Heaven Can't Wait
Chapter 6
"It's been three days, don't you think it's about time that he gave us a sign…"
Leo was talking to Coleridge quietly, as the girls were preparing for the funerals.
"You know," he continued, "Cole reacted quiet in the same manner when we thought that Phoebe was dead… It's becoming a bad habit for the men in this family… I wouldn't have thought that Paul could have abandoned the girls in their grief though…"
Coleridge looked indulgently at the young man, or at least he considered him young compared to him…
"I'm sure that he would like to be of help but he might not have the strength right now…"
Leo looked curiously at him:
"Do you have any idea of where he is?"
Coleridge:
"No, unfortunately I'm just as much in the dark about this as you all are. He simply vanished without a trace three days ago…"
Leo watched him for a moment more, as if wondering what, if anything he might be hiding, but he decided to drop it and went to Piper instead.
Coleridge's attention was still on him when his son's voice coming from behind startled him:
"What's the matter?"
Coleridge:
"Nothing really. Why do you ask?"
Cole:
"I don't know, Leo seemed upset. I mean more than usual considering…"
Coleridge seemed to relax:
"Oh he was just wondering about Paul's absence. He actually compared it to yours at Phoebe's funerals."
Cole frowned at the reminder:
"Well, if he feels anything like I did then, that might explain why he wouldn't want to be here…"
Coleridge:
"You think that he feels guilty for her death?"
Cole seemed even more uncomfortable at the mention of guilt.
"Possibly." He answered shortly.
Coleridge continued:
"As you still do…"
Cole looked the sister's way before answering almost in a whisper:
"Yeah…"
Cole saw that his father was about to protest and he raised his hand to stop him.
"Don't try to make me feel better about this. I should have been able to save her. Now things are so much worse."
Coleridge:
"Maybe, it won't be as bad as it seems now."
Cole:
"What do you mean?" He asked suddenly interested.
Coleridge:
"That's all I can tell you for now. I have already said too much."
Cole insisted:
"If there is something that you know…"
Now it was Coleridge's turn to interrupt:
"Please don't ask me anymore, suffice to say that the situation might change soon and leave it at that…"
Cole was intrigued by this information, but he understood that his father couldn't or wouldn't say more…
He still looked pensively from the sisters to his father in turn, wondering…
Up there, the Elders were in uproar.
They usually had little or no contact with the dead, but in this instance they were staring at Patti's ghostly figure severely.
"How did you manage to hide her?"
Patti was getting tired of the questioning. She knew how important it was to them but this was becoming too much.
She answered with a point of sarcasm:
"The first time or this one?"
One of the Elders bent toward her with a vaguely threatening stance, to which Patti just shrugged as he definitely had no more powers over her.
"Where is she?"
Patti wished that she could answer that question but she didn't let them see this. Instead she reiterated her protestations:
"You may say what you want about me, but if I hadn't had this girl with Sam, things would be hopeless right now…"
Undaunted the Elder who was leaning toward her continued:
"And what good does it do if she disappeared?"
Patti shrugged again, this time with a little embarrassment, but didn't answer…
"How long are we supposed to stay here?" Paige asked the ghost, now used to talk to her. For the last three days, they had been hiding, moving apparently through dimensions. The simple thought of it blew her mind. Until the faithful moment, three days ago, when she had finally realized that it was all true, she had considered such word as part only of science fiction movies and not the best ones at that…
Prue's ghostly silhouette turned to her with a hint of irritation:
"For as long as necessary."
Paige gestured angrily:
"As if that wasn't enough that I most certainly lost my job, that I have no clue where I am… You say that you are my sister, my dead sister at that… When is this going to end?"
Prue:
"You have to accept your destiny. Only then will you be able to face the danger and live to talk about it."
Paige gave her a dubious reply:
"Huh, like you?"
Prue hesitated. Three days ago, before they had embarked in this little escapade together, the situation had been pretty hairy. She had come to try and talk to her newfound sister, only to realize the imminent danger that she was in. As soon as she had managed to appear in Paige's tiny kitchen, she had started anxiously to try and convince her of her gift. Paige had become really angry at the new arrival.
"What in the hell?" She had said, too angry by then to even think of being scared. "I get rid of one vision and then I get another… Will someone please wake me up from this nightmare."
Prue, at this point had used her most severe tone of voice and curtly replied:
"WAKE UP, indeed. He is about to come in and kill you!"
Paige refused to be intimidated or detoured from reality:
"Not that again! No one is coming to kill me, and I have had enough of all this."
She had barely managed to utter this that she caught sight of her uncle coming in the kitchen. This time though, there was no doubt about his intentions. He held a mean looking knife and the smile on his face contained no trace of the friendship that she thought they had.
Paige exclaimed:
"Bob!"
Bob stopped for a moment, looking at her in derision:
"There is no more Bob… My name is Gandel and I have come for your powers, at last."
Paige turned to the ghost that only she, apparently, could see.
Then she turned back anxiously to Bob:
"Powers?"
You see little witch," he replied in a low and threatening voice, " you won't have to worry about this for much longer…"
Then he started toward her resolutely.
Prue almost screamed at her:
"Use your power now! You have to get away from him."
Paige still stared with terror filled eyes at the man she had always considered a friend, and Prue had to repeat anxiously:
"Now!"
The loud voice triggered something inside her. She felt the real need to get away and just as she thought of it, this time there was no doubt about what happened. All around her, little balls of light started to appear and in a few seconds she knew that she wasn't in the kitchen anymore. She found herself standing in the street below, shaking all over.
But the voice wasn't going to give her any respite. Prue continued anxiously:
"Do it again, we need to get away from him…"
Paige was about to protest that he was still upstairs, when he simply blinked right in front of her. Only a quick reaction saved her as she orbed again. Amazingly enough, she found herself in the house where she grew up. This was out of town, miles away from where she had just been. Prue again didn't give her a chance to take a breath:
"It's not enough, repeat after me:
"In the shimmering light, the way be shown
Let us safely cross through to the unknown"
Paige was too stunned to protest, and she repeated the words even if the absurdity of the situation was so obvious to her. However, the moment she finished the spell, a bluish mist surrounded her and in an instant she was transported in a land that didn't do anything to alleviate her worries. Around her, a strange vine forest extended beyond her field of vision. It was dark and cold. Strange noises, totally unfamiliar, gave her chills. Now she was absolutely convinced that it all was a nightmare for no such place had ever existed. She didn't even believe it possible that she could have a nightmare about it, so foreign this place was. "Girl," she said aloud, "you have gone way over the edge this time."
She was already pinching herself, when Prue appeared again in front of her. This time, Paige didn't jump at the apparition. Instead she went closer, almost threateningly:
"Where in the hell did you bring me? What sort of nightmare is this?"
Prue found it almost amusing that she was trying to intimidate her. Nevertheless the situation was serious and she now had some time to talk to her. She intended to make the best of it:
"First of all, I didn't bring you here, at least not really. You did…"
Paige interrupted rudely:
"Of course I did," she said stubbornly, "it's my nightmare."
Prue chose to ignore the anger in her voice:
"I know or I think that I know how you feel; I still remember how it was for me when I found out what I was…"
Paige:
"What you are? You are a figment of my imagination…"
Prue:
"NO! You have to understand that I'm here and that you truly are in this strange world. But more than anything else, that it is your powers as a witch that allowed you to come here, so doing escaping certain death…"
Paige derisively:
"Yeah, my best friend was trying to kill me…"
She gave one more dejected look at the ghost and turned her back to her decisively. She didn't know where she would go, but she was sure going to try and get away from Prue…
Prue pinched her ethereal lips in frustration. By following Paige into this world, she had cut the ties with their own world and ensured that she couldn't be recalled. Her intention was to take as much time as was needed to convince her sister to help. However, she realized in this instant that it might be a lot more difficult than she had imagined. In spite of herself, she worried about her sisters, making it difficult for her to sympathize with Paige's troubles. Still, she knew that she would have to be patient, a sentiment that was somewhat stranger to her…
Now, three days later, in the relative safety of a cave, Prue thought back to this and knew that her patience was just about worn off… At least by now, Paige had accepted her as the ghost of her sister. And she also was this close to believing that she was a witch. It still didn't convince her that she should go to Piper and Phoebe, and even less that she should accept her destiny…
Paige protested again:
"How much longer do I have to stay in these ugly places. I want to go home…"
Prue impatiently answered:
"Home to what? A lonely life, in which you have no idea of what you really are and what you could do?"
Paige:
"A life where people, friends of mine," she says louder, "didn't try to kill me before I heard of you."
Prue:
"You were looking for us, well now you found us."
Paige:
"If I had known, I wouldn't have been looking…"
Prue:
"I don't believe that. I know that in your heart, you've always been aware that you were destined to greater things than being an underpaid secretary…"
Paige looked curiously at the ghost, wondering if she had read her mind or something. By now, that wouldn't have surprised her in the least. This alone struck her as incredible. How could she not be surprised by such a thought? Yet she wasn't and she wondered if maybe there was something to what Prue said. With all the excitement of the last few days, she had barely any time to think back about all those dreams that she had formulated in the past. All the great expectations that were never met… Still, here she was, presented with a destiny, but not in any way the glamorous ones that she had imagined. What Prue offered, was a life of danger, and possibly sacrifices for other people. Maybe even the ultimate one, as she couldn't doubt it, seeing her sister as a ghost in front of her. For the first time since she met her, she found herself curious about it:
"What happened to you?"
The question startled Prue, as she had not expected this reversal in Paige's attitude.
"It's a long story, and it doesn't have to be like this for you…"
Paige:
"Tell me," she insisted.
Prue hesitated then she related to her what happened to all of them in the last few years since they had found out about being witches.
She didn't go into all the details, but the more she said, the more Paige's interest grew.
Paige interrupted at one point:
"The…Spell you used to bring us here and all the other places… Did you get that from this Book of Shadows of yours?"
Prue:
"No, in fact it came from a very good friend of mine." A shadow passed over Prue's expression. Paige could see that it was an emotional memory. She wondered about this as Prue continued:
"Paul is his name, he is a wizard… I'll explain that one later. Suffice to say, he helped us out of many difficult situations in the past…"
Paige:
"Oh…" Then when Prue stayed silent for a moment, she insisted again:
"Please continue…
Prue obliged.
The girls were now standing by the grave, the priest was telling the last prayer for their departed sister, but neither one of them really heard much of it. They both leaned on their respective husband for support and they were both closed to tears yet again. After the ceremony was over, Cole and Leo nudged them away from the site. They were in a daze, unable to believe that it was all for real. Actually, Piper still had doubts, more because of her intense denial than anything else did, as she turned to Leo, hopeful:
"You know that we were right here not long ago for Phoebe's funeral and yet here she is, alive. Couldn't it be the same for Prue?"
Leo didn't know what to answer to that. It really was difficult to burst his wife's hopes. However, he was convinced that this time, it was for real…
"Piper," he started softly, but he couldn't continue when he saw the pain in her eyes.
Cole also heard the comment. He had explained to them after they insisted, what had happened in the underworld. He couldn't doubt either that Prue was dead. Still, he didn't think that now was the time to remind Piper or Phoebe of the very different circumstances. There would be time later for this.
Ever since it had happened they had either grieved for their sisters or feared that the demons would come to attack, now that they were down. However, no one had come for them as of yet. Phoebe thought that they probably didn't because they feared Cole and his new powers, which was a reasonable assumption. For this reason, even though the Elders had wanted him to come to them, he had refused to leave their side even for a moment. There was nothing that would make him risk their safety again, no more than he would risk staying away from his child, who was in Coleridge's arms, and this one was now walking back to the cars with them. They were almost there when Coleridge looked up in the usual manner of a whitelighter receiving a call. He turned toward them apologetically and Phoebe understood. She went to get the baby from him and with a weak smile told him that it was ok. He looked around and when he was sure not to be seen, orbed up.
For the last three days, the two families had preferred to stay at the Turner's house, as too many memories were found at the manor. However, on this day they had decided to spend a few hours there. For the first time since they had lost their sister, they were entering the house. Phoebe and Piper looked at each other in sorrow before opening the door and just as they had worked up the courage, Coleridge returned from his short visit to the Elders.
They looked at him curiously for a short moment but he told them nothing and they entered the house. However, before they could all go inside, Coleridge took his son's arm and pulled him out of hear shot.
"The Elders really need you right now…"
Cole:
"You know perfectly well that Phoebe and Piper need me more here, it's too dangerous for me to go."
Coleridge hesitated, and then he seemed to make a decision:
"Ok I wasn't supposed to tell you, but it's important that you help so here goes: there may be another one…"
Cole, perplex:
"Another what?"
Coleridge looked around as if afraid that one of the others could hear:
Cole wondered if he heard right:
"What did you say?"
Coleridge replied impatiently:
"You heard me."
Cole took a moment before asking again:
"And where would be that…sister?"
Coleridge:
"Well you see that is our problem, she disappeared…"
Cole almost laughed at this:
"You can say that again, no one has ever heard of a fourth sister…"
Coleridge remained very serious:
"Until now."
That shook Cole a little:
"Ok, I thought that it was a bad joke… but you're going a little far…"
Coleridge:
"It's true, I assure you and we believe that only you can find her again."
Cole frowned:
"How?"
Coleridge:
"The Elders are convinced that as your ancestors and the demon that you were, you can still travel between dimensions… And it would seem that Paige, that is her name, has been transported in one or more alternate universe."
Cole:
"By whom and why?"
Coleridge:
"The why would be that she became in danger from the moment that her witch powers were awakened. The who…"
Cole seeing that he still hesitated:
"Who?"
Coleridge:
"Prue…"
Cole jumped a little, then:
"Prue?"
Coleridge was about to answer when Phoebe came back out, wondering what they were doing.
"Is there something wrong?" She asked anxiously.
Coleridge answered rapidly:
"Not really, it's just that the Elders really want to talk to your husband…"
Phoebe didn't like what she heard, particularly not on this day and she turned to Cole somewhat irritated:
"You're not going are you?"
The look on his face told her immediately that something had changed but he said nothing. Instead Coleridge intervened:
"If it wasn't important, they wouldn't ask Phoebe."
She signaled that she heard him but went to Cole directly.
He looked down at her wordlessly for a moment, debating on what he should tell her. His father didn't have time to say, but he understood that they didn't want the girls to know.
Finally he said:
"I don't want to leave you but…"
She asked softly:
"What is so important?"
He looked toward his father, who wordlessly signaled that he shouldn't…
"I can't tell you."
And when he saw that she was about to protest:
"But it will become clear soon, I promise."
Phoebe:
"Why not now?"
He smiled gently, trying to ease her anxiety:
"Just be patient, please" he almost pleaded.
She looked at him with a questioning expression for a long moment then she sighed in resignation.
"Alright," she said at last, as much to him as to his father. "Will it take long?"
Coleridge:
"There is no way to know."
Cole turned to him:
"You'll have to stay here with them, or I won't go anywhere…"
Coleridge:
"Of course, don't worry."
To Phoebe:
"I'm sorry…"
She put her fingers on his mouth then said:
"Just come back soon."
Cole smiled again:
"Promise." Then he kissed her and vanished in a flash of light.
Phoebe turned to Coleridge:
"I hope it's for a good reason?"
Coleridge:
"I assure you, it is…"
She was about to question further when a new arrival caught her attention. Joel was coming up the driveway with a very dark expression. She invited him in immediately. Then as she saw that he remained very serious:
"Did Paul tell you," she asked?
Joel replied sadly:
"He didn't have to, we all felt his grief…"
Phoebe:
"All?"
Piper and Leo had just come to them, worried also by the time it took the others to come back in.
Joel ignored the question:
"I'm very sorry for your loss, but I have another reason to be here. Did you see Paul in the last few days?"
The girls were impressed by the gravity of his tone of voice; well beyond his physical age. They understood that they were now talking with the old soul of the boy.
Piper was the one to answer for them:
"No we haven't seen him since he left our house three days ago, we are very worried too…"
Joel:
"As well you should be, but not for the reason that you think… Something is wrong with him and we are not sure how much in danger everyone is because of it. We just know that it is bad…"
Piper:
"What do you mean?"
Joel:
"An old evil has resurfaced and used his grief to invade him. We think that Paul is trying to get rid of him somehow, but we have no idea of where he went… You should be prepared in case he fails."
The others stared in disbelief. All but Leo, who now realized that what he had felt, might just have been real…
A strange mist rose from the unseen ground. Paul sat quietly, as if suspended in the mist, eyes closed and apparently in deep concentration.
However, his mind was in a constant battle with the entity.
"You can't keep me in check forever, you know that Los. Sooner or later, you will fail and I'll be in control."
Paul breathed deeply, refusing to be taunted by the voice.
"I'll keep you here, for as long as it's gonna take."
The Entity laughed derisively:
"You are deluding yourself, I'm already in you, it's only a question of time, very little at that, before I take over and escape this dreary in between of yours."
In a deep corner of his mind, one that he still could keep away from the entity, Paul knew that he was probably right. However, he intended to fight every inch of the way. There was too much at stake in this.
He had been in this place for a long time now; he wasn't sure how much. When the first sign of his losing control appeared, he had put himself in between world and reality. In a place that he knew wouldn't affect any living being anywhere. Suspended in this non-reality, he had fought to regain control, but until now had not been successful. All he could do was delay the apparently inevitable. He knew that he was this close to fail in his attempt, and fear crept its way inside him. With a mighty effort, he pushed it back, determined to make sure that the entity wouldn't know how close he was to succeed.
No matter how hard he tried not to hear, the voice persisted:
"You're mine and soon they all will be…"
Paige looked away, uncertain of what to think of all these revelations.
Prue called to her:
"What?"
Paige:
"This sounds so unbelievable. If I wasn't here and seeing it with my own eyes, I couldn't even imagine that any of this was possible. Not in a million years…"
Prue:
"I know how you feel, trust me. Four years ago, when it all started, I didn't believe it either. Nevertheless, when the facts were finally obvious to me, I accepted them, and so did our sisters…"
Paige looked back suddenly:
"How?"
Prue smiled warily:
"It simply was the right thing to do."
Paige pursed her lips in indecision:
"I wish that I could believe in this as much as you do. But it's all too much. Why me?"
Prue:
"It's our destiny, our family's destiny; and I know that you must know that in your heart."
Paige defiantly:
"What if I don't? What if I refuse to accept this destiny of yours?"
Prue:
"It's part of who you are, you cannot deny it."
Paige:
"But isn't there a way for me to stay out of it?"
"There might be…" she finally replied in a hesitant tone of voice.
Paige showed interest at this:
"Really?"
Prue quickly started again:
"But it still would be no guaranty that they wouldn't come after you, and what's more, you would put all of our family, maybe even the world in jeopardy…"
This didn't seem to impress Paige, and Prue began to doubt that she could help them…
The Elders were mildly pleased at his arrival:
"It took you long enough to answer our call…"
Cole didn't let them intimidate him:
"I had good reasons and you know it."
One of them started again, ignoring the challenge:
"I gather that you know now why we called you?"
Cole:
"Yup, although I still have trouble believing that neither sides were ever aware of her…"
The Elder:
"Nevertheless, it's real and we need you to find her…"
Cole:
"Are you sure that she wants be found?"
The Elder insisted:
"You know as well as we do that your wife and her sister are in great danger still. If there is a chance that this girl could come to them and reestablished the power of three, it is worth a try."
Cole:
"Well then, I'll try my best."
He vanished without waiting for their approval…