A/N: I'm back with another update! Thank you for your comments on the last chapter, and thank you to everyone out there who's reading, even if you are just lurking without reviewing!

Disclaimer: Refer to previous chapter.

Enjoy!

Bound By Blood

By: Ada C. Eliana

Chapter 10: Fathers and Sons

It's so easy to destroy and condemn
The ones you do not understand
Do you ever wonder if it's justified
In your life why didn't you ever try
I close my eyes as I walk the thin line between love and hate
For the person with the same blood in his veins
You show no regrets
About all the things you did or said
I have failed you
But believe me you failed me too

"Destroyed" Within Temptation

Chris and Tyler sat in the back room of P3, heads in their hands. "We're two witches down," Tyler sighed. "And as much as I'd like to believe in myself, I'm not really much help," he added, casting a glance at Chris.

"I just can't believe they killed him. No wonder Lena freaked out. I mean I love Uncle Alec too, but he's her father, and they just…"

"What are we going to do, Chris? The demons are still out there, the city is overrun with them. And Wyatt…" he stopped, looking at Chris again, trying to gauge if his feelings towards his brother had changed. Alec's brutal murder had certainly given more stock to Wyatt's 'the world fears our great powers' argument.

"Stopping him is still my priority," Chris decided. "This doesn't change anything. Of course they would think we were helping him. Why the hell would they think the kids of the great and mighty charmed ones would turn their backs on each other? I can barely understand it myself sometimes, and it's my life."

Tyler opened his mouth to say something compassionate, but stopped abruptly when neon orb lights appeared beside him. The lights slowly manifested into Leo Wyatt. "Chris," Leo said, his voice somber.

"What the hell do you want?" Chris demanded without looking at him, idly wiping some blood off his face. Tyler had already healed his injuries.

"Where's Lena?" Leo demanded, his voice cold and angry.

"What do you want with her?" Chris questioned, his curiosity piqued. He stood to face his father.

"She killed an Elder today – no, two Elders. And three witches. And then she took out half of the Golden Gate Bridge!"

"So?" Chris said apathetically, these revelations meaning nothing to him, he was there after all.

"Innocent people were killed today."

"Yeah, don't I know it," Chris sighed, remembering the burning witches and the screaming civilians. He felt bad for the people Lena had inadvertently killed, but he did not blame her, no, he blamed those Elders and Wyatt. "So what are you planning to do? Kill her? Is that what the pacifist Elders do now? Kill witches?" He continued without giving Leo a chance to reply, he was really on a roll now. "Because that's sure as hell what it looked like to me! Yeah, Lena killed the Elders, but you know why? Because they tried to kill her, and then murdered Uncle Alec! And here you are, on your moral high ground about to tell me that two wrongs don't make a right. Well if that is what you're going to say, then save it for your precious first born, because he's the one who needs a lesson in good and evil, not me!"

"Where is she?" Leo hissed angrily, trying to ignore Chris' outburst.

"She's with Wyatt," Chris replied, seething. If only he had snapped out of his own grieving long enough to get her back to the hide-out, instead Wyatt was probably rewarding her for her kills right now; using her father's death to his advantage, and twisting everything around and making the dark side seem like the right side…

"With Wyatt? Why?"

"Alliteration, much? He took her back to his Headquarters I would assume," he snorted the word. "Seeing as how he's closed up the Manor and destroyed the vineyard, he couldn't exactly take her back home."

"What do you mean closed up the Manor?" Leo asked.

"So you really haven't noticed that he kicked us out? Yeah, right before he killed the Elders. We moved into Uncle Alec's place, but Wyatt destroyed it. Then he became the Source, and we've been hiding out in the Underworld for weeks."

"Wyatt did not become the Source!"

"Yes he did!" Tyler shouted, making his presence known for the first time. "I don't know what it'll take for you to believe Chris, but trust me, I was there, I saw it!" Tyler's anger and desperation showed in his voice. Elders were some of the most powerful beings in the magical world, and now their numbers had dwindled considerably, they needed all of the help they could get.

"Chris, your brother is good," Leo said, ignoring Tyler.

"You are a moron if you still believe him! He is not good! The attacks on the city today – he ordered them!" Chris formed his hands into fists, shaking his arms as he restrained himself from hitting Leo. As his sleeve slid up his arm with the movement, Leo caught sight of the darklighter-repelling bracelet he still wore. Leo's hand darted out, grabbing Chris' wrist to see it better.

"Where did you get this?" he demanded coldly. His eyes snapped to Tyler's wrist, the young whitelighter sporting the same thing. "Did Alec give these to you two?" he asked, trying to pull it off of Chris' wrists. Chris knocked him backwards with a bit of TK, taking a few steps away from his father, his expression filled with disgust.

"Yes he did, and they pretty much saved our lives during that coronation," Chris spat.

"These are made with dark magic!" Leo exclaimed. Then he spotted the red amulet Chris wore to counteract any attack from Wyatt. "And that! A Warlock gave that to Phoebe, it's not good magic!"

"Hey, magic is magic, right? Isn't that what your golden-boy Wyatt would say?" Chris countered.

"You are wrong about your brother, Chris. Alec has been filling your head with lies!"

"What am I, two? I think I'm quite capable of making my own decisions, and coming to my own conclusions. And I know Wyatt better than anyone; I know what he has become! And don't you dare say anything bad about Uncle Alec, he's been more of a father to me than you ever have!"

Before he even realized what he did, Leo had struck Chris across the face. "I am your father, and Wyatt is your brother, that's where your loyalty should be. Not to that—that—liar Alec Kalos!"

"He's DEAD! Because of Wyatt he's dead!" Chris screamed, tears filling his eyes as he barreled into Leo and throwing him to the ground. Tyler intervened, putting his hand on Chris' shoulders and pulling him away from his father. "How do you explain the Elders being killed 'up there'?! Tell me!"

"Deflecting the blame from yourself won't get you anywhere," Leo said, staring at his youngest son as if he were a stranger, no better than some common demon.

"Deflect—what?—what--?! You think I'M the evil one?" Chris sputtered in complete shock. The events of the past month had left him reeling, and now this… "I guess it's obvious who your favorite has always been."

"Chris, we can talk about this. I know Alec had something to do with it, just talk to me, please," Leo softened. "I hate to see what he's done to you and Lena while I haven't been around."

"He's done nothing except care for us, teach us, and protect us from Wyatt," Chris responded, suddenly calm. "And you and your little friends will leave us alone. I'm going to get Lena back from Wyatt, and then we will be burying her father in peace."

"You're a sorry excuse for an Elder, if you can't even see what's right in front of your face," Tyler spat. A moment later, Chris and Tyler had orbed out, leaving Leo alone in the club.

When they appeared in their Underworld hideout it was clear that its secrecy had been breached.

"Hello Chris, did you like your birthday present?" Wyatt asked as his brother's orbs formed into Chris. He stood before him, dressed in black, his hands behind his back as if he did not have a care in the world. Chris could immediately feel a change in the energy around him; Wyatt had taken back the Grimoir.

"You bastard!" Chris cried, leaping forward. Simultaneously, Tyler grabbed the collar of Chris' shirt and Wyatt powered up a fireball, holding it out tauntingly.

"Just give me a reason, Chris. Give me one reason and I'll do it," Wyatt whispered menacingly. Chris forced himself to calm down, crossing his arms and training his eyes on Wyatt.

"What do you want?" he asked coldly.

"To bring you home with me," Wyatt responded. "I'm sure you realize after poor dear Uncle Alec's passing that you can't go back up there, it isn't safe for you. You need to come back to your family, Chris. Stop running, stop fighting, it isn't natural for Halliwells to be against each other.

"And it isn't natural for them to become the Source of All Evil either, but I guess there's a first time for everything," Chris shot back.

"Lena's back at home, she's so upset Chris, and you know that I'm just no good at… compassion… she really needs you to be there for her."

"She would be with me if you hadn't taken her from the bridge. And I know what you're trying to do. It won't work. My home was the Manor, but it's not what it used to be. I can't be there anymore."

"Why do you feel the oh-so-desperate need to rebel against me? You're eighteen now Chris, old enough to choose your own destiny, and I know that you know which path will make you happiest."

"You know what would have made me happy, Wyatt? A brother who wasn't a megalomaniac power-hungry bastard! I don't know where you learned your values, but it certainly wasn't at the knees of our mother and aunts!"

"From whence they came return them now,

Vanish the words, vanish my brother's powers," Wyatt's voice boomed as he cast the spell.

Bright white light glowed from within Chris, and for one terrorizing moment he thought the spell to remove his powers had worked, but the light quickly died, leaving Wyatt looking quite disappointed.

"You may be the Source, but we're connected brother," Chris spat, holding up his wrist and revealing the triquetra printed there. "You can't just take my powers because you feel like it. You're not the most powerful force in the world, we are, together, you me and Lena. But we'll never be united, because you cannot see that what you are doing is wrong! And evil!" he added after a moment's consideration. Without giving Wyatt a chance to rebuke what he had said, Chris grabbed Tyler and orbed out.

"It'll only be a matter of time, Chris," Wyatt sighed, alone in the cavern. "I really wanted to do this the easy way… for your sake."

Three days later, Lena lay curled up in a ball on her bed in Wyatt's headquarters. Even with the high number of deaths in the city that day, Wyatt had managed to arrange a funeral for her father. She had dressed in all black – which was not a feat considering her closet was bursting with black clothes – but had made it as far as the bed before collapsing into sobs again. She pulled herself together finally, fixing her make-up and walking out into the hallway.

She had reached Wyatt's 'office' when she heard voices inside. Curious, she decided to eavesdrop.

Leo and Wyatt, father and son, engaged in a close conversation regarding what Leo had coined as the 'Chris situation.' "I'm worried about you, Wyatt," Leo sighed.

"Trust me, Dad, I'll be fine," Wyatt reassured his father.

"But what you three did – becoming the Charmed Ones – it forged a connection that cannot be broken. It puts you at risk."

"I was the one who came up with the idea," Wyatt said with a flash of a smirk. "I thought it would bring us closer together, I guess I was wrong," he said wistfully, playing his father for all he was worth. "I could feel Chris slipping further from me, and Lena was so young at the time, I thought any sort of connection would be good, you know, positive and helpful. But I guess it backfired on me."

"Now Chris and Lena are together, utilizing evil, organizing the Underworld, attacking San Francisco," Leo shook his head, horrified by the damage he assumed had been wrought by his younger son and Phoebe's daughter. "I blame Alec for this, he put these ideas in their heads."

"I know Dad. I wish I could have gotten them away from him, but they fought me when I tried. It was a lost cause. However, I convinced Lena to come here with me, and I think I can get her on the right track again. She's still emotionally fragile and developing as a witch and a person. She's begun to look up to me instead of Chris, and I hope that will help her."

"I still don't want her around you, Wyatt. She's dangerous; she's a threat. And I know how you always try to see the good in people, and she is your family, but still… I don't want anything bad to happen to you, son." Leo put his hand to Wyatt's face feeling the goatee just beginning to grow in; his hair hanging in longish curls around his face. "God, I wish your mom could see you now – all grown up and fighting the good fight."

"You don't have to worry about me, Dad. Nothing's going to happen to me," Wyatt sighed. "I have a plan to get Chris back over to our side as well, but I'm going to need your help."

"Anything, Wyatt."

On the other side of the door, Lena held a hand over her mouth as she gasped. She glanced at her watch, it was almost time for the funeral. Not wanting to be caught spying, Lena ran back down the hallway to her bedroom, her dress swishing in the air behind her.

Lena leaned heavily on Wyatt's shoulder throughout the ceremony. It was well attended, with Alec's mortal friends in attendance, as well as several of the stronger members of his coven, the ones who knew the Source would be there but came anyway. In the row next to hers, Chris and Tyler stood together, their eyes trained on her and Wyatt.

Afterwards, Lena thanked everyone for coming, forgoing a reception. Someone distracted Wyatt for a moment, and Chris and Tyler made their way to her. She kissed Tyler, and embraced Chris quickly before Wyatt turned around again. "Lena, you can't stay with him," Chris whispered.

"Chris, I just… I can't go back out there, not after this," she said, and for once, she meant it.

"Lena, please, you can't do this, you can't become…" Tyler pleaded, tears shining in his hazel eyes.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to him, cupping his face with her hand.

Wyatt appeared at her side, curious about what sort of exchange he was interrupting. "Ready to go?" he asked, rubbing Lena's shoulders in a comforting gesture.

"Yeah," she responded sadly. "Bye Chris," she said, standing on her toes to give him a kiss on the cheek. As her lips reached his skin, she said in the tightest telepathic connection she could muster, "He's going to use Leo to help bring you back to his HQ. Be careful." Then she turned and walked out, Wyatt at her side.

Chris ran as fast as he could, his breath catching in his throat and the assassin witch hot on his trail. A cloaking spell prevented her from just shimmering to him, but he knew she would find his footprints or something soon enough. He briefly considered orbing, but knew she could somehow track his orbs, so it would be more dangerous than what he was currently doing – running. And besides, he really did not have any place to orb to.

Tyler had met with the witches who wanted to stop Wyatt, a 'resistance' of sorts, but they did not want a Halliwell within their ranks. They did not trust him. So the whole week after the funeral he had spent sleeping in the back room of P3, or abandoned apartments, or the Underworld.

He paused to catch his breath, leaning against an old oak tree. Then he heard her voice and knew he should have never stopped. "Come out come out wherever you are," she sang, her voice low and smooth. "I know you're out here, Christopher. But don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you…" '… if you cooperate' she added in her head with a slight smile. "You know, we could play games that are much more… enjoyable… once you join Wyatt," Bianca mentioned, silently approaching the tree Chris hid behind.

Hearing her feet crunching against leaves, Chris ran, his heart banging against his ribs. "Decided to come out?" Bianca laughed, and Chris knew he could not run anymore, not when his unguarded back would make such a great target for her. So, dejectedly, he spun around, ready to give her one hell of a fight.

Bianca proved to be a skilled fighter, confident and assured in her abilities. Her athames had drawn blood, and she had watched death; the hollowness of her eyes proved that. However, she was fighting out of instinct and for her employer, while Chris was fighting for his freedom, knowing that Wyatt had sent her after him. He also still possessed the stone that tripled his powers, and so he took the upper hand.

Chris blasted her back with TK, and redirected her energy balls while she rolled and flipped. Sweeping her leg out, she knocked him on the ground, jumping on top of him, her athame poised at his throat. She held his arms down, forgetting that there were other ways to channel telekinesis. Taking a cue from his Aunt Prue, Chris used his eyes to send her flying into the forest. She shimmered in behind him, and he orbed father into the woods. Astral projecting, he silently appeared behind her.

"Your heart really isn't in this," he announced, ripping her weapon from her hand.

"How did you get over here?!" she demanded, but he disappeared in a blur of red.

Now he waited for her, a predator in the darkness. Bianca walked warily towards him, drawing another athame and barely breathing as she listened for him. Out of nowhere, Chris suddenly leapt onto her, pinning her to the ground and putting her own athame to her throat. He drew blood, just a little, just enough to sicken him.

"Just do it!" Bianca shouted; the blade cold against her neck.

Chris hesitated. This woman was a witch, not some demon he could just vanquish. And if he started killing witches too… he'd be no better than Wyatt. "You've won," Bianca hissed; her pride damaged.

"Go back to Wyatt, tell him I got away," Chris said, climbing off of her but keeping her in place with his telekinesis. He had turned around when he saw blue lights appearing before him. Bloody athame in hand, he stared as the lights formed into Leo.

"Dad? What're you—" he began, stopping as Lena's warning echoed in his mind. Dematerializing as he sought to escape, Chris did not make it far. A sudden pain enveloped him, and he was right back to where he stood before, white lightning forming a cage around him. Peering between the bolts hopelessly, he spotted his father, hands outstretched. "What are you doing?!" Chris demanded in horror as he fought against the Elder's powers. He could not break through.

"Your brother thinks he can rehabilitate you, and I only pray that he's right, Chris. So I can't let you escape."

"No! Please, you don't know what you're doing!" Chris cried futilely. "You have to help me!" Behind him, Bianca was back up on her feet, watching in wonder as an Elder, a paragon of all that was 'good' prepared to hand his son over to the Source of All Evil. A moment later the lightning redirected; hitting Chris square in the chest and knocking him unconscious. Leo put his hands down as Chris crashed to the ground, smoke rising from his injured flesh.

"Take care of him, Bianca," Leo whispered, staring at his son. He shook his head and orbed away, missing the look of anger that briefly crossed Bianca's face.

"Come on, we're going to see your brother," she sighed, putting a hand on Chris' shoulder and shimmering them both away.

"He thought Chris was the Source?" Piper asked incredulously after Lena finished a very brief rendition of Leo's actions after Wyatt came to power.

"Yeah… He just really didn't want it to be Wyatt, so I guess he picked the next most likely suspect. But that's all history now," she added with a sigh, hoping to change the topic.

"Aunt Piper, do you need anything? Something to eat or drink?" Lena suddenly queried, seeming to just remember that her aunt was very pregnant.

"No thanks, Lena," Piper responded, feeling a bit nauseous at what her husband had become.

"Tell us about… Chris and Bianca," Phoebe said her voice gushing at the prospect of hearing something really romantic.

Lena smiled beautifully. "Chris and Bianca, now there's a story…

A/N: Only one flashback heavy chapter left, then we're into the action! Woot! Thanks to everyone who's been patiently waiting for the story to move along, but I feel like this backstory stuff is necessary. Anyway, let me know what you thought in a review!

Thank you,

Ada