"I can't protect them from everything. Or I'll probably end up making them neurotic."
Neurotic
Disclaimer: Charmed does not belong to me.
Summary: His name is not Chris Perry. It's Christopher. Christopher Halliwell.
Dedicated: to Strawberry Cheesecake Milkshakes, which were somehow always on the story Map for "Neurotic". They're so addictive, though.
Chapter the Forty-Ninth
"Weak"
"This is fantastic."
Chris stared at Paul, an almost accusing expression on his face. Paul was staring at the television, at its spreading news of destruction, and only noticed Chris was glaring at him after a minute.
Paul wrinkled his nose suspiciously. "What?"
"Just wondering where you got your extreme sarcasm from," Chris said.
"Says someone who isn't a Jedi master of sarcasm himself," Paul said, with a sniff, folding his arms and looking Chris up and down.
"Okay, I get your point," Chris said, rolling his eyes and dropping down to the ground, picking up a handful of debris and letting it fall to the ground. His gaze scattered across the destruction in the room, before falling sadly on Piper in the corner, furiously scanning the Book of Shadows. Cole and Victor were helping, with Chris' Maps strewn around her, and they were working madly, trying to make some sense of this all.
Leo had disappeared as soon as the destruction hit the main news. Paige was pretty much out of action, having being hit with some severe stomach cramps, and was upstairs at the moment, Dan helping her have a bath.
"What are we going to do?"
Chris jumped at the sound of Paul's voice, and he turned to see the Whitelighter slumping against the half-destroyed sideboard, his dark eyes staring at the screen in horror. Paul turned to Chris, his eyes searching Chris' face, and Chris tried not to quail at the amount of trust Paul was placing in his leadership. And then did internally quail, because he didn't have a clue of where to start.
"Chris!"
It was Paige's voice this time that caught his attention, and he twisted on his heel to see Dan helping Paige down the stairs. His hands were on her hips, and she was leaning into him, and it was a sight that reassured Chris – one of the happier images he remembered from his childhood. Out of, oh, I don't know, about five things? his brain snappishly interjected, and he shook that thought away. He had had happier times in his childhood. That they were difficult to remember amongst the bad things wasn't the point.
"Yeah?" He walked over to them, and helped Dan clear off one of the armchairs for a still-weak Paige to sit in. She took the chair gratefully with a weak but wide smile.
"How do you make those cheesecake things?" She battered her eyelashes at him winningly, and Chris frowned.
"Uh," he said, "half a quart of milk, ice-cream, and half of a cheesecake – there should be still half in the fridge. Don't add all the milk at once, but put everything else in the blender and add the milk until it's nice and thick..." He blinked at her, frowning. "Why?"
Paige shrugged at him. "Just have an awful craving for it," she said. "And it's good for my body at the minute, right?" She smiled at him. Chris was so relieved at how much better she looked, and hadn't quite stopped berating himself yet for even suggesting making more than one potion at once, and here she was, fine. Weak, but glowing slightly with renewed energy.
"I'll make you one," Dan said, "although I can't promise that it'll be as good as Chris's one. And, uh, I can't promise there won't be any sawdust in it." He looked edgily at all the protruding floorboards.
Paige grinned. "I don't mind sawdust. Thanks."
He smiled and walked through to the kitchen, picking his way over the debris, seemingly happy to be doing something useful. Chris knew the feeling. When he was younger and couldn't control his powers, he'd gotten so frustrated not being able to help fight demons. And then, when he was older, he wasn't allowed. He definitely understood the frustrations of not being able to help much.
A blur of light to the corner of his vision made him jump, and he saw Leo materialise amongst the wreckage. He looked at Chris. "The Elders were a lot of help," he said, his facial expression evidencing the opposite.
"Lovely," Piper said, pulling a face at her husband, then smiling at his return. He moved over to her and smiled sheepishly in return, pleased to be there.
"And that's where we get out sarcasm from," Chris said triumphantly, waving his hands at his parents. Paul looked away from the TV at Piper and Leo and smiled tightly. Leo and Piper looked at Chris questioningly. Chris looked back at them, tilting his chin defiantly. "Well, you are where we get our sarcasm from," he defended.
"No," Piper said, her voice deadpan. "Of course not. Why would I give my sons sarcasm?"
"Because it's not fun at all," Chris returned, and then winced. Pain rocked through him and he fell to the floor, his vision suddenly blurring and splintering into lights, and he was vaguely aware that Leo and Victor had leapt to his side to hold him up and stop him from falling to the splinter-covered carpet.
He looked up at them gratefully. "Thanks," he said, and leant on them as they shepherded him over to sit next to Piper.
"Is this because of the barrier?" Piper said, leaning over, the Book of Shadows abandoned on her knees as she motherly felt his forehead. "You're burning up. Lower it. I'm sure we can fight off some demons for a while."
"Not for long enough." Chris' face was grim, and he closed his eyes, focussing his attention back on the purple barrier spinning around the house. He was glad it was working properly – Victor, Cole and Dan hadn't been able to see it, so he had made it invisible to mortals – but he couldn't keep this going for much longer. He'd told them he could hold it for a day, but truth be known, he wasn't even sure he could hold it for another hour.
"How are you doing this?" Piper said, her voice low.
"I can't tell you," Chris said, his tone miserable, his eyes locked with hers. "Believe me, I would. But Wyatt can't know how to do it. It's bad enough that he knows I can. I've been trying to keep it from him for years." He broke off as another ripple of pain undulated through him. "But I have to keep this up. If Wyatt attacks now, with all those demons, we wouldn't make it. We have to reverse the Calling, and we have to get Phoebe back. End of discussion."
Piper opened her mouth to say something, but then caught the finality of his tone. Her eyes darkened as she stared at her son, taking in the pain and seriousness on her face, and hurting alongside him, hurting because her son was taking on the responsibility of the world. He shouldn't have to do this. She nodded, and leant back, going back to the Book of Shadows.
Chris leaned back on the sofa, wincing with the pain; glad a little now that he didn't have to hide it so much now they knew it hurt him. "Leo," he said, hating now that his voice was weakened, but Leo sat on the arm of the chair, and looked at him, a mixture of pride and worry on his face. "To stop a Calling, we need to find out who did it. And there's one demon who might know. He was born on the night of the first ever Calling." Chris' face tightened.
"Barbas," Leo said, his eyes widening.
"Yeah," Chris said, a weak smile on his face. "Wonderful, isn't it?" He pushed himself up in the chair. "We know he's been around here, so it shouldn't be too hard to find him. We need to reverse the Calling."
"So you can drop that barrier," Leo said, his voice low. "I've got a couple of contacts." He orbed out without another word, his brow furrowed, a dangerous glower on his face, which Chris was weirdly touched by. He'd never seen Leo so protective over him before. Maybe we've got a chance in this future. If we don't all die now.
He closed his eyes and willed Leo to hurry up.
Leo entered the tunnel with only a small amount of trepidation, his fear covered with worry for the world, worry for his family under attack, worry for the strange thing Chris was doing. He had heard of a few objects over history with the power to do what Chris was doing, and wondered if Chris had the use of one. The Orb of Destiny could do it, but hadn't been seen in this reality any time soon. And then there was the Book of Words, but that was a myth.
Even though it was a myth, Future Wyatt seemed certain Chris had it. And Chris was definitely evidencing powers from it, but had promised he didn't have it.
It was all a confusing dilemma that Leo was desperate to sort out, before Chris died from it.
Because that's what that much power would do to Chris. Leo had recognised it, and that's why he hadn't paused to ask any more questions and waste any more time. Chris was dying from what he was doing. Leo hadn't the heart to tell Piper, all he could do was solve this, and stop Chris from going through it.
With a fierce pride in his son overruling his nerves, Leo kept his senses alert as he walked down the tunnel. Abandoning anything the Elders had told him to remain a pacifist, Leo had used full force on Janus, a literally two-faced demon he'd once saved the life of (that was a story that Leo didn't want to explain to the other Elders) – needless to say, the two had a pact. Janus would alert Leo of trouble in the Underworld, rat out his demon pals as it was, and in return Leo wouldn't kill him, or set the Charmed Ones on him.
Janus had pretended to resist, but had quailed under three minutes under the onslaught of a well-timed energy bolt, and had spilled everything.
No, he didn't know where Barbas was. But he'd had a chat with him, once upon a time, and found out that the Seer's Mentor – Yenene – was quite possibly the very demon that had instigated the Calling. She'd done it before, at the very least, so she would know how to stop it. And only the person who started it could stop it.
Leo thanked Janus very politely, and then vanquished him himself. Janus died screaming in a blaze of fire.
Leo didn't even feel guilty. He couldn't risk leading a trail to who he was looking for. Demons had an annoying propensity to go further to ground when they found out they were being looked for.
He heard sounds in the distance, and stopped reminiscing, concentrating instead of activating his Invisibility Charm. He held his hand forward to check it worked, and then hurried as quickly and quietly as possible down to the end of the cave.
What he saw surprised him greatly.
Wyatt was stood there, adult Wyatt, evil overlord of the future Wyatt, his hands extended, white lightning crackling from the end of his fingertips. The lightning was directed to a small bundle on the floor. A small lump of a figure that was slowly changing under the energy.
Leo stared as the small bundle of rags changed before his eyes into a young woman, in jeans and a dusty green sweater, with blonde straggly hair. She was curled up in a heap. Wyatt hadn't been hurting her, which he'd first suspected, he'd transformed her. Whether it was into something she wasn't, or originally had been, he didn't know.
"There's your half of the deal," Wyatt said, his mouth curling. "Let it be known in the future that Wyatt Halliwell lives up to his promises."
Wyatt turned to where Leo was standing, and Leo froze, but Wyatt's face didn't move, didn't flicker. The amount of energy he just expended probably dulled his senses, Leo realised.
"Don't recall the demons," Wyatt said coolly, not turning his head back to the young woman. "Or I will come after you." He smiled, and because of where he was faced, Leo felt Wyatt was smiling at him. A shiver ran down his spine, and Leo fought to stop himself from moving. The woman whimpered in response, and Wyatt strode out of the tunnel.
Leo contemplated going after his grown-up son, but guilt twitched in him, that it was his son who'd grown up evil, so he turned his attention to the woman, who Wyatt had inferred had made the Calling.
He made himself visible, and walked over to her, dropping down by her side.
He rolled her over, and inhaled sharply. Her arm was covering her face, so he couldn't see who it was yet, but the injuries covering her body were quite an obvious testament that she probably hadn't made the Calling willingly. He held his hands over her injuries, the deep bruises showing through her ripped clothing, the deep gashes and silvery scars that showed they gashes weren't one-offs, and willed her to be healed.
A golden glow spluttered forth, healing her injuries, and he exhaled slowly. She must have been forced to do the Calling, or else he couldn't have so wholly healed her. Healing someone completely evil was possible, but it hurt a whole lot more. There was evil in this girl, but not much.
The girl whimpered, and lowered her arm, blinking furiously. Recognition flooded both of their faces at the same time.
"I know you," the woman said.
Leo blinked at her, the blonde hair, the green eyes, and knew he knew her, too. But she looked a couple years older than she should have done. Maybe it was the trauma. "Jenny Gordon. You're Jenny Gordon."
"And you're Leo," Jenny said. She tried to sit up, swooned as if dizzy, and Leo helped her into a sitting position, leaning her against one of the tables.
"Did you do the Calling?" Leo said, asking the question directly, not wanting to waste any more time. His son's life was on the line.
"I-" Jenny looked at his face, her eyes scanning it worriedly. "I didn't want to."
"Then reverse it." Leo's face was immovable as he stared at her.
"I can't," Jenny said. "He'll hurt me."
He looked at the terror on her face, and took one of her hands in his. "You remember Piper, don't you? Your uncle Dan's ex-girlfriend?"
"Yeah," Jenny said, her voice low and shaking. "Piper and Phoebe and Prue. But I heard Prue died…"
"They have another sister, Paige. You've made a Calling, so you know about magic. Did you know they were the Charmed ones?"
Jenny's eyes flew to Leo's. "He said they were gone. He said the Charmed ones were dead."
"He?"
"Wyatt."
"He lied," Leo said. "Apparently he's really good at that. But the point is, they can protect you."
Jenny looked away, and then looked at him. "You promise?"
"Yes."
She smiled, and Leo smiled back, getting the feeling this was the first thing in a long time she had to truly smile at.
T - 4
