Visions
Author's Disclaimer: The only thing I own are the ideas, characters, and concepts not cannon to the original Charmed series. Everything belongs to the producers, creators, and other persons entitled by law.
Author's Note: I began this story several years and I never saw it to fruition. I found myself recently attracted back to it with the 20th anniversary of Charmed just occurring. I hope you enjoy this story.
Summary: The children of The Charmed Ones face the trials and tribulations of adulthood, magic, and a new threat on the horizon.
Chapter 5: On Deck
Chris Halliwell woke up with a headache. He had not been sleeping well as of late and was exhausted. He looked at the alarm clock next to his bed and saw that it was only 6:45 in the morning. He rubbed the fatigue from his eyes and pulled himself from the warm bed; the colder September air chilling his naked body. His wife, Bianca, was fast asleep. He smiled lightly and tip-toed quietly out of the bedroom after pulling on a sweatshirt and pajama pants.
He walked down the hallway to his daughter's room and peeked inside. Addy was still sleeping peacefully while clutching a teddy bear that her grandmother had given her. Chris smiled at the sight of his daughter. He had known what it feels to love but to see his daughter being born and being responsible for her was a love that he did not know existed. His father had told him moment before her birth that his life would change for the better. He was right. Chris was a better man because of his daughter.
Growing up a Halliwell, Chris was always in competition with his older brother; it was the reality of being only a year apart in age. Wyatt had married just months before Chris and their children were born only four months apart. Chris remembers being teased by his sister, Melinda, and cousin, PJ, about it but he knew it was in good fun but found it less than appealing.
His daughter was the joy and light of his life and he would do anything to protect her. His eyes followed her sleeping body closely and lingered on the birthmark she bore on her left wrist. To the average acquaintance, it would be just discolored mark of skin; but to him and his family, it was a sign of her legacy. His daughter bore the mark of a Phoenix: a demonic assassin.
He knew marrying Bianca and bearing children with her could have this effect. It was not lost on him that his daughter carried a more diverse mixing of magical blood; three distinct species to be exact. She would one day wield demonic powers but through a positive upbringing and the love of family; she would be one of the more powerful members of her generation. He had truly thought that when Bianca stripped her powers upon their marriage that it would not pass along the magic to their future children but he was wrong. He should have known better because his own sister was conceived by a mortal Leo Wyatt but had whitelighter powers due to the magic being ingrained in his DNA or so the Elders pointed out. Perhaps it was the same with a Phoenix witch?
Chris smiled at his daughter and slowly crept back out of her room careful not to disturb her. He continued on his way and made his way downstairs to the kitchen and prepared a pot of coffee. As the pot gurgled and started to brew, he made his way to the kitchen table and pulled out his yellow legal pad. He thought about this work day but was more focused on his notes from his phone call with Melinda the night before. His eyes examined the loopy, rushed script of his handwriting on the pages. He took detailed notes recounting everything she told him about Henry's premonition, the attacks on Wyatt and Melinda, and everything else he missed. A text message from PJ would inform him of the apparent rift between Melinda and Peyton but he blew that off as boredom of a pregnant witch with a gossip problem.
He was a dedicated witch who worked hard to maintain balance and order with magic and his life. He did not enjoy real estate but it was the more flexible part-time profession he could come up with that kept him primarily at home, offered decent returns and allowed him to be a more fulltime witch. He knew full well that real estate was a hard profession with copious amounts of paperwork, attorneys, and paperwork but he made it work on his own terms. Bianca did not work even though she longed too but the progeny of a demonic witch assassin did not fare well in the employment marketplace with no education records or the like.
It was also a well-kept secret with Melinda and his mother, that Chris was a ten-percent owner of the restaurant and club respectively and received quarterly payouts based on his minority ownership. He had no say in any business matters but his mother made sure he received a decent enough income to support his family. Chris was confident that Wyatt had the same arrangement but never asked because his mother and sister swore him to secrecy.
"There's something not right," He said to himself as he poured his cup of coffee and sat down to review his notes. He took a sip and started to think about what was missing in his analysis. He resolved to have Tamora take a look that evening when she came by for dinner but in the meantime, he had to start to identify some pattern.
Two hours and several cups of coffee later, he was still reviewing his notes. As he took another sip, the hair on the back of his neck stood tall and a chill ran down his spine. He could hear in the inner reaches of his mind his name being called. He placed the cup on the table and threw his notes down and orbed away in a flurry of bright white light.
Peyton Halliwell was in no mood for anything. It was too early to be awake, let alone functioning in a manner that a professional office would expect. She made her way downstairs of her parents' house at 9:15 to get ready to head to work for the day. Her parents were out of town for one of her mother's book signings and she was alone in the water-front home: a feeling she most certainly enjoyed.
She scrolled threw her phone at the latest text message from last night's suitor and deleted the message all together. She was dating; not looking for the next great romance. She was making her way through the house when a ball of crackling blue energy flew past her making an impact on the wall. She immediately dropped her phone, which she could hear break on impact with the hardwood floor, and turned around to find herself face to face with a scavenger demon.
"What do you want?" She yelled at the demon, who stared at her before launching an energy ball at her. As the ball of electrical energy sizzled through the air, she put her hands up defensively and the ball deviated and shifted its course back to the owner; who shimmered out in time to avoid impact. Her empathy allowed her to deviate attacks sent by demons—she was not sure how but her mother made attempts to tell her; she just never cared enough to listen.
"Wyatt! Chris! Help!" She screamed to ceiling as the demon shimmered in and launched another series of attacks on her. She dove over the couch to avoid being hit. "God damn it, someone!" She said rather angrily to no one in particular as she peered over at the demon. She was not surprised to see three more demons had entered the room.
In a swirl of blue lights, Chris appeared. He took notice of the room and flung his arms forward sending two of the demons flying backwards into the wall. The wall buckled under the force of the impact.
"Are you okay?" He yelled to her; she nodded affirmatively.
One of the demons sent another energy ball at Chris. The ball was enveloped in a swirl of orbs and appeared in Chris's hand and he launched it back at the demon with the full force of his telekinetic orbing. Peyton was on her feet attempting to deviate another demon's attack when the balls and demons froze in place.
She looked around confused and at Chris, who shrugged. Neither had that power. Peyton turned around to see Melinda Halliwell standing there with her hands outstretched and the dissipating blue orbs of her power dissolving around her as she materialized.
"Everyone alright?" She asked moving forward in pant suit and heels. "Wyatt told me what was happening," she said as her eyes made their way to Peyton, who turned her head to avoid her. "Blow them up so we can be done here," she said to her cousin rudely.
Melinda rolled her eyes and made to make the motion when Chris yelled at her, "No, wait!"
She stopped moving her hands and looked to him, "Why?" She was already in an irritated mood and ready to blow up the demons.
"I think we should contain one so we can question it," Chris offered to his sister. She stared blankly at him. Peyton came around from the other side of the living room to meet with the two.
"I say we blow them up because I have to explain to Mom why the wall is crumbling," Peyton said irritated and pointing to the buckled wall and broken plaster on the ground.
"Mel, you and Wyatt have been saying you're getting attacked frequently and now here they are attacking Peyton. I think it's worth investigating since you claim the Elders aren't helping," Chris offered making sure his words were carefully chosen.
"Melinda would rather blow them up to show off her new powers," Peyton remarked nonchalantly. Melinda glared at her, "No, I just think we should cut our losses. The scavengers aren't smart enough to coordinate attacks like this and I doubt they know who is behind their orders."
Peyton rolled her eyes, "You're like Aunt Piper, blow up now and deal with it later."
"You're being a petulant child," Melinda retorted.
"Oh you're one to talk, Miss Perfect."
"You two can bite each other's heads off later, right now, I think this is our best option," Chris said asserting his dominance.
"Fine, how do we trap them?" Melinda conceded.
"Do you have crystals here?" Chris asked Peyton, who shrugged in the form of "I don't know". "We rarely get attacked here," she said.
Chris hung his head, "Alright, Melinda, orb home and set up the crystals in the middle of the attic. I will orb one of them there and then trap him. I will vanquish the others and meet you back at the Manor."
"The freeze won't last much longer and I can vanquish them easier. Why doesn't Peyton go first and set the crystals up, you orb one of them and go meet her there and help, and then I will vanquish them?" Melinda offered. The two nodded their agreement and Peyton beamed out.
"Manor!" Chris said, minutes later, to one of the demons and waving his left hand, and he then disappeared in a swirl of blue orbs. Once the demon was orbed away, Melinda released her freeze and with a distinct motion of her hands, the others were gone in a blast: their green blood leaving a mess on the floor. Melinda ran her hand through her hair, took a deep breath and orbed away.
Kat sat on the couch in her living room reflecting on the previous day's revelations. She knew she should not have orbed out in a huff but in her defense she was on a short break from work and one could only hear the details of their death so many times before wishing that said death would just occur. She had come to terms with own mortality many times before but she still struggled with the idea that her brother perpetually saw her death. She sat quietly, alone, in her home and wondered what was to come. Henry's premonitions were often the subject of family debate and the reliability of them. Though a skilled witch and in command of his powers, his visions often were misleading and Kat would easily assume this one would be the same—but it felt different.
She glanced down at her cell phone that laid forgotten on the coffee table. It lit up with a slight ding and she reached forward to see her text messages. She smiled at seeing a text from her co-worker, Grant, who sent her an image of some drunk college boy with marker all over his face and inappropriate writings. She giggled and figured that it must have been an eventful night in the ER. She was off on Thursdays and it was a most welcome relief. She wrote back something sassy and was about to put the phone down when a group message came through from Chris, "All hands on deck. Manor. Now." She rolled her eyes; catching glance at the digital clock on her cable box: 10:00. It was too early for this and on her day off no less.
She got up and went over to the coat rack by the door and threw on a fleece jacket over her t-shirt and yoga pants, locked the house door from the inside and orbed out.
Kat rematerialized moments later in the attic of the Halliwell Manor. She was perplexed to find Chris, Melinda, and Peyton crunched over the Book of Shadows and was more perplexed to see a scavenger demon in the crystal cage. "Why is there a demon in the attic?" She asked discarding her fleece and wondering why she even bothered bringing it with her.
"I got attacked this morning and Chris thought we should capture him and see why they've been attacking?" Peyton offered, looking up from the book. Kat nodded, "And all hands on deck because?"
Chris looked up at Kat, "This concerns all of us, and we need to know what's going on."
Kat rolled her eyes, an involuntary action whenever Chris tends to speak in a dramatic, over-the-top tone. "It's Thursday, clearly people work. I happen to be off today."
"They will come if it's an emergency," Melinda responded.
"Melinda, no offense, we all don't work at our parents' businesses or have flexibility like you, Chris, Wyatt, Peyton, PJ, now that she's pregnant, or even Tamora; we have lives. Henry's probably making kids run suicides and vomit on the field as we speak," Kat lamented, annoyed at her family's constant need for emergency meetings.
"Or he played hooky because he's exhausted and no kids vomited this year-yet," Henry answered as he and Nate entered the attic.
Henry was dressed casual in basketball shorts and hoodie while Nate was in jeans and a polo shirt. Kat had to think for a moment if she ever saw Nate not in jeans. She couldn't recall—even Christmas morning, he's always well-dressed. She smiled and walked over and embraced Nate and gave him a kiss on the cheek and whispering in his ear, "How do you put up with him?"
Nate laughed and Henry glared.
"Hi all," Nate said to everyone with a wave as Tamora and PJ appeared in orbs and flashes respectively. Everyone smiled and said hello and returned his waves. Nate was immediately drawn to the demon in the cage, "Is that a demon?" He was curious.
"Yes, it's a scavenger demon," Chris answered. "Fairly low-level, but they've been attacking us more frequently and we want to know why."
The demon in the cage, clad in all black, just stared at the witches with a sneer. He was silent.
"Don't get too close," Henry warned Nate as he approached the demon in the cage.
"I am assuming we are going to interrogate him?" PJ asked as she immediately took a seat on the loveseat. Tamora shuffled behind her to make sure she was okay. Tamora was clad in her Magic School robes, her heels clacking as she made her movements.
Nate went over and embraced Tamora slightly and said hello while she smiled. "Nate, I think it would be best if you left. This is no place for a mortal," she said kindly with a serious undertone. Many would say her response was sincere; Nate would say it was cold.
Nate and Tamora Mitchell did not have an easy relationship. Nate was able to connect and engage with each member of the Halliwell and Mitchell family with ease but his relationship with Tamora never extended past acquaintances. He felt it was because she had a bias towards gay people but Henry reassured him that she was complete okay with that part of their lives and her biases may have more to do with his mortality.
Nate looked back at Henry as if to ask permission. "He can stay. Babe, just stay over on that side of the attic, okay?" Henry granted the permission. Nate nodded and moved over towards the other end of the attic. Kat moved with him and took a seat near him. Peyton looked at her cousin and could sense the fear Kat felt—a mix of uneasiness and fear most likely rooted in Henry's visions.
"Okay, so what's the game plan?" PJ asked breaking a momentary silence.
"First off, where is Wyatt and Parker? It's all hands on deck?" Tamora asked impatiently.
"Wyatt must be with a charge and I haven't heard from Parker," Chris offered. Tamora looked annoyed. "Well, let's do this because I have to get back to the school," she replied with a slight scoff.
"Tam, you go, and we will call if we need you," Kat said gently to high-strung sister. Tamora nodded and as soon as Kat went to say something else, she disappeared in a swirl of white and blue light.
"She's a pain in the ass," PJ remarked to no one in particular and no one acknowledged it. She was rubbing her stomach, "I have the worst indigestion today." She remarked but no one was listening. She rolled her eyes.
"Chris, you take point on this—what are we doing?" Melinda asked sitting next to PJ on the couch.
Chris nodded his agreement and moved towards the cage, "Who sent you to attack us?" He was staring at demon. Melinda looked less than thrilled at his tactic. The demon's black eyes stared right back at Chris: no answer.
"I demand to know who sent you!" Chris demanded, his voice raising in tone and aggression. No answer.
Chris looked at the group for assistance. "Oh for crying out loud," Melinda yelled out and stood from her seat. "Start talking or I start blasting body parts!" Her hand outstretched. No answer.
"If you start blasting him, he will eventually self-vanquish," Henry replied from where he stood. "Let me try," he said as he moved forward towards the caged demon; he removed his hoodie to reveal a gray tank top. He stared at the demon and circled around the cage, looking intently at the demon in their midst. His eyes focusing on the demon's eyes; locking in a stare down. Henry smiled slightly as he looked into the eyes.
Henry was the first to break the stare. His eyes clenched shut, his breathing hitching slightly. "He's having a premonition," Nate said from his seat next to Kat.
"That he is," she smiled to him. "I am sure he told you was hiccupping before you knew the truth." Nate nodded, "Yes, I always thought he should have that looked at by a doctor in retrospect." The two quietly laughed in their corner.
A few minutes passed by and Henry stood entranced in his vision. Peyton stared at him, her power picking up his emotions, "He's scared but I can sense his adrenaline rushing." She moved closer to him, intrigued by the myriad of emotions enveloping her mind.
"PJ, get Nate and leave—now!" Peyton said fearfully as she got closer. "Something is not right," she said as she approached her cousin. "NOW!" she yelled.
PJ immediately stood up and moved towards Nate, who looked equally as concerned, "What's going on?" She asked as she waddled and looked to Peyton. As if in an instant, Peyton's eyes went completely white, her breathing hitched and she was entranced.
"PJ, just go," Melinda said worriedly. PJ nodded and grabbed Nate's hand, "Hold my hand and don't let go—it will be okay," she said reassuringly and the two were gone in a flash before Nate could say a word.
"I think Nate just teleported for the first time," Melinda said noticing the scared, confused look on his face. "He will definitely be throwing up in a few minutes." No one laughed.
"Is she having a premonition?" Kat asked. Her concern heightened as she moved closer to the cage. "She doesn't have premonitions."
"I think her power may be channeling his?" Melinda inquired.
"Well, Aunt Phoebe is able to do that," Chris said.
The three witches watched as the demon stood quietly in his cage and Henry and Peyton wore vacant expressions and stood in place. "He is awfully quiet," Chris said pointing to the demon.
"This is abnormally long for a premonition," Kat remarked, her hands up on the defensive.
"He must have astral projected," Chris offered as an explanation.
Another couple of minutes passed by when finally Henry started to blink; coming out of his vision. "Where's Nate?" was the first thing he asked as he turned to face his cousins.
"PJ took him out of here. Peyton yelled at her to go and take him with her," Kat said as Peyton came too and returned to reality.
"What was that?" She asked, confused, as she moved towards the couch to sit.
"What was what?" Henry asked.
"Peyton—I think she had a premonition," Melinda offered while taking a seat next to her cousin.
"It certainly felt like it," Peyton said recalling how premonitions felt when Henry cast the vision sharing spell in the past, "I could feel your emotions and then before I knew it I felt like I was in the future and seeing what you saw. It was very different."
"Yeah, I astral projected into the future to see what was happening. Your empathy must have channeled my powers," Henry replied. "Your power is advancing."
Peyton nodded, she felt queasy and unsure. "How long we were in the vision?"
"Several minutes at least? Maybe ten?" Chris answered.
"Why so long? Also, the vision made no sense. It was so jumbled and sporadic," Peyton said looking to her cousin for answers.
"Melinda, freeze our demon friend so we can talk openly?" Henry asked. Melinda nodded and the demon was frozen in place.
"It wasn't just a premonition. I called for the vision while looking at the demon and I got a hit. I didn't think I would project into it though. When I astral project into the future, I can control my own movements. What you saw was my power channeling different probabilities. That is why it seemed jumbled," Henry answered. His power of premonition was very advanced.
"Oh," Peyton replied, her head spinning slightly.
"As you know, I can see the outcome of different decisions and choices. When I astral into the vision, I can manipulate the future to see what could happen. It's very disorienting for the first time."
"How the hell do you make sense of it? Also, not for nothing, how the hell do you deal with the ringing in your ears?" Peyton asked tugging on her left ear.
"It is. It's very hard to get a hold on since every vision is different. I can't control the astral projecting into the visions though—at least not yet—so I am at the mercy of magic," Henry explained, "And the ringing never goes away, you just stop focusing on it after a while."
"What did you see?" Kat asked wanting to know more about the vision.
"Different outcomes, it was very jumbled and hazy—even for me. Nothing made sense. Each move I made in the vision affected the outcome but I can't discern exactly what those outcomes are," Henry answered. "Something did not seem right about the vision."
"I wish I had my journal on me to start recording it," Henry said as he took a seat on the loveseat. Melinda looked to Chris and he nodded and called for the journal which appeared in a swirl of blue orbs in his hand. "Here," Chris said passing the tattered black book to his cousin. Henry said thank you and started flipping through to a blank page.
Peyton sat with her head back on the loveseat cushion, her hand being held by Melinda.
"It felt fake. I remember a moment just feeling that it was all fabricated; it didn't seem real," she said after sometime and watching Henry writing furiously.
Henry nodded. "If you channeled the vision, you saw what I saw. Did you have any mobility in the vision?"
"No, it felt like I was just watching a movie through your eyes but I had no control. At least not like you do," Peyton replied.
"Okay, I also felt the falsities of the vision. I am led to believe it was planted. The demon must be protected from my abilities," Henry offered.
"That means he is definitely working with someone upper level," Chris said crossing his arms and staring at the demon, who remained frozen.
"So we are not any closer to having answers," Kat said. The four other witches turning to face her.
"I think I can devise a potion that will remove any immunities to our magic. It could take a while to get right but I think it's manageable," Chris said. "I can go to Magic School and have Tamora work with me on it if you guys want to babysit the demon?"
"I will go with you," Peyton said turning her gaze back to Melinda, "If that's okay, boss?"
"That's fine, we could cover your lunch shift. I need to call Max and tell him I can't come in today," Melinda remarked realizing that she was already so late for work. Max was the assistant manager at the restaurant. "I'll be right back," she said and walked out of the room to make the call.
Peyton followed her out of the room, "Mel!"
Melinda stopped on the stairway down from the attic and turned to her cousin, "Yeah?"
"I know you didn't mean what you said and it was out of frustration. It just hurt my feelings," Peyton said remembering their tense exchange from the day prior.
"I am sorry, Pey. You know I love you like a sister and you're right, I was frustrated and I took it out on you," Melinda apologized. Peyton reached forward and the two hugged and continued descending the stairs.
"Good luck at Magic School with Chris, I hope you guys can figure out a solution with the potion," Melinda said as the two made their way to the second floor landing.
"Me too," Peyton replied.
Across town, Parker Halliwell was navigating traffic to get to the Manor as quickly as she could. She knew she could easy pull over and beam to the house but sometimes doing things the mortal way was sufficient enough for her. She was making a left turn when her phone rang. She hit the Bluetooth call button on her steering wheel and the frantic voice of Nate filled the car. "Parker!?"
"What's going on?" She was near panicked as she avoided a pedestrian jay-walking and sped on the gas.
"We are at PJ's house—I think, I think she's in labor!" Nate spoked frantically.
"What do you mean? Why are you at her house?" Parker said, pulling over on the side of the road to take a breath and collect her thoughts.
"I don't know! Something happened at the Manor and Peyton told her to get me and herself out of the Manor. We got back here and she is in pain and she believes she is in labor and Parker, I need you to get here because I am not that kind of doctor and I have no idea what I am doing. I may watch medical shows on television but I don't know how to deliver a baby," Nate rambled quickly and pronounced. Parker did not her empathy power to know he was petrified.
"I am on my way right now," Parker said as she turned her car off and grabbed her purse. She disconnected the phone; did a sweeping glance of her surroundings and was gone in a pink flash. As she flashed away, her car beeped and locked.
Back in the attic, Henry, Kat and Chris started at the demon and continued to plan their strategy. "I am going to go and start the potion at Magic School, call me if you need anything!" Chris said and orbed away.
"So it's just us two, huh?" Kat smiled to her baby brother. The two smiled at each other and moved towards the Book of Shadow to look for more information that could help them. The demon unfroze quietly in the cage and the two witches barely noticed.
As Henry was turning the pages of the Book, he was filled with a sudden sense of doom. He looked at Kat and then down at himself. He noticed he was in basketball shorts and a tank top and she was in workout clothes. It was all too familiar. "Kat?" He said as she looked up from the Book and then suddenly, there was a loud explosion of noise and bright brilliant light that shook the entire Manor.
Henry was propelled backwards from the epicenter of the blast and slammed into the floor with a sickening thud and landed face down. Kat was flung backwards and landed on her back and groaned as she regained her bearings. Her eyes searching for the source of the explosion and her brother.
The smoke from the explosion started to dissipate as an energy ball whizzed towards Kat. Her eyes widened and she outstretched her hands and the ball lost its momentum but continued to move slowly towards her. She immediately got out of the way and using the same gesture, the ball sped up and slammed itself into a wall. She ran her hands through her hair as she locked eyes with the demon. She could still see a knocked out Henry in her peripheral vision.
The demon snarled and released a series of energy balls at her in rapid succession. She threw her hands up to the slow balls from reaching her when the demon disappeared. As she moved out of the way and release the balls from her power's control; they slammed into everything causing damage to the attic. She ran over to her brother and turned him over and saw the bloody injury Henry had amassed a top his head. He was breathing. "Henry?" She was whispered to him. Nothing.
Peyton and Melinda ran back up the stairs to the attic after being knocked to their feet following the unknown explosion. "What the hell was that?" Melinda yelled out as she scrambled to the attic, Peyton following closely behind. "I have no god damn idea," she replied out of breath.
There were several smaller explosions permeating the relative quietness of the house. "Energy balls," Peyton pointed out and Melinda agreed.
The two entered the attic to find it thick with gray smoke; their eyes catching the collapsed form of Henry and the blue glow of energy balls. The demon in the cage was standing there quietly watching.
Melinda could see the outline of a man in dark clothing standing between the demon and Kat, who was on the floor next to Henry. She put her hands up help Kat when the man outstretched a hand towards Melinda and Peyton and a wave of dark energy came catapulting towards them; knocking them into the wall and doorframe. Melinda was out cold.
Before losing consciousness, Peyton saw the demon propel an energy ball at Kat. The ball sailed through the air and struck her in the chest. Her eyes widened in pain and shock as she fell to the floor; billows of smoke pouring from the burnt skin and gaping wound in her chest.
"NO!" Peyton screamed before darkness surrounded her.
End of Chapter 5.
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