alive until she has all thirteen.”

“Maybe,” Chris conceded cautiously.

“It’s not like you to doubt my word,” Wyatt told him acting wounded.

Chris looked at Wyatt and rolled his eyes. “I may not remember everything from either time line, but, Wy, I do know that it is very like me to doubt many things you say in either. Besides you were only guessing. You have anything yet?”

“Writing a spell isn’t something to be rushed,” Wyatt informed him with a superior voice.

Chris avoided the temptation to roll his eyes again. “Wy, you have a spell to start from. All you have to do is modify it to fit Trae.”

“Quit talking so I can concentrate.” Wyatt crossed something off the paper and started writing, again. After a moment he looked over at Chris. “Got it.”

Chris stood and walked over to him. “Good.”

Wyatt walked away from the podium and over to a box by one of the walls. He opened it up and pulled out some large crystals.

Chris walked over and helped him set the crystals in a circle.

“That should hold her just in case something goes wrong.”

Chris chuckled. “Kind of helps with the spell, too, since she’s supposed to end up in the midst of them.”

“That, too,” Wyatt agreed easily. “Let’s go summon her.”

Chris nodded and they walked over to the podium.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Seven - From the Place She Hides

Trae was in her lair. She stood in front of an altar on which she had placed the thirteen orbs. Ten were clear with images flickering in them, the memories and lifetimes of her first ten victims. Two of them were black, coal black with no light extending out of them. These were empty, for she had no way of using them until the thirteenth and final orb was completely clear. Right now, though, it was black with small clear dots all over it.

As Trae surveyed her handy work, she ranted. “You will pay for this, witch. I need that girl’s soul. To you, she’s just another innocent. To me, she’s survival.” Trae waved her hand over the altar and a force field appeared. “That should stop him. Only the most powerful of witches could break that. He is not that.” Trae stood in front of the altar and surveyed her work. “Now, to find the girl and the witch.”

In the attic the boys stood behind the podium, with Hannah on the couch behind them. The book was opened on the podium, with the paper containing the revised spell laying on top of the page about the soul thieves. Slowly chanting they began the spell. “Thief of souls, stolen lives, as your victims we wish to revive.”

Trae felt something tug at her.

“Bring Trae from the place she hides, to where the crystals now reside.”

Trae’s eyes widened as she vanished from her lair.

Trae appeared in the middle of the room in the midst of a circle of crystals, her eyes wide.

Chris threw a vial containing a potion at her. It hit her and bounced off to the ground. Chris sighed and lifted one hand, telekinetically throwing it at her, again. This time as it reached her he squeezed the other hand breaking the vial as it made contact with her. She burst into flames and then disappeared completely in an explosion. “Kind of anticlimactic,” Chris commented as he looked at the now empty circle of crystals.

Wyatt turned around to look at the couch were Hannah lay asleep. “Do you think she’s all right, now that Trae has been vanquished?”

“Only one way to find out,” Chris informed him. “Wake her.”

Wyatt shook Hannah’s shoulder.

The little girl moaned, but didn’t awake. He pushed open one of her eye lids and saw that she still had the partially glazed look in her eyes. “She’s not better. What else does the book say?”

Chris looked at the book and skimmed the page. After a moment he came to the part he needed. “In order to release the souls the Soul Thief has stolen the Soul Thief’s soul holding orbs must be destroyed. Once destroyed, the souls will return to their correct bodies as long as they are in the normal world. Souls released in the underworld will wander around aimlessly until they are captured, again.”

“Great,” Wyatt groaned. “Do we have a way to find where she put the orbs?”

Chris drew a triquetra on the wall. When he was done he looked at his brother. “I have an idea.”

“A spell to go through time?” Wyatt asked confused as he looked at the triquetra.

“No,” Chris informed him. “A spell to travel from place to place.”

“Doesn’t that require another triquetra on the other end?” Wyatt asked, trying to hard to remember lessons learned when he was little.

“We’ll find out,” Chris admitted. “It’s worth a shot though.”

“Let’s hear it,” Wyatt requested giving in.

Chris began to chant. “Follow Trae’s journey. Let us two see, how to get where, she was before here.”

The triquetra glowed blue and seemed to open up. The brothers looked at each other and walked into it, disappearing.

As the triquetra closed the attic door opened and Leo walked into the room.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Eight - Hear These Words as I Knock

The room which contained Trae’s lair was empty except for the altar and the thirteen orbs on it. A blue triquetra appeared on the wall. Wyatt and Chris stepped out. As they looked around the image faded behind them. Wyatt approached the altar while Chris stood back and surveyed the empty room.

“These orbs,” Wyatt said as he looked at them. “Do you think they are the ones we need?”

“Maybe,” Chris replied, slightly distracted and for some reason apprehensive.

Wyatt walked closer to the altar and began to reach out his hand. His hand stopped suddenly as if by some invisible force.

“Wait,” Chris commanded. His hand was waved toward him, indicating that he had stopped Wyatt’s hand with his telekinesis.

Wyatt turned around to look at his brother. “What?”

Chris shoved his hand into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a handful of change. He frowned and began looking through it. He pulled a penny out of the pile and put the rest back in his pocket. Then, he walked up next to Wyatt and tossed the penny onto the altar. It his the shield and incinerated.

“And here I thought she was too coc ky to think we’d defeat her,” Wyatt mumbled, taking a step back.

“More like she wasn’t taking any chances,” Chris replied eying the altar wearily.

“They are no good to her dead,” Wyatt countered looking at the altar, trying to see the invisible shield or something that would have clued Chris into it’s existence. He saw nothing.

“Maybe to her brother though,” Chris replied thoughtfully, “if he’s still around out there. Or maybe it’s just because she was a demon.”

“That’s right,” Wyatt said looking at his brother, remembering, “there is another one out there. I wish we could get rid out him, too.”

“Too bad, Chris agreed, “but you said that we had to have some sort of contact with a soul thief to summon one and we’ve had none with him.”

“Yeah,” Wyatt relented reluctantly. “Maybe we’ll have another chance later. He’s sure to surface.”

“Maybe,” Chris agreed with a sigh, “but if we don’t hear about it, we won’t get another chance. Twenty years is a long time to wait.

“Do they have to wait that long?”

Chris shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe we should just hope that someone else vanquishes him. Right now let’s worry about these orbs.”

“Orbs, huh?” Wyatt said thoughtfully as he looked at the orbs on the altar. One of the was surrounded by blue-white orbs. It started to leave, but then it hit the shield and headed back down fast only to be stopped inches from the altar.

Next to Wyatt, Chris’s hand was outstretched as if he caught the orb. He breathed a sigh of relief.

Wyatt turned to look at him just as Chris moved down his hand and let the orb stop on the altar. “Maybe a spell.”

Chris shrugged. “It’s worth a try.”

Wyatt thought a moment before he began to chant. “Now that Trae has bit the dust, put down the shield. It is a must.”

Chris pulled out his handful of change, again. He fiddled through it until he found another penny. He tossed it at the altar and once again, the penny was incinerated.

“Guess not,” Wyatt mumbled wryly.

Chris tried a different tactic as he began to chant. “In order that we can find the key, make this shield black so we can see.” The shield instantly turned visible and everything on the table was made dark by the barely see through black shield.

Wyatt looked at him confused. “You turned it black. How does that help us drop the shield?”

Chris shrugged. “At least we can see it now.”

Wyatt scowled.

“What?” Chris asked slightly defensive. “It’s true.”

“Fine,” Wyatt conceded. “How do we get them out?”

“Does the shield go under the altar?”

“How should I know?” Wyatt squatted down and looked under the table. “I don’t see anything, but that would be way to easy and I’m pretty sure she didn’t mean for this to be easy.”

“Still.”

“Fine. Be ready to catch just in case this actually works.”

Chris gets his hands out. “What are you planning to do, so that I know what to look for?”

“I’m going to see if I can use telekinesis to break of the edge of the altar.”

Chris dropped his arms back to his side. “You just started using that power this morning.”

“Well, theoretically, I’ve had it all along, I just couldn’t use it,” Wyatt reminded him.

“Yes,” Chris agreed easily, “but you haven’t used it. Powers need time and practice to strengthen and unless you can break that altar with your bare hands, then I don’t think this is going to work.”

Wyatt gives his brother a wounded puppy dog look. “You can be such a downer. Let me at least try.”

“Fine.” Chris got his hands ready, so if needed he could stop the orbs with his own telekinesis.

Wyatt focused on the altar and waved his hand down, trying to break the table. Unfortunately it only ended up looking silly and pointless. Annoyed Wyatt tried again, this time with more force. The entire altar came crashing down, but the force field remained. It sputtered and flickered, but still it held. The orbs remained within it.

Chris looked at his brother surprised as he held the orbs suspended in air. “Okay, so you can break it. The shield is still up.”

Wyatt scowled and began to chant. “Shield that will not unlock, hear these words as I knock. Bring down the shield so I can save the little girl so near a grave.” The shield sputtered and flickered some more, but it didn’t come down. “I guess it is weaker.”

“Try knocking,” Chris suggested, eyeing the altar.

“What?” Wyatt asked looked at Chris confused.

“It was in your spell,” Chris replied.

“That was figurative,” Wyatt informed him.

“Does the spell know that?”

Wyatt scowled and knocked on the wall. Nothing happened. “Told you.”

“Try another spell,” Chris suggested. “Maybe I can get an orb out when it flickers.”

Wyatt shook his head. “We need to get all the orbs out, not just one.”

“No, just eleven.”

Wyatt looked at him annoyed.

Chris sighed. “Fine. Any other ideas?”

“What about my shield?” Wyatt suggested. “Maybe I can counter the shield on . . . what’s left of the altar.”

Chris shrugged. He moved his hand and the orbs moved to the opposite side of the dark shield. “We only have to worry about eleven. There are two in there that we don’t have to worry about. Maybe we can use those to experiment.”

Wyatt walked close to the shield and looked down at the orbs. His eyes widened as he saw images appear in the ten clear orbs. He looked at the speckled orb and breathed in sharply. “Hannah.”

“What?” Chris looked at him curiously.

“I saw Hannah in one of these orbs.

“Well, it makes sense doesn’t it? She’s not unaffected by this, so Trae got to some of her. Since this is where Trae put them . . . At least it proves that this is the right place.”

Wyatt’s shield came up. He moved a few inches until his shield was touching Trae’s. “Take care of the orbs.”

Chris nodded and began to concentrate solely on what was happening to the orbs.

Wyatt moved closer and the shields began to throw sparks. Wyatt moved a little closer and the sparks flew higher.

Chris backed up against the wall, but kept concentrating on the orbs.

Wyatt moved slowly closer and the shield kept yielding, growing smaller, but not breaking. “From the Soul Thief, rescue is chief. Make her shield, to mine yield.” As Wyatt speaks the shield keeping them from the orbs began to sputter erratically and when he finished, it dissolved into nothing. Wyatt walked slowly away and dropped his shield. He looked at the orbs being held up by his brother and one of the black ones orbed into his outstretched hand. “Okay. I think we can take them out of here, now.”

Chris moved the orbs from the remains of the altar and set them down on the ground. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his change, again. Once more he selected a coin, this time at random, and tossed it at the orbs. It fell harmlessly to the ground. Seeing it as safe, Chris walked over to the orbs and picked out up. “How are we supposed to carry these? We didn’t bring anything with us. They aren’t exactly the size of marbles and there are thirteen of them.”

“Eleven,” Wyatt corrected, automatically.

“I’m not leaving the empty ones either,” Chris informed him.

“Why?” Wyatt asked confused.

“I don’t trust her,” Chris replied simply.

Wyatt couldn’t argue with that and started laughing. “Fine, then. We will take all of them. If you’ll hold out your arms, I’ll see how many I can fit there without you dropping any and then I’ll take the rest.”

Once Chris had complied and crossed his arms across his chest so that they could hold them, Wyatt began the task of piling the baseball sized orbs into Chris’ arms. Soon nine of the orbs were in Chris’ arms.

Wyatt took the remaining four and put them in his own arms. “Let’s get out of here. This place gives me the creeps.”

“It’s just an empty room,” Chris reminded him.

“An empty room which over the years has likely seen more than its share of dead.”

“I don’t need convincing, Wy. I want to leave before I drop these.” Chris looked down at the coin lying on the ground where the orbs once were. With a flick of his finger it lifted off the ground and slid into his pocket.

Wyatt orbed out of the room and a second later Chris orbed after him.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Nine – Busted!

In the attic, Leo was sitting on the couch next to Hannah, who was still sound asleep. Leo looked up as his two sons orbed into the room. Their backs were turned away from him. He watched in silence as Wyatt squatted down and put the four orbs he held on the floor and as Chris lifted the orbs out of his arms using telekinesis and let them slowly descend to the ground, joining the other four.

Wyatt stood and turned around to look at Hannah. He saw his dad and stopped. “Uh oh.”

Chris heard him and turned. “What’s wrong, Wy . . . Dad!”

Leo stood and walked over to where his sons were standing. “Your mother said you were up here. What’s going on? And who is she?”

Wyatt and Chris exchanged looks, but remained silent.

“Wyatt?” Leo said questioningly, focusing in on his older son.

“What?” Wyatt looked at him in disbelief. “You’re picking on me? Why not Chris?”

Leo’s eyes took on a look of sadness to them. “Because your brother managed to not let us know who he was for a year. You on the other hand. . . When your mom asks about the marble you’ll know what I mean.”

“Marble? What Marble?” Wyatt asked, unwittingly echoing words his mother had spoken years before.

“The one Chris swallowed when he was little,” Leo told him with a slight smile. “Believe me, when it comes up, you’ll know. Back to my question. What is going on?”

Wyatt turned to Chris. “Why do I get the feeling I’m being blamed for something that hasn’t happened yet?” he complained.

Chris shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe because you probably are.”

“Can you two focus on my question?” Leo’s requested, drawing his sons’ attention back to him.

“Can we pass?” Chris asked tentatively.

Leo shook his head. “Nom ducking out, Chris. You wanted the attention,” Leo reminded his son with a smile.

Chris looked at Leo for a moment and smiled. “Yeah, and you have been a great father this time ‘round. Thanks.”

Wyatt looked from his brother to his father and back. “This time around? What happened the other time?”

Not wanting to explain things he hadn’t really explained to anyone, including Leo, Chris just shrugged. “Let’s just say Dad learned from my experiences.”

“You will tell me the whole story one of these days,” Wyatt told him determined.

Chris had to smile at the look on Wyatt’s face. His older brother just wouldn’t let go when it suited him. “Probably,” he admitted, “but we’ve got your innocent to worry about now.”

“That’s right,” Wyatt responded, instantly shaken off the trail by the more immediate concern. Wyatt walked over to the couch, past his dad and looked at Hannah. He turned around and looked at Chris. “So all we have to do is break the orb and she’ll be fine?”

Chris walked over to the open book and looked at it.

Leo walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder. He had been more concerned with the small girl in the attic that actually finding out what they were doing earlier. He figured they would confess when he confronted them.

“That’s what it seems to indicate,” Chris told them both once he had double checked the entry.

“Where did she come from?” Leo asked his sons.

Chris turned and looked at Wyatt. Both brothers knew that Leo wasn’t referring to Trae. “Well, Wy, should I tell him or do you want to?”

Wyatt scowled and looked at Chris, then at Leo. “Her name is Hannah. She is a patient at the hospital where I volunteer sometimes. I caught a demon attacking her and decided the only way to protect her was to bring her with me.”

Leo stared at his older son in disbelief. “You kidnapper a patient?”

“Not kidnapped,” Wyatt shook his head, trying to look innocent. “I had her permission.”

Leo gave his son a look. “Wyatt, she’s four. She can’t give permission for anything.”

“Five actually,” Wyatt protested, as if that changed anything, “and I couldn’t leave her there for Trae to attack, again.”

“Trae?” Leo asked, realizing he was missing a piece of this puzzle and that was probably it.

“The demon,” Wyatt reminded him. “Her name was Trae. She was what is called a Soul Thief.”

“And is Trae still a threat?” Leo asked, thinking she wasn’t, but wanting to be sure.

Wyatt shook his head.

Chris stood off to Leo’s side, smiling.

Leo turned his attention to his younger son. “Don’t think you’re getting off easy either, Mister.”

Chris wiped the grin off his face. “Never did, but I will remind you that he took her, not me.”

Leo turned his attention back to Wyatt. “So, what do you plan to do now that the threat is gone? You have to get her back to the hospital.”

Wyatt frowned. “Actually, I hadn’t thought that far ahead.”

Leo managed not to groan out loud. These were his sons? Didn’t they ever plan ahead? That question was immediately followed by memories. He sighed. “Figures. Any ideas, either of you?”

“We have to break the orbs, first,” Chris informed him reasonably.

“Orbs?” Leo asked confused. He had missed this part of the situation. What are you talking about, son?

Chris nodded and walked over to the pile of orbs, picking one up. It was Hannah’s. “The Soul Thief, Trae, put the souls of those she captured into these orbs for storage until she had filled all thirteen. Wy stopped her from completely stealing Hannah’s, who was her eleventh victim. Had he not, Trae not doubt would have finished by now.”

“What has this to do with breaking the orbs?” Leo asked, still not sure where Chris was going with this.

“According to the Book of Shadows, if the orbs are broken, it will release the stolen souls. If in the underworld they will wander, since they can’t escape there, but otherwise, they will return to their bodies.” Chris looked at Leo. There was something in his eyes that Leo cannot identify. “Scold us all you want later, but we need to do something about Hannah and the orbs.”

“You can’t just rush into things, Chris,” Leo warned his younger son. “It’s dangerous.”

“I’m just along for the ride,” Chris flashed his father a grin. “Wyatt’s the one who rushed into things.” Not to say, that I’m sorry he did, Chris thought as he looked at the little girl lying on the couch. I could never be sorry that you saved an innocent, Wy, even if you did do it by illegal means.

Wyatt looked up and scowled. “I resent that.”

“No,” Chris teased, “you resemble that.”

Wyatt gave him an annoyed look. “Man, that joke is so old and so lame.”

“Yet so accurate,” Chris shot back easily.

Remembering what might have been, Leo smiled at the easy comradery between his sons. “Focus boys. If we are going to postpone this discussion, then I want to see some action. Otherwise we talk now.”

Wyatt and Chris looked at each other. “Right,” Chris replied more to Wyatt than to Leo. “Wy, why don’t I take Hannah to an empty room at the hospital while you get your stuff?”

“Stuff?” Wyatt repeated, confused. “What stuff?”

Chris shrugged. “Don’t know. Don’t care. We need you visible when someone finds Hannah.”

“Fine,” Wyatt agreed, seeing the logic in his brother’s words. “Visible. First though, we need to do something about the orbs.” Wyatt looked at the pile of orbs and a black one orbed to his outstretched hand. He held it up high and dropped it. The orb hit the floor and chipped. He reached down and picked it up. He held the orb up to eye level and looked at the chipped area. Inside the dark orb was hallow. He looked back up at his dad and brother and said unnecessarily, “It broke.”

Chris rolled his eyes and held out Hannah’s orb. “That’s great. How about one that actually matters.”

Wyatt walked over and took the orb. He looked over at Hannah and frowned. “There’s no way around it, is there? I have to break it to see if it works.”

Chris nodded.

Wyatt sighed and holding the orb up high, dropped it. The orb hit the floor and cracked into large pieces.

A ghostly figure that looked like Hannah came out of it like a genie out of its bottle. She looked around the room, stopping on her body. She smiled at Wyatt and headed strait for her body. She entered her body and the little girl turned over in her sleep.

Wyatt walked up to Hannah and checked her pulse. Finding it strong, he put his hand on her shoulder and shook her gently. “Hannah?”

Hannah pushed at his hand and mumbled, “Let me sleep. Tired.”

“Open your eyes a moment, Hannah,” Wyatt encouraged. “Then, you can sleep.”

One of Hannah’s eyes slowly opened, allowing Wyatt to see that it was no longer hazy. Still mumbling, Hannah asked, “Sleep now?” As soon as Wyatt nodded, Hannah’s eyes snapped shut, mumbling, “’Kay.”

Wyatt stood and walked over to his dad and brother. “Dad, did you see Hannah’s spirit before it reentered her?” When Leo shook his head Wyatt smiled, “Good. That means if we released the others we won’t have to worry about people seeing them.”

“Think it would help if we broke them in the hospital?” Chris suggested.

Wyatt considered this suggestion, “Might speed things up, but we’d have to be careful. We wouldn’t want someone finding the broken orbs.”

Chris walked around the room looking through the boxes until he located a cloth laundry bag. He pulled it out of the box and walked over to the orbs. As he packed the orbs into the bag he talked, “I’ll bring this with me when I get Hannah back to the hospital. I’ll take care of these while I’m there, then orb out and meet you at the apartment.”

“Here,” Leo informed him. “You’ll meet here. We need to talk.”

Chris grimaced. “Here then.” Chris closed the bag and tied it up. He hung it from his shoulder by the drawstring causing Wyatt to laugh. Chris ignored him and walked over to the couch. Awkwardly, he squatted down making sure the orbs don’t hit anything too roughly. He picked up the sleeping Hannah up careful of her cast and the orbs. He stood holding her and looked at Wyatt. “See you in a little bit.”

Wyatt nodded and Chris orbed out with Hannah and the orbs. Wyatt turned to Leo. “Can’t say I’m looking forward to this talk, but I’ll be back soon.” Wyatt orbed out leaving Leo, alone once more to wait.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Ten – Broken Orbs

In the hospital there was an empty room with the door opened only a crack. It didn’t stay empty for long as blue-white orbs turned into Chris holding Hannah. He was laying her down on the hospital bed, ever careful of the orbs, when her eyes opened and she looked at him with clear eyes.

“Are you my doctor’s assistant?” Hannah asked softly, curiously.

Surprised Chris looked down at her. “Not me. I’m . . . I’m sort of an angel.”

Hannah yawned and studied him. “I guess not. He’s . . . different, lighter hair I think.”

Chris nodded mutely.

“You must be the person we were going to meet,” Hannah continued watching him. “It was all very fuzzy. Am I okay?”

Chris nodded again.

Hannah, content, rolled over in the bed and closed her eyes, again.

Chris took the bag of orbs off his shoulder and holding it in front of him, orbed out of the room.

---

Chris reappeared in another empty hospital room holding the bag of orbs in front of him. He held them up high and dropped them to the floor. Inside the bag the sound of shattering could be heard as each of the fragile clear orbs cracked and broke. He picked up the bag and looked inside as ten spirits emerged and scattered in various directions. One man, the one Wyatt had looked in on earlier, stopped and looked at Chris. He inclined his head and left the room in the direction of his own hospital room. Chris smiled and looked in the bag. Inside he saw one orb still in relatively one piece . . . the second black one, and even it is chipped. He tied the bag, slung it over his shoulder, and orbed out.

---

There were people walking down the hallway and some standing in front on the elevator waiting for it to reach the floor. The elevator reached the floor and slid open.

The elevator was empty except for Wyatt who stepped out. He greeted a few familiar people as he exited. He walked down the hall toward the break room. He reached the door and was about to open it, when a voice stopped him.

“Where have you been?” Helen asked from behind him. The nurse looked at him anxiously. “We’ve been trying to find you for hours.”

“Sorry,” Wyatt replied looking at her surprised. “I left a little early, about two or three hours after I talked to you. A family emergency.” Wyatt hid a chuckle as he said the last words. I can’t believe I just said that. How many family stories include that excuse?

“Why are you back then?” Helen wanted to know.

Wyatt smiled, not bothering to hide his relief as he said, “We fixed everything up and I realized that I left something here that I needed. I finished everything up that I was supposed to.” He gave her a look of query. “Did I miss something?”

Helen shook her head. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Then, what’s up?” Wyatt asked trying to appear unworried. It’s Hannah. They want to ask me about Hannah.

Sure enough, “There’s a little girl missing. The police are questioning everyone.”

“Oh,” Wyatt replied trying to sound surprised. It didn’t work very well, but Helen didn’t seem to notice. “That’s not good. I hope she’s alright. I don’t think I can help any though.” Technically, true. Tell them that Chris has her would be no help whatsoever.

Behind Helen one of the hospital’s doctors, Dr. Ethan Franks, walked into the room. He talked to Julia, the receptionist. Julia looked around the room and pointed in the direction where Wyatt and Helen were talking.

Helen responded with a sigh. “It’s just been a bad couple of days with all these people just fading and now the little girl.”

Dr. Franks walked over to Wyatt and Helen, stopping by them. “Hello, Mr. Halliwell. I understand you may not have heard what is going on.”

Wyatt smiled. “Hello, Dr. Franks. Yes, I hear I need to talk to the police.”

Dr. Franks shook his head slightly. “That will not be necessary at this time. Some one found the missing girl in one of the empty rooms. It appears that she managed to get her leg out of the sling and hobble down hall without any one noticing. The hall wasn’t very busy, so it’s possible. She was curled up on a bed in a room in the same hall.”

Way to go, Chris. Plausible distance. “They didn’t check the room earlier?”

Dr. Franks just sighed. “They did, so she might be more mobile then we thought before. Either way, you are free to go. If they need to talk to you, the police will contact you, but since Hannah is all right I don’t think it will be necessary.”

“Thanks for telling me,” Wyatt replied genuinely glad that they had Hannah back. “I just have to grab something in the back room and I’ll be out of here.”

Dr. Franks nodded and walked away.

Helen looked at Wyatt. “I guess I’ll let you go get your stuff then. Bye, Wyatt.”

“Bye, Helen,” Wyatt replied heading toward the break room trying to figure out what he could pull out of his locker that would look like a reason to go back to work.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Eleven – Don’t Tell Mom

Flashback

Back at the manor, Chris and Leo were both seated in the front room of the manor. Chris was looking at his hands in his lap.

“Any idea how long it will take your brother to return?” Leo asked finally.

Chris looks up and shrugged. “He drove there this morning. He might have decided to drive here.”

“In that case why don’t we start with you,” Leo decided looking at his younger son. “Why don’t you tell me what part of this is your fault, Chris?”

“Are you serious?” Chris asked, hoping he wasn’t.

“Yes,” Leo informed him in no uncertain terms. “Start talking.”

“But, Dad . . .” Chris tried to stall or avoid or both. Explaining everything to his dad was not his idea of fun.

“No buts,” Leo stopped him. “Start talking or I’ll get your mom.”

Why he thought that was a threat, was unclear to Chris, but it startled him all the same. He didn’t want to bother his mom with this, not demons, not after all this time. Like so much else the reality he had helped create was unclear to the extreme, but he was fairly certain demons hadn’t been part of it. “No. Don’t tell Mom. You know Mom. She may be Charmed and she may be good at fighting evil, but she doesn’t like it and while she trained us, too, she wants a normal life for us.” He didn’t have to remember specific incidents to know that. It was a common enough theme. “Let her keep her illusions. As long as Way and I can handle them and they leave Mom alone, we’ll be fine. She doesn’t need to know. Don’t worry her.” The last words were a plea.

Leo frowned. “Chris, your mother will need to know and I don’t plan on lying to her.”

Chris groaned. He had forgotten his father’s reason for being there. “That’s right. Mom sent you here. Please, don’t worry her.”

Leo considered this and he didn’t like it. He wasn’t going to do what his son asked, but perhaps he could give him something else, time. “I’ll think about it if you and Wyatt tell me exactly what’s going on and I don’t want illegal activities happening.”

“But if innocent lives are at stake. . .” Chris protested. Not that he planned on breaking the law, but if an innocent life was at stake.

“Quit stalling and talk,” Leo said giving his son a quelling look.

Chris sighed. “Jody, from work, came and told me that Wy was waiting for me in the break room. I went there and he was in there with Hannah.”

“And where was Hannah when your mom came to the attic?” Leo asked watching Chris eyes, no longer sure he could trust his son. They had raised both boys to be truthful, but this was no longer just the son he had raised. This was some unknown balance of the son he had raised and the son who had died in front of him. While in the past Chris had lied to them. Leo didn’t know if the practice would begin again.

“Er . . .” The sheepish look on Chris face had a strangely reassuring effect on Leo.

“Your part in this?” Leo asked, suddenly sure that whatever Chris said from here on out, it would be the truth.

Chris winced, as if he knew his words would get him in trouble even before he said them. “I said a spell to hide her from Mom and then another to uncloak her.”

Leo’s eyebrows rose and he looked at his son in disbelief. “You wrote a spell specifically to hide her from your mom?!” Leo could hardly believe what Chris had told him, but who makes up something like that?

Chris nodded. “Mom will be upset if she realizes demons are on the attack, again.”

“Your mom’s smart,” Leo reminded his son wryly. “She realized that two days ago when you told her that your powers were back. . . How did you know your powers were back anyway?”

“Maybe because I never knew they were gone,” Chris informed him with a shrug. “One of the few advantages to memory loss.”

“And?” Leo queried knowing instinctively that there was more.

“And I closed the Book of Shadows with my telepathy,” Chris agreed easily to the unfinished question. A grin spread across his face as he added, “You should have seen Wyatt after he realized what I did. I didn’t understand his reaction at first.”

“And?” Leo persisted.

Chris shrugged. “Well, I threw a pillow at him.”

“Chris,” Leo warned.

Chris gave Leo a questioning look. “It was a soft pillow and it only hit the second time.”

“Chris.” Obviously there was more to this story, but it wasn’t what Leo was looking for.

“What?” Chris asked, not sure what his dad wanted.

“Have there been other demons?” Leo asked, even his patience wearing thin.

“Demons? No.”

Chris answer was a little to quick for Leo. Not a lie. Leo no longer believed Chris would give him that, but definitely hiding something. “Chris.”

Chris opened his mouth to answer.

At that moment Wyatt orbed into the room.
Once he was fully materialized Leo pointed at a chair. “Wyatt, sit. Chris, answer.”

“Nothing happened,” Chris said quickly, too quickly. “We’re fine.” Chris sat down and clamped his mouth shut.

Leo raised his eyebrows and looked at Chris. “Chris, I will get the truth eventually. Do you want this to be easy or hard?”

Chris shook his head, more than slightly resembling a stubborn toddler in that moment. “If you’re just going to tell Mom, I’d rather you have less to say.”

Leo sighed. “If you talk now, I’ll put off telling your mom, but not forever.” Leo looked at both of his sons in turn. “I’m only giving you an opportunity to tell her yourself.”

Chris looked at Wyatt. When Wyatt just shrugged, Chris turned back to Leo. “There was a darklighter. He attacked us in the park.”

“You were attacked in the park?” Leo asked, concerned. “When?”

“Friday,” Chris admitted.

“Were either of you hit?” Leo pushed.

Chris shook his head.

Leo looked at Wyatt.

Wyatt shook his head. “We weren’t hit. He tried to shoot us when he was invisi. . .” Wyatt stopped suddenly and sheepish look covered his face.

Leo’s eyes widened as he tried to take in the impossibility of his son’s statement. “The darklighter was invisible? How did that happen?”

“He used a power stealing athemé,” Chris told him thinking of the first time he had seen one. Though it was actually called a power sucking athemé, some distant memory changed the name in his mind.

---

Paige put the Book of Shadows back down on the podium. She turned around to find her young nephew looking up at her.

Chris watched her with eyes shaded by thick lashes. “Aunt Paige, what are you doing?”

Paige smiled. “Just remembering something.”

“What’s that, Aunt Paige?”

A strange sad smile crossed Paige’s face.

“Aunt Paige?”

“Hmm?” Paige responded looking down at her nephew.

“Is something wrong?” Chris asked concerned.

Paige shook her head. “Not any longer. Just something sad that happened, something I wished didn’t.”

“Something to do with what you were looking at?” Chris asked walking over to the podium.

Paige reached the book sooner, covering a page with her hand.

“Aunt Paige, I’m not so little I can’t know. Someday we’ll use magic again, and how am I going to be able to handle it if I don’t know about it?”

Paige looked at him quietly. “It’s not that. It’s . . .” She sighed and removed her hand.

Chris looked at the page, then back up at Paige, confusion on his face. “I don’t understand, Aunt Paige. It’s an athemé.”

Paige nodded. “It’s more the story behind it, I suppose.”

“What’s so special about an athemé?”

Paige sighed. “This one has the power to seal the powers of those killed by it inside.”

“It steals powers?” Chris said giving his aunt an ironic look. “It’s an athemé. That’s what they do.”

Paige shook her head. “This one can be used by anyone, not just warlocks.”

Chris thought about it for a moment. “So I could use it to steal the powers of a darklighter if one attacked me.”

Paige looked at Chris, concern growing steadily. “You will not try that. Evil powers can take over with little help, you would have to fight them all the time, do not even think to attempt such a thing.”

“Is that how Seth feels?” Chris asked, referring to his older brother, Wyatt’s best friend who was half manticore.

“It’s possible,” Paige admitted. “Perhaps the lack of magic has been a relief for him, a time when he doesn’t need to be at war with himself.”

Chris nodded. “All right, no power stealing athemés for me and for Seth, magic can stay away as long needed. I don’t mind not having powers if it means peace. That’s what we want anyway, isn’t it?”

Paige nodded with a small smile. “Yes, Chris. That’s what we want.”

Chris looked up. The look that he saw in his aunt’s eyes told him that peace was not the only thing she wanted. There was something else, something infinitely precious, something Chris didn’t understand, something she wouldn’t share with him.

---

Looking back Chris believed he now knew what that something was. A smile spread on his lips despite himself.

Leo didn’t seem to notice the look on Chris face, responding only to Chris words. “And what was a darklighter doing with an athemé. It is not their weapon of choice.”

“No, but collecting powers is smart,” Chris admitted. Just because it wasn’t smart for him as a witchlighter didn’t mean it wasn’t smart for anyone going against him. He had nothing on his brother power wise, but that didn’t mean he was delusional enough to think he was powerless or that the power that weaved itself through their line since Melinda Warren was something to be laughed at or taken lightly. Besides the darklighter had attacked both of them. That was just stupid, but it would have been more so if he hadn’t fortified himself with additional powers, powers he obviously didn’t know how to use. “I’m just glad he didn’t really know how to use them.”

“Them?” Leo asked startled, catching onto that all important word. “Just how many powers did he have?”

“Not sure,” Chris admitted. “He only used two, invisibility and fireballs.”

“Why are you telling Dad?” Wyatt asked, his curiosity finally getting the best of him.

“Watch it, son,” Leo said turning to his older son long enough to quell him. “You’ll get your turn.”

Wyatt sunk down into the chair and stayed quiet.

Leo turned back to Chris. “Any other demons, darklighter, warlock, or anyone else who wanted to attack you.”

Chris shook his head.

“Anything else I should know?” Leo asked looking at both of his sons this time.”

“He kept the athemé,” Wyatt admitted.

“Wy!” Chris exclaimed rising quickly to his feet. Thanks a lot, big bro. Why’d you volunteer that?

Leo rose to his feet almost as quickly. “You did what? Where is it now?”

Chris glared at Wyatt, ignoring Leo.

“Chris,” Leo said with warning in his voice, “I want an answer.”

With an annoyed look at Wyatt, Chris answer, annoyance coming through in his voice. “At the apartment. I planned on studying it to see if I could learn anything helpful.”

“It isn’t something to be toyed with,” Leo reminded him.

“Day, I was there,” Chris reminded him. He knew now better then when he was a kid talking to his Aunt Paige how dangerous that athemé was. “I know how the powers in the athemé affected Aunt Phoebe. I also know how things would have eventually gone if she hadn’t gotten rid of them.” He took in a deep breath and added. “I won’t do anything stupid.”

Leo looked at Chris for several moments. Chris met his eyes straight on. There was no deception, nothing hiding in his eyes. Finally, Leo nodded. “I want that athemé kept under lock and spell. And once you figure out its source I want it destroyed.”

“I don’t get it,” Wyatt mumbled confused. “Why is he getting off so easy all of a sudden?”

“Your turn is coming, Wyatt,” Leo told his older son. “As to Chris, he is more than who he was a week ago. He has another lifetime worth of memories and experiences and that other lifetime qualifies him to study this athemé. It doesn’t get him off the hook for hiding things from your mom.” Leo turned his eyes to rest on his younger son. “I expect you to go to your mom’s restaurant once a week for a month after close and clean it, manually. No short cuts.”

Chris made a face, but nodded. “No magic, got it.”

“Now sit,” Leo commanded.

Chris sat back down and glanced over at Wyatt.

Wyatt gulped and looked up at Leo.

Leo walked over and stood up in front of Wyatt. “What were you thinking kidnapping a patient?”

“I already told you, I . . .” Wyatt began.

“And I already told you that doesn’t count,” Leo interrupted.

“I couldn’t leave here there,” Wyatt protested.

“There had to be some other way to help her that wasn’t illegal,” Leo reasoned.

Wyatt shook his head insistently. “No, Dad, there wasn’t. I couldn’t leave her there. There was no one who could watch her. I couldn’t even call Chris on my cell, because cell phones mess around with machinery.”

“And what about orbing to Chris’ work?” Leo asked, bringing up his next problem with Wyatt’s actions. “It isn’t normal for someone to show up in the break room, who didn’t come in through the front door.”

“Uh . . .” Wyatt began trailing off as he realized he really didn’t have a defense for that one.

“You have to think of these things,” Leo informed him. “I know you can think things through, so start using that ability. If you two are going to fight demons, and I get the idea you are, then you need to use your common sense and think things through. You don’t want magic exposed.”

“Are you saying I can’t orb?” Wyatt asked, sounding like he had just been sentenced to a life sentence in a maximum security prison with only bread and water to eat.

“No,” Leo assured him. He watched as Wyatt sighed in relief. It would have been amusing if the situation hadn’t been such a risk. “I’m just saying that you need to think about more than if a room is empty when you orb.”

Wyatt nodded quickly, as if he would agree to anything if he was allowed to orb. “Right. Fine. Anything else?”

“Yes,” Leo informed them, “I don’t want to hear of either of you lying to your mother ever, again. If I can I will stall on telling your mother what’s going on, but only so you can tell her yourself. You will tell your mother, understood?” He waited until both Wyatt and Chris nodded. “Good. Now, Wyatt, you will go with your Uncle Henry one day a week for a month and help with his parolees. Understood, Wyatt?”

Wyatt nodded. “Yes, Dad.”

“Good,” Leo said finally satisfied. “Dismissed.”

Wyatt and Chris both stood. Wyatt orbed out.

Chris stopped and looked at Leo. “Thanks, Dad.”

Leo’s expression softened, even though his words were just as firm. “Remember, I expect you to tell her.”

“I know,” Chris agreed. “I will. I will figure a way how. See you later.”

“Don’t be a stranger, son,” Leo replied, love for his son in his eyes.

Chris smiled as he orbed out.

[StoryGirl83]

Chapter Twelve – Chris, the Demon Profiler

When Chris reappeared in blue-white orbs in the middle of the apartment, Wyatt was seated on the couch opposite the kitchen.

“No battle scars, I see,” Wyatt commented casually.

“Funny,” Chris replied without mirth. There had been too many times when he hadn’t come out from a confrontation with their father unscathed, too many scars that Wyatt would never see, and in all likelihood so many more that because of his messed up memories, he couldn’t recall. “You should have seen the ones I had after Aunt Paige and Aunt Phoebe rescued Dad from . . . huh . . . well, from some place I put him. He was steamed, threw me up against the wall and he didn’t even know for sure that he was right.”

“He threw his son against a wall?” Wyatt asked in disbelief.

“Well,” Chris hedged, “he didn’t know I was his son.”

“Still,” Wyatt said giving him an odd look. “I guess this family doesn’t know how to deal with time traveling relatives. Aunt Phoebe said that Grams threw her, Mom, and Aunt Prue out of the house with her telekinesis.”

Chris blinked and looked at his brother in surprised. This was not a story he had heard. “When was this? I don’t remember that story.”

“Which part?” Wyatt asked, almost gleeful that he knew something Chris didn’t. “I remember that they had to go back in time to undue something Grandma Patty had done before Aunt Phoebe was born. When they got there Mom and Aunt Prue met themselves. Grams saw them and, not knowing who there were, she threw them out of the house . . . literally. Later she had them arrested when they took themselves to the park so they could use their powers via their younger selves.”

Chris burst out laughing. “That tops you. You kidnapped an innocent. They got arrested for kidnapping themselves. And I thought baby-sitting you was weird.”

That caused Wyatt to stop and give him and off look. “You baby-sat me?”

Chris grinned. “Don’t think too hard about it. I palmed the job off on Dad when I could.”

“That’s strange,” Wyatt informed him, “even for this family. How long were you in the past, anyway?”

“A little over a year and a half,” Chris told him after a moment’s thought.

“And you really kept your identity from everyone for months like Dad said?” Wyatt asked with a bit of disbelief.

Chris nodded.

“Any idea what he meant about me?” Wyatt asked, recalling Leo’s comment about a marble.

Chris shook his head, silent still.

“I guess it’s not that important,” Wyatt decided with a little shrug. “So how was work?”

Chris struggled to come up with the right words. Finally, he said, “Let’s just say, it wasn’t what I expected.”

“But it’s what you chose,” Wyatt reminded him.

Chris thought about that for a second. “I don’t remember, but somehow I don’t think I planned on staying there.”

“Maybe not,” Wyatt agreed. “You do have college classes twice a week.”

“David at work mentioned that,” Chris replied remembering the conversation. “Any idea what I was studying?”

Wyatt frowned as he tried to recall. “Something psychological, I think. You wanted to learn how to profile demons.”

“Why would I do that if there haven’t been any attacks for years?” Chris wanted to know.

Wyatt sighed, looking over at a bookcase in a corner of the room. It was filled with books Chris had bought to supplement the information he was learning in class. “I guess you figured it couldn’t last.”

The End

---

If you'd like to see what happens next just click here and enjoy.

[StoryGirl83]

CREDITS:

Created by:
Constance M Burge

Written by:
StoryGirl83

Edited by:
StoryGirl83

Main Cast:
Wes Ramsey as Wyatt Matthew Halliwell
Drew Fuller as Christopher "Chris" Perry Halliwell

Co-Starring:
Holly Marie Combs as Piper Melinda Halliwell
Brian Krause as Leo Wyatt
Callum Keith Rennie as Steven "Steve" Kessler (Warlock)

Recurring Guests:
Amanda Seyfried as Rose Laughlin
Brett Fleisher as Brian Heitzman
Christine Lakin as Jody Powell
Nathan Tyson as David Vandemark

Special Guests:
Maximillian Orion Kesmodel as Christopher "Chris" Perry Halliwell (Child; flashback only)
Rose McGowan as Paige Samantha Matthews (flashback only)

Guest-Starring (alphabetical):
Alexis Denisof as Dr. Ethan Franks
Alicia Leigh Willis as Julia Knepp
Amanda Righetti as Helen Hensley
Kerris Rose Dorsey as Hannah Merrill
Nelly Furtado as Trae Crennor

“Charmed” is a trademark of Spelling Television Production
Charmed and all related elements © Spelling Television Inc, and
TheWB Television Network, in association with Paramount Pictures.

All rights reserved.

This is a non-profit fanfiction, and is in no way affiliated with
any of the copyright holders. No copyright infringement is
intended nor implied. The multimedia on these pages is provided
solely as an entertaining resource.

Story © CHARMED: Heritage 2006-2015