Setting: Season 8, sometime after Desperate Housewitches.
Summary: Since Piper has been spending so much time working on the Ultimate Power, her relationship with one of her sons is starting to get worse and worse and when a unexpected visitor shows up that no one ever wanted to see again, Piper goes out of her way to make sure that her son stays in her sight at all times.
"Piper, you need to." Phoebe pressured her sister.
"Why? I think everythings fine between me and my son. I don't need to take the day off to spend time with him." Piper stated, getting ready to take her son to her dad's house.
"Oh really?" Phoebe said, she got an idea, 'this is so mean but they both need it.', she thought to herself, she took a deep breath and goes, "You know, Piper, Chris called Paige 'mommy' yesturday."
"That's not funny Phoebe." was all Piper said, stopping in her tracks to look at her.
"I'm not joking. He was sitting in his play-pen and Paige walked in and he got all excited and screamed 'Momma' and stuck his hands up until she picked him up." Phoebe knew she was prying on a bad issue. Just the other week, Piper had almost had a break down because some of the mom's in Wyatt's preschool were giving her a hard time about being his 'guardian'.
Piper just sat on her bed defeated and Phoebe knew she had her. "What am I gonna do?"
"Wyatt's at school and I'll pick him up and keep him while you get out of the house, away from the book, and spend some time with Chris." Piper nodded and Phoebe added. "I'll go call dad and tell him he's not coming, you go get Chris and show him who his real mom is."
Phoebe smiled as she watched Piper walk into the nursery, and then went to call her dad.
Piper walked into the nursery to see Chris standing in his crib looking at her with no emotion on his tiny face. She smiled at him and he smiled back as she lifted him out of his crib. She hugged him tight as he just looked around the room behind her. "I'm so sorry." she whispered into his tiny ear, and kissing his hair. He just wrapped his tiny fingers around her hair and giggled.
She smiled and rested him on her hip as she carried him downstairs and into the kitchen. She skipped putting him in his highchair and carried him around the kitchen with her as she made breakfast.
A few minutes later breakfast was done and she was seated at the kitchen table, him in her lap and her left arm protectively wrapped around his stomach as he ate a peice of pancake with his fingers. She smiled at him as he held a peice of it up to share with her. "No, that's OK baby. You eat it."
He nodded and stuffed the peice in his mouth. He looked down at his plate and smacked it with his hand as he announced, "Gone."
She smiled and stood up, placing him securely on her hip, walking over and putting the plate in the sink. She then heard the doorbell ring and carried him with her to get the door. She opened it to reveal one person she thought she'd never see again. "What the hell do you want?" she asked him moving Chris to the hip farthest away from the guest.
"Now, Piper, calm down. I'm just here to see how things are with you." He replied stepping closer to her and into the house without asking.
"Get your demonic-elder ass out of my house." she demanded scaring Chris, who started to cry. She turned her attention to him and softened her voice. "No, baby, your OK, Mommy's gonna get the bad-man out of the house."
Gideon looked at the baby intently. "This is Chris, I see." he replied reaching out to touch the babys chubby cheek.
Piper automatically lifted her free arm and blasted Gideon across the hall and making him crash into the dining room table. She waited until he stuck his head up to look at her before going, "Don't you EVER, come near either one of my sons again." she declared venomously.
"I didn't mean to kill Chris, Piper." Gideon said standing up and dusting himself off.
"Oh really? What exactly were you trying to do then?" Piper asked, angry tears in her eyes.
"I was trying to save the future." He stated.
"Leo saved the future by vanquishing your sorry ass." she stated and then just had to ask, "How are you alive? Leo vanquished you."
"The elders brought me back to help find the ultimate power." He stated, orbing out just as Paige orbed in.
"Hey Piper, Hey Chris." She greeted, changing her voice to a baby voice when she greeted Chris.
"Hey." Piper said distractedly, staring worriedly at Chris, who was staring intently at the spot where Gideon was standing moments before. "Baby, are you OK?"
He finally snapped out of it, turning his attention to Paige. He smiled brightly and announced, "Momma." reaching for Paige.
Piper looked extremely hurt before handing him to Paige and walking into the kitchen. Paige saw her wipe a tear away as she walked through the dining room. She looked at Chris and goes, "OK buddy, we've been through this before, MeAunt Paige. HerMommy." indicating to the kitchen.
Chris acted as if he was in deep thought about it before nodding and Paige carried him into the kitchen and stood him in the doorway. There, he saw Piper, seated at the table with her back to him, crying.
He toddled over to her and climbed up in her lap, wrapping his tiny arms around her neck and goes, "Sowy Momma."
She gave him a small smile and hugged him back tightly. "It's OK peanut." she sniffled and goes, "Why don't we go find a way to stop the bad guy?" He gave her a smile and layed his head on her shoulder, wrapped his left arm around her neck, and wrapped his right hand up in a handful of her hair.
She smiled, stood up, and made her way up-stairs, one arm wrapped around his knees and the other wiping away the last of her tears.
As they walked by, Chris looked up to see Paige watching them walk up the stairs and he smiled at her before resting his head back on his mommy's shoulder and getting a tighter grip on her neck.
Once in the attic Piper, who rested Chris on her hip, flipped through the Book of Shadows at least 4 times and still found nothing. She growled in frustration and looked back at Chris who was looking at her intintly with his bright lime green eyes. She couldn't help but smile when he smacked the cover of the Book of Shadows and tried to copy her act of frustration. Piper grabbed the book and headed downstairs and sat it down on the dining room table. She carried Chris with her as she went into the kitchen and moved his high-chair into the dining room. She strapped him in it and sat down in a chair at the head of the table, with her back to the front door. Chris sat munching on the cookies Piper had given him while they were in the kitchen and watched his mother look through the book for an Elder Vanquishing Spell or Potion.
A few hours later, Phoebe came walking into the manor and was intrested to see Chris sitting in his high-chair in the dining room by himself. She sat her purse down and took off her jacket before walking over and removing the toddler from the chair and resting him on her hip. "Where's your mommy?" she asked him as he layed his head on her shoulder tiredly.
Chris didn't need to answer because a loud explosion came from the attic. Phoebe looked at Chris questioningly before heading upstairs.
She walked in to see Piper sitting by the potion pot with various ingredients scattered around infront of her. She was waving a hand in front of her face trying to reduce the amount of smoke coming into her face. Phoebe looked at her annoyed, a look which Piper noticed and did not like, and turned and walked out of the room. Piper followed her down the stairs and into the nursery. "What's the matter with you?" Piper asked as Phoebe layed Chris, who had fallen asleep on their walk to the attic, down in his crib and covering him up with a blanket before turning around to face Piper.
"Piper, the point of this day was for you to spend time with Chris. Not set him in his high chair in a room by himself and leave him." Phoebe answered walking out of the room.
Piper sighed and followed, "Phoebe, that's not what happened. I had to make a potion to vanquish something and I didn't want Chris exposed to the chemicals and smoke."
"Vanquish for what?" Phoebe asked, still angry at her sister for leaving Chris sitting down there by himself practically passing out on the spot from tiredness from the fact that he missed his nap time.
"Gideon." Piper answered.
"Gideon? Piper, hunny, Leo vanquished him two years ago." Phoebe replied gently.
"The elders brought him back to help find the ultimate power." Piper said almost in tears. "He showed up at the house this morning and tried to make amends I guess. He tried to make me believe that he didn't want to kill my son. He even tried to touch the baby. I won't let him hurt Chris again Phoebe. This time, I have a vanquishing potion for him and I'm going to make sure it stays permanent."
Phoebe nodded, understanding what her sister was saying, and hugged her. "Now that Chris is down for his nap and Wyatt's still at preschool would probably be a good time to summon him and vanquish him."
Piper smiled at her sister thankfully and lead her to the attic. They bottled up the potion and Phoebe called him, "Gideon! Gideon! Can we see you for a second?"
Bright purple and white orbs appeared infront of the two Charmed ones and Gideon appeared. Piper was quick to act and threw the potion at him. He was soon consumed by flames and with a scream of pain turned into a pile of ashes. Piper smiled triumphantly.
Unfortunately, the screams of pain woke Chris up and Phoebe sighed and turned to leave the attic. "Oh no you don't. He's my son. It's my job to be there for him." Piper said walking out of the attic.
She walked in to the nursery to see Chris standing up in his crib, tears pouring down his chubby cheeks. His cries died down when he saw her and he sniffled, reaching his hands up to be held. "Momma. Hold you." He requested sniffling again.
Piper smiled lovingly at him and picked him up. She held him close and rubbed his back, kissing his head and making shushing noises. "It's ok peanut. Your OK. Mommy's not gonna let anybody get you." Piper reassured him.
Soon, Chris was back asleep and Piper stood over the crib watching his chest rise and fall in the even pattern of sleep. She smiled and gently pushed some of his brown hair out of his face. "Piper! We're home!" she heard Phoebe yelled, coming home after picking Wyatt up from preschool. Piper bent down and kissed him on the cheek before turning and leaving the room quietly.