Balancing Act Chapter Three: First Tests
Author: Yalover
Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed but if I did it would probably look nothing like this.
With thanks to:
Du1387, Robbie the Phoenix, Marcus1233, History Buff 1990, loving4tomorrow
And as always Sam
Due to popular demand reviewing no longer saves fairies but rather kills them! So go on and toast the glittery Btches!
The morning comes and as usual I don't have the time to enjoy my cat impression. I check my clock. 11 already. Grabbing jeans and a t-shirt I run to the bathroom and get in the shower.
Clean and refreshed with damp hair I race downstairs to grab something to eat before I orb to P3. Leo's voice in the kitchen stops me in my tracks. I start to orb but stop myself when I remember what Mom said.
I walk in to the room and give Mom a quick hug around the shoulders. I move to grab a couple of muffins and give Leo a forced smile and nod.
"Sorry to eat and run guys, but I don't want to keep Matt waiting."
I orb out at that point. I know I could have been friendlier but for me that was at least an improvement. I arrive in the back room and lean against the door. I reach out and try and sense if there's anyone there. I get an echo from the front entrance which is probably Matt.
I walk up the stairs and open the door to let him in. He's leaning against the wall with his iPod on and his eyes shut but he opens them and takes out his headphones when the door opens.
I raise and eyebrow at him slightly confused, that music was loud.
"Heard you sensing." He says by way of explanation.
"How'd you manage that?" I ask as we start to walk down.
"When you sense you're using a form of telepathy. Since you're not a fully-fledged telepath your defences are minimal. When you brushed my mind you left a void in your head, which I instinctively filled, giving me a peek inside your skull. "
It takes me a moment to process this. I'd never really stopped to consider the mechanics of sensing. It's a little disturbing to think I was leaving a 'void' in my head.
"You didn't see anything too disturbing in there I hope?"
"Well the things you did to that goat were a tad strange, but I try to keep an open mind about that sort of thing."
I rack my brain trying to think if I ever got turned into a chubercabra, then realise he's joking and laugh.
"Any luck on a recipe?"
Matt nods. "I checked the archives and we have a few. Most of the ingredients are the same so I say we combine two potions and submit the new batch. Shouldn't be too difficult."
"Lets get to it then."
He hands me a couple of pages of paper and we compare the compositions. It takes us maybe twenty minutes to decide on a recipe. Matt starts grinding with the mortar and pestle and I start dicing the herbs.
Time to break the ice.
"So what's 'fully-fledged' telepathy like?"
He frowns for a second.
"Complicated. There needs to be a balance between power and control. If you can't keep it in check you aren't able to do some of the more 'fiddly bits'"
"Fiddly bits?"
"Altering memories, reading anything other then surface thoughts. Projecting mental illusions. Anything other than knowing what someone thinks at the time they think it really."
He looks at me like he's considering reading my mind.
"Why so curious about telepathy Chris? Do you think your powers are expanding in that direction?"
"No, but I need your help with a little project I'm working on. Lets get the potion to the brewing stage then discuss details."
It takes us about another ten minuets to finish the potion.
"It'll need about thirty minutes to simmer."
Matt stretches and moves up to the bar to sit on a stool.
"So you want my help with something?"
"Yes."
I move to the other side of the bar and place my hands on it to steady myself.
"I've been having these dreams. Ones that are very troubling. I'm used to nightmares but these feel different. It's not one recurring dream but more of a recurring theme."
He looks interested.
"And that theme is?"
"My family gone evil."
He leans back and is silent for a moment fixing me with a stare. I can't help but wonder if he's reading my mind right now. I stare right back and eventually he looks away.
When he speaks his voice is cold and clinical. "These dreams are probably nothing Chris. Given the potential consequences to the balance if the Charmed ones became evil though, your concerns have merit. I take it you haven't had your Aunt Phoebe examine this for fear of accidentally bringing about the events you seek to avoid?"
"Exactly. I want you to look at my memories of the dreams and see if there are any clues about what the hell is going on. Or determine whether these are a the result of a demon attack or spell."
"You realise that we probably aren't going to find anything?"
"I know that there's more to these dreams then my sub-conscious. So will you help me or not?"
He pauses again. I'm beginning to wonder if he's looking at the dreams right now. Finally he speaks.
"Chris you have to understand. My entire family is devoted to neutrality. If I involve my self in the struggle of good and evil I have to declare myself as an available target to demonic attack. I swore to my grandmother I wouldn't do that in her lifetime."
He isn't meeting my eyes and his head is drooped forward his hair covering the majority of his expression. Something in his voice lets me know it's not an excuse.
"It's ok. I won't ask you to break your word."
He looks up at smirking.
"I didn't mean I wouldn't do it. Just that I can't be caught involving myself. My apartment is shielded from just about every type of supernatural or natural surveillance in existence. If you can spend a few hours there without the Charmed Ones trying to kill me later I should be able to help."
I feel a spike of anger with the comment about my family.
"Why would they try and kill you?" I snap.
"Your brother is extremely powerful Chris and the Power of Three even more so. Despite that they won't be able to sense, scry or summon you from behind my wards. And since you can't tell them where you're going…"
"You think they might be justifiably pissed when I'm back on the mystical radar."
He nods seeming to be glad I got the message. "Precisely."
He has a point. I'll tell my family I'm going undercover in the underworld and let Wyatt get the impression I have a date where I don't want to be disturbed. Although his protective streak might kick in and demand to interrogate the poor guy.
"I'll handle my family, do you need me to bring anything?"
"If your aunt Phoebe has placed defences or influences in your mind I'll need a focus to get through them."
"I don't think she has but I'll find one anyway. So what's a focus?"
"In this case I need you to bring something that's yours. Something important and personal, and a similar item of your Aunt's. Though it's less crucial for her, a piece of jewellery she wears would be fine."
"Yeah that's gunna be fun to explain."
He rolls his eyes. "Just swipe something and give it back the next day saying you found it at your house."
I nod
"Anything else I need?"
"I'll handle the rest. Here's my number, let me know when you can arrange to be free for a few hours."
He passes me a slip of paper and moves off to check on the potion.
I study him from behind. He confuses me, most of the time he's grim and serious but every now and again a joke slips out and his sense of humour is sharp. A tad dry perhaps but still sharp.
It doesn't make sense. He's cute, not incredibly so, but enough that he shouldn't be this uptight. I mean the view from behind is certainly a pleasant one maybe we coul--
Bad Chris bad! No checking out the telepath until after the job's done. Something to look forward to I suppose though.
We finishing the potion and bottle it up. Matt tells me not to bother with the spell saying that he'd knock something together during the week.
We say our goodbyes and head our separate ways.
Well my to do list for the week looks entertaining at any rate:
Inform family that I'm going undercover in the underworld again and sit through the resulting lecture.
Tell overprotective big brother I've just lied to above family and am actually going on a date with a powerful magical being who is not strictly speaking allied with good.
Listen to said big brother tell me I should tell our mother about my homosexual tendencies.
Steal from my telepathic aunt.
Finally have a different telepath I barely know look inside my head and tell me if the vision/dreams I'm having actually mean anything.
Gotta love the charmed life.