Disclaimer: I still don't own Charmed.

Author's Note: This is the second story in my 'series.' As always, feedback/reviews are greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading!

Episode Two: Home

Prologue

"As you can see, there are two bedrooms and one bathroom," the real estate agent said. Standing at the end of the hallway leading towards those two rooms, clean and crisp in her beige suit, she pointed in that direction. "They're a little on the small side, but considering your budget limitations they're actually quite spacious."

Leo Wyatt walked down the hallway, his two sons, Christopher and Wyatt Halliwell, bringing up the rear. He poked his head into the bathroom and wrinkled his nose. The décor was a bit drab and very outdated. He figured the boys wouldn't care so much, but their mother was a different story.

"I get the one at the end of the hall," Chris told his brother, making his strides as long and as quick as his legs would allow him, in an effort to beat him to the punch. "Aw, man!" the younger exclaimed, his voice filled with excitement. Sure, this room was smaller than the one at the Manor, but this would be his room in his apartment. It could be the size of a closet for all he cared. He would finally be out on his own.

Well, alone as a 19-year-old could be with his brother in the next room.

Leo smiled watching his two sons stake their claim, ready to make this apartment their own. He couldn't wait to help move them in, maybe even build some furniture so they could make the most of the space and save a little money.

That is, if his wife didn't blow up his workshop in the garage.

The boys had been talking of moving out for what seemed like ages. In reality, Chris starting college was what got the ball rolling. Piper didn't think it was a good idea for the boys to live in a dorm, what with potential demonic attacks and magical exposure. So she had a made a deal with the boys: save up enough money for half the rent, and she and Leo would pay the other half. Leo had a sneaking suspicion, though, that she wasn't counting on holding up to her end of the deal quite so soon. She probably thought Chris would be a junior before this move took place.

"So what do you boys think?" Leo asked his sons as they made their way back into the living room.

"What do I think? You mean, other than 'where do I sign?'" Chris said, the excitement evident in his voice.

"Yeah, like are you two sure you'll be able to cover your half of the rent?"

"Now that Mr. Procrastination over here has a job, yeah," Wyatt answered, pointing to his younger brother.

"I am not a procrastinator," Chris defended himself.

"Oh, no?" Wyatt challenged his brother. "Tell Mom you're a waiter in a restaurant other than hers yet?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms in front of his chest. When his question was met with silence he smirked. "No, I didn't think so."

"Chris!" Leo scolded.

"What? I'm gonna tell her. I just haven't found the right time yet."

"Well, you better do it soon. Because the right time would not be when you're loading boxes into the car." Leo slowly walked around the living room, observing the space. This was it. His sons were becoming young men. "You think this is the place?" he asked the boys.

The brothers looked at each other before nodding their heads in agreement. "Definitely," Wyatt said.

"Excellent!" The real estate agent clapped her hands together. She walked into the kitchen and removed a clipboard from the counter. "I'll just need you to fill out this application," she instructed, passing it and a ballpoint pen to Wyatt. "Will you be co-signing?" she asked Leo.

The family patriarch watched his eldest son fill out the application and he hesitated for a moment, his wife's voice filling his ears. 'You went behind my back?' Piper always did have trouble letting go. Her sons were no exception. He felt their eyes on him, and knew he couldn't let his boys down. He smiled at the agent and nodded. "Yes, I'll be co-signing."

"Yes!" the boys exclaimed, high five-ing each other with excitement. They turned to face their father and Wyatt said, "Thanks, Dad. You won't be sorry."

Chris nodded in agreement. "We couldn't have done it without you."

Leo took the clipboard from the real estate agent, signed on the dotted line she had marked with an 'X,' and addressed his sons. "Good. Remember that when your mother wants to blow me up," he said, handing the clipboard back to the surprised agent, offering her a smile and a wink.

"So, what do you say we grab a bite to eat to celebrate?" Leo asked his sons as they walked out of the apartment building and stepped onto the sidewalk. True, it would be about a week until they heard back from the landlord if the application had been approved, but Leo was more than hopeful. He had a really good feeling about this. "My treat."

"I'll have to pass," Chris said, checking his watch. "My shift starts in half an hour," he explained, removing the keys to the car he shared with Wyatt from his pocket.

"Wait! I'll go with you!" Wyatt said, searching for an opportunity to skip a ride in his father's car.

"I'm going straight to the restaurant, Wy."

"Don't you have to stop at home first and get your uniform?" the older Halliwell asked. He couldn't believe his brother! Not only was he leaving him to ride in their father's 'hunk of junk,' as it was not-so-affectionately known, but he was bailing on telling their mother about the apartment.

"Nope! It's on the backseat," Chris explained. He smiled, knowing he was leaving his brother in a lurch, and rather enjoying his discomfort. "See you in a few hours!" he waved. Then he got into the hybrid and drove off to work. Wyatt could only stare at the car as it headed off into the distance.

"You coming?" Leo asked his son, opening the driver's side door and sliding into his car.

Wyatt shook his head. "Man, I have got to get my own set of wheels," he said to himself before turning around to open the door and slide into the passenger's seat, slamming the door for good measure.

Cassandra Cole hoisted her bag up onto her shoulder and sighed. The campus library was not her ideal place to spend a Saturday afternoon, but she had a research paper on medieval women to complete. She had been neglecting it to study physics, and she thought she'd take the time to devote some attention to a class in her major while her study partner was busy working.

She still found herself struggling with physics, but thanks to Christopher Halliwell she was managing to keep her head above water.

Actually, thanks to him, she was managing to keep herself alive as well.

It had been almost a month since Cassie's mother died and she discovered she was a witch. Suddenly discovering she had magical powers was not the only surprise in store for her. Her study partner and his brother, Wyatt, were also magical: part witch, part Whitelighter. More specifically, Wyatt was her Whitelighter, assigned the task of guarding and protecting her.

She grit her teeth as she increased her pace, looking over her shoulder in 60-second intervals. Wyatt had told her things were currently 'demon-lite' but she had encountered four more power broker demons since the first one shimmered into her living room. Her Whitelighter may think that number was low, but she felt like she was constantly being attacked.

To help her out, Chris had given her some vials of the leftover vanquishing potion they had used on the first demon. But between the attacks and her less-than-stellar aim, she was down to her last vial. She slid her hand into her jacket pocket, fingers enclosing on the smooth glass of the last remaining vial. She was ready to throw it if need be.

Campus was quiet. Normally Cassie would have soaked in the silence, basked in it. It wasn't unusual for campus to be quiet on the weekends; many of the students went home. But recent events caused the young witch to distrust the peacefulness, jitters getting the better of her. She approached a fork in the cobblestone path, but instead of heading left, something to her right caught her attention. There was group of students gathered in front of the dorms.

She headed right, and as she drew closer she saw their attention was directed upwards. Cassie gasped when she realized someone was standing on the edge of the roof of the 10-story dorm. She ran towards the building and shoved her way into the middle of the gathering, intent on discovering what was going on.

There was a definite buzz in the air. Her fellow students had gotten as close to the building as the campus and local police would allow. She continued to push her way forward until only the caution tape was in front of her. "Is that a student?" she asked the girl next to her.

"The cops won't say, but it's got to be, doesn't it? Why would anyone else be on top of the building?" the girl responded. She pulled a cellular phone from her pocket and dialed. "Mom, you're not going to believe this . . ." she spoke, and continued to describe the situation.

Cassie turned to the young man on her right. He was wearing sweatpants, a t-shirt, and flip-flops on his feet. His hair was standing at odd angles. "How long has he been up there? Do you know?" she asked him.

The young man stifled a yawn. "Since they woke us up and evacuated us out of the dorm this morning. I didn't check the clock, but it's gotta be over an hour already."

Cassie looked up again. This time, she saw the student was not alone. An older man dressed in black was standing behind him. "You think that guy is going to talk him down?" she asked the still-sleepy student on her right.

"What guy?" he asked.

"The guy up on the roof," Cassie replied, pointing upwards.

The young man looked at her like she had three heads. "You seeing double or something?"

She looked up again, and again saw the two figures on the roof. She turned her head and was about to plead her case to the young man when a collective gasp redirected her attention to the roof. The student had moved closer to the edge, then jumped.

"Oh, God!" Cassie shouted, covering her eyes. While she was able to block out the sight, she was not able to block out the thud of the fellow student's impact with the sidewalk.

She took a few deep breaths before uncovering her eyes. There was a flurry of activity, police and EMTs moving in what seemed like a blur. She looked up at the roof once more, checking her eyes weren't playing tricks, just in time to see the other figure disappear in a puff of black smoke.

(Theme Song: "Savin' Me," Nickelback)

Author's Note: Please let me know what you think!