2026 cont.
Chris paced fretfully in the garden, glancing at his watch every now and then wondering what was taking Bianca so long. He was starting to worry that something had happened to her, and if that was the case he was certainly going to kill Wyatt for it. They both knew what they were doing was dangerous – Wyatt was not one to be trifled with – but it had to be done. Chris stopped as she shimmered in before him.
"So?" he asked expectantly.
"I'm still alive, aren't I?" she returned, smiling broadly and opening her arms wide.
"I take it it went well then."
"Yes," she said, moving quickly towards him and pulling him down to kiss her. "Exceptionally well."
"Did he grant you amnesty or something?"
"No, better. He told me how we could help him."
"What?" Chris asked disbelievingly.
"What you were telling me and what he was telling me doesn't add up. But it won't matter. All we have to do is go back to the house with the book, cast the spell and voila."
"We don't have the book."
"It's okay. He gave me three days reprieve so we can work something out."
"How can you be so sure this is going to work?"
"I have faith in you," Bianca said, brushing her fingers through his hair.
"Can we think about this logically for a second? If we do this, if I go back, how am I going to get close enough to help them? And am I even going to have my powers? I mean, I wasn't born yet. I could lose them just by going back. How am I meant to protect them then?"
"Of course you'll have your powers. You'd only lose them if you were changing identities. What are you afraid of, Chris? Are you scared of your little big brother?" Bianca questioned half-jokingly.
"No. I'm scared about making things worse. What am I meant to tell them? I'm the kid you haven't had yet, and the one you have is going to destroy the world? Who'd believe that? They'd slam the door in my face!"
"Then you need a cover story," Bianca said. Chris looked at her doubtfully. "Do you know anything about that time? Is there anything that happened you can change to win their trust?"
Chris shook his head. "Apart from every demon and friend attacking them, I don't know. I couldn't even say who turned Wyatt, there's so many of them."
"Well who's the closest to the Charmed Ones without being them?"
"Dad," Chris said bitterly.
"Can you go through him?"
Chris looked at her angrily. "I'm not crawling to him for help. He never cared about me in the first place. He wouldn't try."
Sympathetically Bianca raised her hand to his cheek. She realised it was the wrong thing to ask him to do. She had the same opinion about seeing her own mother again. But desperate times called for desperate measures.
"That's when they first took him anyway."
"Who?" Bianca inquired.
"The Elders. They were nearly wiped out by the Titans and needed replacements. Dad always cared more about his job than us."
Bianca looked at Chris thoughtfully. "Who replaced him?"
Chris shrugged. "I don't know. Would they need someone else?"
"From what you and Wyatt tell me, the Elders call the shots don't they? Wouldn't he be too busy for them… if he was for you?" she asked tentatively.
"What are you suggesting? You want me to be their whitelighter?" He laughed at the absurdity of the idea. "What kind of whitelighter could I make? I can't even heal! And they're all so stubborn – none of them are going to listen to someone younger than them telling them what to do. I can't even imagine teaching my mom to fight."
"You don't need to fight. Just protect and defend them. Keep them out of harms way."
"What if I can't?" Chris asked. She looked at him gravely. "I'm going to have to kill every witch, demon and warlock that was ever a problem, aren't I?"
"No, you can't change the past too much. You don't know what consequences there will be."
"I won't interfere; just do what I need to to help. At least I'll be able to get my hands on the book to track them down. Wyatt can't keep it away from me there."
"Do you want me to try for the book again?" Bianca asked. "He's already suspicious of me. It won't be easy."
"Where's he keeping it?"
"I don't know. It used to be in a cupboard in his room but he keeps orbing it away from me. There is a holographic replica in the museum, but that's useless. It only shows the page on the Warren line, no spells," Bianca explained. A teasing smile appeared on Chris' face and his bright green eyes lit up as if he knew a secret she didn't. "What?"
"We could use that book."
"No, I told you—"
"To get the other one," Chris finished. Bianca looked at him with confusion. "My power's in spell casting, right? Well why not cast a spell to replace that holographic copy with the real one?"
Bianca smiled. "You're a genius."
"I try," he said bashfully. "The only problem is having to write that spell so it'll work. I wouldn't want to summon the wrong thing."
"And?" Bianca pressed, seeing there was something more.
"The other problem is trying to get to the attic to cast it – Wyatt won't let me step foot in that house."
"He will if he trusts you."
"Wyatt doesn't trust me," Chris said, half-laughing.
"He's going to. I told him you were on our side. You just need to prove it."
"Bianca!" Chris exclaimed. "How am I meant to do that? Why did you tell him that?"
"Because it was the only way."
"So when am I going to have to endure this 'test'?"
"Christopher Halliwell, you've finally succumbed to 'the dark side'," Wyatt mocked, seeing his brother shimmer in with Bianca. "Temptation too strong, was it?"
Chris glanced at Bianca, seeing the knowing glint in his brother's eye as he looked back to him. It was more than obvious he was referring to Bianca being the largest influence to change his mind.
"I'm broadening my horizons," Chris answered.
"More like catering to every whimsy," Wyatt stated, his eyes flashing discouragingly. Turning away, he walked to the side table, picking up a large round paperweight and turning it thoughtfully in his hand. "I realise Bianca can be highly persuasive. I'd like to know how committed you are to this."
Bianca nudged Chris forward, encouraging him to say or do something to convince Wyatt of his loyalty. Chris had no idea how he could win Wyatt over in a short enough period of time. He feared that maybe he'd have to kill someone, as Bianca had, to create false hope in a lie.
Before he could finish his train of thought, Wyatt turned and threw the paperweight at him. Chris immediately ducked, his eyes quick to follow the flight path as he swivelled on the balls of his feet.
"Paperweight!" Chris called, holding out his hand. The solid object dissipated into orbs, streaming in reverse back to his palm where it reformed. Bianca stared with fright at what was happening before her as Chris stood again and headed towards his brother. This was never meant to be dangerous. "You shouldn't throw things around the room. You might break something."
"Yes, dad," Wyatt sneered as Chris handed back the heavy stone.
Looking at him loathingly for even mentioning his father with such a purposeful attack, Chris turned and headed back towards Bianca. Stopping by her side, he lowered his head towards her.
"I can't do this," he said in a low voice.
"He's just trying to rile you up, Chris. He wants to see if you'll snap. Don't give up."
Chris looked over his shoulder at Wyatt, finally turning to face him. Folding her arms, Bianca watched on.
"So what is it exactly you want me for, Wyatt?" Chris inquired. "Why so insistent I come over to your side?"
"Another ally is always handy," Wyatt said, shrugging nonchalantly. "Especially one that's family. I don't want to keep having to fight you, Chris. It's a pointless ideal."
Chris thought it over in his mind, his expression showing he was not at all convinced. Remembering this was only a ploy to something larger, Chris gave in and moved back towards Wyatt.
"So what is it you're working on?" he asked, feigning interest.
"I have several tasks in production, but my key interest lies with finding the last ingredient for this one. It appears certain demon species have decided looting is a good idea in light of recent events, and I've had to create a warding off spell to discourage that. Unfortunately the Jackarta flower I need to complete this is a rare species. I'm not sure where to get one."
"I might know," Chris said.
Wyatt looked at him uncertainly. "If you do know, take me to it. Bianca can stay here."
Chris glanced back to Bianca. Reluctantly she nodded in agreement, watching them orb out together. She was not entirely happy to be left on her own, much preferring to go where the action was, but she had to trust Chris and to keep on Wyatt's good side she needed to do as he suggested.
"I hope you know what you're doing," she said to the disappearing orbs.
"I have to see a friend of mine first," Chris said, moments after they reappeared in the Underworld.
"I'm not letting you go alone," Wyatt insisted. "I don't want any secret planning going on behind my back."
"He's not very friendly," Chris said as they walked into the cavern.
"You think I'm afraid of that?" Wyatt laughed. "I'll have you know—"
Chris saw his brother drop from sight as the ground opened up beneath him. His figure disappeared into the dark abyss, a smatter of orbs all that remained. Seeing them rise towards the ceiling, Chris turned his gaze ahead to see Gith pointing a crossbow at him.
"What are you doing here?" he asked with his broad English accent.
"Looking for information," Chris replied. Wyatt reformed next to him, dusting his jacket off. "You should be more welcoming to your guests."
"Not when they plan on stealing all and Sunday from me. Everybody's turned into corruptive animals. Pardon me if it's a little hard to trust these days."
"You're lucky you haven't already been slaughtered," Wyatt sneered.
"Yes, well, there's a good chance of that," Gith commented, turning the arrow head towards Wyatt. "But I prefer to let strangers drop down the rabbit hole before I get to ask any questions. It's safer that way."
"Lucky I have my own escape route then," Wyatt stated smartly.
Gith lifted the crossbow higher, his finger poised on the trigger as he aimed towards Wyatt's head. Wyatt, of course, held no fear towards the threat when he had several ways of stopping it.
"Wait!" Chris shouted. "We're not here to steal anything. We're just looking for a rare flower. I was hoping you could help us."
"Am I your walking Underworld directory now?" Gith asked. "I'm not inclined to keep handing out free directions. You'll have to give me something for it."
Chris felt around in his pockets, but they were empty. He knew his wallet was empty too, having spent all his cash on Bianca's ring. What little was left in the bank he couldn't access until they opened again. And even if could get to it, there was no point in leaving, Gith wanted something right now before he felt compelled to shoot someone. Helplessly Chris looked at Wyatt. His older brother was obviously accustomed to these kinds of dealings, choosing dominance over submission, taking control of the situation with attacks and threats. Powering up an energy ball he looked heatedly at the demon.
"How about this?" he asked. "It could make you feel all warm and toasty."
Gith fired the arrow, Wyatt instantaneously throwing the energy ball astray as he turned to the side and grabbed the offending arrow from the air. Pulling it down in one swift motion, he turned back towards Gith and opened his palm, sending the arrow back in his direction via a stream of orbs. The demon cried out as it ripped through tendon in his leg, falling to one knee as Wyatt approached him, his hand closing surreptitiously.
"You don't make demands from us. We want that flower to stop the looting. We have similar interests. You either tell us where to go, in effect helping yourself, or quod fiet, fiet – I make you an easy target for those demons and send them all here. You don't have enough rabbit holes for an entire warren."
Gagging, his hand alternating between the floor to keep him sturdy and his throat to vainly attempt to pull away Wyatt's invisible stranglehold, Gith nodded eagerly. Wyatt released his grip, his hand dropping back to his side as he stared down at the hopeless demon.
"Look in the well," Gith rasped, absently waving his hand towards the stone well that stood amid the skulls, rocks and dust.
Chris hesitated. He looked at the opening wondering what exactly it would reveal. Specialising in wants and fantasies, Gith could very easily expose his and Bianca's plan to Wyatt, and then this little trickery would all be over and Wyatt would kill them both.
"Chris?" Wyatt asked expectantly, glancing over his shoulder as he tried to discern his little brother's reluctance.
Chris glanced from the well to Wyatt. He couldn't not do this – Wyatt would get suspicious. His only chance, at best, was to distract his brother.
"I wouldn't take my eyes off him. He's cunning," Chris stated.
Compliantly Wyatt looked back to the demon. Chris moved towards the well, cringing when he saw the image of the book appear. Closing his eyes, he concentrated harder on the flower. As he opened them again he saw a white petalled image floating on the water's surface. The image broadening, he recognised the location – exactly where he'd found Gazu. He smirked, not able to believe his luck or how easy this would be.
"Do you always come up with the same locations?" he asked.
"Maybe you just have little imagination," Gith remarked. Wyatt instantly closed his hand, causing the demon to choke again.
"Let him go, Wyatt. I know where this place is."
Unclasping his hand, Wyatt leant down to the demon's eye level, giving a fake smile and lightly tapping him on the cheek.
"I'll be seeing you again, my friend. Thank you kindly for the service."
Growling in response, Gith watched the two men orb out in pursuit of a flower that could help them both. As they reappeared in their new location, Chris looked around thoughtfully. The surrounds were not exactly as he remembered.
"Can I help you?" a young voice asked, a large cardboard box in his hands.
"Where's Gazu?" Chris inquired.
"Oh, you haven't heard?" the young man responded glumly. "He perished during the earthquake – crushed by those rocks."
Chris looked to the side in the direction the young man nodded his head. Now Chris noticed why the room looked different – part of it had completely fallen in and restructured its appearance.
"We need a rare flower – a Jackarta. Do you have it?" Wyatt asked, determinedly walking forward.
The young boy shrugged as he continued to pack the box. "Maybe. Check over there. I haven't got that far yet."
Quickly Wyatt raced to the shelves, rummaging through the contents until he discovered what he was looking for, holding it up in the air and admiring its structure. A small smile played on his lips.
"Exactly what I needed. You don't mind if we take this?" he asked. The young man shook his head. Turning to Chris, Wyatt walked back towards him. "C'mon, Chris, we have work to do." Taking his brother's arm, he added softly: "Thank you for keeping your word."
Side note: For those that are curious as to what Wyatt said to Gith in Latin – "Quod fiet, fiet" translates as "What's to be, will be"