Alas, I do not own "Charmed" or its characters. If I did, the show would still be on with better storylines.
This time the story takes place during the episode "Power Outage" in season three. Why was Piper so concerned about seeing her doctor in that episode? Was she dying? Did she have a troublesome hangnail? What if she thought she was pregnant? How would that make her feel with she and Leo still on probation? Just a little slightly AU diddly with major P/L, a wee bit of Phoebe and many angry neighbors.
Piper Halliwell silently fumed as she bustled in her normally immaculate kitchen. Dirty pans, bowls and measuring cups were scattered over every inch of counter space. The product of theses utensils already sat untouched in the living room full of angry neighbors. For what was probably the hundredth time, she silently cursed her sisters for forcing her to host the monthly Neighborhood Home Owner Meeting.
She scowled at the food mess. Flour and parmesan cheese were pressed onto her cheeks and clothes like war paint. Furiously, her hand jerked for a nearby washcloth and she began to scrub at the counters. As she scoured, her dark hair flew about her face like a cloud. She had better things to do than play Welcome Mat for her sisters – like actually make her doctor's appointment.
Piper suddenly stopped scrubbing as fear and worry dropped like ice into her stomach. She really wasn't all that angry at her sisters, Phoebe and Prue. It was just easier to stew at them then confront the big giant gorilla lurking behind her. She was afraid to grasp the fact that she might be – may be – pregnant.
She slowly lowered herself onto a nearby wooden stool. The worry and fear now crashed into her like waves, rocking her harder with each break until she felt she would vomit. She worried for herself – was she even ready to be a mother? She worried for her boyfriend, Leo – would the Elders take him away from permanently? Most of all she worried desperately about how the Elders would react to the idea of a witch/whitelighter baby.
She and Leo were on thin ice as it was with Leo's bosses, the Elders. As her and her sisters' whitelighter, Leo had sworn to protect them as a sort of guardian angel. He wasn't supposed to fall in love with one of his charges. Yet, Piper and Leo had fallen – passionately – in love – so much that the idea of a permanent separation caused Piper's heart to stick in her throat.
For some reason, it was a serious crime for a witch and a whitelighter to fall in love. Piper could understand they had to be careful to not let their relationship interfere with their jobs. Yet, how else could it be so goddamn earth shattering? Currently, she and Leo were on probation, the Elders waiting to give them permission to marry.
Now if the Elders learned Piper was pregnant…she swallowed a lump in her throat and covered her face in her hands. She may never see Leo again or they might kill him outright. The thought alone of Leo's erasure sent horrifying shivers of ice into her heart.
"God, how did my life get so complicated?" she sighed in misery. The voices abruptly rose in pitch in the living room. Piper glared in that direction, toying with the idea of just freezing the room for the rest of the day. Soon the arguing quieted again as normal debating took hold among the neighbors.
Piper took a calming breath and started to clean again. The problem was – besides the threat of imminent wrath from heaven – she knew deep down in the hidden chambers of her heart that she wanted the baby.
A year earlier Piper and her sisters had been sent to the future to learn a huge morality lesson. In that future, Piper saw the daughter the she and Leo would one day have. She saw her cute, mischievous grin, the button nose and sparkling green eyes. Piper knew on one level she wasn't ready to have kids, but she still wanted that little girl. What would she do if the Elders, in their infinite fucked-up wisdom, took her child away as punishment? Or, worst of all, what if they aborted the baby in the womb?
Piper's heart clenched in fierce, sudden maternal panic at the idea. Like hell she would let Them mess with her or her child. Then again, she wouldn't be worrying about such problems if she could just scurry to the doctor to find out if she was or wasn't pregnant. Once she knew the truth she could officially worry at her leisure.
Furious again with Prue and Phoebe, Piper began tossing dirty dishes into the sink. As they clanked against each other, a bluish white light filled the kitchen as Leo orbed home.
"Sounds like the natives are getting restless." Leo said, throwing a grin in Piper's direction.
"Leo, you know you shouldn't orb in like that. What if one of those idiots saw you and called the cops?" Piper fumed.
"It's ok," Leo soothed. He could see the anger practically steaming out of Piper's ears. Frowning, he leaned against the counter next to her. He knew when she was that upset it was best to tread lightly. "Piper, what's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing really," Piper seethed, flipping a strand of dark hair behind her ear. How could Leo be so calm, caring and sweet when it was his fault she was in this mess in the first place?
"Just the fact that my sisters are busy living their lives while I'm stuck cooking for these idiots. Like I've got nothing better to do than baby-sit these morons as they argue over which Christmas decorations to use this year. I've got the club I should check on and my doctor's appointment that was canceled yet again. I –"
"Shhh," Leo whispered, standing behind her as he began to caress her shoulders. "Way to vent, but it'll all turnout ok."
Piper closed her eyes as she felt Leo's warm touch send a hundred relaxing shivers down her spine. She leaned her head back against his chest as his strong hands continued to work out the massive tension knots in her shoulders. Leo smiled as he felt Piper begin to relax against him.
Why was it that a simple touch from Leo could brighten Piper's mood in a heartbeat? He was like a sweet tonic for the worst ulcer. The touch of his hand, the calm warmth of his voice or the feel of his soft lips could send her anger into oblivion. He brought her back to sanity, to clarity, to calm. He helped her think when her mind was too frazzled to even string words together. He talked her off the ledge when she was ready to curse her sisters to Timbuktu. He was her best friend, her confidant. As she passed each day in his arms, Piper realized he was her soul mate.
Slowly, Piper turned and wrapped her arms around Leo's strong chest. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and rested his chin on the top of her head. "Piper, I-"
"Shhh," Piper whispered. "Don't talk. At least not yet."
Piper pressed her cheek against Leo's chest as she inhaled the scent of his sweater. She could feel his steady heart beat comfortingly inside his chest. To her it was a sweet song meant for only her ears.
As she listened, her anger dwindling, she thought back to that night at the park. Leo had been gone for three days with a charge, leaving Piper worried sick as always whenever he left. To make it up to her, he had packed a secret picnic basket, took her hand and orbed her away before she could protest. When she had finally opened her eyes, she found a red checkered tablecloth spread like frosting against the dewy evening grass. Soft white candles were sprinkled around the small picnic area and a giant bouquet of crimson roses was placed in the middle of the cloth. It was the perfect Kodak romantic moment.
Really, Piper thought as she moved even closer to Leo in the kitchen, she hadn't been able to help herself. Whenever Leo got a certain look in his eyes, she wanted to devour him right then and there. He was the only man who made her feel truly beautiful, sexy, smart and alive. God, how she loved him. Next thing she knew that night she was straddling him and his shirt was crumpled in a pile on the grass. As they kissed, his hands had slowly caressed the inside of her shirt and she furiously ran a hand through his hair. They hadn't had time for thought let alone protection. Now, what if she was –
Something crashed with a loud BANG in the living room, jarring Piper out of her reverie. Instantly, her anger returned mixed with sickening worry. Leo felt her tense again as she slipped out of his arms.
"I should have said 'no' to running this meeting," Piper grumbled, scrubbing at the counter again.
"Well, then why didn't you?" Leo asked gently, a frown creasing his forehead. He as concerned for his girlfriend, as always, but he had a feeling she wasn't just angry about hosting the neighborhood meeting. There was something deeper and more upsetting quivering in the background of her voice. Leo wanted to know instantly what was troubling her so he could help her fix the problem. He only wanted her happy. Yet, he knew that that would only pusher her farther away. She had to simmer on her own, then come to him to talk when she was ready.
"Leo, obviously you don't have sisters," she cried, chucking a dirty spatula into the sink.
"Then you could have just made something simpler," Leo suggested. "Chips and dip?"
"Leo," Piper quietly seethed, trying desperately to hold her temper in check. "I was a chef. I can't just make 'chips and dip'!"
Piper sighed as the voices in the living room reached nuclear levels again. Would this day never end? Her eyes fell on a nearly empty bottle of mineral water. "Where's all the bloody mineral water?"
"I'll get some more," Leo spoke quickly, his hands raised in surrender. She watched him sneak into the basement as shame overcame her. She really shouldn't be so angry with Leo. He was only doing what he did best – playing mediator. Plus, it wasn't strictly his fault that she might be – She had wanted him as much as he had wanted her that night. She could have stopped and –
"Hi, Piper. Bye, Piper!" Phoebe cried, quickly sneaking into the kitchen via the back door. She started to sneak past Piper and the anger flared up inside of Piper like a burst of flame.
"Whoa! Where the hell do you think you're going?"
Phoebe grimaced and turned to Piper. "Honey, I'm sorry. I ran into Cole at school and he wants to have the talk. I mean, I tried to make him wait, but he wants to talk now."
"But what about the meeting? What about my doctor's appointment" Piper shouted.
"Well, Leo was a doctor. Maybe he can help."
Like that was going to happen, Piper thought with a grimace. She planted her hands on her hips. "Phoebe-"
"Sorry, I've got to go. Love you forever," Phoebe cried, sliding past the arguing neighbors as she headed for the stairs. Piper glared at her sister's retreating back, then switched to the neighbors. With a growl of frustration, she waved her hands, freezing the room.
"Are you going to keep the neighbors frozen all day?" Leo asked, coming up behind Piper.
"Oh, Leo. Thank God!" she cried, grabbing his sleeve. "You're so helping me with this meeting."
Suddenly a faint jingling was heard from above. Leo listened quickly as Piper's relief twisted into anger again. Man, this is what Hell must feel like a good day!
"No. Oh, no!" Piper hissed.
"Honey, I'm sorry," he said apologetically. "I've got to go."
"No. Wait-" Piper cried as Leo leaned in for a quick kiss on the cheek. He dropped the water bottle into Piper's hands and quickly disappeared in a wash of blue lights.
"Chicken," she hissed. Silently she cursed everyone she had ever met in her entire life. Glaring at the neighbors, she fought to keep her anger in check. If she wasn't careful, she'd blow up like Mt. St. Helen's less popular sister.
Quickly, she waved her hands and unfroze the room. The neighbors continued arguing about their petty differences, unaware time had frozen. Taking a deep breath, Piper hoped the meeting would at least be short and to the point. She then reluctantly stepped forward, as a solider would step into battle, and tried to calm the neighbors.
The next night, Piper lay curled under the blankets of her Queen-size bed. The room was dark except for a panel of white light that filtered in from the bathroom. Piper lay with her head on her hand as she listened to Leo shower in the bathroom.
Yesterday had been quite a day for Piper and her sisters. Infected by an Anger Demon, they had almost killed each other in fury. They then lost their powers and were almost slaughtered by another demon, Belthazar. Luckily, a quick session of sisterly bonding saved them all. They hadn't vanquished Belthazar, but they were one step closer now that they had a piece of his flesh.
Yet, that wasn't the best news Piper had had recently. She had finally gotten in to see her doctor about the maybe baby. It turned out she wasn't pregnant after all – just stressed as per usual. Relief had descended over Piper like a welcome waterfall. The doctor suggested finding a few relaxing hobbies to keep her mind off things. As Piper listened to the shower, she could think of a few hobbies already that brought a smile to her lips.
The smile faded as her forehead crinkled into a frown. She wondered if she should tell Leo about the pregnancy scare. As soon as she thought it, she rejected the idea. There was no need for him to get as worked up as she had been. She wasn't really pregnant after all. They could worry about that gigantic milestone later. Now she just wanted to focus on the time they did have together. After all, the Elders might never let her and Leo marry. Still, something deep down told her not to give up hope completely. That little girl she saw in her future could be hers – along with a permanent life with Leo. She just had to wait a little longer for the sweet rewards.
As the shower abruptly ceased, Piper's smile grew wide again. With a glance at the nightstand, she knew they wouldn't have to worry about any baby scares anytime soon. They were definitely stocked up for many, many nights to come.
Leo stepped out of the bathroom, a green towel wrapped low across his hips. He used another to roughly dry his hair. He spied Piper watching him.
"Hey, what are you doing sitting in the dark?" he asked in surprise. "I thought you were asleep."
"I was," she said, slipping quickly out of the bed. She moved towards him and quickly took the towel from his hands. "I was waiting for you."
"Were you?" Leo murmured, a sly grin sneaking onto his face. "And why would that be?"
"One guess," Piper whispered with a seductive smile as she stood inches away from him. She could feel his warm breath against her face. In the dim bathroom light, she could see the shower water slowly drip off his naked shoulders and down his strong chest. What she wouldn't give to be one of those water drops.
"You wanted to play checkers?" Leo grinned, loving the hungry way she looked at him, at his body.
"I wanted to-" Before Piper could finish her teasing, Leo quickly pulled her in close to kiss her sweet, seductive lips. She hungrily devoured his own as her hands slid slowly over his wet chest. As he ran his hands through her dark hair, his tongue escaped her mouth, finding pleasure in her soft, smooth neck. Piper closed her eyes in ecstasy as her hands slid down to his waist.
Piper grinned suddenly and ripped the towel off of Leo's hips. He stopped his kisses and she giggled with sudden glee.
"Oh, you want to play it that way, huh?" he cried, quickly scooping her into his arms and dropping her onto the bed. Piper squealed half in terror and half in delight as Leo quickly grabbed her again. His lips soon quickly and seductively turned her giggles into moans of pleasure. This kind of hobby could definitely remove a woman's stress - permanently.
THE END