Chapter 7
The fresh air on my face came as a shock. When I opened my eyes I was standing in a park that I used to visit as a kid. It was dark outside but the Aurora Borealis lit up the night sky. My knees immediately gave in beneath me and I sat down with a thud. All I could do was sit there and stare. What was going on? The park looked as I remembered it when I was a child. There was no destruction. There were even people laughing and holding hands, like there was nothing wrong. I had no idea what happened other than the spell must have sent me back to some unknown time. It was supposed to only send me back for a few hours, enough to warn everyone. I knew that everything happens for a reason, but the one behind this was a mystery.
It took me a few moments to realize that I wasn't dead. I had been so prepared to die that the knowledge that I was alive was almost foreign to me. Something was wrong with me and I didn't understand why I was feeling so off balance. Then it hit me. There was no pain. The absence of the agony that consumed me moments before was a memory and it took my mind a moment to process this fact.
Sitting there looking around brought back a flood of memories that I had repressed. When the Titans had been around it was easier to live if you didn't think about what was missing. I reluctantly got up and started walking. I had been walking for some time when I realized the stupidity of what I was doing. I shook my head in disgust at myself and orbed out. I knew what I had to do but I couldn't help myself.
I reappeared in front of the manor. It was as I had remembered it all those years ago. Voices floated on the wind from the back yard and a newspaper landed at my feet. The date was February 16, 2003, the day before Wyatt was born. That explained the Aurora Borealis. The power of the day must have affected the spell that Leo and I cast, sending me back here, to this time. I was pretty much at a loss as to why. Heck, what was I supposed to do? Wait twenty-two years for the world to end. I had no instructions, no help, and my family had absolutely no idea who I was. I wasn't even thought of.
My thoughts were broken into by Leo bursting through the front door carrying Mom. She had passed out and was clearly pregnant but even in this state she was still beautiful. It was a shock seeing her again and I could do nothing but stand and stare. It was lucky that everyone was too preoccupied with what they were doing to notice me. Aunt Phoebe and Aunt Paige were right behind him running to the car. I knew from the stories of Wyatt's birth what was going on, so I wasn't too concerned. I orbed back to the park and sat on a bench to sort out the thoughts in my head.
Seeing my family like that, alive and ready to face the next problem, churned up memories that I thought I had repressed. It was overwhelming, and I couldn't help the few tears that rolled down my face. I mourned for what I had lost but I was also joyful for what I had. I was able to remember all of the good times my family had together, before the havoc that the Titans unleashed. I remembered Aunt Paige and her quirkiness. Her way of spoiling Wyatt and me was to orb us to different parts of the world and let us experience it all first hand. I could see Aunt Phoebe and how much she loved Uncle Jason. She used to give the best advice for all aspects of my life, especially dating. I remembered Dad, and regretted the fact that my time with him was so short. I also realized that Leo had become a surrogate father to me and I missed him almost as much as I missed the rest of my family. As a whitelighter he always knew the right thing to say to motivate, but as a father he knew what to say to support. And Mom, well, she was mom, and one of the greatest people in my life. Her death had shattered me, and the depression that I thought I had overcome started creeping back at the thought of seeing her dead again. As I thought about Wyatt my emotions peaked. I could still feel the connection that had built between us. He was my brother and had always been there for me. I hoped I did the same for him.
I finally snapped back to reality at the sound of a dog barking and I shook my head at my foolishness. I couldn't let memories cripple me. Although they didn't know it, my family was depending on me to save them and with them the world. I was forced to shove the emotions that seeing them had unleashed and push them to the back of my mind. I could deal with my memories later but now I had to figure out a way to actually save them.
This idea sounded good on paper but I couldn't remember what was going on in their lives. I knew I had to have some kind of plan, so I started with the basics. First I needed to get used to thinking of my mom and aunts as the Charmed Ones, not my family. To try and explain that I was from the future would be hard enough without any of the extra complications of what I knew. I also needed some place to stay while I was working everything out.
I had a vague idea about what I was going to do when the sun began to rise. I knew the demon that summoned the Titans but I also needed time to observe the girls. Maybe this was a selfish plan, but in the back of my mind I wanted to see my mom. I had never really accepted her death and now she was alive. It was like she was never dead. I wouldn't let her die again. I resolved to make contact with a few of my informants in the underworld. Of course they had yet to met me but with my power it wouldn't take long to turn them to my way of thinking.
The time had passed so quickly that I hadn't realized it was mid morning. I really needed to find a place to stay so tried to orb out but found that I couldn't. Then it hit me that it was the day of Wyatt's birth and there was no magic. Cursing the timing I began the long walk that would take me out of the park.
The fresh air on my face came as a shock. When I opened my eyes I was standing in a park that I used to visit as a kid. It was dark outside but the Aurora Borealis lit up the night sky. My knees immediately gave in beneath me and I sat down with a thud. All I could do was sit there and stare. What was going on? The park looked as I remembered it when I was a child. There was no destruction. There were even people laughing and holding hands, like there was nothing wrong. I had no idea what happened other than the spell must have sent me back to some unknown time. It was supposed to only send me back for a few hours, enough to warn everyone. I knew that everything happens for a reason, but the one behind this was a mystery.
It took me a few moments to realize that I wasn't dead. I had been so prepared to die that the knowledge that I was alive was almost foreign to me. Something was wrong with me and I didn't understand why I was feeling so off balance. Then it hit me. There was no pain. The absence of the agony that consumed me moments before was a memory and it took my mind a moment to process this fact.
Sitting there looking around brought back a flood of memories that I had repressed. When the Titans had been around it was easier to live if you didn't think about what was missing. I reluctantly got up and started walking. I had been walking for some time when I realized the stupidity of what I was doing. I shook my head in disgust at myself and orbed out. I knew what I had to do but I couldn't help myself.
I reappeared in front of the manor. It was as I had remembered it all those years ago. Voices floated on the wind from the back yard and a newspaper landed at my feet. The date was February 16, 2003, the day before Wyatt was born. That explained the Aurora Borealis. The power of the day must have affected the spell that Leo and I cast, sending me back here, to this time. I was pretty much at a loss as to why. Heck, what was I supposed to do? Wait twenty-two years for the world to end. I had no instructions, no help, and my family had absolutely no idea who I was. I wasn't even thought of.
My thoughts were broken into by Leo bursting through the front door carrying Mom. She had passed out and was clearly pregnant but even in this state she was still beautiful. It was a shock seeing her again and I could do nothing but stand and stare. It was lucky that everyone was too preoccupied with what they were doing to notice me. Aunt Phoebe and Aunt Paige were right behind him running to the car. I knew from the stories of Wyatt's birth what was going on, so I wasn't too concerned. I orbed back to the park and sat on a bench to sort out the thoughts in my head.
Seeing my family like that, alive and ready to face the next problem, churned up memories that I thought I had repressed. It was overwhelming, and I couldn't help the few tears that rolled down my face. I mourned for what I had lost but I was also joyful for what I had. I was able to remember all of the good times my family had together, before the havoc that the Titans unleashed. I remembered Aunt Paige and her quirkiness. Her way of spoiling Wyatt and me was to orb us to different parts of the world and let us experience it all first hand. I could see Aunt Phoebe and how much she loved Uncle Jason. She used to give the best advice for all aspects of my life, especially dating. I remembered Dad, and regretted the fact that my time with him was so short. I also realized that Leo had become a surrogate father to me and I missed him almost as much as I missed the rest of my family. As a whitelighter he always knew the right thing to say to motivate, but as a father he knew what to say to support. And Mom, well, she was mom, and one of the greatest people in my life. Her death had shattered me, and the depression that I thought I had overcome started creeping back at the thought of seeing her dead again. As I thought about Wyatt my emotions peaked. I could still feel the connection that had built between us. He was my brother and had always been there for me. I hoped I did the same for him.
I finally snapped back to reality at the sound of a dog barking and I shook my head at my foolishness. I couldn't let memories cripple me. Although they didn't know it, my family was depending on me to save them and with them the world. I was forced to shove the emotions that seeing them had unleashed and push them to the back of my mind. I could deal with my memories later but now I had to figure out a way to actually save them.
This idea sounded good on paper but I couldn't remember what was going on in their lives. I knew I had to have some kind of plan, so I started with the basics. First I needed to get used to thinking of my mom and aunts as the Charmed Ones, not my family. To try and explain that I was from the future would be hard enough without any of the extra complications of what I knew. I also needed some place to stay while I was working everything out.
I had a vague idea about what I was going to do when the sun began to rise. I knew the demon that summoned the Titans but I also needed time to observe the girls. Maybe this was a selfish plan, but in the back of my mind I wanted to see my mom. I had never really accepted her death and now she was alive. It was like she was never dead. I wouldn't let her die again. I resolved to make contact with a few of my informants in the underworld. Of course they had yet to met me but with my power it wouldn't take long to turn them to my way of thinking.
The time had passed so quickly that I hadn't realized it was mid morning. I really needed to find a place to stay so tried to orb out but found that I couldn't. Then it hit me that it was the day of Wyatt's birth and there was no magic. Cursing the timing I began the long walk that would take me out of the park.