Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from the television show Charmed.
All characters belong to Spelling Television, and The WB.
I'd love to get feedback! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed the story so far. Please continue to review the story or e-mail me at jefflangdonhotmail.com!
The Pain of Future Wrongs – Chapter 30
"No..." Wyatt whimpered as he stared at Chris' limp body. "This wasn't supposed to happen..."
Piper's body shook as she sobbed. Phoebe and Paige hugged their sister as the Charmed Ones grieved for Chris. Ryan, still in shock, slid to the floor, his eyes glazed as he stared at his brother's body.
Leo held back his tears as he stared at the heavens. "I'm an Elder...and I couldn't even save my son..." he chastised himself. "I couldn't even save Chris..." Wanting to be alone at the moment, he orbed away to grieve in solitude.
Wyatt walked over to Chris and knelt beside his brother. He rest his face on Chris' chest and cried. "Why...why couldn't you give me a second chance?" he asked. "You didn't even give me a chance to do it right!! I didn't even get a chance to seek your forgiveness..." Wyatt berated himself as he sobbed. His heart ached, knowing that even to the end, Chris never said that he forgave Wyatt. He desperately wanted forgiveness from his family, but it was Chris' forgiveness that Wyatt needed the most.
Suddenly, Wyatt's body stiffened and he stopped crying. The abrupt silence put the Charmed Ones on alert, afraid that Wyatt might have turned back to his demonic self. "He's not dead..." Wyatt whispered to no one in particular. "He's not dead..." he said louder.
Piper looked at Wyatt with confusion and suspicion, not understanding what Wyatt was talking about.
"Mom!" Wyatt called out, "Chris isn't dead. He's breathing!!"
Piper was about to answer when she noticed Chris weakly taking a breath. "Oh my god..." she gasped. Wyatt was right, her son wasn't dead. Chris was still alive. Soon, the entire manor was in a frenzy as everyone rejoiced. "Leo!! Leo!!!" Piper called out.
Leo orbed in, his eyes red and puffy from crying. "What is it, Piper?"
"Chris isn't dead!! He's still breathing!!" she said excitedly.
Leo skeptically walked over to his son's still form and soon he too realized that his son was indeed alive, albeit barely.
"Your spell must've worked," Phoebe observed. "A bit of a time delay, but it worked nevertheless."
Wyatt breathed a huge sigh of relief. For a while, he felt himself being crushed by his feelings of guilt. Knowing that Chris still had a chance renewed his sense of hope. But Wyatt also knew that they were by no means out of the woods.
"When do you think he'll wake up?" Piper asked as she lovingly brushed a strand of hair from Chris' face.
"Not until we find a way to remove the poison," Wyatt answered quietly. "The spell only prolongs his life, but it doesn't heal him. If we don't find a way to get rid of the poison soon, the spell will eventually expire."
"How long do we have?" Paige asked grimly.
"I don't know," Wyatt admitted. "The spell could last as long as several years or as short as several days. In the meantime, Chris will remain comatose."
All the jubilation that had been felt earlier quickly dissipated as the reality of the situation became clear to everyone. Piper immediately took charge. "Phoebe and Paige will check the Book of Shadows for anything that might heal Chris. Leo, go check with the Elders. Ryan and Wyatt, go look after Chris and make sure no one tries to hurt him. I'll go fix everyone some dinner. We'll need all the energy that we can get if we're going to save Chris."
Everyone did as Piper instructed. Ryan and Wyatt took Chris down to the basement and laid him gently on his cot. Wyatt sat by Chris' side and watched over him. Ryan took a seat at the other end of the room and kept watch from there. The tension in the room was high and neither brother said anything.
By dinner time, little progress had been made. Given the events that had happened, Piper was ordered to go to bed. Not having any energy to put up a fight, she reluctantly agreed. Leo went with her to make sure that she was okay.
Once in the room, Piper collapsed onto her bed, exhausted both physically and emotionally. She ran her hands over her stomach, and soon began to cry once again. The baby that she had carried for so many months was no longer there. With baby Chris gone, no one was even sure if there was a way to save big Chris' life.
Leo sat by Piper's side and hugged her as she sobbed. "What kind of a mother am I? To put my son through so much pain and suffering? I couldn't even do anything to help him!!"
"Piper, we've both made our share of mistakes," Leo comforted the love of his life. "But Chris did what he did to save Wyatt...and to save the world. What we need to concentrate on now is how to save grown-up Chris." Despite trying to show a strong exterior, Leo was torn up inside. He blamed himself for failing Chris, and for allowing Wyatt to grow up to become an evil tyrant. Things were even more strange now with a seemingly good adult Wyatt in the manor. He was still suspicious of this Wyatt, especially after he witnessed the evil first hand. However, his heart told him that Chris had managed to turn Wyatt back towards the forces of good. All of these thoughts confused and frustrated an exhausted Leo. The only thing that he could do was to hold Piper in his arms and help her walk through this most difficult part of her life.
Wyatt dutifully resumed his position at Chris' bedside as he watched over his brother. Ryan sat on his cot as he glared at his eldest brother. Knowing that this tension was doing no good for anyone, Wyatt decided to try and break the tension.
"Ryan, I know you are angry with me..."
"Don't even go there, Wyatt," Ryan warned.
"I know you hate me," Wyatt continued, ignoring Ryan's warning. "And you have every right to."
Ryan got up from his cot and stood up to face Wyatt. "I'm beyond hating you, Wyatt," Ryan answered venomously. "My feelings towards you are beyond what words can describe."
A hurt expression made its way to Wyatt's face, causing Ryan to be somewhat surprised. He hadn't seen Wyatt express anything other than anger and evil for so long that it was strange to see him exhibit human expressions.
"I can't even imagine what kind of a monster I must have been," Wyatt muttered. "Or the amount of hurt that I must have caused..." Wyatt was cut short when Ryan's fist connected with his body.
Ryan's eyes were glassy and Wyatt tried not to cry out in pain. "I really hate you, Wyatt!" he shouted as he started punching Wyatt mindlessly. Wyatt felt pain shoot through his body but did not fight back, knowing that he deserved every blow that he was taking. He saw Ryan's attack as a way to at least partially redeem himself for his sins.
Eventually, Ryan's punches ceased and were replaced by wracking sobs. Wyatt looked on awkwardly as his youngest brother broke down in tears. Finally, Wyatt gently wrapped his arms around Ryan, offering his shoulder for him to cry on.
"I'm sorry, Ryan," Wyatt whispered. "If I could do it again, I would change everything..."
Ryan brushed away his tears and pulled away from Wyatt, embarrassed for his show of emotions. "Why did you turn, anyways?"
"Jealousy, I guess."
Ryan looked confused. "Jealous? Of who?" he asked. Ryan was genuinely puzzled. Wyatt was always the centre of attention and he had power beyond almost any being. He couldn't think of why Wyatt would need to be jealous of anyone.
"Chris."
"What?" Ryan asked. "Why would you be jealous of Chris? I would've thought it would be the other way around?"
"It's weird, I know," Wyatt admitted. "I guess I hated the fact that I couldn't measure up to Chris. I always thought I was so special..."
"You were special. You were the most powerful of us all and the centre of everyone's attention."
"That was the problem," Wyatt explained. "Everyone neglected Chris and yet he still remained firmly on the side of good. Do you know how many times he had to cover for me so that I wouldn't get in trouble? He knew I was taking advantage of him and he still covered for me anyway."
"I still don't understand."
"Ryan, I got the attention because of my powers. Chris didn't need the powers. I don't think he cared about them much either. He was just himself. He didn't care what the world thought of him. He did what he thought was right and he couldn't care less if the entire world was against him. That's true power and it's something that I never had."
Ryan nodded absent-mindedly. He understood where Wyatt was coming from, although he still found the logic rather odd.
"Magical power became the only way I could convince myself that I was special. I told myself that the more power I had, the more people would look up to me."
Ryan shook his head. "It doesn't work like that, Wyatt."
"I know that now," Wyatt said, staring at the floor. "I got even angrier when Chris came back to save me. I kept telling myself, 'Who does Chris think he is?' trying to save the all powerful Wyatt."
"Mom and Dad gave him a really hard time when he came back," Ryan said as he looked sadly at Chris' still form again.
"I figured that would happen," Wyatt replied. "Do they know about how they treated Chris in the future?"
"Yeah," Ryan answered. Silence filled the room as the two brothers were lost in their own thoughts. "So is it true that Chris will be okay once we figure out how to remove the poison from him?"
Wyatt nodded in response.
Ryan narrowed his eyes and looked at Wyatt. "What? What didn't you tell us? Did you lie to us again???" he accused, his voice getting angrier.
"No!" Wyatt responded. "I just didn't know how to tell them that removing the poison is next to impossible..."
to be continued
I'd love to get feedback! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed the story so far. Please continue to review the story or e-mail me at jefflangdonhotmail.com!
The Pain of Future Wrongs – Chapter 30
"No..." Wyatt whimpered as he stared at Chris' limp body. "This wasn't supposed to happen..."
Piper's body shook as she sobbed. Phoebe and Paige hugged their sister as the Charmed Ones grieved for Chris. Ryan, still in shock, slid to the floor, his eyes glazed as he stared at his brother's body.
Leo held back his tears as he stared at the heavens. "I'm an Elder...and I couldn't even save my son..." he chastised himself. "I couldn't even save Chris..." Wanting to be alone at the moment, he orbed away to grieve in solitude.
Wyatt walked over to Chris and knelt beside his brother. He rest his face on Chris' chest and cried. "Why...why couldn't you give me a second chance?" he asked. "You didn't even give me a chance to do it right!! I didn't even get a chance to seek your forgiveness..." Wyatt berated himself as he sobbed. His heart ached, knowing that even to the end, Chris never said that he forgave Wyatt. He desperately wanted forgiveness from his family, but it was Chris' forgiveness that Wyatt needed the most.
Suddenly, Wyatt's body stiffened and he stopped crying. The abrupt silence put the Charmed Ones on alert, afraid that Wyatt might have turned back to his demonic self. "He's not dead..." Wyatt whispered to no one in particular. "He's not dead..." he said louder.
Piper looked at Wyatt with confusion and suspicion, not understanding what Wyatt was talking about.
"Mom!" Wyatt called out, "Chris isn't dead. He's breathing!!"
Piper was about to answer when she noticed Chris weakly taking a breath. "Oh my god..." she gasped. Wyatt was right, her son wasn't dead. Chris was still alive. Soon, the entire manor was in a frenzy as everyone rejoiced. "Leo!! Leo!!!" Piper called out.
Leo orbed in, his eyes red and puffy from crying. "What is it, Piper?"
"Chris isn't dead!! He's still breathing!!" she said excitedly.
Leo skeptically walked over to his son's still form and soon he too realized that his son was indeed alive, albeit barely.
"Your spell must've worked," Phoebe observed. "A bit of a time delay, but it worked nevertheless."
Wyatt breathed a huge sigh of relief. For a while, he felt himself being crushed by his feelings of guilt. Knowing that Chris still had a chance renewed his sense of hope. But Wyatt also knew that they were by no means out of the woods.
"When do you think he'll wake up?" Piper asked as she lovingly brushed a strand of hair from Chris' face.
"Not until we find a way to remove the poison," Wyatt answered quietly. "The spell only prolongs his life, but it doesn't heal him. If we don't find a way to get rid of the poison soon, the spell will eventually expire."
"How long do we have?" Paige asked grimly.
"I don't know," Wyatt admitted. "The spell could last as long as several years or as short as several days. In the meantime, Chris will remain comatose."
All the jubilation that had been felt earlier quickly dissipated as the reality of the situation became clear to everyone. Piper immediately took charge. "Phoebe and Paige will check the Book of Shadows for anything that might heal Chris. Leo, go check with the Elders. Ryan and Wyatt, go look after Chris and make sure no one tries to hurt him. I'll go fix everyone some dinner. We'll need all the energy that we can get if we're going to save Chris."
Everyone did as Piper instructed. Ryan and Wyatt took Chris down to the basement and laid him gently on his cot. Wyatt sat by Chris' side and watched over him. Ryan took a seat at the other end of the room and kept watch from there. The tension in the room was high and neither brother said anything.
By dinner time, little progress had been made. Given the events that had happened, Piper was ordered to go to bed. Not having any energy to put up a fight, she reluctantly agreed. Leo went with her to make sure that she was okay.
Once in the room, Piper collapsed onto her bed, exhausted both physically and emotionally. She ran her hands over her stomach, and soon began to cry once again. The baby that she had carried for so many months was no longer there. With baby Chris gone, no one was even sure if there was a way to save big Chris' life.
Leo sat by Piper's side and hugged her as she sobbed. "What kind of a mother am I? To put my son through so much pain and suffering? I couldn't even do anything to help him!!"
"Piper, we've both made our share of mistakes," Leo comforted the love of his life. "But Chris did what he did to save Wyatt...and to save the world. What we need to concentrate on now is how to save grown-up Chris." Despite trying to show a strong exterior, Leo was torn up inside. He blamed himself for failing Chris, and for allowing Wyatt to grow up to become an evil tyrant. Things were even more strange now with a seemingly good adult Wyatt in the manor. He was still suspicious of this Wyatt, especially after he witnessed the evil first hand. However, his heart told him that Chris had managed to turn Wyatt back towards the forces of good. All of these thoughts confused and frustrated an exhausted Leo. The only thing that he could do was to hold Piper in his arms and help her walk through this most difficult part of her life.
Wyatt dutifully resumed his position at Chris' bedside as he watched over his brother. Ryan sat on his cot as he glared at his eldest brother. Knowing that this tension was doing no good for anyone, Wyatt decided to try and break the tension.
"Ryan, I know you are angry with me..."
"Don't even go there, Wyatt," Ryan warned.
"I know you hate me," Wyatt continued, ignoring Ryan's warning. "And you have every right to."
Ryan got up from his cot and stood up to face Wyatt. "I'm beyond hating you, Wyatt," Ryan answered venomously. "My feelings towards you are beyond what words can describe."
A hurt expression made its way to Wyatt's face, causing Ryan to be somewhat surprised. He hadn't seen Wyatt express anything other than anger and evil for so long that it was strange to see him exhibit human expressions.
"I can't even imagine what kind of a monster I must have been," Wyatt muttered. "Or the amount of hurt that I must have caused..." Wyatt was cut short when Ryan's fist connected with his body.
Ryan's eyes were glassy and Wyatt tried not to cry out in pain. "I really hate you, Wyatt!" he shouted as he started punching Wyatt mindlessly. Wyatt felt pain shoot through his body but did not fight back, knowing that he deserved every blow that he was taking. He saw Ryan's attack as a way to at least partially redeem himself for his sins.
Eventually, Ryan's punches ceased and were replaced by wracking sobs. Wyatt looked on awkwardly as his youngest brother broke down in tears. Finally, Wyatt gently wrapped his arms around Ryan, offering his shoulder for him to cry on.
"I'm sorry, Ryan," Wyatt whispered. "If I could do it again, I would change everything..."
Ryan brushed away his tears and pulled away from Wyatt, embarrassed for his show of emotions. "Why did you turn, anyways?"
"Jealousy, I guess."
Ryan looked confused. "Jealous? Of who?" he asked. Ryan was genuinely puzzled. Wyatt was always the centre of attention and he had power beyond almost any being. He couldn't think of why Wyatt would need to be jealous of anyone.
"Chris."
"What?" Ryan asked. "Why would you be jealous of Chris? I would've thought it would be the other way around?"
"It's weird, I know," Wyatt admitted. "I guess I hated the fact that I couldn't measure up to Chris. I always thought I was so special..."
"You were special. You were the most powerful of us all and the centre of everyone's attention."
"That was the problem," Wyatt explained. "Everyone neglected Chris and yet he still remained firmly on the side of good. Do you know how many times he had to cover for me so that I wouldn't get in trouble? He knew I was taking advantage of him and he still covered for me anyway."
"I still don't understand."
"Ryan, I got the attention because of my powers. Chris didn't need the powers. I don't think he cared about them much either. He was just himself. He didn't care what the world thought of him. He did what he thought was right and he couldn't care less if the entire world was against him. That's true power and it's something that I never had."
Ryan nodded absent-mindedly. He understood where Wyatt was coming from, although he still found the logic rather odd.
"Magical power became the only way I could convince myself that I was special. I told myself that the more power I had, the more people would look up to me."
Ryan shook his head. "It doesn't work like that, Wyatt."
"I know that now," Wyatt said, staring at the floor. "I got even angrier when Chris came back to save me. I kept telling myself, 'Who does Chris think he is?' trying to save the all powerful Wyatt."
"Mom and Dad gave him a really hard time when he came back," Ryan said as he looked sadly at Chris' still form again.
"I figured that would happen," Wyatt replied. "Do they know about how they treated Chris in the future?"
"Yeah," Ryan answered. Silence filled the room as the two brothers were lost in their own thoughts. "So is it true that Chris will be okay once we figure out how to remove the poison from him?"
Wyatt nodded in response.
Ryan narrowed his eyes and looked at Wyatt. "What? What didn't you tell us? Did you lie to us again???" he accused, his voice getting angrier.
"No!" Wyatt responded. "I just didn't know how to tell them that removing the poison is next to impossible..."
to be continued