Disclaimer: I own neither Charmed nor Harry Potter.
A/N: Just an idea that popped into my head a while ago. I know, the title isn't exactly exciting or original :P This'll mostly follow the plot of book 6 although some changes will have to be made, obviously. And Leo never stopped being a Whitelighter (none of the stuff with the Titans ever happened). Traditional pairings.
Chapter 1
A dozen torches flickered dimly along the walls of the vast cavern in the Underworld, casting a shadowy gloom over the dark and evil atmosphere. Low chanting hummed through the air. A mass of demons stood in a circle, surrounding a tall, thin figure clad in a black robe.
Among the usual demonic crowd, however, a few stood out. Newcomers, they were. Less knowledgeable, perhaps, about the demonic world, but certainly no less evil. Unlike the others, these few wore hooded cloaks that covered the ghostly masks they wore underneath. From time to time, two words could be heard snaking through the throng of bodies. Death Eaters…
The attention of all present was, at the moment, fixated upon the pale features of the black-clad figure.
The Underworld was about to crown its new Source.
"Morning, Mom, Aunt Phoebe. Sorry, late for school, gotta go. Bye," Sixteen year old Wyatt grabbed a piece of toast and dashed out the door, backpack slung over one shoulder. A moment later, a bleary eyed, tousle-haired Chris tumbled down the stairs. Muttering a hurried and irritated goodbye to his mother and aunt, he followed his brother out the door.
"Not a morning person, I see," Phoebe said to Piper, smiling.
Piper laughed a little and passed Phoebe a glass of orange juice. She'd just set a platter of pancakes down on the table when Paige orbed in.
"All right, what's the big emergency?" Paige asked, stifling a yawn.
"We don't know yet," Piper answered her. "Leo got called away for a meeting with the Elders late last night, and he's not back yet. I just thought we should all be here when he returns. It seemed important, as we were…" a tinge of red crept into her cheeks, "in the middle of something when he left," she finished sheepishly.
Paige and Phoebe both laughed.
"Well, there's nothing we can do until Leo comes back. So let's eat. I'm starved!" Paige grinned and spiked a pancake with her fork.
After all these years of non-stop demon fighting, life has finally slowed down a bit for the Charmed Ones. Piper and Leo had been able to raise their sons with at least a little resemblance to a normal life, allowing them to send Wyatt and Chris to school, just like any other parents would. Of course, in their spare time the boys still studied with their father at the other school, Magic School, learning the necessary skills that would enable them to carry on the Halliwell legacy.
As for Paige, she had been the one most opposed to a quiet life, eagerly jumping at any chance to seek out and vanquish whatever demon happened to be pestering the three sisters at the time. That all changed after she met Henry. Paige had settled down somewhat, content to make a new life with her husband raising their daughter. Young Melinda Mitchell bore a sharp resemblance to her mother, with a head of long, beautiful dark hair that contrasted strikingly with her delicate pale skin and serious blue eyes that mirrored those of her father's.
And Phoebe? She was the only one of the sisters to have yet to start a family of her own. Ever since she found out what had happened to Cole in the alternate reality Paige returned from, Phoebe hadn't been the same. At times she'd stare off into space, lost in some of her innermost memories. Not even Cupid, master of love, or Coop as they liked to call him, had been able to free her from the wall she'd built around her heart.
Oh, she'd gone on with her life normally enough. Her career had rose on a fast track as her column got signed on by some of the more widely read newspapers around the country. She'd even moved out of the Manor and got a cozy little apartment of her own. Phoebe had seen other men, and for a while it even seemed as though she and Coop had something together. But she'd pushed him away, for some unknown reason even she couldn't explain. For all the cheerful front Phoebe put on, Piper and Paige knew that she was hurting inside. Yet they were powerless to do anything about it.
Nevertheless, life had moved on for them all, in its usual chaotic way. An incident of some amusement occurred a few years back. A potion had backfired upon the sisters, temporarily halting their aging for several years. After much scolding from Leo and the Elders (they were competent enough witches, after all…well, most of the time, anyways), things proceeded as it usually did, although all three of them were now only in their early thirties. Still, no harm done.
On a much more serious note, the Charmed Ones made a discovery two years ago that shook the very foundation of everything they thought they knew. It turned out that there existed an entire other world of magical beings. Witches and wizards, but not in the traditional sense. It was amazing, really, how such a large community had remained hidden all these years. They governed themselves efficiently enough, hiding their existence so not even the Elders had been able to sense them. But a power surge of such magnitude as the Dark Lord's return to power two years ago could not go unnoticed.
Ever since then, the Charmed Ones had put forth tremendous effort in familiarizing themselves with the ways of the other magical world. Even Wyatt and Chris were now well versed in the ways of the wizarding community, having ploughed diligently through the spell books their father brought home from one of his many forays into Diagon Alley.
Leo had brought the boys with him once. They'd returned home with a magnificent great horned owl, much to Piper's dismay, their pockets stuffed full of various sweets – Wyatt had nearly choked on liver flavored jelly bean – and a new wand apiece. All this was done in preparation for the eventuality that the two worlds might someday clash.
That day wasn't as far off as they thought.
The villa sat nestled between the rolling hills of the English countryside. A luxurious, well-kept green lawn sprawled from the three story residence. The estate was all together too spacious for the man who'd lived there alone for the past fourteen years. But perhaps "man" wasn't quite the right word to describe him.
By all rights, Cole Turner should have been dead, vanquished that fateful day sixteen years ago. He had relinquished his invincibility, or so he had thought, for another chance to get Phoebe back. The Avatars had informed him that he only possessed his old Belthazor powers in the alternate reality he created, and he'd believed them. But apparently, the many powers he'd picked up in the demonic wasteland couldn't just simply disappear.
The Avatars had been wrong. The powers were locked onto his very essence. He might not have been able to use them in that alternate reality, but they certainly still existed in the other planes. So it was these powers that took the blunt of that vanquish potion. Now he was left only with the ability to shimmer and to cast energy balls. The sisters thought he was dead, and he had to admit, it had hurt like hell, both physically and emotionally, when they'd tried to vanquish him.
The aftermath of the potion had blown him from realm to realm. Until Cole had recovered enough to get his strength back, he had been too weak to remain anchored in one plane for long periods of time, always sifting from one place to another. It was during these chaotic transportations through time and space that he'd stumbled upon the inhabitants of this other magical world. He had marveled at the fact that they'd made their existence unknown to even the Elders and the Source. However, with his discovery also came the realization that the Charmed Ones now faced a potential new threat, every bit as menacing and evil as the demons of the Underworld had been, and still were. The possibility that the sisters might suffer at the hands of Voldemort and his followers filled him with a sense of foreboding.
Phoebe. The very though of her name had once sent daggers into his heart. For the longest time, Cole had tried to convince himself that they still had a chance, that she still loved him, and that she didn't really mean what she'd done. But he couldn't deny what he'd known all along. He'd seen the way she looked at him when she threw that vanquish potion, calm and determined, with not even a thought of the love they'd shared. It was almost as if she had hated him, and then she'd moved on as if their love had counted for nothing.
Even after everything that's been said and done, though, he knew that he still loved her. A part of him always will, but he also knew that they would never be together again. Cole had tried to put the hurt and betrayal behind him, to move on with a new life. The ache in his heart had gradually dulled to a low throb, but it was there.
So Cole had immersed himself in this new world of wands and spells, hoping to distract himself from brooding on the past. And it had worked, mostly. He'd established a tentative relationship with Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Dumbledore was the now the only person in the Wizarding community who was aware of the existence of a separate world of magic.
Eventually, Dumbledore had come to trust him enough to help him acquire a sleek black wand from Olivanders. Cole devoured spell books hungrily, building his knowledge of the wizarding world. He was personally responsible for the death or capture of several Death Eaters. What his wand couldn't accomplish, an energy ball always finished the job, and vice versa for the demons of the Underworld. By reducing the number of Death Eaters, he was reducing the chance that they might someday hurt the Charmed Ones. He didn't want anything to happen to Phoebe, not when he could have prevented it.
Cole snapped his head up suddenly, every nerve alert as one of the spells he'd placed around the house warned him of a magical intruder. He was dressed casually, in a pair of jeans and a plain white tee. A large German shepherd bounded toward the door, aware of his master's sudden change in behavior. Cole had acquired the dog a few years ago out of sheer loneliness, and Tynan had since proven to be a loyal companion. Cole grabbed Tynan's collar, made sure his wand was within reach, and reached out to open the door.
The wizard standing on his front steps blinked as the door flew open, his hand poised to knock. Dumbledore beamed at Cole from behind half-moon spectacles.
"Impeccable timing," he told Cole as he swept past him into the manor.
Cole sighed as he let go of Tynan and closed the door.
"You could have called ahead," he said to Dumbledore, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"Bah, muggle electronics."
Dumbledore settled himself comfortably on the couch and appraised Cole with a steady gaze. Tynan flopped down beside him and Dumbledore absently scratched him behind the ears.
"Uh, so I take it the information I provided you was correct?" Cole asked him.
"It was," Dumbledore reassured him but said nothing more. Cole nodded. He had noticed that Dumbledore's left hand was blackened and shriveled, no doubt as a result of destroying Marvolo's ring. Dumbledore took out the ugly, cracked black and gold ring and handed it to Cole.
"Horcruxes…" Cole whispered softly, studying the ring. He shook his head. Here was a foe more powerful than any the Charmed Ones have ever met before. One who had split his soul and could not be so easily vanquished.
"Thank you, Cole," Dumbledore told him, "I would not have known about the ring or been able to find it if it wasn't for you. But I'm afraid I must ask another favor of you," Dumbledore said in a grave voice. "Another year has gone, and Hogwarts is in need of yet another Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."
It took a while for the full meaning of Dumbledore's words to sink in.
"You want me to…?" Cole shook his head. "I'm not the right person for the job. I'm sure you can find someone with more experience, someone without a past steeped in the Dark Arts." Cole's eyes darkened as he recalled his demonic upbringing and his brief stint as the Source of All Evil.
Dumbledore leaned forward and pressed the tips of his long fingers together.
"There is no one I'd trust to do the job better than you," Dumbledore said simply. He stood up, leaving Cole to ponder his offer.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a certain young wizard to pick up and an old professor to visit." Settling his black traveling cloak on his shoulders, Dumbledore stepped out the door and a faint crack! later, was gone.
"No, absolutely not!" Paige shouted as she stormed into the kitchen of the Halliwell manor, Leo trailing after her with a bemused expression on his face.
"I will not! You hear that? Go ahead and tell them that. I refuse to accept this assignment!" She waved a pile of papers in his face. "Do you have any idea the kind of trouble the boy has gotten himself into in the past?"
"Paige, he could be our only chance of defeating the new Source." Leo explained patiently to Paige. "Assigning him a Whitelighter was no light decision, pardon the pun. We didn't even know of his existence until two years ago, all right? Now, given our current situation, the Elders feel that assigning you as his Whitelighter would be our best chance."
Paige dropped the paper's containing her new charge's information onto the table.
"He almost got himself killed when he was a baby, did you know that? He was only one then. One! And I will not even begin to list the number of mishaps and troublesome incidents he's managed to worm his way into in the last fifteen years. On top of all that, They expect me to trudge a mile up to that Hogwarts place every time I need to see him? You can't eve orb in there!"
She slumped dejectedly into a chair.
"But then again, it's not like I have a choice, do I?"
Leo smiled at her and gathered the papers into a folder, and then came and sat beside her.
"Look, he's an orphan. He didn't choose to have any of this dropped on him, Paige, can't you understand that?"
"Of course I won't turn my back on him, Leo. How can I? But it'd be nice if the Elders handed out easier assignments once in a while."
Piper and Phoebe came back into the kitchen, now that the storm has passed. Paige can be a bit difficult sometimes when it comes to a potentially troublesome new charge. The two older sisters took a seat at the table. The atmosphere of the room was heavy and solemn as the weight of the decision they now had to make hung gloomily over them like a thundercloud.
Piper stole a glance at Leo, who nodded.
"With you being Harry's Whitelighter, Leo and I are hoping that you'd be better able to keep an eye on Wyatt and Chris while they're at that school," Piper told Paige.
Phoebe and Paige both stared.
"So you've already decided?" Phoebe asked.
"To send Wy and Chris there?" Leo confirmed this with a nod. "It wasn't an easy choice to make. But with Voldemort as the new Source, Piper and I felt that it was the right thing to do. Whatever information the boys might gather from attending Hogwarts could only aid us in gaining the upper hand against Voldemort and his followers. Besides, the wizarding world is sure to learn of our existence sooner or later, if they haven't already."
Paige sighed. "The world just gets more and more complicated every day."
A/N: Did you like it? Drop me a review and tell me if I should continue this or not. All reviews, comments, and suggestions are welcomed. Phoebe/Cole fans: more to come later :)