Chapter Five: One Way Out
*
Stage Two: Anger
*
"I'm not going through all that again!" Piper cried, letting anger replace the fear that was in her heart. "Trust the Elders!"
They were marching through the hall of Paige's loft apartment block. Piper pressed the elevator button about as viciously as one could.
"What do you mean about the Elders? What have they got to do with it?" Phoebe questioned.
"And who are they?" Paige injected, but recoiled on the harsh glare from Piper she received.
The elevator doors closed. "Well, when we were told we had twenty-four hours to save Paige from evil, They conveniently 'forgot' that if we failed, Paige would turn evil and take us down with her!"
"I'm not evil-" Paige began to protest, but Piper cut her off.
"Don't you even start," Piper warned, "Face the facts. You have an evil power, I have an evil power, for god's sakes you killed someone! Don't you tell me you're not evil!"
"But I-" Paige could feel her own anger building inside her as Piper once again cut her off before she could speak.
"This is totally your fault! We tried to stop you, we tried to be your friend, we tried to help you understand your destiny but oh no, you had to-"
"Maybe I don't want this destiny!" Paige yelled.
"Maybe we don't want you either! Maybe I want my dead sister to be alive and with us because she wouldn't put us in this sort of danger. She would've protected us and helped us and fought with us - not take the easy way out and make us all retribute for it!"
Paige got an incredibly hurt look on her face, faltered, and orbed out.
At that moment, there was a bell and the elevator doors opened.
"Piper-" Phoebe began. "Don't you think you were a little harsh to Paige-"
"Phoebe? I. Don't. Care." Piper said plainly and pointedly. She took a few steps forwards and blinked out, leaving her sister across town, alone, without the car keys.
* * *
It was two hours later that Phoebe finally arrived home. She trudged up the steps and let herself in. "Hello?" she called. No answer. Piper must still be 'high' on rage.
'Funny that,' she mused to herself, 'how whenever one of us is overreacting or flipping out, the other one stays calm.' Though she was used to the calm one being Piper. Perhaps it was just a middle sister trait, and that's who Phoebe was now. The middle one. She wondered how many of Piper's other characteristics would bestow themselves on her with this new family posistion.
She turned around and let out a little gasp when she almost walked into Cole. "Cole-" she whispered, her voice sounding strange and cut off.
"Phoebe what's going on here?" he asked, concerned. "I've been trying to find ways to help you, but I can't when you're not even together."
"We uh," Phoebe stuttered, then decided to come clean. "We... something's happened. When Paige killed that guy... I think... I think she's turning evil. I think we're, turning evil."
Cole turned to face her, his face serious. "Are you sure?"
Phoebe averted her eyes and sighed. She nodded. "Piper, blinked, earlier - you were there - and Paige, well Paige threw an energy ball. Smashed part of her apartment up." She began to walk through the house and into the kitchen.
"Phoebe this is serious," Cole followed her, trying to get her full attention, "Something huge might be happening here. You have to find Piper and Paige and stay together."
"I know, Cole," she snapped, surprised at her sudden annoyance. "Don't you think I know that? But we had a fight, or, Piper and Paige did," she paused, thinking. "I just wanna be alone."
She turned away from him.
"Phoebe," he said, his voice sounding a little commanding.
"Go away Cole!" Phoebe suddenly yelled at him.
"I want to help!"
"I want to be alone!" she shouted and threw her weight against him, forcing him to stumble away from her to regain his balance. Cole looked hurt as well as angry but obeyed, shimmering out. He had a lot of work ahead of him.
*
Stage three: Fear.
*
Since her argument with Cole, Phoebe had fallen asleep for a few hours. She had awoken with a new point of view on things. She realised how mean she'd been to her boyfriend, and that they truly needed his help.
Phoebe flitted from room to room, looking for any signs of her sisters.
"Piper?" she called. "Leo?"
Leo orbed in looking incredibly concerned. "Phoebe?"
She spun around to greet him. "Oh thank God, you're here!" she cried and flung her arms around his shoulders, relieved and grateful for his presence.
Piper then entered from the living room. "Get your own husband," she growled.
Phoebe let go of Leo quickly, and watched as Piper walked up to him and pulled him in for a long, elaborate kiss. When she finally broke away, Piper's eyes were on Phoebe, victorious, claiming Leo as part of her possessions.
"Piper," Leo said, a little breathless. "We have to talk. Phoebe too... and Paige."
"Wait," Phoebe said, "Piper how did you get here? I checked all the rooms..."
Piper made a strange noise which said 'you know how I got here'. Aloud, she said "My spidey sense was tingling." Once again, Piper must've made full use of an evil power. She was getting way too accustomed to that.
"I know what's happening to you guys," Leo told them, "and you have to fight it."
Piper snapped her fingers. "Done," she announced, her voice cheerful.
"Piper," he pleaded, "Listen to me. We're in a mess - The Elders were hoping you'd get to Paige in time and this wouldn't have happened-"
"Excuse me," Piper said viciously, affronted, "we're not the ones who couldn't orb Paige out in the first place! It's not hard, Leo!"
Leo looked down. He was truly ashamed of what had happened. When he thought about it, it enveloped him. He'd failed his charges - he'd failed The Elders! Was it all his fault that the Charmed Ones would demise?
"Look, there's no easy way for me to say this," he began timidly. He could see Phoebe was already frightened, and the tone of his voice was bringing his wife to a more receptive mood too. "They didn't know that, that if Paige turned evil then you would follow... They didn't know this was going to happen."
There was a silence as Piper and Phoebe waited for Leo to continue, but he didn't.
"What're you saying, Leo?" Piper asked reproachfully, her eyes wide. "That there's no way out of this? That that's it? That's - that's the end of the Charmed Ones?"
He looked at her with tearful eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
"No," Phoebe said, "No, no, no. No way. Not after three years are we going down now. We have come so far and lost too much to be just..." Her voice was becoming thick with trying to hold back the tears, but it was impossible. "... abandoned like this... I don't wanna be evil Leo! I don't want to lose even more than what I have!" Tears fell from her eyes, tracking her cheeks.
Piper was silent throughout. But when she spoke, it was determined. "No. There's gotta be a way out of this. A spell, or, something..." she began to ramble on, her mind racing as how they could get themselves out of this mess.
"There is one, thing," Leo said. His face looked completely regretful.
"What?" Phoebe urged, "Tell us, we'll do it."
He looked at her sadly. "The only way to stop yourselves becoming evil is to... to say the spell..."
"What one?" Piper asked, readying herself to hit the Book of Shadows.
Leo's face was stony. Looking at him, Piper realised whatever he had to say, it wasn't easy. Slowly, Leo's eyes connected with hers and he spoke softly. "The spell to relinquish your powers."
A/N: Who saw that one coming??? *wonders if everybody did* Maybe I'm not good at that whole surprise thang.
A/N: Once again, thank you for the reviews. I feed on them. Go on... make me fat.
*
Stage Two: Anger
*
"I'm not going through all that again!" Piper cried, letting anger replace the fear that was in her heart. "Trust the Elders!"
They were marching through the hall of Paige's loft apartment block. Piper pressed the elevator button about as viciously as one could.
"What do you mean about the Elders? What have they got to do with it?" Phoebe questioned.
"And who are they?" Paige injected, but recoiled on the harsh glare from Piper she received.
The elevator doors closed. "Well, when we were told we had twenty-four hours to save Paige from evil, They conveniently 'forgot' that if we failed, Paige would turn evil and take us down with her!"
"I'm not evil-" Paige began to protest, but Piper cut her off.
"Don't you even start," Piper warned, "Face the facts. You have an evil power, I have an evil power, for god's sakes you killed someone! Don't you tell me you're not evil!"
"But I-" Paige could feel her own anger building inside her as Piper once again cut her off before she could speak.
"This is totally your fault! We tried to stop you, we tried to be your friend, we tried to help you understand your destiny but oh no, you had to-"
"Maybe I don't want this destiny!" Paige yelled.
"Maybe we don't want you either! Maybe I want my dead sister to be alive and with us because she wouldn't put us in this sort of danger. She would've protected us and helped us and fought with us - not take the easy way out and make us all retribute for it!"
Paige got an incredibly hurt look on her face, faltered, and orbed out.
At that moment, there was a bell and the elevator doors opened.
"Piper-" Phoebe began. "Don't you think you were a little harsh to Paige-"
"Phoebe? I. Don't. Care." Piper said plainly and pointedly. She took a few steps forwards and blinked out, leaving her sister across town, alone, without the car keys.
* * *
It was two hours later that Phoebe finally arrived home. She trudged up the steps and let herself in. "Hello?" she called. No answer. Piper must still be 'high' on rage.
'Funny that,' she mused to herself, 'how whenever one of us is overreacting or flipping out, the other one stays calm.' Though she was used to the calm one being Piper. Perhaps it was just a middle sister trait, and that's who Phoebe was now. The middle one. She wondered how many of Piper's other characteristics would bestow themselves on her with this new family posistion.
She turned around and let out a little gasp when she almost walked into Cole. "Cole-" she whispered, her voice sounding strange and cut off.
"Phoebe what's going on here?" he asked, concerned. "I've been trying to find ways to help you, but I can't when you're not even together."
"We uh," Phoebe stuttered, then decided to come clean. "We... something's happened. When Paige killed that guy... I think... I think she's turning evil. I think we're, turning evil."
Cole turned to face her, his face serious. "Are you sure?"
Phoebe averted her eyes and sighed. She nodded. "Piper, blinked, earlier - you were there - and Paige, well Paige threw an energy ball. Smashed part of her apartment up." She began to walk through the house and into the kitchen.
"Phoebe this is serious," Cole followed her, trying to get her full attention, "Something huge might be happening here. You have to find Piper and Paige and stay together."
"I know, Cole," she snapped, surprised at her sudden annoyance. "Don't you think I know that? But we had a fight, or, Piper and Paige did," she paused, thinking. "I just wanna be alone."
She turned away from him.
"Phoebe," he said, his voice sounding a little commanding.
"Go away Cole!" Phoebe suddenly yelled at him.
"I want to help!"
"I want to be alone!" she shouted and threw her weight against him, forcing him to stumble away from her to regain his balance. Cole looked hurt as well as angry but obeyed, shimmering out. He had a lot of work ahead of him.
*
Stage three: Fear.
*
Since her argument with Cole, Phoebe had fallen asleep for a few hours. She had awoken with a new point of view on things. She realised how mean she'd been to her boyfriend, and that they truly needed his help.
Phoebe flitted from room to room, looking for any signs of her sisters.
"Piper?" she called. "Leo?"
Leo orbed in looking incredibly concerned. "Phoebe?"
She spun around to greet him. "Oh thank God, you're here!" she cried and flung her arms around his shoulders, relieved and grateful for his presence.
Piper then entered from the living room. "Get your own husband," she growled.
Phoebe let go of Leo quickly, and watched as Piper walked up to him and pulled him in for a long, elaborate kiss. When she finally broke away, Piper's eyes were on Phoebe, victorious, claiming Leo as part of her possessions.
"Piper," Leo said, a little breathless. "We have to talk. Phoebe too... and Paige."
"Wait," Phoebe said, "Piper how did you get here? I checked all the rooms..."
Piper made a strange noise which said 'you know how I got here'. Aloud, she said "My spidey sense was tingling." Once again, Piper must've made full use of an evil power. She was getting way too accustomed to that.
"I know what's happening to you guys," Leo told them, "and you have to fight it."
Piper snapped her fingers. "Done," she announced, her voice cheerful.
"Piper," he pleaded, "Listen to me. We're in a mess - The Elders were hoping you'd get to Paige in time and this wouldn't have happened-"
"Excuse me," Piper said viciously, affronted, "we're not the ones who couldn't orb Paige out in the first place! It's not hard, Leo!"
Leo looked down. He was truly ashamed of what had happened. When he thought about it, it enveloped him. He'd failed his charges - he'd failed The Elders! Was it all his fault that the Charmed Ones would demise?
"Look, there's no easy way for me to say this," he began timidly. He could see Phoebe was already frightened, and the tone of his voice was bringing his wife to a more receptive mood too. "They didn't know that, that if Paige turned evil then you would follow... They didn't know this was going to happen."
There was a silence as Piper and Phoebe waited for Leo to continue, but he didn't.
"What're you saying, Leo?" Piper asked reproachfully, her eyes wide. "That there's no way out of this? That that's it? That's - that's the end of the Charmed Ones?"
He looked at her with tearful eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
"No," Phoebe said, "No, no, no. No way. Not after three years are we going down now. We have come so far and lost too much to be just..." Her voice was becoming thick with trying to hold back the tears, but it was impossible. "... abandoned like this... I don't wanna be evil Leo! I don't want to lose even more than what I have!" Tears fell from her eyes, tracking her cheeks.
Piper was silent throughout. But when she spoke, it was determined. "No. There's gotta be a way out of this. A spell, or, something..." she began to ramble on, her mind racing as how they could get themselves out of this mess.
"There is one, thing," Leo said. His face looked completely regretful.
"What?" Phoebe urged, "Tell us, we'll do it."
He looked at her sadly. "The only way to stop yourselves becoming evil is to... to say the spell..."
"What one?" Piper asked, readying herself to hit the Book of Shadows.
Leo's face was stony. Looking at him, Piper realised whatever he had to say, it wasn't easy. Slowly, Leo's eyes connected with hers and he spoke softly. "The spell to relinquish your powers."
A/N: Who saw that one coming??? *wonders if everybody did* Maybe I'm not good at that whole surprise thang.
A/N: Once again, thank you for the reviews. I feed on them. Go on... make me fat.