Disclaimer: See First Chapter.
Author's Note: Hi! I want to thank you all for the wonderful reviews! I know everybody has a lot of questions, but try and be patient. (I feel like Leo and you guys are all Chris, hehe) … I will eventually get around to answering all your questions. Don't stop asking them though, because they help me remember all the lose ends I have to tie up, I have a list, but back up is always appreciated. Thank you!
I apologize to Phoebe fans—she's not in this chapter either. Next time—I promise. And her girls too! This chapter is mostly for those people who had a heart attack when they heard Leo was still an Elder. Truth is not many questions get answered in this chapter, but I'm working on it.
I hope you enjoy!
Chris's face paled and he took an involuntary step back, the expression on his face horrified, "You're a what?" he whispered.
Leo quickly reached out and grabbed his arm, preventing him from staggering off the steps.
"Chris-" he began, but his son wasn't listening.
"Oh god," the tortured whisper, was accompanied by the yanking away of his arm from his father's grasp, "It was me… I ruined-"
"NO." he stated firmly, "You didn't ruin anything. Piper and I simply decided that a marriage between us wasn't practical. We need to talk about this-- but inside Chris… Mattie's already in there, and Piper'll come out here and demand to know what's going on." He sighed, looking around them and down the street, "And it's probably getting close to two-thirty already, which means Polly and Lee will be getting in…"
Leo trailed off, his son wasn't saying anything.
"Come on Chris… I told you already, we're okay…"
Chris nodded numbly, and followed his father into the house. Leo headed directly to the conservatory, where he sensed Piper.
Her entire face lit up at the sight of Becky, "There's Nana's favorite girl!" she cried, holding her arms out wide.
Becky squealed with laughter when Piper approached and started tickling her, "Mattie stormed in a few seconds ago…" she muttered, still making faces at Becky, "We need to tell Paige he's here…"
Leo nodded, but his mind was still on his conversation with Chris, "Piper," he began seriously causing her to look up at him quickly,
Her smile faded, "Uh-oh, that's not a good look… what happened?"
He shook his head, "Nothing… I just… here take Becky…" he said handing the baby over to her. Piper took her granddaughter quickly, but her gaze was still fastened on Leo, "Piper I need some time with Chris…"
Her eyes flashed, "Okay, I was pretty good with this situation earlier, but I'm getting truly worried now Leo. If this is something big, we should all handle it together…"
"Please Piper, just half an hour… alone, okay. Up in the attic… I promise it'll be okay…"
She sighed as she shook her head slowly, "I hate being left out of the loop…"
"I know, but… this is important…"
"You'll tell me if this starts to get out of control… he's my son too…" she stated firmly.
He reached out and gently smoothed the back of his fingers against her cheek, "I promise…" he said softly.
She nodded, "Okay then… attic's yours… half an hour…" she reminded him.
Leo nodded and quickly headed for the living room.
Chris was sitting on the couch staring off into space. "Come with me," he told his son.
Chris obeyed automatically. He followed his father, and slowly became aware of where they were headed.
The attic.
Leo held the door open for him and Chris heard it firmly close behind him as he walked in.
He looked around slowly. He'd never seen the attic like this… when he'd been a kid it had looked nearly exactly how it had in 2004, when he'd gotten older it had been a museum… but this…?
He sent his father an incredulous look.
Leo shrugged helplessly as he walked past his son, "The girls decided that since they were always having to go through the Book and making potions and stuff, you kids were going to spend a lot much time up here, so they should make it more kid-friendly. Recently Piper and Paige gave it a fresh coat of paint and some new toys… for Becky…"
An entire section of attic looked like a nursery; painted in bright blue, yellow, and red with shelves of toys; Barbie's, colored blocks, and plush toys scattered over colorful, patched rugs; and a small, child-sized table and chairs.
"You let them do this…?" Chris accused, "It's like— sacrilegious…"
"You don't like it?"
"They turned our ancestral attic into a nursery!"
"Not all of it… just that part," Leo amended. Then he smiled a little, "There's a new addition to the house too… on the ground floor; three bedrooms and a bathroom…"
Chris's eyes widened, "What!"
Leo shrugged again, "They decided that this was their house… and they should live in it; not treat it like some museum to be preserved for posterity- Chris, what is it?" Leo asked suddenly,cutting himself off. His voice urgent as he eyed the boy who had quite suddenlygone pale.
Chris shook his head and swallowed hard, "No, nothing… I just… you're right… they were right… it's not a museum—thank god, it's not a museum…"
Leo eyed him a moment, but remained silent… waiting.
"In my… my world… it was…" Chris confessed softly, "Wyatt made it one…"
"Oh Chris…" Leo whispered, feeling his heart clench for this young man.
And a wave of grief washed over him. This was his son… but he really knew so little about him, about his world…
His son… a son he would never really know…
"It's better that way," Chris stated firmly, startling Leo.
"How did you-"
Chris shrugged, "I saw the questions coming in your eyes… trust me Dad… it's better this way. My world should be forgotten, completely…"
"Your world, yes… but not you…"
Chris tilted his head to one side, "You plan on forgetting me?"
"Never."
The word was hissed without a moment's hesitation.
"Well then don't worry about it…" Chris said briskly, he was clearly upset and Leo knew it was only a matter of time before he exploded.
Chris continued to slowly tour the attic. The rest of it was pretty much as he remembered it – thank god; cluttered with junk and boxes, the book at its pedestal.
Finally the boy took a deep breath and sent his father a heated glare, "You're still an Elder." He hissed, it wasn't a question, but Leo nodded calmly, prepared to answer it.
"Yeah, Chris, I am."
He shook his head in disbelief, "How's that possible… you said… you said you'd be there… you promised…"
Leo's eyes took on a desperate look as he quickly approached his son, "I was there…" he cried, "I kept my promise, I swear…"
"But you and Mom…"
"Your mom and I were never part of the bargain… the promise was for you. I promised I'd be there for you… that I would make it better and I did, I have…" Leo said, his voice pleading for his son to understand; "Piper and I have an understanding. We've had for a long time… it works, Chris. We raised you with it…"
Chris shook his head, a swelling of panic filling him. His dad's words made sense, they were logical, but his heart cried out that it was wrong. His parents belonged together… it was a fact of life. Even in his screwed up world they'd been together… why not here? Why not in this world that seemed so perfect?
The answer was shockingly clear…
"It was me…" he gasped, "I'm sorry… so sorry… it was me… I ruined you for good… I-" But he never finished his sentence.
Leo was standing before his suddenly, grabbing hold of his shoulders almost roughly and giving him a good shake.
"No."
He told his son forcefully. "Listen to me Christopher… are you listening…?"
Chris nodded, but the expression on his face was of pure misery.
"You're mother and I lived together until you were four years old." He paused and just for good measure gave his son another shake, to make sure he was listening, "Do you understand…? After I left you here... I went back to 2004 and we got back together. Piper and Iwere together, as a couple, until you were four. You had nothing to do with our mutual decision to end it."
Chris shook his head, looking away from his Dad, but not pulling away, "But why…? I don't understand… you belong together…?"
Leo sighed, and loosened his grip on him a little, "We were making each other miserable. I was spreading myself to thin; I couldn't be a good Elder, a good father, and a good husband… it was too much…"
"So you chose the Elders over Mom!" Chris roared furiously, as he yanked himself roughly away.
Leo restrained the urge to yell. Chris didn't deserve that. So what if he was being stubborn and refusing to acknowledge that whatever he and Piper had done in the past twenty-three years had worked because the world hadn't ended… he still wasn't going to yell… not at Chris…
"I didn't choose the Elders over you mother Chris, as you can see… she and I get along perfectly well…"
"But you're not together…"
"No, not in-"
"And that's my fault! I'm the one who made you an Elder!"
"Chris if you would just-"
"You were happily married before that! Before me! I'm the one who ruined it!"
Leo took a calming breath, "Chris, you didn't-"
"I did. I-"
"Okay. Enough!" Leo cried, forgetting his intention not to yell.
"Dad-"
"Just shut-up and listen to me!" Leo shouted.
Chris glared at him, but did as his father asked.
Leo took another deep breath, "It was happening Chris." he confessed softly after a moment, "Right before my eyes, despite all my best intentions and hardest efforts… it was happening. My relationship with your mother disintegrating, with each day that passed I spent less and less time with you boys, and the Elders were seriously considering clipping my wings for several reasons…"
Leo paused and searched Chris's face to make sure he was listening. The angry expression on his son's face had faded and he was indeed paying close attention.
Leo continued, "I couldn't let it happen. Piper and I sat down and talked… it was the first civil conversation we'd had in months. We made decisions about what was most important… you and Wyatt were at the top of the list…"
Chris made a motion with his had, his eyes serious, "But Mom too…" he stated.
Leo cocked his head to one side, "This is going to be difficult for you to understand buddy, but I need you to try…" he told his son gently, "We learned the hard way… that the balance between good and evil must be preserved; it's what keeps the world sane… the scales tipped to either side leads to destruction."
"I know that," the boy interrupted, but the words weren't angry. He was doing as his father had asked… and trying to understand.
"The Elders preserve the balance Chris. And they need someone with ties to the mortal world to keep them in line…"
Chris made snorting sound.
"In the end… a marriage-like arrangement with your mother wasn't as important as raising you boys or keeping the world sane. So we decided to stop-"
"-just like that! To stop! Like it was nothing…?" Chris roared.
"LET. ME. FINISH." Leo stated through gritted teeth, but managed not to yell.
Chris glared, but after a moment he nodded, his jaw set mulishly.
"We decided to stop expecting our relationship to fit the marriage mold."
Chris took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair, "Okay… so you… what? You stopped living together…?"
Leo nodded, "Yeah, exactly, I stopped living here… but…" Leohuffed, "Okay,this is how it worked. I took you and Wyatt to school every morning, picked you up every afternoon and was completely yours on Saturday afternoons and all day Sunday. As for your mother and me… we behaved in the way that comes to us naturally, but stopped expecting our lives to be like everyone else's… "
"But you're not together?" Chris asked.
And Leo's mouth turned upward a little, his boy was fixated on that one word.
He rolled his eyes, "We're not married; we do occasionally go out, regularly engage in kissing, usually argue like a married couple, did raise two kids together, do dote on a granddaughter, serve as disciplinarians for a horde of nieces and a nephew, enjoy going on vanquishes as a team, and we've been known to spend the night togeth-"
"Oh jeez! Too much information!" Chris cried, covering his ears with his hands, but the angry glint in his eyes had vanished sometime during his father's speech; his lips were quirked upwards.
Leo shrugged, his gaze a little too innocent, "Just wanted to make it clear to you."
Chris sighed dramatically and dropped his hands, "Do you realize what you just described…?"
Leo nodded, "Yeah, my relationship with your mother…"
"You and Mom…" Chris stated, slowly, "You… you have a… a friends-with-benefits relationship…" his voice was filled with horror.
Leo shrugged simply, "Yeah… that sounds pretty accurate…"
"Oh Christ… you realize that's like a teenage thing, don't you…"
"Hey, it works for us… much better than marriage… that was a complete disaster…"
Chris released a breath, and walked over to what appeared to be the adult section of the attic. It was set up like a small parlor, and he sank into a sofa, "My mind went into a tailspin when you said you were still an Elder…"
Leo snorted, "Yeah, I noticed." He said wryly as he dropped down next to his son.
"I just... you orbed in right after Pai- Aunt Paige left and you weren't wearing the robes, and you've stayed; plus you and Mom were so... normal with each other... I just thought... everything was fine..." he finished lamely.
Leo grinned, "Everything is fine." He said with emphasis.
Chris smiled wryly, "Yeah, I guess... sorry 'bout the freak out... I'm just... this is all so weird..."
"I know," Leo said understandingly, "It's alright..."
"Next time I'll, uh… try and let you finish talking, before I yell... 'kay."
"Much appreciated," Leo responded just as wryly.
"So how come?"
"How come what?"
"How come you're not wearing the robes?"
"Oh…" Leo shrugged, "The other Elders have so many other issues with me—you know trying to make me conform to all their rules—that they just haven't gotten around to ordering me to wear robes…"
"In twenty-three years!"
Leo laughed, "There are a lot rules…"
Chris laughed too, then added almost shyly, "You know... the attic doesn't look so bad..." he said looking around, "It's kinda nice. You have the kid area, the adult area, and the messy area..."
"-storage-" Leo interrupted, giving his son a warning look, "It's the storage area..."
"…looks like a mess to me,"
"I suggest you look again; Piper insists it's the storage area..."
Chris smirked, eyeing the area askance, "Oh, okay then…" then he looked to his father enquiringly, "So, uh… I guess everyone still lives here...huh?" he asked.
Leo nodded, "There was a time when it wasn't like that... but yeah, right now everyone lives here. Paige and Mattie have an apartment-like place in the basement-"
"-with the nexus!"
Leo nodded, "It's not that hard to control the nexus; they just don't use there powers down there. It's remodeled—it looks pretty good, actually. They moved in about two years ago… right after things started going wrong with Richard."
"And Phoebe?"
Leo shot his son another warning look, "Your Aunt Phoebe…" he corrected, "… and her girls have lived here for a long time. Phoebe moved back in when she was pregnant with Cia."
"Oh… how come?"
Leo eyed his son a moment, then answered with a question of his own, "Was Phoebe married in your world?"
Chris's eyes flashed with an unidentifiable emotion, before he shook his head, "Phoebe wasn't anything in my world." He responded tightly.
Leo frowned; he could tell Chris didn't want to talk about it, but still… "I thought it was Paige who died first in your world… with the Titans."
The boy eyed his father for a moment, as if deciding whether or not to answer, then shrugged, "I lied." He said simply, "And we're not talking about my world remember. We're talking about this one."
"I know," Leo stated, but his frown didn't lessen, "You lied to us about Paige's death?"
"Yep. I lied about a lot of stuff, remember…"
Leo's frown evolved into a scowl, "Yeah, you being my son was one of them," he growled.
Chris shrugged again, but he was beginning to look uncomfortable, "I didn't technically lie about that…"
"A lie by omission is-"
"-still a lie." Chris finished for him in a condescending tone as a small smile tugged at his mouth, "Funny how you manage to perfect that line in either timeline." He repeated his father's phrase.
And Leo grinned suddenly, "Okay, okay… I know all that is beside the point now…"
Chris nodded, a bit smugly, "You're supposed to behelping me…"
"Yeah, I know…"
"… not scolding me…"
"Yeah, okay…"
"… I'm confused enough without you taking time to bring up old issues-"
"OKAY, Chris…" Leo growled, his eyes twinkling with amusement, "I get it… forgive me… I was just surprised."
Chris nodded, his smile relaxed, "I'm a great liar."
"You were." Leo corrected, then, "So Phoebe died first in your world?"
Chris sighed, exasperated at his father's relentless, "Yeah; could we get back to my question please?
Leo smiled, and decided not to tease his son about patience, "She married Jason."
Chris groaned, "Oh jeez… of all the people!"
"He seemed like a good choice!" Leo defended.
"He doesn't like magic!"
"SSShhhhh! Don't yell… you're mother's suspicious enough!"
Chris's eyes widened suddenly and Leo felt his heart stop, "What is it?" he asked urgently.
"Mom doesn't date does she!" he asked, bolting off the sofa, "If you tell me she dates; I'm going back to the past right now! I have to fix that- there's no way! I mean a friends-with-benefits arrangement is one thing, but dating! No Way! I can't deal-"
Leo rolled his eyes and stood as well, "You're doing it again!" he interrupted his son, "…the yelling before I finish talking thing—stop it… and no your mother doesn't date."
The young man released a long breath, "Thank god… I just had a vision of the firefighter…"
Leo chuckled and dropped back down on the sofa, "Phoebe and Jason got a divorce as soon as Cia was born, but they were separated by Phoebe's third or fourth month of pregnancy. He lives in Tokyo now and flies the girls out there every once in a while, but he pretty much stays away from us." Leo tilted his head to one side, remembering, "He tried though, I'll give him that, he did try. They were together for seven years, and he gave it his best shot; there's no doubt in any of our minds about that… but in the end he just hated seeing his girls involved in magic. Phoebe he could handle, but the first time he saw Polly levitate and plant her foot in a demons face he freaked out. He tries to think of them as normal, and when they visit him, they don't use magic. But he and Phoebe… well… she has to use her magic, I mean—she's a Charmed One."
Chris nodded slowly and sighed as he sat back down next to his father. After a few seconds he spoke softly, "You know… I believe you Dad… I believe that it wasn't me who ruined your marriage…"
Leo sent him an odd look, "Well, good… because it wasn't you." He paused a moment then asked softly, "What brought the realization on?"
"None of them could do it…" he said softly, "All three of them… marriages ended… you and Mom sorta make it work, but probably only 'cause, well… you use magic as much as she does. Otherwise you probably would have ended up just like Richard and Jason—not able to handle it. It's just…" he shrugged a little, "… sad, I guess…"
Leo cocked his head to one side, considering his son's words, "I don't know Chris… they have each other… and I hate to bring this up – trust me I hate this topic as much as you do – but Phoebe and Paige… they can find uh… companionship if they want it…"
"Ugh! Dad!" Chris groaned.
Leo laughed, "End of topic, I agree…"
Chris nodded enthusiastically, "Hell yes, I so do not want to discuss love lives…"
Leo smiled, "So in conclusion—"
"-yes finally…" Chris muttered, "Could you just tell me who lives here…"
Leo ignored his son's impatience, "At the moment— Phoebe has one of the-uh, I guess for your sake… we'll call them the new rooms—but they've been around for a like ten years-"
"DAD." Chris gritted out.
Leo smiled, he was really testing the boys' willpower here, "Okay, okay sorry… uh… Polly and Lee share the largest of the new rooms and Cia has the third. Piper has her same room. I already told you Paige and Mattie live downstairs and Wyatt – who's living here again… he moved out briefly— has Paige's old room."
Chris took a very deep breath, and released it slowly, "What. About. Me, Dad? Do I live here?" he asked slowly, carefully.
"Oh! Right! Sorry, yeah you live here… you have Phoebe's old room…"
"So Wyatt and I never move out…"
Leo grinned, "Oh you've tried, but… well just like everybody else… you come back…"
The slamming of a door caught them both by surprise as the house practically rattled. Chris sat up straighter, forgetting to pursue his father's comment, "What the hell was that?" he asked starting to get up.
"Polly and Lee are home," Leo said quietly.
Chris blanched, and fell back into the sofa, "The ones I'm psychically linked with, but can't identify?"
Leo nodded amused. Suddenly though, his eyes widened and he grinned, "I'm such an idiot." He muttered as he shot off the sofa.
"Well, Mom always argued you weren't, but if you ask me-" Chris piped in, following his father, but stopped when Leo turned and sent him a glare.
"I completely forgot," the man continued after silencing his son, "I was all ready for tomorrow… why you're here today is beyond me, but that's not the point. Anyway, I made this up for you…" he finished.
He'd walked over to the "storage" area of the attic and pushed a few boxes aside, then waved his hand and Chris watched as a book appeared on the floor.
"What is it?"
"A photo album…" Leo said, picking it up and handing it to Chris, "I figured you should know what everyone looks like… I put some maps in there too. And your class schedule… its just stuff I thought you should know…"
Chris rolled his eyes, "Jeez, Dad, you couldn't give this to me… earlier!"
"I forgot!" Leo cried, following Chris back to the sofa, "And we gotta hurry… Piper said she'd give us half-an-hour, but once Polly and Lee find out you're here… time's up."
"Don't they know I'm here…"
"Nope, at this time of the day you're usually with-" again Leo's eyes widened. This time he ran a hand through his hair as well.
"What?" Chris asked, he hadn't even gotten a chance to open the album, "I'm with who?"
Leo cringed a little, knowing his son was about to blow a gasket, "With your fiancée." He offered lamely.
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