A/N: Originally I was just going to stop after the first chapter of this
story, but I kept thinking of new things I could add so here it is.It's
still not finished; this story will probably be fairly long .anyway I'm
also thinking about changing the title so watch out for that.this is an AU
story so some of the things in here don't really reflect the show.I think
that's it. Enjoy (I hope), and reviews would be greatly appreciated.btw
does anyone know if whitelighter is one word or two (same goes for
darklighter). I've always used it as one word but please correct me if I'm
wrong.
2ndA/N: this takes place a few months after chapter one (somewhere around early season five) so Piper is already pregnant, but Cole isn't going to be evil. He doesn't appear in this chapter but he will in later ones.
Chapter two: Memories
The forgotten memories first crept into his dreams. Jarring nightmares of drowning, bolted Leo awake on more than one occasion, and, upon gaining his senses, he would find his hands clutching at his chest where the darklighter had shot him a few months earlier. Piper, always a light sleeper, would calm him with a soothing touch and ask what was the matter. Leo would quickly say nothing was wrong and shoo his wife back to sleep. The truth was he didn't know what was going on, that is until he turned on the news one afternoon.
Leo slowly sank back on the couch as his mind registered the picture in front of him. A lumpy white sheet molded in the form of a body, was being wheeled into a coroners van. The ocean's familiar roar sounded in the background, and a few seagulls screamed overhead.
A young blonde reporter, dressed to the tee in the middle of the beach appeared on screen, and began describing the scene behind her.
"This morning, two fishermen stumbled upon the body of a young woman tangled in their nets. Her identity is yet unknown, but police-"
Leo clicked off the TV and stared vacantly at the screen. Somehow he knew who was under that sheet.
"Jackie," he whispered.
"What did you say?"
Leo turned around quickly to find Piper standing in the next room. "Umm.nothing. I was just watching the news. How long have you been standing there?" he asked.
"Oh, I just walked in." she replied with an airy dismissive gesture that suggested the question hadn't held much significance. In truth she had been standing there for a few minutes, watching him with a concerned expression. Leo had become more and more withdrawn lately, and she was starting to worry.
"So, how was your appointment with Eva?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Eva was bogged down by a slight emergency so I rescheduled for this afternoon." Piper walked over and sat next to Leo on the couch. Now was as good a time as any to bring up her concerns she sighed. "Listen Leo, you've seemed really distracted lately, and whatever is going on you can talk to me about it." Piper ran her fingers lightly through his short hair as she spoke. Her slender digits paused to touch the tip of his soft ear lobe.
Instead of answering her, Leo leaned in closer, inviting more of her touch, and softly pressed his lips to hers. Piper returned the gesture in kind. The passion was slowly smoldering and building between the two of them when the Elders' familiar call sprang into Leo's head. Groaning, he pulled back from his wife.
"Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad of a kiss," Piper teased. However, she knew the real reason for his irritation, and gave her consent before he asked. "Go. I'll still be here when you get back, and we're not finished talking yet lover boy," she warned.
"Thanks," Leo stole one last kiss before disappearing into a cloud of sparkling blue lights.
Sighing, Piper slumped back on the couch. Idly, she rubbed a hand over her swollen stomach. "Well, baby girl, it looks like it's just you and me.again." Other than Piper, the manor was completely empty. Phoebe was at work, and Paige was at a local herb shop. Usually Piper would have accompanied her youngest sister, but the smell of the herb shops made her nauseous.
Piper's thoughts wandered back to her husband. She and Leo never seemed to make any headway in their conversations anymore. Something almost always came up, and one of them would have to leave. Gently, Piper touched her warm swollen lips and smiled. The short moments of romance made things better for a time, but it kept them from facing any real problems. When Leo got back, she decided, they were going to sit down and have a real talk.
Suddenly curious about what she had interrupted when she first walked in, Piper picked up the remote control, and clicked on the TV. She caught the tail end of the news story about a drowned young woman. She watched the screen with interest. Something about this story had caught Leo's attention. She'd seen it in his face when she'd walked in unnoticed. Piper wanted to know what it was.
* * *
Every particle of the Elder's domain hummed with warm magical energy. That was the only concrete image Leo could find for the place, and once he left, that single fragmented memory would be completely eradicated leaving him grasping at thin straws for a description of the Elder's location. Words held a mysteriously strong power that could be used against them, and so the Elders lived beyond their reach. It was nearly impossible to remember something that doesn't have a name.
Leo stood before the council of fifteen robed figures that observed him without visible expression.
Oden spoke first. The young looking Elder had short jet-black hair, and pale blue eyes that seemed to stare through their mark. His voice was deep and commanding, and he held much leadership in the group despite his age. He had only been an Elder for thirty years, and was often more accepting of modern Wiccan practices than the others; he had not objected to Leo's marriage to Piper. For this, Leo considered him an alley, but the whitelighter often didn't know what to make of this Elder's more peculiar behaviors. Oden could be an eccentric at best, and nearly fanatic at worst.
"You had a charge named Jackie Gilman who was to be a whitelighter upon her death, yes?" Oden asked.
Leo felt his mouth go dry and nodded. He remembered who Jackie was now.
"We have discussed her case at length," he continued, "and there appears to be some ambiguity between us as to whether her death was accidental or the result of suicide. As you know, if she committed suicide then Jackie can never become a whitelighter."
Leo opened his mouth to speak, but Oden silenced him with a regal wave of his hand.
"You will have your chance to speak," Oden informed him. "We will hold a council in three days at which time you will be allowed to make a statement and present anything else that may sway us one way or the other," the Elder paused, and seemed to choose his next words with care. "We will also take into heavy consideration your role as a whitelighter."
Leo's brow crinkled with confusion. "Why is that?" he asked on impulse.
"We feel," Oden explained, "that, if you were going your job correctly then it is less likely Jackie's death was suicide."
The wrinkles on Leo's forehead smoothed over and his face paled as realization hit. "So, this council is less about Jackie and more about evaluating me?" he asked with near disbelief.
Oden nodded, "I suppose that's one way to look at it. Is this a satisfactory arrangement?"
The booming question rang in Leo's ears, and he could feel heavy scrutiny from the fifteen members present. Every eye fixed intensely on him eating and burning away at his comfort. There was something else in the air too; something besides the tension. Magic. A great magical weight had attached itself to Leo's mind. Glamour spell. He was being controlled by a glamour spell. Every coherent thought in his mind turned molasses slow and hazy except for an instinctive compulsion to obey. Free will oozed out of his consciousness in between the finders of the spells knuckled grip. Usually, glamour spells weren't much more than magician's toys, but this felt intoxicatingly overpowering, and bittersweet with fear.
Leo opened his mouth to concede to the Elder's request when a voice shattered through the haze. "Oden!" the eldest member suddenly snapped, "break the spell at once!"
Oden paused a moment then waved his hand, and the weight of the spell lifted off of Leo. The whitelighter took in a large gulp of air as though it were his first real breath in minutes, not one controlled by the spell.
Leo looked around at each face frantically like a cornered jackrabbit. "Why did you use a spell on me?" he threw out the question with an accusing glare at Oden. "What's going on here? What is it that I don't know?"
Immediately a few of the Elders shifted almost invisibly, but Oden didn't flinch. "There is nothing you need to know at this time," Oden responded, impenetrably stoic.
The rest of the Elders all remained silent. Looking around to every unreadable face, Leo knew he wasn't going to get an explanation.
Leo was still plenty suspicious, but, none the less, he couldn't find an argument not to accept the proposal. If for no other reason, he wanted to help Jackie, to make up for the time he hadn't been there. "The arrangement is satisfactory," he grit out, making his reluctance clear. So what if he sounded rebellious at least he didn't sound as afraid and guilt ridden as he truly felt.
Leo orbed away with a dark shadow of dread looming over his mind. If Jackie committed suicide she would never become a whitelighter, and Leo would have failed one of his charges.
TBC.I'm really busy with school right now so updates may be few and far between for a while, but I really will try and finish this.
2ndA/N: this takes place a few months after chapter one (somewhere around early season five) so Piper is already pregnant, but Cole isn't going to be evil. He doesn't appear in this chapter but he will in later ones.
Chapter two: Memories
The forgotten memories first crept into his dreams. Jarring nightmares of drowning, bolted Leo awake on more than one occasion, and, upon gaining his senses, he would find his hands clutching at his chest where the darklighter had shot him a few months earlier. Piper, always a light sleeper, would calm him with a soothing touch and ask what was the matter. Leo would quickly say nothing was wrong and shoo his wife back to sleep. The truth was he didn't know what was going on, that is until he turned on the news one afternoon.
Leo slowly sank back on the couch as his mind registered the picture in front of him. A lumpy white sheet molded in the form of a body, was being wheeled into a coroners van. The ocean's familiar roar sounded in the background, and a few seagulls screamed overhead.
A young blonde reporter, dressed to the tee in the middle of the beach appeared on screen, and began describing the scene behind her.
"This morning, two fishermen stumbled upon the body of a young woman tangled in their nets. Her identity is yet unknown, but police-"
Leo clicked off the TV and stared vacantly at the screen. Somehow he knew who was under that sheet.
"Jackie," he whispered.
"What did you say?"
Leo turned around quickly to find Piper standing in the next room. "Umm.nothing. I was just watching the news. How long have you been standing there?" he asked.
"Oh, I just walked in." she replied with an airy dismissive gesture that suggested the question hadn't held much significance. In truth she had been standing there for a few minutes, watching him with a concerned expression. Leo had become more and more withdrawn lately, and she was starting to worry.
"So, how was your appointment with Eva?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Eva was bogged down by a slight emergency so I rescheduled for this afternoon." Piper walked over and sat next to Leo on the couch. Now was as good a time as any to bring up her concerns she sighed. "Listen Leo, you've seemed really distracted lately, and whatever is going on you can talk to me about it." Piper ran her fingers lightly through his short hair as she spoke. Her slender digits paused to touch the tip of his soft ear lobe.
Instead of answering her, Leo leaned in closer, inviting more of her touch, and softly pressed his lips to hers. Piper returned the gesture in kind. The passion was slowly smoldering and building between the two of them when the Elders' familiar call sprang into Leo's head. Groaning, he pulled back from his wife.
"Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad of a kiss," Piper teased. However, she knew the real reason for his irritation, and gave her consent before he asked. "Go. I'll still be here when you get back, and we're not finished talking yet lover boy," she warned.
"Thanks," Leo stole one last kiss before disappearing into a cloud of sparkling blue lights.
Sighing, Piper slumped back on the couch. Idly, she rubbed a hand over her swollen stomach. "Well, baby girl, it looks like it's just you and me.again." Other than Piper, the manor was completely empty. Phoebe was at work, and Paige was at a local herb shop. Usually Piper would have accompanied her youngest sister, but the smell of the herb shops made her nauseous.
Piper's thoughts wandered back to her husband. She and Leo never seemed to make any headway in their conversations anymore. Something almost always came up, and one of them would have to leave. Gently, Piper touched her warm swollen lips and smiled. The short moments of romance made things better for a time, but it kept them from facing any real problems. When Leo got back, she decided, they were going to sit down and have a real talk.
Suddenly curious about what she had interrupted when she first walked in, Piper picked up the remote control, and clicked on the TV. She caught the tail end of the news story about a drowned young woman. She watched the screen with interest. Something about this story had caught Leo's attention. She'd seen it in his face when she'd walked in unnoticed. Piper wanted to know what it was.
* * *
Every particle of the Elder's domain hummed with warm magical energy. That was the only concrete image Leo could find for the place, and once he left, that single fragmented memory would be completely eradicated leaving him grasping at thin straws for a description of the Elder's location. Words held a mysteriously strong power that could be used against them, and so the Elders lived beyond their reach. It was nearly impossible to remember something that doesn't have a name.
Leo stood before the council of fifteen robed figures that observed him without visible expression.
Oden spoke first. The young looking Elder had short jet-black hair, and pale blue eyes that seemed to stare through their mark. His voice was deep and commanding, and he held much leadership in the group despite his age. He had only been an Elder for thirty years, and was often more accepting of modern Wiccan practices than the others; he had not objected to Leo's marriage to Piper. For this, Leo considered him an alley, but the whitelighter often didn't know what to make of this Elder's more peculiar behaviors. Oden could be an eccentric at best, and nearly fanatic at worst.
"You had a charge named Jackie Gilman who was to be a whitelighter upon her death, yes?" Oden asked.
Leo felt his mouth go dry and nodded. He remembered who Jackie was now.
"We have discussed her case at length," he continued, "and there appears to be some ambiguity between us as to whether her death was accidental or the result of suicide. As you know, if she committed suicide then Jackie can never become a whitelighter."
Leo opened his mouth to speak, but Oden silenced him with a regal wave of his hand.
"You will have your chance to speak," Oden informed him. "We will hold a council in three days at which time you will be allowed to make a statement and present anything else that may sway us one way or the other," the Elder paused, and seemed to choose his next words with care. "We will also take into heavy consideration your role as a whitelighter."
Leo's brow crinkled with confusion. "Why is that?" he asked on impulse.
"We feel," Oden explained, "that, if you were going your job correctly then it is less likely Jackie's death was suicide."
The wrinkles on Leo's forehead smoothed over and his face paled as realization hit. "So, this council is less about Jackie and more about evaluating me?" he asked with near disbelief.
Oden nodded, "I suppose that's one way to look at it. Is this a satisfactory arrangement?"
The booming question rang in Leo's ears, and he could feel heavy scrutiny from the fifteen members present. Every eye fixed intensely on him eating and burning away at his comfort. There was something else in the air too; something besides the tension. Magic. A great magical weight had attached itself to Leo's mind. Glamour spell. He was being controlled by a glamour spell. Every coherent thought in his mind turned molasses slow and hazy except for an instinctive compulsion to obey. Free will oozed out of his consciousness in between the finders of the spells knuckled grip. Usually, glamour spells weren't much more than magician's toys, but this felt intoxicatingly overpowering, and bittersweet with fear.
Leo opened his mouth to concede to the Elder's request when a voice shattered through the haze. "Oden!" the eldest member suddenly snapped, "break the spell at once!"
Oden paused a moment then waved his hand, and the weight of the spell lifted off of Leo. The whitelighter took in a large gulp of air as though it were his first real breath in minutes, not one controlled by the spell.
Leo looked around at each face frantically like a cornered jackrabbit. "Why did you use a spell on me?" he threw out the question with an accusing glare at Oden. "What's going on here? What is it that I don't know?"
Immediately a few of the Elders shifted almost invisibly, but Oden didn't flinch. "There is nothing you need to know at this time," Oden responded, impenetrably stoic.
The rest of the Elders all remained silent. Looking around to every unreadable face, Leo knew he wasn't going to get an explanation.
Leo was still plenty suspicious, but, none the less, he couldn't find an argument not to accept the proposal. If for no other reason, he wanted to help Jackie, to make up for the time he hadn't been there. "The arrangement is satisfactory," he grit out, making his reluctance clear. So what if he sounded rebellious at least he didn't sound as afraid and guilt ridden as he truly felt.
Leo orbed away with a dark shadow of dread looming over his mind. If Jackie committed suicide she would never become a whitelighter, and Leo would have failed one of his charges.
TBC.I'm really busy with school right now so updates may be few and far between for a while, but I really will try and finish this.