Charmed -:- Labyrinth
Summary:
[Changed Future] A Magic School field trip to the Natural History Museum goes horribly awry when Wyatt and Chris get trapped in an intricate maze with a mind of its own… and it doesn't want them to leave…
Setting/Spoilers:
Set in the Changed Future, following the timeline of the show and essentially ignoring the comics. At this point Wyatt is 18 and Chris is 16. I don't think there's really anything in terms of actual spoilers (Most people have seen all the episodes by now… right…?)
Pairings:
None beyond the canon except some very, very slight Chris/OC if you squint really hard
Genre/Rating:
Action/Adventure/Humour/Hurt/Comfort/Friendship/Fa mily (And anything else I think of…) Rated T to be safe
Disclaimer:
I own: A banged-up KA, an out-of-date laptop, a Kindle, an iPod and an extensive DVD collection. Sadly, I do not own Charmed (or any other TV show, movie, book etc. etc.) A girl can dream though.
Author's Note(s):
I'M SO SORRY! I know I haven't updated Borrowed Time in ages! I got a third of the way through the next chapter and stalled epically. This here random fic is my attempt to kick start my muse and get the creative juices flowing. Labyrinth is just a bit of fun so it shouldn't get too dark and angsty (technically, that is… this is me writing it)
For this fic I have taken influences from everything – Indiana Jones, Primeval, Percy Jackson and my iPod (to name but a few). I do forewarn you that history was not my strongest subject and most of my 'facts' are from Wikipedia so apologies in advance for any massive mistakes I make.
But anyway, please ignore me now – and enjoy!
Chapter One
-:-
Do Not Touch the Exhibits
"Ugh. How do people travel like this?"
Wyatt Halliwell glanced up from his smart phone long enough to smirk at his suffering baby brother. They were sat at the back of the bus on it's way to Los Angeles, Wyatt in the middle seat and Chris curled sideways on the bench one row forward. Outside the windows the dull scenery of the Westside Freeway flashed by, the driver doing a steady 65.
"You are looking a little green there, bro," Wyatt replied, without an ounce of sympathy. It turned out that the Whitelighter within was not a fan of buses, cars, trains… or any form of non-orbing transportation. Wyatt's self-healing kept his own nausea at bay, but the younger Halliwell was forced to endure it for the whole two-hour ride.
Chris just glared through his bangs before curling up again and muttering to his knees. "Surely they could have found a closer portal than Delano? It's a school of witches for Christ's sake."
"If it makes you feel any better, Aunt Paige isn't looking much better than you are," Wyatt nodded toward the front of the bus where Paige Matthews, teacher of Advanced Magic, Art, and Mortal History, was trying very hard not to puke on her students.
"Its probably all part of that 'normal life' stuff that they keep ramming down our throats," Ashleigh Jenkins grumbled with an eye-roll, before turning to stare out of the window. She was the only daughter of Billie Jenkins and had practically grown up with the Halliwell brood. She had long blonde hair streaked with purple, a couple of facial piercings and was wearing a smudge too much eye-makeup. "I mean, we go to high school in a different dimension – they really think a few field trips to the mortal world's gonna make us feel any less freakish?"
"Hey, anything's better than that trip to the Heavens last year," Caleb Jones, the short and skinny guy sitting behind Chris shivered, his forked tongue flicking between his teeth involuntarily. "I thought the Elders were gonna smite me."
The teenager sitting on the other side of Wyatt sighed irritably. "Well, you are a demon."
"Half." Caleb corrected automatically before shrinking back in his seat and pretending to take an interest in the scenery. He was the child of a Manticore and a mortal that was saved by the Charmed Ones when he was just a baby. It was Paige who had gotten him into Magic School against all the rules, and even four years later there were still a lot of people who did not agree with this decision.
"Half-evil is still evil."
"James, knock it off," Wyatt interceded in a tone that made the guy who was built like an ox back down. James Cook was a recent addition to the group following the formation of the Magic School football team that Wyatt had quickly become the captain of. This didn't surprise anyone.
The back of the bus dropped into silence for a while until Paige rose to her feet and bravely made her way down the aisle. By the time she had made it her naturally pale skin was three shades whiter and she gripped a hold of the seat-backs as if they were her lifelines. As they were in the mortal world she had shed her teacher's cloak and gone for some jeans and a t-shirt that were slightly more incognito. "It's strangely quiet back here, is something wrong?"
James snuck a glare at Caleb. Paige caught it and raised an eyebrow at him but he didn't say a word. She then looked down at her youngest nephew. "Are you alright there Chris?"
"Fine," Chris replied without looking up. "You?"
"Fantastic," Paige answered. Wyatt grinned at them, earning himself a scowl from his aunt/teacher. She then turned back to Chris. "I wanted to ask you about that assignment I gave you. You know – the one that was due in last week?"
Chris bravely looked up and met her gaze and said with a completely straight face "Mel ate it."
Behind him Wyatt and Caleb were trying hard not to laugh, and even the usually moody Ashleigh cracked a smile. Paige just stared at her nephew, waiting for him to smirk or show a sign that he was lying. But he just stared right back. "You are far too good at that," Paige said eventually, something about her tone a little off. "You can make even the most blatant lies sound like the gospel truth."
Chris shrugged. "It's a gift."
Paige rolled her eyes, seemed to regret the action, and then moved on back up the bus, asking various other students about overdue homework. Caleb leaned forward and clapped Chris on the shoulder. "How do you do that? If I tried that I'd get detention for a week!"
"Teacher's pet," James jibed, earning himself a warning look from Wyatt. "What? How else do you explain him getting skipped ahead two grades?"
"Maybe because I'm a genius?" Chris retorted with mock-arrogance.
"Yeah right," James huffed. "It's because you're a Halliwell and you know it."
Wyatt leaned forward, putting himself in the middle of the glaring contest between the two of them. "Hang on, why didn't I get skipped ahead two grades then?"
"Why don't you all just shut up? Alright?" Ashleigh interrupted before James could come up with an answer. She then put in her earphones and turned her music up loud enough to be heard by everyone else regardless. "Men."
Once again, the five of them lapsed into silence; and they weren't even halfway there yet.
It didn't take long for James to get bored. He started tapping his foot and drumming his fingers on his leg, anything to try and break the tedium. He looked around the bus, his spot at the back giving him the perfect vantage point. Paige had made it back to her seat at the front and she was now having a conversation with the driver and another teacher while she organised a huge stack of paper.
About halfway down the bus there were two students, a girl by the window called Hayden Church and a boy sitting next to her, Kirk Ulrich. In front of them was an empty bench. James grinned to himself. In an instant, the monotony of the coach journey was broken.
With barely a conscious thought James tapped into his power of astral projection, his current form slumping in his seat while he propelled himself forward to the empty bench. Kirk, who had been totally engrossed in his games console, jumped sky high – literally.
"Beam me up, Scotty!" James yelled triumphantly up at the now levitating teenager, who after getting over the shock glared hatefully down at him. The bus erupted in giggles, most of the laughter coming from the fact that something, anything, had happened on the coach ride of hell.
"James Cook!" Paige snapped as she climbed to her feet. "Return to your seat, now!"
James swivelled round to smile sweetly at her, and then gestured at his unconscious form at the back of the bus. "But I am in my seat, Miss."
"Do you want to be in detention until you're forty?" Paige asked threateningly, making James flinch ever-so-slightly. "No? Then I suggest you do as you're damn well told without the attitude!"
"Yes Ma'am," James threw in one last jibe before vanishing with a red glow and waking up back in his seat. He grinned at Wyatt who just raised his eyebrows at him. The jock shrugged and then leaned forward to see what Ashleigh thought of his antics, but she just rolled her eyes at him and continued ignoring everyone.
Paige gave a long suffering sigh and then noticed that Kirk was still hovering 5ft in the air. Thankfully the other drivers on the freeway were too caught up in their own worlds to have noticed yet. "Kirk, you can come down now."
"Right," Kirk agreed, his power abruptly shutting off and dropping him back into his seat without an ounce of dignity. "Ow."
"Are you alright?" Hayden asked, her big brown eyes studying him sympathetically.
"I hate that guy," Kirk growled under his breath. He then caught Hayden's look and tried to sound a little bit more light-hearted. "So unoriginal. You'd think by now that he'd come up with some better material."
Hayden smiled at him, before turning back to her book and riding out the rest of the journey in comfortable silence.
When they finally arrived in Los Angeles and the bus door hissed open, there was a desperate mass exodus of teenagers. It wasn't the excitement of the field trip that motivated them, but the novel concept of fresh air and solid ground. It was late September but it was still warm with a nice breeze keeping it refreshingly cool. Anything was better than the non-air conditioned bus.
But before the magic school students could fully appreciate the sunshine they were herded inside the building. They were shuffled off to one side out of the way of everyone else while Paige and another teacher were conversing with one of the museum's representatives.
While they waited, rather impatiently, Chris's attention was drawn to one of the smaller exhibits that littered the entrance hall. A massive fossilized skeleton loomed down at them, its bones an oily shade of brown. "Now that's cool," James, of all people, said appreciatively.
"Apatosaurus, late Jurassic – one of the largest known land animals," Chris replied matter-of-factly.
"Trust you to know that, poindexter," James scoffed.
Chris just smiled knowingly and then pointed underneath the colossal fossil. "Thanks. I just read the plaque."
"People! Gather round please!" Paige called before James could come up with a retort. "As you are all nearly adults now, we've decided that we're not going to do a guided tour. Instead you are going to be left to your own devices…"
An excited whisper rippled through the small crowd of students.
"…however…" Paige continued holding up the stack of paper she had been organising on the bus, causing the gathering to groan. "You will have a worksheet each to complete – failure to do so will result in death by detention. You will also be required to attend a lecture in the California History exhibit downstairs at 2 o'clock. Absence is not an option. Understood?"
A vague chorus of 'yes-miss' followed and the worksheets were doled out as the group dispersed. The five of them, Wyatt, Chris, Caleb, Ashleigh and James, wandered away aimlessly, breaking away from the bulk of students that had headed straight for the Dinosaur exhibit. They ended up in one of the newer wings that was dedicated to the Ancient Greek and Roman exhibits.
As they walked, Ashleigh held up her worksheet distastefully. "Really, paper?" A couple of other museum-goers had glanced curiously at the fluttery white things the odd students were given as they walked past. "Way to be low-key – the mortals are probably wondering what century we're from."
Their group came to a stop off to one side, under the watchful gaze of a giant statue of Poseidon; his trident pointed threateningly at them. "I know, right," James was quick to agree as he pulled out his iPad7. "Everything's computerised these days."
"Oh, is that new?" Ashleigh feigned interest. Wyatt glanced over at her, catching the subtle sarcasm in her tone and grinning knowingly.
"Yeah, I had it on pre-order; only just got it this morning," James answered, oblivious, missing Ashleigh's eye roll as he began prattling on about its 'awesome new features'.
Chris tuned out his semi-not-really-friend's monologue and leaned back against the cool brick wall, taking in the sights around him. The exhibit was quite busy; a lady was telling her young sons some of the old Greek myths while pointing at the artefacts, while a gaggle of mortal schoolgirls giggled immaturely at a naked statue of Zeus.
But there was one part of the hall that was completely deserted. Directly opposite where they were loitering was a pair of grand oak doors that didn't quite fit in with everything else. As Chris watched, he realised that not a single mortal paid it any mind, as if they couldn't see it at all, while Chris himself could do nothing but stare. He didn't move, but somehow he felt drawn to it, even as a deeper instinct warned him away.
"What's wrong?" Wyatt asked, interrupting Chris's staring contest with the door. His tone immediately drew the attention of the others.
"Nothing," Chris denied automatically, but then changed his mind. "Do you sense something a little…off?"
Wyatt tilted his head the way he did when he was using his less-destructive powers, and then turned to look at the door as well. "It's coming from over there."
"Well, let's go check it out." James decided, heading off without waiting for a consensus. Wyatt followed, curiosity making him ignore the gut feeling that something wasn't right. After a moment of hesitation, Chris joined them, catching up just as they reached the door. James gave it a shove, but it didn't budge. "Huh. Heavier than it looks."
"Maybe you should try turning the handle?" Ashleigh retorted as she stepped forward, grasping the thick iron ring of the door knocker and giving it a twist. With a loud squeal that no one other than them could apparently hear, the ominous door opened. Ashleigh gave James the I-told-you-so look that made him wince, and then stepped across the threshold. "Woah."
Inside was a treasure trove of artefacts from several eras, all jumbled up together with no rhyme nor reason. Against one wall was a menagerie of fossil dinosaurs and taxidermy animals, mingled in with a collection of Roman pottery and Stone Age tools. On the other side was a garden of statues, a stack of old books, a display case of snake skins and what looked to be a train set on the floor. But it was nothing compared to the crown jewel at the back of the room.
Two pristine columns held up a huge slab of chiselled marble, creating an ornate archway. Images of a huge beast frozen mid roar was interspersed with an odd repeating pattern of swirling lines. Glued to the wall behind it, visible through the arch, was a large sign saying in block capital letters:
DO NOT TOUCH THE EXHIBITS
The eerie feeling was coming from the archway, Chris was sure of it. There was something wrong about it, and a voice inside his head was yelling at him that they should leave. But there was also that inquisitive pull that was over-riding his cautious mind and drawing him forwards despite his best efforts.
Suddenly, another door materialised between two statues, this one metal and modern-looking. Kirk Ulrich and Hayden Church stepped out of the African Land Mammals exhibit and blinked at the five of them in surprise. "What are you doing in here?"
"I was about to ask you the same question," Wyatt replied, not unkindly. He then addressed Hayden, who was a pretty powerful clairvoyant. "Did you sense the same thing?"
"The arch," Hayden replied, immediately homing in and confirming Chris's suspicions. She then saw James reaching out towards the cold stone and cried "Don't touch it!"
"Why not?" James asked, not retracting his hand.
Ashleigh beat Hayden to an answer with her usual brand of deadpan sarcasm. "Because there's a massive sign saying DO NOT TOUCH?"
"Whatever," James shrugged and placed his hand on the column; causing the gathered teenagers to draw in expectant breaths. "See. Nothing happened."
Then the floor began to rumble, the artefacts shaking and toppling to the ground in a symphony of crashing ceramics. The light blew out with a resounding crack and plunged them all into darkness. The quake built to a crescendo, throwing the teenagers painfully off of their feet. And then came a light so bright after the darkness that it left them temporarily blinded.
Even before she could see, Ashleigh sighed resignedly from where she was crumpled on the floor.
"You just had to touch it, didn't you?"
I know there's quite a few OCs in here, but I needed them to populate Magic School – for what I've got in mind it doesn't make sense if its just Wyatt and Chris lol. Please let me know what you think!
