Author's Note: Hi there! A bit of backround on this fic is required before you start reading it. To make a long story short, Ginny is a witch that has been watching over and protecting the charmed ones for about 2 years now. She doesn't remember who she was before she came to them. This story takes place between the episodes from season 6, "The Courtship of Wyatt's Father" and "Hyde School Reunion." It also has "Roswell" characters. Keep in mind that they are not aliens here, they're witches and whitelighters. Also, the lyrics from this chapter are from the song "Goodbye My Lover" by James Blunt.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, except Ginny Warren.
Chapter 1
Did I disappoint you, or let you down?
Should I be feeling guilty, or let the judges frown?
'Cause I saw the end before it begun
Yes I saw you were blind, and I knew I had won
So I took what's mine by eternal right
Took your soul out into the night
It may be over, but it won't stop there
I am here for you if you'd only care
Touched my heart, you touched my soul
You changed my life and all my goals
Love is blind but then I knew it
My heart was blinded by you
Have kissed your lips and held your head
Shared your dreams, shared your bed
I know you well, I know your smell
I've been addicted to you
Michael Matthews sat alone in attic, concentrating hard on the book of shadows and going through spells. Every single one he tried had failed, and his patience was wearing thin. He pricked his finger with an athemae, and squeezed it over a bowl onto various ingredients. "Power of the witches rise. Course unseen across the skies. Come to us who call you near. Come to us and settle here. Blood to blood, I summon thee. Blood to blood, return to me." His breath caught for a moment as he watched the candle on the table flicker. He waited for a few moments, and when nothing happened, his head hung down in pain. Tears came pouring from his eyes again, and a voice from behind startled him.
"Michael?" His head shot up weakly. "Ginny?" He asked hopefully. No. It was only Isabelle who walked through the door. "Honey, its 4 o'clock in the morning. What are you doing?" Michael leaned back in his chair. "Nothing." He said. "You're bleeding." Isabelle picked up a cloth from the table and gently patted his cut finger. "It's not like we haven't cheated death before. It's like magic abandoned us, abandoned Ginny. I don't understand why this isn't working." He cried softly. Isabelle pulled her twin brother's weary head to her chest and patted him softly. "Because Max can't heal the dead, Michael." "I just don't understand." He said again. "She saved us all, Michael. It was her destiny." She pulled him up from his chair. "I know today is a hard day. It's been two years already, and don't you think, just maybe, it might be time to move on?" Michael nodded his head reluctantly, and Isabelle lead him out of the attic as they headed down the stairs.
The book's pages started flipping, and landed on the "To summon a lost love" spell as the candle started flickering again.
Ginny Warren finished washing the dishes and turned to pick up Wyatt. Piper came into the room with a diaper bag and some fresh bottles. "Come here baby." She cooed, taking Wyatt from Ginny. "So what are you're plans for the day?" Piper asked as she rummaged around the kitchen, "Oh nothing. Thought I'd thumb through the Book of Shadows for a little while."
Just then, Chris orbed in beside Ginny. "We've got a new demon to hunt." Ginny scoffed. "Well, hello to you too." Piper snickered, loving the tension filling the room between the her son and a sarcastic Ginny. "We don't need the power of three for this. I just need Ginny to come with me and check the book for a little while so we can find a vanquishing spell." Piper shoved another baby food jar into the diaper bag. "Good." She said. "I'll be at P3 if you need me, but please don't need me because I have DJ's the audition all day." With that, Piper turned tail and left. Chris took off up the attic, shouting after himself. "Come on." "Hey!" Ginny yelled back. "Wait for me!"
She met Chris in the attic with his hands buried in his pockets. "We need to talk." He simply said. "I thought we were going to look through the book for a demon." Chris shook his head. "It's about your dreams. Are you still having them?" Ginny nodded. "Yeah. More often now. Like, every night." Chris looked worried. He sat down on the couch and motioned for her to sit next to him. "Tell me about it." Ginny took a deep breath. "Okay, well, the last one was a little, um…" She hesitated for a moment, looking at Chris. "A little?" He nudged her on. "Uh, well, a little… raunchy." A look of amusement crossed his face. "Really? Well, feel free to describe in full detail." Ginny smacked him with her gloved hands, and he held up his hands in defense. "Hey, hey!" He snipped. She went on, exhaling loudly. "This guy. He's tall, a little muscular, um, dark hair, has a few curls on the edges, has soft brown eyes…" She stopped for a moment, her memory clinging to waning bits and pieces of broken dreams. "Michael." She said. "I think his name is Michael." Ginny sat again. "I know this sounds crazy, but I think this must be more than dreams, Chris. I think these are memories. Ones from before I came here." Chris tightened up a bit. This is not good. He thought to himself.
I am a dreamer and when I wake
You can't break my spirit, it's my dreams you take
And as you move on, remember me
Remember us and all we used to be
I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile
I've watched you sleeping for awhile
I'd be the father of your child
I'd spend a lifetime with you
I know your fears and you know mine
We've had our doubts but now we're fine
And I love you, I swear that's true
I cannot live without you
Michael stood over a lone headstone. It was embellished with a small angel, and a single line. Goodbye my lover. If her executers knew her ashes had been stolen, they would most certainly come and confiscated them, desecrating them by carelessly tossing them into some garbage wasteland. Michael would not stand for that. Neither would the rest of the family. Especially not Leo. Not after all she had done to protect their family. Michael felt his mind beginning to wander slowly but surely, it always ended up on one particular memory.
Max and Isabelle taunted their little brother with a wicked game of monkey in the middle. "Cut it out!" He yelped, struggling to reach his constantly orbing backpack away from his siblings. "Come on! I'm already late for class!" Neither Max nor Isabelle listened, sending the helpless pouch flying across the room towards Phoebe Halliwell. "Aunt Phoebe!" A 7 year old Michael yelled. "They won't stop messing with me!" Phoebe plucked the backpack from the ground. "Now you two stop it." She chided, waving a finger at them. "Your mother is going to be here soon for you, and she doesn't have time to yell at you. She has a lot of work at Magic School to do, and you need to be ready before she gets here." She handed the bag to Michael just as her daughter came bouncing down the stairs. "Ready to go, Parker?" Parker nodded. "When's Auntie Paige coming?" "Soon." Phoebe said as she returned to the conservatory.
A very pregnant Piper walked into the front doors of the manor, Wyatt and Chris in tow. "Now you two hurry along and get dressed. Paige will be here soon to take you up to school." She motioned for Phoebe to send the kids upstairs, and with a flick of her hand, they all knew their cue. Max, Isabelle, Michael, Wyatt, Chris, and Parker took up upstairs. But of course, they all stood at the top so they could overhear yet another so called "adult" conversation.
"Did you find her?" Phoebe asked. Piper nodded, and opened the front door a little more so a shy little girl could walk in beside her. She donned a simple white flowing gown, her hair done up in baby's breath. Piper put her hands on her shoulders, leading her in front of her so Phoebe could get a good look at her. "Honey, this is Phoebe. She's a witch too, and she's also going to be helping you." The little girl glanced up to Piper, and then met Phoebe's eyes. Phoebe knelt on her knees. "Hi honey. So what's your name?" The little girl didn't look away as she bashfully said, "Ginny."
Wyatt scoffed. "Does this mean I have to share my room with Chris again?" "Maybe she'll come live with me and mommy. I've always wanted a sister." Parker piped up. Michael just stared down the stairs at this new person, enchanted by aura that seemed to surround her, given off by the sunlight coming in the manor windows. "She must be an angel."
Michael's eyes moistened as the memory ended, not noticing his cousin, Parker, coming up behind him. She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "She was always beautiful. She was our angel." Michael forced a small smile. "You're too psychic for your own good."
Once Ginny had finished filling Chris in on her strange dreams she'd been having over the past few months, he'd go out to do whatever it was that he did when he was away. She was pouring over the book, and stopped when she came across something she hadn't noticed before. "A memory spell?" Intrigued, she read down the page, skimming the details of the spell.
Once cast, this spell will take the witch back as far as she desires. Although her body will remain intact and protected by the spell, her mind will occupy the body of her past self. It only lasts until she finds what she is looking for, and once done, the witch is returned to her present time.
A word of caution: although the body is protected, the mind is not. This spell is just a way for the witch to observe the past, not to change it. If she does, events may happen to change her present. If something happens to the life of the past, the present will suffer the consequences.
The spell must be down with precise accuracy. If there is even the slightest miscalculation, the witch could be carried into a place where she is not meant to be. There, since she has no recollection to remember, she must immediately cast the return spell, which can only be used if the witch goes somewhere she isn't supposed to be.
"Watcha looking at?" Paige strolled into the attic. Ginny slammed the book shut and walked over to meet Paige. "Nothing, just thumbing through. What are you doing home so early?" Paige shrugged. "They said they didn't have anything for me to do at the temp agency today, so I thought I see if you wanted to go out shopping or something." Ginny shrugged. "Sure."
Ginny's eyes grew wide with fire as she screamed, "MOVE!" She shoved Paige to the floor, ripping off her gloves in the process. The demon that shimmered in came at Ginny full force, but she dodged. Paige scrambled from the floor. "ATHEMAE!" She shouted, and the dagger materialized with blue and white light surrounding her outstretched palm. She threw it hard, but missed as the demon shimmered out. He reappeared behind Ginny, grabbing her by her throat. The scent of burning flesh filled the air almost immediately, and the demon staggered backward, cradling his hands. Ginny cracked her neck, the burns on her neck dripping and blackened. She shook a finger at him, tisking. She jumped forward, her hands glowing a bright red. She wrapped her fingers around his face as anger filled her eyes. His charred flesh melted away like ashes beneath her hands, and in one final scream, the demon disinigrated in flames. Ginny's hands returned to their normal color, and Paige handed her the gloves she had tossed off moments ago. "Sometimes I forget just how volatile you really are." They shared a short laugh. "Come on. Let's go downstairs and call Leo so he can heal your neck."
Much later that night, Chris sat on his perch, far above the traffic speeding below him. With his face propped up by his hands, he awaited his visit with the one person he needed to see. Not a moment sooner, a small crystal ball floated down before him, and in a swirl of brilliant white light, the angel of destiny appeared before him. "You know why I called?" She nodded. "You're worried that Ginny's memories are returning." Chris took a deep breath. "Yes." The angel's face remained cool and calm, much unlike Chris's. "What if the memories sway her from her mission here? What if she decides she wants to go back to her former life? What if she breaks down? What if…" The angel raised a hand to silence him. "On the contrary, I believe the knowledge of what she once protected will do more than help her grow stronger and keep fighting. I have faith in the young woman, She wouldn't have been chosen for the task if we believed she would abandon her charge. She was made the protectress for a reason." Chris shook his head in frustration. "It's coming back to her too soon. It's only been two years, and already she's having visions of her past." The angel sat down next to him. "That's true, but all protectors are meant to remember. It reminds them what they're protecting. It gives them a reason to want to preserve the future, to make it a better place." "What if they come for her? What if they realize she's here?" "Magic has a reason for everything. You know that." The angel reassured him. With that, the angel was gone, leaving Chris alone there to ponder his situation.
Michael returned home late that night. Just the thought of being in the house saddened him. He headed straight to the attic, where he usually spent most of his time. He settled down on the couch, gazing over the mess he had left there from early that morning. He got right back up, deciding it was time to clean it up and put his things away so Phoebe wouldn't get on him about leaving his magical mixture messes lying around. He had started picking up the various ingredients when he noticed that the book was open to the summoning spell. He picked it up, thinking to himself. "Now why the hell hadn't I thought of this before?"
Ginny had just slipped into her room away from the gossiping Charmed Ones downstairs. She needed a night to herself to clear her head. She flicked on her table lamp, and began to undress, peeling off her elbow length gloves and discarding them on the floor next to her clothes. She threw on some pj pants and a tank top, slipped into her comfy bed, switched off her light, and awaited the strange dreams she knew would come.
A knock on the door came, and Ginny moaned. "Ugghh!" She rolled over towards the sound. "Come in!" Piper entered, holding a tray with fruit and a glass of ice water in her hands. "Thought you might want something to fill your belly before bed. I didn't see you eat all day." Ginny smiled and sat up, but before Piper could even get to the bed, a swirl of lights came down around Ginny. Before Piper could blink again, Ginny was gone, and Piper let the tray in her hands crash to the floor as she screamed for her sisters.
Michael stared in disbelief at the woman standing before him. Her skin glowed in the candle light, and her hair glittered as the tiny flames reflected off the attic walls. She looked confused, and he forced himself to step forward into the circle. "Ginny." He whispered. "Is it really you?" He stood before her, enveloped in her presence. The world seemed to disappear as he drank in the sight of his love.
"Sorry, Michael, Izz sent me up here to grab the boo…" Melinda's voice trailed off as she spotted Michael in the candle lit circle with a woman she hadn't seen since she was 14. Her mouth dropped in shock, and she ran out of the room. Michael looked back at Ginny, still amazed that she was there. "I knew you where out there. I never stopped believing I'd see you again."
Isabelle, Max, Melinda, and Parker all halted in the doorway, bumping into one another. Their wondering eyes almost didn't believe that their beloved friend was standing in the room. "My god…" Isabelle gasped, grabbing Max's arm.
Ginny gazed into Michael's eyes. "Is this a dream?" Michael shook his head, a few tears glistening on his cheeks. "It's real." He simply said. "How?" Ginny choked out. "How is this possible?" A smile crossed her face. "I know. I'm dreaming again." Michael didn't hear the words; he just rocked on the sound of her voice. One of the attic windows gently blew open, the wind carelessly brushing through Ginny's hair.
Without realizing it, Michael had the sudden urge to touch her. He was afraid to. He was scared that he would end up touching nothing, as if she was just another piece of the wind, like she wasn't really there. Ginny was too indulged in his presence to notice his hand reaching up to touch her face.
A burning sensation on her cheek and the sound of sizzling skin startled her, and Michael retracted his arm, shocked. He fell backwards, and it was then that the crew at the door moved from the stillness and leapt down to him. They stared up at her, and Ginny raised a hand to her face. She winced as she fingered the open burns his fingertips had left on her flesh. A look of worry covered her face, and suddenly white swirling lights came down around her again, and she vanished. "NO!!" Michael cried as he jumped away from his family towards the spot she had just been.