FIVE
"And you think that energy ball somehow pushed you into our
time?" asked Piper, after Prue ha explained what had happened.
"The best I can figure," said Prue, "was a combination of that
energy ball and my astral projection."
"You can astral project?" asked Heather.
"Yes," said Prue. "I haven't had that power very long but it
can come in handy sometimes."
"Maybe I'll get that power, too," said Heather.
"We can worry about that later," said Piper. "Prue, I didn't
know anything like that could happen.
"Neither did I," said Prue. "Probably just a freak accident.
But you know how unpredictable magic can be."
"Aunt Prue," said Heather, "you said something about an innocent
being in danger."
"Yes," said Prue. "It turns out that this warlock is more than
just a warlock. It also appears he's a serial killer."
* * *
Darryl answered the knock at his door. When he opened the door,
Prue, Piper, and Heather were standing outside.
"Mind if we come in?" asked Prue.
Come on in," said Darryl. "Hello, Piper. It's been a long
time.
"Too long," said Piper, giving her old friend a hug. "Darryl,
this is my daughter, Heather. Heather, this is Darryl Morris, a very
old friend."
"Let's just say I'm a friend," said Darryl, smiling. "I find I
don't care for being and 'old' friend very much these days."
Piper hugged Phoebe close. She suddenly realized how little
time she had spent with her "baby" sister. She made a mental note to
correct that.
"So, are the two of you okay?" asked Phoebe.
"Yes, we are," said Piper. "Prue explained everything to me.
She also explained what's going on with this warlock. I've come to
see if I could help."
"Well, here we are again," said Phoebe. "The three of us.
Feels like old times."
"I don't' know about you," said Piper, "but I'm a little old to
be going around chasing after warlocks and demons and such. And I
haven't even used my power in more than twenty years."
"You don't have to worry about that," said Prue. "I'm going
after this warlock. We have history, you might say. But we were
always stronger together. I'm going to need that strength if I'm
going to defeat this warlock."
"Yeah, about that," said Phoebe. "I'm having trouble coming up
with a spell. Before, I always knew something about the target. This
time I know next to nothing about this warlock. That makes it a
little hard to write a spell that way."
"You know," said Prue. "I never realized before just how much
help Leo was to us. Now that I think about it, most of the
information we had came from either him or the Book of Shadows."
"Like I said," said Phoebe, "he was reassigned. He didn't even
answer when Prue called for him when she first arrived here."
"We're back together now," said Piper. "Maybe that will make a
difference. Leo? Leo Wyatt? Leo, we need your help down here."
They all waited but nothing happened. Leo didn't orb in.
"I guess he can't hear us," said Phoebe.
"Can't you use a spell or something?" asked Heather. "From what
you've told me, magic can do just about anything."
"I guess it's worth a try," said Prue. "Ordinarily, I wouldn't
do it. But these are special circumstances."
"Can't hurt to try, I guess," said Piper. "Now, all we need is
a White Lighter summoning spell."
"I call to you, your help I need," intoned Heather.
"I call my White Lighter to come to me."
Leo suddenly orbed into Darryl's living room.
"What the," began Leo, then he realized where he was.
"Heather," said Piper sternly, "you have to be careful with off
the cuff spells. They can often come out totally different from what
you want them to do."
"Seems to have worked okay this time," said Heather smiling.
"Just don't do it again," said Piper. "At least until I have a
chance to instruct you a little more in the use of magic."
Leo looked around at everyone, looking last at Piper. He wasn't
dressed as he had been in Prue's time. Instead, he wore white robes.
"Piper," he began.
"Hello, Leo," she said, giving him a hug. "I'd forgotten how
much I missed you. It's been a very long time."
"You used to date him?" Heather whispered to her mom. "How
could you let a hunk like him get away?"
"Heather, please," Piper whispered back.
Leo greeted each of his old friends. In the twenty-eight years
that had passed, Leo hadn't changed a bit. But then, he was a White
Lighter. They didn't age as mortals did.
"So, you three are finally back together," said Leo. "I must
admit, I didn't expect you to use a spell on me to get me here."
"We didn't," said Prue, pointing at Heather. "She did."
"You finally unbound her powers," Leo said to Piper. "I always
knew you would one day. Hello, Heather. I'm Leo Wyatt. There was a
time that I was your mothers' White Lighter."
"I know," said Heather. "Mom's told me all about you. Though I
didn't believe her at the time."
"Little wonder," said Leo.
"You don't seem surprised to see me," said Prue.
"I'm not," said Leo. "We knew you'd arrived the moment you
appeared in this time."
"Why didn't you come when I called then?" asked Prue.
"You needed time to adjust to coming here," said Leo. "The
easiest way to do that was to let you learn what had happened on your
own. I was planning to come down in a bit, anyway. After the three
of you had a chance to get reacquainted. But it seems Heather
couldn't wait."
"You knew we needed your help?" asked Phoebe.
"Of course," said Leo. "I've had a White Lighter looking over
each of you. We always knew Prue would return one day. We needed to
be prepared for it. You are the Charmed Ones, after all."
"You sound like my boss at the video store where I work," said
Heather.
"Yeah, I guess I do a little," said Leo. "There's a very good
reason for that. I'm no longer just a White Lighter. I'm an Elder.
I have been for about ten years now."
"Congratulations," said Darryl. "I didn't know White Lighters
got promotions."
"Sometimes," said Leo. "To be honest, I'd rather still be in
the field. Being an Elder can be boring sometimes. It was never
boring with the three of you around."
"So," said Prue, "if you know we need your help, I guess you
also know what we need."
"Indeed I do," said Leo.
He held up his hand and the Book of Shadows simply appeared. He
handed the book to Phoebe.
"What you're looking for is near the back of the book," he said.
"You'll find it under the heading 'symbiotic demon'. You'll find
everything you need to know."
"Thanks," said Phoebe, taking the book.
"I'm glad the two of you were able to make up," said Leo to Prue
and Piper.
"I can't believe I ever thought Prue would just walk out on us,"
said Piper.
"All in the past," said Prue.
"How's it going, Darryl?" asked Leo.
"Okay," said Darryl. "Can't complain too much."
"And Heather," said Leo, turning to Pipers' daughter. "We've
been waiting for your mother to unbind your powers. I guess I'll have
to see about assigning a White Lighter to you."
"Will it be you?" asked Heather, coyly.
"No," replied Leo, smiling. "But it will be someone who will be
able to give you the help and guidance you need."
"Got it," announced Phoebe. "A symbiotic demon is a demon with
no actual form of its' own. It exists by inhabiting the body of a
willing host. Most of the time the demon and host stay in a sort of
suspended animation. But periodically they come out of that state.
The host finds victims for the demon. The host then kills the victims
and the demon feeds of the life essence of the slain. IN return, the
demon gives its' host additional powers and an extended lifespan."
"That would explain the energy balls the warlock was able to
use," said Prue.
"And how the warlock is still alive but isn't any older," added
Piper.
"There's also a vanquishing spell in the book," said Phoebe,
holding up a piece of paper. "Apparently, if you vanquish the demon,
the host absorbs all the aging the demon has taken from it. Instant
aging."
"I'd say we're ready for them," said Prue. "All we have to do
is find this warlock and then vanquish the demon. It should put an
end to both of them."
"I'll talk to the detective in charge," said Darryl. "I'll see
if I can find out where James is supposed to be staying."
"I need to bet back up there," said Leo. "There are a lot of
other matters that need my attention." He looked over at Piper. "If
you don't mind, I'd like to visit. Maybe catch up on old times."
"I'd like that," said Piper.
Leo smiled and then orbed out.
"We'd better get busy," said Prue. "We have a demon to vanquish
and a warlock and serial killer to stop."
To be continued . . .
Be sure not to miss the exciting conclusion in Part 3: One Last
Chance. When their attempt to stop the warlock fails and Darryl dies,
Prue decides she must return to the past to stop the warlock. But is
even the Power of Three enough to return Prue to her own time?
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed"
stories at my website, www.geocities.com/killeenmale/ . You can also
post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.
"And you think that energy ball somehow pushed you into our
time?" asked Piper, after Prue ha explained what had happened.
"The best I can figure," said Prue, "was a combination of that
energy ball and my astral projection."
"You can astral project?" asked Heather.
"Yes," said Prue. "I haven't had that power very long but it
can come in handy sometimes."
"Maybe I'll get that power, too," said Heather.
"We can worry about that later," said Piper. "Prue, I didn't
know anything like that could happen.
"Neither did I," said Prue. "Probably just a freak accident.
But you know how unpredictable magic can be."
"Aunt Prue," said Heather, "you said something about an innocent
being in danger."
"Yes," said Prue. "It turns out that this warlock is more than
just a warlock. It also appears he's a serial killer."
* * *
Darryl answered the knock at his door. When he opened the door,
Prue, Piper, and Heather were standing outside.
"Mind if we come in?" asked Prue.
Come on in," said Darryl. "Hello, Piper. It's been a long
time.
"Too long," said Piper, giving her old friend a hug. "Darryl,
this is my daughter, Heather. Heather, this is Darryl Morris, a very
old friend."
"Let's just say I'm a friend," said Darryl, smiling. "I find I
don't care for being and 'old' friend very much these days."
Piper hugged Phoebe close. She suddenly realized how little
time she had spent with her "baby" sister. She made a mental note to
correct that.
"So, are the two of you okay?" asked Phoebe.
"Yes, we are," said Piper. "Prue explained everything to me.
She also explained what's going on with this warlock. I've come to
see if I could help."
"Well, here we are again," said Phoebe. "The three of us.
Feels like old times."
"I don't' know about you," said Piper, "but I'm a little old to
be going around chasing after warlocks and demons and such. And I
haven't even used my power in more than twenty years."
"You don't have to worry about that," said Prue. "I'm going
after this warlock. We have history, you might say. But we were
always stronger together. I'm going to need that strength if I'm
going to defeat this warlock."
"Yeah, about that," said Phoebe. "I'm having trouble coming up
with a spell. Before, I always knew something about the target. This
time I know next to nothing about this warlock. That makes it a
little hard to write a spell that way."
"You know," said Prue. "I never realized before just how much
help Leo was to us. Now that I think about it, most of the
information we had came from either him or the Book of Shadows."
"Like I said," said Phoebe, "he was reassigned. He didn't even
answer when Prue called for him when she first arrived here."
"We're back together now," said Piper. "Maybe that will make a
difference. Leo? Leo Wyatt? Leo, we need your help down here."
They all waited but nothing happened. Leo didn't orb in.
"I guess he can't hear us," said Phoebe.
"Can't you use a spell or something?" asked Heather. "From what
you've told me, magic can do just about anything."
"I guess it's worth a try," said Prue. "Ordinarily, I wouldn't
do it. But these are special circumstances."
"Can't hurt to try, I guess," said Piper. "Now, all we need is
a White Lighter summoning spell."
"I call to you, your help I need," intoned Heather.
"I call my White Lighter to come to me."
Leo suddenly orbed into Darryl's living room.
"What the," began Leo, then he realized where he was.
"Heather," said Piper sternly, "you have to be careful with off
the cuff spells. They can often come out totally different from what
you want them to do."
"Seems to have worked okay this time," said Heather smiling.
"Just don't do it again," said Piper. "At least until I have a
chance to instruct you a little more in the use of magic."
Leo looked around at everyone, looking last at Piper. He wasn't
dressed as he had been in Prue's time. Instead, he wore white robes.
"Piper," he began.
"Hello, Leo," she said, giving him a hug. "I'd forgotten how
much I missed you. It's been a very long time."
"You used to date him?" Heather whispered to her mom. "How
could you let a hunk like him get away?"
"Heather, please," Piper whispered back.
Leo greeted each of his old friends. In the twenty-eight years
that had passed, Leo hadn't changed a bit. But then, he was a White
Lighter. They didn't age as mortals did.
"So, you three are finally back together," said Leo. "I must
admit, I didn't expect you to use a spell on me to get me here."
"We didn't," said Prue, pointing at Heather. "She did."
"You finally unbound her powers," Leo said to Piper. "I always
knew you would one day. Hello, Heather. I'm Leo Wyatt. There was a
time that I was your mothers' White Lighter."
"I know," said Heather. "Mom's told me all about you. Though I
didn't believe her at the time."
"Little wonder," said Leo.
"You don't seem surprised to see me," said Prue.
"I'm not," said Leo. "We knew you'd arrived the moment you
appeared in this time."
"Why didn't you come when I called then?" asked Prue.
"You needed time to adjust to coming here," said Leo. "The
easiest way to do that was to let you learn what had happened on your
own. I was planning to come down in a bit, anyway. After the three
of you had a chance to get reacquainted. But it seems Heather
couldn't wait."
"You knew we needed your help?" asked Phoebe.
"Of course," said Leo. "I've had a White Lighter looking over
each of you. We always knew Prue would return one day. We needed to
be prepared for it. You are the Charmed Ones, after all."
"You sound like my boss at the video store where I work," said
Heather.
"Yeah, I guess I do a little," said Leo. "There's a very good
reason for that. I'm no longer just a White Lighter. I'm an Elder.
I have been for about ten years now."
"Congratulations," said Darryl. "I didn't know White Lighters
got promotions."
"Sometimes," said Leo. "To be honest, I'd rather still be in
the field. Being an Elder can be boring sometimes. It was never
boring with the three of you around."
"So," said Prue, "if you know we need your help, I guess you
also know what we need."
"Indeed I do," said Leo.
He held up his hand and the Book of Shadows simply appeared. He
handed the book to Phoebe.
"What you're looking for is near the back of the book," he said.
"You'll find it under the heading 'symbiotic demon'. You'll find
everything you need to know."
"Thanks," said Phoebe, taking the book.
"I'm glad the two of you were able to make up," said Leo to Prue
and Piper.
"I can't believe I ever thought Prue would just walk out on us,"
said Piper.
"All in the past," said Prue.
"How's it going, Darryl?" asked Leo.
"Okay," said Darryl. "Can't complain too much."
"And Heather," said Leo, turning to Pipers' daughter. "We've
been waiting for your mother to unbind your powers. I guess I'll have
to see about assigning a White Lighter to you."
"Will it be you?" asked Heather, coyly.
"No," replied Leo, smiling. "But it will be someone who will be
able to give you the help and guidance you need."
"Got it," announced Phoebe. "A symbiotic demon is a demon with
no actual form of its' own. It exists by inhabiting the body of a
willing host. Most of the time the demon and host stay in a sort of
suspended animation. But periodically they come out of that state.
The host finds victims for the demon. The host then kills the victims
and the demon feeds of the life essence of the slain. IN return, the
demon gives its' host additional powers and an extended lifespan."
"That would explain the energy balls the warlock was able to
use," said Prue.
"And how the warlock is still alive but isn't any older," added
Piper.
"There's also a vanquishing spell in the book," said Phoebe,
holding up a piece of paper. "Apparently, if you vanquish the demon,
the host absorbs all the aging the demon has taken from it. Instant
aging."
"I'd say we're ready for them," said Prue. "All we have to do
is find this warlock and then vanquish the demon. It should put an
end to both of them."
"I'll talk to the detective in charge," said Darryl. "I'll see
if I can find out where James is supposed to be staying."
"I need to bet back up there," said Leo. "There are a lot of
other matters that need my attention." He looked over at Piper. "If
you don't mind, I'd like to visit. Maybe catch up on old times."
"I'd like that," said Piper.
Leo smiled and then orbed out.
"We'd better get busy," said Prue. "We have a demon to vanquish
and a warlock and serial killer to stop."
To be continued . . .
Be sure not to miss the exciting conclusion in Part 3: One Last
Chance. When their attempt to stop the warlock fails and Darryl dies,
Prue decides she must return to the past to stop the warlock. But is
even the Power of Three enough to return Prue to her own time?
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed"
stories at my website, www.geocities.com/killeenmale/ . You can also
post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.