Whilst my loyal readers get over their heart attacks, I recommend that if you're a new reader and are interested in reading this, you read the first part of 'A Life of Magic' (which you will find by clicking on my name in the top corner.) I must forewarn you though: The writing in the beginning is beyond awful. Seriously, I cringe every time I read over it. But please please please ignore the suckiness and continue to when the writing improves. I'm sure any of my readers will tell you it gets MUCH better!
And to the rest of you: No, do not adjust your screens; do not reach for your specks! You are not seeing things: It IS me! And this IS the sequel to 'A Life of Magic: The Third Child Prophecy'. I'm not going to waste your (and my) time with excuses as to why the sequel was not posted months ago. 'I suck. The end.' I am aware that I've probably lost readers because I took so long to update, and I know you're all pissed off with me. But I'm going to stand here whilst you throw rocks and rotten tomatoes; because I know I deserve it. As long as you leave me nice, substantial reviews... Hehe.
I'll give you a little reminder of the kids, their ages (at the time the fic takes place) and their powers. This fic takes place in February 2009, so 2 and a half months after the last instalment:
Prudence "Prue" Halliwell-Wyatt (6 and a half)- Orbing, Orb telekinesis, Healing, hovering.
Andrew "Andy" Halliwell-Wyatt (3)- Orbing, sensing, telekinesis.
Amy Halliwell Wyatt (7months)- Telepathy, orb deflection (though not used since being in the womb)
Melinda-Jayne Halliwell (4 and a half)- Temporal Stasis spheres, Molecular Acceleration spheres, shimmering.
Charlotte Halliwell-Dean (2)- Premonitions.
Laura "Pixie" Anderson (5 and a half)- Temporal Stasis, Molecular Acceleration, orbing.
Rachael "Snowflake" Anderson (2 and a half)- Cyrokinesis, sensing.
Warren Anderson (6 months)- Firestarting, pyrokinesis.
Shit, I need a disclaimer.
-I don't own Charmed
Nope. Not me, not you- it's gone. Forever and ever amen. But alas, with end of the show that brought you this fanfiction, the return of the phantom author has arisen! Yes, I am back from the murky depths of writers' block land- here to present to you something (I hope) you've all been waiting for. I'm going to warn you though, I'm a little bit worried. This story takes a different direction to it's prequel- if TTCP was the TV show, this would be the TV movie… or something. I'm sort of scared that you won't like it was much… I'll try my best. Promise!
And I'm making you wait just a tiny bit longer as I take a moment to dedicate this entire story to my good friends, muses, and all round awesome people: JARL. For putting up with my inane rambling and listening to me whine, moan and rant for the past year. They rock my socks, and have really been the reason this fic was not put off longer. They deserve my thanks: Thank you JARL.
Laur x
And now… Drum roll please:
A life of Magic: Will it set them Free?
Chapter 1 –
Mystery Loves Company
"Are you out of your freaking mind!"
"Funny, maybe you should ask yourself the same thing!"
"I can't believe you're even suggesting this! Do you have a death wish for the entire family!"
"No- You know I don't! But this is important-"
"Phoebe!" Piper snapped again. Her eyes glared daggers at her younger sister as her arms emphatically folded in front of her chest. "Did you even listen to a word I just said?"
"Yes, Piper…"Clearly, Phoebe was struggling to keep herself composed. Her voice shook slightly as she spoke- anger apparent, even through her calm voice mask.
-"You're not even supposed to be here!"
The startlingly loud voice which thundered down the stairs from the attic caught both Piper and Phoebe off guard. Momentarily the argument they had just been having was forgotten about, and their eyes connected in confusion. Who was-? Before the silent question could be communicated between the sisters, however, the furious voice punctured their hearing again.
-"I have to!"
Whoever it was that had joined Iain in the attic had certainly caused an enraged spark to ignite within the Nauctater. Almost cautiously, Phoebe took a step towards the staircase. She and Piper both knew that if Iain's temper was anything like Mark's, it was probably best to leave him alone. But he had been living out of the attic, researching The Source, for the past two days now, and- naturally- the Halliwell's were curious as to what he had discovered- especially now that he seemed to be having a heated argument with someone.
-"Get out of here!"
Phoebe turned her head and peered over her shoulder, sharing yet another bewildered look with her older sister. They couldn't even hear another voice…
"Iain!" Piper called out, "… Is everything okay?"
Apparently it wasn't. In the time it took the eldest Charmed One's question to journey warily upstairs, more inaudible and angry voices had escaped the attic door, and the door in question had been slammed shut so forcefully that Piper and Phoebe were almost amazed it was still in one piece.
"HEY!" The eldest Charmed One's voice echoed up the stairs once more, this time holding a more aggravated tone than the concerned one she had just used. "Watch it!"
"Bugger! Sorry, Piper!" Came the rushed reply. So rushed, in fact, it almost didn't sound like Iain at all.
"Well you'd better be!" Piper responded sarcastically but with an underlying frustration. She was no longer panicked, but aggravated and slightly wary of opening the door which now lay ahead of her and her younger sister. "What the hell is going on in there!"
"Maybe he has split personalities and he's arguing with himself?" The middle sister offered in a very tongue-in-cheek tone. "We might go up there and find him trying to beat himself up..."
"Oh, be quiet!" Piper snarled, flinging a hand irritably in Phoebe's direction. Though they had- for now at least- stopped arguing, Piper was still angry with her sister. Phoebe twisted her face into a pout and stopped speaking for the remainder of the journey up the last four steps, knowing that Piper was liable to begin yelling at her again at any given moment. "Shh…" Piper warned once again, knowing Phoebe, at times, could have a rather loud mouth. If there was a demon in the room they didn't want to alert it to their presence. But Phoebe didn't remain silent for long.
"I'm not going to get lost in this house, Piper!" The middle sister suddenly protested.
Wondering what her sister had just rambled about, she turned around and saw her hand firmly latched to Phoebe's wrist. "Oh!" She knitted her brow and shook her head- she hadn't even been aware that she had grabbed onto her sister. It was, she knew, just her instinct as the oldest to protect her younger siblings when something felt off. But she released Phoebe's wrist with a sisterly smile, "Hah. Sorry… but woman, you're nothing but bones! Try eating a hamburger!"
"Just hurry it up!" Phoebe ushered on, pushing Piper to the door a little harder than required. "What if there's a demon in there!"
"Okay, okay!" Piper released her frustration with Phoebe, remembering the reason they were heading towards the attic in the first place. She stretched her arm towards the door handle and made to open the door. But it didn't budge. "What the hell...?"
Piper pressed her body against the door and attempted to push it open with more of her weight, but as much as the door shifted and creaked, it blatantly refused to open.
"It's stuck?" Phoebe cocked her head to the side as Piper continued to struggle.
"No! I'm doing this for the hell of it! Yes! Of course it's stuck!"
Ignoring Piper's sarcastic comments, she shooed her aside. "Let me try."
Piper raised a brow and shrugged, "Okay. But don't try running into the door like you did last time. Remember what happened?"
"Yes," She growled, "But it will work because the door's old." Before Piper could say another word, Phoebe, in a fashion similar to how she had been way back when they had first received their powers, charged for the door. But instead of running into it, the door opened, and she smacked directly into the form of Iain Anderson.
Piper groaned and rolled her eyes again. She took the final step into the attic and was torn between smirking at Phoebe, who had been running at such a speed that she had managed to knock Iain onto the ground, and glaring at the two of them. Neither of them was currently in her good books.
"Well," Iain mused, surprising Piper in the fact he seemed to be acting as if he had not just been having a raging argument with someone behind a locked door. "You ladies just can't stay off of me in this house, can you?"
"Firstly," Piper began, offering her hand to Phoebe so that she could stand up again, "Eew. And secondly, what the hell was all that shouting about?" She took a step towards Iain, who had also gotten to his feet, and now had his back turned. He remained silent however, and when they noticed that he appeared to be clutching the side of his face, the two witches grew concerned.
"Hey… are you alright?" Phoebe asked, brushing past Piper and approaching Iain rapidly.
The two older of the Charmed Ones were both slightly taken aback when the Nauctater turned to face them, grinning again. This whole situation was beginning to get very confusing.
"Ladies, I'm fine!" He exclaimed, almost too cheerfully. In the attic's dim, winter light, it took a moment for Piper and Phoebe to notice the small trickle of blood escaping Iain's nose, and the swelling which seemed to be growing around his right eye. But, unusually, the smile on his face seemed natural. "A little demon vanquish is never a cause to worry!" He continued, "Especially in this house of all places!"
"A demon?" Piper questioned suspiciously. It wasn't that she didn't believe him. Something just seemed slightly… off.
"Yeah, one of the Source's minions I'd imagine. Nae very powerful."
"But powerful enough to hit you upside the face?" Phoebe responded, quickly removing a tissue from her pocket and offering it to the Nauctater so he was able to clean up his blooded nose. "Are you alright? Do you want some ice?"
"No, no. I'm fine! Honestly." He accepted the tissue, and visibly winced when he pressed it against his nose, but continued his manly façade. Piper rolled her eyes. He was just like his brother- unable to admit he needed a woman's healing touch even though he was clearly in pain.
"Okay, suit yourself." Piper replied. "Just be careful next time you vanquish a demon in my house- there are little kids running around downstairs! I don't want them picking up your potty mouth."
"Sorry Ma'am." Iain apologised giving the eldest Charmed One a mock salute.
"I mean it. I wouldn't be surprised if they could hear you across the street! …Are you sure this was just an ordinary level demon? It sounded awfully…"
"Violent." Phoebe finished for her older sister, wearing the same quizzical expression.
"I am almost one hundred percent certain." Iain assured them.
The sisters shared a sideways glance, but before the conversation could continue any further, the sound of the doorbell chiming through the Manor caught Piper and Phoebe's attention. Paige was home! They both turned from the attic, motioning for Iain to follow them downstairs. The Nauctater hung back for a moment, however, and an expression of relief washed over his bruising face… That had been close.
xxxxx
The sound of small feet dashing through the Manor accompanied by the excited yelling of the two girls almost gave competition to the loudness of Iain's shouts from the attic. At the sound of the doorbell, the Anderson children had been alerted to the return of their mother. The youngest Charmed One had been in Boston for the past three days for the Christening of her good friend Glenn Belland's second son and, apparently, she had been terribly missed by the children.
"Mommy is home!" Laura, Paige's oldest, yelled with as much excitement as she could muster. As she came closer to the door, which was now opening, her spectacular blue eyes lit up and her hand reached out to grab that of her younger sister's. Rachael herself wore a grin which revealed her slightly crooked teeth in all of their splendour, and her flaming red hair flew wildly behind her as she ran.
The sight made Paige giggle.
Her smile grew into a wide grin when she realised that following her two daughters from the kitchen was none other than Cole Turner, who had been given the challenge of babysitting the kids for the weekend. And in his arms was her third child- The Third Child; her only son- Warren Samuel Mark Anderson. With huge blue eyes, identical to both of his sisters', he gazed directly into his mother's brown ones, and communicated a silent 'hello'. The youngest of the Halliwell sisters wrinkled her nose in amusement and shook her long dark hair from her face so that she could see clearly the faces of the three people had missed more than anything when she had been away.
"Mommy!" Two voices boomed joyfully in unison as Paige loosened her grip on her suitcase, sank to her knees and opened her arms, enabling her daughters to leap into a welcoming hug. Their embrace was much appreciated after three days of not having contact with them. (Of course that wasn't strictly true because Paige had phoned to check up on them at every possible opportunity, but cuddles were still comforting).
"Hey!" She greeted, "I missed you guys!"
"We missed you too, Mummy!" Laura replied, whilst Rachael mumbled her response because her face was so buried in her mother's jumper.
"Did you have fun with Uncle Cole?" Paige asked, releasing her daughters of the hug and rising to her feet- slowly so that she would prevent putting strain on her hip.
"Yeah!" Laura replied eagerly, giving an enthusiastic nod. "Lots of fun!"
"He even played Barbies!" Rachael added, with yet another toothy smile.
Paige bit down hard on her lip to prevent herself from letting out a giant burst of laughter, and she raised her eyebrows, amused to no end at her good friend. "He did?" She questioned with a wicked sense of mocking in her voice. "Well, well Mr Turner. I didn't know you were the Barbie type! I had you pegged as more of a G.I Joe kinda guy…"
A slight pink crept into Cole's cheeks, and he averted his gaze to the small boy who resided in his arms so that he could avoid the amused smirk Paige was wearing. His feet began to shuffle awkwardly beneath him, but soon he was laughing along with the youngest Charmed One.
"What's so funny?" A voice emerged from the stairs as Piper and Phoebe descended them.
"Well you'll never guess what Rachael did this wee-"
"Nothing." Cole quickly interrupted.
"Oh… right." The bemused expression Phoebe wore did not remain for very long at all, when she jumped down the final two stairs and- grinning like a maniac and letting out a happy squeal reminiscent to a child on a sugar high- gave Paige a huge hug. "We missed you!"
"I was only gone for three days, Phoebs!" Paige replied, her face not wearing an expression of gratitude for the tight hug- more one of displeasure. "And I sorta need to breathe over here… ribs cracking..."
"Sorry." Phoebe grinned bashfully and pulled away, "But I did miss you... it was weird not having you around."
The two shared a smile before Piper stepped in to greet her sister, with a gentler squeeze of the shoulders "How'd it go?" she questioned, picking up Rachael as she did so.
"It went." She said bluntly, "I missed the kids a lot though. I hard a hard time enjoying it as much as I should have. But yeah… it was good… How were things here? Did I miss anything important?"
Paige, however, did not get the response she had been expecting. Piper and Phoebe eyed each other with what was almost interpretable as anger, before opening their mouths and beginning to answer in what were clearly lies.
"Everything went just fine-" The eldest began.
"- you didn't miss anything!" Phoebe continued, "Just the usual-"
"-Yeah everything was just peachy and normal-"
"-and the kids were great!"
Paige's eyebrows were now so pushed together that they could have been a single line of hair. "Right…" Not even bothering to ask her sisters why there was a sudden looming tension between them, she turned to face Cole, wearing a quizzical look. Unfortunately, he looked just as confused as her. Whatever had caused Piper and Phoebe's argument- and Paige could tell from basic sisterly intuition that they were arguing about something- apparently Cole had no idea what it was either.
"So yeah," Phoebe spoke before Paige could question her sisters. "We're just peachy keen."
And that was the final hint. Now Paige knew something was definitely off. "'Peachy keen'?" She asked, "''Peachy keen'? Okay, what is up with you two?"
Instinctively, Piper and Phoebe turned to look at each other. Again, for a shorter moment this time, Paige sensed a spark of anger between her sisters, but she already knew the answer they would give her. They spoke in perfect unison, with the same refuting tone: "Nothing!"
Paige rolled her eyes in a fashion only she – though the kids were all beginning to perfect it too- could manage. But she did not inquire any further. She knew both of her sisters were too stubborn to tell her something they did not want to. She also knew, however, that she would find out why they were arguing before the day was over. She could be just as stubborn as her sisters.
"Are you staying for dinner?" Piper suddenly asked in a bid to change the subject.
Paige succumbed to her sisters bidding. Now wasn't the time to pry. "Yes! God, I haven't had a home cooked meal all weekend- I miss real food!"
"Great! I'll get the casserole started!" And with that, Piper placed Rachael in her mother's arms and exited the foyer, leaving Paige to glance suspiciously at Phoebe.
"I'll help!" The witch in question yelped, and she scuttled off down the corridor in pursuit of her big sister.
Paige eyed the two of them until had both entered the kitchen. She shook her head as she did so, fighting the urge to roll her eyes once more. "Sisters." She muttered.
"Yeah," Cole nodded in agreement before smiling towards the kitchen door where his only only daughter now resided. Melinda-Jayne Halliwell- the daughter Phoebe and Cole had shared before their brake up- stood grinning towards her father and Aunt, her dark pigtails falling from their bobbles and creating a tousled mess around her angelic face. "At least they're not your mother!"
"Aunty Paige!" MJ (as she had come to be called) spoke, "You're back!"
"Yes I am!" Paige replied, giving her niece a wave as she placed Rachael back on the floor.
"I thought you were playing snakes and ladders with your sister and Uncle Leo?" Cole asked, as his daughter began to walk down the corridor.
"Yeps, but Uncle Leo gotted called away by those elder men." An unamused frown graced MJ's face, "And den Charlie went with Jay-Jay to the garden."
Charlie- Charlotte Halliwell-Dean- was MJ's sister: the daughter of Phoebe and her husband Jason Dean. MJ always spoke about her with nothing less that utter admiration- the two children were very close. But the way in which the young witch had just spoken of her sister and step father was unusually bitter. Cole eyed his daughter curiously. Paige, however, did not notice.
Instinctively, she reached out with both arms to grab the shoulders of her daughters'. Her heart had given a sudden leap; and- without reason- a thrilling shiver had danced up her spine. Perhaps there had been a draft from the open door, but Paige was sure she had felt something walk behind her… but not something bad.
"Did you feel that?" She asked, shifting forward a few inches.
"Feel what?" This was a new voice. The Witch-Whitelighter couldn't help but smile when she turned to see her brother-in-law descend the stairs. Iain's hair stuck up at all angles and his clothes were the same scruffy style the Halliwells had come to expect of their new friend. His face wore a broad grin, but it appeared to be slightly bruised- and his eyes were glancing with an unusual alarm into the corner of the room. Paige gave a concerned hiccup, but her worried gaze left her when Iain stated simply, in reference to his bruise, "It was a demon."
"Oh," Came the reply, "Whe-"
"Feel what?" Iain interrupted, persisting with his previous question as he took the last three stairs in one giant step.
"Nothing," Paige told him, shaking her head at her own paranoia, but Iain continued to walk around her until he paused at her back. "I've probably just got an overactive imagination after four hours on a plane."
"You sure?" Cole asked with a teasing tone. "You're imagination is pretty overactive most of the time."
"Well… I thought I felt someone in the room, but I guess it was just you." She nodded towards Iain, who had developed a smirk.
"Oh yeah, Paigey! Can't you see the ghost behind your right ear?" With a simple gesture of his hand, a gust of wind crashed into the back of Paige's head and her hair flew out of the clip which had been holding it in place.
She gave a small yelp of surprise as the chill created by Iain's aerokinesis shot down her spine. "Hey!" Hitting him playfully in the chest, Paige shook her head so that her hair fell back into place. All three of her children were giggling. When she looked at Warren, who- in his small 'Giants' T-shirt- was the picture of cuteness, she realized that she had not yet greeted her son, and Iain's actions, along with the unusual presence she was certain she had felt, quickly left her mind.
"Hey baby." Warren grinned as his mother approached. His round face was filled with a smile unlike any other Paige had seen her son wear before. "Whatcha smilin' at, hmm?" A smile polished her face too; he was the spitting image of his father when he grinned like that. Warren extended a small, chubby arm and pointed an equally chubby finger towards the door of the Manor. Paige followed her son's gaze in a happy inquisitiveness, but saw nothing incredibly prominent in the room which could be causing her son to point. "You want to go outside?" Assuming that Warren had been pointing at the door because he wanted to play in the garden, Paige reached for her son and gave him a peck on the forehead. "Well, come with Mommy and we'll go see your cousins out the back."
"Bye buddy." Cole bid the small boy farewell with a friendly ruffle of the hair.
However, upon leaving Cole's arms, the smile fell immediately from Warren's face. Paige, who had turned to signal the girls to follow them outside, did not notice her son's sudden change in expression until a small cry escaped his lips. The young witch impulsively began to rock Warren on her hip as she walked towards the kitchen, but it seemed the further from the foyer she moved, the louder The Third Child's cries became.
What had been a small whimper was now a piercing shriek, and Warren began thrashing furiously in his mother's arms. Paige stopped moving forwards and turned back into the room they had just exited. MJ, Laura and Rachael were gazing at the small boy with concerned eyes, which Cole mirrored.
When he realized that he was moving back towards the foyer, Warren's arms extended as far as they possibly could manage in the direction of the door, where Cole and Iain (who had apparently turned to face the door upon seeing his nephew's sudden fascination with it) stood side by side. This caused Paige to wrinkle her nose. "I guess he grew attached to his Uncle Cole over the weekend…" She mused.
Perhaps she was correct, as Warren's violent tears seemed to subside when she reached the two men standing in front of her. Paige was unsure how to feel- was Warren seeking a father figure in his Uncle? Perhaps his lack of a father was causing his sudden attachment to Cole… It was possible that Mark's passing just over a year ago was beginning to affect the child who had never known him. But Paige tried with all her will to rid her mind of this thought. "Boy, going home tonight will be fun." Cole gave Paige and Warren a broad smirk at her statement. He did not notice the edge of sorrow that was now lingering behind the witch-whitelighter's eyes.
"Let's go outside," The ex-demon suggested and, this time with the company of Cole, they started off down the corridor again.
Warren's gaze, however, still rested irritably on the door. His Uncle Iain was staring at exactly the same spot, muttering quietly under his breath. The older Nauctater had soon turned to face his nephew though. He gave him a sympathetic smirk "Soon." He mouthed. "Shh."
xxxxx
Dinner was an unusual experience in the Manor that evening. Tension had seemed to loom over the kitchen- draped from every corner of the room. It was not a feeling any of the family particularly appreciated, and it was not helped by Piper's frustration towards the fact Leo had not yet returned from his visit to the Elders.
Luckily, the presence of all eight children was enough to keep tempers from reaching boiling point. No matter what the situation, there was never anything like a little food fight to lighten the mood…
"Mommy," A voice belonging to Prudence Halliwell-Wyatt – Piper's eldest child – whined, "Andy won't give me the ketchup!"
"Andrew, sweetie, can you give your siste-"
"I's not finis'd with it yet!" He interrupted, scowling.
Piper frowned as she looked towards Andrew's plate. Her second child, and only son, had developed the same eating habit the eldest Charmed One remembered Phoebe having at his age. At three years old, Phoebe had refused to eat anything – even chocolate- without copious amounts of tomato ketchup, and looking at Andy's plate- which seemed to be covered in the sickening red gloop- it was clear he had the same liking for it. "Well sorry buddy, but that's all you're getting for tonight. Now give Prue the ketchup- or no desert."
Andy obliged, but sulkily. He took the small plastic bottle in his fist and threw it towards his sister with as much force as he could manage. Unfortunately- and whether intended by the mischievous little boy or not- the cap had not been closed. This led to the red liquid leaking, quite plentifully, all over the one person who sat between him and his sister.
Rachael gave an ear-piercing shriek as her blue dress became spotted with crimson. "Yuk!" She screeched. "Andy, you poop head!" Temper rising before any of the adults could move to fix the situation, her arm moved backwards ready to hit her cousin.
"No hitting!" Paige quickly gasped. Rachael's hand lowered and her mother gave an audible sigh, but Paige had clearly not seen where Rachael's hand had been headed.
Splat!
Now Andy, too, was covered in food. The young redhead gave a satisfied smirk as the mashed potato she had thrown hit Andy on the shoulder, and she was only encouraged to laugh further when Amy- Pipers final child- gave an amused squeal from her highchair at the opposite side of the table.
"Don't throw food at Andy!" Prue gasped. She may have been arguing with her brother moments before, but the protective Halliwell gene always overcame every other emotion in the eldest of the children.
"He started it!" Laura jumped in, defending her own sibling. "Don't yell at-" Before she could finish her sentence, a fistful of chopped carrots to the face had silenced her. "Charlotte!" Laura gasped. Apparently the two year old had witnessed the food throwing fun and had decided to join in. This caused Melinda-Jayne to give a wicked chortle and –in turn- get involved in the fight. She had soon been spurted with casserole at the hands of an angry- but growing slowly more amused- Laura.
Andy then took it upon himself to use his telekinesis and scatter more mashed potatoes at each of his cousins.
"Hey! Stop it!" Piper snapped, "There will be no magical food fights at the dinner table!" Rising to her feet, and moving as fast as they would carry her to the end of the table where the children were eating, Piper turned a pale shade of green- there was food everywhere. "I said stop it!"
They didn't, and Piper found herself in the pathway of flying broccoli, which had soon stuck to her hair. Thunderous laughter echoed around the table and even Piper herself was tempted to laugh. However, she took her opportunity with grace and turned to face Phoebe, "Oh you think this is funny? You try some!" And then the woman who had been trying to stop the fight was throwing casserole at her younger sister. She had to admit, watching Phoebe's face contort in amused disgust was the most fun she had had in a long while.
xxxxx
Once all had calmed down and the dining room had eventually been tidied (with the reluctant help of Jason and Cole), and the kids were happily watching a DVD in the living room, the Charmed Ones retired to the kitchen for a well deserved glass of wine (or in Paige's case blackcurrant juice). The two older siblings seemed to have forgotten about their argument for the evening, and Paige did not want to be the one to bring it up again. This had been the first family meal night in a long time which had not been interrupted by some sort of magical (or, occasionally, human) mishap, and the youngest Charmed one felt obliged to let the calm continue until, inevitably, it was broken by something else.
The sisters were surprised to find Iain in the room. He was silently and absentmindedly staring out of the window into the darkening sky. It was the first night in the past week he had not spent crammed in the attic with a flask of coffee and endless amounts of documented notes. Piper almost smirked- he looked somewhat out of place in the kitchen.
"Do you want a glass of wine?" Piper's voice cutting through the quiet of the room startled the Nauctater, bringing him out of his distant daydream. In his sudden shock, he exhaled a quick breath, but due to his surprise it came out as an aerokinetic gust of wind. The curtains flew outwards and various papers, which had been resting on the window ledge, scattered messily across the room; water from the sink rose up in small, but forceful splashes, causing tiny droplets to litter the windowpane; and an identical chill swept round all three Charmed Ones' shoulders. Apparently Iain had been too lost in his own thoughts to even hear the sisterly banter as it approached him from the living room. And so, with a surprised shudder, he turned to face them.
"What?" Iain yelped, clearly startled, "…you scared the bloody crap outta me!"
"God, jumpy much?" Paige grinned at her brother in law. He did not return the smile. "She asked if you wanted a glass of wine."
"Sorry" Ignoring the question, Iain closed his eyes and clutched his fists tightly. Paige rolled her eyes, whereas Phoebe narrowed hers in confusion; Piper was the only one to notice the photograph he grasped in his hand.
"Who's that?" She asked with a genuine curiosity. It looked like a photograph of a child.
Iain let out yet another long breath, which- again- bordered on a gentle wind. He closed his eyes and shook his head, thrusting whatever he had been holding onto into his jean pocket. "Nothing," He replied. Unfortunately, Phoebe had answered at the same time.
"His son."
"Craig?" The youngest asked curiously, "I haven't seen him for …ever! How is he?"
"Oh, he's great." Iain answered. "He's staying with my mum."
"What?" Piper suddenly looked dumfounded, "No… You?" A shocked smile passed her lips, "Wow. I never thought of you as the fatherly type."
Paige winced. And there was that inevitable interruption of a happy family night.
"Actually," Iain's face hardened. "I'm a very good parent, thank you very much!"
"Never said you weren't, dude!" Slightly shocked by Iain's snapping, Piper narrowed her eyes. But she knew he was reacting a little too angrily towards one statement and decided he had only been kidding, "I'll bet he's a cutie- Lemme see that picture again!" Piper's hand moved towards the corner of the picture, which was peaking from the top of Iain's pocket.
The Nauctater took a startled step backwards and, instinctively, brought his hand down to cover the photo. "Oi!" He growled, "Keep your hands oot o' there!"
"Come on!" Phoebe protested playfully, "I've seen the picture before!" Making the same move as Piper had just tried to; Phoebe's hand darted towards Iain's pocket. Iain slapped it away.
"Girls!" His voice mischievously snapped, his facial expression suddenly changed and the tone of his voice lightened. Perhaps Phoebe hadn't been wrong before about a multiple personality disorder… "How many times must I tell you? Hands off the body!"
"Yes Phoebe, hands off the body."
Phoebe gave a sheepish grin as she turned to face her husband. Jason had just entered the kitchen with an armful of empty juice cartons- apparently he had put himself in charge of cleaning up after the kids (of course, his only motive being so that he would not get his head bitten off by his eldest sister-in-law). With enquiring eyebrows raised, he placed the cartons on the countertop and gazed at Iain and his wife.
"Sorry," Phoebe spoke and her bottom lip extended in a childlike pout as her eyes grew wide and puppy-dog-like. "But he's being stubborn and won't let me have it!"
"What?" If it was possible, Jason's eyebrows rose further. He had been succumbing to his wife's childish, but endearing face until she had spoken.
"The picture!" Phoebe quickly explained, "The picture!"
"Of his son." Piper continued, smirking at Jason's alarm.
"What?" Now that he wasn't staring curiously at his wife, Jason allowed Piper's statement to settle in, "Really? You have a son?"
"Why the hell is that so hard for everyone to believe?" The brief moment of calm, which Iain had allowed to settle on him, disappeared before any of the people present in the room had time to register his reaction. "Yes." His voice – though not loud- held an anger unlike any of the Charmed One's had witnessed in Iain. "I have," In inhaled a deep breath, clearly trying to calm himself. It did not seem to be very effective. "A son."
And with that the Nauctater barged forcefully past Jason, not taking time to acknowledge the fact he had knocked the cartons, which had just been placed on the counter, to the floor. Piper, Phoebe and Jason exchanged confused glances whilst Paige stepped back, shaking her head. When they heard the bang of the front door reverberate off of the Manor's walls, all heads turned to the youngest Charmed One.
"Just leave him," Paige said, sighing. "I think he needs a bit of time to vent- that's a trait which runs in the Anderson blood."
"What the hell is the matter with him?" Piper questioned.
"It's a long story… I guess I should have warned you he was a little touchy about Craig."
"A little!"
"Okay… a lot. But like I said, it's a long story. I'll explain later."
"You'd better!" Phoebe snarled, before settling comfortably into her husband's arms as he ran a loving hand through her hair. She turned from her sisters and gave Jason a small smile; in the strangeness of the situation which had just unfolded before their eyes, Jason's presence was allowing Phoebe to keep a cool head and not begin to panic about Iain's apparent mood swings. "Love you." She mouthed before moving to give him a lingering kiss.
"Hey- Hey!" Piper's harsh voice interrupted, "Don't get too cosy over there! We need to clean up this mess!" With a flailing arm, she indicated all of the clutter Iain had created on the floor- scattered newspapers from his aerokinesis, and cartons of juice from his outburst. And though Paige knew it was perfectly normal for Piper to get snappy about mess in her home, she couldn't help but notice her sister's anger was particularly pointed towards Jason and Phoebe.
Giving a silent sigh and a discreet roll of her eyes, Paige began to pick up the cartons of juice which littered the ground beneath her feet, leaving her sisters to fall back into the argument they had started the afternoon with. She had known the night was too peaceful for a family night- especially in the case of the Halliwells. She ignored Jason as he excused himself, saying he had to get back to the kids, and deliberately averted her eyes from her sisters (who were pettily glaring at one another).
"Can someone help me up?" Paige didn't want to ask, but with the pain in her hip growing, she needed one of her sisters to help her to her feet.
"Are you okay?" Piper asked as she came to her sister's aid. "If it's bothering you that much, maybe you should let Leo take a look at it?"
"I'm fine, Piper." Paige replied, smiling at her sister's concern- they may have annoyed her upon occasion, but she was always grateful to have them around.
"You sure?"
"Yes!" Paige began to giggle, "Stop being such a worry wart, woman!"
"Me?" Piper questioned, "I'm not the one who called up seven times a day at the weekend to check if things were okay here!"
"So I guess it runs in the family!" Paige smirked and hit Piper playfully on the arm, "Even Phoebe worries upon occasion." She turned to face her other sister but was greeted by silence. "-Phoebe?"
The witch in question seemed to be too engrossed in one of the Newspapers she had retrieved from the floor. Her eyebrows were slowly travelling up her face and her jaw travelled in the opposite direction, causing her mouth to form a small 'o'. "Oh my… God." She spoke in a whisper as if an epiphany had just hit her. "Oh my God!"
"What!" Both of her sisters asked urgently in unison.
"Oh my God!" Phoebe repeated, this time with a sense of excited urgency.
"What?" Snapping, Piper plucked the day's copy of The Bay Mirror from her sister's hand I read aloud from the headline. Unlike Phoebe, her voice dripped with confusion: "Man rescues foster parents from blazing inferno… what are you gawking at, Phoebs?"
"Not that," Phoebe no longer seemed in the mood to argue with Piper and slowly her hands indicated towards the newspaper's printing date. "This."
Whilst Paige's face contorted in bewilderment, Piper's washed over with a startling realisation. "Holy crap..." She gave a gasp similar to the one Phoebe had given, and her eyes widened in a mixture of amazement, shock, and a slight amount of fear.
"Someone want to tell me what you're 'holy crapping' at?"
"February 26th 2009" Piper whispered, unintentionally dropping the newspaper. "That's what!"
Paige continued to narrow her eyes. "Uhuh…"
"This time ten years ago, me, Piper and Prue came here. To today-"
"-Only it wasn't today! Well it was today, but not today-today… if you get what I mean?"
"I think so…" Paige nodded meekly. "It was the day Phoebe got burnt at the stake?"
"Yes." Phoebe replied, "And thank God that's not happening any time soon."
"Well, as long as Jason doesn't catch you going after Iain like that again!" Paige quipped, giving a cheeky grin.
"Funny!" Phoebe replied with an amused smirk.
"Wow. I can't believe how different things are!" To enforce what she had said, Piper spun in a full circle taking in her surroundings. "I mean for one thing- instead of one miniwitch running around here, we have eight!"
"And you and Leo aren't divorced."
"Well if he doesn't get his whitelighter butt back from up-there soon, who knows what'll happen…" Piper threatened playfully- but loudly in the hopes that her husband would hear her.
Giggling, Phoebe continued, "And Nathaniel Pratt is nowhere to be seen in the world of Government."
"…And Prue isn't here." Paige finished the list solemnly, voicing the one thing her sisters had been too frightened to say. Luckily, Piper and Phoebe smiled sympathetically towards her, reassuring her that they were not heavily affected by it.
"I wonder what Paige would have been like in the alternate future." Piper mused. "I wonder if we would have ever met you…"
"Probably," Paige replied, "After all- it was destiny."
"That's one thing I'm sure of." Phoebe agreed, giving Paige's hand a squeeze. "Besides, however the future has changed there's something I'm definitely happy is different."
"What's that?"
"That the Power of Three is still kicking ass, and definitely not using their powers for personal gain."
Phoebe's statement seemed to linger in the air. All three sisters smiled and subconsciously linked hands as they headed towards the back door. It was almost as if a silent message had communicated between them and each knew the other wanted to relax in the cool evening breeze as they conversed some more. They left the Manor in a comforting silence, but the more they moved towards the bench at the far end of the garden, the less consoling the silence became. As they each pondered over Phoebe's final statement some more, the smiles fell from their faces and – again, almost telepathically – it was clear they were thinking the same thing.
"Not really." Paige whispered as they all took a seat on the bench. "I mean… about the Power of Three kicking ass, that is."
Half heartedly, Piper ineffectively tried to argue, "Sure we do." She even sounded unconvinced with herself.
"When was the last time we even used a Power of Three spell?"
"Well-," Phoebe cut herself off, "I don't know."
"Wow, I guess I never thought about it before- when was the last time we used a spell together?"
… Silence…
The futile attempts of the sisters trying to recall the memory of a recent Power of Three spell only came to an end when a shower of angelic orbs began to materialize from the heavens. And when they did form, the handsome face which greeted them was not the smiling one they had come to know from Leo Wyatt- Piper's husband and guardian angel- known to the magical community as a whitelighter. The riled and somewhat cautious expression which lingered on his face only added to the disheartened mood of the Charmed Ones.
"What?" Piper asked, wrinkling her nose towards her husband. She was no longer in the mood to bite his head off for being gone all afternoon.
"I think you know…" He answered apologetically.
"Know what? …Leo, we don't know anything."
"What were you guys just talking about?"
Piper looked sideways to her sisters and her heart sank. "What about it?"
"The elders have noticed it too…" He took a step towards them; "That the Power of Three has been inactive as a unit for quite some time. That's why they called me up there today."
"And?" Bitterness was apparent in Piper's voice- though that was not unusual when it came to the Elders- Leo's (for lack of a better term) bosses. Now, however, the resentment towards them was almost overcome by a curious panic.
"Chimerak." Leo stated. The sisters immediately knew the relevance of the Demon's name, but Leo went on to explain anyway; "Vanquishing Chimerak was the last time you used a Power of Three spell- and that was a year and a half ago."
"Whoa…" Paige inadvertently let her head fall backwards and found her eyes gazing into the extensive mass of darkening sky which enveloped San Francisco.
"But what were The Elders going to do about it?" Phoebe joined the conversation with the question all three Charmed Ones wanted the answer to.
"They were going to make you realise what allowing the Power of Three to become so unimportant in your lives meant." He gave a sigh and looked Piper directly in the eyes. The look he gave her tugged ever so slightly on Piper's heartstrings; one simple look reminded her of why she loved him- even when he was being ever so cryptic. But then stepped backwards and with a final blow of a kiss, he turned away. "See you soon."
"What?" Of course, there were also the times when Piper could murder him. She jumped to her feet, with Phoebe hot on her tail and Paige slowly following, "What do you mean 'see you soon'! Leo!" Her frantic yelling went unanswered and Leo soon disappeared from sight. "Shit!" She snarled, before the panic sank in.
A bone chilling sensation was suddenly sweeping through her like ice-cold water through a sponge. She didn't have time to register the ground moving beneath her feet and frantically she gasped for air. Her vision grew clouded by a ferociously bright light, which was now shining down on her and her sisters from nowhere. However, not matter how hard she tried to breathe in the bitter and freezing air, her lungs failed to inhale even a slight amount of oxygen. Flailing her arms wildly- in a mixture of panic and rage-, she searched desperately for either of her sisters. Paige's hand found her first. The sudden constricting hold on her left wrist almost caused Piper pain. And just from the unyielding grip, she could tell that Paige had gone into a mad panic.
Apparently Phoebe was panicking too. Just seconds after Paige had found her, Phoebe's arm had flung viciously around her shoulder, and she had pulled herself as close to Piper's body as she could manage. The intense light was now so blinding that the eldest Charmed One could not even make out the face of her sisters, and they were sitting mere inches from her! Not only was she growing blind, but also her desire for oxygen was beginning to grow. She opened her mouth and attempted urgently to breath inward, but it was as if the air was empty- void of life.
Goosebumps prickled the surface of Piper's flesh- her whole body felt constrained by the sudden jacket of coldness. Shivers shot down her spine in a rhythmic pattern, and it was now so freezing that it felt like something was biting the ends of her fingers. She did not know how long the sisters sat in the seemingly lethal vortex, but when she, again, failed to inhale oxygen, Piper's vision became hazy. She could feel herself begin to get light headed, and her eyes began to drift in opposite directions. She knew she was going to collapse at any given moment, and to prepare herself for it she pulled both of her sisters close to her.
Until suddenly- all of the commotion was gone. And Piper could breathe again…
She gasped for air and as it filled her lungs a satisfaction unlike anything she had felt before seemed to enter her with the oxygen. Both of her sisters were gasping for air too, so she knew they had experienced the same thing. Scowling, Piper looked up and prepared herself to give the elders- and her husband- a piece of her mind. How in Hell was scaring her into thinking she was going to collapse going to help them learn a lesson about the Power of Three?
What her eyes came to rest on, however, caused a trace of the panic she had just been feeling to return.
"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore." Paige remarked breathlessly- and with as much frustration as Piper was feeling. Her pathetic attempt at a joke, however, held more truth than anything else at that moment:
They were certainly nowhere near home now.
Heee! I forgot how fun cliffhangers were. I really hope this chapter lived up to your expectation and (even if it didn't) that you enjoyed it! I look forward to reading your reviews (Woo, here's that reminder that subtlety is not my forte)! Until next time…