He did it for me
Chapter 33
By: teal-lover
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Being twice blessed, Wyatt thought that nothing could ever hurt him. It's devastating to find out how wrong you can be. Takes place in the future that Chris changed.
YES—FINALLY I CAN SAY IT--Christopher just turned 19, Chris was already 19, and Wyatt is three months shy of his 21st birthday:) I promise, that it actually has to do with the plot and Julius' reasons. Ahh. I feel so much better being able to let that out now. And I'll feel a lot better when I can tell you what Julius wants them for, which I promise will be soon. Maybe even next chapter. I hope just hope you like it…
Disclaimer in chapter 1
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Prue walked calmly back into the room, reaffirming her grandmother's words. "She's right. Such a high concentration of this amount of power will be easy to track. The Charmed Ones, The Twice-Blessed Witch, an Elder, the Book of Shadows, and Halliwell Spirits all in one place? There may as well be a neon sign pointing to the cabin that says "he's in here". No, if you all care about Chris as much as I think you do, then you have to go back to the manor for now—without him."
Paige asked incredulously, "And do what? Stand around the attic twiddling our thumbs?"
"You can work on getting a hold of that scroll Piper and Leo mentioned. Maybe then we can figure out a way around all this so-called destiny crap." Prue saw Piper about to protest and walked over and hugged her tightly. She spoke softly into the woman's ear, "It's ok, honey. This isn't over, you'll see Chris again, I swear to you. But you have to do this to keep him safe right now."
Leo squeezed Chris' shoulder, glancing at him apprehensively. He was afraid that if they left, Chris would feel abandoned again and was prepared to refuse Penny's request. Or was it a demand, he thought to himself.
Chris was more than a little disappointed at the new turn of events. He had just begun to feel comfortable in their presence, and now they were being asked to leave—and he couldn't believe it. Not after Penny had been so insistent that he get to know them. A momentary look of hurt flashed across his features as he caught her eye. Though the look didn't last long as he studied her face. Her expression was one of restrained worry, and the fact that she was obviously—well obvious to him—trying very hard to hide that fact worried him right along with her. He glanced at his Aunt Prue, and noted the same suppressed fear.
Something was very wrong with the other two Halliwell spirits, and whatever it was, he knew that they would need his support; much like they had offered him on numerous occasions. He turned and addressed both his father and mother, "Go ahead guys. I'll be ok. Besides, Wyatt will be with me."
Piper started to protest, "Chris—"
"Go ahead. I won't be mad. Really. Unless of course, you don't come back for me. Then I'll haunt you for the rest of your lives."
Piper laughed at his sense of humor before throwing her arms around him. "Of course we'll come back." She squeezed him tighter and kissed his forehead, "I love you, Chris."
He beamed brightly as those three magical words that he had been waiting to hear seemed to flow so naturally from her lips.
No sooner had she released her smothering grip on him, that everyone else turned and did the same before getting up to leave.
While they were doing that, Piper discreetly walked over to her grandmother and asked quietly, "And my other Chris. Since it was clearly you who switched them, I assume he's ok?"
Penny quickly put on a false smile as she led her down the steps, "Of course, Darling. Now you run along, find that scroll, and we'll take care of things here. I'll find a way to get a message to you when things clear up."
Leo headed down the stairs after them, followed by Sheila, Phoebe, and Paige. Reaching the center of the living room, they turned and waived to Chris standing on the balcony before linking hands—disappearing in a swirl of blue and white lights.
Chris narrowed his eyes at Penny, crossing his arms suspiciously, "What's going on?"
"Whatever do you mean, dear?" she asked innocently.
"Not gonna' work, Grams. The two of you practically threw them out of here. And after nearly two decades, I think I know you both well enough to figure out that something is wrong. So spill." He turned to the woman standing next to him, fidgeting nervously, "Aunt Prue? You want to tell me what's going on?"
Prue bowed her head, refusing to answer, instead letting the task fall to the older woman slowly making her way back up the stairs.
Penny placed a hand on either young man's shoulder leading them to the bedroom, "I think you two had better sit down…"
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LOCATION UNKNOWN…Clarence was positively mortified when he entered the room. The Halliwell boy looked quite like a rabid animal, particularly since he was currently engaged in biting one of the demons that tried to restrain him.
He sighed deeply, fearing it was already too late to save him. The way he fought back was ruthless and vicious, landing punch after kick; and given what they had been most likely been doing to him, Clarence would have been proud of the boy if it weren't for the fact that he feared that he had already lost his mind.
There appeared to be nothing left of the sweet and gentle-natured boy he had looked in on from time to time. But now, he had been pushed too far.
Feeling discouraged, Clarence was tempted to turn around and leave, but he promised the boy's great-grandmother he would return him to her, and he fully intended to keep that promise.
Before he could step forward and announce his presence, he heard the boy yelling something in between the curses that made him question his insanity. He leaned in and listened intently for a moment longer.
Chris struggled against the demons trying to hold him down, yelling vehemently, "I'M NOT GONNA' DO IT! This is what he wants! Why can't you see that! I WON'T DO IT! I WON'T BE THE CAUSE!"
Clarence had seen enough, though his words were abruptly cut off when they covered his mouth. They boy's words seemed to indicate that he was clearly aware of what he was talking about. A new hope surged through him—perhaps he wasn't lost to them after all.
He strolled out of the shadows, surprising everyone in the room. "THAT'S ENOUGH!" he commanded in deep, booming voice. "Let him go, he's coming with me."
Raina gasped in surprise as she stepped in front of Christopher. "Clarence? You shouldn't be here."
"Neither should you. You're a disgrace to every good magical being there ever was."
The Elder flushed with embarrassment and seemed to be offended. She pointed to the teen, "This is necessary evil. It has not been done out of malice. But only for a good cause."
Clarence scoffed indignantly, "Trying to destroy his soul? That's for a good cause?"
"That is not our intention. We simply must know where the other is—and HE is the stubborn one who refuses to answer. None of this would go on were he not so obstinate. Julius is one of your own. You know he can and will set a chain of events in motion that will destroy the world unless he gets what he wants."
"He doesn't have that kind of power."
"Perhaps not. But he knows where to get it. And he has sworn to use it."
The Angel narrowed his eyes at her pointedly, "And I have sworn to return this young man to his family. What you're doing is wrong, and I will not let it continue."
Raina's eyes widened and she moved to stop him, "You can't do that. The fate of the entire world rests with him. He MUST remain here. Julius will not tolerate his removal, and I will not allow it either." She raised her hands and prepared to strike him with her lightening.
Clarence smirked at the futile action, "That's your problem, lady, not mine. It's not like you can stop me." He waived his hand in front of her face, shaking his head as her entire body froze mid-sentence. He stepped around her, freezing all of the demons in the room, including the ones that held the Halliwell boy.
Immediately, Christopher stopped struggling as Clarence reached down and pried the demon's stiff fingers from his arms.
Taking the extended hand that was offered to help him stand, Christopher questioned him anxiously, "What happened? You can freeze like my mom? Who are you?"
Clarence smiled warmly, "Let me work backwards—I'm Clarence. Our range is a whole lot larger than your mother's—tends to extend across the universe to anything we choose--freezing is one of our main powers. It allows us to collect the souls to take them where they need to go. But Raina should know better. You can't fight the Angel of Death, no matter who you are."
Eyes wide with fear, Christopher began backing away, tripping over the demons and breathing heavily at the revelation. He shook his head in a panic, "No. No. NO—I won't do it! Stay away from me!"
He spoke in a gentle voice as he tried to help him up, "Take it easy, son. I'm not going to hurt you. Your great-grandmother Penny sent me to get you." He pulled back as the young man scrambled to get away from him in a desperate panic. Sighing sadly, Clarence stood up and asked him softly, "You're not going to make this easy for me are you?" Not waiting for an answer, he waived his hand again, freezing the wide-eyed stare in it's tracks.
As he bent down and scooped the boy into his arms, he brushed a careful hand over his face and closed off the sight of those bright green orbs. Even to the Angel of Death, the terrified stare within them was unsettling. He wondered, not for the first time, what could have caused it. But now that he was returning him to his family, he was secretly glad that it was them that would be charged with finding out.
Tbc…
AN: wow! 2 chapters in 2 days. That's got to be a new record for me. But I'm trying to finish it up for you, so I've been writing until my fingers were about to fall off. I had every intention of adding more to this chapter, but I just can't—Im sorry. I got to get back to homework. But at least Christopher is safe now, or is he?
