Mini note from moi: Okay, let me just say mahalo & merci for the reviews and I will keep going... but it's gonna take me some time and I really want to end this baby with a BANG!!! So pardon the delay and I promise that it will be worth it. Alrighty then, back to the show...
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THE CHALLENGES: DECLAN and THE CHARMED ONES
DAY FIVE
Declan Dunn stared at his pen as if it held the answers to every question in the universe. He had no idea how long he'd been staring at it, for it seemed like years instead of mere minutes.
"Professor Dunn?"
Declan glanced up, breaking from his trance. "Huh?"
A young woman was at the door of his office, smiling shyly at the man, "A miss Phoebe Halliwell is asking for you."
"Oh." He returned the smile. "Tell her to come in."
"Yes, Professor." She nodded, disappearing into the hallway.
Declan began to clean up his desktop, not wanting Phoebe to see just how much of a slob he was. He stopped for a second, rethinking that thought. "Since when do I clean up to impress a woman?"
"Declan?"
He looked up, a goofy grin appearing on his face. "Hey, Pheebs!"
Phoebe entered the room, a bit timid. For a second, her style of clothing threw Declan off. She was wearing a standard top and jeans. Nothing too fancy, nor extreme. It was as if she just wanted to appear like an ordinary girl. "Hey… you busy?"
"Uh… not exactly. Come in, have a seat."
She sat herself down, still a bit shy, withdrawn. Declan regarded her unusual character. Since when was Phoebe so shy around him? Even when they first met, she was out right out going around him.
That was when it hit him… this is a test!
He smiled at the woman, who carefully returned it. "Uh, Phoebe… I just remembered something. Something… something very… very, uh… important!" Declan stood up, mentally kicking himself for his obvious nervousness. Snatching any old manila folder within arms length, "See, I need to take this file to the admissions office. In the next building. Right this minute."
"Declan…"
"Sorry, Phoebe. Gotta run." And with that, Declan dashed out the door before Phoebe could stop him.
Once he was out the door, Phoebe slapped her forehead, "Stupid! Now he thinks that you're a complete dork!" She stood up, "Why didn't I just up front ask him out? But no," She mumbled to herself, "I just had to get all shy around him! Wait a go, Halliwell."
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Declan turned the corner, then slapped himself again for forgetting his cell phone in the office. "Dork!" He muttered to himself.
"So you finally admit to being one." A voice chuckled behind him.
He turned around, a bright grin on his face. Returning the grin stood Phoebe, dressed in another of her daring outfits. *That's more like it!* He mentally said to himself. "Phoebe! Oh thank God that you're here!" Without thinking, Declan swooped her up into a big embrace.
"Whoa there, buddy! What's with the hugging? I mean, as much as I would love more of it…" She joked.
Declan grinned at her, glad to hear her very outgoing self speaking her mind. "I'm so glad that there is only one of you, Phoebe."
She smiled at him, then raised her eyebrow. "Really?" She looked behind him, indicating to something over his shoulder. "So I guess that makes her my twin?"
He turned around and saw the "Phoebe" that was in his office walking towards their direction. With his eyes still on that Phoebe, "Yeah, that's why I'm glad to see you, Pheebs. See, I think that's your evil clone that the forces testing us sent to test me."
"Really?"
His eyes still on the first Phoebe, "Yeah."
"So what does that make me?"
Declan was thrown off by that question. Turning around to reply, "What do you mean—" His mouth dropped open in shock, his speech silenced.
The woman who he thought of as "Phoebe" began to magickally morph in front of him. She snickered at his reaction as she revealed her true self to Declan.
"Oh boy… you're *not* Phoebe."
Crossing her arms, in her own voice, "As your Phoebe would respond," In Phoebe's voice, "Duh!"
"Who are you?"
"Humans. Your species certainly do amuse us creatures of black magick. For goodness sakes, your kind created comic books! Don't you know that once the bad guys reveal their scheme, it's only a matter of time before their attempts are foiled?"
"Boy, who says that bad guys don't have a sense of humor."
"If anything, our humor is very warped." She retorted, before blowing a purplish powder on him.
Declan sneezed at first contact, shooing away the dust. "What the—?"
As the sleeping powder began to take shape, the woman looked down upon her nails. Watching Declan slowly fall, "You know, I would usually physically capture humans with a mere injection from my venomous nails… but honestly, these days it's so hard to keep these babies perfectly manicured! Especially since I do most of the grunt work. Oh sure, my husband is a vicious genius and he does have his advantages… but the moron wouldn't even know how to react to a paper cut!" When she looked down, Declan had already fallen into an unconscious state. Scoffing, "Men."
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"That's it! No more falling for men old enough to be… to be…to be my uncle!"
Piper, Leo, and Prue were sitting around the kitchen table when Hurricane Phoebe entered the proximity.
"I'm guessing that this is a sister thing…" Leo whispered to Piper.
"Oh no you don't!" She hissed back, but wasn't able to stop Leo in time before he orbed out.
Phoebe did a double-take. "Didn't I just see Leo in here a second ago?"
"He got called." Piper explained, a bit irritated by his disappearance.
"Oh… well, never mind. You two can stand to hear my ranting for a while. I mean, you two must be extremely used to it by now!"
"Unfortunately." Prue whispered to Piper.
"So, where was I? Oh yeah! I am not falling for men old enough—"
The phone rang, cutting off Phoebe's sentence. Both Prue and Piper got up, "I got it!"
Prue reached it first, sticking a tongue out childishly at Piper. "Ha!" Then to the phone, "Hello? Halliwell residence, Prue speaking."
Piper rolled her eyes at Prue, then turned to face a completely agitated Phoebe. Before either girls could say a single word, Prue's startled voice caught their attention.
"Oh my God! Alright, we'll be right there." Hanging up the phone, "That was Daryl. He said that Michael was being attacked by demons."
"Michael?" Both Phoebe and Piper replied.
Prue dashed out the kitchen before her sisters could question this "Michael" guy.
"C'mon!" They heard her shout clear across the house.
"Prue!" Piper and Phoebe followed, "Who's Michael?"
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"Why am I not surprised that *someone* would be *attacked* by *demons* in a very *dark alley*?" Phoebe joked as they entered the location that Daryl gave Prue.
"So where is this Michael guy?" Piper asked her older sister.
"And Morris?" Prue wondered.
They scanned the area. From the potholes and dumpster to the closed off walls of the connecting buildings. Even though it was still daylight, being in that very small space caused a chill to run through them.
It was then that an ill thought crashed into the Charmed Ones' minds. They glanced at each other, uttering the same words simultaneously, "What if this is a trap?"
"Bravo, ladies. Excellent!"
They looked up and gasped at the sight of their god sister, Kiara.
"Kiara," Prue whispered.
"Yes, 'tis your Kiara's body… but obviously not her soul." She snickered, causing Prue's fingers to itch with anger.
Piper and Phoebe were about to say something, but Kiara had beat them to the punch. "And don't even try that stunt with uttering my true name. I know that your dear friends Annie and Carey had told you about what happened when they tried it… and look what happened to Miss Thelan."
"We wouldn't dare to do something like that, Miss N." Phoebe said, causing Kiara to snicker.
"Oh, how very clever! Miss Phoebe Halliwell, right? Always had the sharpest tongue in the family, didn't ya child?"
"Enough with the idle chit-chat!" Prue demanded, getting extremely anxious with wanting to kick this spirit's butt and getting their Kiara back. "What do you want?"
"Besides the Charmed Ones dead?" Kiara replied. She winked at them, then blinked herself out of the picture.
"Where'd she go?" Piper jumped, startled by the disappearance.
"Carey and Annie were right," Phoebe said, "She does have Kiara's powers."
"Ay, indeed I do."
The Charmed Ones spun around, seeing Kiara sitting comfortably on an empty trash bin.
"You know, as much as I would love to see the oh so legendary Charmed Ones destroyed to oblivion… us evil foes would need to seek a different vocation. Wouldn't want to be responsible for a countless stream of villains standing aimlessly in the unemployment line, now would I?"
Phoebe leaned close to her sisters, whispering, "This is Nov. that we're dealing with, right? Not our Kiara? Because they seem to have the same uncanny, and totally obnoxious, wit about them."
"No." Kiara blinked again, this time appearing over them at the top of one buildings. "No. No. For some god-forsaking reason, they," She indicated towards the ground. "They see you three as the balance between good and evil. They both want and need you."
"Sister, what's up your—"
Kiara cut Phoebe off by cackling at them. "My butt? Besides this massive wedgie… I don't really know. See, I was born bitter and caustic. And I enjoy very much the game I play with my victims."
"I know that you're not in charge of all this, Nov." Prue cried out to the vixen. If anything, Prue knew the exact words on how to tempt the bad guys. "You were sent to do a job, but you decided to have a little fun before accomplishing it. Am I right?"
Kiara began to clap her hands in a mock fashion. She stared daggers down at Prue. "Well, well. Prue Halliwell. The brains behind the Charmed Ones. Let's see, now we have the apparent brain… the brat, oh sorry, I mean, mouth…"
Phoebe suddenly had this uncanny feeling to just gut the spirit right there and then.
Kiara's eyes landed on Piper, still mocking, "So what does that make the middle child? Well, from what I could gather from the crying soul of your god-sister Kiara… I'm taking a wild guess and saying that Piper is the big heart. She's the one that tells the mouth to think before speaking, and the brain to speak when the need arrives to instead of taking her sweet time thinking it over. Makes enough sense for y'all?"
Piper was getting ultra annoyed with this spirit. She was about to throw her hands out and freeze her, but Kiara blinked again.
"This is getting us no where!" Prue hissed, her eyes on alert.
"On the contrary," Kiara spoke up. She appeared again, this time, right in front of them.
"My rant is actually of use. Especially for my—well, as Phoebe would say, yummy boy toys—this is time well spent." She glanced behind her, whistling, "C'mon out, fellas!"
To the Charmed Ones, "Ladies, get out your pencils and get ready to take the big exam!"
The Halliwell sisters took a step back, stunned by the beings making their way towards them. Phoebe's throat tightened, Prue's mind started racing, and Piper began to fear the worst.
Kiara giggled wickedly. "Oh goody! What fun! Okay, first question… what happens when we take three very powerful witches and add them up with three very special men? Oh, and these men just happen to be under a very powerful spell that commands them to kill the Charmed Ones. Not to mention that if they fail, the spell cast upon them will then cause them to drop dead… quite an intriguing incantation that was set upon them actually. I am certainly impressed by it." She then looked the trance instilled men over, "Oh, one more factor that I forgot to mention, yet obviously by your reactions that you already know. These lucky, lucky fellas are very close to y'all lucky lassies. How's THAT for a challenge?" She smirked.
Before Kiara blinked herself out of the proximity, she cackled, "Have fun, ladies. And try not to hurt Professor Dunn, Detective Morris, and Officer Hunt too badly."
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"Okay, ladies…" Phoebe was in her fighting stance, yet wasn't in the mood to do so. "What do we do… ah!" She ducked as Declan threw a trash lid at her.
She stared in shock at him, then glared, "Oh! You are so lucky that you are in a trance!"
Michael went after Prue, swinging a bat at her. With her powers, she managed to toss it out of his hands, but he still went after her with a vengeance.
Piper had to duck several times at Daryl's attempt to crush her with his bare hands.
"Whoa!" She cried, "I thought boys weren't allowed to hit girls! Isn't that one of their many cardinal rules?"
Prue was trying her best not to hurt Michael, yet made it difficult on herself as Michael kept right on charging at her. "If they're under a spell, I don't think that rule applies… yikes!" Prue jumped to the ground just as Michael had tossed an enormous plank of wood point blank at her.
"Piper…" Phoebe fought the urge to just karate chop Declan, but remembered what Kiara had told them. "Pipe! I think that maybe this is a perfect time to… uh, FREEZE THEM!" Phoebe yelped as Declan swung another heavy object at her.
"Can I do that?"
"I would think so, Pipe." Prue answered, ducking another of Michael's punches.
"And you better hurry, before my temptation leads to serious butt-whooping action!" Phoebe raised herself off the ground, just as Declan charged at her with a broken glass bottle.
"Okay!" With a simple flick of the wrist, Piper froze the men before any serious damage, at least towards the men, was done.
"Now that wasn't so bad…" Phoebe said.
"What are we going to do, guys?" Prue indicated towards the three men, "I mean, the time freezing business could only go on for only a certain time limit… we have to think of something to break these guys out of that spell."
"Must be a powerful spell." Phoebe thought out loud. "I mean, getting someone to kill and if one fails, they die themselves. Talk about a kamikaze incantation."
"Maybe there's a spell in the Book of Shadows that can reverse this." Piper wondered.
"Only one way to find out…" Phoebe looked towards the heavens, "Leo! Leo, get your heavenly butt down here!"
"What a way to page him, Pheebs." Prue snickered.
Just as Leo orbed in, Piper noticed a flicker of unwanted movement coming from Daryl. "Uh-oh! Time freeze!" She shot out her palm, causing time to stand still once again.
Leo looked at them, not the least bit surprised by the frozen figures.
Prue regarded the look, then sighed. "Leo… don't tell me you knew this would happen."
"Only once Phoebe bellowed my name."
"Well then, honey, I guess that we don't need to spend time going over the details."
"Yeah, we just need you to go to our house, look in the Book of Shadows, and find a spell that can somehow save them." Prue ordered him.
Leo sighed, then did as he was told. Not daring to contradict the Charmed Ones.
Phoebe glanced back at Declan, a sad look in her eyes, "Poor Declan… I wish I could break you from this spell…"
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Fiona Phillips smiled at Carey and Annie. Carey was sitting attentively at Annie's bedside, watching her sleep.
Last night was quite an ordeal… but Annie managed to come out shining bright. She was still a bit shaken over what had happened to her, but as long as she had the support and love from her extended family and friends, she knew that everything would be okay.
Carey never realized just how much he cared about Annie. Over the course of her stay, she became like a best friend to him. He needed her as much as she needed him. C'mon, who else would stand up and defend him when he would play a over the top prank on Clu?
Fi was glad that they had each other, and they obviously felt the exact same way.
Quietly, she walked out of the hotel room, leaving them alone. Fiona was about to go and find Clu and Jack when she doubled over in pain. She clutched her stomach, the ache eating at her. When she closed her eyes, images flashed before her eyes. It was of the Charmed Ones being attacked. They were losing badly, yet for some reason, they didn't fight back. Fiona then saw who the Halliwells were up against, and gasped. She saw Declan as he grabbed Phoebe. When Fi looked at his eyes, she noticed that he was in some kind of trance as he was going up against the three witches.
When the pictures stopped did Fiona's agony vanish. Fi stood up, leaning on the wall for support as she regained her breathing. "Oh my God, I have to warn them." She uttered, before running off to find them.
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Leo had intended to orb himself into the Halliwell attic to get the Book of Shadows, but instead had landed in a strange room.
The room looked that of a young woman's. It was then that he got the message from the Elders. Looking intently, he finally saw what he was sent to retrieve.
"Jack? Clu? Are you guys in here?"
Leo looked up, recognizing Fiona's voice. "Fiona!" He called out to her, holding her great-grandmother's own Book of Shadows in his hands.
"Leo? What are you doing here?" Fi entered her and Annie's room on the tour bus. She looked at Leo, confused. Then her eyes spotted the book.
"What are you doing with my great-grandma Fiona's spell book?"
"It's very important, Fi. It has the spell that can really help Piper and her sisters."
Fi's eyes widened, "Oh no! Don't tell me that they're fighting Declan who just happens to be under a weird trance."
"They are…" He replied, then peered at her, "How did you know?"
"I just had a vision…" She closed her eyes, trying to recall what she saw.
"They were in trouble, Leo. They didn't want to fight them, and I don't know why."
"That's because our friend Daryl, an officer named Michael, and Declan were put under a spell. And from what my bosses told me, there's only one spell that can lift the one on them… and it's found only in your great-grandmother's Book of Shadows."
She took the book from Leo's grasp, placing it on the desk. "Then let's find it!" Fi began to search through the pages, "And since the stupid rule says that I can't get magickally involved, you're going to have to give the Charmed Ones the incantation."
As she flipped through page after page, Leo softly chuckled at her look of concentration. "Do you even know what you're looking for?"
"Yeah… I'm searching for a spell that can help break the one that was cast on Declan and your friends."
"Do you even know what kind of spell was placed upon Declan?"
Fi looked up at him, her eyes shifted as her brain dug for an answer. Smiling sheepishly, "Uh… no."
Leo returned the smile, "Well, I don't know exactly either…"
"What kind of white lighter are you?" She joked.
"All I know, Fi, is that the beings that were put under were ordered to kill or be killed if they failed."
"What?!"
"Sort of like back in the day when a young man doesn't accomplish his mission and ends up dishonoring his family? They would rather have a dead son than a live one that brings only shame upon the whole clan."
Fi winced, "Yikes… tough spell."
"You said it… now we have to find the one that can break it."
Fiona and Leo looked through each of the pages… until finally, she spotted something.
"Hey, Leo. Check this out…" Fiona read the Celtic inscribed setting, "'This incantation can break a spell that had been cast upon an individual in order to do another person's bidding.'" She looked at him, "This must be it. Look it also says that it was specifically made for removing such a strong spell."
Fiona reached into her desk and began to scribble down the words. "Just change the singular pronouns into plural pronouns and the Charmed Ones are set."
"Excellent job, Fi." He commented proudly.
Fi beamed up at him, then handed Leo the paper, "Give them my blessings, Leo."
"You got it." And with that, Leo orbed back to the original scene.
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"Declan… now Declan, I-I-I really don't wanna hurt you…"
Piper's time freeze had just wore off, leaving the Charmed Ones yet again facing their assassins.
Phoebe backed off a numerous amount of times as Declan came after her with full force. She glanced at her sibling, "Prue! Where in the hell is Leo?!"
Prue, who was busy holding off Michael, cried, "Uh, do I look like his damn keeper? Ask Piper, that's her job!"
"Very funny… no, Daryl!" Piper threw up her hands, freezing Daryl just as he was about to club her over the head.
"Guys! I got the spell!"
The Charmed Ones glanced behind them, seeing their beloved white lighter to the rescue.
"Finally!" Piper exclaimed as she also froze Michael and Declan.
The Halliwell sisters gathered together, Leo joining them with Fiona's spell.
"Here, this incantation was from Fiona's spell book. She wishes you guys luck."
"Thanks, Leo." Prue snatched it from his hands, holding it out for her and her sisters to recite together.
They looked upon the three helpless men, then began the chant.
"With these words, we call upon the hour/ Set forth the light of truth, give us the power. Open their eyes so that they may see/ Look past the darkness, set them free. With our hearts, these words we hinder/ evoke thy spirits, destroy the evil, let their flame never be rekindle. So mote it be."
The witches watched as their words took hold of the venomous evil inside of the men they care for. As the darkness emerged, wailing and vanishing into the sky, Declan, Daryl, and Michael fell to their knees, crying in agony over pain of their evils' banishment.
"Declan!" Phoebe rushed over to him, holding him as he gasped for breath and tried to regain control of his senses.
Piper and Leo ran over to Daryl, just as he collapsed from the torture, while Prue made her way to comfort Michael.
"Uh, guys… Daryl's unconscious. We have to get him some medical attention." Piper said to her sisters.
"Same with Michael." Prue responded, cradling his head in her arms.
Declan, however, was still well aware of his pain. Phoebe tried to hush him, holding the man in her arms. "Prue… Piper… Leo… something's wrong with Declan and I can't seem to help him." She was tearing up inside, helpless that she can't do anything to heal him.
Leo looked over at Prue and Piper. "You guys, go take Michael and Daryl to the hospital. I'll help Phoebe with Declan… I think the reason why he's having a hard time is because he's still battling with his own demons."
While the two Halliwell witches complied to Leo's command, he made his way over to Phoebe.
"What do you mean, Leo? I don't understand…" She cooed Declan, "Declan, please…"
"From what we saw, it looks like whoever had cast the spell had placed some very wicked spirits to control them. If Daryl guys had failed, the spirits would just have to destroy them." He laid a hand over Declan's forehead, a light emerging from it.
"I still don't understand, Leo. If that's true, why is he still haunted by them?"
"Those spirits must have evoked his own personal demons. When they were destroyed, his own demons must have emerged and taken control."
"So-so-so how can we help him?"
Suddenly, Declan began to have a seizure, his whole body convulsing within Phoebe's arms. Her heart started to beat uncontrollably out of fear for him.
"Leo! Leo, he's having a seizure!"
"I know, Phoebe… but I want you to just hold him. Let him know that you're there for him. I think that's all he needs to know in order for him to regain control of himself."
"Declan… don't you dare let those demons win. Fight! Please fight! And come back to me…" She held him tighter, his convulsions weakening. "I'm here for you, Declan. Remember that… come back to us…"
The tighter she held him, the less Declan's body shook. A few minutes more passed, until he finally was peacefully at ease in Phoebe's arms. His breathing was light, his eyes fluttering up at her.
"Phoebe?" His voice was hoarse.
A small relieved laugh escaped her lips, "Declan…"
His eyes finally opened wide, taking her in. He then glanced at Leo, who was beaming proudly at him. "Uh… what happened?"
Phoebe laughed, then hugged him again… and not letting go anytime soon.
Declan returned the hug, but still confused. "Uh, okay, Phoebe… Phoebe… Pheebs, you can, like, let go now… I mean, as much as I love a hug from you, I sort of need to breath… Phoebe?"
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THE CHALLENGES: DECLAN and THE CHARMED ONES
DAY FIVE
Declan Dunn stared at his pen as if it held the answers to every question in the universe. He had no idea how long he'd been staring at it, for it seemed like years instead of mere minutes.
"Professor Dunn?"
Declan glanced up, breaking from his trance. "Huh?"
A young woman was at the door of his office, smiling shyly at the man, "A miss Phoebe Halliwell is asking for you."
"Oh." He returned the smile. "Tell her to come in."
"Yes, Professor." She nodded, disappearing into the hallway.
Declan began to clean up his desktop, not wanting Phoebe to see just how much of a slob he was. He stopped for a second, rethinking that thought. "Since when do I clean up to impress a woman?"
"Declan?"
He looked up, a goofy grin appearing on his face. "Hey, Pheebs!"
Phoebe entered the room, a bit timid. For a second, her style of clothing threw Declan off. She was wearing a standard top and jeans. Nothing too fancy, nor extreme. It was as if she just wanted to appear like an ordinary girl. "Hey… you busy?"
"Uh… not exactly. Come in, have a seat."
She sat herself down, still a bit shy, withdrawn. Declan regarded her unusual character. Since when was Phoebe so shy around him? Even when they first met, she was out right out going around him.
That was when it hit him… this is a test!
He smiled at the woman, who carefully returned it. "Uh, Phoebe… I just remembered something. Something… something very… very, uh… important!" Declan stood up, mentally kicking himself for his obvious nervousness. Snatching any old manila folder within arms length, "See, I need to take this file to the admissions office. In the next building. Right this minute."
"Declan…"
"Sorry, Phoebe. Gotta run." And with that, Declan dashed out the door before Phoebe could stop him.
Once he was out the door, Phoebe slapped her forehead, "Stupid! Now he thinks that you're a complete dork!" She stood up, "Why didn't I just up front ask him out? But no," She mumbled to herself, "I just had to get all shy around him! Wait a go, Halliwell."
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Declan turned the corner, then slapped himself again for forgetting his cell phone in the office. "Dork!" He muttered to himself.
"So you finally admit to being one." A voice chuckled behind him.
He turned around, a bright grin on his face. Returning the grin stood Phoebe, dressed in another of her daring outfits. *That's more like it!* He mentally said to himself. "Phoebe! Oh thank God that you're here!" Without thinking, Declan swooped her up into a big embrace.
"Whoa there, buddy! What's with the hugging? I mean, as much as I would love more of it…" She joked.
Declan grinned at her, glad to hear her very outgoing self speaking her mind. "I'm so glad that there is only one of you, Phoebe."
She smiled at him, then raised her eyebrow. "Really?" She looked behind him, indicating to something over his shoulder. "So I guess that makes her my twin?"
He turned around and saw the "Phoebe" that was in his office walking towards their direction. With his eyes still on that Phoebe, "Yeah, that's why I'm glad to see you, Pheebs. See, I think that's your evil clone that the forces testing us sent to test me."
"Really?"
His eyes still on the first Phoebe, "Yeah."
"So what does that make me?"
Declan was thrown off by that question. Turning around to reply, "What do you mean—" His mouth dropped open in shock, his speech silenced.
The woman who he thought of as "Phoebe" began to magickally morph in front of him. She snickered at his reaction as she revealed her true self to Declan.
"Oh boy… you're *not* Phoebe."
Crossing her arms, in her own voice, "As your Phoebe would respond," In Phoebe's voice, "Duh!"
"Who are you?"
"Humans. Your species certainly do amuse us creatures of black magick. For goodness sakes, your kind created comic books! Don't you know that once the bad guys reveal their scheme, it's only a matter of time before their attempts are foiled?"
"Boy, who says that bad guys don't have a sense of humor."
"If anything, our humor is very warped." She retorted, before blowing a purplish powder on him.
Declan sneezed at first contact, shooing away the dust. "What the—?"
As the sleeping powder began to take shape, the woman looked down upon her nails. Watching Declan slowly fall, "You know, I would usually physically capture humans with a mere injection from my venomous nails… but honestly, these days it's so hard to keep these babies perfectly manicured! Especially since I do most of the grunt work. Oh sure, my husband is a vicious genius and he does have his advantages… but the moron wouldn't even know how to react to a paper cut!" When she looked down, Declan had already fallen into an unconscious state. Scoffing, "Men."
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"That's it! No more falling for men old enough to be… to be…to be my uncle!"
Piper, Leo, and Prue were sitting around the kitchen table when Hurricane Phoebe entered the proximity.
"I'm guessing that this is a sister thing…" Leo whispered to Piper.
"Oh no you don't!" She hissed back, but wasn't able to stop Leo in time before he orbed out.
Phoebe did a double-take. "Didn't I just see Leo in here a second ago?"
"He got called." Piper explained, a bit irritated by his disappearance.
"Oh… well, never mind. You two can stand to hear my ranting for a while. I mean, you two must be extremely used to it by now!"
"Unfortunately." Prue whispered to Piper.
"So, where was I? Oh yeah! I am not falling for men old enough—"
The phone rang, cutting off Phoebe's sentence. Both Prue and Piper got up, "I got it!"
Prue reached it first, sticking a tongue out childishly at Piper. "Ha!" Then to the phone, "Hello? Halliwell residence, Prue speaking."
Piper rolled her eyes at Prue, then turned to face a completely agitated Phoebe. Before either girls could say a single word, Prue's startled voice caught their attention.
"Oh my God! Alright, we'll be right there." Hanging up the phone, "That was Daryl. He said that Michael was being attacked by demons."
"Michael?" Both Phoebe and Piper replied.
Prue dashed out the kitchen before her sisters could question this "Michael" guy.
"C'mon!" They heard her shout clear across the house.
"Prue!" Piper and Phoebe followed, "Who's Michael?"
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"Why am I not surprised that *someone* would be *attacked* by *demons* in a very *dark alley*?" Phoebe joked as they entered the location that Daryl gave Prue.
"So where is this Michael guy?" Piper asked her older sister.
"And Morris?" Prue wondered.
They scanned the area. From the potholes and dumpster to the closed off walls of the connecting buildings. Even though it was still daylight, being in that very small space caused a chill to run through them.
It was then that an ill thought crashed into the Charmed Ones' minds. They glanced at each other, uttering the same words simultaneously, "What if this is a trap?"
"Bravo, ladies. Excellent!"
They looked up and gasped at the sight of their god sister, Kiara.
"Kiara," Prue whispered.
"Yes, 'tis your Kiara's body… but obviously not her soul." She snickered, causing Prue's fingers to itch with anger.
Piper and Phoebe were about to say something, but Kiara had beat them to the punch. "And don't even try that stunt with uttering my true name. I know that your dear friends Annie and Carey had told you about what happened when they tried it… and look what happened to Miss Thelan."
"We wouldn't dare to do something like that, Miss N." Phoebe said, causing Kiara to snicker.
"Oh, how very clever! Miss Phoebe Halliwell, right? Always had the sharpest tongue in the family, didn't ya child?"
"Enough with the idle chit-chat!" Prue demanded, getting extremely anxious with wanting to kick this spirit's butt and getting their Kiara back. "What do you want?"
"Besides the Charmed Ones dead?" Kiara replied. She winked at them, then blinked herself out of the picture.
"Where'd she go?" Piper jumped, startled by the disappearance.
"Carey and Annie were right," Phoebe said, "She does have Kiara's powers."
"Ay, indeed I do."
The Charmed Ones spun around, seeing Kiara sitting comfortably on an empty trash bin.
"You know, as much as I would love to see the oh so legendary Charmed Ones destroyed to oblivion… us evil foes would need to seek a different vocation. Wouldn't want to be responsible for a countless stream of villains standing aimlessly in the unemployment line, now would I?"
Phoebe leaned close to her sisters, whispering, "This is Nov. that we're dealing with, right? Not our Kiara? Because they seem to have the same uncanny, and totally obnoxious, wit about them."
"No." Kiara blinked again, this time appearing over them at the top of one buildings. "No. No. For some god-forsaking reason, they," She indicated towards the ground. "They see you three as the balance between good and evil. They both want and need you."
"Sister, what's up your—"
Kiara cut Phoebe off by cackling at them. "My butt? Besides this massive wedgie… I don't really know. See, I was born bitter and caustic. And I enjoy very much the game I play with my victims."
"I know that you're not in charge of all this, Nov." Prue cried out to the vixen. If anything, Prue knew the exact words on how to tempt the bad guys. "You were sent to do a job, but you decided to have a little fun before accomplishing it. Am I right?"
Kiara began to clap her hands in a mock fashion. She stared daggers down at Prue. "Well, well. Prue Halliwell. The brains behind the Charmed Ones. Let's see, now we have the apparent brain… the brat, oh sorry, I mean, mouth…"
Phoebe suddenly had this uncanny feeling to just gut the spirit right there and then.
Kiara's eyes landed on Piper, still mocking, "So what does that make the middle child? Well, from what I could gather from the crying soul of your god-sister Kiara… I'm taking a wild guess and saying that Piper is the big heart. She's the one that tells the mouth to think before speaking, and the brain to speak when the need arrives to instead of taking her sweet time thinking it over. Makes enough sense for y'all?"
Piper was getting ultra annoyed with this spirit. She was about to throw her hands out and freeze her, but Kiara blinked again.
"This is getting us no where!" Prue hissed, her eyes on alert.
"On the contrary," Kiara spoke up. She appeared again, this time, right in front of them.
"My rant is actually of use. Especially for my—well, as Phoebe would say, yummy boy toys—this is time well spent." She glanced behind her, whistling, "C'mon out, fellas!"
To the Charmed Ones, "Ladies, get out your pencils and get ready to take the big exam!"
The Halliwell sisters took a step back, stunned by the beings making their way towards them. Phoebe's throat tightened, Prue's mind started racing, and Piper began to fear the worst.
Kiara giggled wickedly. "Oh goody! What fun! Okay, first question… what happens when we take three very powerful witches and add them up with three very special men? Oh, and these men just happen to be under a very powerful spell that commands them to kill the Charmed Ones. Not to mention that if they fail, the spell cast upon them will then cause them to drop dead… quite an intriguing incantation that was set upon them actually. I am certainly impressed by it." She then looked the trance instilled men over, "Oh, one more factor that I forgot to mention, yet obviously by your reactions that you already know. These lucky, lucky fellas are very close to y'all lucky lassies. How's THAT for a challenge?" She smirked.
Before Kiara blinked herself out of the proximity, she cackled, "Have fun, ladies. And try not to hurt Professor Dunn, Detective Morris, and Officer Hunt too badly."
=======================================================================================
"Okay, ladies…" Phoebe was in her fighting stance, yet wasn't in the mood to do so. "What do we do… ah!" She ducked as Declan threw a trash lid at her.
She stared in shock at him, then glared, "Oh! You are so lucky that you are in a trance!"
Michael went after Prue, swinging a bat at her. With her powers, she managed to toss it out of his hands, but he still went after her with a vengeance.
Piper had to duck several times at Daryl's attempt to crush her with his bare hands.
"Whoa!" She cried, "I thought boys weren't allowed to hit girls! Isn't that one of their many cardinal rules?"
Prue was trying her best not to hurt Michael, yet made it difficult on herself as Michael kept right on charging at her. "If they're under a spell, I don't think that rule applies… yikes!" Prue jumped to the ground just as Michael had tossed an enormous plank of wood point blank at her.
"Piper…" Phoebe fought the urge to just karate chop Declan, but remembered what Kiara had told them. "Pipe! I think that maybe this is a perfect time to… uh, FREEZE THEM!" Phoebe yelped as Declan swung another heavy object at her.
"Can I do that?"
"I would think so, Pipe." Prue answered, ducking another of Michael's punches.
"And you better hurry, before my temptation leads to serious butt-whooping action!" Phoebe raised herself off the ground, just as Declan charged at her with a broken glass bottle.
"Okay!" With a simple flick of the wrist, Piper froze the men before any serious damage, at least towards the men, was done.
"Now that wasn't so bad…" Phoebe said.
"What are we going to do, guys?" Prue indicated towards the three men, "I mean, the time freezing business could only go on for only a certain time limit… we have to think of something to break these guys out of that spell."
"Must be a powerful spell." Phoebe thought out loud. "I mean, getting someone to kill and if one fails, they die themselves. Talk about a kamikaze incantation."
"Maybe there's a spell in the Book of Shadows that can reverse this." Piper wondered.
"Only one way to find out…" Phoebe looked towards the heavens, "Leo! Leo, get your heavenly butt down here!"
"What a way to page him, Pheebs." Prue snickered.
Just as Leo orbed in, Piper noticed a flicker of unwanted movement coming from Daryl. "Uh-oh! Time freeze!" She shot out her palm, causing time to stand still once again.
Leo looked at them, not the least bit surprised by the frozen figures.
Prue regarded the look, then sighed. "Leo… don't tell me you knew this would happen."
"Only once Phoebe bellowed my name."
"Well then, honey, I guess that we don't need to spend time going over the details."
"Yeah, we just need you to go to our house, look in the Book of Shadows, and find a spell that can somehow save them." Prue ordered him.
Leo sighed, then did as he was told. Not daring to contradict the Charmed Ones.
Phoebe glanced back at Declan, a sad look in her eyes, "Poor Declan… I wish I could break you from this spell…"
=====================================================================
Fiona Phillips smiled at Carey and Annie. Carey was sitting attentively at Annie's bedside, watching her sleep.
Last night was quite an ordeal… but Annie managed to come out shining bright. She was still a bit shaken over what had happened to her, but as long as she had the support and love from her extended family and friends, she knew that everything would be okay.
Carey never realized just how much he cared about Annie. Over the course of her stay, she became like a best friend to him. He needed her as much as she needed him. C'mon, who else would stand up and defend him when he would play a over the top prank on Clu?
Fi was glad that they had each other, and they obviously felt the exact same way.
Quietly, she walked out of the hotel room, leaving them alone. Fiona was about to go and find Clu and Jack when she doubled over in pain. She clutched her stomach, the ache eating at her. When she closed her eyes, images flashed before her eyes. It was of the Charmed Ones being attacked. They were losing badly, yet for some reason, they didn't fight back. Fiona then saw who the Halliwells were up against, and gasped. She saw Declan as he grabbed Phoebe. When Fi looked at his eyes, she noticed that he was in some kind of trance as he was going up against the three witches.
When the pictures stopped did Fiona's agony vanish. Fi stood up, leaning on the wall for support as she regained her breathing. "Oh my God, I have to warn them." She uttered, before running off to find them.
====================================================================
Leo had intended to orb himself into the Halliwell attic to get the Book of Shadows, but instead had landed in a strange room.
The room looked that of a young woman's. It was then that he got the message from the Elders. Looking intently, he finally saw what he was sent to retrieve.
"Jack? Clu? Are you guys in here?"
Leo looked up, recognizing Fiona's voice. "Fiona!" He called out to her, holding her great-grandmother's own Book of Shadows in his hands.
"Leo? What are you doing here?" Fi entered her and Annie's room on the tour bus. She looked at Leo, confused. Then her eyes spotted the book.
"What are you doing with my great-grandma Fiona's spell book?"
"It's very important, Fi. It has the spell that can really help Piper and her sisters."
Fi's eyes widened, "Oh no! Don't tell me that they're fighting Declan who just happens to be under a weird trance."
"They are…" He replied, then peered at her, "How did you know?"
"I just had a vision…" She closed her eyes, trying to recall what she saw.
"They were in trouble, Leo. They didn't want to fight them, and I don't know why."
"That's because our friend Daryl, an officer named Michael, and Declan were put under a spell. And from what my bosses told me, there's only one spell that can lift the one on them… and it's found only in your great-grandmother's Book of Shadows."
She took the book from Leo's grasp, placing it on the desk. "Then let's find it!" Fi began to search through the pages, "And since the stupid rule says that I can't get magickally involved, you're going to have to give the Charmed Ones the incantation."
As she flipped through page after page, Leo softly chuckled at her look of concentration. "Do you even know what you're looking for?"
"Yeah… I'm searching for a spell that can help break the one that was cast on Declan and your friends."
"Do you even know what kind of spell was placed upon Declan?"
Fi looked up at him, her eyes shifted as her brain dug for an answer. Smiling sheepishly, "Uh… no."
Leo returned the smile, "Well, I don't know exactly either…"
"What kind of white lighter are you?" She joked.
"All I know, Fi, is that the beings that were put under were ordered to kill or be killed if they failed."
"What?!"
"Sort of like back in the day when a young man doesn't accomplish his mission and ends up dishonoring his family? They would rather have a dead son than a live one that brings only shame upon the whole clan."
Fi winced, "Yikes… tough spell."
"You said it… now we have to find the one that can break it."
Fiona and Leo looked through each of the pages… until finally, she spotted something.
"Hey, Leo. Check this out…" Fiona read the Celtic inscribed setting, "'This incantation can break a spell that had been cast upon an individual in order to do another person's bidding.'" She looked at him, "This must be it. Look it also says that it was specifically made for removing such a strong spell."
Fiona reached into her desk and began to scribble down the words. "Just change the singular pronouns into plural pronouns and the Charmed Ones are set."
"Excellent job, Fi." He commented proudly.
Fi beamed up at him, then handed Leo the paper, "Give them my blessings, Leo."
"You got it." And with that, Leo orbed back to the original scene.
=====================================================================
"Declan… now Declan, I-I-I really don't wanna hurt you…"
Piper's time freeze had just wore off, leaving the Charmed Ones yet again facing their assassins.
Phoebe backed off a numerous amount of times as Declan came after her with full force. She glanced at her sibling, "Prue! Where in the hell is Leo?!"
Prue, who was busy holding off Michael, cried, "Uh, do I look like his damn keeper? Ask Piper, that's her job!"
"Very funny… no, Daryl!" Piper threw up her hands, freezing Daryl just as he was about to club her over the head.
"Guys! I got the spell!"
The Charmed Ones glanced behind them, seeing their beloved white lighter to the rescue.
"Finally!" Piper exclaimed as she also froze Michael and Declan.
The Halliwell sisters gathered together, Leo joining them with Fiona's spell.
"Here, this incantation was from Fiona's spell book. She wishes you guys luck."
"Thanks, Leo." Prue snatched it from his hands, holding it out for her and her sisters to recite together.
They looked upon the three helpless men, then began the chant.
"With these words, we call upon the hour/ Set forth the light of truth, give us the power. Open their eyes so that they may see/ Look past the darkness, set them free. With our hearts, these words we hinder/ evoke thy spirits, destroy the evil, let their flame never be rekindle. So mote it be."
The witches watched as their words took hold of the venomous evil inside of the men they care for. As the darkness emerged, wailing and vanishing into the sky, Declan, Daryl, and Michael fell to their knees, crying in agony over pain of their evils' banishment.
"Declan!" Phoebe rushed over to him, holding him as he gasped for breath and tried to regain control of his senses.
Piper and Leo ran over to Daryl, just as he collapsed from the torture, while Prue made her way to comfort Michael.
"Uh, guys… Daryl's unconscious. We have to get him some medical attention." Piper said to her sisters.
"Same with Michael." Prue responded, cradling his head in her arms.
Declan, however, was still well aware of his pain. Phoebe tried to hush him, holding the man in her arms. "Prue… Piper… Leo… something's wrong with Declan and I can't seem to help him." She was tearing up inside, helpless that she can't do anything to heal him.
Leo looked over at Prue and Piper. "You guys, go take Michael and Daryl to the hospital. I'll help Phoebe with Declan… I think the reason why he's having a hard time is because he's still battling with his own demons."
While the two Halliwell witches complied to Leo's command, he made his way over to Phoebe.
"What do you mean, Leo? I don't understand…" She cooed Declan, "Declan, please…"
"From what we saw, it looks like whoever had cast the spell had placed some very wicked spirits to control them. If Daryl guys had failed, the spirits would just have to destroy them." He laid a hand over Declan's forehead, a light emerging from it.
"I still don't understand, Leo. If that's true, why is he still haunted by them?"
"Those spirits must have evoked his own personal demons. When they were destroyed, his own demons must have emerged and taken control."
"So-so-so how can we help him?"
Suddenly, Declan began to have a seizure, his whole body convulsing within Phoebe's arms. Her heart started to beat uncontrollably out of fear for him.
"Leo! Leo, he's having a seizure!"
"I know, Phoebe… but I want you to just hold him. Let him know that you're there for him. I think that's all he needs to know in order for him to regain control of himself."
"Declan… don't you dare let those demons win. Fight! Please fight! And come back to me…" She held him tighter, his convulsions weakening. "I'm here for you, Declan. Remember that… come back to us…"
The tighter she held him, the less Declan's body shook. A few minutes more passed, until he finally was peacefully at ease in Phoebe's arms. His breathing was light, his eyes fluttering up at her.
"Phoebe?" His voice was hoarse.
A small relieved laugh escaped her lips, "Declan…"
His eyes finally opened wide, taking her in. He then glanced at Leo, who was beaming proudly at him. "Uh… what happened?"
Phoebe laughed, then hugged him again… and not letting go anytime soon.
Declan returned the hug, but still confused. "Uh, okay, Phoebe… Phoebe… Pheebs, you can, like, let go now… I mean, as much as I love a hug from you, I sort of need to breath… Phoebe?"