A/N: Hi everyone! Thanks for the reviews... I was a little nervous posting my first action chapter. I'm glad it went over okay, as I am planning another one in the near future. But for now, a change of pace to set the stage for the next plot arc...
Calen: Definite learning happens in this chapter and the next.
Cat: Yeah, I kind of like him take charge too, but we'll see how long that lasts...
Story Diva: Thanks! I too hope the sisters and Leo will start to u/s why our neurotic whitelighter is the way he is.
Sailorwind: Glad you liked the last couple of chapters. Hmmm, now that you mentioned it, Les is indeed her junior...talk about robbing the cradle! May need to rethink that relationship...
Ilovedrew88: Thanks! I didn't think it was too violent either, but I thought I'd err on the side of caution and give everyone the heads up.
Teal-lover: Oh, I'm so happy you thought it was worth the wait. Definite encouragement for me to try another action chapter.
Eimaj: Wow! (blushes)
Alexis Rose: I hope they sound ugly...they were suppose to! Will update ASAP (salutes)
Pukah: As you noticed, there's a definite nod to John Conner in my story, hence the title, so you're not the only one who needs pills, heehee.
California Chick: Thanks! I was really nervous posting my first attempt at true 'action.'
Chapter 11
They had been moving through the streets for what seemed like forever. If Leo hadn't had that glimpse of the future from being in Chris' mind, he would never have believed that this was the future. Although Leslie had assured Leo and the girls that it was, indeed, day, it certainly didn't seem that way to him. Leslie had explained that the destruction of the city had led to the debris and resulting atmospheric dust that seemed to blanket the entire area. The sun's rays barely penetrated the perpetual clouds of dust, and instead enhanced the sinister feel in the air. Leo shuddered. He couldn't imagine Chris living here, let alone willingly returning after experiencing the past.
"Tell me again why we can't orb to the Resistance's base?" Paige whined, panting as she trudged behind Leslie. "Can we take a break? I'm dying here, people. What is this? A marathon?"
The pace that Leslie and Chris had set had been relentless; Leo and the girls were soaked to the skin in their own sweat, in their attempt to keep pace. Piper noted with annoyance that neither Leslie nor Chris had even broken a sweat. In fact, her son's expression clearly indicated his annoyance with what he obviously felt was a snail's pace. At least, she smiled sourly to herself, he knows not to nag us to move faster.
"Okay, ouch!" Phoebe yanked her hand from Leslie's and abruptly sat down on the ground. Embracing the reprieve, Paige and Piper collapsed next to her, exhausted. "Cramp, I've got a cramp. Leo!"
Leo sat down next to Piper, smiling slightly, "Phoebe, I can't heal a cramp."
"I know, I know. I just thought I'd ask," she grumbled. Leslie opened his mouth, looking around nervously, but Phoebe cut him off. "I am NOT moving from this spot. Not for at least five minutes. I don't CARE if those demons show up again. I bloody need to catch my breath."
Snapping his mouth closed, Paige didn't miss the questioning look Leslie threw at Chris, who nodded imperceptibly. Interesting...he needs Chris' approval?
"I'm going to take a look around...make sure the perimeter is clear." Chris told them. "Stay here." And he took off, before anyone could protest.
Leslie knelt beside Phoebe, who rubbed her calf, wincing in pain and sucking in deep breaths into her burning lungs. Brushing her hands aside, Leslie massaged her calf gently, trying to work out the muscle cramp.
Paige smirked as she and Piper exchanged a sideways glance at Leslie's 'friendliness.'
"So back to my question..." Paige reminded Leslie, before Piper could butt in, "Why can't we just orb to your base?"
"Because there's a spell on the whole base and the surrounding area. No one can orb in or out. It also means that no demons can shimmer in or out," Leslie explained, as Paige's eyes lit with understanding. "Yeah, we lose out on convenience, but at least we can't be taken by surprise. We gain a hell of a lot more than we give up, I think."
"Nice. I guess you guys don't have to worry about getting enough exercise," Phoebe joked weakly.
Leslie smiled, "Funny. That's what Chris always said too."
"And just where did he go?" Leo asked. "I've noticed he keeps disappearing to 'scout' the area every once and awhile. Does he think those demons are tracking us?"
Leslie nodded. "He wants to make sure they're not on our tail. I think he's been covering our tracks as well, and laying some false ones to confuse them. No offense, but at the rate you guys move, if he wasn't doing that, we'd probably be the main course at the demon feast already."
"If that's your subtle way of telling me I'm out of shape, believe me, I solemnly swear to start going to the gym when we get back to our own time," Paige groaned, as she stretched her legs.
"So any ideas on how we're going to get back to our time?" Piper asked, anxiously, as Leo squeezed her head reassuringly. "I'm worried about Wyatt and Chris in our time. We need to get back to them."
"Like I mentioned before, how about a spell?" Paige suggested, helpfully.
"I don't remember you mentioning that?" Phoebe questioned, perplexed.
"Yep. Right before the whole running for our lives thing happened. I said that we could try a spell," Paige explained.
"The spell sounds like the best bet," Leslie nodded. "But first, I think we need to get back to base, where it's secure."
"Secure? You know, that sounds suspiciously military like. What do you mean 'secure'?" Phoebe asked, standing up to stretch.
"Since the spell doesn't let us orb or demons to shimmer, it forces everyone to make their way to base by foot. But it also means that this area is a hot bed of demon activity. That's what Chris meant when he said we'd tumbled into an unsafe part of the city. This place is overflowing with demons, who are hoping to catch anyone, just like us, trying to make their way back to home base." Leslie explained. "That's why we have to keep moving."
Blanching at the thought of running into more demons, Piper opened her mouth to question Leslie further when she saw her son reappear out of the corner of her eye. "Where have you been?" she demanded, relief quickly changing to anger fueled by worry.
Ignoring her, Chris gestured for the group to stand up. "Let's go. I found our ticket in, about three blocks from here. Abandoned office building. Should give us access to the tunnels." He shifted nervously from foot to foot, glancing around. "I'll feel better once we're out of sight."
Leslie nodded, getting to his feet. "Sounds good. Any sign of demon activity?"
Chris shook his head. "But that doesn't mean they aren't there. We need to be really careful."
Although the building they were heading to was a mere three blocks away, Chris had insisted that they move stealthily, to avoid detection. Dodging in and out of abandoned homes, and sticking to the shadows, made for slow progress indeed. Also contributing to the slow pace was Chris' insistence that he 'scout' ahead, and then double back to pick them up. Piper had protested, but Chris had simply ignored her. Leo didn't like the idea of his son scouting ahead alone, but, as Chris had so conveniently impressed on him, he had to take care of Piper and her sisters.
High-pitched whines from energy balls being hurled sounded in the distance. Clearly, there was demon activity all around, but luckily, they hadn't run into any after their encounter with the trackers. Leo was reminded grimly of his time when he was mortal, fighting in the war. The ground had trembled beneath the pounding of the mortars, and the never-ending sound of gunfire. It was an experience that he had hoped his sons would never have to experience in their lives.
"Hey," Chris said, softly, suddenly appearing next to him.
"Hey," Leo responded, just as softly, his eyes rapidly running over his son's person, searching for any wounds.
Chris rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, dad. Don't worry. If I'm bleeding, I'll tell you, okay? Until then, just back off."
"Chris, I'm your father." Leo told him in no uncertain terms, "I'm suppose to worry, remember?"
Avoiding Leo's eyes, Chris pretended not to hear, and instead looked at the others, arching his eyebrow, questioning, "Ready to go?"
At their nods, Chris led them through the street, keeping their path strictly in the shadows casted by the numerous destroyed skyscrapers. Waving them ahead, Chris gestured for them to enter one of the sturdier looking structures on the street.
To Piper, it was just another damaged building, like the others scattered throughout the entire city. It was hard to believe that the sad cluster of ruined buildings had once proudly graced the skyline of San Francisco in her time. As they entered the building, she noticed how the ground floor was completely and utterly smashed. The marble floors were cracked, and a layer of dust and dirt seemed to dust the entire area. Plaster hung from the ceilings, and any wallpaper that wasn't scorched beyond recognition was peeling drunkenly from the walls.
Chris bypassed it all, without a second's hesitation, heading straight for the emergency staircase at the back. He yanked the door open, revealing only darkness.
"How are we going to go down there?" Piper asked, concerned. "There's no light!"
Chris moved forward, gesturing to them to follow as he started to descend into the darkness, pausing only to recite a quick spell. He opened his hand, feeling the magic swirl around his palm, making it glow with a brilliant white light. He smiled with grim satisfaction, as the light from his magic highlighted the darkness better than an artificial light could. Glancing back over his shoulder, he arched his eyebrow at his family, "Coming?"
Phoebe cringed, as she entered the staircase. The light from Chris' hand, while ample, didn't reach past the first couple of landings. It literally looked like they would have to descend into darkness. The imagery was not lost on her.
"Not afraid, are you?" Paige joked, as she passed her sister to trot after Chris. Leo and Piper went next, leaving Phoebe and Leslie to bring up the rear. Landings broke up the staircase, with a door leading off each landing. Chris ignored these, and continued to lead them further and further to the bottom.
Approaching the fifth landing, Chris could make out a weak light shining through the door. Gripping the doorknob of the exit door with his hand, he opened it cautiously. Peeking out, he scanned the area quickly with his eyes and shoved the door open completely when he was sure it was safe.
While the sisters and Leo had seen Chris' vision of the future, they hadn't really paid attention too much to their surroundings, their focus wrapped up in locating Chris at the time. Nothing prepared them for the sight that greeted them. The landing had opened into a two-tiered foyer, with multiple tunnels running off in every direction into the distance on the second floor. Below them, the ground level's steel floor was dull with dust. Lights flickered on and off, contributing to the moving shadows against the walls. It was like they had stepped into a ghost town. It was empty...silent...dark.
"Where are we?" Paige asked, nervously, as her voice seemed to echo and bounce off the walls of the deserted hall.
We're in the tunnels. Leslie mind spoke to everyone, answering Paige's question. These tunnels used to be part of an underground shopping concourse. After the destruction of the city, we retreated here, to step up base. It gives us shelter from the environment above, and the layout of the tunnels is pretty complicated. Helps us keep the demons out.
Suddenly, a piece of the ceiling broke off, crashing to the ground in front of Phoebe, who let out a terrified squeak, as Leslie yanked her out of the way.
"Is it safe to be in here?" Leo asked worriedly, as he eyed the unstable ceiling above them.
Safer in here, than up there. Leslie grinned. Trust me.
"Very funny, haha." Chris glared sourly. "Listen. Because of all the destruction up world, not all the tunnels are safe. Keep an eye out for falling debris, okay? And keep your voices down." Turning his back to his parents, he continued forward through the tunnels. The glow from his hand disappeared, as he released his magic, judging that the limited lighting along the walls would be enough. Instantly, the area seemed to become incredibly gloomy, the flickering lights contributing just enough light to see a mere few feet ahead of them.
"Hey!" Paige exclaimed, as she stumbled forward. "Why'd you turn out the lights?"
"It's safer this way. Keep your voice down, there could be demons lurking about," Chris' voice was soft and low, gently reprimanding Paige.
Chris – don't worry, I told them we're here. Darryl is sending a scout party to meet up with us and clear the way. Leslie winked at Paige, as he directed his thoughts to everyone.
"They know we're here?" Chris' voice was still low.
I've been in contact with base camp, once we entered into the staircase. That's why we haven't run into any scouts yet. Darryl has them clearing the way ahead. Leslie shrugged. They should be here any minute.
"Ah, what about us?" Leo looked at Leslie and then Chris, who both stopped to look back at Leo questioningly. "Are they expecting us? I hate being the voice of reason here, but what about future consequences?"
Paige rolled her eyes, "I think we've pretty much screwed the whole future consequences thing, you think?"
Chris nodded curtly. "You've seen too much as it is, there's no point in trying to shield you from anything else. But we should keep it to a minimum." He directed a glare at Leslie, Relay ahead and tell them to keep their traps shut, okay?
Nodding, Leslie frowned as he concentrated, and sent the message ahead. They're expecting us.
Piper yelled out a yelp, as suddenly, a man appeared in front of her, seemingly materializing out of the darkness. Dressed all in black, he had blended in with the shadows. Backing away quickly, she came up short, as she bumped into Leo. Throwing her hands up to freeze the man, he just quirked his eyebrow at her. "What?!? How come he didn't freeze?"
"Because he's one of us, Piper," Sighing, Chris moved forward, yanking his mother's hands down. "How are you, Duncan?" he asked, his voice no longer whispering. "Everything all clear?"
"Piper? What happened to mom?" Piper glared at her son, who ignored her as he clasped hands with 'Duncan.'
"I'm good, Chris. Better now that you're here. We intercepted Darryl's message on the way back from our shift. The passage way is all secure," Duncan nodded, professionally. As he took in the rest of Chris' group, Duncan's eyes suddenly widened in disbelief, "Ms. Matthew?"
"I thought you said they were expecting us?" Chris glowered at Leslie, who shrugged innocently.
"We are. But we weren't... I mean, he did. I mean, Zachery said there were others with you, it's just..." Duncan jumped in, hastily. "It's just, I wasn't expecting, I mean..."
"Thanks, I think." Paige grinned. "Call me Paige, please. Kind of weird when someone who looks older than you calls you by your surname, you know? You seem familiar...Duncan? Do I know you?" Paige's brows beetled, as she tried to place the man. Suddenly, something clicked in her mind, as she asked in disbelief, "Duncan! Are you the Duncan that conjured Lady Godiva in Magic School?"
Blushing, Duncan looked down, embarrassed, "That was a really long time ago."
Chris shook his head, putting up his hand. "Enough. You can have the reunion later." Turning his attention back to Duncan, Chris questioned, "Where's the rest of the team?"
Duncan looked up, all business, and nodded over his shoulder, behind him, "The rest of the team is securing the way back. We ran into a couple of brute demons, but we took care of them."
"Good work." Chris said, praising the other man.
"You mean there are others?" Phoebe questioned, still hanging back with Leslie, unsure of herself.
"No one works alone," Leslie explained, aloud, as he no longer had to be concerned about demons surprising them in the tunnels, thanks to Duncan and his team. "That's the rule. We work in teams. It's why trust is so important."
"Well!" Piper directed a glance at her son, "That's certainly a different tune. Who came up with that brilliant deduction?"
"Chris did," Duncan looked puzzled. "We all work in teams. Usually teams of two, but it can be as large as five, depending on what's needed."
"I need a status report," Chris said, mainly to cut off any other questions from the girls. "Get Zach to bring Les and I up to speed."
"Oh, but I could tell –," Duncan broke off, as he realized Chris wanted the report telepathically. "Riiiggghhhtttt....I'll tell him." And he jogged off into the darkness.
"Let's go," Chris trotted after Duncan, not waiting to see if the rest of them followed him.
"Is it just me, or is that one incredibly grumpy nephew?" Paige asked no one in particular.
"He's home, Paige." Les answered, anyways. "He's not grumpy...he's just – home."
The 'Zach' that Chris had mentioned, turned out to be another future student of Paige's. In fact, all the girls knew him, as he was the teen who Piper had had to turn into a frog at one point. With a grin, the 37 year old had assured the shocked girls that he was much better behaved now.
Chris led the way through the seemingly endless tunnels. Duncan was next to him, whispering softly, so that no matter how hard the sisters tried, they couldn't make out a word he was saying. Chris nodded every once and awhile, but otherwise, was silent.
Paige glared daggers at Chris' back, annoyed at his high handedness. Zachary, who was walking next to Paige, had been on the verge of striking up a conversation with his former teacher, when he had fallen silent after interpreting the glare directed at him from Chris. After that, none of the scout team had made conversation with the sisters and Leo, except to answer direct questions, and even then, in monosyllabic words. She was sure it was Chris' fault that the other scouts were so reluctant to speak with them. If Chris knew how irritated she was with him, he certainly did not give any such indication.
Piper and Leo walked, hand in hand, silent observing everything around them, and watched their son very closely, as he continued to lead the way. Two scouts walked on either side of them, their eyes and ears alert for trouble. Phoebe and Les brought up the rear, with Les acting as the 'guard'.
Forty-five minutes later, the sisters, Leo, Les, Chris and the rest of the scout team entered the base, after passing through the heavy steal door. The enormous underground structure of steel and reinforced concrete that housed the Resistance and the innocents they protected was exactly as Chris had shown them in his mind.
With one difference.
It was bustling with people, practically bursting at the seams, buzzing with activity.
Chris paused on the threshold, as he took in the scene. It was so different from the horror he had so recently experienced. The future, at least, certainly to his parents, seemed grim, but to him, it was home.
It felt...good...to be home.
And there was Darryl, standing in front of him, the heavy circles under his eyes showing the stress he had been under, and his thin body indicating the difficulties he had experienced. But it was all eclipsed by the genuine smile that greeted Chris.
"Chris. Welcome back," Darryl strode forward, clasping Chris in a hug. "It's good to see you, son."
"It's good to see you too, old man," Chris joked, as he returned the heartfelt hug. He stepped back from the older man, grinning, "More gray hair, I see."
"Very funny," Darryl moved past Chris, smiling at Leo and the sisters, who were openly staring at him. "Don't I get a hug?"
"It's just...I mean...you like so much like our Darryl," Paige explained, in wonder. "I mean, I know you're our Darryl, but I mean, you know, the Darryl from our time. But not. You know?"
Darryl shrugged. "How about we settle for hello?"
Suddenly, Phoebe launched herself at Darryl, hugging him tightly. "Does this mean you forgive us later?"
Letting out a short bark of laughter, Darryl hugged Phoebe back. "Let's just say, Chris makes me see the light, okay?"
Piper pushed her sister gently out of the way to kiss Darryl on the cheek, while Leo gripped his hand tightly in his own. "It's good to see you."
Stepping back to allow Paige to greet Darryl, Piper noticed over his shoulder that Chris was surrounded by a small group of people, which was steadily growing. She heard a young girl squeal, and watched as Chris picked up a young child from the ground, hugging her to him. He was talking absently to someone in the thickening crowd, while the little girl pulled gleefully at his hair with both her hands. Even as Piper stood there watching, the crowd continued to build at a quickening pace.
"I'd better go rescue him, or we'll never get to the command central," Darryl excused himself, as he pushed his way through the throngs. Right behind him, Leslie, Duncan, Zach and the other scouts entered the crowd, pushing their way to the middle, towards Chris.
"Okay folks. We know you're all excited to see him, but you'll get a chance later." Darryl announced, as the crowd began to protest. "We need to bring him up to speed folks, please."
Darryl gestured to one of the scouts, who reached for the little girl in Chris' arms, taking her from him, to lead her back to her mother. The other scouts quickly fell in formation around Chris, jostling their way gently through the crowd, to escort him away. Noting that Chris was in good hands, Leslie emerged from the cheering crowd, to jog over to where Leo and the sisters were standing alone.
He grinned at their stunned expressions. "Yeah. They love him."
"It's kind of like he's a rock star or something," Paige noted, clearly astonished.
Piper and Leo were speechless, their mouths hanging open in disbelief, as they watched the crowd of several hundred people surround their son with outstretched arms, even as he was moving away, clearly trying to grasp a piece of him. "It's unreal."
Leslie looked at Chris' parents, gently chiding them, "Is it really? Is it so hard to believe that so many people rely on him? Look up to him? Love him? I told you before. He's needed here."
"I guess we're just used to seeing him as our little neurotic whitelighter first, and then as family. It never really occurred to me what he's like here," Paige nodded, indicating her surroundings.
Recovering her scattered wits, Piper looked wistfully at her son's back, as she watched Chris disappear into one of the corridors leading away from the main hall. "Do you think we could go with him?"
Leslie noted with satisfaction that Darryl and the scouts had escorted Chris away, and the crowd was beginning to disburse. He smiled at the buzz of excited voices, and the hope he heard in them. Soon, it would be all over the base that Chris was back. Things were looking up. Turning back, he saw the wistfulness in Piper's eyes, "Come on. I'll take you to the command room."
Leslie led them up a winding staircase, a good two floors up from the level they had entered. Grinning, he held his hand to Phoebe, as she huffed and puffed the last couple of stairs, pulling her up onto the landing. "A little out of shape, aren't you?"
Groaning, Phoebe gave him her most evil glare, "You're just lucky I'm too exhausted to come up with a rhyme and summon a curse down on your head."
Choking back his laughter, he looked over her shoulder, as Paige, followed by Piper and Leo, struggled to the top. "You guys, okay?"
Paige nodded. "I would have thought that in the future you could just beam me up or something."
"At least there's gotta be some elevators around here or escalators?" Piper moaned, leaning on the handrail to catch her breath. "I mean, if we have them in the past, where the hell are they here?"
Leslie's smile faded, "We do have elevators and escalators in the future, Piper. But every ounce of energy our generators make go towards ventilation, lighting, water and other necessities. We don't have enough for conveniences."
"Well, I for one will never take orbing for granted, ever again," Paige sighed, leaning heavily against the wall. "I don't think I've ever gotten so much exercise in my entire life."
"Well, we're almost there, just across the catwalk and we'll be at the tower," Leslie waved his hand towards the cylinder-like building in front of them. It rose straight up the middle of the complex, stretching to the ceiling.
"What was this thing, anyways?" Leo asked, looking around, as they slowly made their way across the grates that made up the bridge to the tower. "If I didn't know better, I'd think it was some sort of silo."
Leslie shrugged. "Actually, I think it use to house an amusement park ride. I'm not really sure. I'm not originally from the San Francisco area, after all. Most of the building is empty, and pretty much unusable, but the control room where they use to monitor the ride is what we use as command central now." As they neared the door to the control room, Leslie nodded at the two guards outside the door. "They're with me."
Nodding, the guard to his right opened the door, and gestured for the group to enter. Before slipping inside, Leslie turned back, "No talking here on in, okay? I'm not really sure what's going on, so let's try to be as inconspicuous as possible, okay?"
Surreptitiously, the group entered into the command room. If the base outside was practically buzzing with activity, then the air inside the command room hummed. Eerily similar to the room they had seen in Chris' mind during their trip to Hell, the room was jam-packed with people. Three men and two women were seated at the round table, in the centre of the room, where a glowing white crystal seemed to pulse with life. Eyes closed, expressions blank, they appeared to be in a trance.
"What are they doing?" Leo whispered to Leslie, nodding his head at the table.
They're telepaths. They stay in contact with all the scout teams. All our scout teams have to have a telepath with them, so that they can send and receive orders from command. Les 'mind sent' to Leo and the girls, trying to avoid drawing attention. It's one of our greatest advantages, communications – one that Wyatt's armies of demons can't match. In this room, we know at any given moment what's happening out there, as long as there's a scout team in the vicinity.
"What's with the crystal?" Phoebe asked, softly, entranced by the soft glow.
It just helps them focus their thoughts. Nothing too special. Leslie shrugged. Any other questions?
"Yes," Piper tilted her head in Chris' direction, "what exactly is my son doing?"
His back to them, he hadn't noticed his family enter the room with Les. Completely absorbed, he was staring at something pinned up on the wall. It looked like a huge map, with multi-coloured pushpins in clusters littering across the surface. Surrounding him, were a small group of people, who were chattering away in Chris' and Darryl's ears.
He's been away for awhile. Duncan says it's been five months since Chris left for the past. They're bringing him up to speed. Leslie explained.
"Oh my god...is that...is that Odin? And that guy looks familiar too!" Paige whispered, excitedly, as she pointed at the group huddling around Chris. "Actually, they all look kind of familiar."
Yep, that's Odin all right. He's one of the few elders still alive. He represents all the whitelighters and what's left of the elders. Personally, I think he's full of himself. The guy on the far left is Ben. He represents the witches. Good man. Riley represents all the magical beings. He takes his position really seriously. And Darryl represents all the mortals. They kind of form a council, making sure everyone's interests are properly represented. Chris isn't big on running the show single-handed. Makes for mistakes, he told me once.
Leo and the sisters watched as Chris shook his head at something Odin was saying, while Ben, clearly agitated, was waving his hands energetically as he tried to commandeer Chris' attention. Whatever it was, it must have been a sensitive topic, as the voices began to rise as each tried to be heard over the other.
"Are you even listening to what I'm saying?"
"You're age is showing, old man –,"
"There's no need..."
"Hey! Hello! This isn't a monologue! It's my turn to speak –,"
"Enough!" Darryl thundered, his deep voice commanding obedience immediately. They stared at Darryl, dumbfounded. "One at a time!"
Spinning around, Chris began to move towards the windows that overlooked the base, when something caught the corner of his eye. Slowly, he turned to settle his gaze on Leslie and his family, watching him warily. Striding forward, with a curt nod of his head, he indicated for them to follow him. Without a backwards glance, he told Darryl, "I'll be right back."
Leo and the sisters trailed after Chris and Leslie, following them to the back of the room. Standing to the side, they watched as Chris whirled on Leslie, glaring at him.
"Boy, if looks could kill –," Phoebe whistled, "Les would be one dead duck."
"What do you think he's so mad about? And why aren't they saying anything?" Piper glanced up at her husband, who was standing next to her, silently observing his son.
"I think they're doing that – mind speaking, telepath thing, again," Phoebe guessed.
Finally, Leslie broke eye contact, looking down at the floor, nodding. Chris heaved a sigh, running his left hand through his hair in agitation. Turning back to his family, but his eyes on Darryl and the others, "Les is going to take you to the magic room so you guys can make up that potion to get back to your time. I'll meet up with you guys, once I'm finished here." Still focused on getting back to the council, he brushed past his family.
"Hey!" Piper reached out and grasped Chris' arms as he tried to pass her. "Don't we get a say in any of this?" As Chris tried to shake her off, Piper's temper got the better of her. She was tired of her son always trying to avoid her. Hadn't they already resolved those issues? "Who do you think you are? Just where do you think you're going? I'm talking to you!"
"I don't have time for this," Chris managed to pry Piper's fingers off his arm. "Look, Piper, could you just go with Les and we'll talk about this later?"
Dropping his arm like it was on fire, Piper flinched at the cold tone her son directed towards her. Before she could muster up a retort, he was striding past, to take up where he had left off with the council. Her eyes boring into his back, she watched as he nodded at Riley, who began to espouse enthusiastically. She didn't miss the sympathetic look Darryl shot her, before turning his attention back to Chris. Piper looked sadly at her son, before turning back to her family. "I guess I'm not wanted here."
"Come on," Leslie said, gently. "We'll catch up with him later. I promise."
"What is this place?" Paige asked in wonder.
Leslie had led them back down into the base, somewhere that he called sub-level three. All Phoebe knew was that it was definitely deep inside the complex. Again, they had passed numerous guards on their way to the room in which they now stood. When Leo had commented on the intimidating 'guards' Leslie had explained that part of the base was secured off from 'civilians.'
The room, about the size of the family room in the Manor, was completed enclosed. Inside, bookcases and cabinets as tall as the ceiling ran around the room. A round table, with benches stood in the middle of the room.
"This is the magic room. All magical research is done here," Leslie nodded at the bookcases. "Those were the only books we managed to save from Magic School, before Wyatt took over the school. The cabinets should have all the potion making ingredients we need."
"Need?" Piper asked, absently, as she ran her hand along the bookshelves. The numbers of books in the room were just a handful of what she remembered seeing at Magic School in the past.
"To get you back to you time," Leslie told them. "Chris wants us to work on getting you home, ASAP."
"Good idea," Paige said. "No offense, but I really don't think I like this time at all."
"None taken," Leslie smiled, half-heartedly. "I'm not all that fond of it either."
"Well, how about Leslie and I work on trying to write the spell, and Paige, you and Piper work on the potion?" Phoebe suggested, helpfully. "That way, we'll have two choices, just in case."
Nodding her agreement, Paige moved over to the cabinets to start rummaging through the shelves for the ingredients she would need. Phoebe and Leslie began to pull books off the bookcases, researching. Unnoticed by her sisters, Piper remained where she was, leaning against one of the wall.
Leo moved towards Piper, noticing how quiet she was. Touching her elbow lightly, he asked, softly "You okay?"
A single tear slid down her cheek.
"What's wrong Piper?" Leo asked, concerned.
"He called me Piper." Piper focused her tortured eyes on Leo. "Why would he call me Piper? What did I do wrong?"
To be continued....