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Chris had done this more times than he could count. He knew he was getting closer with each time he traveled back. Every time, he would learn something new, or fix a mistake he’d done the previous times. Taking note of everything he did and how the sisters (and Leo) reacted to it. That, and the demons. Which ones seemed to make a difference when he was able to poke his head into the future. What helped, what didn’t. He was getting a real grip on all of it.
The problem was, something was always getting in the way. At first, he would fail to get them to trust him, to the point that they would actively try to either take him back to his time or vanquish him (if they got it into their heads that he was evil). After a few trials and error, he got better at getting close to them.
Then, the sisters were not taking their magical duties too seriously, which left them and Wyatt more unprotected than they should have been. And it left Chris having to compensate much more than he should have. So, Chris decided to carefully turn a blind eye and a deaf ear at times magic would intervene in their lives (nothing too dangerous, though), giving them a learning experience to value more their powers and duties. Of course, he would also scold them about it afterwards.
So on and so forth, things got in the way, but Chris was able to find a way to fix it.
Not this time, though.
This time, the problem was him. Or, more specifically, his unborn self. No matter how far along Piper was in the pregnancy, the stress kept getting to her and making her go into early labor.
Chris paced in the small space of the backroom at P3, glaring at his notes in the desk with frustration and fear. The same conclusion kept coming back and he sure as hell didn’t want to accept it. There had to be a way to keep Piper from going into labor. A potion? A spell?
He shocked his head. If he did any of that, they would kill him for sure. Their trust was wavering in a very thin line and he couldn’t risk losing it again. Even if he did tell them it was for Piper’s own good, they didn’t seem likely to believe him. Besides, who knew how that would affect them? Piper could just end up getting injured in battle, with being heavily pregnant and all that.
“I have to save Wyatt.” Running a stressed hand through his hair, he slumped on the old couch that dubbed as his bed.
Saving Wyatt was top priority, for his family and the world. This was truly life or death, life in hell on earth, if he didn’t succeed in saving his brother. He wasn’t being dramatic for the theatrics of it like his family though. The truth was Wyatt was the most terrifying thing one could ever imagine, if being able to do so was even possible.
He didn’t know where they lost his brother, but he could see the constant fight Wyatt had with himself as they grew up together. He was just too young to realize what was going on. Wyatt was a good brother to him, even now he showed his love for Chris in his own special, twisted way. And with all that mercy and love from his tyrant brother, Chris preferred to run himself ragged before giving up into sleep. He wouldn’t eat as much as he once used to because the food would just come right back after a flashback or horrid nightmare.
Wyatt loved him, so Chris knew he got the better end of it all, no matter how bad a taste that left in his mouth.
But Wyatt loved him and that meant that there was still good in him to save.
Looking back at his notes, Chris felt a shiver run down his spine. He wanted to live, but at what cost?
After some debating, and back and forth, Chris realized he really couldn’t have both worlds. They could all either live in the iron fist that was his brother's rule or he would have to stop everyone from getting distracted with his younger self being prematurely born.
It was a scary though but, at the anxious and frustrated stage he was in already (and with stress slipping his sanity away), Chris knew he had to accept his fate. Even if he didn’t want to.
Landing heavily on the chair at the kitchen table, Chris spread some of his personal notes and the article he’d snatched from a vendor stand. He’d been stalking a high-level demon in the streets. It seemed like it had been passing up as a child and teenage therapist, only to feed off their positive emotions. Chris didn’t remember anything about Piper and Leo ever taking Wyatt or him to a therapist, but it couldn’t hurt to check him out.
The demon’s name was Netruis or Medric or something like that. Chris couldn’t remember and didn’t care to. As he passed the stand, his eyes caught the front cover of an article. The picture was of a little girl with her knees up to her chest and her hands over her ears. It was the perfect image of a distressed child, but what stopped Chris in his tracks was the title of the article.
How to identify the signs of child abuse
Chris sighed deeply as he looked at his notes. He hadn’t remembered until then of something Phoebe had commented the last time he had gone back in time. It was from some paper a colleague of hers had reported, about how child abusers were fifty per cent of the time someone that the child knew and the parents and guardians trusted. Just like the first time, even though slightly tinted with bitterness for not remembering about it (although, who could blame him since everything went to hell right after that on his previous travel), Chris was shocked he hadn’t thought about that possibility.
Taking a new angle on the mission to save Wyatt, Chris waited patiently in the kitchen for Phoebe. He didn’t have time for her to stumble into her colleague’s work by coincidence. Taking matters into his own hands, he decided to subtly mention it to Phoebe. To guide her into the right path. After all, Paige and Piper would be more willing to listen to her than to him.
“What are you looking at?”, Phoebe asked, walking past Chris as she made a bee line to the fridge.
Chris gave half a shrug, “Trying to take a new angle on the whole saving Wyatt thing. Can’t believe I hadn’t considered it.” He murmured softly the last part, but he knew Phoebe heard him.
“Oh. And what’s that?” he could hear the slight disinterest in her tone, obviously not wanting to get into the whole demon hunting right after getting back from work.
“That it doesn’t have to be evil.”
Chris could see from the corner of his eye how Phoebe stopped for a second, actually taking in his words and gaining some interest in them.
“Oh.” She said again, a look far away. He could practically see the wheels in her head spinning.
“Yeah.” He said before standing up, taking his notes in a neat pile. “I’ll head to the library and see what I can find on child abuse.”
Phoebe twitched at the last words, crashing back into herself, obviously not having thought of the situation that way, but he didn’t give her much time to respond as he orbed away.
Days went by and he couldn’t find much of anything useful, aside from the whole not-an-actual-evil evil being a thing to consider now. Chris did go to the library and read through whatever he could put his hands on, though he didn’t get to spend much time there since he did have to keep in touch with his contacts in the Underworld. After a few goose chases and dead ends, one of his contacts actually turned up with something tangible. Even if it was only a rumor, it seemed to be a pretty solid one.
The word in the Underworld was that an elder was working with demons to get to the Charmed Ones, Leo and Chris himself, but not to kill them. It seemed he wanted them out of the way. He wanted them distracted, scattered. For what? That question would have been the first thing in Chris’ mind if he hadn’t expanded the possible suspect list on non-evil trying to get to Wyatt.
“Are you sure about that? An elder?” He asked sternly.
“Yeah. It seems like he was clumsy at first, showing his face to lower level demons whenever he came to negotiate.” The demon leaned on the rocky wall behind him, tilting his head to the entrance of the cavern when a dragging sound echoed through the caves, before looking back at Chris.
Chris glanced over his shoulder, not seeing or sensing anything close by, but keeping his guard up. “What did they say he looked like?”
“Tall, pale, dark brown hair. Reeked of arrogance like a harpie’s nest reeks of death.” He shrugged, disinterested. “They also said he was always wearing black robes. A bit odd for an elder, if you ask me.”
Chris nodded, but didn’t pay attention to his comment. There was only one elder he knew that fit that description to the T. And if it truly was him… Well, that would explain why no one ever knew. Why it took him so long to find out. He needed to warn the sisters, fast.
“Thanks.” Chris said, throwing him a small pouch. Its contents rattled inside, making the demon smile.
“Always a pleasure.”
The sisters were in the sunroom when he orbed in. Their light hearted chatter dying up once they saw him appear in pale blue lights.
“Chris.” He heard Piper greet, though he could see she wasn’t that excited to see him.
“Hey. I think I found who it is.”
“Mm. Yeah, sure. Can we hold on to that demon hunt for a moment? I just got back from-“
“It’s not a demon hunt, Piper.”
Paige lifted an eyebrow, tilting her head forward. “If it’s not a demon, then what is it?”
“I found out from one of my contacts in the Underworld that-“
“I though you said it wasn’t a demon?” Phoebe interjected, making Chris look at her frustratingly.
“Let me finish? Great.” Chris took in a calming breath, either from their annoyance or from what he was about to say, he wasn’t sure. Maybe both. “According to my contact, there’s been an elder coming up to demons to request their services. It seems that every request revolves around distracting you guys, Leo and me. His real target is Wyatt.”
They all stared at each other for a second, incredulous silence thick in the air between them.
“Okay. Well, he’s lost it.” Paige said, turning to her sisters.
“I’m serious.”
“Yeah, so are we. Chris, that doesn’t make any sense. Why would an elder want to hurt Wyatt?” Piper said, irritating him by defending the elder. That was something you didn’t see Piper Halliwell do, ever. Mostly, she would either ignore them or scream at them. It just pushed to home a bit more how much she really didn’t like him.
“I don’t know. But, don’t you see? This is why nothing has worked so far. We’ve been going at this the wrong way. It doesn’t have to be evil what’s trying to hurt him.”
“It doesn’t have to be evil.” Phoebe murmured under her breath, yet loud enough that they all heard. “That’s what you said to me almost a week ago.”
Chris’ shoulders sagged a little, seeing that he was already getting through to Phoebe. “Yeah. And it looks like I was right.” He looked at the other two. “You have to believe me. We can’t continue to let him get close to Wyatt.”
“Hold up.” Paige raised her hands, turning to Phoebe. “Pheebs, you can’t be buying into this.”
Phoebe turned to her sisters, running anxious fingers over her forehead. “I know it doesn’t make sense in terms of good and evil.” She glanced at Chris, who was intently listening even if he’s not invited in the conversation. “But, after Chris mentioned he was going to look into child abuse… I have a colleague who specializes in crime. We spoke for a bit, he gave me some information and pointed me to where I could find out more. And, so far, it makes sense.” She looked at her sisters firmly. “50 per cent of all child abuse crimes are made by someone the child knows and trusts. The fact that it could be an elder, and one that we know to top it all off, makes sense statistically.”
Chris stayed quiet, letting Phoebe be the one doing the convincing. He could tell it was already working.
“How do we make sure?” Paige asked.
Piper turned to him now, crossing her arms over her chest. “Yes, Chris. How do we make sure it really is an elder?”
“Because I’ve checked. Not everyone in the Underworld knows, it’s being kept really tight lipped, but I’ve checked many times and the answer is the same.”
“No. We need to be a hundred per cent sure, Chris. This isn’t like the demon hunts; we’re talking about an elder.” Piper said, shaking her head.
“Let’s ask Leo for help.” Phoebe said, earning a glare from Paige.
“We don’t need Leo.”
“Don’t we? He’s an elder too, and one we can actually trust. If anyone can get close to another elder, its Leo.”
Piper shrugged, sitting down in the love seat. “I just don’t want him, you know.” She gestured to herself, the obvious pregnant state that she was in.
“Exactly.” Paige jumped in, nodding her head in finality.
“Honey,” Phoebe walked up close to Piper, kneeling in front of her and taking her hands. “I know this is hard for you, but he’s going to know sooner or later. And this is for Wyatt too. We need him to save Wyatt.”
They could all see how Piper’s stubbornness deflated, unwillingly so. “Fine. Leo.”
Before Chris could protest against it, blue and white lights filled the room.
“Blessed be.” Leo greeted, making Chris wrinkle his face in distaste.
“Hey. Hi, Leo.” Phoebe said, standing up.
There was a moment of stillness as they all waited to see Leo’s reaction. It didn’t click to him what was going on until his eyes went from an annoyed Paige, to an anxious Phoebe and finally landing on Piper. A very pregnant Piper.
“Piper… Are you…?”
Sighing, Piper nodded. “Yeah.”
“Oh.” He seemed like he wanted to ask more, but he didn’t know how to do it without making it come out sounding intrusive.
“He’s yours.” She said with a half shrug. “In case you were wondering.”
“The ghostly plane.” She nodded again. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because.”
Leo seemed like he was going to question her further before Paige jumped in. “So! Now that that’s out of the way.” She said and clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention off her sister. “We need your help. Chris thinks he’s found who comes after Wyatt.”
There was a moment of hesitation in Leo to not get sidetracked, but he gave in for the sake of his eldest son. “What do you need?”
“We need you to spy on an elder.”
Leo blinked a few times at Paige, dumbfounded by her words. “Sorry? I don’t understand.” He turned back to look at Chris and back at the sisters. “Why would I need to spy on an elder?”
“Because there’s been an elder going to the Underworld and giving job offers.” Chris said.
He shakes his head. “No, that can’t be right. Why would any elder do that?”
“And that’s why we need you to spy on him. To make sure if they’re really up to no good.” Phoebe said softly.
Taking a minute or two to process their words, Leo finally nodded. “Okay. For Wyatt.”
Chris rolled his eyes. “Good. Because it’s not just any elder.”
“Who is it?”
“Gideon.”
Even through the haze of the genie’s magic, Leo had fought strongly against the slightest of possibilities that his friend and mentor would want to hurt his child, the fruit of the union he had helped create. Chris was able to see the distrust in him the moment he said it yet, he had expected it. Even the sisters had to take a second to accept the idea, but it made sense all the more. At least Phoebe had seen it that way, which helped push the others into giving it a shot.
Chris was glad, even if just momentarily when he allowed himself to be vulnerable and think about his family, of the way Phoebe was always able to sooth any tension. Even the most provocative of situations, Phoebe had always been able to calm everyone and help to have compromise. She though it was part of her empathy, but Chris knew it was just natural gift she had. No powers needed.
And, as always, it proved useful. Leo was off, keeping his invisible eyes on Gideon for the time being. While the sisters discussed their plans of action if it all ended up being true. They weren’t sure if they should take him out or take him Up There. It was a very delicate predicament they were in.
Chris, however, knew that the moment they realized it truly was Gideon, everything would go into a rapid spiral of chaos. A chaos which did not have time for an early labor to occur.
It wasn’t hard finding the potion he needed. Chris only had to go to the demonic market and head into the direction where some hags had their tents raised. The smells inside the tents was far worse than the Underworld’s sulfuric stench. Where the Underworld just had a continuous smell, something that numbed your nose and burned your eyes at worst, the inside of the tents would make you curl and retch. It was like the scent of a hundred and one horrible things stewed together in their charcoal black cauldrons. It was a good thing that eating wasn’t an everyday activity for Chris.
Azari. That was the name of the hag Chris was looking for, at least the name she now went by. She had been a good witch, back a few centuries ago. A midwife. It was said that she had been the go-to for most pregnancies, from rich to poor, back in the day when their forefathers had established themselves from England.
No one really knew how she had come into turning to the other side. Some rumors said that she had been in love with a man of statues, yet he only took her to his bed for his own gain. At some point, she got pregnant but, seeing as he was a wedded man, he made her lose the child. In return, she did the same to his wife, making them chase after her and accusing her of using witchcraft.
Another rumor painted her more in white. Doing her duties as a midwife, a miscarriage had occurred to a very powerful household. She was blamed for using witchcraft to kill the child and persecuted for it as well. After that, she had taken revenge to all those who dared persecute her.
To Chris, though, whichever version was true, if any of it was, didn’t matter to him. He only had interest in what her path into darkness had given her. A masterful perfection for miscarriages.
Once he had finally found her tent, a rather average size with a warding engrave in the dull dirt colored cloth, he didn’t hesitate to go in. Just like in the other tents, the smell was horrid and Chris had to force himself to keep standing upright.
It was dark inside, only light source the flickering fire within the lanterns that hung from the wooden poles and panels that made up the structure of the tent. In the far corner, there was a wooden table with various equipment Chris recognized were for potion making. Along the sides of the tent, there were shelves with numerous ingredients from common (ginger, sandalwood, toad feet) to very rare (dragon scales, unicorn horns).
Chris’ eyes shifted as he took in his surroundings. He couldn’t see anyone, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t someone with him.
A shiver went up his right arm. Taking a step back, Chris glanced to his side. “I have come as a costumer, Azari. Nothing more.”
There was a moment of silence before Chris heard a cackling laughter at his right, the air around shifting as the hag came into full view.
“Well, one can never be too careful.” Azari said to the arrow she was twirling between her fingers. Chris had to resist the urge to roll his eyes at the sight of the darklighter arrow. “I’m surprised you felt it before it even touched you.” Her eyes now shifted to Chris, who just shrugged in response. “Very well.” She turned her back at him, walking further inside the tent. “Why is there a whitelighter in my shop?”
“I’ve come for your-“
“Yes, yes.” She interrupted with a wave of her hand, dismissively. “Why?”
Chris locked eyes with her, his face giving nothing away. “That is not your business.”
Azari stared back at him, the corners of her mouth curling upwards. “True. But I’m intrigued. No whitelighter has ever asked for my services.”
“I’m not the typical whitelighter.”
“So I’ve heard, time-traveler.” The smile on her face grew as he kept silent. “Very well. What are you looking for?”
For a moment Chris felt a surge of panic rise from within his stomach and almost overflow in his mouth. No matter how many times he had though about it, no matter how much he told himself that he would do anything to stop Wyatt. To save Wyatt. The gravity of his decision was starting to set in. No matter what anyone though, Christopher P. Halliwell didn’t want to die.
He curled his hands into fists, stopping them from shaking before they even began. Because no matter what he wanted, he still had a duty to his family and the whole damn world.
“Something quick and undetectable. It can’t harm the woman. Just quick enough so when she’s healed, the fetus won’t be saved.”
Azari snorted something ugly. “That’s no fun. Then again, I guess you aren’t doing it for that reason.” She raised a hand towards Chris. “And what have you got to offer?”
Taking a small vial from his pocket, Chris showed the dark red liquid within it to her. “The blood of a Halliwell.”
Azari’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. “How?”
“I’m their whitelighter. I though you’ve heard all about me, hag.”
She snarled at him before stepping forward and ripping the vial from his hand. Taking out the cork, she took in a deep breath and held it. Chris could see the moment she felt the powerful magic of the bloodline in the scent of the blood. Her eyes flew open, glowing from delight.
“You’ve paid quite the price for such a simple potion.”
“Are you giving it to me or not?”
The hag made a motion with her hand, a potion appearing in her palm. She extended her hand towards him and Chris didn’t wait a second before taking it and taking his leave. It was obvious she though him stupid for their exchange, but his payment to her would be null the moment he gave Piper the potion. After all, there’s no ties in what doesn’t exist.
When Leo came back after a few days, he was a mess. His eyes were red and his breaths were wet from crying. He walked up to Wyatt and took him from his playpen, hugging him to his chest and not letting up even when Wyatt squirmed in his arms.
No one needed to ask anything to know why he was in that state. The sisters were thrown in a loop, obviously having hoped that it wasn’t truly the elder. They looked at each other in hopes that someone would know what to do, even when all they’ve done is plan out for either outcome.
“He’s lost his way. Gideon believes that Wyatt is too strong.” Leo said once he calmed done. Chris scowled. “Sigmund and him have been planning to kill him all this time. They have convinced themselves that it’s for the Greater Good.”
“So, what now?” Phoebe asked.
“I don’t know. I just…” Leo trailed off, anger coming to the surface in a way none of the sisters had seen before. “I won’t let him get his hands on Wyatt.”
“We can’t just go and kill and elder, though.” Paige said frustrated.
“Why not?” Chris crossed his arms defensively as they all looked at him. “You wouldn’t hesitate if it were a demon. This is no different. Just because he was once good it doesn’t mean that he still is.”
“Yes, it is different, Chris.” Phoebe said carefully. “This is an elder we’re talking about.”
“An elder that wants to kill an innocent. Your nephew.” He said pointedly. “Something that he’ll most likely fail in doing, creating the monster that’s taken over the world in my future.”
Piper glared at him from where she was sitting in the old beaten down couch in the attic, but no one said anything. They were still doubtful, he could tell. Chris could also tell that they were starting to give in.
Relaxing his shoulders, Chris spoke to them as gently as he could. “This is no different than when a whitelighter falls from grace. Gideon and Sigmund have fallen. What’s keeping them where they are is the fact that no one had notice. Until now.”
Leo frowned, keeping Wyatt close in his arms. Out of all of them, this was hardest for him. They all knew, but Chris didn’t have the time or energy to reassure him. To reassure any of them. He needed to make sure they would act, so that he could make his final move as well.
Before I talk myself out of it.
“He’s right.” Piper said, standing up. “This is no different from any other demon. They want to kill my son for their own gain. Well, over my dead body.” She stormed towards the book, where they had flirted with the idea of a Power of Three vanquishing spell and potion. She wasn’t going to flirt with it now, she was full on taking it out for a ride.
“We’re doing this?” Paige asked.
“We are.” Phoebe said, going to stand by the book with Piper.
That was all the reassurance Chris needed to know they’d save Wyatt.
They had a plan. They would lure Gideon and Sigmund out of Magic School since there was no way for anyone to die inside the school thanks to all the protections it had. As soon as they arrived, they would trap them in a crystal cage before throwing the potions and reciting the Power of Three spell.
The plan seemed fool proof. For a moment he even though that maybe, just maybe, he would have to go out of his way to kill Azari since there was a possibility that he could live. Yet, as they grew closer to enact their plan, Piper started getting dizzy. Followed by dull backache. Then she felt a strong cramp in her lower abdomen. Even as she reassured them that she was fine, that she could do it, everyone knew she was lying. They were getting distracted, something that would open up the window Gideon needed to go after Wyatt.
Chris watched Piper as she worked from her sitting position in the couch, rubbing her swollen abdomen whenever she felt a shooting pain and taking in controlled breathes. He watched and tried to make himself hope, but he knew it was to no avail.
With a sinking feeling in his chest, Chris turned to the door and headed downstairs into the kitchen. He took the potion vial in his hand and stared at it as he boiled water for Piper’s tea. He remembered his aunts taking ginger tea when they had upset stomachs or cramps during their pregnancies. It was inconspicuous enough to lower Piper’s guard so that she’d drink the spiked tea. A small sip was all it would take. That’s all that he needed.
I don’t want this.
Chris poured the tea in Piper’s cup, uncorking the vial and letting its contents fall into the tea. He could feel the panic rising more in his chest, making him dip a spoon in and mix in the potion a bit aggressively. His eyes misted with unshed tears, his throat closing up with fear.
I don’t want this, but I have to.
Deciding he didn’t trust himself to take the long route, Chris orbed back into the attic with the hot tea cup in his hands. The sisters looked up for a second at his entrance but went back to work, too focused on stopping Gideon and Sigmund to pay anything else attention. Maybe that was why Piper didn’t notice the distress that was pouring out of Chris in waves. Or maybe she ignored it. He wasn’t sure. They were only on polite terms, after all.
“What’s this?” She asked as she took the tea from him.
“Ginger tea. For the cramps.”
“Oh. Thanks.” Piper took it to her lips, blowing cool air into it before taking a drink.
“Leo will be able to heal you.” Chris said as soon as she lowered the cup from her mouth. The three sisters looked at him with various levels of confusion and suspicion. He didn’t stick around for their questioning or for the effects from the potion to set in.
He was glad that his family was able to save Wyatt. Glad that Wyatt got to grow up with loving parents, aunts, uncles, cousins and even a younger sister.
Wyatt was the sunlight in the dark midts of chaos. The pillar of strength in moments of unbearable crushing weights. The warm love when cold anger and hate threatened to over power.
Wyatt was good, and that was all that mattered.