Chapter 12: Natural Magic

"You alright?" I asked back in the attic. Aaron gave me a blank stare and sighed. "Yeah, I know. Dumb question." I muttered with a shake of my head. Looking around I sighed knowing what was coming is going to be exhausting.

"What did you mean 'we're going back to the past', Melinda?" He asked suddenly. His voice seemed deeper than usual in the thick silence of the house.

"Uhmm." I started not really paying much attention as I found a few candles that had been left up here quickly grabbing them I brought them to the table Aaron was sitting cross-legged in front of, "I meant that we're going there. To the past." I finished with a shrug as I grabbed the bag of herbs and other ingredients I snagged from the kitchen.

"This-this is gonna be dangerous, isn't it?" Aaron asked wincing as he made a move to sit up on his knees.

"Ya know… if you don't like danger you probably shouldn't be around a Halliwell." I said wearing a smirk as I grabbed the crushed rosemary and lavender from the bag and trailed it in a circle around us.

"I trust you." He said catching my gaze in his. His stare caused me to pause after finishing the circle. Standing there blinking with my hand half in the herb bag.

"Why?" I asked with a shrug as I continued making a third layer in the circle snapping out of whatever hold we had each other in. He sighed and stood slowly, his body was still weak from whatever beating he'd endured back at the cave his vampire buddies always met up at.

"I-I don't know." He answered simply. "When I saw you that first day at your house…" He began coming in closer. "I- I don't know how to describe it." He paused again, his mind trying to articulate his words appropriately. "It was like I knew you already, I knew we'd fit together." I opened my mouth to talk my circle long forgotten.

"I felt it too." I watched as his eyes seemed to brighten. He came in so that we were inches apart. "It wasn't until we were in the caves. Just us." I took a breath as memories came back to me. "When-when you touched me it- it felt right." I finished searching for a different word for it but finding none.

He nodded just watching me. "I trust you." He said with a small smile. "I don't know why, but I do. I have since the moment I saw you." Leaning in suddenly I pressed my lips to his. The bag full of herbs dropped to the floor spilling out. My arms around his neck and my fingers entangled in his dark curls.

"Melinda." He mumbled against my lips, I ignored him and kissed harder. I wasn't letting anything stop us right now. I didn't want to. I trusted him and that's all I needed to know. "Mmmm… Melinda." He tried again pulling my arms back from around his neck. "Why-? Why have you decided to take me to the past?" He questioned bringing me out of my love induced stupor.

"Huh?" I breathed out trying to catch my breath.

Aaron chuckled shaking his head. "It's amazing. This effect I seem to have on you. The past. Why are we going back. You never told me."

"O-oh." I said pulling back and scooping up herbs off the floor I quickly half-assed the rest of the circle. "I- I know in my heart that you're the one for me, but- but I need to see you before..." I trailed off half sure I wanted to come out with it. "Before I came along." I finished. Aaron just stared for a long time suddenly he nodded I watched as understanding seemed to creep over his features.

"I get it." He said coming closer again, "I just need you to understand, there are things I did that don't seem… Like me. I'm-. I've matured a lot over the years." He explained. I just nodded knowing already there will be things I don't like or wouldn't want to see.

"I know." I said grabbing his hand after placing the bag on the table.

"You ready?" He asked his voice low. I mumbled out an 'almost' before rushing back to the bag with things I picked out from the kitchen. I grabbed two apple halves and placed them on either sides of our circle.

"What-? What does this stuff do?" Aaron asked as I made my way back to him.

"They'll protect us. Apples, with laurel leaves pinned over them to protect from evil, and rosemary with lavender to encircle us in a force field against all- my family included." He looked down at me and took my hand.

"See it?" I asked him staring up at him. He seemed distracted just noticing the sudden shimmering wall that enclosed our circle.

"Whoa." He said as his head turned looking in different directions. I chuckled breaking his in-awe stupor. "Okay." He nodded, "What do we do now?" I led him back to the table which we sat down across from each other. I took a breath and lit the three candle, saying which the candle respectfully represented. "Past." I muttered on the left one. "Present." I mumbled going on the middle one. "And, future." I finished lighting the one on the right.

I held my hands out to Aaron again, once he took it I could feel the energy bouncing around the within the forcefield. "I'm gonna need your help Aaron. You are the one in control of where we go. It-. It'll be from your memories."

"Alright." He nodded in the dim light of the candle. "Where do you want to go?"

"Your last night as a human." I stated. "We'll start there. I just need you to think about it. I'll do the rest."

I watched as he began to focus, I could visibly see his mind going back to that moment in his life.

Hear these words, hear our rhyme

Heed these words within our minds.

Send us back to where we'll find

What we wish in place, and time

I heard the wind blowing outside the house harder as I felt the house rock almost at the force, "M-Mel?" I heard Aaron ask as he stared at me.

"Shhh" I said quickly, "I need you to focus or we won't go back to the right time." I explained holding on to him tighter. I repeated the spell focusing on the now flickering candles I blinked and suddenly we were outside in a field.

"Aaron…?" I asked him confused. He let go of one of my hands and looked around. I saw the recognition plain on his face. I looked off a short distance and saw the barn I'd seen in his memories. The on he was neat and tortured in by the guy that had supposedly owned him.

I heard someone crying out and recognized Aaron's yelling. I grabbed onto his arm tightly as the sun continued to drop. "Aaron?!" I snapped him out of his dazed state. He'd been staring off into the barn just as I'd had.

"C'mon…" He muttered pulling me away towards the woods.

"What do we do know?" I asked him following along.

"Well first things first. We need to change." He said. "Stay right here." He told me as we came up on the edge of the woods where trees shrouded everything in darkness.

He pushed me into the darkness first, following along close behind, "Wait here?" I yelped as I turned to argue with him only to find him gone. "Aaron?" I cried out alarmed.

I could feel the panic in me rising as I realized I was out in the woods. Alone. In the dark. Great. I thought quickly as I began to turn in place keeping my awareness up. I heard the crack of a whip and screaming. I flinched knowing what was going on inside. Standing there only having the scene in the barn to listen to. I flinched every time I heard him cry out in pain. It was causing me some physical discomfort. I knew it had to be the new found power I'd acquired but it was becoming harder and harder to block out.

"Aaron?!" I called again this time moving along the edge of the woods, towards the barn. I stumbled over some of the roots in the ground, "Aaron?"

"Hushhh Melinda." I heard from behind me. I jumped turning to face him.

"Jesus." I gasped out. "You just scared me half to death." I told him as I took in his appearance. "Uhm. What the hell are you wearing?" I asked him. His white fancy shirt and tight black pants were a surprise to say the least. They stopped just below his knee where white almost stockings covered the rest of the way down to his feet that were covered in boots.

I scoffed with a chuckle, "You look ridiculous." I moved in closer to him now noticing the garments he'd been holding out. "Uh. No." I replied shortly

"Melinda if you don't change you are going to look odd. These people are not used to your clothes." He told me.

I huffed knowing he was right and shrugged out of my shirt, "Yeah, yeah." He just stared at me expectantly.

"If I didn't know any better I'd say you just wanted to get me naked." I replied with a grin as he sifted through what he had. "Where'd you go by the way and how'd you even get these things?" I asked changing the subject.

He smirked at me as he held out a nightgown looking clothing, "Well the master was busy dealing with me in the barn- the house was empty. We'll return them when we're done."

I just shook my head, as I slid my jeans down my legs and kicked off my shoes. "I'm supposed to walk around in a nightgown?" I asked him raising my arms to my sides and watching the garment hang off of my body awkwardly. Aaron chuckled shaking his head as he pulled out another piece of clothing, a corset. It was black with a bunch of gold designs over it.

"No." He laughed at me as he helped me into it. I slid it up my arms and he began to tie it up in the back. The straps were snug on my shoulders, and the sleeves of the nightgown type thing underneath puffed out giving me a free-range of motion in my arms "You might wanna hold onto something… This is gonna be… uncomfortable" He said. We moved over to a tree and I clasped on to a branch. I gasped at the sudden lack of room I had in my chest to breathe.

"A- Aaron!"

"I-I know. I'm sorry." He apologized as he finished tying it and stepped back.

"Oh my god. How- how do-?" I started. "Just how?" I asked short on breath. Aaron laughed as he offered me the skirts he'd hung on the branch just a second ago.

"Jesus. How many layers am I gonna have to freaking wear?" I grumbled.

"This and one more, I promise." He said as he helped me step into them. The black satiny skirts smoothed down my legs over the long chemise- next thing I knew he was behind me tying something under my chin. A cape- a long black cape. He'd pulled the hood up over my hair and came around to the front, "You look like a regular 17th century Englander." He commented with a grin. "It's actually kinda hot."

"Mmm… Mr. Milford." I nodded in his direction with a curtsey.

He tilted his head taking a breath and sighed saying, "Actually at this time I was still Mr. Templeton. Family name." He finished with a shrug.

"Oh… Why- why'd you change it?" I asked moving closer to him.

"Well, I didn't exactly come from a wealthy family, Mel." He explained. I just nodded staring at him until a twig snapping broke our trance.

"What was that?" I asked grabbing his arm feeling unfamiliar with wherever we were.

"It- it's me." He said. He nodded towards where we'd been standing when we'd run into the woods several feet from us. I watched as Aaron- human Aaron wandered into the woods bruised and bleeding severely.

"Oh god." I said as I covered my now slack-jawed mouth.

"Yeah…" He said his arms going around me from behind. "I wasn't doing well." I could sense the pain he was in- he seemed to feel more relieved now. I watched as he stumbled more through the dark woods. The sun had set long ago so I don't think he had the slightest idea where he was headed.

"C'mon." I said unwinding his arms from my middle and I raced off after the past Aaron. I huffed feeling the skirts continue to get tangled in my legs so I gathered them up and held the just above the ground, as I followed the twigs snapping until I heard a splash. I started to race forwards only to be stopped by Aaron. One second he was a few feet behind me and the next his arms were around me, "Wait." He said his lips at my ear.

I could see Aaron's form on the ground. He'd fallen down the sudden slope that the woods had hidden in the night. I could see that he was in a stream running through the dark area. Aaron's hold on me tightened as he pulled me back with him cloaking us in darkness.

"Mel, you need to be very quiet. You understand?" He whispered against my ear. I felt his lips brush against my earlobe, and shivered in the warm night. "Trust me." He finished. I nodded and watched as a shadow came up from the other side of the stream. There was a splash as he'd dropped something rolled and tied up in fabric.

The details were fuzzy, but I recognized all that I needed. It was Michael.

I gasped only to have Aaron slide his hand over my mouth. Michael looked up in our direction, but was distracted by Aaron under him. He gasped in a gulp of air his back pulled up out of the water by his muscles stiffening, "Help- help me." I heard him say to Michael.

Michael tilted his head looking down at the bleeding, injured man soaked from passing out in the stream. He glanced around again then knelt besides Aaron. He pulled him up by his dark head of curls and dragged him to lean against his bent knee. I watched as Michael glanced around again before striking as quick as a snake. He sunk his fangs into Aaron's neck. Aaron's body jerked at the sudden invasion. I heard a groan escape him as he attempted to feebly fight Michael, Michael pulled back with a grin displaying his fangs- currently stained with Aaron's blood. I watched as Michael bit into his own wrist and shoved it at Aaron.

He again tried to fight it with a groan. He turned his head away from the wrists that was offered. "C'mon…" I hear Michael mutter as he grabbed him by his hair and turned him into his wrists, "The only other option is death, boy." He told him. "You welcome death, do you?" He finished as Aaron continued to struggle, but not for long. He lost and the wrist was shoved against his mouth.

"Even if you get a little- it will be enough." Michael said as he pushed Aaron off of him and stood walking over towards the thing he'd dropped when he'd come here in the first place. "I'll be back boy. Don't move." He said with a smirk on his lips before racing off at vampire speed with his long bundle over his shoulder.

"Oh god." I breathed as I shrugged Aaron off me and raced down the slope- I splashed into the stream next to his body. "Mel… what're doing?" I heard my Aaron ask me from above.

"I- I want to save you!" I cried.

"You can't!" Aaron told me also sliding down the slope- a bit more gracefully than I had. "You can't change the past- besides, if I weren't a vampire you think I'd have met you?" He finished.

"I don't care. You- your in pain." I said still kneeling in the stream by his head. I'd pulled it from the cold water and placed it in my lap.

"Melinda. Listen to me. All this has already happened. I- I'm not in pain. Not now." He told me.

I just stared at the man in my arms and took in the subtle differences. Like how relaxed his face was. I felt pain suddenly explode in my head and my body start to grow numb, "What- what's happening to me?" I gasped my hand holding the pain in my head.

"Mel?" I heard Aaron ask moving in closer now. He crouched next to me, "What's wrong?"

"My- my head…" I trailed off feeling the pounding intensify. I could feel it throughout my skull, and my temperature spiked as dizziness overcame me. I felt my breathing coming in gasps. "Aar- Aaron?" I was gasping in breaths now. "What-? What's-?" I tried.

Aaron looked around until he saw himself below us in my lap.

"Get away." Aaron said as he stared at himself.

"What?" I gasped out feeling confused.

"You- your new powers. You've got empathic powers. Get. Away." He said nodding to himself. It clicked in my head, but I could feel my energy drained. My whole body ached. Suddenly I was soaring through the air. Aaron had grabbed me and leaped out of the divot we were in.

The further we got from Aaron's human self the better I felt. "Feel better?" He asked placing my gently on my feet. I nodded taking in a deep breath and no longer feeling as though my lungs were gonna implode.

"Good." He said with a nod. "Well, you're an empath on top of being a witch, that news."

I sent him a glare as I leaned my hand against the nearest tree and tried to catch my breath. Suddenly I heard footfalls behind and Michael came in through the over grown brush from the stream.

"Well, you're either a very quick healer, or you have a twin." He said flashing a grin to Aaron. Shit. This wasn't supposed to happen. I thought feeling my panic rise. "You got a name, boy?" He added stepping in further with a glance to me.

"What about your lady-friend, she have a name?" He asked at Aaron's silence. Michael took a step in my direction and Aaron reacted in a blink of an eye he'd grabbed Michael by the throat and heaved him back into the brush of plants.

'Melinda. Run.' I heard Aaron's voice in head. It made me jump. "Now!" I heard him yell as I turned and took off deeper into the woods. The snarling sounds reached me as I slowed to gather my skirts in an attempt to run faster, further away. Please. Please let him be alright. I thought racing up over tree roots and trying to dodge low hanging branches. Running around in the woods; in the dark. Was only getting me more and more confused. I had no idea where I was even running to. At the continued silence behind me I slowed some and looked around for any sign of… anything.

I heard someone's heavy breathing behind me and turned to see Aaron, with a sigh of relief I leaned against the one of the near trees, "Aaron. Thank god." I said catching my breath. "Are you alright?" I added noting how beat up he looked. His wounds were healing faster than they had before which I found odd considering they were still given from his 'awakener' or whatever they called them.

He was silent as he started towards me, my head was screaming for me to run. "Aaron?" I asked again sitting up more alert now.

In a split second he started for me. Sprinting towards me "Aaron! Stop!" I shouted throwing my hands up in front of me. He was thrown into the air, I watched the darkness practically swallow him. I stood there shocked. Just reminding myself to breath. "Mel?!" I heard him again.

I opened my mouth to respond, but kept it shut unsure of which one it would bring to me, "Melinda?!" I heard him yell again. I closed my eyes and just stayed silent praying that the right one would find me.

"Mel…?" I heard someone in front of me. Opening my eyes I saw it was Aaron. He still looked banged up fro his injuries earlier in the cave, but other than that he looked fine. His clothes were a lot nicer compared to the one I'd just seen.

"Aaron…?" I asked softly. The fear was evident in my voice.

He looked visibly relieved to see me. I knew this was my Aaron. I could feel my hear race as he came in closer. The difference in my reactions were all I needed to cement my earlier questions of whether or not we should be together. The contrast was like day and night. I raced over to him and pounced my arms went around his neck as my mouth collided with his. His hands splayed over my back. I could feel him even through all my ridiculous layers.

"I'm happy to see you too." He muttered as we pulled away. "C'mon. We need to get out of these woods, and now." He said as he bent and picked up my legs bridal style and in a flash we were out of the woods and in front of a different house. It was smaller, but well kept.

"Wh- where are we?" I asked him looking around expecting to run into Michael or past Aaron.

"This is Mr. West's first house. He owns a lot of property. He grew up in this one thought." Aaron shrugged. "He rarely uses it though." He said pulling me across the dirt path and over the yard.

"Is- isn't it locked?" I asked as we came up on the door.

"These doors are never locked. No one ever comes through those woods- alive anyway." Aaron said with a slight shrug at the last part.

"Because of Michael…?" I asked biting my lower lip unsure I wanted to hear the answer to my question.

"Yeah, well… until now." Aaron said pushing the door open for me to walk in. Walking in I stared at him as he shut the door behind us and locked it, "Oh." Was all I could say to that.

"Can you put some protection spells around the house, Mel?" He said looking around there was only one other room in the house. A bedroom. I judged by the looks of the oversized lumpy looking bed I could see through the open doorway.

"I- I can try." I said now looking around for any sort of items to use.

"Good because I have a feeling we're gonna need it." He said as he walked towards the kitchen area. "Rosemary, aannd, lavender, right?" He asked as he picked two items hanging from the wall. "That's enough, right?" He asked handing them to me.

I just nodded as I came up behind him snagging up a mortar and pestle as I set to work on what little herbs we had.

Well, here's another chapter. It's coming back to me as to where I wanted this story to go. Please drop a review if you liked- I enjoy hearing from the readers as much as you enjoy reading- I'm sure. Thanks again for taking the time to view it. Next chapter is already in the works and should be up in just a few days.

Thanks all!