Info: This is a continuation of the final scene in Astral
Monkey.
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, except the plot.
Ever Done It On A Cloud?
By PiperHWyatt@aol.com
Leo's arms were wrapped tightly around his love, while she
buried her face in his chest and cried. She felt completely responsible for the
death of an innocent, something that the Charmed Ones never expected to have to
face. Worse, this innocent had just months ago tried to save her life. He had
been her doctor, the caretaker of her health, and she'd wanted to return the
favour, but had failed to do so.
"Shh, it's ok Piper. It's not your fault." Leo tried his
best to soothe her.
"But it is my fault," came the muffled teary response. Leo
pulled away slightly, and lifted her chin to look her in the eyes. He gently
swiped at the tears on her cheeks with his thumbs.
"Piper, he did that to himself. You can't blame yourself
for his actions. He's the one who pursued all the research and testing of yours
and your sisters' blood."
"But it was my blood that made him sick. My blood
made him hurt all those other people. How can I not blame myself when the cause
of the problem came from inside me?"
"You weren't the one who put it inside him."
"I know that, but I still can't help feeling responsible."
Her lip began to quiver again as she continued, "I still failed at doing the
job I was supposed to do." Leo pulled her back into his arms, helping her crawl
into his lap, as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.
He let her cry all the tears she had, and when they had
subsided, he helped her climb under the covers of her bed. He kissed her
forehead, and turned to walk around to the other side of the bed.
"Leo, you don't have to leave do you? They're not calling
you?" Piper asked in a whisper.
"I'm not going anywhere tonight Piper." He smiled and sat
on the edge of the bed to remove his jeans and sweater. He then climbed in,
lying on his side to face her. He reached out and caressed the side of her
face, as he realised all over again just how much he loved her.
"Thankyou," she whispered.
"For what?" he replied in the same tone.
"For being here when I need you."
"There's nowhere else I'd rather be." Piper reached out
and grasped his hand, a silent confirmation that she understood the meaning
behind those words. It had taken them a long time, but they had finally
realised what they both needed from their relationship. He needed her to
understand when he had to leave as soon as he was called, and she needed him to
give her his time. It was impossible to have a relationship with someone if you
never saw them. Their selfishness over wanting to fulfil their own needs had
been the cause of their previous break-up. Piper and Leo had both realised that
they hadn't been prepared to give each other what they needed, but now they
were. They understood that for their relationship to work, they had to work at
it.
For the past two months, they had been doing just that.
Trying to go out on 'normal' dates, trying to spend quality time together, and
trying to understand every time they were forced apart. However this was not
one of those times. Leo wasn't going anywhere, no matter who decided to call.
"I think you should take another day off work tomorrow,"
he told her.
"No, I have a lot of work to do. Plus, it might actually
get my mind off of all this."
"Piper, I know you. You'll work yourself into the ground,
all the while keeping all this bottled up inside."
"No, I won't. I promise."
"Piper…" Leo
warned. "I'm telling you. You are staying home, and I am going to take care of
you and help you deal with this."
Piper snuggled closer to him, resting her head on his
chest. "Sometimes I wonder if you're too good to be true."
"But you know better than that," he grinned.
"When you do something like this, you make it easy to
forget."
"Speaking of forgetting.. I forgot to tell you what
happened this morning."
"This morning?"
"Yeah, I um.. I orbed into your room here, and Phoebe was
in your closet rummaging through your clothes."
"And?"
"And I thought she was you."
The look on Piper's face changed from inquisitive to
bemused as she asked, "You didn't try to jump her bones did you?"
"In a way." He admitted, slightly embarrassed.
"What happened?"
"You know, it's not my fault, you two look exactly the
same from behind! She was crouched in your closet right when I orbed in.
Thinking it was you, you know, this being your room and all, I leant down
behind her and asked her if she'd ever done it on a cloud."
Piper stared at him wide eyed for a second, and then burst
into laughter.
"You didn't!"
"Oh yes I did," Leo replied dryly. "But that's not all I
did."
"There's more?" she asked in between giggles.
"Yeah, I um.. I was about to devour her neck when she
turned around and I realised it wasn't you."
"Oh Leo, that's the best story I've heard all day."
Leo smiled, pulling her closer and wrapping his arm around
her. "It's good to see you doing that."
"Doing what?"
"Smiling, laughing," he stated simply.
"I can always rely on you to make me do it," she replied,
kissing the tip of his nose. "So, since you actually have the right sister now,
maybe you can ask that question again."
Leo looked at her, puzzled for a second. Then a broad
smile covered his face as he realised what she meant. "So, Piper Halliwell, have
you ever done it on a cloud?"
"I can't remember, let me just go consult my diary." She
faked a move out of bed, but he pulled her back, rolling onto his back so she
lay on top of him.
"Wanna try it?"
"Oh yeah!" Piper grinned as he orbed them out of the room
and into the sky.
The End.
© 2000 PiperHWyatt@aol.com