Part Ten
"So, when Dad and I got home, Mom and her friend Buffy were in the
kitchen and they were crying and laughing." Ron took a handful of
popcorn. The movie was playing, but no one was really watching it.
Paige and Gunn had moved into the corner onto the loveseat and were
talking quietly. The kids had staked out the floor in front of the
television. "Dad said they must have made up because that's how girls
get when they're really happy. They get emotional." Ron and Connor
both gave Pandora a nervous and suspicious look.
Pandora rolled her eyes as she finished chewing her popcorn. "Don't
worry, I'll let you guys take turns dealing with my hysterics then
you'll only have to worry about it every other week." She laughed at
the horrified faces of her friends. She scooped popcorn from the bowl
and chucked it at them. "I'm kidding, morons."
"How were we supposed to know? We got to know you because you were
having a girly attack and Connor got all concerned - by the way, buddy,
her hysterics are totally your territory." Ron reciprocated by
throwing popcorn back at Pandora.
"I don't think so." Connor joined in on the fun. A flurry of popcorn
zinged between them in an intense skirmish. Paige and Gunn continued
to talk in the corner, unaware of the battle.
*****
It wasn't a premonition. Phoebe just got that shivery feeling of evil
as she approached Pandora's teacher. There was nothing physically
about the woman that suggested she was a demon, there was just
something about her. Of course, the feeling could just be a product of
her niece's suspicions. She wouldn't know until she got a premonition.
Phoebe took a deep breath and focused her mind. Over the years, her
power of premonition had grown so that she could generate one
voluntarily if the occasion warranted it. She held out her hand to the
teacher and smiled. "Hi, I'm Phoebe. I've heard a lot about you, Ms.
Foster, from my niece."
"I hope it was good." Ms. Foster returned her smile warmly. She took
Phoebe's hand and shook it. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs...."
"Ms., actually, Ms. Halliwell," Phoebe answered absently. She felt the
other woman withdraw her hand abruptly, but it was too late. A sinking
black void overwhelmed her. There was nothing. No hope, no joy, no
fear, no love. The teacher was a blank slate, but behind the blankness
was a pervading sense of evil and a name. Wolfram and Hart.
"Phoebe?" Piper's worried voice brought her back and she blinked at her
older sister. "Phoebe, is everything okay?"
"No." Phoebe shook her head vehemently. "We have to find Connor and
Ron's parents and then we have to leave."
"You can't leave, you must stay and associate with the other parents,"
Ms. Foster insisted. "Pandora is a lovely child. She's very bright
and...."
"How dare you talk about my daughter." Piper stepped toward the
teacher, her hands clenched at her sides.
"Piper, there are too many people here." Leo held his wife back and
led her out into the hall with Phoebe following them. He would have
loved to let her blast the woman who threatened their daughter, but it
was his job to protect the Charmed Ones and there were way too many
people in that room. "Tell us what you saw, Phoebe."
"Ms. Foster isn't the threat. She's nothing but a puppet animated by
evil. I think she was created by Wolfram and Hart, the law firm Pan
told us about."
"You're probably right. Wolfram and Hart use golems a lot," a male
voice agreed. The man of information stood with his arm around a
woman with red hair. "I'm Lindsey MacDonald and this is my wife,
Willow. We're Ron's parents."
"I thought his last name was Weasley - like the character in the Harry
Potter books." Piper eyed the newcomers with suspicion. Another
couple stood just behind Lindsey and Willow MacDonald and from Paige's
descriptions she guessed they were the vampire and part demon seer.
She wasn't comfortable with these people. Piper wanted to know how
much they would be willing to reveal to her about themselves before she
trusted them with her family's secrets. "And how do you know about
golems and evil law firms?"
"It's a long story, but the gist is that I've had some problems with
Ron's biological father. He's evil and wanted to hurt Ron, so I ran
away from him. When he was six, Ron picked out the name as his alias.
I used to read him the books." Willow smiled at the memory. "His name
is actually Ron Alexander Rosenberg."
"And to answer your second question, I know about golems and evil law
firms because I used to work for Wolfram and Hart."
"And I'm supposed to find that comforting?"
"You can trust him," Angel defended Lindsey even though he didn't
believe what he was saying. There was something different about these
people. He had recognized the way the one woman's whole body had
stiffened when she had shaken the teacher's hand. It was how Cordelia
used to look when she had vision before she became part demon. "How
exactly did you find out the teacher was golem?"
*****
"Do we have a visual inside the hotel yet?" Lilah snapped impatiently.
She stopped herself from biting her fingernails and clasped her hands
together. She wanted to pace. Things were going too smoothly - just
as she had planned. It was starting to make her nervous. In all the
years she had known Angel, nothing had ever went as she had planned it.
"The vamp and his friends have always been on top of sweeping our bugs,
so I brought some remotes. They should be in there right about now."
The technician grinned proudly. He flipped a few switches and the
hotel's lobby sprang onto the television screen.
The picture changed as the remote glided through into the parlor.
Lilah's nerves calmed as she surveyed the scene. The brats started
flinging popcorn at each other. Angel's son looked remarkably like
him, hopefully he would be easier to manage than his father. Some
random kernels hit Angel's associate, Gunn, and the witch. It was a
normal evening at home, babysitting the kiddies. They suspected
nothing. "Send in the recovery team."
*****
The nerve, questioning her and her family about their knowledge of
golems when he stood there being a vampire. Piper scowled. She had
been willing to entertain the idea of a vampire with a soul for her
daughter's sake and because Connor seemed like a good kid, but she
would not have a demon casting aspersions on her family. Piper was
very tempted to have Leo orb them away so they could collect Pandora
and Paige and have nothing more to do with these people when something
occurred to her. "We're all here."
"Yes, we are." Angel frowned. Was this woman crazy? She obviously
didn't like him or Lindsey - which was a good instinct in Lindsey's
case - but she really wouldn't have a good reason for her dislike
unless she knew that he was a vampire. And if she knew that he was a
vampire, then she would also need a reason for why she wasn't afraid of
him. "You and your daughter aren't just normal, average people, are
you?"
"We're witches, but we don't have time to play what kind of
supernatural being are you right now. Phoebe, did you see anything
about the children in your premonition?" Piper turned to her sister
who shook her head.
"Sorry, all I got was that Ms. Foster is nothing and she's connected to
Wolfram and Hart."
"But there has to be a reason why we're all here at this parent/teacher
night conveniently organized by a golem animated by an evil law firm."
Piper's voice rose in pitch. She was on the edge of panic - just the
edge - the only thing that kept her teetering on the brink was knowing
that Paige was with Pandora.
"I haven't had a vision," Cordelia offered. "The PTB would have sent
me a vision if Connor was in danger."
"Lilah's interfered with your visions before." Angel was starting to
catch the witch's distress. He felt a hand on his arm and looked down
into Willow's reassuring gaze.
"Gunn is with them, he'll keep them safe and we'll all leave right
now."
"Our sister Paige is there too," Phoebe added. "Leo, why don't you orb
Piper and Connor's dad to the hotel and we'll follow."
Piper hesitated a fraction of a second before holding out her hand.
His son was in as much danger as her daughter if not more. "You have
to hang on to me. We'll be there almost immediately."
Before her offer could be taken, Ms. Foster stepped out into the hall
and closed the door to the classroom. "You can't leave yet," she said
and smiled as if the jig wasn't up and everyone thought she was a nice
school teacher. "We have to discuss your children."
"She's not a real person, right?" Piper directed her question toward
Lindsey.
"Not anymore."
"Good." With a flick of her wrist, Piper blasted the teacher. The
golem didn't even scream as it disintegrated. Piper held her hand out
to Connor's father again. She felt Leo clasp her tighter as the
vampire took her hand. The three of them disappeared in a maelstrom
of blue light.
*****
This was one of the best nights of her life. It would definitely go
into the Paige's Non-date Dates Hall of Fame. She hadn't stopped
smiling since she and Pandora had arrived. God, she hoped she didn't
look like a goof. She really liked Charles Gunn and the best thing
about him was that she didn't have to worry about the inevitable
revelation that she was a witch. He might be surprised by it, but he
wouldn't think she was insane or a freak. "So, anyway, after my year
of unemployed no life, I got my job back and was promoted to a full
social worker a few years ago." A comfortable silence settled between
them as they locked gazes. Paige licked her lips. Gunn was leaning
closer to her. She was about to close the distance when she felt
something hit her cheek. Paige looked down to a lap full of popcorn
and the sounds of the children yelling finally made it to the
foreground of her attention.
"Hey!" Gunn jumped up. The popcorn fight came to an abrupt halt as the
kids immediately turned to the televison. "What's going on here?"
"Just watching a movie." Connor motioned to the screen without taking
his eyes from it. He stopped himself from glancing at the popcorn
scattered around the floor or at his friends. He heard Ron snort
trying to hold in his laughter.
"I guess we made too much popcorn." Paige shook her head at the mess.
"Where's your vacuum?"
"I'll get it." Gunn sighed and headed toward the janitor's closet.
Damn kids had ruined a moment. Kissing had been in his immediate
future. "Damn ancient vampire and his damn ancient appliances," Gunn
grumbled as he hauled the old vacuum cleaner out of the closet. He
slung the hose over his shoulder and turned around. Paige was helping
the kids collect the popcorn that hadn't been crushed into the carpet.
He took a moment to admire the view as she crawled around the floor.
Gunn's Paige Appreciation Time was violently interrupted when they
heard the front doors bang open and several men dressed in black rushed
into the parlor. The man in front immediately aimed a rifle at Paige
and fired. "Aunt Paige!" Pandora scrambled toward her aunt. No blood
issued from a wound, the only indication that Paige had been hit was a
green glow at the base of her neck. Gunn sprang into action and
clocked the guy closest to him with vacuum cleaner - unfortunately it
wasn't the guy who had the rifle.
"I'm okay." Paige blinked to get her vision back in focus. It was
fuzzy, like she was looking at the world through a static-filled
television screen. She saw the man aim at Pandora. "Rifle." Paige
held out her hand, but nothing happened. The rifle stayed where it
was - pointed at her niece.
"Dory!" Ron yelled and dove at his friend. The green aura hit him in
the back. He collapsed onto Pandora.
"Ron, are you okay?" Pandora maneuvered herself out from under Ron.
She and Connor helped him sit up.
"Yeah, I think so." Ron shook his head violently. "I can't change
into my animal form. I'm trying, but nothing's happening."
"Aunt Paige couldn't call the rifle to her either. Whatever they shot
you with, it's blocking your magic."
"He aimed at you, Dory. They know you and your are witches." Connor
moved in between his friends and the Wolfram and Hart operatives. He
knew they were after him, but he didn't like it that they knew Dory was
a witch. She would be valuable to them too. "Ms. Foster must be
working for Wolfram and Hart. They knew that our parents would be at
the school tonight."
"Connor, you and your friends get out of here," Gunn yelled. More men
entered the parlor. He glanced over to Paige, who was handling herself
well, but they were hopelessly outnumbered. A blue light in his
peripheral vision distracted Gunn for a second and he got kicked in the
gut. When he looked up, Angel and Pandora's mother stood at the
entrance to the parlor with another man.
As soon as they appeared, Piper froze all the men in black. "Pandora!
Paige!" She searched the crowded parlor for her daughter and sister.
Pandora, Connor, and Ron were crouched close to the couch. Paige was
extracting herself from the grasp of her frozen assailants.
"It's about time you got here," Paige grumbled. She gave Gunn a weak
smile. He was poking at the guy who had kicked him and getting no
response.
"Why didn't you orb everyone out of here?" Piper started to make her
way to her daughter.
Angel and Gunn shared a look, not really sure what to do since beating
on frozen Wolfram and Hart operatives would look stupid. "Connor, are
you okay?" Angel wanted nothing more than to find Lilah and crush her
for this attempt to kidnap his son, but he had to make sure Connor
wasn't hurt.
Before Connor could answer, the windows burst in a shower of glass.
One of the incoming operatives crashed into Piper and knocked her to
the floor. The frozen operatives suddenly came to life and Gunn and
Angel found themselves with too much to do. That's when Phoebe,
Cordelia, Willow, and Lindsey showed up and joined the fray. Angel
noticed that Willow had picked up a few tricks in her time away as she
zapped a few operatives. Angel's observation was interrupted when he
saw one of the operatives fire a crossbow at the children.
"Connor. Ron." Pandora grabbed her friends' arms and closed her eyes.
She orbed them out of the parlor as the tranquilizer dart buried its
tip into the carpet.
*****
Lilah's stomach turned as Angel and the witch appeared in the lobby.
Bad went to worse when the others showed up and started kicking her
best operatives' asses. There was a brief moment of hope when the
tranquilizer dart was fired, but that quickly went up in smoke when the
brats disappeared. "Retreat, dammit!" she ordered as the video feed
from the Hyperion died. She turned to the driver of the van. "Get out
of here. Now." She had to get back to her office. Luckily she had
come across something after her little chat with Lindsey when he had
appeared back in town. It might stop Angel from killing her.
*****
The operatives started to clear out - dragging the incapacitated with
them. It wasn't mercy or loyalty that prompted their actions, they
didn't want to leave anyone behind who could talk. Angel let them go.
He knew who was responsible. He crossed over to Piper Halliwell and
her husband. A bright golden glow emanated from the man's hand as he
healed his wife's lacerations from the glass. "Where are the kids?"
"Pandora can't orb very far yet." Piper stood up with Leo's help.
"They have to be around here somewhere. Leo, can you sense her?"
"They're upstairs." Leo smiled proudly. Pan had trouble orbing
herself short distances, but when she had to she had orbed her and her
friends out of danger. "I'll go tell them it's safe to come down."
"Leo is our whitelighter - a guardian angel for witches," Piper
explained as Leo orbed upstairs. "My sisters and I are the Charmed
Ones, we protect innocents from evil. Paige, why didn't you orb
everyone out of here?"
"I couldn't. They shot me with something that's blocking my magic."
Paige risked a glance at Gunn to gauge his reaction to the new
information about her. He seemed mildly bemused, but not upset. She
would have to apologize and explain why she hadn't told him earlier.
Maybe find a way to make it up to him. "Do you think Leo can fix it?"
"Ron was hit with it too," Pandora informed them as they all returned
to the parlor. "Dad fixed him."
"Ron." Willow rushed to embrace her son. She would have been a little
bit more impressed to be in the presence of the Charmed Ones if she
hadn't been so concerned for Ron. She had read about them in Giles'
books back in highschool.
"They didn't hurt you, did they?" Cordelia already had Connor in a
stranglehold. It was difficult to hug him and check him for injuries
at the same time.
"No, Dory got us out of there before they could get to me." Connor
shrugged away. As much as he loved his Mom, it was getting
embarrassing.
"I'm fine, Mom. Geez." Ron struggled out of Willow's arms at the
same time. "They were aiming at Dory."
Piper instinctively clasped Pandora closer to her. "What is this
Wolfram and Hart? Are they going to try to kidnap the kids again?"
"No." Angel picked up and pocketed the dart. "I'll take care of it."
*****
Waiting was not one of Lilah's talents, but she didn't want Angel to
catch her pacing. That would make her look nervous and vulnerable.
She was neither. She sat at her desk instead, but couldn't help
drumming her fingernails on the glossy surface. Angel was taking
longer to come after her than she thought he would. Lilah sighed and
turned to her laptop. She might as well get some work done while she
waited.
Lilah was halfway through the Hayden file when she felt a sharp jab at
her neck. She lifted her hand to touch the spot only to have it
captured in a crushing grip. "Hello, Lilah. How fast does this
tranquilizer work and how long does it last?" Angel purred softly into
her ear. She felt him smooth down some errant strands of hair at her
neck. She was starting to hate it that he turned her on because he
never followed through. "Come on, Lilah, torturing you won't be any
fun if you can't feel it."
Lilah swallowed carefully, mindful of the dart pressing against her
skin. "Angel, you're such a tease. You won't kill me."
"You're a threat to my son and his friends. I will kill you."
"Wolfram and Hart is the threat. If you kill me, someone will take my
place." Lilah smiled. "Maybe Lindsey."
"Why do you say that?" Angel eased the pressure of the dart. He knew
he shouldn't have trusted Lindsey. "This wouldn't have anything to do
with the last Nyazian Scroll, would it?"
"Lindsey threatened to give it to you if I didn't leave him and his
happy home alone." Lilah wished she could see Angel's face. She
finally had something over him and she couldn't even savor her triumph.
"The little woman must really be something for him to take a risk like
that. I did some investigating and found out he was bluffing. I
recovered the last scroll."
"Stay away from Willow and Ron. I don't care what happens to Lindsey."
That stupid bastard! If he had come straight to the Hyperion when he
and Willow had returned to L. A., then Angel could have taken care of
things and Lilah wouldn't have even thought of tracking down the last
scroll.
"The last Nyazian Scroll has some very interesting information about
little Connor. It's not very useful for Wolfram and Hart while I'm
making the decisions around here. It's mostly about these pesky,
painful rituals with Connor as the sacrifice to gain strength or power.
I have power and I'm more interested in corrupting the little guy than
killing him. The someone who takes my place might feel differently and
they would have the scroll, of course." Lilah smirked.
Angel covered Lilah's smug mouth and stabbed the dart into her neck.
"Dream of me, Lilah," he whispered and kissed her temple. He let her
slump forward onto her desk and left. he had to go see Lindsey about
a scroll.
*****
The next morning at school was surprising normal. The other kids were
clustered in groups comparing parent/teacher notes. Pandora joined
Ron and Connor at their desks. As she sat down she heard Amanda's
snide voice, "My Mom said her mother's last name is Halliwell and her
father's is Wyatt. That makes her a bastard. She shouldn't be going
to a proper school."
"For your information, even though it's none of your business, my
parents are married." Pandora turned to Amanda. She itched to blast
her. "My family doesn't change their name with marriage. Born a
Halliwell, die a Halliwell. What name do you want to die with?"
"Woo-hoo, Dory." Ron gave her the thumbs up. "I think Vespy would look
great etched on a tombstone."
"Good morning, children." A middle-aged nun interrupted them before
the insults went any further. "I'm Sister Carol. Ms. Foster has taken
an unscheduled sabbatical because of a family emergency. I'll be your
teacher for the rest of the year."
Once the teacher turned away, Amanda glared at them. "You two are
horrible, threatening my life like that. You're nothing but common
bullies. How can you associate with such callous people, Connor?"
Connor smiled. Things had worked out so much better than he had hoped
when he had asked his Dad if he could go to school. Pandora and Ron
knew what he was and accepted him. "They're my friends."
The End.
Watch for the next 'book' in the series, The Nyazian Scrolls Saga: My
Father Who Art in Hell.
Problems between his parents puts Ron in a vulnerable position just
when Rack returns.
"So, when Dad and I got home, Mom and her friend Buffy were in the
kitchen and they were crying and laughing." Ron took a handful of
popcorn. The movie was playing, but no one was really watching it.
Paige and Gunn had moved into the corner onto the loveseat and were
talking quietly. The kids had staked out the floor in front of the
television. "Dad said they must have made up because that's how girls
get when they're really happy. They get emotional." Ron and Connor
both gave Pandora a nervous and suspicious look.
Pandora rolled her eyes as she finished chewing her popcorn. "Don't
worry, I'll let you guys take turns dealing with my hysterics then
you'll only have to worry about it every other week." She laughed at
the horrified faces of her friends. She scooped popcorn from the bowl
and chucked it at them. "I'm kidding, morons."
"How were we supposed to know? We got to know you because you were
having a girly attack and Connor got all concerned - by the way, buddy,
her hysterics are totally your territory." Ron reciprocated by
throwing popcorn back at Pandora.
"I don't think so." Connor joined in on the fun. A flurry of popcorn
zinged between them in an intense skirmish. Paige and Gunn continued
to talk in the corner, unaware of the battle.
*****
It wasn't a premonition. Phoebe just got that shivery feeling of evil
as she approached Pandora's teacher. There was nothing physically
about the woman that suggested she was a demon, there was just
something about her. Of course, the feeling could just be a product of
her niece's suspicions. She wouldn't know until she got a premonition.
Phoebe took a deep breath and focused her mind. Over the years, her
power of premonition had grown so that she could generate one
voluntarily if the occasion warranted it. She held out her hand to the
teacher and smiled. "Hi, I'm Phoebe. I've heard a lot about you, Ms.
Foster, from my niece."
"I hope it was good." Ms. Foster returned her smile warmly. She took
Phoebe's hand and shook it. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs...."
"Ms., actually, Ms. Halliwell," Phoebe answered absently. She felt the
other woman withdraw her hand abruptly, but it was too late. A sinking
black void overwhelmed her. There was nothing. No hope, no joy, no
fear, no love. The teacher was a blank slate, but behind the blankness
was a pervading sense of evil and a name. Wolfram and Hart.
"Phoebe?" Piper's worried voice brought her back and she blinked at her
older sister. "Phoebe, is everything okay?"
"No." Phoebe shook her head vehemently. "We have to find Connor and
Ron's parents and then we have to leave."
"You can't leave, you must stay and associate with the other parents,"
Ms. Foster insisted. "Pandora is a lovely child. She's very bright
and...."
"How dare you talk about my daughter." Piper stepped toward the
teacher, her hands clenched at her sides.
"Piper, there are too many people here." Leo held his wife back and
led her out into the hall with Phoebe following them. He would have
loved to let her blast the woman who threatened their daughter, but it
was his job to protect the Charmed Ones and there were way too many
people in that room. "Tell us what you saw, Phoebe."
"Ms. Foster isn't the threat. She's nothing but a puppet animated by
evil. I think she was created by Wolfram and Hart, the law firm Pan
told us about."
"You're probably right. Wolfram and Hart use golems a lot," a male
voice agreed. The man of information stood with his arm around a
woman with red hair. "I'm Lindsey MacDonald and this is my wife,
Willow. We're Ron's parents."
"I thought his last name was Weasley - like the character in the Harry
Potter books." Piper eyed the newcomers with suspicion. Another
couple stood just behind Lindsey and Willow MacDonald and from Paige's
descriptions she guessed they were the vampire and part demon seer.
She wasn't comfortable with these people. Piper wanted to know how
much they would be willing to reveal to her about themselves before she
trusted them with her family's secrets. "And how do you know about
golems and evil law firms?"
"It's a long story, but the gist is that I've had some problems with
Ron's biological father. He's evil and wanted to hurt Ron, so I ran
away from him. When he was six, Ron picked out the name as his alias.
I used to read him the books." Willow smiled at the memory. "His name
is actually Ron Alexander Rosenberg."
"And to answer your second question, I know about golems and evil law
firms because I used to work for Wolfram and Hart."
"And I'm supposed to find that comforting?"
"You can trust him," Angel defended Lindsey even though he didn't
believe what he was saying. There was something different about these
people. He had recognized the way the one woman's whole body had
stiffened when she had shaken the teacher's hand. It was how Cordelia
used to look when she had vision before she became part demon. "How
exactly did you find out the teacher was golem?"
*****
"Do we have a visual inside the hotel yet?" Lilah snapped impatiently.
She stopped herself from biting her fingernails and clasped her hands
together. She wanted to pace. Things were going too smoothly - just
as she had planned. It was starting to make her nervous. In all the
years she had known Angel, nothing had ever went as she had planned it.
"The vamp and his friends have always been on top of sweeping our bugs,
so I brought some remotes. They should be in there right about now."
The technician grinned proudly. He flipped a few switches and the
hotel's lobby sprang onto the television screen.
The picture changed as the remote glided through into the parlor.
Lilah's nerves calmed as she surveyed the scene. The brats started
flinging popcorn at each other. Angel's son looked remarkably like
him, hopefully he would be easier to manage than his father. Some
random kernels hit Angel's associate, Gunn, and the witch. It was a
normal evening at home, babysitting the kiddies. They suspected
nothing. "Send in the recovery team."
*****
The nerve, questioning her and her family about their knowledge of
golems when he stood there being a vampire. Piper scowled. She had
been willing to entertain the idea of a vampire with a soul for her
daughter's sake and because Connor seemed like a good kid, but she
would not have a demon casting aspersions on her family. Piper was
very tempted to have Leo orb them away so they could collect Pandora
and Paige and have nothing more to do with these people when something
occurred to her. "We're all here."
"Yes, we are." Angel frowned. Was this woman crazy? She obviously
didn't like him or Lindsey - which was a good instinct in Lindsey's
case - but she really wouldn't have a good reason for her dislike
unless she knew that he was a vampire. And if she knew that he was a
vampire, then she would also need a reason for why she wasn't afraid of
him. "You and your daughter aren't just normal, average people, are
you?"
"We're witches, but we don't have time to play what kind of
supernatural being are you right now. Phoebe, did you see anything
about the children in your premonition?" Piper turned to her sister
who shook her head.
"Sorry, all I got was that Ms. Foster is nothing and she's connected to
Wolfram and Hart."
"But there has to be a reason why we're all here at this parent/teacher
night conveniently organized by a golem animated by an evil law firm."
Piper's voice rose in pitch. She was on the edge of panic - just the
edge - the only thing that kept her teetering on the brink was knowing
that Paige was with Pandora.
"I haven't had a vision," Cordelia offered. "The PTB would have sent
me a vision if Connor was in danger."
"Lilah's interfered with your visions before." Angel was starting to
catch the witch's distress. He felt a hand on his arm and looked down
into Willow's reassuring gaze.
"Gunn is with them, he'll keep them safe and we'll all leave right
now."
"Our sister Paige is there too," Phoebe added. "Leo, why don't you orb
Piper and Connor's dad to the hotel and we'll follow."
Piper hesitated a fraction of a second before holding out her hand.
His son was in as much danger as her daughter if not more. "You have
to hang on to me. We'll be there almost immediately."
Before her offer could be taken, Ms. Foster stepped out into the hall
and closed the door to the classroom. "You can't leave yet," she said
and smiled as if the jig wasn't up and everyone thought she was a nice
school teacher. "We have to discuss your children."
"She's not a real person, right?" Piper directed her question toward
Lindsey.
"Not anymore."
"Good." With a flick of her wrist, Piper blasted the teacher. The
golem didn't even scream as it disintegrated. Piper held her hand out
to Connor's father again. She felt Leo clasp her tighter as the
vampire took her hand. The three of them disappeared in a maelstrom
of blue light.
*****
This was one of the best nights of her life. It would definitely go
into the Paige's Non-date Dates Hall of Fame. She hadn't stopped
smiling since she and Pandora had arrived. God, she hoped she didn't
look like a goof. She really liked Charles Gunn and the best thing
about him was that she didn't have to worry about the inevitable
revelation that she was a witch. He might be surprised by it, but he
wouldn't think she was insane or a freak. "So, anyway, after my year
of unemployed no life, I got my job back and was promoted to a full
social worker a few years ago." A comfortable silence settled between
them as they locked gazes. Paige licked her lips. Gunn was leaning
closer to her. She was about to close the distance when she felt
something hit her cheek. Paige looked down to a lap full of popcorn
and the sounds of the children yelling finally made it to the
foreground of her attention.
"Hey!" Gunn jumped up. The popcorn fight came to an abrupt halt as the
kids immediately turned to the televison. "What's going on here?"
"Just watching a movie." Connor motioned to the screen without taking
his eyes from it. He stopped himself from glancing at the popcorn
scattered around the floor or at his friends. He heard Ron snort
trying to hold in his laughter.
"I guess we made too much popcorn." Paige shook her head at the mess.
"Where's your vacuum?"
"I'll get it." Gunn sighed and headed toward the janitor's closet.
Damn kids had ruined a moment. Kissing had been in his immediate
future. "Damn ancient vampire and his damn ancient appliances," Gunn
grumbled as he hauled the old vacuum cleaner out of the closet. He
slung the hose over his shoulder and turned around. Paige was helping
the kids collect the popcorn that hadn't been crushed into the carpet.
He took a moment to admire the view as she crawled around the floor.
Gunn's Paige Appreciation Time was violently interrupted when they
heard the front doors bang open and several men dressed in black rushed
into the parlor. The man in front immediately aimed a rifle at Paige
and fired. "Aunt Paige!" Pandora scrambled toward her aunt. No blood
issued from a wound, the only indication that Paige had been hit was a
green glow at the base of her neck. Gunn sprang into action and
clocked the guy closest to him with vacuum cleaner - unfortunately it
wasn't the guy who had the rifle.
"I'm okay." Paige blinked to get her vision back in focus. It was
fuzzy, like she was looking at the world through a static-filled
television screen. She saw the man aim at Pandora. "Rifle." Paige
held out her hand, but nothing happened. The rifle stayed where it
was - pointed at her niece.
"Dory!" Ron yelled and dove at his friend. The green aura hit him in
the back. He collapsed onto Pandora.
"Ron, are you okay?" Pandora maneuvered herself out from under Ron.
She and Connor helped him sit up.
"Yeah, I think so." Ron shook his head violently. "I can't change
into my animal form. I'm trying, but nothing's happening."
"Aunt Paige couldn't call the rifle to her either. Whatever they shot
you with, it's blocking your magic."
"He aimed at you, Dory. They know you and your are witches." Connor
moved in between his friends and the Wolfram and Hart operatives. He
knew they were after him, but he didn't like it that they knew Dory was
a witch. She would be valuable to them too. "Ms. Foster must be
working for Wolfram and Hart. They knew that our parents would be at
the school tonight."
"Connor, you and your friends get out of here," Gunn yelled. More men
entered the parlor. He glanced over to Paige, who was handling herself
well, but they were hopelessly outnumbered. A blue light in his
peripheral vision distracted Gunn for a second and he got kicked in the
gut. When he looked up, Angel and Pandora's mother stood at the
entrance to the parlor with another man.
As soon as they appeared, Piper froze all the men in black. "Pandora!
Paige!" She searched the crowded parlor for her daughter and sister.
Pandora, Connor, and Ron were crouched close to the couch. Paige was
extracting herself from the grasp of her frozen assailants.
"It's about time you got here," Paige grumbled. She gave Gunn a weak
smile. He was poking at the guy who had kicked him and getting no
response.
"Why didn't you orb everyone out of here?" Piper started to make her
way to her daughter.
Angel and Gunn shared a look, not really sure what to do since beating
on frozen Wolfram and Hart operatives would look stupid. "Connor, are
you okay?" Angel wanted nothing more than to find Lilah and crush her
for this attempt to kidnap his son, but he had to make sure Connor
wasn't hurt.
Before Connor could answer, the windows burst in a shower of glass.
One of the incoming operatives crashed into Piper and knocked her to
the floor. The frozen operatives suddenly came to life and Gunn and
Angel found themselves with too much to do. That's when Phoebe,
Cordelia, Willow, and Lindsey showed up and joined the fray. Angel
noticed that Willow had picked up a few tricks in her time away as she
zapped a few operatives. Angel's observation was interrupted when he
saw one of the operatives fire a crossbow at the children.
"Connor. Ron." Pandora grabbed her friends' arms and closed her eyes.
She orbed them out of the parlor as the tranquilizer dart buried its
tip into the carpet.
*****
Lilah's stomach turned as Angel and the witch appeared in the lobby.
Bad went to worse when the others showed up and started kicking her
best operatives' asses. There was a brief moment of hope when the
tranquilizer dart was fired, but that quickly went up in smoke when the
brats disappeared. "Retreat, dammit!" she ordered as the video feed
from the Hyperion died. She turned to the driver of the van. "Get out
of here. Now." She had to get back to her office. Luckily she had
come across something after her little chat with Lindsey when he had
appeared back in town. It might stop Angel from killing her.
*****
The operatives started to clear out - dragging the incapacitated with
them. It wasn't mercy or loyalty that prompted their actions, they
didn't want to leave anyone behind who could talk. Angel let them go.
He knew who was responsible. He crossed over to Piper Halliwell and
her husband. A bright golden glow emanated from the man's hand as he
healed his wife's lacerations from the glass. "Where are the kids?"
"Pandora can't orb very far yet." Piper stood up with Leo's help.
"They have to be around here somewhere. Leo, can you sense her?"
"They're upstairs." Leo smiled proudly. Pan had trouble orbing
herself short distances, but when she had to she had orbed her and her
friends out of danger. "I'll go tell them it's safe to come down."
"Leo is our whitelighter - a guardian angel for witches," Piper
explained as Leo orbed upstairs. "My sisters and I are the Charmed
Ones, we protect innocents from evil. Paige, why didn't you orb
everyone out of here?"
"I couldn't. They shot me with something that's blocking my magic."
Paige risked a glance at Gunn to gauge his reaction to the new
information about her. He seemed mildly bemused, but not upset. She
would have to apologize and explain why she hadn't told him earlier.
Maybe find a way to make it up to him. "Do you think Leo can fix it?"
"Ron was hit with it too," Pandora informed them as they all returned
to the parlor. "Dad fixed him."
"Ron." Willow rushed to embrace her son. She would have been a little
bit more impressed to be in the presence of the Charmed Ones if she
hadn't been so concerned for Ron. She had read about them in Giles'
books back in highschool.
"They didn't hurt you, did they?" Cordelia already had Connor in a
stranglehold. It was difficult to hug him and check him for injuries
at the same time.
"No, Dory got us out of there before they could get to me." Connor
shrugged away. As much as he loved his Mom, it was getting
embarrassing.
"I'm fine, Mom. Geez." Ron struggled out of Willow's arms at the
same time. "They were aiming at Dory."
Piper instinctively clasped Pandora closer to her. "What is this
Wolfram and Hart? Are they going to try to kidnap the kids again?"
"No." Angel picked up and pocketed the dart. "I'll take care of it."
*****
Waiting was not one of Lilah's talents, but she didn't want Angel to
catch her pacing. That would make her look nervous and vulnerable.
She was neither. She sat at her desk instead, but couldn't help
drumming her fingernails on the glossy surface. Angel was taking
longer to come after her than she thought he would. Lilah sighed and
turned to her laptop. She might as well get some work done while she
waited.
Lilah was halfway through the Hayden file when she felt a sharp jab at
her neck. She lifted her hand to touch the spot only to have it
captured in a crushing grip. "Hello, Lilah. How fast does this
tranquilizer work and how long does it last?" Angel purred softly into
her ear. She felt him smooth down some errant strands of hair at her
neck. She was starting to hate it that he turned her on because he
never followed through. "Come on, Lilah, torturing you won't be any
fun if you can't feel it."
Lilah swallowed carefully, mindful of the dart pressing against her
skin. "Angel, you're such a tease. You won't kill me."
"You're a threat to my son and his friends. I will kill you."
"Wolfram and Hart is the threat. If you kill me, someone will take my
place." Lilah smiled. "Maybe Lindsey."
"Why do you say that?" Angel eased the pressure of the dart. He knew
he shouldn't have trusted Lindsey. "This wouldn't have anything to do
with the last Nyazian Scroll, would it?"
"Lindsey threatened to give it to you if I didn't leave him and his
happy home alone." Lilah wished she could see Angel's face. She
finally had something over him and she couldn't even savor her triumph.
"The little woman must really be something for him to take a risk like
that. I did some investigating and found out he was bluffing. I
recovered the last scroll."
"Stay away from Willow and Ron. I don't care what happens to Lindsey."
That stupid bastard! If he had come straight to the Hyperion when he
and Willow had returned to L. A., then Angel could have taken care of
things and Lilah wouldn't have even thought of tracking down the last
scroll.
"The last Nyazian Scroll has some very interesting information about
little Connor. It's not very useful for Wolfram and Hart while I'm
making the decisions around here. It's mostly about these pesky,
painful rituals with Connor as the sacrifice to gain strength or power.
I have power and I'm more interested in corrupting the little guy than
killing him. The someone who takes my place might feel differently and
they would have the scroll, of course." Lilah smirked.
Angel covered Lilah's smug mouth and stabbed the dart into her neck.
"Dream of me, Lilah," he whispered and kissed her temple. He let her
slump forward onto her desk and left. he had to go see Lindsey about
a scroll.
*****
The next morning at school was surprising normal. The other kids were
clustered in groups comparing parent/teacher notes. Pandora joined
Ron and Connor at their desks. As she sat down she heard Amanda's
snide voice, "My Mom said her mother's last name is Halliwell and her
father's is Wyatt. That makes her a bastard. She shouldn't be going
to a proper school."
"For your information, even though it's none of your business, my
parents are married." Pandora turned to Amanda. She itched to blast
her. "My family doesn't change their name with marriage. Born a
Halliwell, die a Halliwell. What name do you want to die with?"
"Woo-hoo, Dory." Ron gave her the thumbs up. "I think Vespy would look
great etched on a tombstone."
"Good morning, children." A middle-aged nun interrupted them before
the insults went any further. "I'm Sister Carol. Ms. Foster has taken
an unscheduled sabbatical because of a family emergency. I'll be your
teacher for the rest of the year."
Once the teacher turned away, Amanda glared at them. "You two are
horrible, threatening my life like that. You're nothing but common
bullies. How can you associate with such callous people, Connor?"
Connor smiled. Things had worked out so much better than he had hoped
when he had asked his Dad if he could go to school. Pandora and Ron
knew what he was and accepted him. "They're my friends."
The End.
Watch for the next 'book' in the series, The Nyazian Scrolls Saga: My
Father Who Art in Hell.
Problems between his parents puts Ron in a vulnerable position just
when Rack returns.