AN: This one is an M, kids

Alex huffed as she walked, backpack slung over her shoulder, jacket dangling from her other hand. She didn't know where she was going, didn't really have anywhere to go if she was honest with herself, but she needed somewhere to calm down. For a minute she considered going to Nicky's place, but didn't think she had the patience in her to handle that Jesus Freak cousin of hers. Her mom was still holed up in her room, Julie was at work, and her old method of meeting Sylvie by the lake whenever she needed to blow off steam was no longer an option. She had Piper now, but she couldn't go back to her either.

Piper.

Alex sighed as she thought of her stubborn girlfriend. She knew she had overreacted at her telling her she didn't want her to be with her while she read the book. She was right after all, perhaps it was made so that only a Caster could see it. Nonetheless, she hated feeling helpless, and ever since this thing with Piper started, helpless seemed to be her number one descriptor.

She threw her stuff down as she got to the waterside, unceremoniously plonking herself onto the grass. She picked her jacket up and slid her arms into it, cold now that the heat of her anger had disappeared from her body, and took out her pack of tobacco, rolling herself a cigarette as she looked out at the cold, cloudy sky. Lighting it, she took a drag and closed her eyes, feeling herself starting to calm instantly. Taking out her phone, she typed a quick message out for Piper, feeling both foolish and guilty for being so mean with her as she left the library,

Piper: Hey, I'm sorry for being such a dick back there. I'm not good with being helpless, I just wish I could do more to help. Come to my place tonight after you've finished, we'll talk about what you've found and have pizza and stuff x


Piper's phone buzzed by her hand, head buried deeply into the book. She had read a chapter of the magic markings, and so far she had learned a great deal about spells and their origins, but nothing about any ancient curse. She puffed out, causing a strand of hair to lift and fall back onto her face, and picked up her phone, and felt a smile spread across her face at the text from her girlfriend, feeling her heart clench in her chest,

Alex: Don't worry about it, I would feel the same. Just remember that I want you here, I would have you with me in a second if I could. Pizza and movies sounds perfect, I'll meet you at your place x

Smiling, she picked the book back up, a new sense of purpose behind her now that she had cleared everything up with Alex, skimming through to the middle chapters in the hope of finding something quicker.

A few hours later, Piper made a break through. Somewhere amidst the list of famous Caster's, the name Penelope Chapman stood out from a mile away. Piper ran her finger over the name, and the purple words in front of her turned red, a page of a book appearing in thin air in front of her. Piper leaned back, gasping in shock, before she leant forward, realising that the paper was a contract, handwritten.

1864:

The Caster's are raging war, in amongst the blood shed it can't be told who is mortal and who is not. Powers were used today, out in the open in front of fighting soldiers and innocent civilians, a curse that was told at full voice rebounded upon Honey Hill.

Penelope Erin Chapman, the niece of the famous founder Mallon Ravenwood, sets out to curse all those that crossed her mortal lover, Alexander Vause. It is said that Alexander, as a soldier of the union, was shot and killed in battle atop Honey Hill. Torn with grief, Penelope tapped into the darkest of her powers to bring him back to life. In turn, Penelope sacrificed the light and gave herself to the dark magic, promising the souls of every woman in her family to the darkness in exchange for Alexander's safety.

This curse is said to plague the Ravenwood/Chapman family, set to continue for all eternity, until the chosen one can sacrifice her love for the lightness of her relatives.

The curse must be reversed.

For the chosen one's heart cannot remain whole, whilst also remaining in the light.

Piper shut the book, falling back on her chair. The air had been sucked from her lungs, and she felt her heart begin to beat wildly in her chest, at the edge of a panic attack.

"No," she whispered, "No!"

She slammed her fist into the table, feeling the electricity of her power tingle through her and crackle around the room.

It was cruel, evil in fact. The only way to break her curse and save herself from the darkness, is to lose Alex.

She swallowed against the bile that rose in her throat. She would not kill Alex, never. The thought alone was enough to cause her to wretch. She would rather let the darkness take her than take herself away from Alex.

She picked up the book, throwing it across the room and against the wall with a dull thud. She put her hands in her hair, pulling as she screamed out into the room. Almost immediately, Julie's voice could be heard at the door, banging frantically.

"Piper? What's happening?"

Piper tried to answer but her voice caught in her throat, a sob breaking through instead. Julie threw the door open, rushing to kneel by Piper,

"What is it, child?"

Piper took a deep breath, trying to steady the cries breaking from her throat,

"Alex," she croaked out, and Julie stiffened,

"Alex? Where is she? Is she hurt?"

Piper shook her head, hands tangling in her own hair and pulling slightly,

"Not yet," she let her head fall back, "the only way to break the curse, is to get rid of Alex,"

"'Get rid'?," Julie quoted, "Murder?"

Piper shook her head,

"The book says 'the chosen one must sacrifice her love',"

Julie let out a long sigh,

"I will not stand by and watch as you murder my niece, my daughter-"

"No!" Piper shouted, "it's not even an option, I don't want the light if it's without Alex, I would never even think about hurting her,"

She began to cry again, trying her best to stop the tears from falling from her eyes,

"But you must let her go."

Julie levelled her eyes with Piper's, nothing but sincerity in them, and Piper frowned,

"How can I let her go without hurting her? We've been through so much together, all of the memories and history we have, there's no way we could-"

Piper stopped, realisation hitting her about what she must do to save Alex and break her family's curse,

"I need to make her forget about me?"

Piper's lip quivered again as Julie nodded solemnly,

"It's the only way, Piper."

Piper nodded, trying to keep the emotion that threatened to spill at bay,

"I know," she whispered, voice breaking, "let me tell her."

Julie stared at her,

"Don't hurt her,"

Piper nodded, picking up her bag and jacket from the desk. She felt as though she left her heart at the table as she rose, stumbling out of the library and to her car, she made her way to Alex's house, her soul breaking every step of the way.


Alex leapt from her den in her room, fairy lights and blankets covered every inch. She had a TV at the end of her bed, and DVDs spilled over the bedside floor. Racing down the stairs, she prepared herself to apologise to Piper for her behaviour as the door opened, a wide smile on her face and flowers in her hands,

"Hey Pipes, I'm so sorr-"

Before she could finish Piper had jumped at her, crushing her against her body and crumpling the flowers in the process. Alex felt a brief moment of relief run through her as she realised Piper wasn't mad at her, but it swiftly changed to worry at the desperate way the blonde was clinging to her,

"Hey," she whispered softly, "what's wrong, Pipes?"

Piper said nothing, just sniffled and snuggled further into Alex's neck, rising on her tip toes to pull her to her tighter,

"Do you wanna go upstairs?" Alex asked gently, feeling Piper nod against her neck,

"Okay, come on. I've got a surprise for you,"

She gripped onto Piper's hand with her free one, leaning back from her and putting the now squashed flowers in front of her face, leaning her head around them with a small smile,

"I got you these," she offered, "to say sorry for being such an ass earlier,"

Piper looked at her, eyes glassy, and smiled softly, taking the flowers and hugging them to her chest,

"They're beautiful, Al," she croaked, and Alex raised her fist, knocking gently at Piper's chin,

"Let's go watch some movies and cuddle, kid"

Piper nodded, the same sad smile on her face, and allowed Alex to lead her up the stairs. As she entered Alex's room, she gasped at the lights that surrounded her,

"Al," she whispered, and Alex grinned proudly as she took the flowers from Piper's hands, laying them on the table before she came to stand by her, hands around her waist,

"Magic, huh?" She smirked, and Piper giggled, turning to grip Alex's face tight in between her hands, crushing their faces together, lips joining strong and hard as she pushed Alex's open shirt off her shoulders.

Alex was stunned for a second by the strength of Piper's embrace, before her mind caught up with her and she kissed her back with just as much intensity, throwing her shirt away and moving her hands to Piper's waist beneath her sweater,

"Do you wanna talk about what was upsetting you before?" Alex gasped, trying to slow her mind and body down just in case,

"No," Piper mumbled against her skin, "I don't wanna talk,"

Alex frowned but felt her mind go blank as Piper's hands pressed up her torso beneath her t shirt, feeling it rise and get tugged over her head.

She walked Piper backwards, collapsing on the bed beneath her, the warmth of Piper's hands for once not burning, but pleasant,

"Take it off," she growled as she pulled at the wool of Piper's sweater. Piper sat up from Alex's neck for a second to tear her sweater off, t shirt going too in the process, before pressing herself straight back to Alex's body. As she kissed her way down Alex's collarbone and over her chest, she let her fingertips wander to the button of her jeans, fumbling as she tried to pop them open and growling against Alex's skin.

Alex rested her hands on top of Piper's, stilling them,

"Hey," she said softly, waiting for Piper to meet her eyes, "I love where this is going, but just slow down, okay?"

Piper looked into Alex's eyes, overwhelmed once again with how much she actually loved the girl in front of her, feeling the pain of the loss she hadn't even suffered yet echo in her heart. She nodded, raising back up to kiss Alex and slowly unbuttoning her jeans, feeling her sigh happily against her lips as she moved her hands to rest on Piper's bare waist.

"Pipes," she whispered, running her hands over her ass, squeezing slightly, "what's happening here, exactly?"

Piper gently ran her fingertips from the top of Alex's underwear to rest on her neck, looking her deep in the eyes. Her heart clenched at the sight in front of her, Alex with her eyes wide and face flushed, half clothed beneath her,

"I want you," she murmured, running the back of her knuckles over Alex's smooth cheek, "I want this, with you."

Alex swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry,

"oh," she breathed out, hands tightening on her waist, "are you sure?"

Piper flattened her hand on Alex's face, gripping tightly,

"I love you, Alex Vause,"

Alex's breath caught in her throat. Her heart felt like it was about to fly out of her chest, and a dizzy feeling came over her,

"Are you saying that just to get in my pants?" She teased, and Piper giggled softly, tucking some of Alex's hair next to her ear, shaking her head,

"No, I'm saying it because I mean it. I've never felt the way about anyone that I feel about you,"

Alex smiled, a big, genuine smile, and rolled over so Piper was below her,

"I love you too," she whispered, laughing at how nice it sounded, "I love you," she repeated, and Piper smiled at her, eyes shining, "I love you, I love you, I love you,"

Piper brought Alex's face down to hers, kissing her hard,

"Show me," she whispered, and Alex groaned, covering Piper's body with her own as she felt her jeans being tugged down her waist, skin against skin,

"Don't set me on fire," she warned teasingly in Piper's ear, and the blonde giggled,

"I think I've got that under control,"

Alex huffed out a laugh as she moved down Piper's body, removing clothing as she went. She spent what could have been hours gently worshipping all of the parts of Piper she had yet to see, occasionally feeling the flare of heat from Piper's hands as she undressed her in return, but finding that the blonde was unable to hurt her, as though the confession of love had caused a shift in her magic.

The sounds coming from Piper's lips had Alex's head spinning, and as she ran her fingertips down Piper's toned torso to rest on top of the last article of clothing on the blonde's body, she rested her forehead against hers, breathing each other's air,

"Touch me," Piper whispered, covering Alex's hand with hers and guiding it beneath her panties, "I want you to,"

Alex closed her eyes and let her head fall onto Piper's shoulder, biting gently and releasing a soft groan as she allowed her hand to be guided to the warm wetness that waited for her.

She rubbed softly, loving the way Piper's hips rose to keep in sync with her movements. Raising her head, she ran her nose along the length of Piper's, kissing her gently as she positioned her fingers where Piper wanted them. Slowly, she slid one of her fingers into her, biting Piper's bottom lip as she did, feeling her eyes flutter closed at the warmth that surrounded her. She heard Piper exhale loudly, hand flying up to rest on Alex's bicep,

"Are you okay?" Alex whispered against her lips, and Piper gripped her hair with her free hand,

"Another," she said softly, and Alex swallowed, sliding out and then back in with another added finger, feeling the tightness around them. This time, Piper opened her mouth wide, arching slightly off the bed and squeezing at Alex's arm. Alex stilled, watching Piper's face as she adjusted to the new feeling.

After a minute, Piper opened her eyes and found Alex's fiery green gaze. Gently, she scratched her nails along the nape of Alex's neck, nodding slightly,

"I'm okay, move, please,"

Alex leant forward to drop a kiss on Piper's lips as she allowed her hand to begin to move, slow at first, but steadily gaining pace as Piper's hips began to rise to meet her, moans spilling louder and louder from her lips,

"Al," she breathed, biting at her earlobe, "Fuck, I think-"

She cut off with a high pitched moan, and Alex growled at the sensation coupled with the feeling of Piper clenching around her fingers as she got closer and closer to where she needed to be,

"I've got you, Pipes, let it go," she encouraged, and Piper let out a broken gasp, fingernails digging harder into Alex's skin until she arched off the bed, freezing for a moment then falling, hips spasming as Alex slowed, bringing her down from her high.

The brunette watched as Piper's eyebrows knitted together, mouth open, and felt a fire spread through her from Piper's fingertips, feeling as though she was bathed in warm water. Slowly, she withdrew her fingers, wiping them tenderly across Piper's lower abdomen and snuggling into her neck, snaking her arms tightly around her.

Piper brought her arms up to wrap around Alex's shoulders, feeling her breathing begin to even out again,

"Oh my god," she gasped, and Alex raised her head to meet her eyes, grinning like a proud schoolboy, and tucked some of her sweaty blonde hair behind her ear,

"Same thoughts here," she murmured, and Piper smiled shyly, blushing again,

"Come here," she whispered, and Alex laid down again, wrapping herself around Piper as the blonde clenched her closer.


Some time later, Piper wasn't even sure if it was minutes or hours, the blonde found herself side by side with Alex, who was laid on her stomach, face towards her as she snored softly. Piper felt tears begin to well in her eyes as she tenderly stroked her fingertips across the pale skin of Alex's back, her heart hurting as she realised she needed to do what was right, she needed to let Alex go, for her own safety and for the safety of her family.

Choking back a sob, she snuggled her face against Alex's, watching her wake up with a small smirk,

"Again?" She mumbled sleepily, "jeez you get it once and you become insatiable,"

Piper giggled but it felt hollow, knowing that these were her last few moments with the love of her life,

"If you could have one wish, what would it be?"

Alex opened one eye,

"To go back to sleep?"

Piper smiled but shoved her shoulder gently,

"Al, I'm serious, if you could have one thing what would it be?"

Alex looked at her with one eye, smirking, then closed them both as she sighed,

"Snow," she muttered, and Piper frowned,

"Did you just say snow?" She asked, and Alex chuckled softly, opening her eyes and fixing her with an affectionate gaze,

"Yeah," she muttered, "we don't get snow here in Litch, I've only ever seen it on the TV,"

Piper felt her heart clench again at the innocence of Alex's answer, feeling another impossibly strong wave of love run through her. She leant down, kissing Alex softly on the cheek,

"Get dressed," she whispered, and Alex frowned,

"Pipes, it's 1am,"

"Just do it," Piper smiled, already putting her sweater back on, grinning as Alex shook her head and did as she was told.


"Where are we going, Piper?" Alex chuckled as they walked hand in hand through the park behind Alex's house. The air was cold, and the scenery was barely illuminated by the street lights around them. Piper turned and grinned as they entered a clearing surrounded by trees, taking both of Alex's hands and nuzzling into her neck as she closed her eyes.

Alex closed her eyes too, enjoying the feeling of Piper's warm embrace, until she felt a drop of cold on the skin of her shoulder, uncovered by her sweater or hair.

She opened her eyes, frowning, and felt her jaw drop as she took in her surroundings.

White. Everything was white.

She looked up to the sky, face gently being covered in snowflakes, and a shocked laugh escaped her lips. It was snowing, heavily, the whole park was blanketed with the stuff, and Alex looked down at Piper, wide eyed and smiling softly at her, snowflakes caught in her hair.

"Pipes," Alex whispered, "Did you do this?"

Piper nodded, leaning forward to press her lips softly against Alex's, feeling a tear slip down her face as she squeezed her eyes closed, already chanting the memory spell through her head as she felt her magic spread from her fingers and through Alex. Choking back a sob, Piper moved her lips from Alex's and put them to her ear,

"I love you, Alex Vause," she choked out, before she let her magic go, and felt as Alex disappeared in her arms. In a second, Piper was no longer in the park. She was back at Ravenwood Manor, in her room. In the morning, Alex would wake up in her bed, no memory of Piper, of their love, of everything they had done together.

Laying on her bed and clutching Alex's jacket to her chest, she allowed herself to cry. For herself, for Alex, for the curse. Sobs ripped through her, harsh and raw, the only light in the darkness being that for a few months, Piper had Alex. She felt what it was like to be in love, and to be loved in return, and despite the pain she was feeling now, that was something she could never regret.

AN: I'm sorry. Don't worry, this isn't the end.

Laura xo