UNWANTED

Summary:

Chris gets some unwanted quality time with his dad when they get stuck together in the past.
But is it really that bad?

Tag to 6x07 – "Soul Survivor".

Author's note:

Because everyone needs more Chris and Leo stories in their lives.

A dinosaur.

A frigging dinosaur.

Who would have thought that he, Chris Perry Halliwell, would face an actual definitely-not-yet-extinct dinosaur? If the situation wasn't so serious, Chris would have laughed by the absurdity of it all. Right now though, as he tried to avoid being eaten by said dinosaur, he didn't find it the least bit funny.

Chris had been experimenting with time portals for weeks. Since the spell he'd used to travel to the past was a one-way ticket, Chris couldn't be sure if what he did in the past really changed anything in the future he'd come from. He still didn't know exactly what had happened to Wyatt that had caused his older brother to turn evil. He didn't know how he'd eventually get home to his own time either. So that's why Chris had been working to not only create a time portal but to find a way to control it too. Time portals were tricky. There was a reason why Wyatt – his Wyatt – hadn't found a way to travel to the past to fetch Chris and bring him back to the future yet. So far, Chris had only managed to travel backwards in time, but he was determined to find a way to peek into the future.

This day, however, his mission had failed miserably – and it was Leo's fault. If the Elder hadn't mistrusted Chris so much that he'd decided to follow him and had ended up pushing them both through the time portal, Chris wouldn't currently be trapped in prehistoric times - being chased by an actual T-Rex with his pain-in-the-ass father by his side. His father who kept mistrusting anything Chris said or did. It was ridiculous, to say the least. More than a little frustrating too. And now they were stuck here, in the middle of nowhere without their powers, while trying to find their way back to the time portal before they became dinosaur grub.

Despite facing evil beings daily, being hunted by a dinosaur was absolutely terrifying to Chris. Even though he wasn't keen on admitting it, Chris was relieved he wasn't alone in this mess. Having his dad by his side, despite the issues he had with the man, proved to be really comforting – even though Leo insisted on being an ass to him every single step of the way.

Chris was sweaty from running – then walking - in the burning sun. The parts of the ground that wasn't covered in stone was dry and dusty, and the dirt stuck to his clothes and skin. His body ached from the cuts and bruises he'd obtained when he and Leo had been rolling down the rocky hills. His dad was probably going through the same struggles as Chris was. Neither of them mentioned it to the other one though.

Chris side-eyed his father.

In typical Leo fashion, the guy only seemed to care about Wyatt. To be fair, Chris hadn't revealed his true identity, but he still couldn't help feeling hurt by the lack of compassion from his dad. It stirred the issues Chris carried within him of never feeling seen by his father - of never feeling like Leo cared about him as much as he cared about Wyatt. It made Chris feel unwanted. Unloved even. He just wanted to find the damn time portal as soon as possible so he could put some distance between him and his dad before the hurt turned to anger, he wouldn't be able to control. Compartmentalization could only work for so long. Especially when the cause of all those repressed emotions was walking right next to him.

"Maybe we should split up, find the portal faster." Chris suggested as they searched the rocks for the time portal.

"Wait, if one of us gets caught, the other one needs to keep going." Leo said. "For Wyatt's sake."

"Oh, you believe me about it now?"

"No. I just wanna let you know what's gonna happen if you get caught." Leo replied.

Ouch.

Chris huffed and shook his head. He tried his best to hide it, but the words really stung. He had abandonment issues enough as it was. Hearing how his dad wouldn't as much as bat an eyelid if Chris was caught by the dinosaur, hurt way more than he cared to admit. You didn't leave family behind… but, of course, Chris wasn't really family to Leo - was he? Not yet at least. And since Chris refused to say anything to his dad about their real connection to each other, that wouldn't change anytime soon. Still, he wished Leo would like him just a little bit for the person he was. His mom and aunts too. Without the official title as a Halliwell, was Chris' personality really that awful to everyone? Was he really that unlovable? The thoughts made his heart clench painfully.

Chris was interrupted in his musings when his hand suddenly went through the rock he'd been examining.

"Found it!" He cheered.

The relief was short-lived though. A roar from the approaching T-Rex distracted his dad and, a moment later, Leo slipped on some loose rocks and started sliding down the hill.

"Leo!" Chris shouted in alarm.

The dinosaur was closing in and, for a second, Chris contemplated what to do. Should he try to rescue his absent father or leave him behind like Leo would have done if the situation had been reversed?

No.

He wouldn't do that.

It wasn't much of a dilemma if Chris had to be honest. Aside from the obvious fact that he would immediately cease to exist if the dinosaur ate Leo for breakfast, Chris didn't want his father to die. No matter how mad he was at him, the thought of losing his dad – any version of him – was too much for Chris to bear.

So, Chris did the only thing he could do. Without as much as a single thought to his own safety, Chris rushed to Leo's side and helped him up before the dinosaur could get to him.

"Come on, come on. Go, go!" Chris pushed Leo ahead of him while the dinosaur roared and snapped at them.

They ran to the portal together and jumped through it – just in time to avoid being mauled by the prehistoric creature.

A moment later, they landed on a patch of grass – both groaning and panting from the hard landing and the near-death experience they'd just had.

"You okay?" Chris asked, not bothering to move from his position on the ground.

"Thanks for not listening to me." Leo replied. He didn't seem to be getting up either.

"Any time."

There was a sudden rustling noise around them - and then what sounded unmistakably like firearms being cocked.

Chris opened his eyes slowly and squinted up at what appeared to be a couple of soldiers in grey uniforms. They had their rifles pointed directly at him.

"You boys Yankees?" One of the men asked.

Chris lifted his head and took in the situation. They were surrounded by seven men. Three of them had Leo on target, while the rest of the rifles were pointed at Chris. The younger man sighed in exasperation and dropped his head back down to the ground.

Great. Just great, he thought. As if the dinosaur hadn't been bad enough.

The confederate soldiers grabbed Leo and Chris and hauled them to their feet. Chris grunted in discomfort as his arms were roughly twisted behind his back and his hands were bound together. Beside him, Leo went through the same harsh treatment.

"Let's take 'em back to headquarters." One of the men said.

"Move!" Another one ordered, pushing Chris forward with the muzzle of his rifle.

"Hey, take it easy! We're not Yankees!" Chris protested. "We're not anyone. We're just… passing by."

"You sure look like them damn Yankees." One of the men said and spit on the ground. "Sound like one too."

"Let's keep a low profile for now and avoid getting shot." Leo whispered to Chris as they started walking.

"Can't we just orb back to the portal?" Chris whispered back. "Our powers should be working now."

"No, not in front of anyone. We can't risk exposing magic. It could have dire consequences on the future."

"Oh, so now you worry about future consequences." Chris huffed with a roll of his eyes.

"Less talking, more walking!" A voice said. Chris felt a shove in his back, which made him stumble a few steps forward. He glared over his shoulder at the offender.

"Well, this is different." Leo continued after a few moments.

"Oh really? How?"

"It just is." Leo said and continued when Chris shook his head in frustration. "Look, it's only been like a hundred years since they stopped burning witches at the stake. We don't want to open that can of worms again."

Chris couldn't really argue with that. Leo had a point. He didn't like it though – they were wasting precious time being stuck in the middle of the civil war when Chris still had a brother to save.

They walked in silence for the remaining part of the trip. Soon, they were clear of the trees they'd been walking between, and a building appeared in front of them. And not just any type of building: it was literally a fort, surrounded by walls and ditches and everything. Chris let out a small gasp in astonishment and exchanged a look with Leo. His dad seemed just as stunned by the sight as Chris was.

They were led across a bridge, suspended over a moat. The sentries in front of the entrance scowled at them as they passed by but otherwise remained on their posts. Chris tried to take in as much of their surroundings as possible. He saw men operating cannons, men digging trenches, men patrolling the perimeters with rifles on their shoulders. It was both fascinating and morbid at the same time. When his eyes fell upon a dead body that had been carelessly and only halfway covered with a blanket, Chris swallowed hard and had to look away. Things were starting to feel a little bit too authentic to him.

The confederate soldiers, who had captured them, escorted Chris and Leo into a building where they got locked up in some sort of cell. The ropes on their hands had been cut, and Chris absentmindedly rubbed his wrists where the rope had cut into his skin, while he turned to his dad for answers.

"Can we orb out of here now?" Chris asked hopefully.

Leo shook his head and nodded towards the guard that was situated just outside the cell. The man was staring at them with a look on his face that made Chris feel uncomfortable. He instinctively moved a little behind his dad to put some distance to the staring guard.

"We'll figure out a way to escape from here soon." Leo promised in a low voice. "It's still too risky to make a move right now."

"So, what do you suggest we do?" Chris asked impatiently.

"The only thing we can do for now: wait." Leo sat down on the cot and leaned back against the wall.

Chris sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Then he sat down next to his dad, pulled his legs up and rested his head against his knees. They sat like that in comfortable silence for a while. Leo was the first one to speak up.

"Why did you save me back there? From the dinosaur?" He wanted to know.

"Because I need your help saving Wyatt." Chris replied without looking at the man.

"I thought you wanted to get rid of me. Keep me out of the way." Leo continued.

Chris shrugged. He could feel Leo study him and he squirmed a little underneath his dad's intense look.

"You do piss me off sometimes." Chris admitted. "All the mistrust gets exhausting, you know? And I need to focus on keeping Wyatt safe."

Leo was quiet for a few moments as he seemed to contemplate the words.

"You really do care about my son, don't you?" He finally asked.

"More than you know." Chris said softly.

He could tell that Leo wanted to ask more questions, but they were interrupted when a handful of soldiers suddenly filed into the cell.

"Grab the kid." One of the men said.

"Wait…" Leo started when one of the soldiers grasped Chris' arm and harshly dragged him to his feet.

"Hey!" Chris exclaimed, struggling against the rough treatment.

Leo jumped to his feet but stopped in his tracks and put his hands up in defense when one of the men pointed a rifle at him.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking him?" Leo asked as the men started dragging Chris out of the room. No one answered him.

"Leo!" Chris shouted. The image of the dead body he'd seen outside the building suddenly entered his mind, and it filled him with a sense of dread. Were they going to execute him?

"Chris!" Leo shouted back. Chris got a last glimpse of his dad before some sort of fabric was pulled over his head, effectively cutting off his vision.

To Chris' surprise though, Leo had looked really worried.

To be continued...