Chapter 9

Chris woke up stiff. He cursed silently as he massaged his neck. Remembering Sam, he turned to glance at the couch. No Sam. Abruptly Chris stood up and sensed for the troublemaker. Then he sighed in relief when he figured out the teen was still in the club, alone. He then sensed for the sisters. They were still asleep in their rooms at the manor.

He relaxed some as he stretched and rubbed the sleep from his face. Sam was safe from questions from the sisters for now. Chris just hoped Sam wouldn't cave and call Paige mom the next time he saw her. His thoughts of Sam made him think of what the young teen had said the night before. Hating to admit it, Chris knew the kid was right. Hope was always important and a second chance was a reason for his mission- to save his brother and the future.

'You could vanquish the one who planned it…' his cousin had said. Vanquish the one who planned his mother's death. Chris pulled the pendent that had been tucked inside his shirt. He rubbed his thumb over it as he continued to think.

It was one of the keys to Wyatt becoming power hungry, the thirst for revenge. It was possible. Wyatt had once bragged about torturing the demon that had done it. The demon was called Fang; the demon's strength in completing his evil deeds was planning and taking note of correcting mistakes and finding weaknesses. He was patient and that alone made him deadly. He could wait for years before his plans and deeds took action. Like the death of the Charmed Ones. Underestimating Wyatt was Fang's only downfall.

Could he underestimate another?

Making a decision that could possibly kill him but prolong Wyatt's turning or prevent it, Chris quickly got dressed, grabbed some weapons, and orbed out to the manor to make a very powerful potion.

*~*~*

"Hey, Sam," stated Paige. She had been unsure of how to get the teen's attention. It was clear he was deep in thought and had not heard her orb in.

Sam nearly spilled his coffee as he stood up and spun around. He paled as he murmured something under his breath. Only Paige didn't catch that he had said mom.

"May I join you?" she said as she motioned to a stool beside where Sam had been sitting. Sam nodded and sat down again. Carefully setting down the streaming coffee as Paige sat down.

"What kind of coffee is that?" she asked, mentally hitting herself for choosing the stupid question, to start a conversation. But she was on a mission to figure him out, if he really was good, as Chris had said.

"You're favorite- opps," Sam's blue eyes widened as he realized his mistake. He turned to look at the door to the back room, expecting his cousin to come out, angry. Nothing. He looked back at Paige and words to explain flew out without thought.

"I didn't read your mind, I swear..." He turned his gaze away as he tried to cover up his slip. Paige frowned.

"You're in the history books and… and everybody magical knows who you are… and… um…," he stumbled to say. Paige spoke up.

"Easy now, I figured Chris was our whitelighter or knew us in the future. Then if you're his charge, I sure you meet us. Am I right?" she commented, trying to reassure the boy.

Sam quickly glanced at Chris's door again. He could not sense him anymore. Chris had left. The teen turn his glaze to his cup. Half-truths and lies could work, that what Chris used. Or maybe he could stick with as much truth as possible. He didn't want to lie to his mother.

"I was young. I don't really remember or know you like Chris. I had just gotten one of my powers and having a hard time controlling it. My dad was not magical and my mom was gone. Chris was helping me and told me about how you had to get use to having powers or something like that… I never understood why you liked being a witch when demons came after you and… your sisters?"

Sam fell silent. That was all truth. He had always been curious about her. He hated being magical when he gained new powers and when his family had been in harm's way. His sisters had once called it the side effects of being a powerful witch.

Paige stared at the teen, slightly confused by his question. Why is he asking me this? She wondered.

She studied the boy in front of her as Sam stared at his coffee, avoiding her eyes. His fingers traced some of lines that were part of the design on the mug. Red, yellow, and orange lines which knotted and twisted around the streaming mug.

"I never knew I had powers till I met my sisters. But even before that, I loved the feeling I got from helping people. With the powers, I could help save more people including witches and magical creatures. It was important to me." She softy replied.

Sam still didn't look up when he nodded. Awkward silence followed. Paige shifted in her seat and Sam just stared into his coffee while fingers traced.

"So how long has Chris been your whitelighter?" asked Paige, breaking the silence.

Whitelighter, but he's my cousin, Sam thought. Bend the truth or at least close to it.

"Um, a while." False but Chris had been taking care of him for a while.

"Your mother was magical?" She couldn't help her curiosity.

"Yes, but she died when I was little." Truth but he hoped she would want him to tell the horrible story.

"How?" She bit her lip when Sam flinched.

"I don't want to talk about." He hated talking about it.

"Sorry. What were your parents like?"

"I loved them and really miss them." Truth, but he still avoided her question.

"Did you know Wyatt, too?" She dropped the topic of his parents. She tried another.

"Yeah." Sam wasn't sure he should have said that. Oh well, he thought as he inwardly shrugged.

"Do you know if he had cousins?" It was clear that she could not help her curiosity.

"Um, he did and siblings." Sam hoped Chris would never find out about this.

"Really. Leo and Piper get back together?" Surprise laced her voice.

"What!?" Shock was woven deep in his.

"Yeah, Chris split them up." Paige said like the whole world knew.

"But… but… Aun- I mean Piper and Leo never split up. I mean his siblings…" Sam had almost slipped. That's was close. His glaze focused on his coffee, again. He was breathing was becoming ragged.

Paige raised an eyebrow. The boy had almost said Aunt. Then it struck her. Aunt Piper… that would mean Sam was family. She studied the boy in front of her. He didn't look like Phoebe or her. So whose was he? He looked about seventeen or eighteen. Did he take after his father?

"Sam," the boy looked up, "You almost said Aunt Piper. Are you family?"

The boy stiffed. Uh oh, Chris is going to kill me. He looked back at the office door; surely, Chris was awake by now. He sensed for his cousin, underworld. Sam didn't like Chris him alone.

"Sam?" Paige questioned. Sam fidgeted; everyone could easily tell he was nervous or fearful about something. At all costs, he avoided his mother's questioning eyes.

Oh, how he wanted to say yes. How he wanted to know his mother and for her to know who he was. The truth was at the tip of his tongue; ready to be blurted out. Sam felt like he was about to burst.

"Who's your mother?" There it was; it was unavoidable and direct. His hands were shaking and sweating. His breath ragged. His eyes bored holes into the table. He wanted to run but then he didn't. He wanted her to hug him and say that everything was going to be ok. He took a deep shaky breath and looked into his mother's eyes. She looked concerned at his behavior.

He orbed. As he did, he answered.

"You."

*~*~*

Blue orbs appeared in the attic of the Halliwell Manor. They rapidly condensed to become Chris. He looked around and sighed in relief when he found himself alone. He walked to the Book and stated to flip though the old pages to a specific one. He stopped when he got to the page on how to make the potion to use on the Source of all Evil. Taking a notebook, he quickly wrote down how to make it. Then he continued to flip though the book, looking for a spell powerful enough to use alone without needing the Charmed Ones. A name made him pause.

Fang.

Chris stared at one of the many faces that haunted his nightmares. After Wyatt had told him about the demon, he had looked up the planner in the Book of the Shadows. What he had found made his blood run cold. At the time, Wyatt or the Power of the Three would have been the only ones strong enough to vanquish the fiend. Until now.

A golden glow on the next page caught his eye, a spell was being written. One powerful enough for Fang and one Halliwell to say. At the bottom was a one-line message.

Good luck, Peanut. I love you.

Chris ran his finger over the message.

"I love you, too Mom," he softy murmured. Checking for a blank back, which there was, he ripped the page out. Carefully folding it and putting the paper in his pocket, he left to make the potion.

Carefully and quickly, he made the potion easily. After it was done, he grabbed a few other potion vials for good measure and left for the underworld.

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