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"We need to talk," Leo practically growls, determination in his eyes.
"Sorry. Not now," Chris sighs, adding a pinch of something to a steaming pot. He's making a potion? Leo thinks to himself. Why is a whitelighter making a potion? Where is Piper?
"Oh, yeah," Leo says, moving closer to the younger man, hoping it would scare him a little. Chris doesn't look up. "Now." Leo holds up the Valkyrie pendant. "Look familiar?"
Chris plants his eyes on the pendant for all of two seconds before looking back down and scoffing. "I don't have time for this." He pulls a small book - a journal, really - out of his back pocket and opens it. He nods to himself and stirs the pot.
"What's that?" Leo asks, letting his curiosity get the better of him.
"None of your business."
"You're in my house. That makes it my business."
"This isn't your house," Chris replies, scoffing again. "Go play with the other Elders. I have things to do." Chris backs up, leaving Leo a lot closer to the journal than him. He snatches it.
"Hey!" Chris yells, frowning as he throws his arm out in a futile attempt to get it back. "What the hell?"
Leo turns to the first page. It's a spell. "Are you stealing spells from the Book now?"
Chris laughs. "I wouldn't need to do that. I have it memorized. And it wouldn't even be called 'stealing', by the way, considering most people can just float in here and do whatever they want with it. Besides take it, of course." Leo stares at him. Chris rolls his eyes. "I wrote it."
"You wrote a spell?" Chris nods. "And now you're making a potion?" Chris nods. Leo closes his mouth, thinking.
"You've made potions before. So what?" Chris shrugs, and not in a this-isn't-a-big-deal way. He shrugs in a leave-me-alone-for-the-love-of-God way.
"You're hiding something," Leo says, putting the journal back in its place. "Why don't you just stop lying?"
"Whatever it is that you think I'm hiding," Chris begins, talking slowly as if reprimanding a child, "really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, now does it? I'm just a normal whitelighter making a potion because my charges are too busy. Now will you lay off?"
"Where are they, by the way?" Leo asks.
"You're waiting until now to ask that?" Chris looks him up and down. "So I really am your priority? In a way, I'm kind of touched."
"I can't sense them."
"Don't worry. I'm on it."
"You know, Chris," Leo steps toward him, "if I can't sense them, it means they're not in this world."
"I said," Chris shouts, his eyes dark, "I'm on it."
"Fine. Go. But you should know that I've arranged a hearing with the Elders tonight. I expect this will be your last day as a whitelighter."
Shocker, Leo wants me dead, Chris thinks, wanting to laugh. Oh, well. If it really comes down to it, I'll just have to admit that I'm not a full whitelighter. They won't kill a mortal. I think, anyway. They might be willing to make an exception, if Dad has anything to do with it. Whatever. "That's... quite possible. Excuse me." He starts to move, but Leo grabs his arm. His eyes turn an even darker shade of green.
"Let go of me," Chris growls. It's an empty threat, and both men know that, but it wouldn't be if Leo weren't of importance to Chris. He still has to be conceived, after all.
Leo lets go of him, though. He looks at Chris, who's almost taken aback by the emotion in his eyes.
Leo sighs. "I want to trust you. I do. I want to feel okay about what you're doing. I know that you came back to save Wyatt. At least, I know that you said that's why you did. But Chris, how do you expect us to believe you so blindly? We know nothing about you or your future."
"That's the thing," Chris says, sighing and closing his eyes so he won't have to look at Leo anymore. "I can't tell you. I'm being watched, and I can't fuck up. One little fact about the future, even if it's about Paige's damn hair color, could get me into an insane amount of trouble. I'm not lying to you."
"Who's watching you?" Leo asks, blinking.
Chris opens his mouth, like he's actually about to open up, and then his eyes widen like he's remembering where he is and who he's talking to. "I really can't tell you. It would mess up so many things. You know as well as I do that future events - and people - have to stay in the future."
"Fine," Leo says curtly, eyes narrowing.
"Just let me go bring the sisters back. Please. If you don't, they'll die." And me. "Your call."
Leo relents. Chris orbs.