Summery: This is a sequel to "In Love and War." When we left off, Wyatt was plotting to kidnap Jaina, Chris and Jaina had declared their feelings for each other, and a long kept secret about Jaina and the brothers came into play. Now, while Chris and Jaina continue their mission in the past, they attempt to get married, but an intervention from the future will threaten to destroy everything.

Back to the Past

by Lady Dawson

Chapter One: Troubles in the Future

Perry Halliwell, eldest son of Chris and Jaina Halliwell, glanced over his shoulder at the demons that were approaching. At fifteen, he already was the spitting image of his father, right down to the jade eyes and dark hair. "Come on, you sick psycho," he called tauntingly. "Gonna have to run faster than that in order to catch a Halliwell!"

With a hooting laugh, he raced back towards where his younger brothers were waiting. "Got the spell?" he asked.

"Got it," Matt answered, holding it up. While Perry was made in their father's image, Matt was made in their mother's, although he had inherited their father's tall stature. The thirteen-year-old had her vibrant red curls and vivid blue eyes, although their mother's still had the haunted look that eight years of war in the other future had given them. Thankfully, their parents had managed to save their uncle from turning evil this time around.

The youngest of the trio was eleven-year-old Jared, who was a mixture of both of their parents. He, too, was tall like his older brothers, but like Perry had their father's dark hair. His features were more of a resemblance to Jaina and had her blue eyes as well. Jared held up the potion before Perry could even ask. "Got the potion."

"Good," Perry said just as the demons entered the room. "Throw it now, and start the spell!"

The demons whirled around at his shout and one of them fired two fireballs at Matt, who threw one of them in the opposite direction and managed to avoid the second, but barely. It grazed his arm slightly and it seared with pain, but he ignored it, reading the spell aloud with his brothers.

"We call upon our ancient power,

here and now, in this hour.

Vanquish these demons in the place,

throughout time and space."

The spell was instantaneous, as the demons exploded the minute that the brothers finished reciting the spell. "Nice spell," Perry remarked. "That out of the Book?"

"Yeah," Matt grumbled, inspecting the damage done to his arm now that the danger had passed. "Ow! Great. Mom's gonna love this."

"Here," Jared offered. Matt grinned and obediently held out his arm to his younger brother. Jared held his hand over Matt's wound and the golden glow appeared underneath his hand, spreading a soothing sensation to it as the wound disappeared.

"Thanks, kid," he said, earning himself a smack on the arm. "Hey, that was a bit harsh, don't you think?" he asked.

Ignoring his brothers, Perry walked over to where the demons had been standing, kicking aside the remains of the demons, a feeling of foreboding going through him. Underneath, he found a piece of paper that had a spell on it, looking as though it had been torn out of the Book. A time travel spell . . .

An uneasy feeling went up his spine as Perry turned the spell over and found instructions for the demons. They had been ordered to distract him and his brothers just long enough so that the demon that they had originally been going after—Gathus—could escape into the past. Into a past where his uncle hadn't been saved from turning evil just yet and his parents were trying to save him, with his grandparents and great-aunts.

"Guys, we have to get home, now!" Perry ordered. When his brother gave him a startled look, he orbed out of the Underworld, heading back for the manor.

Jared looked at Matt questioningly. "What's with him?" he wanted to know. "We got the demon; thought he would be thrilled."

"Dunno," Matt said with a shrug. Taking his younger brother's arm, Matt orbed them out of the Underworld, heading after their brother back home.

--

"Think that the boys are okay?" Jaina asked worriedly as she flipped through the Book of Shadows. "I mean, they really shouldn't be hunting demons. They're just babies . . ."

"They're hardly babies, Jaya," Chris said, grinning. "Perry's fifteen, the same age we were when we formed the Resistance and anyway, not much can happen with that kid around." He slipped his arms around his wife's waist and rested his chin on top of her head. "They'll be fine."

"That is not the point," Jaina pouted, but she knew that he was right. They had already been on their own for a year when they had formed the Resistance against Wyatt and Perry was just as responsible as they had been at fifteen. "Okay, so maybe I'm just worried. But I'm a mother; that what I'm supposed to do, worry about my kids."

"Now you're starting to sound like Mom." Chris smirked as she pulled out of his embrace and glared at him. "Look, they're fine. I don't know why you worry so much."

"After everything that we've gone through the past twenty years, don't go there," Jaina pointed out. "I swear, Chris, it's been one thing after the other ever since . . ." She paused, thinking about the first time that they'd seen their sons. "Uh, Chris, you know, it's just about that time."

Chris gave her a startled look. "What time?"

"How old were the boys when they came and visited us back in 2004?" Jaina replied. Chris's eyes widened when he realised what she was talking about. "So, if I'm right, then that demon Gathus should be going back in time any day now and the boys will go after him."

"I almost forgot about that; things have been so hectic lately," Chris sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Do you think that we should tell them what happened when we were in the past?"

Jaina shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know, Chris," she admitted. "Part of me wants to prepare them for what happened and another part of me just wants to let it play out. Things always happen the way that they're supposed to, in the end."

"Yeah, I suppose, but—"

"Mom? Dad?" Both Chris and Jaina looked up as they heard their eldest son's voice coming from down in the kitchen. Something was wrong, Jaina realised at once. Perry sounded panicked and that boy always managed to keep his cool, somehow. "Guys, where are you?"

"We'll be right down, Perry!" Chris called as he headed out of the attic, Jaina at his heels. They climbed down the stairs and into the living room just as their younger sons orbed in. "Hey, guys, vanquish the demon?"

"Yeah, we vanquished him—" Matt began, but Perry interrupted him.

"Never mind that, take a look at this, Dad," he said hurriedly, brandishing a piece of paper at his father. Chris took it in his hands and looked over the paper. Jaina stood on tiptoe to look over her husband's shoulder at the paper.

It was a time travel spell, she realised once she got a good look at it. The same time-travel spell that they had used in the other future to travel to the past. Jaina now knew what had happened to the spell when they had misplaced it back in 2004.

Chris turned the paper over, glancing at Jaina and reading her thoughts accurately. He nodded in agreement as he returned his attention to the paper. Upon the back were instructions from the demon Gathus. He was going back, Jaina realised, going back to the year 2004, to try and stop her and Chris from saving Wyatt.

"We've got to go back," Perry said urgently. "They're gonna try and chance the past so that you guys don't save Uncle Wyatt. Dad, we have to go back there—"

"Go back where?" Matt said, bewildered. Neither he nor Jared realised what was going on, Jaina realised as Chris handed the piece of paper to his middle son. Matt took the paper and read it, Jared peering over his older brother's shoulder. Once he had finished, he looked up at his parents with an expression of "oh" on his face.

"Mom, I know that you're going to say no, but we have to go!" Perry said desperately. "This isn't just concerning us, it's concerning our entire world, this future that you guys created. Dad, tell her that we have to go!" He looked at his father for appeal.

Chris looked at his wife, an amused look on his face. "Jaya, they have to go," he said seriously. Jaina shot him an annoyed look as Perry let out a triumphant noise. Matt shook his head and Jared groaned.

"Why?" he said. "It's not like they're not going to save him anyway. Besides, won't our going back kind of mess with the timeline? Make it so that this future never existed? We could obliterate our own existence!"

"I don't think so, kiddo," Chris answered warily, glancing at his wife. They made the decision silently. "Look, I hate to send you guys on this trip, but trust me, it's necessary."

"And I wouldn't be condoning it unless I knew for sure that you guys would make it back here safe and sound," Jaina added, glancing at her husband before returning her attention to her sons.

"How do you know, Mom?" Matt asked, frowning at her. He was the son that was closest to Jaina, although she loved each of her boys equally.

"Because I'm Mommy," Jaina said with a straight face. Matt cracked up and Jared snorted. Even Perry managed to crack a smile. "Just trust me, guys, okay? I know things will work out in the end."

"So I guess now all we have to do is come up with a spell that will take us back there," Jared said, heading over to the desk to get a pad and pencil out of the drawer. He banged on it twice and knocked his leg against it in order to get it open. (AN: This particular gesture is from "That '70's Episode." Phoebe and Piper did this in order to get a drawer open.)

"Jared, you got a spell right here," Chris pointed out, waving the piece of paper at him.

His youngest son wrinkled his nose at the paper. "But isn't that a demonic spell?" he wanted to know.

"Nope," Chris answered. "Actually, this was torn from the Book of Shadows. So you should be able to use this to get back there."
"How are we going to get back here, though?" Perry wanted to know, placing his hands on his hips. "There's no spell for that."

Jaina pierced her lips together as she looked at her eldest. "Wing it," she told him. Perry stared at her as Matt got a piece of chalk out of the drawer Jared had opened, drawing the Triquetra on the wall.

"Well, let's get this over with," he grumbled, tossing it onto the table. The three brothers stood together, reciting the spell aloud.

"Hear these words, hear the rhyme,

heed the hope within my mind.

Send me back to where I'll find,

what I wish in place and time."

The Triquetra turned blue and white and the boys took one last look at their parents before stepping into the portal. Jaina sighed and leaned against Chris. He wrapped a reassuring arm around her. "They'll be fine, Jaya," he told her, unable to keep from feeling a bit worried himself. "They have to be."