The action was harder than he thought it would be. His chest, whilst healed, still ached. He would've fallen back down if it hadn't been for Piper's supportive arm on his shoulder.

Wait. Piper was helping him?

"Easy there tiger." said Phoebe.

"You're still weak from the infection." Leo added.

Chris looked around himself, trying to see past the concerned faces and work out where he was. Paige gave him a knowing smile.

"You're back at the manor." she said.

He shuffled so his back was resting against the edge of the sofa and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"How long was I out for?"

"An hour at least."

His eyes widened.

"Is Wyatt - ?"

"Wyatt's fine. You were right about the infection. Once you vanquished the Jagron his disease went with him." Piper reassured.

Chris closed his eyes. Her tone was comforting. He could almost pretend he was a kid again, being soothed back to sleep after a nightmare, but this woman wasn't the Piper he knew. He couldn't afford to get comfortable. He had to focus on his mission.

Chris' eyes snapped open and he gingerly stood.

"Where do you think you're going mister?" Piper snapped.

"Book of shadows. There's this demon quite high up on my list that might -"

"Oh no you don't!" she interrupted.

Chris stared at her, nonplussed.

"You are exhausted." Said Paige.

He had half a mind to retort with "what else is new?" but bit back the reply.

"If you're going to do anything; you're going to eat something." Piper said and promptly dragged him into the dining room.

"Wow." Chris gasped. The table was brimming with food. "Erm...Piper?"

"What? I cook when I'm nervous."

Chris grinned, that he already knew.

"I don't think I can eat ALL of this." he said, laughing and then wincing as his chest heaved.

"Relax. Help is at hand!" said Paige.

They all sat at the table, armed with cutlery instead of potions for once.

"It's been a long time since we last had a proper family dinner" Piper said as she sat down at the head of the table. Chris fought hard to stop his jaw from hitting the table. How had he gone from being homeless to part of the family? "and now is the perfect time for one; to celebrate the fact that we're all alive. Now eat!"

They started to dig in but after only a few mouthfuls Chris felt overwhelmed by emotions. He politely excused himself, claiming to need the toilet and dashed into the kitchen. This was ridiculous. He was getting choked up over a meal.

"Hey." Chris went rigid at the sound of Piper's voice. "I just wanted to say thank you."

"For what?" he asked, turning to face her. "I've done nothing but lie to you from day one."

She approached him as she noticed the tears in his eyes.

"But you don't want to." she said softly. "Believe it or not, I've actually come to trust your judgement after what you did for Wyatt today." Chris looked up, a glimmer of hope in his eyes. "I'm sorry for how I've treated you, for how we've treated you."

Chris shrugged.

"I deserved it half the time."

"But not all the time. That's going to change." Piper's demeanour abruptly reverted back to normal along with her voice. "Now are you going to join this family dinner or not?"

Chris smiled. She didn't even know who he was, but this was good enough for the time being.