Disclaimer: If I told you I won Charmed in a poker game, would you believe me? Yes? Cool. I won Charmed in a poker game.

Ch. 40:

Chris shifted impatiently on the wicker seat in the Conservatory as Leo healed his shoulder. Meredith had disappeared upstairs and Phoebe was standing with Jinny.

"I could heal him, master." Jinny told her. "Your warrior needs his strength. My last master will be coming back for me."

"I think he's got it under control." Phoebe replied.

"Good idea." Jinny agreed. "Save your wishes."

"Did you get a look at the demon?" Leo asked Phoebe.

"I did, and when we're done here, I'll go up to the Book of Shadows to check it out." She said. "I also called Paige to see if she'd keep an eye on Jinny for me."

Leo finished the healing and sat back.

"Thanks." Chris said.

"There's no need to guard me." Jinny protested. "Even if I was not bound to serve you, I would do it anyway for sparing me from Bosk."

"Bosk?" Phoebe repeated.

"My last master." Jinny replied. "He was cruel, even for a demon. And I would know. My bottle has been passed around from demon to demon for centuries."

"That's terrible." Leo said.

"You cannot begin to know." Jinny said. "That is why I got the message to Phoebe. I knew if she had my bottle, she would wish me free."

"No wishes." Phoebe told her. "I know all about genies. You're tricksters."

"Listen, I gotta get back up there." Leo said, getting to his feet. "You think you can handle this without Piper?"

"Where is Piper?" Chris asked.

"On a date." Leo replied.

"On a date in the middle of the day?" Chris asked.

"Yeah." Phoebe replied. "Greg works night."

Chris went quiet as he tried to remember who Greg was.

"Greg, Greg…" He muttered, his eyes widening as he figured it out. "Greg the fireman?"

Phoebe nodded.

"You mean the one she's insanely sexually attracted to?" he demanded, turning to Leo. "Doesn't that bother you?"

"No." the Elder replied. "If it makes her happy, that's all that matters."

"Oh, come on!" Chris exclaimed, standing up. "What about all this 'forbidden lovers, you and me against the world' stuff? That just doesn't go away."

"Chris, calm." Meredith called as she came down the stairs. "Deep breaths."

She walked over to them and held out a piece of paper to Leo.

"What's this?" he asked, taking it.

"Mer made it." She told him. "I promised I'd give it to you when I saw you."

He looked down at the paper and smiled slightly. It was a simple child's drawing of a flower and on the bottom it said 'For Uncle Leo'.

"I wrote the note for her, but she wanted to draw everyone a picture." Meredith told him.

"I got a rainbow." Phoebe said, grinning. "Chris got a heart."

"And we're going to stop talking about that right now." Meredith told her.

"Tell her thank you from me." Leo told her.

"Can we get back to my subject?" Chris interrupted. "How can you just let Piper go?"

"You know, Chris, it's a little late for male bonding, especially since I'm petitioning the other Elders to send you back to your time." Leo told him.

"What?" Chris exclaimed.

"You can't!" Meredith cried at the same time.

"Wait, are you serious?" Phoebe demanded.

"You look tense, master." Jinny told her. "Neck rub?"

Phoebe brushed her hands away. Meredith reached forward and plucked the picture from Leo's hands.

"You can have this back when you stop being an ass." She told him.

"Look, even though Chris's intentions are good, his methods have put us all at risk." Leo told them. "So, he and Meredith have to go back."

"You mean 'abandoning' me again." Chris muttered softly.

Meredith rested her hand on his arm.

"You can't send us back." She told Leo. "If you send us back, he will kill us."

"Look, you did your job." He told her. "You warned us about an evil that was after Wyatt. I think we can handle it from here."

"And if you can't?" Meredith demanded. "You don't know what Wyatt did to those he considered threats, and by the time I left, Chris and I were public enemies one and two. He won't just kill us. He'll torture us for weeks and then he will publically put us to death to warn others from betraying him. If you send us back, you're signing our death warrants."

Leo responded by orbing out.

"I gotta stop him." Chris murmured.

"Don't worry." Phoebe said. "I'll talk to Leo."

"No, no, not Leo." Chris replied. "Greg, the fireman. He's about to sleep with my mom."

"Are you kidding me?" Meredith demanded. "I vote we go tie up the guy who wants to send us to our deaths and sit on him until he changes his mind! Look, I'm sorry Aunt Piper is going to sleep with a fireman, possibly leaving you half mortal, but I would prefer to stay alive!"

"Half mortal?" Chris said, swallowing. "I've gotta go."

He started to orb away.

"I really wish you wouldn't do that." Phoebe sighed.

Jinny put her hands together, nodded her head and blinked her eyes. Chris reappeared, stunned.

"What just happened?" he demanded.

"That is…" Meredith breathed.

"Bad." Phoebe finished.

"Awesome!" Meredith disagreed. "What I wouldn't have given to have the ability to do that during some of our fights! How'd you do it?"

"Your wish is my command, Master." Jinny told Phoebe.

"Oh." Meredith said. "Oops."

In the other room, they heard the front door open and close.

"All right, so where's the genie?" Paige called.

Phoebe headed into the living room to meet Paige, who came in from the foyer.

"Oh, my god, you landed one!" she exclaimed.

"She's a genie, not a trout." Phoebe told her.

"You still have two wishes, master." Jinny said. "I suggest you save one for Bosk."

"I told you, no wishes." Phoebe replied. "We're gonna do this our way."

"But you cannot handle him." Jinny protested. "Nobody can. He has a flying carpet and an army of forty thieves."

"Thirty-eight." Phoebe corrected. "Meredith and I vanquished two."

"Let me guess." Paige said. "He wanted a crew and a nice ride. Original for a demon's wish, eh?"

"Yes, and if Bosk gets me back, he will force me to grant his third wish." Jinny replied.

"What's his third wish?" Paige asked.

Suddenly, large diamond earrings appeared on Paige's ears. Her hands flew up to them and Phoebe turned to Jinny.

"Did you do that?" she asked.

"No, but they are lovely." Jinny exclaimed. "Who conjured them for you?"

"My boyfriend Richard." Paige sighed. "He's been showering me with gifts all week."

"I thought you were gonna talk to him about binding his powers." Phoebe said.

"I have, but every time I bring it up, I just get another present." Paige told her. "Luxury problem, I know, but still…"

"Yeah, now back to the demon." Phoebe said. "Uh, what was his third wish?"

"Zanbar." Jinny whispered.

'Zanbar…?' Phoebe mouthed to Paige.

"What's Zanbar?" Her younger sister asked.

"The Lost City." Jinny explained. "Before being swallowed up by the desert, it was the seat of power for an evil empire."

"Phoebe!" Chris called, walking in with Meredith laughing on his heels. "Will you do something, please? I can't orb."

"Don't you dare!" Meredith told her. "I'm finally getting my revenge for trapping me in the house for a month before the whole 'demon with no name' fiasco."

A diamond bracelet suddenly appeared on Paige's left wrist.

"Damn him." She muttered.

"You know, Paige, if he won't listen to you, maybe he'll listen to his family." Phoebe suggested.

"Most of them are dead." Paige pointed out. "Remember the feud?"

"Please, we do not have time for this!" Jinny interrupted. "If Bosk captures me, Zanbar will rise again from the dust."

"It's just a city." Paige said.

"A city of magic." Jinny replied. "Bosk has been using his thieves to search for its former site. If he finds it and wishes it back, there will be no stopping him. That is why you must wish me free, master. If I am not a genie, it will solve your problems and mine. I beg you."

"Hey…" Chris interrupted. "A little help here? Please?"

"Ha!" Meredith said. "Not so fun being trapped in the manor, is it? Being forced to rely on conventional means to get places!"

"I have a new wish." Chris told Phoebe. "Make her leave me alone."

Meredith stuck her tongue out at him.

At that moment, Paige's clothes were changed into elegant night wear, with her hair all done up. She stared down at herself in shock.

"Okay, I'm losing my mind." Phoebe moaned. "Uh, Paige, go to Richard. Deal with it, so you can help us."

"Okay." Paige agreed, turning and leaving.

Phoebe turned her attention to Chris.

"You." She said, walking over to him. "I will help you get your parents back together, but it has to be on my terms, agreed?"

"Agreed." Chris replied.

"And you." She said, rounding on Meredith. "Stop picking on Chris."

"Fine." Meredith said with a huff.

"Now, Chris, go get Piper." Phoebe said. "We could use her help. Uh…"

She turned back to Jinny.

"I wish that he could orb." She told the genie.

Jinny put her hands together, nodded and blinked. A second later, Chris orbed out and Phoebe turned back to Meredith.

"Go keep an eye on him." She told the other woman. "Make sure Piper doesn't kill him."

"Are you kidding?" Meredith replied. "The son from the future confronts his mother and the guy who might become his father by accident? There is no way I'm missing this. I should sell tickets."

She melted into the shadows with a wave and Phoebe sighed. She turned back and headed for Jinny.

"And we need to find a vanquishing potion for that demon." Phoebe told her.

She left the room, Jinny in tow.

"Oh, yes, master." She said.

"Phoebe!" Phoebe corrected her.

"Yes, Master…Phoebe." Jinny replied.

While this was all happening, Piper and Greg were sitting on Greg's couch, happily making out. Behind them, the glow of orb lights appeared.

"Piper!" Chris called, knocking on the door insistently. "Piper!"

Piper pulled away from Greg for a moment.

"Forget it." She told him.

The resumed kissing and the knocking continued.

"I know you're in there!" Chris called. "Please open the door, now?"

Piper sighed and pulled away again.

"Just a sec." she told Greg.

She got up and headed for the door as Chris continued to knock.

"Piper?" he called. "Open this door. Piper!"

She wrenched the door opened and glared at him. Meredith, who was leaning on the wall behind him, chuckled.

"Go away!" she told them.

Greg came up behind Piper.

"Is there a problem here?" he asked.

"Yeah, many problems, many levels." Chris replied. "Piper has to come home now."

Meredith pushed herself off the wall and leaned up to whisper in Chris' ear.

"I take it back." She told him so the other two couldn't hear her. "His genetics look better. Let's just go."

Chris turned and glared at him as she smirked up at him.

"Not helping." He told her.

She shrugged and went back to leaning on the wall.

"Excuse me." Greg said. "Who are you again?"

"I'm just here as a spectator." Meredith said, waving as Piper glared at her. "And I'm shutting up now."

"Good choice." Piper growled at her.

"Right." Meredith agreed meekly.

"I'm a friend of her husband's." Chris said.

"Ex-husband." Piper said with an awkward chuckle. "And he's not really a great friend. Um, it's okay. I got it."

"Well, I'm here if you need me." Greg told her, leaning down to kiss her.

Chris scoffed and Meredith reached out to kick him in the back of the leg. Greg stepped away and Piper stepped into the hallway, closing the door behind her.

"What is this big emergency?" she demanded. "Can't it wait an hour? Or two?"

"No, it can't." Chris told her.

"As much as I like to disagree with Chris as much as possible, I have to agree with him on this occasion." Meredith told her. "We should mark it on a calendar."

"There's a demon on the loose." Chris said, ticking off each problem on a finger. "A genie running amuck. Oh, and it took me two wishes to get here."

"You can't make wishes with genies." Piper told him.

"See?" Chris replied. "We need you. Come on. Let's orb."

He reached for her arm and Piper swatted his hand away.

"No, no, no!" she told him. "Listen, I'm not gonna leave him high and dry again without an explanation. So your demon can wait five minutes."

Piper opened the door and walked back in the apartment as Chris glared at her back.

"You know, with you obsession with orbing, I'm starting to think you might have an addiction." Meredith told him.

Chris sighed and orbed away.

"The first step to getting better is admitting you have a problem! Chris! Someone needs to bring Piper home! Chris!" she called after him, melting into the shadows as she followed him back to the manor.

Bosk walked up to a cave wall and took off his jacket.

"Open sesame!" he said.

The cave wall disappeared, revealing a hidden cavern behind it. Inside the cavern, thieves moved around, working, as Bosk walked in.

"What happened?" the Head Thief asked as Bosk walked by angrily.

"The genie was stolen, thanks to your warriors." He told him, throwing his jacket at the Head Thief.

"They were my two best swordsmen." He protested.

"Yeah, well, swords don't work real well against potions." Bosk said. "What in the hell are witches doing way out here?"

"We have defenses against their type." The Head Thief told him.

He walked over to a table and picked up a box with an amulet on a chain inside.

"The Eye of Aghbar." He told him, carrying the box over to him. "It protects against witches' magic."

Bosk picked up the amulet and smiled.

"I need that genie." He told the Head Thief. "I've got to find out where Zanbar's buried before I wish for its return. I can't risk another demon beating me to the throne."

"As you wish." The Head Thief agreed.

Bosk took the amulet and walked away, and a moment later, the Head Thief promptly dropped Bosk's jacket.

"Richard?"

Paige walked into Richard's potions vault from the main hall.

"Ri-i-ichard…" she called.

She stepped up to the table and absently picked up an item. Behind her, Richard blurred into sight.

"You like your earrings?" Richard asked, startling her.

She took a stepped away, putting her hand on her chest.

"Ohh." She exclaimed. "You're materializing now."

"Yeah." Richard replied. "Pretty handy, huh? So, uh, you like your earrings?"

"Yeah." Paige said. "There's a bit of a problem."

"They're too small." Richard worried. "No, they're – They're too big." He took a step towards the counter. "I – I can shrink them. Let's see. Um…"

He turned around.

"No, that's not the problem." Paige told her. "Look, I just – you've given me enough."

"I'm just trying to make you happy." Richard replied. "I want you to know that I care."

"What would make me really happy is if you just stopped with all the potions and all the magic, just for a while." Paige told him.

"Didn't we have this conversation?" Richard asked.

"Yeah, but apparently only one of us was listening." Paige told him.

"No, I was listening." Richard said. "I mean, that's why I'm doing this, to prove that I can handle it. Look, I'm not turning into a dark beast, right?"

"But that's not the point." Paige said.

"Most women would thank a guy for that, but…" Richard said, looking for the right world. "You're treating me like a common criminal."

"Well, I guess I'm not most women." Paige told him.

He nodded and pushed past her on his way out the door.

"I gotta go." He muttered. "Hope you liked the earrings."

Paige stayed there, staring off into space.

Jinny stood at the Book, flipping through the pages.

"Oh, he was my master once…" she said, pointing, "and him, too…and her."

Phoebe stood nearby at the potions table, working.

"Boy, you sure got around." She said. "How did so many demons get a hold of you anyway?"

"Some bought, some stole." Jinny replied. "I changed hands so many times, I lost track."

Phoebe sighed and turned to look at the Genie.

"I'm sorry I can't set you free, but whishing is just too risky right now." She told her.

Chris and Piper orbed into the attic, Meredith stepping out of the shadows as second later.

"Okay, let's go." Piper said quickly. "Greg's not gonna wait forever."

"Well, then you should dump him." Chris said.

Meredith reached up and slapped him upside the head.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Piper demanded.

"He's just being overprotective." Phoebe told her.

Piper looked around and spotted Jinny.

"I take it you're the…Genie." She said.

"Jinny." The other woman replied.

"Jinny the genie." Phoebe explained.

"Of course." Piper replied. "Who's the demon?"

Chris and Meredith walked over to the Book and looked down at the demon Jinny pointed to.

"Uh…" Chris said, reading. "He's a low-level demon with minimal powers. There's a vanquishing potion."

"Yeah." Phoebe agreed. "That's what I'm working on."

"Good." Piper said. "Then you're almost done with me, too. Okay, so what's your plan? Are you gonna summon him to us?"

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking." Phoebe said.

"What's the rush?" Chris asked.

"Well, not that it's any of your business, but Greg's shift starts in a few hours, and I won't see him for three days." Piper told him. "So, I'm gonna go call him. And, um…I'd put the genie back in the bottle just to be safe. No offense, but we've been burned before."

Piper walked out of the attic and Phoebe picked up the bottle, holding it out to Jinny.

"Do you mind?" she asked.

"Yes, master." Jinny replied.

The genie crossed her arms, turned into a pink stream of smoke and funnels back into the bottle.

"I feel so bad!" Phoebe said.

She put the bottle back on the potion table and Meredith walked over to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Phoebe rested her head on Meredith's shoulder, wrapping her arm around her adoptive niece's waist.

"As well you should." Chris told Phoebe. "If we don't do something soon, I could end up half-fireman instead of half-whitelighter."

"Of, for goodness sakes." Phoebe sighed as Meredith glared at him.

"Look, I'm running out of time here." Chris told them. "So what do you say we get to use that genie to make mom and dad, you know…"

"Christopher!" Meredith exclaimed.

"That's vile….and against the rules." Phoebe told him. "I would think that you wouldn't wanna be conceived that way."

"Well, it beats not being conceived at all." Chris shot back.

"Okay, seriously, Chris?" Meredith said, walking over and taking his face between her hands. "Calm. The. Hell. Down. I'm not about to let you disappear, so just chill out. Have I ever led you astray in the past? Don't answer that. Just trust me."

"Look, I told you I would help you on my terms." Phoebe told him. "Okay? So back off."

"Fine." Chris sighed.

"Good boy." Meredith said, reaching up and kissing him quickly.

"What are your terms?" Chris asked, looking at Phoebe.

"Hmm." Phoebe said thoughtfully. "Not really sure yet, but I am done with this potion."

She siphoned some of it into a vial.

"So as soon as Piper gets back, we are ready to go." She told them.

The moment she said that, Bosk came crashing into the attic on his flying carpet, knocking Chris down as he flew to the center of the room. The carpet came to a stop and Bosk jumped off. Phoebe threw the potion at him and it exploded harmlessly in front of him as his amulet glowed red, protecting him.

"Not this time, witch." He said smugly.

He threw a green dart at Phoebe, who ducked, shouting for Piper as she jumped out of the way.

"Piper!"

Meredith slammed her hands together and pulled them apart, electricity arcing between them. When it had grown to sufficient power, she sent a giant bolt flying towards Bosk. The amulet glowed red and absorbed the electricity.

"Hania!" she yelled, jumping out of the way as Bosk threw a green dart at her.

The black panther materialized in the air as he leapt at Bosk. He knocked the demon to the ground, swiping his paw across his face, leaving bloody cuts. The demon threw the panther off him and jumped to his feet as the Hania circled him.

Phoebe made it to cover behind the potion table and opened her mouth to make her final wish.

"Jinny, I wish you free!" she yelled.

Pink smoke funneled out of the bottle and settled on the attic floor. Meredith moved to Chris' side and helped him sit up as Hania moved to stand between them and the smoke and demon. They all watched as Jinny walked out of the smoke, dressed all in black.

"Well, it's about time." She said.

Bosk took a step back, fear showing in his face.

"Who's the master now?" she continued.

She conjured a fireball and hurled it at Bosk, vanquishing him. Piper came into the attic as Jinny stepped towards the potions table and the genie's bottle.

"Chris!" she shouted.

Chris held out his hand and the bottle flew off the table to him, while Hania leapt at Jinny. She ducked and Hania missed her by inches. Piper tried to blast her, but she ducked again and ran towards the flying carpet, diving onto it and flying out the broken window.

Once she was gone, Piper looked around and Chris got to his feet, the genie's bottle in his hand. Meredith walked over to Hania, who rubbed his face on hers when she knelt in front of him.

"Thank you." She told the panther.

Hania nodded his head regally and disappeared.

"Where's Phoebe?" Chris asked, looking around.

"Here!" a muffled, tiny voice called.

The other three looked around for Phoebe, but didn't see her.

"In here!" the voice called again.

Chris looked at the bottle in his hand and tilted it to peer inside. Inside was a tiny Phoebe, dressed as a Genie, waving up at him.

"Hello….Master." she said sheepishly.

A/N: So what did you guys think? Let me know. Also, it occurs to me that I let the whole 'reward people who review by posting their name' thing lapse, so I'm going to catch up!

130 – lizardmomma

140 – klandgraf2007

150 – Rhatch89

160 – klandgraf2007

Next award will go to the person that gets the story to 170! Good luck!

Abbey