More cliffhangers at the end...mwahaha!
Disclaimer: Must I wallow in shame by admitting to the world yet again that I still haven't managed to buy (or steal) ownership of Charmed from the WB? Oh, don't mock me again shudders! LIFE ISN'T FAIR!!!
"Where do you suppose Wyatt and Chris are?" Piper asked Paige, chopping up some celery for dinner that night. "They've both been gone an awfully long time. Normally Chris is home by at least four, and Wyatt's back at about five."
"Don't worry," Paige teased, "it's not like they're selling drugs or something. Anyways, Mel's gone, too. She's probably with them, where ever they are. She'll keep 'em in line for ya."
Piper scoffed. "Not if she's anything like her party-girl mother." Paige was going to shoot back a smart remark but Piper continued. "You know, I worry about Chris when he gets home so late. What if that prophecy has already played through? I've seen little changes here and there, like...well, Wyatt and Chris' room doesn't smell weird anymore, and suddenly their laptop works again. How do you explain that?"
"Honey, Chris would never use magic for personal gain. He's a good, honest kid. When are you going to see that? Besides, his fate isn't written down in stone. How do you know that it isn't Wyatt doing all of this? I mean, they share the room, and lately everything has been going Wyatt's way."
"How DARE you accuse Wyatt of being evil, he's my son!"
"So is Chris!" Paige retorted. "You need to treat him more like a human being than a bomb about to explode at any moment! He's a little boy still, Piper—what if your neglecting him turns him evil, even if he was to turn evil in the first place? What would you say then? Huh? I'm WAITING for an answer, Piper!"
Paige took in a few deep breaths to calm herself, then saw Piper, who had put down the cutlery and begun to cry.
"I don't want to be a bad mom to Chris," she sobbed. "But I'm afraid. I don't want to live with the fact that he'll be evil someday."
"There is no proof that it's Chris that's going to turn evil. You're seeming to forget the line of the prophecy that was missing from that sheet of paper. We still haven't found it. You don't know it's Chris."
"But...the part of the last line I saw read, 'the younger of two—' then it was cut off. It needed another witch, a good witch, to see the rest...and I didn't want to expose either of the boys to that."
"Well, you certainly haven't done a good job of your little plan!"
"Damn it, Paige, would you LAY OFF?"
"No! Look at what you're doing, Piper, don't you understand? Leo does it too! You both come home, greet Wyatt, ask Wyatt how his day was, call Wyatt for dinner, tuck Wyatt into bed—but what about Chris?" She folded her arms at her chest, lips pursed, and when Piper didn't respond and just looked down at the celery, she kept trying to prove her point. "I'm practically raising Chris on my own, it's hard enough being a single parent with Mel—not that I don't enjoy him, but I can't afford another kid—"
"PAIGE, JUST—"
"NO, I WON'T—"
All of a sudden they heard a deafening roar. Paige and Piper gasped, both getting to their feet and looking out the window. Before they could get there, a hand grabbed each of their shoulders and orbed them Up There.
It was Leo, of course. As soon as he got them to the Magic School, he orbed down again, obviously trying to save the others and the innocents from whatever was going on down on earth.
"What's happening?" Piper cried.
"I saw...water...from out the window. It was coming straight at us, like a tidal wave, and it was destroying everything in its path."
"Wyatt! Chris!" Piper screamed, hoping to reach them. "WYATT, CHRIS, YOU BOTH GET YOUR LITTLE HALF-WHITELIGHTER ASSES DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT, OR I'LL—"
"Yes, mom?" asked a panting Wyatt. He was drenched head to toe in water himself. "You guys alright? Where's everybody else?"
As if to answer his question, Leo orbed up to them again, having grabbed a shocked Phoebe and Prue from their apartment in the city. They seemed shaken but otherwise okay and dry. Prue made a little whimper and Leo ruffled her hair before orbing out again to find Mel and Chris.
A moment later, he came back with an unconscious Mel. He quickly revived her, then looked up at Piper with worried eyes. "I can't find him," he panted, "I can't sense Chris anywhere."
"Try again!" Piper demanded, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I can't," Leo said firmly, "there are other innocents to save. Chris can wait right now, I'm sure he'll be fine and orb up here. He's not stupid."
"Wait—" Mel cried, but she was too late; Leo had orbed down again. "I know where he is, I sensed him—he used a potion to block off all scrying, and I guess he blocked off the other whitelighters, too—"
"WHAT?" Piper hollered. "He WHAT? HE USED A POTION SO WE COULDN'T SCRY FOR HIM? PAIGE, THIS WAS THE KID YOU WERE DEFENDING A MOMENT AGO! CAN YOU POSSIBLY DENY THAT HE'S EVIL AFTER THIS?"
"YOU BACK OFF!" Mel screamed at Piper. She stepped back for a moment, having never yelled at an adult before, much less her Aunt. "Chris isn't evil, Aunt Piper, Wyatt is. I know it, Chris knows it, my mom knows it. YOU just don't want to believe it!"
"Don't tell me—"
"How to raise your kids?" Mel finished, mocking her. She didn't care. The bubbling rage was all coming out now, and she had to admit that it felt pretty good to release the anger. "I've heard those words from your mouth too many times to count. If you don't want our advice, at least listen to the things we've already said. CHRIS IS YOUR SON. HE WAS ON TOP OF THE BRIDGE WHEN IT COLLAPSED WITH THE WAVE. HE'S UNCONSCIOUS AND OUT THERE, ALONE, AND IT SEEMS THAT I'M THE ONLY ONE IN HERE WHO CARES!"
She orbed out, leaving a stunned Paige and Piper in her wake.
"Look what you've done!" Paige wailed, staring at the spot that her daughter orbed away from. "Look..."
"Wait," Wyatt said darkly, "what if Chris didn't want us to scry for him because HE caused the tidal wave in the first place?"
DUN, DUN, DUN!! Yah, you get the point—that's how every chapter's gonna end from here on. hehehe.
Disclaimer: Must I wallow in shame by admitting to the world yet again that I still haven't managed to buy (or steal) ownership of Charmed from the WB? Oh, don't mock me again shudders! LIFE ISN'T FAIR!!!
"Where do you suppose Wyatt and Chris are?" Piper asked Paige, chopping up some celery for dinner that night. "They've both been gone an awfully long time. Normally Chris is home by at least four, and Wyatt's back at about five."
"Don't worry," Paige teased, "it's not like they're selling drugs or something. Anyways, Mel's gone, too. She's probably with them, where ever they are. She'll keep 'em in line for ya."
Piper scoffed. "Not if she's anything like her party-girl mother." Paige was going to shoot back a smart remark but Piper continued. "You know, I worry about Chris when he gets home so late. What if that prophecy has already played through? I've seen little changes here and there, like...well, Wyatt and Chris' room doesn't smell weird anymore, and suddenly their laptop works again. How do you explain that?"
"Honey, Chris would never use magic for personal gain. He's a good, honest kid. When are you going to see that? Besides, his fate isn't written down in stone. How do you know that it isn't Wyatt doing all of this? I mean, they share the room, and lately everything has been going Wyatt's way."
"How DARE you accuse Wyatt of being evil, he's my son!"
"So is Chris!" Paige retorted. "You need to treat him more like a human being than a bomb about to explode at any moment! He's a little boy still, Piper—what if your neglecting him turns him evil, even if he was to turn evil in the first place? What would you say then? Huh? I'm WAITING for an answer, Piper!"
Paige took in a few deep breaths to calm herself, then saw Piper, who had put down the cutlery and begun to cry.
"I don't want to be a bad mom to Chris," she sobbed. "But I'm afraid. I don't want to live with the fact that he'll be evil someday."
"There is no proof that it's Chris that's going to turn evil. You're seeming to forget the line of the prophecy that was missing from that sheet of paper. We still haven't found it. You don't know it's Chris."
"But...the part of the last line I saw read, 'the younger of two—' then it was cut off. It needed another witch, a good witch, to see the rest...and I didn't want to expose either of the boys to that."
"Well, you certainly haven't done a good job of your little plan!"
"Damn it, Paige, would you LAY OFF?"
"No! Look at what you're doing, Piper, don't you understand? Leo does it too! You both come home, greet Wyatt, ask Wyatt how his day was, call Wyatt for dinner, tuck Wyatt into bed—but what about Chris?" She folded her arms at her chest, lips pursed, and when Piper didn't respond and just looked down at the celery, she kept trying to prove her point. "I'm practically raising Chris on my own, it's hard enough being a single parent with Mel—not that I don't enjoy him, but I can't afford another kid—"
"PAIGE, JUST—"
"NO, I WON'T—"
All of a sudden they heard a deafening roar. Paige and Piper gasped, both getting to their feet and looking out the window. Before they could get there, a hand grabbed each of their shoulders and orbed them Up There.
It was Leo, of course. As soon as he got them to the Magic School, he orbed down again, obviously trying to save the others and the innocents from whatever was going on down on earth.
"What's happening?" Piper cried.
"I saw...water...from out the window. It was coming straight at us, like a tidal wave, and it was destroying everything in its path."
"Wyatt! Chris!" Piper screamed, hoping to reach them. "WYATT, CHRIS, YOU BOTH GET YOUR LITTLE HALF-WHITELIGHTER ASSES DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT, OR I'LL—"
"Yes, mom?" asked a panting Wyatt. He was drenched head to toe in water himself. "You guys alright? Where's everybody else?"
As if to answer his question, Leo orbed up to them again, having grabbed a shocked Phoebe and Prue from their apartment in the city. They seemed shaken but otherwise okay and dry. Prue made a little whimper and Leo ruffled her hair before orbing out again to find Mel and Chris.
A moment later, he came back with an unconscious Mel. He quickly revived her, then looked up at Piper with worried eyes. "I can't find him," he panted, "I can't sense Chris anywhere."
"Try again!" Piper demanded, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I can't," Leo said firmly, "there are other innocents to save. Chris can wait right now, I'm sure he'll be fine and orb up here. He's not stupid."
"Wait—" Mel cried, but she was too late; Leo had orbed down again. "I know where he is, I sensed him—he used a potion to block off all scrying, and I guess he blocked off the other whitelighters, too—"
"WHAT?" Piper hollered. "He WHAT? HE USED A POTION SO WE COULDN'T SCRY FOR HIM? PAIGE, THIS WAS THE KID YOU WERE DEFENDING A MOMENT AGO! CAN YOU POSSIBLY DENY THAT HE'S EVIL AFTER THIS?"
"YOU BACK OFF!" Mel screamed at Piper. She stepped back for a moment, having never yelled at an adult before, much less her Aunt. "Chris isn't evil, Aunt Piper, Wyatt is. I know it, Chris knows it, my mom knows it. YOU just don't want to believe it!"
"Don't tell me—"
"How to raise your kids?" Mel finished, mocking her. She didn't care. The bubbling rage was all coming out now, and she had to admit that it felt pretty good to release the anger. "I've heard those words from your mouth too many times to count. If you don't want our advice, at least listen to the things we've already said. CHRIS IS YOUR SON. HE WAS ON TOP OF THE BRIDGE WHEN IT COLLAPSED WITH THE WAVE. HE'S UNCONSCIOUS AND OUT THERE, ALONE, AND IT SEEMS THAT I'M THE ONLY ONE IN HERE WHO CARES!"
She orbed out, leaving a stunned Paige and Piper in her wake.
"Look what you've done!" Paige wailed, staring at the spot that her daughter orbed away from. "Look..."
"Wait," Wyatt said darkly, "what if Chris didn't want us to scry for him because HE caused the tidal wave in the first place?"
DUN, DUN, DUN!! Yah, you get the point—that's how every chapter's gonna end from here on. hehehe.