The Neighbors
'Laveda' a voice called. 'Laveda.' Laveda opened her eyes to find herself lying in her bed with Chris next to her, his arms wrapped around her waist. 'Laveda.'
She pulled out of his protective embrace and slid on one of his long shirts. Then she headed to the hallway. She listened to the calling voice. It was soft and giggling. It led her down the stairs to the kitchen. From there she heard it calling from the basement.
'Laveda, come quick,' the voice called again. 'I'm waiting.'
Her feet led her to the steps. She found Vera trapped inside a circle of crystals. She was bleeding and broken.
'Help me, Vida. Help me,' Vera whispered. Laveda stepped forward but she felt something was wrong. Then she remembered Vera was long dead.
'No,' Laveda said.
'But Vida,' Vera's voice whimpered. 'I need you. Help me.'
'You're not Vera,' Laveda said.
'Please, believe me. I am Vera. Help me. I need you, Aunt Vida. I need you. Help me,' Vera's voice said as she cried.
'Stop it Wyatt,' Laveda spat and a smile spread across 'Vera's' face.
Then the young girl transformed into Wyatt as things changed.
"I had to try," he chuckles maliciously.
"V," Chris yells and she turns around to see him at the top of the steps.
"You know Chris, you really should protect her mind when she sleeps. With her Telepathy, Empathy and Lucid dreaming anyone could just slip into her mind and convince her to do anything they want," Wyatt says with a smirk. The spell had worn off but the magic they were using was keeping him mostly contained.
"Bastard," Chris growled while he stepped towards Wyatt. Laveda grabbed Chris and led him out of the room, up the stairs.
"Chris, Chris, I'm fine. He didn't touch me, he didn't hurt me," Laveda tries as the sisters come running into the room.
"He almost had you V. You were within a foot of his cell. All he had to do was convince you to reach out and you would have been his. And this all started while you were in the same room I was," he yelled, angry but also he was scared. She could sense it.
"I'm fine… he didn't do anything. You got to me in time before he'd convinced me to help him like he wanted," Vida stated while touching his face gently.
He nodded and the duo headed upstairs leaving behind three very confused women. They were halfway up the stairs when a knock at the door stopped them. His mom answered it and the words spoke from a young Talbot had the pair coming back down those steps.
Talbot awoke from that dream again. It was the sixth night in a row and about the twentieth time. They were becoming more and more frequent. This meant she had to do something. With that in mind she slid on a robe and headed down the stairs to the front door.
Then she headed across the street. She knocked hesitantly. Moments later Piper answered the door.
"Chris is in danger," Talbot said. Piper allowed her inside and they all went to the sitting room.
"How do you know Chris is in danger?" Piper asked as soon as Talbot had sat.
"My powers enable me to see the future through my dreams. Recently I've been having the same vision over and over again… it's always of your son being stabbed by an invisible person. Some curly blonde haired man is standing next to Laveda while holding Wyatt protectively. Laveda always runs to Chris. Lately there has been more. The man with Wyatt is holding him as the man tries to attack him. He kills the invisible man with a lightning bolt. The man's hair shrinks and his clothing change… that's before all three of the adults disappear as Phoebe and Paige run into the room," Talbot states.
"Wyatt… she's describing Wyatt," Paige states.
"Not only that… it sounds like Wyatt is going to save the future himself," Chris says.
"We are going to disappear once the time line has been changed beyond the point of us existing like this," Laveda says, glancing at Chris.
"What do we do," Paige asks. "We can't exactly let Wyatt run around free."
"Yeah we can, if we tell him that whoever is after little Wyatt is going to kill Chris… he'll have to kill the guy. He'll help us if for nothing more than his pride so as to have the chance to kill Chris himself," Laveda states.
Wyatt heard, from the basement, that his brother was going to be killed. He was furious. Someone was going to kill his baby brother and it wasn't him. It also sounded like it was his fault… they might be right.
It was strange. Normally he would argue to the high heaven good and evil were nonexistent but he just couldn't do that. He was beginning to wonder.
He wasn't stupid or blind. He'd seen the changes, even in his own time line. He was becoming softer. He'd let a young witch go the otherday even though he should have killed her. He was softening and it was because of the changes his brother and Laveda had managed here in the past.
Maybe he was evil… not that he'd ever say that out loud. He wouldn't let it cost him his brother. It didn't matter that he'd try to kill his own brother. It also didn't matter to him that with his brother out of the way Laveda wouldn't be with his brother. Not that he hadn't always expected them to get together.
No… he was going to change the future if for nothing more than to say he had. He wasn't going to give his brother that pleasure.
Two Days Passed…
Piper sat there looking at her boys who were sitting across the kitchen table from each other. They were sharing glares when they thought she wasn't looking. Laveda was sitting in the middle she kept shaking her head or slapping them when they started nagging each other telepathically.
"You know… I don't think I've ever seen the kitchen be so silent while so crowded," Paige smirked while walking in. Paige v-lined for the coffee pot, and Piper eyed it enviously. She couldn't have caffeine due to little Chris. Paige quickly left after getting her cup.
"Are we done moping already," Laveda snapped. "I mean, come on. You two are such babies. You're brothers. Talk to each other – without trying to kill one another. Wyatt, that goes double for you."
Piper smirked at the young woman's brave attitude. Wyatt glared at her as did Chris.
"Boys. I'm surrounded by little boys. I thought you two had grown up. Ugh," Laveda said before storming out of the room.
"PMS?" Wyatt asked and Piper's jaw dropped while motioning to the half eaten bagel in front of her while three oranges were missing from the fruit bowl.
"Yep," Chris said nodding. Everything else was silent between them and Piper frowned. If Wyatt knew Laveda that intimately then these three really had been close. She couldn't help but wonder what she didn't know about the future. The silence was then broke by Chris. "Demon hunting?"
"I choose?" Wyatt asked and Piper's eyes raised.
"I guess," Chris said with an eye roll.
"Let's go," Wyatt says. With that white and dark orbs left the room leaving Piper alone. She stared, her jaw dropped, at what had just unfolded in front of her. One moment they wanted to kill each other and the next they were orbing off together. It was confusing and baffling.
"They've always been like that," Laveda states from the doorway making Piper jump. "Sorry to startle you. I'm just saying those two always had that sort of relationship. One moment they'd be at the other's throat and the next they were fighting heaven and earth to keep the other safe. They were the best of friends and the worst of enemies. I was the third piece, the mediator when the seas got rocky."
"How close were you three?" Piper can't help but ask.
"Best friends… they knew everything about me and I knew everything about them. You add in Robert and you had our little quatrain," Laveda says while Piper gives her a look that asks who. "Robert… he was just a little younger than Wyatt. You saved him when he was a baby. He's half manticore and half human. He attended Magic school – a test run you might say, to see if a half demon could grow up to be good if given the right skills to combat the inner evil. Nurture versus nature sort of trial. It worked for the most part too, till Wyatt went evil. That's when he sided with Wyatt knowing Wyatt would need a friend. He's Wyatt's second in command, probably the one Wyatt left in charge."
Piper frowned.
"Why did Chris want us to vanquish Robert?" Piper asked and Laveda chuckled.
"Don't tell Chris you know this but Phoebe's going to have a girl… Penelope. Penelope and Robert use to date before she died in the First Wave. The first wave, before you ask, was a wave of demon and evil witch attacks all over the world simultaneously happening. The evil beings were all under the command of Wyatt Halliwell. They attacked anyone and everyone they found on the streets. Penelope, sadly, was one of his victims. Chris was always over protective of his cousins so when he found out Nelly was dating Robert who was four years older than her he flipped. They really loved each other but he never saw that – just his cousin dating an older half-demon. Phoebe wasn't much better considering her history with them."
"Like mother like daughter I guess," Piper says with a chuckle. The irony isn't lost on her. "Why is Wyatt not trying to kill you and Chris?"
Laveda gets a far away look in her eyes and Piper can't help but wonder where she's gone.
"He's changing. He's turning back into the Wyatt we knew. If we keep doing what we are doing then I'm pretty sure we'll be back to the old Wyatt – the one before the event. We'll have the good Wyatt back," Laveda says.
"How do you know," Piper asks and Laveda smiles.
"It's all in his dreams," Laveda states cryptically before taking another orange and leaving the room.
"What do you mean? Hey," Piper calls after her but the young woman ignores her. "Great, my one source of future information runs away."
One Month Later…
Leo sits there in the meeting thinking of all he's missing on earth. His son is down there growing up without him. Still, there is a massive power surge – again. Some great power has just showed up on the radar.
Three points of extreme centers of magic had appeared over the months. They were bright – brighter than any being in the past. Even together the Elders barely outshone them.
The Charmed ones were only a small glow compared to them. Let alone any normal magic. Normal magic was barely existent in comparison. No one knew who these sources were but they knew they were powerful and not to be messed with.
"We must find these three," some random elder bellowed over the crowd. Leo didn't pay much attention to which elder it was.
"What do you suggest, sending all of the Whitelighter down to the earth to find these three figures who has, as of now, only done good in the world? You would have us leave innocent charges open to attack without aide till we find three powerful entities? For all we know they are three awoken immortals who are tired of the battle and combating evil for our side," another Elder states.
"Brothers, Sisters, please," Gideon begins but another argument stirs between the all benevolent elders. Leo sighs before looking away from the scene.
Sandra smirks at him.
"Missing your family?" she asks him and Leo just nods in response. "You should return to them. I know, Gideon told you not to but it'll do you some good. Besides, I think its cool an elder having a family. It's never happened before. I know Whitelighter have gotten away with it in the past without us knowing. Yet, there has never been an elder with a family or relationship. No matter what anyone else says follow your heart," Sandra states before she moves forward. Then she attempts to settle the angry crowd.
His mind thinks of her words. After the meeting has ended and most of the elders had gone – all but the main council that is – he went up to the council. He had an idea that would help them all.
[Sorry about the delay. I hope you enjoyed it. Do you have any comments, questions, or concerns. I'd love to hear them. Well thanks to those who have reviewed and thanks to those who have stuck by me even though I'm not the most reliable updater – on any of my stories. Well, thanks again…]
