Aliens & Demons, Pt. 1 "Possible is Just Relative Anyway"
Rating: PG-13 for mild language
Category: Roswell/Charmed AU crossover. There's not much focus on the couples, but any that do show up will be mainly conventional. Takes place after Season 3 of Charmed and mid Season 2 of Roswell, before Alex's death.
Summary: After Prue's death, the Power of Three is broken forever. Or is it? Piper and Phoebe discover that the Charmed Ones's destiny has yet to be fulfilled and someone new has been endowed with Prue's powers. Meanwhile, in Roswell, some strange things start happening to Maria Deluca.
Author's Note: I've tried hard to make sure that everything in this story stays consistent with the canon of both shows involved. That said, I'm (a) not a writer on either show and (b) human, so I ask for your patience if you notice any errors. That said, on to your regularly scheduled fic.
Author's Note, circa 4/3/06: As some of you may have noticed, there is a rather large gap between now and when I first posted this story. Because of this, a few minor things about the early chapters (little style, flow, and sentence structure issues) have been bugging me for a while now. So as I near the end of the story, I've taken the time to go back and edit a few little issues from Part One. Nothing major pertaining to plot or characterization, just a few things to make the early parts of the story gel better with the current style of the writing (after all, after two and a half years, I like to think that my writing has improved at least a little). You probably won't notice the changes even if you've read the original version, but it makes me feel better.
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Leo could hear Piper crying from outside her bedroom door. He sighed. It seemed like Piper had been crying nonstop since Prue died, but much as he just wanted to be sympathetic and comfort her in any way he could, right now he needed to be her Whitelighter, not her husband, and tell her what the Elders had just told him.
Leo tried Piper's bedroom door but found it locked, so he tapped gingerly on the door. "Piper? Can I come in?" There was no reply, but he heard the lock click open, so he turned the knob and entered the room. His wife looked up at him, and Leo felt horrible as soon as he looked into her red-rimmed eyes. It was easy for him to become accustomed to Piper's almost constant hysterics and lose sight of just how raw her emotions were at the moment. He sat down next to her and set his hand on her back.
"Listen, I just got back from talking with the Elders, and I have some news for you and Phoebe."
"What news could there possibly be?" Piper interrupted, incredulous. "The Power of Three was broken. It's over, were done. Done with demons, done with the Elders, done with being witches."
"Well…that might not be true, actually." Leo said softly. He hesitated when he saw the look on his wife's face, then hurried to explain. "See, the power of the Charmed Ones wasn't supposed to end so soon. When Prue died-" He ignored the choked sob that his wife gave at the mention of Prue's death and carried on, "When Prue died, the Charmed Ones's destiny had yet to be fulfilled. Prue still had a lot of power that she had yet to tap into. Now normally, when a witch dies, her power dies with her, or goes out into the ether and can't be used again. But when I tried to heal her, her powers hadn't yet died completely, and as a result, they could still be tapped into, even given to someone else to use."
Now Piper snapped fully to attention. Slowly, as if she was struggling to keep her feelings reined in, she spoke. "What do you mean? Just tell me Leo, I'm not in the mood for crap."
"All right. The Elders gave someone Prue's else powers."
"What- who- wha?" Piper sputtered, staring at him as if he personally had taken her precious big sister's powers and given them to somebody else.
"To keep the Power of Three intact. They found a girl, younger than you and Phoebe as I understand it, who they thought could handle it, who they thought deserved the powers. And now they want me to bring her here to meet you guys, to complete the Power of Three. Again."
"What?" Leo cringed as his wife's scream echoed throughout the room. "As if the Elders haven't screwed our lives up enough already, now they want to bring some innocent girl- someone we would have been obligated to protect not two months ago, into our lives? They can't just do that. It's not fair to her, and it's sure as hell not fair to Phoebe and I. They can't tell us to just start being witches again, Leo!" By now, Piper was storming around the room, tears streaming down her face as she ranted.
Leo jumped up and put his hands over Piper's biceps so that she would stop pacing the room. "Shh… I know that it's asking a lot of you guys, but this girl already has the power. She might not know it yet, but her powers are going to start showing themselves soon, and we need to be around to help her accept them. Whether we like it or not, she has the power. It's our responsibility to guide her, to show her how to use her powers."
Piper paused. "Will demons start going after her?" she finally asked softly. He could almost hear the wheels turning in her head. Leo relaxed, relieved that Piper wasn't going to start screaming again
"Yeah, they will. Once the Underworld realizes that the Power of Three is still out there and that there is a weak link, demons will probably try to eliminate her before she becomes more powerful."
Piper sniffled and wiped her eyes. "Then I'll do it." She looked up at him. "I'll- I'll call Phoebe and explain what's going on. You should orb her here, to the Manor."
Leo gave Piper a short hug, grateful that his wife could still think rationally even with all that had happened. Even when she was filled with grief at losing a sister, she couldn't overrule the instinct to protect. At least that was something. "All right, I'm on my way."
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"Where's our salt shaker?"
Maria groaned inwardly. She had just turned her back on the table she was serving, and already they were complaining again. It was amazing. This one table on a lazy Tuesday afternoon was giving her more trouble than a section full patrons on a busy Saturday night. Clenching her jaw, she grabbed a salt shaker from the nearest table and set it down on the table.
"There you are. Anything else?" She tried her best to sound cheerful, but even to her own ears, her voice sounded strained.
"No, I think we have everything we need here. Finally." It was all that Maria could do not to reach across the table and strangle the guy. From the moment they had walked in, this man and his wife had been making her job difficult for her, from asking her to find them chairs that didn't "feel so stiff" to changing their orders around numerous times, to requesting something new every five seconds, and now they had the nerve to imply that she was giving them slow service? She forced herself to keep a smile on her face, but the moment she turned away, she rolled her eyes and let her mouth form a grimace.
She walked over to Liz, who was giving her a sympathetic smile. "Can you believe those people?" Maria whispered fiercely as soon as they were out of earshot.
"Come on Maria, we've had picky customers in here before." Liz reminded her. "You just have be polite to them if it kills you. You can't let them put you in a bad mood."
"I can't help it Liz. They're treating me like some kind of personal servant, and I-" Maria was cut off by an annoying familiar whistle.
"Hey, could we get some service over here now? My wife would like a chocolate milkshake!" Liz laughed at Maria's pained expression as she turned to work on the milkshake.
"See Maria, they're getting dessert. They can't stay around for too much longer."
"Too bad. I was thinking of starting a bet with Liz on how long you could stand them before you would implode." Michael's voice called from behind the counter, a smirk on his face. Maria simply shot him a withering glare as she topped off the milkshake with whipped cream and turned to carry it over to the table.
When she set the milkshake down, however, the woman's eyebrows knotted together and she gave a large sigh. "There was a cherry on top in the picture on the menu here." She held up the dessert menu so that Maria could see. "Don't I get a cherry on top?" Maria clenched her teeth, anger clouding her senses until, very suddenly, she felt a burst of power surge through her and the jar of maraschino cherries kept in the freezer came flying through the back door, straight at the woman. She ducked just in time and the jar shattered against the wall above her, scattering cherries and glass all over the table.
The woman slowly lifted her head, sputtering in disbelief. Liz looked at Michael as if to ask, 'Was that you?' Michael shrugged, eyes wide. Maria however, stared at the spot on the wall where the cherry jar had hit. Did I do that? She wondered. No, too impossible. But then, there had been that surge of power…
"Maria. Maria?" Liz poked her friend, holding out some towels to her.
"Oh, right." Maria snapped out of her thoughts, taking the towels. "Um…Sir, Ma'am, we're very sorry about this. The shake's on us, of course." Liz gave her a look, so Maria quickly amended her statement. "Actually, the whole meal's on us." She gave them a brief smile, her previous anger gone, replaced by confusion. What just happened? Is all this alien stuff finally rubbing off on me?
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Maria was still asking herself that very question when she got home that afternoon. She still hadn't come up with anything that sounded even remotely possible, but being around weird alien things for so long, she had begun to thing of possible as relative anyway. But she had managed to come up with a plan, and that was why she was sitting on her bed right now, staring intensely at a satchel of potpourri. She had been trying to bring back that surge of power, with little success. If she could just make it move a little bit…
Wait, what am I talking about? Maria wondered. I don't want to have some kind of weird powers. Or at least, she never had before. She had never envied Max or Michael or even Isabel for their powers. But now that she thought that she might actually have some kind of powers herself, she found that the idea didn't bother her so much. In fact, it might even be kind of nice. She wouldn't just be wacky Maria anymore; she would have something special. Something that set her apart, even from the aliens. Maybe…
Her thoughts were interrupted when she noticed blue lights beginning to twinkle in the air by her bed, increasing in number until they had formed a growing blue ball of light. She gave a small screech of surprise. Am I doing that? But then the more logical part of Maria kicked in. No, couldn't be me, I'm not even concentrating or angry like I was before. And I moved something last time; I didn't conjure a bunch of white light!
So Maria was left with little to do but watch as the lights faded and in their place stood…a man?
"Woah, wasn't expecting that." Maria's said, eyes widened as she backed closer to the door.
"Look Maria, just stay calm. I'm here to-"
"Stay calm? Stay calm? I don't even know who you are, and all of a sudden there's this-" Maria wiggled her fingers in an attempt to mime the way the twinkling lights had come down, "And now there's some weird guy who knows my name standing in my room for no apparent reason. Wait…you're not here to kidnap me, are you? Oh God, I knew that getting mixed up with Czechoslovakians would get me into trouble some day!"
"Czechoslovakians? Uh…" The guy looked at Maria, his face a mixture of alarm and bewilderment. "Look, I know that this seems really weird, but my name is Leo." He shrugged in confusion, then his face hardened. "I have something important to tell you."
"Oh sure, that's what they all say before they take you off to be studied!" Maria exclaimed, her fear mounting. "Look, I'm not an alien, all right? The thing at the Crashdown didn't mean anything, I swear! It was just some kind of weird fluke."
"What happened at the Crashdown?" Leo-or-so-he-said-his-name-was asked, and Maria noticed that he was furrowing his eyebrows. Did evil aliens always furrow their eyebrows at you and ask you questions before they took you?
"As if you don't know. The thing with the cherry jar flying at the woman? Just try and tell me that you didn't see that and now that's why you're here."
His face cleared, as if he had just begun to understand what she was talking about. "Oh, well, I definitely didn't see you do that, but I guess you could say that's why I'm here. Sorry, I shouldn't have just orbed in like that."
"Orbed?"
"The thing with all the blue light? That was orbing. If you'd just listen to me, I'd explain."
In spite all her instincts to do otherwise- to run out of the house and find Michael, Liz, anyone really- Maria sat down on the bed, her fear taking the back seat to curiosity. "All right, talk mister. But make it quick, because I really don't want to have to explain you to my mother."
"You live with your mother?" Leo was visibly surprised, but Maria sighed impatiently.
"Yeah, so? Back to the explaining thing you promised."
"Right." Leo nodded.
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Leo paused, struggling with how to begin. That part about her living with her mother had really thrown his mind off track. How old was this girl anyway? He couldn't see why The Elders would have chosen someone just out of high school- maybe even still in high school, to take on Prue's powers. Teenagers weren't exactly known for their self-control, and you needed self-control to handle power. Not only that, but Maria seemed the exact opposite of what a Charmed One needed to be. Hysterical, easily shakable, even paranoid. She apparently even bought into the whole Roswell alien stories. Ah well, crazy or not, she was his charge, and he had to explain things to her.
"Look, why don't I put it to you as simply as I can first, and then I'll work on filling you in on details?" He looked to her for approval, and she gave a brief nod, presumably eager to get on with the explanation. "Okay, demons are real. So are witches. Not all witches have powers, but many do. There is-was a group of three powerful sister witches who lived in San Francisco and fought demons. They were called the Charmed Ones, and they were supposed to be the most powerful witches that ever lived. Just a few days ago, one of them died, and now you-" He paused to nod toward an unreadable Maria, "Have received her powers. Any questions?" Maria just stared at him, and Leo smiled a little. "Look, I know that it's a lot to take in." He said. "But I promise, it's all true."
"You're telling me that I'm a witch. And that I have magical powers. Yeah, okay dude."
"What do you think the thing with the cherry jar was? You sent it flying at the woman. That's one of you're powers, telekinesis. You can astral project too, but that's a power that takes a little more time to tap into."
Maria was silent for a moment. Leo couldn't read her face, though he thought she might be turning the idea over in her head. "Okay, so saying that I believe you." She finally said. "What exactly does that mean?"
Leo looked her straight in the eye. This was the tough part. "The connection between the Charmed Ones is one of the things that demons are most determined to break. The Charmed Ones are stopping them from wreaking their havoc on the world and if one of the Charmed Ones dies, it breaks the bond, and the remaining witches are no longer near as powerful. It's called the Power of Three. If one of you dies, the others are just ordinary witches. And since you haven't learned how to fully use your powers yet… well, they'll probably start coming after you if you don't catch up soon." He shrugged. "It's what you pay for being one of the most powerful witches in the world."
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One of the most powerful witches in the world. Maria tried to wrap her finger around the concept, but she could not. She was just Maria, not some all-powerful entity. Having powers no longer sounded as fun. She supposed that Leo could be lying, but… well, why would he want to lie about something like this? And if aliens existed, why couldn't witches and demons? "Okay, so you're telling me that demons are trying to kill me. Well, that's just great. What am I supposed to do about this exactly? Hide in my room until I've mastered this whole Carrie thing?"
"Well, if you would be willing to… I mean, I kind of need you to come with me to San Francisco to meet the Piper and Phoebe. Halliwell. They're the surviving sisters."
"And how exactly do you propose that we get to San Francisco? Because much as I'm dying to go on a road trip with you, I don't exactly have time to go cavorting off to another state."
"Remember how I got into your room?" He asked.
"Well, you- ohhh, no way. If you think that I'm going to let you beam me up or whatever it is that you call it, you are sadly mistaken mister."
"It doesn't take long, and I can bring you back here any time. Besides, you'll be safer in the Halliwell manor than you are here."
Maria sighed, but walked up next to him, understanding the logic of what he was saying. "Okay, work your magic." She saw Leo give her a small smile; then he put an arm around her shoulder, and she suddenly felt almost as if she was floating, except that all of her senses were detached, replaced by pure warmth and a faint blue light.
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Phoebe Halliwell was nervous, of that much she was sure. Her other emotions couldn't be so easily defined. As soon as he had heard about the new Charmed One, Cole had left for the underworld to keep his ears open for news of any demons that might be readying an attack. Piper was on edge, skittering through the house and looking as though she was about to explode, though at least the news of the new witch had given her something to think about besides Prue's death. Leo was probably with the woman right now, informing her of her Charmed duties. And Prue . . . well, Prue was dead now. Phoebe hated it, obviously, but if she didn't at least stay calm for her other sister, she knew that things in the Halliwell household would fall apart.
We haven't had long enough, she thought. It's too soon to bring a new witch into the Power of Three. But then, in Phoebe's eyes, it would always be too soon for someone to take the position that had been held so effortlessly by Prue. She had been a reluctant witch, sure, but she was also remarkably powerful, both in her magical ability and her quick thinking. And of course, no one could replace the sisterly bond that she had shared with Prue. Phoebe felt tears prick at her eyes and tried in vain to blink them away.
Phoebe had begun to feel that she should just go upstairs and have a good cry when the familiar lights of Leo's orb began to twinkle in front of her, increasing in frequency until Leo was standing in front of her, a girl clinging to his shoulder, eyes closed. She looked young, and when she opened her eyes, Phoebe could read the fear in them. "Is that…?" She turned to Leo with a questioning glance, more than a little surprised at the youth of the girl in front of her.
Leo nodded silently. Phoebe had known Leo long enough to see that he had exactly the same worry she did, that this girl couldn't handle it, that there was no way that this renewed Power of Three was going to remain intact for long. "This is Maria from Roswell, New Mexico. She's . . . uh, how old are you, Maria?"
"Seventeen." Maria filled in, and Phoebe saw the surprise on Leo's face mirroring her own. She wasn't even out of high school yet, and The Elders expected her to take on all this?
Despite her reservations, Phoebe gave Maria her most friendly smile, the tears that she had been fighting moments ago all but forgotten. "Hi, I'm Phoebe."
Maria did not smile back, instead narrowing her eyes. "Look, the only reason that I came here was because this guy said that I was in danger. I have no desire be the third member of some long-ago established trio."
"It was only established three years ago." Phoebe countered, her smile tightening on her face. "Look, I understand how weird all of this is, trust me. But this is the way it is. If we all make an effort, maybe this will be a little bit easier for all of us."
Maria eyed her warily, then let out a resigned sigh. "Yeah, sure. But you guys do realize that I can't, like, stay here right? I mean, I have a life in Roswell already."
Leo spoke up. "We get that you can't just pack up and move into the Manor, and with my orbing, you should be able to live a mostly normal life. But your life won't be the same, that's what you have to realize. The things that the Charmed Ones deal with are life and death, so your priorities might have to shift a little. As for right now, we're not going to trap you here in San Francisco, but we do need to get through the basics. You've met Phoebe, but you'll need to meet Piper, and all three of you have to go stand behind the Book of Shadows at some point." At Maria's blank look, he added, "The Book of Shadows is is the Halliwell's spell book. It has information about mystical creatures and spells for vanquishing them, if needed. The three of you standing behind the book just cements the Power of Three as being whole again. It's kind of symbolic . . . it's hard to explain." He finished awkwardly.
"Woah Leo, talk about information overload. Even my brain is reeling, and I've heard all of this already." Phoebe broke in, a real smile curving across her face. She turned to Maria. "Look, there'll be plenty of time to explain the logistics later. You've taken in enough for one day." She looked meaningfully at Leo. "Why don't I just go find Piper and introduce to two of you?"
Maria caught Phoebe's look and turned to look at Leo, who was wearing a similarly nervous expression. "What?" She asked warily. "Is there something you guys aren't telling me? Cause I have to say, you don't exactly look excited to introduce me to your sister."
"Piper's just . . . dealing with some stuff right now. I mean, I guess we all are, but she's still a little wary about this whole situation. You know, you as the new Charmed One." Phoebe didn't add that she herself had doubts about Maria's capability to fight evil. The girl hardly needed to feel more out of place than she already did. "But I don't want you to get worked up about meeting her, so I'll just go find her and we can get the whole thing over with, okay?"
Maria still didn't look too anxious to meet Piper, but she nodded anyway. "Yeah, okay."
Phoebe shot Maria final, reassuring smile before turning to walk upstairs. Once she was out of Leo and Maria's sight, she let the smile fall from her face. Now all she had to do was tell Piper that the seventeen-year-old girl who was going to take their sister's place as a Charmed One was downstairs, waiting to meet her. Yeah, that'll be easy.
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Well, there you go, the first part of what I intend to be an ongoing series. Tell me what you think: what you liked, what you didn't, what bored the pants off you. Any feedback that you have is much appreciated.