A.N. This story builds on "Worth Fighting For", a one-shot I wrote a few years ago. You don't need to read it to understand this story, though it might provide some extra context.
Basically, this story follows cannon until "Womb Raider" (S4e21). The story explores a reality in which the sisters managed to kill off the Seer without compromising Phoebe's unborn child. Some elements of later seasons will be incorporated in the story, such as the births of Piper's sons and Phoebe's empath abilities, but others will not. Please enjoy (and comment)!
Something was wrong. Benjamin could feel it in his stomach. If he didn't know any better he would've thought he was sick, but it wasn't the first time he had had this particular twitch in his stomach. It was a sensation that emerged anytime something wrong was about to happen. The boy used to hope that it was a gift he had inherited from his mother, but unlike her, he didn't get premonitions and he couldn't prevent events from happening. He simply knew when something evil was happening.
He'd gotten used to ignoring the feeling when he was in school. He had tried talking to a teacher about it once before when he was younger, but learnt to keep these feelings between him and his mother when it was suggested he meet with a counsellor or therapist. His mother's smiling face quickly flashed into his mind and the feeling of uneasiness grew stronger. He was restless the rest of the day and burst through the door leading to the parking lot as soon as classes were over to meet his mother. He didn't see her. The twitch in his stomach settled more deeply.
He looked around the parking lot frantically, his eyes passing over a familiar face. He focused on the face. It was one he had seen before in one of the few photographs his mother had shared with him of her sisters. This woman had long brown hair and a motherly air to her. His aunt Piper, he remembered. Her shoulders were tense and their eyes met, hers lighting up in recognition. She beckoned him over.
"Benjamin," his aunt hesitated a bit and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "We've never officially met before but I'm…"
"How is my mother?" the boy abruptly interrupted. He was distantly aware of other students stepping out through the doors behind him and rushing to greet their parents in the parking lot. He thought he heard one of the teachers call after him, but he only cared about getting news about his mother. Something bad had happened to her. It was the only explanation for the presence of her aunt at this moment.
Piper pursed her lips and held her breath before breathing out deeply. "She's… she's at the hospital." She started fretting with her hands. "She was in a car accident, but she's okay. I mean, she's unconscious but she's otherwise fine according to the doctor."
Benjamin nodded, not quite sure how to react.
"Can I see her?" He willed his voice to remain steady and strong. He refused to show his distress in front of a person he didn't know, even if she was, technically, family.
"Of course!" Piper proceeded to lead him to her car and exchanged a few words with Benjamin's teacher who had followed him out and seemed worried to now see him leave with a stranger. After some convincing, the teacher let Piper go. Both she and Benjamin stepped into the car and they drove towards the hospital in silence.
Piper was at a lost. Phoebe and her hadn't exchanged more than ten words in the last ten years. To be honest, she had stopped feeling angry a few years ago, but hadn't known how to fix things with her sister. She had been so busy juggling work, family life and demon hunting, especially since the power of three had been reduced to the power of two, and… who was she kidding. These were all poor excuses she had used time and time again to delay the needed conversation between her and Phoebe. One that would have to be delayed yet again since one of them was currently lying unconscious at the hospital.
She had been shocked earlier, when the hospital had called her, to be told that she had remained Phoebe's emergency contact over all these years. She had refused to dwell on that last fact, but it was hard to not think about it when she was sitting in a car in silence, with her sister's kid sitting in the back seat. The same kid that was at the source of their disagreement in the first place, a disagreement that seemed so silly now that Piper was finally setting eyes on the child. Piper had not expected him to appear so... normal, after believing for so long that he'd turn out as evil as his father. In her defense, he's been a lot of trouble as en embryo, setting fires all over the place.
"Do you still set things on fire?" the words had escaped her mouth before she could stop herself.
Benjamin seemed surprised before looking down at his lap and muttering softly, "No, I…."
He stopped talking when little blue lights started to take shape beside him. He gasped as they turned into another woman. Paige. His other aunt.
"Paige! How many times do I have to tell you to stop doing that!" Piper screamed, holding the steering wheel a little tighter that she was supposed too.
"Sorry! But Leo just filled me in and it was either orbing in the car or orbing in the hospital where I might be caught and reveal our secret to the whole world! Besides, shouldn't you be used to it by now?"
When Piper didn't respond, Paige turned towards Benjamin and only briefly hesitated before waving at him with a smile. "Hi! I'm your aunt Paige. It's nice to finally meet you!"
"Uh, hi."
Benjamin felt he should probably say something more, but he'd never been one for conversation. The rest of the car ride was even more awkward with Paige trying to make small talk about school. He felt oddly relieved when they finally arrived at the hospital. Of course, he was also scared. The feeling of wrongness he had felt earlier had yet to disappear. Or perhaps he only felt this way because he was so anxious about his mother being hurt. She was the only person who loved him unconditionally.
After what felt like an eternity, the three of them were cleared to visit Phoebe, who was still unconscious. The sight of her looking so frail and pale made Benjamin clench his fist. He heard the familiar sound of glass exploding behind him. He always made things explode when he was feeling a strong surge of emotion. He felt a strong hand on his shoulder and he turned to face Piper who was looking at him strangely.
"You did this?" she asked softly.
"Sorry… I… I can't really control it." He wanted to look down at his shows, but instead met his aunt's eyes.
She smiled tightly. "I make things explode too. I couldn't control it either at first. I spent weeks wearing oven mitts and months being scared I'd kill someone any time I'd raise my hands."
He tried to smile back but his attempt fell short. "Mom told me about it. She said she always knew you'd get the hang of it eventually." He glanced back to look at his mother. She still looked unusually frail. It made him feel angry. This was wrong. She was the strongest person he knew.
"I bet she also tells you that she knows you'll also learn to control your powers," Piper said gently.
Benjamin nodded silently.
"Try to think of a really good memory next time you feel overwhelmed with your feelings. It might help you to calm down a bit," Piper suggested.
If only his mother wasn't part of all of his best memories. Thinking about her didn't help make him feel less anxious at this particular moment. He nodded anyway and forced down a new wave of emotions down his throat. He knew part of the reason his mother and her aunts didn't speak anymore was because of him and he didn't want to make a bad impression.
Piper and Paige then started whispering amongst themselves and Benjamin walked towards the bed to grab one of his mother's hands, holding it tight.
"I'm here mama, come back for me."
He might have imagined it but he felt the slightest twitch in his mom's hand. He took it as a sign she'd heard him and he squeezed her hand even tighter.
Benjamin spent the night in the Halliwell manor. He marvelled at it a bit, amazed that his mom had grown up in such a big and old house. He was also thrilled to meet his cousins, two boys, the oldest of whom was about the same age as him. They had both helped to make his stay at the manor a little more comfortable as Piper and Paige still seemed unsure on how to act around him. They did however allow him to have a look at the Book of Shadows. Piper, in particular, made a point of showing him the entries his mother had written, though she skipped over the page about Belthazor. Benjamin didn't protest though he was curious to learn more about his father.
Dinner had felt so strange, surrounding by so many family members he had never met and had known next to nothing about. They were all kind and gentle and he couldn't think of even one good reason that would explain why his mother had kept them away from him all those years. He felt a surge of anger at the thought he could've been surrounded by this love all this time, but felt immediately guilty for the thought. He had to trust his mother had had her reasons. After that, he spent the remaining part of the evening doing homework and pretending to be asleep. He actually slept very little that night as, anytime he closed his eyes, his mind was filled with awful scenarios in which his mother never recovered.
The next day, Piper, Paige, and Leo all accompanied him to the hospital after dropping off Wyatt and Chris at school. They were all optimistic about his mother's condition despite having received no news from the hospital. The optimism was slightly dampened when a nurse informed them that Phoebe had yet to regain consciousness.
Leo frowned and as soon as the nurse left the room he examined Phoebe himself. He roamed his hand over her injuries. Benjamin tried not to act too surprised when both hands started glowing, making the wounds on his mother's face and arms fade. She still did not wake.
"Something's wrong," Leo said, his frown deepening in concentration. Benjamin felt the knot tighten inside his stomach. He had never known what absolute dread had felt like before this moment.
"What do you mean?" inquired Piper.
"Something is preventing me from healing her. Some kind of magical lock."
Paige and Piper shared a look.
"Do you think it's demonic?" asked Paige.
"Possibly." Leo then turned and looked down at Benjamin who was staring at them, his eyes widened and glazed with fear. "Should we discuss this in front of him?"
"He might know something," suggested Paige.
The boy tensed a bit. "How could I possibly know anything? I was in school. " He couldn't help sounding defensive.
Paige raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, but Piper replied calmly. "Did you notice anything strange about a new acquaintance or do you know anyone who'd want to hurt your mother?"
"No. No! Everyone loves mom. I… I… Maybe it wasn't an attack, maybe you just weren't trying hard enough," he pointed accusingly at Leo and clenched his fist.
"Woah, calm down, honey. We're not accusing you. And you're right, we don't know if it's demonic." Piper had brought him against her side and had started to stroke his back gently, not unlike the way his mother did sometime. The familiarity of the gesture managed to calm him down a bit, but he remained tense. He glared at the whitelighter as he once again illuminated his hands.