Review Replies:

charmedhunter: Thank you, I'm glad you liked it. Yeah, I was hoping it would answer some of people's questions. Thanks for the Review!

lissysue85: Yeah, Chris is a good brother. Yeah, Leo totally deserved it. Since Victor didn't really like Leo anyway, it was pretty easy for me to see him yelling at Leo. Thanks for the Review!

A/N: OK, here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it!

Questions

Mel had orbed up to the top of the Golden Gate Bridge. It was her brother's favorite place to think, one thing he had in common with their father. Although Mel would never tell him, she suspected he knew anyway, Chris had a lot in common with Leo.

She was sitting there thinking. She'd had to relive one of the worst days of her life, and her parents and aunts had witnessed it too. Mel had never wanted them to know about it. She was used to not having family around, and now she had to readjust to being around them here in the past. She was thankful she wasn't alone though, Mel didn't know what she'd do without Chris. She couldn't imagine how hard it had been on him being back here, around everyone, most were dead in their time. Their time...Neither Mel nor Chris wanted the sisters and Leo to know that much about what happened in the future. And not necessarily because it would change the future, but because it was just a lot to bear. Mel and Chris were used to that world, but in this time the world was still a nice, happy place. They didn't want to ruin that for their family. Yet today, Mel had showed them one of her worst memories.

Mel was almost afraid to go back to the manor with all of them knowing. It seemed like everyone would treat her differently after they found out. Everyone she'd ever told never looked at or treated her the same way again. The only exceptions were her brothers. Sure, they'd gone into big brother protective mode overdrive, but they still treated her like nothing had changed, they never looked at her differently.

Chris would hold her protectively in his arms, or just sit there and listen anytime she wanted. Wyatt had immediately gone after the demons who had attacked her. Mel had convinced him to take her with him, and it was when she realized how truly evil her big brother had become. She could see it in his eyes anytime he killed, whether it was a demon or an innocent. Mel had been so set on getting revenge on the demons that she didn't realize it until about a week later though. That was the day he'd sent demons after their grandpa, the day Mel and Chris lost the big brother they'd always known.

Even after that day, after he started taking over the world, Mel still had hope. She could still see remains of the Wyatt she'd once known, the big brother. He still couldn't kill Mel or Chris. He simply wanted them on his side. Though Chris had blatantly refused, Mel had almost joined him. She wanted to have both of her big brothers, but when she saw what he was doing she knew she had to choose. She'd hated it, so had Chris. Neither of them had ever wanted to wage war with Wyatt. That's how the plan to come to the past had been born. They figured if they saved Wyatt from turning, that they could save the world, and none of it would ever happen.

After Chris had left to come to the past, Mel had felt all alone. She kept up the fight though, still having hope that her big brother was still somewhere inside 'Lord Wyatt.' She still had hope because even though he'd sent demons after her and Chris, it was always to capture, never kill. Mel knew it was because he'd promised to always protect them, he'd made it the day their mother died. And until three weeks ago, he'd never broken that promise, not directly anyway.

Three weeks ago some demons had managed to hit her with a paralyzing dart. She hadn't been able to move or fight back, only scream. She still had her powers, but there was a spell on the area to prevent any means of magical transportation. She couldn't shimmer, flame, or orb out. She could feel what the demons were feeling though, she knew what they wanted to do with her, and she was terrified of reliving one of her worst nightmares. When Wyatt showed up Mel tried to play on his big brother instincts, she'd begged him to help her, to protect her. He had ignored her. If he hadn't walked away before the demons made her nightmare a reality again, she would've known that there was no hope left for him.

Wyatt had walked away though. He couldn't watch her in that much pain, with that much fear. She'd known then her big brother was still in there. That light was fading fast though. That was when Mel had decided to come back and help Chris save their big brother.

Mel had been gone for about an hour when Chris orbed in next to her. He sat down by her, not saying anything, and they sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Let me guess, they're anxiously waiting to ask me questions?" Mel asked Chris lightly. He chuckled and nodded. "So how long you figure we have before they send Leo to find us?"

"Probably about another five minutes," he answered. "You okay?" he asked her quietly.

Mel looked over at her brother. She leaned her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his waist. Chris followed suit and wrapped his arm around her, holding her close.

"Thank you," she told him softly, smiling, watching the city.

"For what?" he asked, looking down at her.

Mel looked up and looked him in the eyes. "For everything," she told him smiled, squeezing her tight.

"I love you Mel," he whispered.

"I love you too Chris," she whispered back.

*****

"There you are! We were getting worried," Piper said when Chris and Mel orbed into the attic. The sisters and Leo had all been waiting for them.

"Sorry, I was just thinking," Mel apologized.

"That's OK sweetie," Phoebe told her.

"Thanks. Look I'm sorry I just orbed out earlier. I just needed to think about some stuff," Mel told them.

"Don't worry about it. We're just glad you're okay," Piper told her. Mel smiled back, and looked at Chris before turning back to them.

"OK, here's the deal...I know you're curious, and probably have a lot of questions," Mel started. "Go ahead and ask, we," she indicated her and Chris. "will try to explain everything." The sisters and Leo nodded. "However, there will be some things we can't tell you, and you'll just have to accept that," she added. Mel went over to the couch and sat by Chris. "OK, ask away."

The sisters and Leo looked at each other apprehensively. They didn't really know where to start. Piper finally spoke up.

"How old were you guys when I died? Or is that one of the things you can't tell us?" Chris and Mel looked at each other uneasily.

"Fourteen," Chris told her.

"Eleven," Mel said. Piper took a deep breath, trying to keep the tears out of her eyes.

"Did we die too?" Paige asked, meaning her and Phoebe. Chris swallowed.

"Not till a couple years after mom," he told them. Phoebe and Paige shared a sorrowful expression.

"Why wouldn't I believe you?" Leo asked Mel, who wouldn't look at him.

"You thought I was lying," she answered simply.

"Why?" he asked again.

"Yeah, what exactly were the 'alternative methods' you used to get over Piper's death?" Phoebe asked.

Mel and Chris both shifted uncomfortably, sharing a nervous glance at each other. This earned curious and confused looks from the sisters and Leo.

"What? Future consequences?" Piper asked.

"Not exactly," Chris told her in a lower volume, not looking her in the eyes.

"Yeah, let's just say...uh...that they weren't exactly...good," Mel told them uneasily.

Piper and Leo shared a worried look. Paige and Phoebe nodded understandingly. Chris and Mel both hung their heads.

"So, where did you and Wyatt orb off to?" Paige asked, changing the subject away from whatever her niece and nephew had done to cope with their mother's death.

"We went to the underworld, and vanquished the demons," Mel answered evenly.

"Did you ever talk to anyone about what happened?" Phoebe asked gently.

"Just Wyatt and Chris," Mel told her aunt quietly.

"Well, if you ever do need to talk..." Phoebe offered, but Mel shook her head.

"No. I didn't come here to talk about my problems. I came here to help Chris save Wyatt, and that's exactly what I'm going to do," Mel said firmly, but then her expression softened a little. "Look, I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but I came here to do a job. Besides, I've been living without you guys for a very long time. It's weird just being around you, let alone actually getting close to you. Now, I don't want you treating me any different just because now you know something that happened. It's over, done. Now, can we please move on?" she pleading with her family, other than Chris.

The sisters and Leo looked at each other. Piper moved over to the now standing Mel. She looked into her daughter's eyes and knew she'd been through more than Piper ever wanted to know.

"Sure sweetie. But can you do something for me?" Mel nodded. "If you ever do decide you wanna talk..." Mel nodded again. "Good. We do want to get to know you, but we won't force you," Piper told Mel gently, pulling her into a hug.

"Thanks mom," Mel whispered, relaxing in the embrace. Piper smiled.

A/N: Well, there it is. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I should have the next one up by tomorrow night. Reviews are appreciated!