Disclaimer: If I promise to let all this go, can I have Drew Fuller for a day?

Ch. 30:

Meredith sat with Chris, who was sitting with Little Meredith on his lap as her older self tried to distract her. Mer, for her part, just buried her face in Chris's shoulder. Finally, Meredith gave up and just rubbed her back as Chris held her tighter. Phoebe and Paige were sitting across from them and Leo joined them in a flash of orbs a second later.

"Darryl?" Phoebe asked, her voice tinged with worry.

"He's okay." Leo assured them as they all breathed a sigh of relief. "He said they didn't get anywhere near him."

"Oh, thank god." Phoebe breathed.

"My question is, how'd they even know to impersonate him?" Paige asked.

"They must have been watching us." Meredith said as she took her younger self from Chris. "They must have wanted to see who you trusted and let near him."

"That's really creepy." Phoebe said.

"Well, it's gonna get a lot creepier if we don't stop them from getting to Wyatt." Chris said.

"We might have a thought about that." Piper said as she, Wyatt, and David joined them.

"We?" Leo asked.

"Yeah." Piper replied. "Well, we've been talking, and I think we need to give Chris's idea another chance."

"No!" Meredith said with fervor. "It's not an option."

"What idea?" Phoebe asked.

"About binding Wyatt's powers." Piper said.

"What?" her sisters demanded at the same time.

"Well, I'm just saying we should consider it." Piper defended herself. "I mean, if you think about it, it makes sense."

"You can't be serious." Leo said.

"Actually, she's never been more serious." David told him.

"Excuse me, I was talking to her." Leo sneered.

"This doesn't sound like you, Piper." Paige said.

"Doesn't it?" David asked. "Piper wants to protect her son. She wants a normal life. This way she can have both."

"Chris, say something." Meredith ordered, rounding on him.

"What do you want me to say?" he asked her. "Those were my arguments."

"We already had this argument." Meredith told him as the others watched the back and forth. "We agreed that binding his powers was a bad idea."

"No, you agreed." Chris told her angrily. "I still say Wyatt is safer with his powers bound."

"It's a good idea." David agreed.

"No, it's not 'a good idea'." Phoebe told him. "That's a bad one – a very, very bad one – one that's been discussed and discarded already."

"Yeah, but that was before a demonic cult started targeting him." Piper pointed out.

"What makes you think they'll stop just because you bind his powers?" Meredith demanded. "He's still the Twice-Blest."

She directed the last statement at Chris with a glare.

"Yeah, but this could be-" He started.

"Oh, what, just another big, bad, evil thing that's coming after him?" Paige interrupted. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. We got it."

"It still isn't a good enough reason." Leo said.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I agree with Leo." Meredith said, looking pained.

"Piper thinks it is." David pointed out.

"Hey, buddy, don't forget who made you." Phoebe told him.

"That's right." Chris said, more to himself than anyone else. "You did make him, didn't you?"

"Piper, I don't understand." Phoebe said. "Yesterday, you were willing to give up everything for Wyatt's future. Why this now?"

"Well, you should know." Piper told her. "You're the one that, um, showed me what I really wanted and really need."

"She's got us there." Paige muttered.

"Yeah, well, it doesn't matter, 'cause it's gonna take The Power of Three to bind someone as powerful as Wyatt, and I'm not gonna support it."

"Neither am I." Paige agreed.

"Well, then, we have a problem, because I am." Piper said.

"All right." Chris said, getting to his feet. "Why don't we all just take a deep breath, okay? Leo, why don't you orb Wyatt up there until we can figure this thing out?"

"I'll take Mer, too." Leo told them.

Meredith stared at him.

"You'd do that?" she asked softly.

"She-you are a part of this family." Leo told her. "Right?"

Meredith looked at him sadly.

"Thank you." She told him in a whisper.

She glanced at Chris but he wouldn't look at her. She sighed and set Mer on the ground, kneeling in front of her.

"You're gonna go with Uncle Leo, alright?" she told the little girl.

"Wanna stay with you." The little girl told her.

"I know." Meredith told her kindly. "But Wyatt will be with Uncle Leo. You'll have more fun playing with him than staying here. So what do you say?"

Mer nodded and Meredith let her go to Leo so she could take his hand.

"Do you mind?" he asked David, who was holding Wyatt.

"No." The man replied. "Please."

Leo took Wyatt in one arm and held on to Mer's hand with the other.

"Come on." He said, orbing them away.

Meredith turned and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Chris asked.

"I need to get away from here and the binding-happy brigade." She said, not looking at him.

"Meredith…" he said softly.

"Don't." she told him harshly. "I'll be back for the dinner tonight."

She stepped into the shadows and melted away. Chris stared after her for a moment before squaring his shoulders and turning back to the others.

"All right." He said. "And why don't we – David, right?"

"David." The man agreed.

"Why don't you come with me and let the girls talk alone for a minute?" Chris suggested.

He led the man up the stairs, all the way up to the attic.

"So, you've got quite an influence on Piper, don't you?" he asked.

"Well, I just reflect what she wants." David replied.

Chris walked to the potions table and looked at the potion that had created David.

"Interesting." He said. "So they what? Just wrote down what she wanted, and that was that?"

"I don't know." David said, crossing his arms. "I guess."

"Huh." Chris mused. "Let's see."

He picked up the pad and wrote something down before tossing it into the cauldron. David glowed for a second as he straightened.

"Uhh!" he said in confusion. "What were we just talking about?"

"Uh…Paige and what she looks for in a man." Chris said.

"Paige." David said. "She wants a man who she can openly practice magic around…one she won't feel suppressed by."

"Good." Chris said. "Very good. And…" He wrote something else down. "What about Phoebe?"

He tossed the slip in and David glowed again.

"Phoebe." David repeated. "She wants the same thing…plus she wants him to be available to live near her home. That's what she wants."

"This potion packs a hell of a punch, doesn't it?" Chris commented. "Of course, in order for them to be with the perfect man…" He wrote something else down, "…is that they're happy with each other first, and the only way they can be happy with each other first is by…agreeing to bind Wyatt's powers."

He threw the paper in, changing David again.

"Mmm…" David murmured.

Chris turned back to the table.

"Huh." He said, spotting a vial. "Pheromones." He opened the bottle and emptied the whole thing into the pot. "Eh, what the hell."

The potion exploded again.

"Okay, off you go." Chris said, shooing David out the door.

He turned back to the table and picked up the pad again.

"Nah, she'd kill me." He muttered, setting it back down.

"Chris, we need to – " Meredith said, stepping out of the shadows.

She stopped when she saw him standing next to the potion. Her eyes focused on the empty vial and narrowed.

"What did you do?" she demanded.

The sisters were sitting at the dining room table as they talked.

"This is my son we're talking about." Piper was saying.

"Piper, you're not listening to reason." Phoebe told her.

"Phoebe, his life is in jeopardy, and binding his powers may be the only way to save him." Piper shot back.

"That's all that's saved him." Phoebe pointed out. "What about Mer? Are you going to bind her powers too?"

"Of course not!" Piper exclaimed.

"Okay, but how do you think it will be like for Wyatt, growing up with his powers bound when Meredith's aren't?" Phoebe asked. "Paige, please help me."

Paige rubbed her shoulders.

"Well, I think that – ow!" she exclaimed.

David came down the stairs and made his way over to Paige.

"Oh, here." He told her. "Allow me."

"Mmm…" Paige murmured as he started to massage her shoulders.

"Just relax, okay?" he said softly.

Standing that close to her, Paige began to react to the pheromone and she sighed.

"You keep all the tension in your shoulders." David told her as Piper grew more jealous.

"You're right." Paige agreed. "I love your cologne."

"Mm-hmm." David murmured.

Phoebe exchanged a look with Piper.

"Hey, that's my birthday present." Piper pointed out crossly.

"All day and all night." David assured her.

"YOU DID WHAT?"

The sisters turned to see Meredith stomping down the stairs with Chris following on her heels.

"Hey, what's going on?" Phoebe asked them. "Chris, I thought you were gonna keep him occupied."

"This entire family has gone completely off their heads!" Meredith seethed, glaring at Chris.

"What, I just found a way to break the impasse…" Chris said.

"Really?" Phoebe exclaimed. "How?"

"Uh…" Chris said, stepping towards David, but Meredith got between them.

"Don't do this." She whispered. "This isn't how it's supposed to play out."

"This is our best chance." He whispered back. "We have to try. That's why we're here."

"Not this way, Christopher." She told him. "Not at the expense of Wyatt's destiny."

"This is my mission, Mer." He told her harshly. "Either help or stay out of my way."

She staggered back from him in shock. She stared at him, but finally moved out of his way.

"I've never seen him in you before." She said. "Maybe I wasn't looking close enough." She hesitated for a second. "This won't work for you. It'll blow up in your face."

He looked away from her, but moved on to David, pulling him away from Paige and moving him to Phoebe. Meredith moved into the corner and wrapped her arms around herself, as if to keep herself from moving to stop him. Chris glanced at her and saw the disappointment in her eyes, but he kept going, moving David until he began massaging Phoebe's shoulders. As he leaned close, the pheromones began to work on her.

"Oh." She moaned. "Ohh…"

"Don't worry." David whispered to her. "I'm here for you, Phoebe…"

Paige watched in jealousy as David paid attention to Phoebe.

"…not off taking care of business in some faraway land." David continued.

"Yeah." Phoebe said. "I like the sound of that."

"So, what do we think about binding Wyatt's powers?" Chris asked, making sure to not look at Meredith.

The front door opened and Darryl and Shelia appeared.

"Knock, knock!" Darryl called.

"Surprise!" Sheila added.

Everyone turned to look at them and Darryl tripped over a crystal as they walked inside.

"Oh, hey, you guys need this?" Darryl asked, picking the crystal up. "Found this by the door."

Phoebe got to her feet and took the crystal to put it back.

"Yes, we need it by the door." She told him. "Don't touch our crystals."

"At least we know it's really Darryl." Paige pointed out.

David moved to massage Piper's shoulders as the other couple joined them.

"Hey." Darryl said in confusion.

"Oh, and who's he?" Sheila asked, looking at David.

"Oh!" Piper said, getting to her feet. "This is David."

"Hi." The man said, waving.

Sheila waved back awkwardly.

"Actually, guys, the dinner's been canceled." Chris said. "Sorry."

"Why?" David asked. "The girls still want to party, don't you?"

"Yeah!" everyone agreed.

"Yeah." Meredith agreed suddenly. "The party's still on."

"What are you doing?" Chris hissed.

"You started this." She told him harshly. "Now deal with the consequence."

"But the dinner hasn't even been made." Chris protested.

"Oh, I can fix that." Paige said.

She turned to the table and began chanting.

"On Piper's day, set this table,
With all the favors you are able."

The table suddenly set, dinner and all. A large birthday cake appeared at the head of the table and party favors and decorations appeared around the room.

"Ah!" Paige said proudly. "Not bad, huh?"

"No!" Chris exclaimed. "No! This isn't right! This isn't what they want!"

Paige stepped forward and led Darryl and Sheila to the table.

"Hey, if it makes them happy, it's all I want." David said.

"But what about Wyatt?" Chris asked.

No one responded and Meredith watched him sadly.

"Anyone?" he asked.

Nothing.

The High Priest and two acolytes appeared in the nursery to find it empty.

"The child…" one of the acolytes said. "He's gone."

"Can you sense him?" the other acolyte asked the High Priest.

"No, but they won't keep him away for long." The High Priest replied. "We'll wait."

The three of them turned and vanished.

The dinner was still going on below. Very awkwardly.

David was sitting at the head of the table, with Chris pacing behind him and Meredith was leaning against the wall, her eyes downcast.

"So, how long have you known the girls?" Sheila asked David.

"Fourteen-fifteen hours, I guess." He replied.

"Did you say 'hours'?" Darryl asked.

"Mm-hmm." David agreed.

"Oh, yeah." Paige sighed. "I made him…magically."

"Actually, we both made him." Phoebe said dreamily.

"For my birthday." Piper pointed out.

"Hmm." Darryl said, nodding. "Hell of a gift."

"Yeah." Phoebe agreed. "We just wanted to remind Piper of the importance of love."

"Love?" Sheila asked.

Chris continued to pace behind them, avoiding Meredith's gaze.

"A spiritual, emotional, deep-in-your-heart love." David said. "The kind you should never, ever stop searching for, Piper."

"I know." She agreed. "You're right. I know."

"You're going to have it, too." David told her. "I promise…"

Chris closed his eyes and leaned his head against the door frame. Meredith looked like she wanted to reach out to him, but she stopped herself at the last moment, her anger coming back.

So instead, she reached out and kicked him.

"Ow!" he hissed.

She just glared at him.

"…your normal life." David continued, no one paying attention to the two time travelers.

"Psst!" Phoebe hissed.

David turned to look at her, and she saw him wearing a black suit.

"Hmm?" he asked.

"What about me?" she asked.

"You shouldn't have to hide your secret anymore." He told her. "I understand you."

"I know you do." Phoebe sighed.

"What about my dinner?" Paige called.

David turned to look at her, and, in her eyes, he was wearing a leather jacket.

"Magical, Paige." He told her. "Just the way I like it."

He took a bite and hummed with pleasure.

"They're really good peas." Paige said.

"Mmm!" David agreed.

Darryl and Sheila exchanged a look.

"Ahem!" Chris said, clearing his throat. "Excuse me. Wyatt, anyone?"

"Later." David whispered.

Chris stalked away. Paige continued to stare at David, and got up and went to sit on his lap. Darryl looked at Meredith.

"Is this some kind of demonic thing?" he asked her.

"No, this is some fucked-up thing." She replied, glaring at Chris.

"This-" Chris shot back, waving his arms at the table, "wasn't supposed to happen!"

"Well, this is what you get for messing with things you have no business messing with!" Meredith growled. "This is your mess! Fix it! Without fucking up the time-space continuum, please!"

He glared at her.

"Maybe we should go." Sheila suggested.

"Good idea." Chris agreed.

Darryl nodded and got up.

"Hey, y'all need to make your own present." Piper told her sisters. "Hey, off the lap!"

She reached over and pulled Paige of David's lap. Paige retaliated by grabbing a hand full of food and shoving it in Piper's face, who gasped in surprise. Paige grabbed the birthday cake and threw it at Piper, who froze it in mid-air.

"Oh, I see!" she exclaimed. "You're gonna play with cake now!"

Piper picked the cake out of the air and threw it at Paige.

"Cake!" Paige called, deflecting the projectile into Phoebe's face.

Darryl and Shelia stared at the sisters in disbelief. Piper was laughing as Phoebe sputtered and wiped cake from her face.

"Hey, girls, girls." David said. "Come on! There's plenty of me to go around."

All three sisters began to throw food, and Darryl and Sheila headed for the door.

"Happy Birthday!" Sheila called as Chris waved carelessly over his shoulder.

The food fight continued and Meredith grabbed Chris' arm.

"We need to stop this before they decide to use their powers on each other." She told him angrily.

"What do you suggest?" he demanded.

She growled and pushed him out of the way. She raised her hand and all three sisters were pushed back by gusts of air. They fought as the air held them there, but Meredith ignored them. She waved her other hand and all the food went up in smoke. The sisters continued to fight her, but she just glared at them.

"I'm going to go get Leo." She told Chris. "Deal with this."

She melted into the shadows and the binds of air disappeared. Chris reached over and grabbed David.

"How the hell are you making them happy if they're fighting?" he demanded. "Get them to bind Wyatt's powers now!"

David led the girls into the attic, with Chris following them.

"Are you sure about this?" Phoebe asked.

"What you want more than anything is to get along, and this will help you do that." David told her.

"I'm pretty sure what we want more than anything is a good dry cleaner." Paige muttered.

"Leo." Chris called, hoping he got to him before Meredith.

Leo orbed in with Wyatt and set him in the crib.

"Yeah." He said, looking at them in confusion. "What happened?"

"You don't want to know." Chris told him.

"We're binding Wyatt's powers." Piper told Leo.

"What?" Leo demanded.

Unnoticed by them, The High Priest and two Acolytes appeared in a dark section of the attic.

"We already decided." Piper said.

"You can't be serious." Leo replied.

While everyone was distracted, the High Priest raised the scepter and shot the pink beam at Wyatt's eyes. The boy's eyes flashed gold and then his shield rose against Leo, pushing him out of the way. He crashed into the sisters and Chris.

"Down!"

Chris pulled the others down as Meredith threw fire at the acolytes, but they were protected by Wyatt's shield.

"He's one of us now." The High Priest said.

He leaned down and touched Wyatt. A second later, they all disappeared.

Chris turned and saw Meredith stumble. He grabbed her and she let him hold her up, fisting her hands in the front of his shirt as they all stared at the empty crib.

A/N: I know it's been a long time! Please don't kill me! I'm just having a hard a time due to the fact that I don't really like this episode. I promise to do better.

Abbey