Chloe awoke to the sun tickling her cheeks and Chris's cavernous snoring. "How'd I get here?" she mumbled as she rolled over. Chris was lying on his back, one arm hanging off the side of the cot while the other crossed his face—apparently in an unconscious attempt to keep the sun out of his eyes. Chloe rolled back over to face the window. She flicked her wrist as a blanket floated from the cedar chest and draped itself across the panes—shielding Chris's face from the sun. Yawning, she swung her feet to floor and dangled her toes as she stretched. She held out her left hand as the bathrobe hanging over the footboard found its way to her. Chloe stood up, clothed herself in the borrowed robe, and made her way toward the stairs to see what was on the menu for breakfast. As she walked out the door, she turned back to whisper, "Two more days, Chris. Happy early birthday."
Chloe ran her finger along the hall walls as she meandered downstairs. Faint snores emanated from Phoebe's and Paige's rooms. Downstairs she could hear the bustling of feet and murmur of whispered female voices. She took her time as she strolled down the steps. As often as she had been in this house, she couldn't remember an opportunity to take in her family's history that adorned the walls. She paused at a picture of Grams and Prue, with a picture of Patty and the sisters as little kids hanging next to it. Chloe's hand rose slowly from her side and she closed her eyes—she saw Patty tiptoeing down the stairs in the moonlight. In front of her, in the parlor, was a huge lit Christmas tree with all the trimmings. The stockings on the fire place hung empty as Patty continued to ease her way to the hall closet. Up in the top of the closet was a box of candy, small dolls, and coloring books. She pulled it down, walked silently to the empty stockings, and began filling them. Grams emerged from the kitchen with a smile and plate of steaming chocolate chip cookies. She waved her hand as the wrapping paper and boxes flew from the closet and scattered across the parlor floor. Patty and Grams sipped peppermint tea and nibbled the fresh cookies as they wrapped the girls' gifts from Santa, giggling about how they expected the girls to respond. Chloe pulled her hand slowly away with a deep, long sigh, "What was it like?" she asked turning to her mother who was standing at the bottom of the steps sipping her coffee.
"That Christmas morning?" Phoebe returned as she joined her daughter.
"Yeah, what was it like? Having a big family Christmas with lots of presents and a tree?" Chloe turned back to her mom—her eyes honestly probing Phoebe for answers.
"Well, what you saw was mom and Grams getting everything ready for us the next morning. We came downstairs before dawn and the only lights were those of the Christmas tree. Piper, Prue and I each shook our presents, trying desperately to figure out what they were, but we couldn't. So we fell back to sleep under the tree before mom and Grams joined us. It was the best Christmas I remember. I got the Barbie I had been longing for since before Halloween. It was great. Grams took that picture," she pointed back to the picture, then looked back into her daughter's somber eyes, "Do you not have any memories like that?"
Chloe took another deep breath, "I have plenty of wonderful memories, mom, don't worry. But family Christmases didn't happen every year. We don't live here, and only got home when it was safe," she started back downstairs.
"When it was safe?" now Phoebe was intrigued.
"We were hunted, I was hunted, all the time. The child of an Avatar and a witch... and not just any Avatar, but Cole, the once infamous Balthazar. We were always moving from place to place. I didn't move back to San Francisco until," Chloe paused realizing what she was about to reveal and changed her words, "I was older, and things were safer. Then we moved back into the manor." Chloe didn't look her mother in the eyes but kept walking to the kitchen where she found Piper and Paige sipping their coffees and smiling over a magazine of baby clothes.
"Good morning, Chloe," Piper grinned, "can you imagine Chris wearing this?"
Chloe couldn't stifle her laugh, "That's great, Piper. Go for it," she pushed back the magazine with the baby in the yellow duck outfit beaming back at them from the pages. She shuffled her feet and found the coffee maker through a wide yawn. After pouring herself a cup she turned directly into Cole's arms as he shimmered in behind her and pulled her close to him in a tight hug. "Whoa, dad. Good morning," Chloe rested her head on his broad chest. Cole didn't let her go, "Dad, I love you, too, but if I don't break free and drink this coffee, it's going to get cold and I'm not going to be in a good mood. And I can take you, trust me," she added with a wink.
"Oh, right," he let his daughter go as the rest of his family looked at him like he was back to his insane self.
Phoebe could swear Cole had tears in his eyes, but before she could question him Leo orbed into the kitchen. "Morning," she took the last sip of her coffee.
"Gideon is going to be at the Magic School today, and school is out, so there are questions as to why he is going in to work," Leo took a seat at the kitchen table with Piper, "if we're going to act, it's got to be today."
"Too true," Chloe joined them at the table, "Chris's birthday is in two days." Everyone turned to her surprised except Piper, "I guess that's not common knowledge," Chloe covered.
Paige and Phoebe shook their heads no in unison, Leo whipped his gaze to meet Piper's and Cole didn't take his eyes off his daughter. "What?" Leo finally muttered.
Richard and Chris, with Wyatt on his hip, stumbled groggily into the kitchen together but not speaking. "Mom, dad, family," Chris yawned handing Wyatt over to Leo, whose eyes still fixed on Piper's belly. "What'd I miss?"
"Your birthday is in two days?" Leo quizzed his son.
"I haven't missed that," Chris pulled a box of frozen waffles from the freezer, "hasn't happened," he dropped two in the toaster.
"Right, you haven't missed it literally yet," Leo crossed the kitchen to his son, "but you missed telling us."
Chris's waffles popped loudly from the toaster, "Didn't miss telling you," he plucked them out and dropped them on a plate, "I did it on purpose. You didn't need the extra stress."
"But your mom knew?" Leo continued his interrogation.
"I knew," Piper interceded for her son, "I kinda walked into his confessional with Wyatt." Phoebe and Paige exchanged furtive smiles, while Chloe chose to hide hers behind a sip of coffee.
"So now we all know," Chris said plainly, "and we can get on with the task at hand—vanquishing Gideon and saving Wyatt all in the next forty- eight hours before I'm born. It's doable," he crunched a waffle.
"Check," Chloe agreed grabbing a fork and cutting a piece off Chris's waffle for herself. Chris rolled his eyes as she stuck the waffle in her mouth with a Cheshire cat grin.
"Alrighty then, everybody get ready," Paige clapped and Phoebe nodded. The two sisters linked arms and headed up to change and prepare for their battle with Gideon.
Cole lingered in the kitchen, tracing the ground with his toes as Chris and Chloe returned upstairs. Leo finished cleaning Wyatt. "Leo, can I ask you a question in confidence?" Cole posed.
"Sure, I don't see why not," Leo answered, "Shoot."
"Do you know what happened with Chloe while Batterak had her? I heard some rumors," Cole couldn't make himself finish his thoughts.
Leo sighed, "I do, but she doesn't. Chris and I worked out a spell to ease her pain, or take it away. I don't think she remembers everything and it's best that way, don't you think?"
"Then it's true?" Cole asked not really wanting to know the answer.
"I don't know what you mean by 'it,' so we'll just leave the conversation here," Leo started out of the room but doubled back to Cole, placing his hand on his shoulder, "Father to father, be there for her. Love her and when she's ready to handle the pain, the memories will come back to her—and she'll come to you." Leo let his hand slide from Cole's shoulder as he turned to leave the room.
"Leo," Cole whispered, holding back the rage, "Thank you," he let a tear fall and quickly wiped it away. Then he added, "I was in the underworld last night, I heard some talk. Talk of Gideon soliciting some demon's help to finish some business. But I haven't heard which demon—there's a lot of speculation but nothing certain."
"Thanks," Leo half smiled.
"And one more thing," Cole called as Leo stopped again to turn back to him, "is there any way we can insure she doesn't read this information off of me?" Leo nodded his head and motioned Cole to follow him as he orbed out.

"The darklighter poison for killing whitelighters slash elders is ready," Phoebe shook the vials as the contents changed from purple to brilliant yellow, "it had to ferment." She turned to hand Paige her vial but stopped, "Do you really think you should have this? I mean, what if you accidentally..."
"Drink it?" Paige finished her sentence, "as tempting as the psychedelic yellow potion looks, I think I'll be able to resist. The question is, how do you we get ye ole school master to ingest this stuff. I mean, he's been around a while, he won't just go around picking up potions and chugging them."
"We'll have to find some way to slip it in his drink," Piper picked up her own vial and tilted it back and forth watching a bubble equilibrate like in a leveler, "tea time is soon. Someone can offer to have tea with him."
Phoebe gently picked up the remaining vials and placed them in the bag on her hip, "Yeah, but it would have to be some non-whiteligher. What if he was on to us? The poison would have to be in both cups."
"Not possible," Chris appeared in the doorway, "remember what Cole and Chloe said, that stuff is powerful enough to kill anyone. Not just Gideon."
"But we blessed it to only kill..."
Paige couldn't finish her thought before Chris interrupted, "It's not worth the risk. Any one of us dying would dramatically alter the future—not just the surgical strike I came back here to pull off. We can't risk it." He held out his hand as Phoebe handed him a vial, and he motioned for another one out of her bag, "For Chloe," he explained turning to leave the room.

"Do you understand the severity of the situation?" Gideon's voice was low and stern as he talked to the cloaked figure seated across from him in his office. "I have already broken many rules just by allowing you on this campus, but time is of the essence. Wyatt must be stopped. I know that you have a strong desire to see the charmed ones dead, but remember, in this game—they are only... scared."
Barbas's characteristic thin-lipped, squinted-eyes smiled painted his face as he brought his hands together as if to pray—but to none other than himself. "I know the circumstances, Mr. Elder-man," his slow drawl made Gideon's skin crawl, "if you'll remember, it was I who figured out you were after the little witch in the first place. I know your fears as well as I know the sisters. And they will all serve us well in the end."
"No killings or the deal's off," Gideon warned.
"All deaths will be at your hands," Barbas lowered his head in mock reverence as he shimmered out.
"Excellent," Gideon rose from his chair to prepare for his plan.

Chris walked slowly around the corner into Phoebe's bedroom. Chloe was leaning against the backboard of the bed, tracing her finger around a picture. Her eyes were red, and cheeks tearstained. Chris didn't need to be able to read her mind to know what she was thinking, although it did help. "No, crying—you'll see them again. And you're not leaving yet, anyway," he sat on the foot of the bed and gently floated the bottle of vanquishing potion to his cousin's open palm.
Chloe closed her fingers one by one around the vial, never looking at it. She didn't take her eyes of the picture of Phoebe and Cole as she lowered it to the bedspread. "What if they don't fall in love again?"
"You haven't disappeared yet," Chris tried to encourage.
"Doesn't mean I won't," Chloe frowned.
Chris punched her foot, "Doesn't mean you will."
"Tit for tat," Chloe flashed Chris a small smile—she knew he was right. "You never told me how you did it. How you managed to keep your secret at all. I mean, it had been almost ten years since you had seen your mom alive when you came back—how did you not fall into her arms crying? The only thing that kept me sane was having you. You were alone."
Chris lowered his eyes. Chloe was right. Chris had an enormously difficult time hiding his emotions and identity from his mother the first time he saw her. The first time they were alone in the attic, when she approached him about his intentions and he had mentioned that they needed to update their goblin section—it was all he could do not to answer her, "How do I know so much about you? Your history is my history, Mom. This book is my inheritance just like it is yours."
Chloe had picked up his hand without his realizing it. "Definitely a tough situation," she dropped it back on the bed. Chris nodded. "I really admire what you've done, Chris. You've risked your life for this family more times than are conceivable. I hope it all works out in the end... and when we do go home, we'll all be a family again." Chris nodded again, he couldn't shake his memories. "Notice my emphasis on we? You are going home with me, like it or not," Chloe nudged him.
Finally looking into his cousin's eyes, Chris smiled, "We'll see when the time comes."

Phoebe had joined Cole, Piper, Paige and Leo in the parlor—they were waiting on Chris and Chloe from upstairs. Leo had Wyatt sitting high upon his shoulders as Leo danced blue orbs just out of his son's reach. Wyatt, giggling in delight, threw up his own handful of orbs that were slightly purple in comparison to Leo's. Leo beamed with paternal pride as the tow of them began to rotate the orbs around the ceiling in a race. Piper was sitting in the rocking chair, gliding back and forth, back and forth, easing the early signs of contractions and rubbing her belly, humming to her youngest. Paige was sitting next to Piper in a chair, holding her hand, and the two of them were talking and laughing—presumably about babies and boys... and baby boys. Love was exuding from every corner except Cole's. Cole was seated far from the crowd, back behind the fireplace. He was wearing Chloe's cape and running his fingers along the golden clasp. What Phoebe felt from him was the antithesis of love—it was fear, and vengeance. She placed her hand on the railing and took two steps down toward the foyer when a premonition struck her with the impact of a bullet between the eyes. She collapsed to the floor in pain as Cole joined her side in a blur of speed. He had his hand behind her hand as her eyes clenched to receive the incoming sight. Phoebe saw Gideon standing before a star chart in his office, pointing out the orbital movement of certain stars into certain constellations. He was explaining its relevance to why they needed to act quickly to get Wyatt and baby Chris, or big Chris out of the way, to insure that their plans would succeed. According to all start charts, Chris's birthday should be in two days. "We need to insure that his birth is planned and ordered in the manner that we discussed before. If it is not, our plan will have failed. We'll not only lose Wyatt, but Chris also... and whatever other Charmed progeny may follow," Gideon explained to Sigmund. A cross-look painted Sigmund's face, "But sir, if they are on to you as you suspect, how do you expect them to bring the children here? And if they do, how do you expect to separate them?"
Gideon turned to the gilded gold framed mirror behind his desk, "I have that taken care of, my friend. Leave the details to me. You just do what you were told. Place the door in the foyer of the manor. Pure curiosity and courtesy will draw them in."
The vision ended with Phoebe grasping her temples with one hand and Cole's arm with the other. Cole had her safely cradled in his arms. Her eyes fluttered, and she sighed as she looked into his eyes, "Are you ok?" he asked helping to lift her to a sitting position.
"I am, thank you," she smiled at him, "but I've never had premonition quite like that before."
The family had gathered in the foyer around Phoebe and completely missed Chris orbing Chloe into the parlor onto the sofa, "Tell me about it," he exhaled as he laid her down.
All eyes turned to him and a lethargic Chloe reclining against the back of the sofa. "Sweetie, are you ok?" Paige walked over and sat next to her, gently pulling Chloe's head to her shoulder.
Chloe took a deep breath and exhaled long, allowing all her muscles to relax, "I will be. Mom?"
By this time Cole had helped Phoebe to her feet and they two were joining Paige, Chloe and Chris in the parlor, "Yes, honey, I'm fine."
"That was quite a rush," Chloe commented with her eyes still shut and head resting on Paige.
"Yeah, it was. So vivid. Almost like we were actually in the room with them," Phoebe concurred.
Leo pulled Wyatt down from his shoulders, "Could you sense each other?" Phoebe and Chloe exchanged glances and both shook their heads no. "That's probably why the premonition was so vivid and exhausting then, it was being fed by both your magics—which alone are powerful, but together..."
"Lethal," Cole finished.
"Dangerous," Leo narrowed his eyes at Cole, "they wouldn't kill each other. They've shared visions before. Phoebe has been intercepting all of Chloe's visions."
Cole looked down into Phoebe's eyes on the chair and then across the room and deeply into his daughter's, "Right, but they were Chloe's visions that she forced and had control over. Phoebe was merely a spectator. This time all their magic was sucked into a single vision. It sounds pretty lethal to me."
"I'm not dead, dad. I'm fine," Chloe tossed him a kiss.
"Ok, enough of this speculation on what or why it happened. Let's focus on the fact that it did happen and someone tell us what you two saw," Chris ordered impatiently.
"Stars..." Chloe began.
"Well, maybe you just hit your head when you fell," Chris sat down in the loveseat with his mom.
"Not funny," Chloe over-enunciated, "it was a star chart. Like the one we saw on Gideon's desk that day we snuck in there."
"The one with my birthday, and Wyatt's star?" Chris countered.
"Exactly."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Piper interrupted, "You haven't mentioned anything about a star chart."
"We didn't know what it meant, it was on Gideon's desk that day that Chloe pulled the vision off the top at the Magic School... and Wyatt put his shield up for Gideon," Chris began to explain.
Piper put her hand on her son's shoulder, "I remember, but what's this with the star charts?"
"I think that's what Gideon and Sigmund we re talking about. Whatever their plans are... it revolves around these star charts and Chris's birth," Phoebe revealed.
Chloe finally lifted her head from Paige's shoulder to add, "And any subsequent births of Charmed children."
Phoebe and Chloe became in perfect sync as one started a sentence, another finished.
"That for their plan to succeed..." Chloe began.
"We must be at the Magic School..." Phoebe continued.
"But they know we are on to them..."
"So they have a plan to separate us..."
"But they must first get us to the Magic School..."
"By dropping the door back on the landing," as soon as Chloe had finished her sentence there was a thud in the foyer. The family turned to see the door to the Magic School glowing on the first landing.
Then together Phoebe and Chloe added absentmindedly, "Pure curiosity and courtesy will draw them in."
"You two are eerie, you know that?" Chris curled his lips in mock disgust.
"Not any more eerie than you reading each other's minds," Phoebe kidded as she got up and kissed her nephew on the cheek. Chloe giggled.
"So Gideon wants us in there, huh?" Leo walked slowly up to the landing and looked at the door. "And he honestly expects us to come in there unprepared?"
"Surely not," Piper commented from the bottom of the steps, "he knows we're on to him."
Leo nodded in affirmation, "That being said, I think you and Wyatt should stay here and out of trouble. If he wants us in there, he'll have to be in there to keep us busy. If you're out here, you're out of control."
"I don't know, dad, it still sounds risky to me," Chris walked up and placed his hand on his mother's shoulder. "What if that's exactly what he wants?"
"I think what he wants is all of us in there playing his game. Piper will have the vanquishing potion with her here, and she'll be outside the school."
Paige stood up from the sofa, "I'll call Richard to come over and sit with her. His powers might be bound, but he can still cast spells and make potions."
"Alright," Chris acquiesced, "I love you, mom. Don't ever forget that," he kissed her on the forehead with tears in his eyes.
"You're coming back," she held him close enough so that only he could hear her whisper, "I haven't come this far to lose either of you now."

Phoebe walked up to the door of the Magic School and pushed it open. Inside she saw that the great hall of the school was empty and full of echoes. Paige kissed Richard goodbye before she walked up to Phoebe, took her hand, and together they walked through the door. Chloe began to take a lone step through the door, but Cole put his hand on her shoulder. She turned back to look him in the eye, "We're going to do this together," he smiled at his daughter. She returned his wary grin. Chris and Leo each kissed Piper and Wyatt goodbye before they stepped through the door behind the rest of the family—leaving Piper rocking Wyatt gently back and forth, and Richard heaving a heavy sigh. Gideon stood back in the shadows and watched them all enter his game before stepping through the door and back into the Halliwell Manor.