Chapter 3
The feel of the little life in his arms felt magical. He remembered exactly. Today is the day. Today would change their life yet again. Today will be the happiest in his life. Yet today is also the anniversary of Azalea's passing. A drop of tear splashed off his face to the ground as Chris fixed his gaze on the soft flickering light playing on the swing in the back yard.
Azalea sat on the swing alone flipping the picture book she had in her hand. The soft glow of the autumn sun played lazily on her hair. Her bright blue eyes were lively and playful. Patiently she waited for the big yellow school bus just to send her brother back to her.
"Guess who." Chris said giddily as he covered her eyes from behind.
"Who else could it be?" Azalea said sighing as she put the book she was reading down to her lap.
"You're no fun today." Chris whined. "But, I have a surprise for you. A little something for my little sister." He said smiling as he sat opposite Azalea. "I have a candy and a new book." Both he pulled enthusiastically from his backpack.
"Only from my favorite brother." Azalea uttered softly and smiling as she took the things from her brother.
"Lea, don't say that. Don't ever let Wyatt hear that. He is your brother too." Chris scolded as he cups her face to face him.
Azalea made a face at Chris as he said the words she had already memorized. "Only by name." She mumbled softly in hopes that Chris would not hear her. Chris just ignored her words as he himself knows that Wyatt was not the best brother to them in a while but he knows, Wyatt is trying to be a good brother. "What brother is ashamed of his own sister?" the five years old girl asked.
"Who said he is?" Chris questioned, a little taken aback by the tone of Azalea's voice and the words she had uttered. "Lea. Tell me who said he is ashamed of you?" Chris demanded as he laid both his hand on Azalea's shoulders.
Azalea just turned her face away from Chris. Trying to shrug his hand off of her shoulders. "Let go Chris." She squeaked. "Let go." She said angrily looking at her brother. Red anger painted her eyes and pink blush on her cheek burned the eyes of her brother.
"No." Chris said full of authority and full of resentment. "Not until you tell me who said that he is ashamed of you." Chris said, his eyes transfixed on his sister's and stoned in anger.
"He did." Azalea spat at him. "Happy?" She asked her tone full spite. "I heard him said it to mom. I know where I came from, Chris. I know why I could not shimmer like you and Wyatt." She spoke as tears brimmed her eyes and threatened to fall.
Chris draws in a deep breath and closed his eyes. It was not easy for him to have to accept Azalea as his sister, but worse still she was not the product of his father and mother. The stupid fireman. He was the cause of this mess. "But you're still our sister. You're still mom's daughter." He said softly coaxing his little sister.
"But he is ashamed of me because I'm a cripple Chris. If I am your sister, I could have shimmered and run away from the demon. I could have shimmered into your arms." She said as the tears overflowed her eyes.
Chris shook his head. He knows Wyatt. That was not the reason. Being human is never the reason. The real reason is that he was rebelling against mom and dad. He was going to be the Wyatt of the past. Only this time, Chris knows how to stop him. Chris knows his weakness and his strength. He knows when is the time to let him go and keep him in.
"Or you could have died if you could shimmer." Chris said. "You know what a dark lighter arrow could have done to a white lighter."
"Chris." A familiar voice called to him. "Why are you out here?" Wyatt asked as he sat beside his little brother. His tone suggesting he was thinking about his late sister as well. The dry croaked of his voice suggested that he had been crying.
Chris merely looked at the face that caused all the pain in his past. Without even saying a word, Chris cracked a soft yet meaningful smile at his elder brother. "Why do you think I am here?" He questioned with a slight hint of annoyance.
"I didn't know she heard that. I didn't think it would matter to her. Not at that time. She was three, Chris. She was three when she heard me said it." Wyatt said defensively. Chris just smirked at him. "Are you blaming me for her death? Are you blaming me for you being miserable all your life?" He questioned. "You have been miserable, way before she passed, Chris." Wyatt said raising his voice.
"Why are you shouting?" Chris said cunningly. "Why are you thinking the way that you are?" Chris said standing up. He was almost the height of his brother. He knows that he would never out grow his brother but at least he is happy with his size for now. "I am miserable. I am. Not because of her death and not because of you." He admitted as he turned away from his brother.
Wyatt caught his arm and Chris purposely let him. "Then tell me why Chris, why do you hate me so much. Why do you hate this life so much?" He asked pleadingly.
"Because I have lived it once and it did not turn out that good. And because despite what mom, dad or I said, you would never change. It was never a demon Wyatt. It was never an evil entity. The story mom told you about, those that you read in the Book of Shadows, they are all true. Open your eyes and see. Kill that inner demon in you. Be that person dad look up to you to be." Chris said as he snatched back his arm from his brother.
Chris walked past Piper as he made his way to the attic. Glumly he sat cross legged on the floor and felt the pain he felt when he was brought back there drained from any magical ounce he possessed, being tortured by his own brother. Softly he mouthed and mumbled words that mere humans can barely make out but loud enough for his father to hear.
Leo orbed in and shook his head. He cupped Chris's face for their eyes to meet. "You can finally control your anger now. You can absorb and control of that wrath and evil." He smiled at his son.
"I just want a better life for my sister. I never matter." Chris said, trying to avoid his father's eyes. "Not in this life. Not in the early life. Just not ever." He said calmly. His father's questioning eyes was just being ignored. "Just take it away, dad. I can't help mom in this condition." He said softly, pleading and instructing at the same time. Quietly Leo chanted a mantra that Chris had heard before but he could never decipher in what it said or what language it was in.
He felt as if his flesh was ripped out of his bones, his breath is being knocked out with every beat of his heart and his muscles were being torn from its place, still Chris endured it. For if that is what it takes to free Wyatt from the evil being that he could be, the pain he felt is nothing. The scar that was left in his memories was felt as if it million times worse than he had ever endured.
"It's done." The warmth of a father's voice woke Chris up from his pain. "It's all done." Leo said softly. "How do you feel?" He asked tenderly. "Are you still angry?" he asked.
"Not of the words Wyatt said. But the scar of the memory can never be erased, dad. The pain of a brother, of a son can never be erased." Quietly Chris answered. Slowly he stood up and faced his father. "Never fear, dear father. I know what anger and wrath brings to this family. And I intend to keep this family as a unit." He smiled before he made his way back down to where his brother was with his mom. Leo trailed behind him. Proud. Proud of being a father to such being, proud to be the head of a family such as this.
Quietly Chris joined his mother and brother at the kitchen bar. "Everything alright?" Piper asked cautiously as she looked at Wyatt then to Chris. When Chris replied with a smiling nod, she turned to look at her first born. Wyatt seemed spaced but calm. All she could do is smile. "You're a brave one." She whispered to Chris.
"She is mom." Chris said as he looked down to her large seven months pregnant stomach. "She is brave and much more. She is special." Piper knew what he meant. She knew exactly how he intended her little princess's life would be.
Leo walked over to Wyatt as he whispered some nice things for his ears. Wyatt nodded excitedly and looked over at Chris, inviting him. Modestly the youngest boy declined the invitation. "I want to stay home with mom." He said. Wyatt looked at Leo for support but none was given. "I never liked museum, Wyatt. Have fun with dad." Chris said encouragingly.
"Now I see why my little princess hate's history." Piper whispered in Chris's ears. A smile cracked into a soft laughter. Little that she knows that her little princess was the reason for him being home. She was the reason he had to sacrifice the day he could have had with his father and brother.
*******
The hands of the clock on the wall strikes five fifty when Piper felt her water was suddenly broken. The painful contractions within her made her screamed as her hands grabbed of the one sitter couch hand for support. The scream alerted the young boy in the kitchen who was already boiling water for the delivery of his sister.
With folded towels and blanket in one arm and a huge bowl of hot water in another, Chris came to his mother's side. "For this woman gave me life and the life of this little one, let me the pain and let her be free of it." Chris said as he held Piper's arm.
"Chris?" Piper questioned as she felt the contraction pain within her subside and Chris was bearing it. She could feel that the contraction was splitting her in half, freeing the little being inside of her, but she felt no pain. No pain at all, but she could see them in her son's face. "Chris, don't do this." She begged.
"It's okay mom. I've been through it all before." Chris said as his breath is held to beat the pain, as his lips turned white as he sank his teeth in them. "I've been through it all before. You just relax and give the little baby her life." He smiled through the pain.
Five minutes was all it took for the little premature baby girl to arrive in Chris's trembling arms. Five minutes was all he had to endure to fully enjoy the ecstasy of the very moment that he was having. "Andrianne Hope Halliwell." He said as he handed the pink little being to his mother.
"Andrianne Hope Perry Halliwell." Piper corrected him. Chris smiled. Andrianne Hope Perry, she was the young lady who his mother first met as his sister, not as her daughter. But a young lady decent enough to save her family from going to the nothingness called hell.
"My little miracle." Chris said as he took the little girl away again from his mother to bathe her for the very first time.
"My little wizard. And my little miracle." Piper whispered as she looked at her two children disappearing into the kitchen. There was no doubt for this young man's love to his sister and it was nothing that even death could do to separate them.
"You usually feed her then, I'll do the rest." Chris said as he handed the blanketed and cleaned baby into his mother's arms once again.
"Why not, we'll care for her together. The way you always imagined it. A family. A unit. Not as mother, brother, and fighter. As a family." Piper said softly pulling her son to sit beside her. "Are you sore?" She asked.
"A little." Chris said sighing, feeling weak. His pale lips curved into a grin as his brows frowned fighting the pain. "It'll go away." He said softly.
"You are not fooling anyone, Chris. Get some rest. You have been through hell and back and back to hell and back." Piper said softly as she ran her fingers through Chris's sweat damped hair. Chris shook his head and laid it back on the head rest.
"The pain is nothing mom. Nothing, compared with what we had to go through." Chris replied, hints of anger and sadness was clear in his voice though it was calm and soft.
Piper laced her fingers through Chris's hair and chanted a mantra too soft for Chris to hear. The mantra sounded like a soft hum. The hum that he used to sing for his little sister when she was scared. The hum that he could not remember where he had heard it from before.
"I think I should go up stairs." Chris said suddenly as his body writhe in pain and anguish. "I don't feel so well." He spoke softly as he stood up a little wobbly and walked towards the stairs. His face turned as white as a sheet and his knuckles were hardens as he gripped the stair handle.
"Chris?" Leo's voice shouted as he walked in the door. Chris fell on the floor as he turned to face his father. "Christopher." Leo spoke urgently as he ran towards his young son's lifeless body on the floor.