Jared

The most remarkable thing about Jared Phinias Halliwell was that, compared to his brothers, he was blissfully normal. Ironically, it was this air of normality that made him stand out. Sure, he had the pretty boy countenance, with his tussled sandy hair, caramel apple eyes, and 1000-watt smile. His 6'3" athletic stature and advanced dexterity would have made him, under other circumstances, the obvious choice for the high school basketball star. His amiable sense of humor and love of chivalry would have doubtlessly won him the coveted title of Prom King. As luck would have it, these boyish qualities served relatively little purpose in the world of magic.

In regards to his powers, Jared was a bit of a late bloomer, but having the unusual gift of atmospheric manipulation had finally given him something to celebrate. Now, if only he could learn to control it. How on earth could he take part in the gathering war between good and evil if he couldn't be certain what igniting his powers would accomplish? In the face of danger, would he blast his enemies with a mighty hurricane or shower them with a light drizzle. Either way, the answer wouldn't come this morning.

Waking to the distinct aroma of fresh blueberry muffins, Jared decided to follow his nose.

"Wuzzup, bruthahs?" Jared yawned, stumbling into the kitchen.

"Wuzzup, bruthah?" responded Chris and Lee, answering the traditional Halliwell Brothers greeting.

"You're up early," chirped Lee, in his early bird voice.

"Couldn't sleep… Too excited," said Jared, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "You chefs haven't made any coffee by any chance, have ya?" asked Jared, fighting off a yawn.

"Sorry, Bro'. Just drank the last of it," said Chris "Gimme two minutes and we'll be back in business."

"No worries," Jared responded. "I can get it."

Chris shot a look of nervous concern at Lee and mouthed the words "Say something!" He was savvy enough to know that absolutely ANYTHING Chris could come up with would sound friendlier coming out of Lee's mouth.

Lee looked terrified. "Uh… J-… Jared… Are you sure? I mean, I don't want you to hurt yourself."

Jared froze in his tracks. He had anticipated such a rejection, but hadn't prepared for how inadequate he would feel when the time came. "I've got it, Little Lee," he responded, knowing that such diminutives were the least harmful way of getting Lee to back off. He promised himself that he would apologize to him later. After all, he knew that stopping him had been Chris' idea.

Chris' nerves got the best of him. "Jared, it's not safe."

"Chris, it's a coffee maker," replied Jared. "I think I can handle a coffee maker."

Chris tried to inject a friendly concern into his voice. "It's not personal."

"Okay then, name one other person in this house who's not allowed to use the coffee maker" said Jared with a let's-see-ya'-get-out-of-this-one expression on his elfin features.

"Well…" Chris replied, knowing he'd been caught. He looked at Lee, hoping he could help him out. No luck.

"I thought so," said Jared. "Now, if you don't mind…"

Chris moved to stand in front of the coffee maker. His face was more concerned than aggressive. "Jared, come on…"

"Chris, seriously, what 20-year-old gets grounded from household appliances?"

"The one who's blown up four toasters in two weeks." Chris replied, attempting to bring a little humor into the dispute.

"But, that's toasters!" argued Jared, sounding like a defensive little boy.

"He has a point, Chris," said Lee, in trademark blind optimism.

"Not… Help… -ing!" replied Chris.

"Okay… How about this?" Jared began. "How about I just try it out… this one time… and see if it explodes?"

Chris playfully scoffed at this suggestioin. "Well, gee, Jared. With logic like that, it's a wonder you're not captain of the debate team."

Jared rolled his eyes, exasperated. He decided to try for one last time. "Please?" he pleaded, donning his best "lost puppy" expression?

"No, Fido!" chuckled Chris. "At least, not until you get the excess wattage under control."

A genuinely wounded look crept into Jared's eyes as he slowly turned to go sit down. It hit Chris like a swift punch in the gut.

"You'll get it, Jared… I promise," Chris declared, almost apologetically.

Lee felt it was finally safe to chime it. "You always do." he said, pure faith in his voice.

"I promise" Chris repeated.

Jared nodded slightly, mostly to appease his brother, but did not turn back around. He continued towards the closest kitchen chair.

It truly pained Chris to have to treat his brother like a young child, knowing how unusual it was for Jared to not succeed at something on the first attempt. Regardless, before they journeyed back from the future, Jared's powers had already wreaked more than their share of havoc. Perhaps the most frightening thing of all was that he caused more damage asleep than awake. The multiple-room, indoor showers had given new meaning to the phrase "wet the bed" and the first floor gale force winds had ripped pictures from the walls and thrown the living room furniture into decidedly inconvenient locations. Chris thought back (or forward, in this case) to day Wyatt had to explain how their sofa managed to crash its way through the neighbors' living room window at 3 o'clock in the morning. Though funny in retrospect, the thought of Chris having to assume such a responsibility made him cringe.

Just as Chris was snapping from his glazed memory to the present moment, he saw Jared making a break for the coffee maker. Chris got to him half a second too late. How did I not see that coming? he wondered, diving to stop Jared's reckless attempt.

As Jared's hand grasped for the handle of the coffee maker's pitcher, a single, silver lightening bolt shot forcefully from his index finger, shattering the coffee maker, electrifying the outlet behind it, and sending broken tiles flying in all directions!

"Lee! Orb! Orb! Orb!" yelled Chris, as he yanked Jared to the floor.

Lee's body transformed into bright, sparkling crystals of light, as the broken glass and burnt rubber sped through his glowing silhouette, leaving him unharmed, but the plate full of muffins that he had been holding was not so lucky. "Oh man, Mom loved those." he moaned as he helplessly watched the ash-coated muffins roll along the dusty floor.

As the smoke and dust finally cleared, Chris glared accusingly at Jared, his eyes sternly scolding his younger brother. "Nice work, 'Lightening Rod'!"

Always the first to see the bright side, Lee easily found the humor in their predicament. "Well Jared, you're as good as grounded by parents you have yet to meet." he gleefully remarked. "I'll bet that's a first!"

Though he tried, for Chris' sake, to keep a straight face, Jared couldn't healp but laugh heartily, appreciating the ridiculousness of the situation. Laughter being contageous, even Chris ultimately joined in.

Jared shrugged his shoulders and smiled sheepishly. "I don't suppose 'Oops' would quite cover it?"