Ashes To Ashes (Charmed) *Chris/OC*

01. Not Much of a Hunt

"I've got a job for you," announced Chris, walking into the lounge.

"Chris, this is the first time demons have left us alone in months. Why should we have to do chores for you whilst we're actually getting some time off?" Phoebe complained.

"Because it's not a chore for me - it's for everybody," explained Chris. "You're supposed to protect people from evil. You can't do that if you're taking a break."

"We spend practically every day of our lives protecting people," Piper pointed out. "Are you telling us that you're gonna make us work when we get the first break from it all in months?"

"Well... yeah," admitted Chris. "This is what I came back from the future for after all."

"Fine," agreed Piper reluctantly, the first to concede that they probably weren't going to win this argument. At least they'd gotten away with two months off from hunting demons. "What do you want us to do?"

"Well, you know that everything's been really quiet recently. So me and Leo have decided that now's a good time to try and get rid of any demons that might cause us problems in the future," explained Chris. "We thought you should tackle the Darklighters first."

Paige nodded. "I see where you're coming from. That'll be good for Whitelighters at least. Darklighters are the only real problem for them."

"Hang on, I thought you guys couldn't track Darklighters?" Phoebe reminded them.

"We couldn't before, but Leo's found a way that we can," said Chris, holding up a small black bottle that had been partly concealed behind his back. "I managed to get this from what you'd call the demons' black market. It's Darklighter poison. You can use that to scry for them."

"But won't that only find us one Darklighter?" pointed out Paige. "What about the rest of them?"

"This bottle's full - it can't have all come from one arrow. Every time you use it to scry with, hopefully you'll find a different Darklighter," said Chris.

"Gotcha. Alright then, let me have the poison and I'll get started on the scrying," said Paige, getting up off the couch.

"Wait a minute, Paige. You're part Whitelighter, so I don't think you should handle the poison," said Piper.

"Aww, come on, I'll be fine," insisted Paige. "I'll wear gloves if it makes you feel better."

"No, I agree with Piper," said Phoebe. "One of us will do the scrying. And I don't think you should come with us to vanquish the Darklighters either."

"What? That's not fair; you can't make me sit at home and do nothing," complained Paige. "And you'll need me to orb you around anyway."

"Okay, good point," Piper agreed reluctantly. "You can help vanquish the Darklighters, but Phoebe and I will do the scrying."

Paige smiled. "I guess I'll take it."

"Great," Chris enthused. "Let me know if you guys have any luck."

Not long after that, following their first successful scrying from the Darklighter poison, the three young witches appeared in a swirl of white lights downtown, finding themselves outside a large old house. All of the windows were boarded up and a wild thicket of bushes had grown across the path, blocking access to the front door. It looked like it hadn't been used in a long time.

"How are we gonna get in?" asked Phoebe. "It's all boarded up."

"I could orb us in," suggested Paige.