My Special Show and Tell
It was a quiet Sunday night in the Halliwell Manor in mid September. Wyatt and Chris sat in front of the TV, eyes glued to the screen. They were watching an old Power Rangers video that Piper had picked up at a used book and movie store earlier that week.
"I like the red one," Chris piped up.
"No I like the red one," Wyatt argued back, shoving his brother.
"Guys cut it out," Leo ordered from the kitchen.
"You can both like the same one," he added as he brought in cups of soda.
The boys accepted the cups from their dad and returned to watching the video. When the movie concluded, Wyatt orbed it back into its box.
"Here Daddy," he said, handing the video case to his father.
"You can put it away, Wyatt. You're a boy kid." With a huff, Wyatt orbed it back on the shelf.
"How was the movie?" Pipe asked, walking into the room. She'd been occupied with getting Melinda to bed.
"Cool," Chris exclaimed, doing karate moves.
"Glad you enjoyed it. But not karate in the house," Piper chuckled, hugging her second son.
"Well, you guys have school in the morning so why don't you run upstairs and get your pajamas on," their mother instructed to which both boys protested loudly.
"Go on. No whining," she ordered and shooed them upstairs.
"And no waking up your sister!"
While the boys changed and brushed their teeth for bed, Piper and Leo cuddled together on the couch. They hadn't had the chance to do that in months. Having three young kids wore you out.
"You think they can put themselves to bed tonight?" Leo asked, kissing Piper sweetly on the cheek.
"They usually do," Piper murmured back.
"Mommy," Wyatt's voice rang out from the bottom of the stairs.
"Or not," Piper muttered, getting up to see what her son needed.
"What is it sweetie?"
"I have show and tell tomorrow and I don't have anything," Wyatt informed her, looking upset.
"Well why don't you bring in your car collection," Piper suggested, sitting down next to Wyatt.
"I did that last time. All the cool kids bring in their pets," he replied, wrinkling his nose at her suggestion.
'Well we don't' have any pets. So that's out of the question."
"Could I take Melinda in? She's kind of like a pet," Wyatt asked, looking hopeful.
"No you cannot take your sister in for show and tell. And she's not a pet!" Piper exclaimed in exasperation.
"But I don't have anything," Wyatt whined.
"I'm sorry sweetie. Take a break this time and we can find something for next month," Piper said, trying to cheer her first-born up.
"Fine," Wyatt mumbled and climbed the stairs, pounding his feet harder than necessary.
Shortly thereafter, Leo and Piper headed to bed, both having to get up early the next morning. As the sun began to creep through the windows of the manor, Wyatt snuck from his room and into his parents'. Both his parents were still asleep. He moved to the side of the bed and held his hand out over his mother.
'Hamster," he whispered. A blue light shot from his palm and where Piper lay was now a black and beige hamster. Trying not to giggle, he picked up the small rodent and snuck out of the room.
Leo awoke a few hours later. He rolled over, seeing Piper gone, he assumed she was already up. He got dressed and opened the door to Wyatt and Chris's room.
"Time to get up guys," he said, rousing his sons. When he got downstairs he discovered Wyatt playing with a hamster.
"Wyatt. Where did you a get a hamster?" he asked, eyeing the furry creature suspiciously.
"Leo!" The hamster's mouth was open.
"Piper?" he asked, bewildered.
"Your son turned me into a hamster!" she shouted, only emitting squeaks.
"Wyatt, why did you turn your mother into a hamster?" Leo asked sternly.
"Look Daddy. We have a hamster! Cool!" Chris shouted as he came into the kitchen.
"Chris, that's your mother," Leo stated, his voice laced with anger.
"Oh. Wyatt's in trouble," Chris taunted his older brother.
"I just want to bring her to show and tell," Wyatt protested.
"Tell him if he doesn't turn me back right now he's grounded until he's 30!"
"Wyatt, you are going to change her back right now," Leo ordered.
"She's ok. Everybody will love her," Wyatt whined, summoning a cage and placing his mother inside.
"Get me out of here!" Piper protested but there was nothing she or Leo could do.
Several hours later, Piper found herself seated next to a cage with a bird in it. The bird was staring intently at her.
"What are you looking at?" Piper snapped. The bird merely twittered.
'Great, I'm a hamster. My son turned me into a hamster. Could this get any worse?' she thought to herself. Apparently it could. Wyatt dragged her from the cage, displaying her for all this classmates to see. She was then passed around.
"Ow! Watch the fur," she growled at one little boy who was squeezing her like a stress ball.
"Hey! You're hurting her!" Wyatt exclaimed, rushing forward and rescued his mother from certain suffocation.
"You're hamster's lame," the boy shot, sticking his tongue out at Wyatt.
"Oh no you don't!" Piper hissed, jumping from Wyatt's hands and scurried up the boy's pant leg.
"Ah! It's going to bite me!" he wailed. Ms. Heath managed to get the rodent out of his pants.
"That's enough of show and tell. It's time for reading," she announced.
Wyatt put Piper back in her cage and sat back in his seat, sending her looks every now and then. That afternoon, Leo ushered his sons into the car without so much as word. The only sound in the vehicle was Piper shifting around on the torn up newspaper in the cage.
"Wyatt, you are changing your mother back," Leo ordered once they'd gotten home.
"Mommy," he said, holding out his hand. The hamster morphed back into Piper.
"I'm sorry Mommy. I promise I won't do it again," Wyatt sobbed, hugging her waist.
"That's right you won't do it again. Because you have no TV or video games for a week," she said, rubbing her son's back.
"But that boy deserved a little scare huh?" she asked, cracking a smile.
"Yeah! That was awesome," Wyatt answered.
"If you want a hamster we can see about getting one so you don't have to turn me into one again, ok?" she proposed.
"Really? You're the best!"
"Now go do your homework," she ordered and he ran off.
"So how was your day as a hamster?" Leo inquired.
"Well I got the once-over from a bird. And I nearly got squeezed to death by this rude little brat. Other than that, boring. I forgot how boring the second grade was. I took a lot of naps," she admitted with a smile.
"Well no one said being a hamster was fun or exciting," Leo chuckled.
"Only if you're a magical hamster."