This story begins with a scene from the episode "Chris-Crossed" and then back-tracks to follow Chris through his childhood up until the moment he travels back in time. Each chapter is an episode in Chris's life. Some of them are cued from scenes in the television show and some from my imagination. The story is based on facts up until the episode "Hyde School Reunion."
None of this story could have been written without the help of the website www.thecharmedones.com
Thank you for all the reviews. I appreciate all forms of feedback. Just a note, this story has already been completed. It will be updated on Mondays and Thursdays.
Disclaimer: I do not own Charmed. This story is a product of my imagination. Some of the scenes have been taken from the script and modified. When this occurs, the episode and writer of the original scene is cited.
Part Five
"Because she doesn't exist. Not in my future. She dies when I turn fourteen."-Chris
-Season Six, Episode 128, "Hyde School Reunion"
Chris sat in his room, working on a paper for Paige's class. His aunt always assigned her classes the toughest papers and she wasn't about the let up on her eighth grade class just because her nephew was in it. Frustrated, he slammed his notebook shut and got up from his desk. The Book of Shadows would help him with the assignment, but he just had to go downstairs and ask his mother for permission to use it.
All of a sudden, a loud scream pierced through his ears. Chris started to run down the stairs, taking them two at a time. At the bottom of the staircase he saw his mother and Aunt Phoebe standing in front of Melinda. Wyatt was on the other side of the room and between them was a demon, his face unreadable. Chris froze. There hadn't been any demon attacks since Melinda had been born and he really didn't know what he was supposed to do.
Seconds later, Paige pushed past Chris, almost knocking him over. The demon stopped focusing on his mother and threw a fireball towards Paige, but she redirected it back at him. It hit the demon and it exploded. However, two more appeared where the first had been standing.
"Chris, take your cousin and hide!" Paige yelled. She quickly redirected two more fireballs at the demons, but they both multiplied upon impact instead of being vanquished. "Now! Go up there! Go. Wyatt, you too! Now!" Chris quickly grabbed his cousin's hand. He saw Wyatt disappear into the sky and hurriedly tried to follow the suite. He was almost to the ceiling when he felt something go through the orb and he rematerialized several yards above the ground. He and Melinda went spiraling to the floor, both their bodies thudding on the impact. He felt Melinda collapse beside him and his own hands became sticky with blood. He tried to orb them out again, but his head hurt him far too much. He heard Melinda let out a soft moan and saw her eyes close. He screamed and tried to get up, but a fireball came hurdling towards him. He watched the ball hit Melinda as if it were slow motion, and then felt them impact of some object on his own chest, knocking him into oblivion.
~~
"Chris, where are we?" Melinda asked. The two of them were in a still in the foyer of their house, but it was darkened. Their mothers and Paige were gone, along with the demons. Melinda looked up the stairs and glanced over at Chris. "I don't think we're supposed to be here. Did you orb us out?"
"No…I saw you get hit…" Chris said, his voice trailing off. "I got hit too…I think I know where we are." He looked over at Melinda and the two of them stared at each other for several long seconds, neither of them wanting to admit their location.
"Are you sure? I mean, we can't be…" Melinda said, her voice trailing off. She sat down on the floor and curled her legs into her chest. "I mean, I'm only ten…"
"They don't care about how old you are. And I think we are…Did you hear that?" Chris asked, his face suddenly alert. Chris…are you ok? Chris…Daddy's here. He's healing you. Chris, come back!
"Hear what? Chris? I'm scared! Chris, I'm disappearing, Chris don't let me go!" Melinda started to fade out of existence. "Chris! Help me!" Chris made a running leap and tried to grab her hand, but she had disappeared completely. He stared at the spot where his cousin had been standing moments before. She was gone. If they were really on the Ghostly Plane, then she was gone for good.
Chris, just hold on a few more seconds, buddy. Chris, you're almost healed…he heard again. Chris tried to block the voices out of his head and concentrated on the spot where Melinda had been. He tried to will her back into existence, but the spot remained empty.
"Melinda!" He yelled out, but there wasn't any answer. "Melinda!" Still no response. He felt something tugging on his body and gave in to it. Maybe it would take him to his cousin. All of a sudden he saw his mother's ghostly figure appear before him.
"Mom? What are you doing here?" he yelled, running over to her. Piper looked down at her youngest son and shook her head.
"Don't give in Chris, don't give in," she slowly started to fade out of existence. Chris yelled and lunged for where his mother had been standing, but she was gone. The tugging feeling he felt on his body grew stronger. Chris looked at the spots where his mother and cousin had been standing and gave in to the tug, willing it to take him to where they had just been.
~~
"Mom? Melinda?" Chris heard himself saying. He kept his eyes closed, hoping to hear his mother and Melinda standing next to him. The three of them would move on together. Maybe they could live with Grams. Or maybe they weren't really dead.
"Chris, wake up…are you ok Chris?" he heard a man's voice frantically call. Chris pried open his eyes to reveal the blurred form of his father standing above him. "Chris? Thank god." Chris felt himself being pulled upwards into a hug. "Thank god, Chris. I thought I'd lost you."
"Mom?" Chris called again. He pulled himself out of his father's embrace and ran over to his mother's form. "Mom!" She didn't stir. "Melinda?" He looked over to where his aunt Phoebe was standing over Melinda's motionless form. "I saw them pass on…they've got to be alright. I was there, in that realm. I was with them." Paige, Phoebe, and Leo stared at as if he were insane. Leo slowly pulled his son towards him and wrapped him in his arms. Chris tried to pull free, but Leo held on.
"No, sweetie. You couldn't have. Because then you'd be dead too…" Leo said, his voice cracking. There was a shimmer of blue lights and Wyatt appeared at the back of the room. He stared at the motionless bodies of his cousin and mother, then across the room at Leo and Chris. He took several large steps across the room, then sank to his knees next to Piper's body. Chris watched as a look of fierce determination and vengeance came to his brother's eyes instead of tears, then buried his own face into Leo's shoulder and started to cry.