Legacy: Truth Unspoken

by Lady Dawson

Chapter One: Disturbances at the Bookstore

Chris Halliwell moved through the aisles at the bookstore, selecting the ones that he'd need for the fall semester. "So you decide whether or not you're gonna stay on at the club?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder towards his brother. "Mom wanted me to ask, 'cause she needs to know whether or not she's gonna have to hire another bartender."

"Great, I'll be sure to let her know that I still need the job, because we need to pay expenses. And it's so nice to know that her firstborn can so easily be replaced," Wyatt said grumpily.

Letting out a sigh, Chris shook his head. For almost a month now, ever since he and Brooke had been at ends, his brother had been moody and grumpy, snapping at anything that moved. Although, it probably didn't help matters much that he and Susan had been running pretty smoothly with their relationship.

"Wy, it's not like she's adopting another kid," Chris told him. "The club usually has to have a bartender in order to operate." Wyatt made no response as he glanced over Chris's shoulder.

"Great, just what I need," he muttered. Chris looked around and grinned as Susan came up to him.

"Hey, guys," she said, greeting Chris with a quick kiss. Brooke was right behind her, looking slightly anxious as she looked at Wyatt. "What's going on?"

"Hi, Susan," Wyatt said, refusing to even make contact with Brooke. "I'm gonna go see if I can track down this science book." Without even acknowledging Brooke, he walked away from the three, leaving them standing alone in the aisle.

Susan let out a low whistle. "That was pretty uncomfortable," she commented, glancing towards Brooke. "The silent treatment?"

"Like a mime," Brooke groaned. Chris smiled dryly. "I should probably go talk to him or something. This thing's getting out of hand. It's mostly my fault, anyway." She walked away.

"Good luck," Susan said dryly, turning back to Chris. "Think we should go help?"

"No, they have been in this fight for long enough," Chris answered. "They are both adults—at least they're supposed to be. It's time for them to get over this petty argument and move on."

"Maybe, but I don't think that this is going to be settle quickly," Susan said with a sigh, pulling a booklist out of her back pocket. "They may both be adults, but they are both equally stubborn. Wyatt's almost as bad as you are," she added, casting him a glance.

"I resent that," Chris pouted as they walked through the aisles. "Besides, we're not the only stubborn ones in the family."

"Weren't you the one who said that you were defined as the most stubborn member of the Halliwell family?" Susan questioned as she scanned the list, picking up a book and rolling her eyes at the price. "Jeez, why can't they make book prices within range of our pay checks? Do they have to make them so unbelievably high?"

"Yes," Chris agreed. "So have you done any research on that Bobby kid yet?" He knew perfectly well that the kid had been on her mind ever since they'd left the grocery store that day and wouldn't put it past her to try and find out who he was.

"Unfortunately, I have nothing to go on but his first name and there's about a million Bobby's in San Francisco alone. There's not a whole lot to go on, which means I've got absolutely nothing." Susan sighed. "It would be a whole lot easier if I knew what I was looking for."

"Yeah," Chris sighed. "But you know, there's usually a reason for everything. So I think you'll find out what that reason is eventually." Susan made a face at him as they passed through the art section. Chris stopped when he saw the paint set that she'd passed by, her attention focused on her list.

Glancing towards Susan, he looked back at the paint set before heading after her, remembering what she'd told him.

"What were you like before that happened?" Chris asked her. "How did you change?"

"I used to paint. I don't do that anymore. I guess that it just didn't seem to matter because . . . nothing seemed to matter."

"And now? What does it feel like now?"

"It feels like . . . I'm starting to wake up to realise that it's not a dream, but things are still going to be okay. I mean, it might be hard, but I'm not just gonna give up."

Chris smiled slightly, glancing back at the paint set as he walked after Susan. He'd come back to get it later, when she wasn't with him.

--

Brooke brushed a hand through her hair as she headed towards the science books, where Wyatt was standing, scanning through the titles. "Hey, can we talk?" she asked. Wyatt made a grunting noise as he bent down, selecting another book, but otherwise didn't respond. "How long are we going to keep doing this?"

"Doing what?" Wyatt said shortly as he continued to avoid eye contact with her, his attention focused solely on the science book.

"Avoid each other," Brooke responded, placing her hands on her hips. "We haven't spoken in a month, which is really hard when we live next door to each other. Wyatt, come on, I know that leading you on was kind of wrong, but you weren't exactly saying no."

"Oh, so this is my fault? Is that what you're saying?" Wyatt had stood up, looking around at her angrily.

"No—"

"Because I'm not the one who was using you, Brooke. That was you. You and your . . . crazy ideas of—"

"Wyatt, please, just stop!" Brooke glanced towards the shelves, which were shaking slightly. "Look, I said that I was sorry, but . . . honestly, what was I supposed to say? 'Hey, I had a boyfriend back in Wisconsin, but he's dead, so I guess I should just move on. Want have a round?'"

"Well, I guess it will probably be routine for you, huh? Get rid of one, move on to the next one fast as you can," Wyatt said. The ugly words sprung out of his mouth before he could stop them.

Brooke's eyes narrowed and before either one of them knew it, a full scale earthquake erupted underneath them. Wyatt ducked to avoid the ceiling tiles that fell due to the force of it. People screamed as they hurried to get away from the centre of the room. Looking around, Wyatt saw Brooke with her eyes closed in concentration. Slowly, the vibrating earth began to still and he let out a deep breath.

Before either one of them could recover from the force of the earthquake, Susan and Chris rushed over to join them. When they reached them, Susan placed her hands on her hips, looking extremely upset.

"Why," she asked, "do I have the feeling that this is entirely you two's fault?" She looked around at the fallen debris, some of which had settled into her hair and clothes before looking back at the witchlighter and the witch-nymph sternly.

Wyatt looked at Brooke weakly, who returned the guilty look to him as they both looked at Susan and Chris. The younger Halliwell rolled his eyes in exasperation while people started to get to their feet, making exclamations about the sudden earthquake.

--Opening Credits—

Title Song: "Chariot" by Gavin Degraw

Drew Fuller as Chris Halliwell

Wes Ramsey as Wyatt Halliwell

Michelle Trachtenberg as Susan Dawson

Anne Hathaway as Brooke Murphy

and Hayden Christensen as Brandon James