Disclaimer: I do not own Charmed and any of the characters

You can't send me back

"Nick! You promised! What do you think you're doing!" Chris yelled at Nick. Nick pulled himself away from Phoebe and turned to Chris.

"Sorry, Chris" he said silently, almost whispering "I know I promised" he rubbed his eyes "I thought I could handle everything, but I can't. She's my mom for God's sake, and I couldn't stay cold. You don't know how much I missed her. Her picture in my mind almost faded away and now she's here and she's alive. Alive!" Nick yelled.

"Look, I... I know what you feel, that you want to stay here with her, but I think you can't. I think it would be better if I send you back to the future... to your time." Chris couldn't look at Nick, while he was saying that. The colour disappear from Nick's face. He couldn't believe his ears, Chris wanted to send him back... back to the hell he came from.

"No, Chris. You won't do that, you... you can't, I'm not coming back"

"I don't want to do it, but I have to." Chris finally looked at Nick. "You... you're too dangerous for my mission. You've been here only for a few minutes and you've already revealed too much about the future. I know you, you won't shut up, you're like your mum" Chris tried to smile, but he couldn't, a tear ran down his cheek instead. "You could mess the future up, it could change with every word you'll say and I can't risk it, I have to send you back. I really don't want to do that, believe me, but I have to."

"Don't do that, Chris please, don't do that. I'm here because you're the only one my dad trust. He knew I would be safe with you, but if you send me back... He would find me... Wyatt would find me!" The fear in his voice was incontestable. "Look..." Nick tore the sleeve away from his T-shirt and pointed at the triquetra tattoo on his arm "Do you see it? A few days ago I woke up and I had a tattoo. I... I didn't know what happened, why I had it, I was really confused. But then dad came and told me everything. Do you know who did it? Wyatt. I don't know how but he did it. Dad told me that every being on the world had such a tattoo. He told me it could be coloured different. The red one signifies the person is loyal to Wyatt. The green one signifies the being is a rebel... it could be a mortal, low-level demon or a witch and it also means everybody could kill that being. And now, we have the black one left. That means the being is a rebel and is too powerful, too dangerous for Wyatt to let him stay free, like upper-level demons, a few witches and half-breeds. Wyatt's servants aren't allowed to kill these beings, they have to bring them to him, so he can torture and kill them by himself. And you see the colour if my tattoo. It's black! Chris you can't send me there, he would find me and he... he would torture me to death. You can't." Nick was shaking, even a thought of Wyatt made him scared to death. Chris didn't need to be an empath to feel Nick's fear. He came to him and hugged him. Now, he was definitively determined, he couldn't send Nick back. The adepts wouldn't bear up Wyatt's torturing and Nick was but a kid.

"Nick promise me you won't say a thing about the future."

"You're not sending me back?"

"No" Chris smiled "but you have to promise you won't say a thing..." Nick felt like he was flying, he couldn't remember a moment he was happier.

"I'll promise whatever you want. I could even write a spell that would make me wordless, whatever." Chris laughed.

"You know that spell is a great idea, I will think about it. But now, I need to talk to your mom and I think you need a shower. Do you remember where the bathroom is?" Nick nodded a 'yes'. "Fine, so you should go but don't... " Nick shimmered out "... shimmer"

Chris looked at Phoebe. She was standing there in a shock, staring at him.

"Phoebe, you didn't say a word all the time, you're OK? " Phoebe looked at him very, very confused.

"No? I don't know. He... he's really my..."

"Son? Yes."

"But he shimmered"

"I know"

"How old is he?"

"Fourteen"

"Who is his father?"

"I can't tell you"

"But he will tell me, you said he's like me, he won't shut up, so he'll tell me."

"He promised he won't tell anything" Chris thought for a while "but yes, he'll tell you"

"But you won't"

"No, I won't"

"He is my son" Phoebe smiled.

"Yep, he is" Chris felt that conversation very funny.

"I have a son" Phoebe hugged Chris. He had to laugh.

"Now, when you absorbed the news, I want to ask you for something."

"OK, I'll do anything you want."

"I should remember it" Chris laughed "Well, it's about Nick. I want you not to ask him about the future. You know, he spent the majority of his lifetime in the hell, literally. And I don't want to remind him of it." Chris said seriously.

"Yeah, I felt his fear when he was talking about Wyatt, it was frightful."

"Yeah. And you know I was thinking, maybe you should take him to the store and buy him some new stuff, you know, clothes and so, and maybe take him to the hairdresser."

"It would be great, just me and my son, me and Nick. Hey, what is his full name?"

"Nicholas Benjamin Halliwell"

"Nicholas Benjamin? It's after his dad, right?"

"You know what? I rather go, bye"

"But..." Chris orbed away. Phoebe smiled.

"Nicholas Benjamin Halliwell, my son"