i go about things the wrong way. [ psl ]

[misconceived]

WHO Chris Halliwell (misconceived), Cole Turner (devilsinthedetails).
WHAT In a universe where Chris is the son of Phoebe and Cole, his father has had enough hints dropped to maybe piece things together. Now he's going to go prove it.
WHEN Sometime after 6x12: Prince Charmed.
WHERE Back room at P3.
WHY Because Leo would make a terrible father.

To say that Chris was exhausted would probably be an understatement. Oh, physically he was passing by just fine, but ever since the sisters had more or less evicted him from the manor, things had been going pretty harshly. He should have known they wouldn't believe him about Wyatt, yet he had hoped that perhaps could have squirmed around it. Messing with Piper's birthday man at the same time probably only made it worse. They had never really trusted him so he wasn't quite sure why it hurt him or surprised him so much, especially after so many months of living mired in their suspicion.

Either way, all that meant was that Chris was on his own on following his leads until he could get back into the girls' neutral graces again. That meant making careful steps and not expecting backup, which also meant he needed to take care of himself and make sure he could at least work without collapsing in the middle of meeting with any of his informants. Demons sure did love it when you bared your weak little throat like that to them.

With a quiet scoff to himself, Chris entered his room at P3, nothing more than a converted storage/office to hold a cot in it, then stopped utterly short when he noticed that he wasn't alone. Brief flashbacks of Bianca waiting for him stuttered through his mind, overlaying that image with his new intruder. "Cole?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"
* * *

Heartbreak First ; reveal

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Adorable Third ; nightmare

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Ridiculous Second ; flirt

Comments

[misconceived]

It was the tone of voice that got through to Chris. It was one he hadn't heard from Cole in years, not since the Event, and he couldn't help but turn into the hug and wrap his arms around his father. Maybe Cole really did feel something for Chris, knowing now that he was his son, and it was both amazing and terrifying. This was Cole Turner, ready to be a dad to the demon who had shown up out of nowhere and had practically turned everything on its head. Chris always knew Cole was way better than anyone gave him credit for, he didn't even blame Chris for possibly destroying his chances with Phoebe, but right now he had never been so happy for it. He nodded stiffly against Cole's neck, his voice momentarily uncooperative. "You will," he said softly. "We'll do this."

"You can't tell them," he said, hints of fear spiking up to the forefront. If everyone knew who he was, who could tell how harshly that would affect the future? The less that was known, the less could be changed, and that would be for the better. He only needed one thing to be different. "Please, Cole, don't tell them."

[devilsinthedetails]

There was more to Cole's side of this situation than he would ever let Chris know. After everything that happened, from losing his first son and then losing Phoebe to losing his life for what he thought would be the last time, he never expected to have a second chance at a life, at family. Finding out about Chris meant that there was hope for him and Phoebe, even it was for a brief moment and what the moment would bring was the greatest thing possible. He didn't let go of Chris, but loosened his grip to not force him to stay in the hug. "We will," he murmured into his hair, glad at the small hint that he will at least be a good father for Chris in the future. "Everything will be okay."

Seeing his son genuinely afraid of the thought of telling the others made him choose his decision as to what to do about that. Things had already changed because Chris traveled to the past and Cole wasn't going to add anymore problems by thinking he could change the future. "I won't tell them, I promise. We'll make sure the timeline's still good and no future consequences happen."

[misconceived]

As much as he wanted to, Chris couldn't stay where he was forever. He broke off, took a large breath, collected himself. His shoulders squared. That was all he was going to allow himself, that moment of reassurance that Cole would take this seriously and treat his past self just as well in this new timeline as he had the first time around. Chris's father was dead; he'd come to terms with that a long time ago. This version of Cole would be dad to a new version of Chris. This wasn't a family reunion, but a mission of utmost importance.

"Good," he said, seeming rather unruffled despite everything that had just happened. Cole had basically knocked the truth out of him, but it was better to take the ally it had produced than try to fight it any longer. Chris wasn't so proud as to deny backup when had a deadline coming up. "Just between us and Uncle Leo, then. We'll have to think of something just the three of us can do together to make this happen."

[devilsinthedetails]

When Chris broke away, Cole stepped back, giving him some space. It was a lot to deal with in such a short time, Cole attacking Chris only to reveal that he was pushing him for the truth while already knowing it and then dealing with that, and he knew that he had to let Chris take control of the situation, despite the fact that Cole tended to be better at leading than following.

"Well, we've got a demon, a witch, and a whitelighter," he said, hands in his pockets as he studied Chris. He could see the features that were unmistakably from his mother and the features that came from him. It made him happy to see that standing right there was the son that he never thought he was going to have. "There has to be something the three of us can do together. A potion maybe, a spell? Or we could try to force our own situation to get things back on track."

nightmare;

[misconceived]

It seemed like a distant past now, even though it had been only a few weeks since Chris's conception date had come and gone. Now everyone seemed to finally be on the same wavelength and things were moving along. Of course, the sisters were still concerned with finding a place for the normal lives they wanted to have in between their Charmed One duties, but Chris was still taking it as an overall win for the team. As long as they remembered the importance of their responsibilities.

blood, screaming, magic, evil, attack, people were dead, it was all his fault, this was what he got for thinking he could be good, how could he have been so wrong when being evil felt so

—with a strangled gasp, Chris sat up in bed and tried to catch hold of his fleeting dream. Terror wracked his frame and before he could even think to settle down and deal with it himself, Chris was following a line of magic he could never lose sight of and shimmering away. He was standing in Cole's dark and quiet apartment when it finally began to sink in what he had just done. It was utterly ridiculous, because Chris hadn't even had a father to run to after a nightmare in years. Somehow his instincts hadn't dulled at all and had taken him straight to his usual source of comfort. Now that the cobwebs of the nightmare were clearing, he was seriously hoping he hadn't woken Cole up and that maybe he could just leave the way he had come without being noticed. A guy could hope, right?

[devilsinthedetails]

A guy can hope, but that doesn't always mean that it's going to go the way he wants. Case in point, Cole had woken up from his slumber the moment Chris shimmered in, drawing a knife from underneath his pillow and sitting up in a fluid motion, weapon pointed directly at Chris in such a quick and instinctive manner that it took a moment for Cole to realize who exactly he was pointing it at and let the rush of adrenaline in his body drain out as he put the knife back underneath his pillow.

"Chris. What are you doing here so late? It's..." Way too damn early, he thought as he notice the glowing numbers of his bedside alarm clock. Cole's focus turned back to Chris and he saw that the younger man was definitely sleepy and had a bit of an edge to him that didn't mean trouble. "...not important what time it is. Why don't you sit with me and tell me what's wrong?"

[misconceived]

Knife. Knife wasn't so good, and Chris let it help cut through the fog. Now he was much more awake but that didn't do much for the lingering fear and uneasiness. At the very least, it helped him figure out where he was and what exactly he had done and he winced, raising his hands in a peaceful gesture while he shook his head. This wasn't the right place, wasn't the right time, and he really hadn't meant to put the burden of his own issues on a father who hadn't even had a chance to see him grow up yet.

"No, it's okay," he said quickly, a tone that he often used to try and evade from misspeaking or giving something away. That offer was incredibly tempting, but far be it from Chris to simply give in to every easy option that had been thrown his way. "Sorry, Dad. I didn't mean to wake you up, I just... guess I didn't grow out all my old habits like I thought I had. Wasn't anything important, so you can go back to sleep. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

[devilsinthedetails]

It's only because of Cole's skill that Chris didn't get injured, but he wasn't planning on berating him for shimmering in looking as bad off as he was. He wouldn't be a very good father if he did that and that was the opposite of what he was trying to do. Not really feeling like sleep now that he was awake and Chris was here, he got up out of bed and looked straight in Chris' eyes, his expression making it obvious that he wasn't going to leave unless he allowed it.

"That doesn't look like nothing to me, especially when you decided to shimmer to my place in the middle of the night," he said as he got close and put his hand on his shoulder. "I'm not going to let you just shimmer back out into the night to deal with this alone. Come on, let's go get you a glass of water and then we'll talk about this."

[misconceived]

Chris turned toward the hand on his shoulder, clearly debating with himself what he wanted to do. He was fooling himself if he thought that he would get away even if he did manage to leave and that Cole would forget anything had happened. It was too late to take it back now, even if he really did wish he could have caught himself before he showed up unannounced and unexpected. There was a lump forming in his throat because he almost couldn't believe how well Cole had turned around to accept the presence of a son not even born yet, and that acceptance meant more than Chris could comprehend.

After the moment had passed, Chris found himself sighing, shoulders slumping and generally just losing much of the semi-confrontational stance he had taken on instinct. He ducked his head and nodded. "Yeah, okay. Lead the way," he said. This wasn't an apartment familiar to him, but of course by the time Chris had grown old enough to remember his dad's place, Cole had gotten back on his feet and found somewhere much more suitable to live.

[devilsinthedetails]

Once the fight leaves Chris, Cole removes his hand from his shoulder and instead grabs Chris' hand so as to lead him to the kitchen. It's a small place, a bit shabby compared to how he usually lives, but not bad. It was definitely better than holing up in his family mausoleum at night and sleeping next to his father's tomb. He doesn't turn on the lights as he takes Chris from his bedroom to the kitchen, not having any problems seeing in the dark. Even if Chris couldn't, Cole was there to lead the way and make sure he didn't bump into anything.

In the kitchen, he let go of Chris' hand before he went to a cabinet and pulled out a glass. He filled it up about halfway in the sink and then held it out for Chris to take. "There you go, that should be better. Take as much time as you need. I'm not going to speed you when when it looks like you need to slow down a bit."

[misconceived]

Like his father, Chris had no problem seeing in the dark. It was something his cousins had expressed some jealousy over for how mundanely useful it was; even when his powers had been partially-bound growing up, Chris had always had the more physical of his abilities with him. This one was great for a lot of things, and he was glad Cole didn't see a reason to turn on the lights. It might have gone a way to banishing the dreams rattling around his head, but it also would have brought where he was into obvious relief and probably sent him running again.

Chris took the glass, turning it around in his hand a bit before he took a long drink and leaned his hip up against the counter. He looked exhausted, as if waking up in the middle of the night was not an uncommon occurrence despite the fact that he needed as much rest as possible for how ragged he was running himself. Even with his family's support now, Chris was the only one who knew about the true deadline to saving Wyatt and that was something he was hoping to not have to reveal if he could help it.

"I just have some bad dreams sometimes," Chris eventually said into the dark and quiet room. "When I was a kid... it kind of felt more real. Everything does when you're that old. But... the manor was a protected place, but the magic around it was always like—incense, you know? It was everywhere but it didn't really have a presence or anything. But you, Dad—you're different. It's like this blanket of power you could wrap yourself up in. It feels safe," he added, a murmur into his glass almost like it were an afterthought.

[devilsinthedetails]

For all that Cole was trying to be a good dad, he felt lost and seeing his son exhausted from lack of sleep and nightmares and didn't know what to do about it. He had his fair share of nightmares over the years and understood what he was going through, but that didn't mean he was any good at helping others deal with them. It was for Chris and Cole had lately found himself doing a lot of things for his son from the future and surprisingly didn't feel too bad having to go out of his way for him from time to time.

Hearing him talk about how he had bad dreams and that it was Cole he felt safe with warmed his heart. From what Chris had told him of the future and how they were together, Cole could only hope that this time around, they would be just as close and he would be as good of a father to him. Speaking of, there was one thing he could do. "Would you like to spend the rest of the night here? I've got room and you don't even need to stay for breakfast."

[misconceived]

"Yeah," Chris heard himself saying. There wasn't much time to think when his brain wasn't firing on all cylinders, and as he caught up to what he was saying, Chris found he didn't really mind, either. Maybe sleeping in the apartment with Cole would help him get a night's sleep even if it wouldn't be the same as when he was younger. With every concession that Cole made, Chris found himself fearing that trying to assume one for himself would only end badly. These allowances were all in Cole's court. "Yeah... I think I'll do that tonight. Sleep on the couch or something. Breakfast, we'll see about tomorrow," he added. It was a lackluster attempt, but at least he was trying for teasing.

No matter what, though, Chris doubted he could get away with his usual form of dealing with his nightmares. This would do well enough; the entire apartment already held a strong sense of Cole's magic in it, overwhelming whatever other small magical influences lingered. If he was already stuck in his sense-memories and shimmering there in the first place, just the feeling of Cole around would be enough.

[devilsinthedetails]

The moment Chris conceded to every point was when Cole realized just how tired Chris actually was. He must have not been sleeping at all lately if things had gotten to this point. Which made it all the better that Chris was conceding and letting Cole being a dad for him in this small way. While he was still drinking his water, Cole went to go grab an extra blanket and pillow and put them on the couch so that'd be ready once Chris was ready to try sleeping.

"The couch is ready for you," he said as he walked back into the kitchen a studied Chris. They were definitely going to talk in the morning about this lack of sleep problem going on with him. If what he inferred was right, then Chris usually ended up with his dad after his bad dreams and if Chris thought that he'd be upset by that fact, then he had another thing coming. He then held out his hand for the glass. "Let's get you settled in so you can rest."

[misconceived]

When Cole excused himself to get the blanket and pillow, Chris followed halfway to watch him go. The cup was empty by the time Cole returned, and Chris was absently twisting it around in his hand instead of doing anything useful. His acquiescence would probably come back to bite him in the morning but, right now in the stillness of the night, it didn't seem so bad. His dad was right there and didn't seem too bothered to have an errant son hanging around, so Chris was willing to let him take control for a little while.

"Sure," he said, handing off the cup. He rubbed at his eyes for a moment as if to wake up more despite the fact that he was about to try sleeping again, then let himself be led to the couch. "You should get back to bed, too. I didn't mean to wake you up like that."

[devilsinthedetails]

"Don't worry about me," Cole responded once he had led Chris to the couch. While Cole was okay with losing a little bit of sleep since he wouldn't have any problems making it up or handling running on a few minutes less of sleep. Chris, on the other hand, looked like he needed all the sleep he could get and Cole was going to make it his duty to make sure Chris got enough sleep. "I could stand to lose a little bit of sleep. You look like you're about to fall over."

Maybe he could convince Chris to spend a few nights over here just so that he could rest up enough to not be running on fumes like he probably has been lately. He didn't mind having him around since it gave him the chance to learn more about his son from the future. It was still a little daunting to have him around and actually prove that not only he and Phoebe could have a child together, but that their son grew up to become good. He was also a bit surprised by the fact that Chris didn't seem to hate him or think he was a terrible father. After everything that he had done, he didn't think he'd be able to do something like raise a child well.

[misconceived]

"That's what coffee is for," Chris said with a tired smirk. It wasn't the only way he was still going, but caffeine had definitely been involved and this was only getting worse as it went on. Ever since they had confronted the demonic assassin sent by Elizabeth Turner, his dreams had gone into overdrive and not sleeping at all seemed like the lesser of two evils. So far, it had been working... unless anyone wanted to count his unplanned moment of weakness in shimmering straight to his father after the latest nightmare. Belatedly thinking better of the statement, he quickly added, "Not tonight, though. Sleep... sounds overdue."

He sat down on the couch, feeling the cushions under his hands and leaned against the back, eyes dropping closed as if he could fall asleep just like that. He probably could, yet part of him didn't want to let the moment be over because it was achingly familiar and something he wanted worse than anything. He reluctantly forced his eyes back open and watched Cole, waiting to see what his dad would do next.

[devilsinthedetails]

"Tonight's a caffeine-free night," Cole agreed with a bit of a smile on his face. If he knew what was keeping Chris up, he would be worried and doing anything to remove the problem from not only his son's life, but from everyone else's as well. His mother was a sore topic with Cole and the reason why he was forced down the path he had been on when he had entered the sisters' lives. He would do anything to make sure the same didn't happen to Chris.

Despite Chris sitting on the couch, Cole took the blanket and draped it over his body from the shoulders down, making sure even his feet were covered. He may not be a father yet, but he definitely seemed to have the instincts down pat. "It'll be more comfortable for you to lay down," he said with tone that made it obvious that he was speaking from experience. "You'll be sore in the morning otherwise."

[misconceived]

Chris gave Cole a tired grin for the blanket. He still wasn't quite ready to sleep for a number of reasons, but it seemed Cole was already on his way to being ready for his own Chris to be born. Had it always been like this? Had Cole so readily accepted fatherhood? Was it because the child was Phoebe's, or would he still care if it had been a child with anyone else for some freak reason? Despite it all, it wasn't doubt in his father so much as curiosity of where Chris himself stood on the reasons for his father being so good to him. After everything he'd been through, it was the sort of evaluation Chris did without even realizing anymore.

"Yeah," he agreed with a sigh. He wasn't ready to lie down yet, but at this rate he really was going to sleep sitting up and that wouldn't help anyone. Reluctantly, he let himself slide until his head was on the pillow and stretched himself across the couch while rearranging the blanket. His eyes were already closing of their own accord and he shifted to get into whatever comfortable position he could find. He didn't want to sleep, but without a crisis on hand to keep him awake, it looked like he didn't have a choice. "'Night, Dad."

[devilsinthedetails]

No matter what timeline, Cole had always wanted to have a child with the woman he loved. The fact that Chris was here only made him him happier about this. Not very many people could say that they met their future child and knew that they would turn out right and that Cole was able to have this chance and just know that Chris turned out right was definitely a weight off his shoulders and also encouragement to make sure that this was one of the things about the future that he would make sure wouldn't be changed.

Seeing Chris slide down until his head was on the pillow and laying down, Cole couldn't help but smile a little and be amazed at just how young his son truly was. It was hard to tell when he was awake and carrying the burden of saving Wyatt and making sure he was still conceived, but he was still just barely out of his teens. Once Chris seemed settled, Cole moved over and knelt down to kiss his hair lightly, like a parent would do when putting their child to bed. "Goodnight, Kit."

[misconceived]

The sheer familiarity of the scene tugged painfully at his heart while he could feel a comforting warm at the same time. It was like he was home again, a boy with his dad and simply staying the night because he couldn't stand to leave himself at the mercy of his emotional demons. His father was right there in front of him and willing to keep him safe until morning and every single thing about it was right, down to the name only his own Cole used for his son. Drifting on that feeling of belonging, Chris let himself sleep.

His sleep was amazingly peaceful. He hadn't been kidding when he'd said his father's power had almost a physical weight to it, a feeling that Chris could hold onto even when he was beyond consciousness. Because of that, however, even in sleep Chris knew something wasn't exactly as it should have been. Everything felt just off enough that he stirred in his sleep, didn't wake but reached out to understand what was wrong, and found himself reaching into the air, nothing there to meet him. Huh. Well, he could fix that easily enough.

[devilsinthedetails]

Son taken care of, Cole went back to his room and slipped under the covers on his bed. It was time for him to get back to sleep so that he wouldn't be a complete mess when he had to wake up in the morning. Chris might be able to run on low amounts of sleep and massive quantities of caffeine, but Cole wasn't the sort to punish his body just because he needed a few more hours awake. For now, he was going to sleep and then deal with Chris and his nightmares in the morning when they've both had the chance to rest.

Neither Chris nor fate were going to give Cole any moment of peace because not long after he had settled himself into bed again, someone had shimmered into his room on top of him. Knowledge of his son in the apartment kept Cole from pulling out the knife again and attacking whoever the mysterious bed guest was and that was definitely good because once Cole took a look, he realized it was Chris, fast asleep and snuggled on top of him like a large blanket. There was definitely surprise at this situation, but he wasn't going to try pushing Chris away. He had already shimmered in here once while asleep. What's to say that he wouldn't do that again?

[misconceived]

Cole's choice was more astute than he would know. Being as exhausted as he was, Chris was seeking out whatever could give him the strength to actually make it through the night uninterrupted. As strong and willful as Chris was when he was awake, there were plenty of insecurities hidden and not-so-hidden that had free reign during the night that would take over in an attempt to keep himself safe. Cole had been a major part of that in his formative years, and now his readiness to be Chris's father was enough for his subconscious.

However, his conscious self wasn't quite on all the same page. Although he slept perfectly through the night once he had settled into his old, familiar position, once he woke up (too soon, his body fighting between instincts of needing to be awake and trying to fill up on sleep), it did not take him very long to figure out where he was. It was warm, comfortable, a strong heartbeat under his ear, all things pointing to particular nights in his childhood where he had always woken up to the exact same thing. His cheeks heating, Chris went very still and let the situation sink in. "Dad?" he said, barely above a whisper in case he was somehow dreaming all of this too.

[devilsinthedetails]

At some point during the night, Cole had wrapped his arm around Chris protectively and hadn't moved it at all. He was awake before Chris was, but he had decided not to move for fear of waking his son up and losing him precious amounts of sleep. Since he was still without a job, he didn't have to be anywhere and could take the time to be Chris' pillow for the morning until he finally decided to wake up, so he decided to close his eyes and relax until Chris decided to wake up.

"Chris," he said as he opened his eyes and looked down at him. The arm that had been around him protectively moved so that he could place his hand on top of his head. Cole obviously didn't seem to be too bothered about this whole situation, instead looking more amused than anything. "Good morning. How did you sleep?"

[misconceived]

There was a moment of pure mortification when Chris realized that he must have gone to his father in his sleep and, not only that, but Cole had allowed it and seemed perfectly all right with the complete breach of personal space. He was still in a bit of a blur, body still moaning for sleep while his brain was slowly chugging its way into wakefulness, and he stayed there for longer than he should have before quickly moving to give Cole some space.

"Um," he said. This was embarrassing. It was his dad, but not, and Chris hadn't done this in nearly eight years. Not that it was even comparable because this was the past where he hadn't done it at all. Ignoring the question or, rather, being too flustered to realize it had been genuine, Chris merely continued, "I am so sorry. I must have been really tired to do that, it was an accident, I promise."