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Chapter 4: Advice from an aunt

Later that day after Leo and Piper had fallen asleep in each others arms in Piper's room Chris orbed into the attic. He walked over to the book of shadows and started to leaf through it. He couldn't help but felt a strange comfort coming from it. Maybe because it was a link to his family. A link to the family who hates him right now.

Chris sighed and tried to concentrate on finding some interesting informations about who turned Wyatt instead of thinking of the conversation he had had with his parents on the Golden Gate Bridge. He had so badly wanted to believe them and let his mother comfort him but he just couldn't. They hated him, he knew it. And he had to accept it.

Suddenly a slight wind went through the attic and the pages of the book started to move on theirselves. After a few seconds it stopped and Chris looked curiously at the spell that was now in front of him. It was the spell to summon a ghost. But Chris wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone right now so he closed the book and wanted to orb away but then the book opened itsself again on the same site. Chris frowned. Who was doing this?

Finally he gave in, took some candles and put them on the floor. Then he went back to the book and said the spell.

"Hear these words, hear my cry,

spirit from the other side.

Come to me, I summon thee,

cross now the great devide."

A white light started to shine in front of him and after it was gone he could see a beautiful black haired woman standing there. He recognized her immediately. In the past he had often summoned her when he had problems with his brother and didn't want to bother his mother with it. But when Wyatt had began to take over the world after Piper's death he had never been able to summon her again because Wyatt had blocked her.

"Prue?" he asked still a bit unbelievingly.

"It's Aunt Prue to you young man" she said smiling while she stepped out of the circle of candles to become solid. She then opened her arms and added "Come over here and give your favourite aunt a hug."

Chris hesitated. But then Prue went over to him and said "It's okay Chris." He couldn't resist anymore. He hugged his aunt like his life would depend on it and almost knocked her over. It felt so good to be able to talk to her again and to have one family member who didn't seem to hate him.

"Thank god I'm dead already or else you would soffucate me right now" Prue joked.

Chris pulled slightly away from her, not really wanting to let go. "I'm sorry."

"You don't need to be" Prue responded. "For anything."

Chris looked at her uneasily as he realized what she was talking about. "But…"

"No buts Chris. You did nothing wrong" Prue said with a voice that didn't allow any buts. She watched how her nephew bent down his head sadly and pulled him close again. "I'm so sorry for what you had to go through."

"You don't need to be" Chris repeated her words with a small smile. It was the first time he really smiled since he had arrived here in the past.

"Come on let's sit down a bit" Prue said and went over to the old couch that was standing in the attic. Chris followed her and sat beside her.

"Why are you here?" he asked her curiously. "In my time you weren't allowed to come down for the next two years or so."

Prue nodded. "That's might true. But I wanted to visit my nephew and there was no way in hell – or heaven in that case – somebody could stop me from doing it."

Again Chris had to smile at his aunt. This was exactly what he had wished since he was here. That someone of his family would really care about him. "Thanks" he said lowly.

"No problem" Prue said. She hesitated a second before she started to talk about for what she had come here. "Chris we need to talk – about your parents…"

Chris' smile faded from his face and he quickly interrupted her "Please let's not talk about this now."

"Chris we need to talk about this. You need to talk about this" Prue sighed. "I know that it's hard for you but you have to understand them…"

Again Chris cut her off "So that's the reason you're really here. To defend them." He looked down at the floor and felt a huge disappointment coming over him. But why had he been so stupid to think that she was here to comfort him? He should have known it better. It should have been clear to him that she wouldn't understand him. How he felt because his whole family hated him.

"I'm not here to defend them Chris" Prue contradicted. "I would rather want to kick their asses for what they have done."

Surprised Chris looked back at her. "Really? Then why do you want to talk about it? It's not like it would make any difference."

"It would make a huge difference. You're hurt right now and you have every right to be mad at them…"

"I'm not mad at them" Chris threw in.

Prue raised her eyesbrows. "Really? I would be."

Chris continued to stare to the ground for a moment but then he turned back to his aunt. "I'm really not mad at them. It's just… I hoped that it would be easier somehow. I hoped that they would trust me and not eyeing every move I make with suspicion. I know that I did some shady things but I had no other choice! All I wanted was to save Wyatt from turning evil so there would be a future for all of us. I never believed that…" His voice broke for a second but then he added "That they would all hate me."

Prue looked at her nephew in sorrow. It wasn't fair what he had to suffer in his life. She didn't know how the future he came from looked like but she was sure that Chris' life must have been hell there. And now he had to deal with the distrust and hate from his own family. She would give everything just to be able to yell a little at her sisters and her ex-brother in law. But she didn't know if she wouldn't have acted the same way in the past months when she would have still been alive so she didn't really have the right to judge them. "Chris you heard what they said on the bridge. They don't hate you, they love you" she spoke while she took his hand and gave it a soft squeeze.

"No. They just said that because they now know that I'm their son" Chris said while he tried to block out the pain that he was feeling.

"Exactly that's the point" Prue responded. "They finally know about you. They finally realized their mistakes."

"But it doesn't change anything!" Chris yelled frustrated. "It doesn't change the fact that they hate me! And I really can't blame them for that. After everything I did they have every right to be mad at me, not the other way around."

Prue shook her head vehemently. "Don't you get it? That's exactly what I'm talking about. They may hate some things you have done but they still love you. I'm also angry at them for what they did to you but I still love them because they are my family. I'm sure that they really love you and feel horrible for what they have done."

Chris looked at her uneasily. The things she said made sense to him but he was scared that she was might wrong with it. He didn't think that he could bear it if he would open up to his family and they would reject him. "I'm scared" he admitted, allowing himself for once to be weak.

His aunt smiled at him sympathically. "I know sweetie. But you have to give them a second chance. Not just for them – but also for yourself."

Chris sighed heavily. He knew that Prue was right. But still he couldn't forget what had happened in the past months. What if his parents felt just guilty right now and didn't really love him like they had said? He didn't feel like he deserved their love but still… he wished so badly that it was true what they had said on the bridge.

"Don't worry too much" Prue interrupted his thoughts. "You're too young to get wrinkles."

Chris let out a little laugh. "Thanks Aunt Prue."

"Ah, you remembered the Aunt" she said smiling while she pulled him into a hug. "I love you Chris. Never forget that."

"I won't. I love you too" he replied.

Then Prue stood up and went back into the circle of candles. Immediately her body became transparent again. "Till the next time" she said. It seemed like she wanted to go but then she added "Oh and if one of my dense sisters or Leo hurt you again just call me and I'll kick their asses okay?"

Chris laughed again and nodded while he watched his aunt disappear in bright lights. He then stood there for a while without knowing what to do but then he realized that he really needed to follow Prue's advice. He needed to talk with his parents. With a last glance at the book he walked slowly down the stairs to his mother's room.

TBC...