Victor Bennet liked to think he had a handle on his life. He was a man almost at the age of retirement who was looking forward to savouring his free years with his family, hopefully to make up for the lost time. He was well put together, still had his hair, and he had stared danger in the face and walked away mostly unharmed. Admittedly, highlights from his life included a witch wife; a demonic wife; a grandson from the future and more grey hair than he had ever he could also say that no moment of true terror had ever compared to this moment. Piper had inherited from her Grams what Victor has dubbed "the death face". Unlike a death stare or even a look of disapproval, this face managed to make you see your death in at least a thousand different ways as soon as it landed on you, and there was nothing you could do to stop it.
"ARE YOU INSANE?"
"Piper, sweetie-"
"No! You will not call me sweetie when you have been keeping information from me about my son! Where is he? Who is he with?"
"Piper, Chris and I have-"
The debris of the grandfather clock painted the walls and floor; and the two Charmed sisters visibly flinched. Piper was seething; teeth clenched and a hair's breadth away from spitting fire. Victor had stumbled out of bed as soon as he'd received the hesitant call from his youngest daughter and been thrown against the wall the moment he stepped inside.
"Chris is in danger." Piper growled, "He is facing death."
The story spilled from her lips—The premonition, the Keeper of the Grains, Chris facing potential death again. Victor swallowed hard. He'd made a promise to his grandson and after everything he had seen him do- he knew when Chris needed to be alone. The knowledge, however comforting it seemed, felt like acid on his skin. Years later, and he was still not as good a father as he truly should be.
"Piper… this is something Chris wants to do on his own. I did, however, make him promise me that if things went wrong, he would come to you."
"He is my son-"
"And," Victor interjected softly, "He never stopped feeling like he had to prove himself."
Playing the "Twice Blessed" card was low, and Victor knew it. He saw Piper's raging anger crack slightly, and he knew it would only take a little push to be able to win her over for the time being.
"I'm watching him, Piper. If things were out of hand, I would have come to you immediately. But Chris wanted to do this on his own for a little, branch out into the world. Now that I know he's in danger, I'll make sure he treads carefully but please, Piper, I'm begging you. Give him the space he needs. This girl is harmless, I've met her. As far as I know, he's just trying to guide her into her powers a little."
Leo swelled with pride, but Piper cut him short with an offhand glare.
"Who is she? I want a name at least."
Victor sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew if he told her about the "coincidental" name exchange, Piper would be out the door and screaming Chris' name before he could stop her.
"Her name is Charlotte. He cast a spell and it went awry, he found her instead of what he was looking for. It turns out that she's a witch without access to her powers and he wants to help her. That's all I can tell you, Piper. Please."
The silence stretched out through the room, leaving an awkward heaviness to the air. Piper held her gaze unfaltering to her father's; while the two remaining sisters stood torn between their own feelings and their loyalty to their sister. Paige would admit, privately, that she understood Chris' desire for distance and independence. No matter how much people around you insisted that you didn't live in the shadow of someone else, there would always be the lingering doubt in your mind.
Phoebe had always been torn in her loyalties. She knew why Piper, her fiercely protective sister, would move mountains for the safety of her sons, but she also had a deeply rooted sympathy for her nephew. In the shadow of both Wyatt and his own former self, she only wanted him to find peace with who he was.
Victor, amid the tense and overpowering silence, reached out to take his daughter's hand. Her hand jerked back from his touch, but only for a moment. When she looked up at him, for a moment Victor was staring into the eyes of five year old Piper, confused and scared.
"I just want him to be safe,"
"I know, Piper," Victor replied, his tone soft and soothing. Piper moved in to wrap her arms around him, softening into his touch and letting the weight drop from her heavy shoulders. They stayed motionless for a long moment, interrupted only by Phoebe's quiet voice.
"We should all probably get back… it's almost sunrise,"
Piper pulled back from her father, eyes misty and red, "You're right, everyone can go now. Thank you, dad, for looking out for him. I'm sorry I doubted you."
The goodbyes were quick and to the point, Paige pulling everyone away in the sweep of her orbs, leaving Piper and Leo alone in the Halliwell manor kitchen. Leo knew better than to speak as his wife made her way up the staircase and to their youngest son's bedroom. Her hand lingered on the doorknob for a brief moment before she cracked it open, her gaze falling on the sprawling body on the mattress. She didn't know how long he had been there; there had been hours between Phoebe's premonition and the current moment, hours since Piper had clutched her phone to her chest and felt her pulse skyrocket when her son's bed was empty. Leo's hand landed on her shoulder, but he still stayed silent.
There was nothing to say.
Not yet.
Across town, the dim early morning light chased the shadows from Charlotte's apartment floor. Energy drink cans and open notebooks filled with scribbling scattered the floor around where the woman sat, her eyes heavy but her mind racing.
The pages of Chris' journal spread out under her fingertips. The words spilled across the paper, new pages yellowed by time more than any others. Charlie watched her past life unfold from Chris' point of view.
She squinted at a word on the page, hastily run together. Her fingertips brushed the paper and several grains of sand scattered the book before Charlie felt as though the floor had dropped out underneath her. She landed on her feet, expecting a sharp impact that took her down at the knees, but instead found her feet hovering an inch above the hardwood floor.
"Oh shit."
She didn't recognise her surroundings; the room was shrouded in darkness, the only window covered by a blanket nailed in place; the wallpaper peeling back and the room coated in a thin layer of dust. There was various magical paraphernalia scattered on shelves and set on the floor, but it was the slight skitter of noise that forced Charlotte to turn around.
"Ooooh, shit."
Chris and herself were bent over a table scattered with papers. Chris was taller, his hair in desperate need of a cut and his stubble curving down the side of his jaw. Charlotte let her eyes wander to what she could only assume was the image of herself in the unchanged future. She was thinner, her hair several inches longer than she liked to keep it, and a thin scar cut its way down her forehead, past her eye before stopping at the upturn of her lip. But there was something different about the pair of them, even more so than the simple physical aspects. The way they carried themselves, the shadows under their eyes that seemed to weigh down their entire bodies. Stronger and weaker all at the same time.
Chris pressed a hand to his forehead and sighed.
"It won't work."
"Not like that it won't." Charlotte replied, tearing the paper into thirds before setting it alight and letting the smouldering ruins fall to the ground. She watched Chris pace back and forth before finally speaking.
"I can do it, you know."
Chris' response was immediate. He stopped pacing and let his hand fall to her shoulder.
"No. It's too dangerous."
"I'm built to be able to do it, Chris. The Elders might have screwed up the power transfer but I'm getting strong every day, I can feel it. All I need to do is practice and then I swear, I can send you back."
"And what if it kills you?"
"That's what you're worried about? Me getting hurt? We're talking about-"
"Saving the world," Charlotte muttered just as her counterpart did. She had just been reading this in the journal. She and Chris had been holed up in a secret room at the Resistance for hours trying to come up with a way to send Chris back into the past. Charlotte looked down at her hands, unsure of her own powers not for the first time. She had touched the paper to see the words better, but now here she was, witnessing the events unfold before her eyes.
"I need you alive," Chris replied, his tone leaving no room for discussion, "I want you alive. Okay?"
The other Charlotte turned her notepad to a fresh page and reached for her pen. She propped her bare feet up onto the table and tipped back on her chair.
"Now then, let's try something like…this?"
Her blue eyes turned gold, the slow trickle of sand like an upturned hourglass swirling through them. It was the last thing Charlotte saw before her mind was thrown back into the correct timeline, her body remaining unmoved from its place in her living room. She pressed a palm to her aching forehead and eyes the notebook with a newfound curiosity.
She reached out, fingers trembling in suspense as she trailed her touch down the pages. Unlike before, however, there was no sudden drop of her stomach or pull of magic.
"Goddammit."
The pain was like fire in his blood, a searing needle being pushed through his vein an inch at a time. He muffled his screams into the pillow, clawing at his sheets to find something to catch a grip.
"You can't run away from me this time, Chris."
The pain in his head reached a breaking point, blood pounding through his ears as his view slid in and out of focus and he felt the wet trickle of blood run from his ear.
Demons thundered through the rooms, dragging people out by their hair, kicking and screaming. Blood splattered the walls as their throats were slit from ear to ear, the blood running thick and free in the hallways.
"I want Chris alive. Do what you will with the others,"
Chris couldn't hold back his screams any longer, the pillow falling away as he screamed his agony out into the air, hoping that the manor was empty.
The agony dropped as quickly as it has come, leaving a raw and oozing imprint. His whole body trembled and the sheets were soaked through with sweat. Each laboured breath was a stab to his lungs, and he sobbed quietly against his mattress.
It was a long time before he lifted his face from the pillow, red raw and streaked with tears. He reached for his phone, intent on calling Charlotte to call off their meeting for the night. Seventeen messages glared out from his screen, as well as five missed calls. Three messages and two calls were his mother letting him know that she had tried to wake him for the family picnic but he had been dead to the world, but was welcome to join them when he woke up. The rest bore Charlotte's name.
6:34 am: Missed Call from: Charlie
Message From: Charlie
7:02 am: Chris, I need you to call me as soon as you can.
7:45 am: Chris?
7:46 am: Chris, I used my powers.
8:47 am: Missed Call from: Charlie
9:02 am: I went back into the future before you changed it
9:05 am: I was just reading the journal and I touched it and then suddenly I was watching it happen
9:06 am: I've been trying to do it again but I can't
11:39 am: Missed Call from: Charlie
12:13 pm: Are you dead?
1:22 pm: Oh god, you really could be dead
1:56 pm: Please don't be dead
2:02 pm: If you're not dead, you should be happy. I think I can use this to get a better idea about how the past went without having to read your journal.
2:34 pm: I don't have work until six, so you should come by when you have the chance.
2:38 pm: If you're not dead. Which you're not.
3:01 pm: Please don't be dead.
3:12 pm: Is this number of text messages creepy? I feel like it's creepy. Sorry.
Chris balked at the time, unsure how he had managed to sleep for so long. The news that Charlotte had used her powers, however, steamrolled any other thoughts he would have on the matter. Based on how early her first message had been sent, she had quite possibly been bouncing off the walls for over nine hours, if the messages were any indication.
He dragged his tight, aching muscles from the bed and found a suitable pair of jeans and a simple t shirt to wear, peeling off his sweat drenched clothing and throwing them into the laundry basket. The scalding water of the shower brought him back to life, uncoiling his muscles and ripping the aches away.
It was half past four by the time he had made himself presentable. He had already let his mother know that he wouldn't be joining the family gathering. His excuse had been a mixture of sickness and study, which was only half a lie. Piper and his aunts were going to be having a girl's night out, so his mother had warned him that he would be alone for dinner if he didn't swing by the Coop/Phoebe household.
Chris's reply to Charlotte had gone unanswered, but he was sure he would still be welcome to see her. Despite her insistence that he was welcome to orb into her apartment without warning, he found himself outside her door, surprised when it opened easily under his touch.
"Charlie?"
The girl in question was cross legged on the floor, a notebook page gripped tight in her hands. When she heard her name, she looked up, eyes wide.
"You're not dead!"
"Yeah, I sent a message…"
Charlotte's dubious glance at her phone told him that she had probably preoccupied herself with other things when he hadn't been available. He stepped forward, noticing that she was still in her pajamas despite the hour. Chris eyed the several cans of caffeinated beverages and he reached for her wrist, his fingers pressing down on her pulse and feeling it thunder under his touch.
"Charlie, did you sleep at all?"
"Hmm? No. I was reading and then I used my powers so I thought I'd keep trying and I start work in an hour so I'll just stay up until I'm finished. I can't figure out how I did it,"
She ran her hands over the page again, alternating between lingering touches and fast strokes. Chris reached out and grabbed her hands, noting the tremble to them.
"Sit. I'll be right back,"
He pushed her into an armchair, not giving her a chance to protest. As he moved around in the kitchen, he heard Charlotte call out to him.
"I just really wanted to use my powers again; do you realise how much easier it would be for us to find things out? Discover things you didn't write in the journals? It was just such a major break that I couldn't let it go, and I haven't been sleeping much since this all started… maybe I really should ease up on the caffeine. I feel like my skin is crawling,"
"I think this might be more than caffeine," Chris admitted, "That's the first time you've ever used your powers before, and from what I've read about Time Keepers, your powers can pack a punch. Just drink this," he pressed the cold glass of water into her hand and watched as she drained it without a second thought.
He pushed down the desire to ask about her powers. Her wild-eyed gaze and the tremor of her hand only instilled a sense of dread in his chest. The lore about Time Keeper powers was sketchy at best, but he knew that others had died; driven to insanity by their powers. He had assumed it would take years; but if Charlotte, untrained and unprepared, was to push too far, there was no telling what could happen. He had a theory that the Elders' imprisonment of the Time Keeper played a part in keeping him or her from falling off the wagon; but he would rather die than put Charlotte in their hands.
"I don't think you should go to work,"
Charlotte peered over her fifth glass of water and mad a face, wiping the escaped droplets of liquid from her chin, "Bills to pay, Chris," she said, the distance in her voice almost gone, "I need my shifts. I'm feeling a lot better now,"
She set the glass on a mosaic coaster and went back to the journal, launching into an explanation of her powers and what had happened before he could stop her. By the end of her speech, he had thousands more question building up inside him. As much as he was scared for Charlotte to use her powers, he knew she was right. To see and hear the memories played out would benefit them far more than reading his journal.
Chris had been contemplating something since the day he agreed to help Charlotte with her powers; but the consequences weighed him down every time he considered it. As much as he wanted Charlotte to feel comforted and secure, her apartment was not conductive to beginner magic, especially if something was to go wrong. The manor was out of the question for obvious reasons; but Magic School would not only provide protection, but also housed every whitelighter guidance book he would ever need to guide her through the process of opening up to her powers.
But with Magic School also came the likelihood of Paige or any other member of the staff seeing the two of them and reporting right back to his mother. Chris looked to Charlotte, who had taken his silence as a chance to try her hand at her magic again. Several mini piles of sand surrounded her, but the grim crease of her forehead spoke volumes.
"God dammit,"
She brought her gaze to Chris, shoulders sagged and eyes heavy with dark circles. Before she spoke, Chris caught a glimpse of gold flicker through her eyes and he reached out, watching as Charlotte fell back onto the floor, eyes open rushing with sand, as though an hourglass had been upended.
"…shit,"
Her eyes faded blue and she grunted, trying to sit back up but held down by Chris. The entire floor was now covered in an inch of fine sand, clearly an effect of her failed attempt.
"You were close," Chris reasoned, his heart still hammering in his chest at watching her collapse so suddenly. If this was the outcome of her powers, they might be in well over their heads.
"Did you see anything?"
"Blurs," Charlotte admitted as she pushed the sand around with her toes. Chris muttered his Aunt Paige's favourite spell, the weight in his stomach disappearing at Charlotte's awe.
"…wow."
They sat in silence, unsure how to breach the topic of what had happened. There was so much to say, but neither seemed to have the proper words to touch on it.
"I have work,"
"Oh,"
He'd forgotten, in all honesty. The desire to sit and keep researching was strong, but he knew his mother would expect him home. Almost reading his mind, Charlotte placed a hand on his arm.
"My shift ends at midnight, if you wanted to come back and do some piecing together?"
"Are you sure you don't need to sleep, Charlie?"
The girl shrugged one shoulder, "Tomorrow's my day off. I'll probably sleep all day anyway, might as well get something done before I go off radar. Just come right in, I'll meet you when I get off,"
Chris reached for his discarded jacket and pointed to the empty glasses of water, "Drink more of that. And call me if anything happens, okay?"
Charlotte smiled and offered him a silent wave as he disappeared. Cookie hissed at the lights, jumping up to try and attack them.
"Cut the act, moron," Charlotte chided, tossing a cushion in his general direction, "I know you're not really a cat,"
He seemed offended by her accusation, but turned his back and sauntered away nonetheless. Charlotte looked at the clock, and then to her attire and sighed.
It was going to be a long night. She could already feel it.
"Piper, why are you in glamor?"
The woman in question nearly brained herself on the mirror when she jumped, leeching guilt into the air as the now blonde, thirty five year old turned her wide eyes on her sisters. The new Piper was considerably taller, her hips and breasts curved and full in the jeans and blouse combo she was rocking.
"Uh…."
Phoebe offered her sister a look she had seen used on herself more than once while Paige snickered quietly.
"Piper, what exactly are you planning on doing?"
"I just want to see what kind of girl my son is associating himself with, that's all," Piper finally admitted.
Phoebe shook her head, "Piper, you promised that-"
"Ah! I promised nothing."
Paige's perfected eyebrow raised made Piper wave a finger in the air, "Look, I'm not going to stalk the poor girl, or try and interfere. I just want to scope around and make sure she isn't some kind of fraud, that's all. In and out. No big issues,"
"Not a stalker, huh? All dad told us was her first name, how did you even find her?"
Piper had the decency to flush, but tilted her chin to hide the red creeping up her neck and into her ears.
"I cast a spell to find her. To call a lost witch, only with some substitutions and let me tell you, I am already unimpressed with this situation,"
She gestured to the map and crystal that were haphazardly hidden under a pile of clothes. Paige squinted down at the destination and made a face.
"A bar?"
"Exactly,"
Paige and Phoebe shared a look, but it was Phoebe who ultimately did the talking.
"Tell you what, Paige and I will go with you and we can all sort this out together while we make sure you don't make a fool of yourself or terrorise our little nephew's new friend, kay?"
"But-"
"Great that you agree, we'll get into a glamor and meet you downstairs,"
Spike's Bar was nowhere near as bad as Piper had been expecting. Despite being wedged in the corner of a dark street, the floors were clean and the patrons didn't look like the murderous type. Music pumped from the speakers, but a retro jukebox sat in the corner, begging to be touched. The sisters made their beeline for the bar, eyeing off the three bartenders. One was a slim blonde woman in her thirties; the other a stubbled man with a kind face. Knowing neither of them would fit the bill, Piper craned her neck to catch a glimpse of the girl working the other side of the bar; deflating when she only caught sight of a brown ponytail and a black shirt.
"Can I help you?"
The blonde had made her way over, hand already poised on the glasses below the counter.
"We're still deciding, sorry," Piper responded, eyes darting to find where the brunette had disappeared to. The blonde woman, whose nametag revealed her name to be Alice, moved on without a second glance.
"Did you see her?" Phoebe muttered under her breath as she scanned her eyes over the drink menu.
"Nope, did you?"
"Nope."
"Wait…"
From the stock room door, the brunette appeared again; this time giving the sisters a chance to see her face. She was carrying an armload of packaged peanuts and began pouring them into the countertop dishes, slowly making her way around until she came face to face with the three women.
"Hi, what can I get you?"
Piper's unashamed staring forced Phoebe to dig the heel of her shoes into Piper's foot, smiling warmly at the bartender.
"My s-friends," she said, catching herself before she referred to them as her sisters, "and I would like two lemonades and a glass of red wine. Any kind is fine,"
Charlotte smiled as she ducked over to the other side of the bar to grab frosted glasses and busied herself with the drink, giving Phoebe enough time to hiss at her older sister.
"Piper, for the love of God, we're trying to be subtle. Don't stare at her like she's a piece of meat!"
"She is way too young to be working here," Piper replied, "What kind of establishment lets an underage girl work there?"
Paige pursed her lips and propped one elbow onto the counter, "I worked a few bar shifts back in college. I wasn't drinking at that point, but if you know the right people they look the other way. Times are tough, Piper… people need money,"
Piper bit back her disapproval at Paige's somewhat soothing input before turning back to Phoebe, who was fixed on Charlotte's back.
"What happened to not staring at her like a piece of meat?" Piper murmured. Phoebe didn't take the bait, instead just rubbing at her collarbone.
"I don't know, I feel… something,"
The psychic wasn't sure what the sensation was there for, but deep inside her chest she could feel the undeniable pull of magic. It tingled through her lungs and almost burned with each breath she took.
"I think we should wait a little," Phoebe finally conceded, "If nothing else, we'll have a night out,"
"And why would you order wine, you don't drink," Piper interrupted, suddenly remembering what her sister had ordered.
"The wine is for you," Phoebe replied and Charlotte headed back over with the drinks in her hand, "You need to chill out a little,"
"Two lemonades?" Charlotte asked, holding out two frosted glasses filled to the rim. When Paige and Phoebe took them from her hands, she pushed the wine across to Piper with a warm smile.
"Anything else I can get you ladies?"
At the negative response, Charlotte moved to walk away, stopped only by Piper.
"Wait… how was your day today?"
Charlotte made a face, but walked back to them and propped her elbows on the bar, "Drank too much caffeine. Had to be rescued by a friend of mine. Experienced something…magical,"
To any other person, the word would have been innocent, but the pause and tone told the sisters everything they needed to know.
"What about you? Customers don't usually ask me how my day was. That's my job,"
Piper sipped at the wine, enjoying the heavy taste on her tongue. It had been too long since she'd had wine that wasn't about to be poured into a dish she was preparing for someone. Paige took the silence as a chance to speak.
"You know, not much. Mom there's paint on the ceiling; Mom she's pulling my hair; Mom I asked Dad something and he told me to ask you,"
Her tone was tinted with something gentle that negated the sarcasm, but Charlotte still laughed.
"What about you?"
Phoebe wiped the condensation from her glass and shrugged one shoulder, "Oh, the usual. Calm day, one little incident and then suddenly everyone's.. crazy,"
Piper clearly didn't appreciate the dig, but plastered a smile on her face and ran her finger around the rim of the wine glass.
"Maybe you'll understand when you're older," she let the word drip on her tongue, "But some days you just need your close friends and some wine to figure things out. Teenage sons can be a riot, but if they're not, they're causing one,"
Charlotte's soft smile was unjudging, and if she had noticed the subtle jab to her age, she didn't acknowledge it.
"Well, in that case, I'll give you ladies the next round on the house. Hopefully that might make things a little better," she tipped them a wink and refilled the sad peanut container in front of them. A customer at the end of the bar shouted something across the room that prompted a vile cuss to be thrown back. Charlotte rolled her eyes and gestured to the male bartender, who moved into action without further prompting.
"Sorry, but I've got to keep moving. Let me know if I can help you with anything else, okay?"
It wasn't until she was safely behind the divider of the bar that any of the sisters dared to speak. They were confident that their cover wasn't blown, let alone that she had even made the connection between Chris and his mother and aunts.
"What are you even expecting to see? She seems pretty nice from here." Paige questioned as she drained her glass. Piper might be on a stealth mission, but the lemonade here was cheap and good and she was going to make the most of her first night off from mom duty.
"I don't know yet," Piper admitted, not taking her eyes off the bustling bartender, "But I'll know when I see it,"
It was nearing eleven thirty when Charlotte returned to their side of the bar. The sisters had been watching her with interest the entire night, but hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary. She poured drinks, socialised with customers, shuffled boxes and overall behaved like any normal person would. Piper wouldn't admit aloud that she had expected something far more sinister or magical about the girl; but as the hours had ticked by, she had eventually had to resign herself to the fact that her fears had no footing, and Chris was safe in her presence. Phoebe was sipping her fourth lemonade, while Paige had switched to a variety of virgin beverages around nine pm.
"Hey ladies, my shift is closing up so I was wondering if you wanted me to settle your tab or if I can leave you in Harley's capable hands?"
Piper's attempt to speak was cut off by Paige, who slid her credit card across the glossy bar top, "We'll settle it now; you've been great,"
To emphasise the point, Paige pushed a wad of bills into the tip jar- enough to make Charlotte's eyes widen. It had to be at least a fifty percent tip.
"Oh, you really don't have to,"
Phoebe waved her off, the guilt of having stalked the poor girl for hours without her even knowing was heavy in her gut and she and Paige had already pooled their money for the apologetic tip.
"No, really… you earned it,"
Charlotte's apprehension was still painted on her face, but offered them a quiet thanks before settling the tab and moving on to her next customer. Paige and Phoebe were halfway to the door before Piper even had a chance to pull her coat on; the eldest sister unimpressed with her sisters' behaviors.
"Hey, what are you two even doing- gah!"
Phoebe's grip on her upper arm hauled her into the small gap between the bar and the apartment complex, darkness shrouding the three of them like a cheaply made horror film about the go wrong.
"Piper, we just spent hours watching some poor girl do her job. She did nothing wrong. She didn't even skimp on the ice, for god's sake! She's just an innocent, and Chris is helping her. I think maybe you need to stop worrying so much about him and give him a little freedom. Can you imagine how much more he'd keep from you if he found out we pulled something like this? Leave her be."
"No, she's clearly lying about her age to work in there; and how do we know that she's normal? She's working, of course she isn't going to try anything crazy."
"Let it go, Piper. She's harmless. We spent the whole night watching her-"
"Shh!"
Charlotte's heels clicked along the pavement as she stifled a yawn. The three women relaxed and Paige dug her elbow into Piper's side.
"See? Nothing happened, let's just go."
"Hey."
The sisters looked up in shock as Chris came into view, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his jeans. Charlotte didn't seem surprised to see him, though she shook her head as she stepped forward.
"I already told you that you're welcome to go straight in, Chris."
He laughed and shrugged his shoulders, "It always seems too rude to just be there when you get back."
Charlie smiled and rifled around in her purse before producing a silver key tied to a gold chain. "Here, I made you a copy for the apartment, since you're so against using my spare one. I mean it. Whenever you need to, just come in."
Chris took the key from her and stared at it for a moment before he slid it into his pocket, "Thank you. I'm still going to-"
"I know. Your mother raised you quite the gentleman."
Piper snorted quietly and Paige dug her elbow into her ribs to keep her quiet. Phoebe watched the girl carefully, feeling the same, strange pull in her chest that she had before.
"How are you feeling after this afternoon?"
Charlotte laughed quietly, "A lot more grounded. No more caffeine in high doses, I promise,"
"And you'll sleep," Chris added.
While Piper and Paige silently bickered beside her, Phoebe reached out to shove them both when she saw Chris reach out and grab Charlotte's hand.
"Are they holdings hands?" Piper hissed, trying to see around Phoebe, "Dad said they weren't-"
"I don't think they are," Phoebe said quietly, watching as Chris brought Charlotte's hands closer to his face and frowned.
The sisters watched as something scattered to the ground between them, the pair jumping back as though afraid of it. They were exchanging a hurried conversation, too soft for any of the sisters to hear.
"What are they doing?"
Charlotte clung to Chris' hand and removed a battered looking journal- a familiar battered journal. The atmosphere of the sisters changed drastically when they caught sight of the notebook. If Chris' secrecy had anything to do with the life of his past self, it changed the situation. There was only so much they could do for him, and they knew how hard it must be for Chris to know so little but feel so much.
"Okay," Piper hissed, "Maybe if she is helping him out with this past self thing, I can get over myself for one-"
She stopped talking when Chris lunged out to catch Charlotte's suddenly limp body. The notebook fell to the ground, forgotten and unwanted as Chris clung to Charlotte. Paige moved as though to run to them, but was hauled back into place by her sisters. Chris couldn't know they were there, but if Charlotte was in any danger, Piper was sure that he wouldn't hesitate in calling for his brother.
The words coming out of Chris' lips made Piper bristle, making a mental note to find out where he'd gotten such a vocabulary. Chris swept Charlotte up into his arms and they orbed away, the journal swept up in the blue lights. When the sisters were sure they wouldn't be caught, they stumbled out of their hiding place and headed for the strange residue that had fluttered from Charlotte's palms. There seemed to be more of it than there had seemed, it scattered the footpath in a wide circle.
"Is that sand?" Phoebe asked, wrinkling her nose as she kicked it with her foot. Paige crouched down and rubbed her fingers against it.
"Yep. Why did Charlotte have a ton of sand in her hands? Is that some new thing the kids are doing these days?"
Phoebe laughed, but her smile died when she saw the stoic mask her older sister had taken.
"Piper?"
"It's magic."
Phoebe frowned and looked down at the sand, but felt the barest hint of magic oozing from the sand. She stepped backwards and pulled Paige with her, not wanting to expose her youngest sister to anything before they figured out why sand would be giving off magic essence. She was about to ask Piper what she thought, but the Halliwell matriarch was already prepared.
"Sand, Phoebe. Grains of sand. My son is associating with a girl who can drop magical grains of sand from her palms; does that sound familiar to you?"
The last lines of the Seer's warning played through her head, and Phoebe's eyes widened.
"You don't think this is the girl, do you? The Keeper of the Grains? She's harmless."
Piper looked up at the apartment complex to the only lit window, glowing like a beacon.
"Call Chris. This ends now."
