Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed, unfortunately. I do not presume to, I simply use the characters that I love in my own stories. It's harmless fun.
AN: Thanks everyone who has reviewed. I know I haven't been so great at updating lately. I'm really sorries, but, well, writer's block has a strong grasp on me. I have been struggling to get out the low-quality chapters you've gotten so far..Y'all have been great, though. Thanks.
CharmingTess: Yes I had to leave it like that...yes I have to leave it like this. Hehe...thanks for your continuously great reviews! You are so sweet!
ProtectionPaige: heh, thanks!!!
Fury Piper: I guess I jsut misunderstood. Thanks for still reading! You rock!
pippergurl: Thanks! Read on to find out Phoebe's fate...heh, sort of...
Starring Piper: All that dancing make ya dizzy? lol. Houdini is evil, dontcha think? I'm glad you liked last chapter, hope you like this one. Thanks for reading the first part, 'cuz your idea helped me write the last part! You rock! LYLAL! PTTT!
Phoebe Christine: Thanks sis, LYLAL! Gummy bears...mmmmmm
lmcheese: Thank you, hope you continue to read, and like, my story!
Piper stared blankly at the spell in front of her, unable to force her mind to comprehend the words on the page. Slowly, her vision blurred as her eyes became unfocused. After a few moments, Piper snapped back to reality and blinked rapidly to stop the slight burning she felt in her eyes. Her mind raced, trying to figure how long she had been standing there. She did not understand why the simple task of reading a spell was becoming too much for her. With a frustrated growling sound, she softly read aloud the words in front of her. She stopped before completing the spell, gauging whether or not it would be effective in her current situation.
Through the thick, cotton-like barrier in her mind, Piper could hear a small voice telling her to focus, but she could not make herself follow its instructions. Once again, her thoughts retreated into a past memory as she stared sightlessly into space. This was getting ridiculous. With a tired sigh, Piper grabbed the Book from its altar and sat down on the hardwood floor. Her hands pushed a path through her brown hair, snagging, then pulling through a tangle. Hard determination kept her eyes on the page and finally the words she read pieced themselves together in her head. From what she understood, the spell should bring at least one of her sisters to her. Taking a deep breath, Piper read the rhyme into the empty attic air.
Paige opened her mouth, but she was unable to scream. The demon's last blow to her stomach had left her breathless and in desperate need of oxygen. She felt talons rip through the skin on her arm and winced. A voice chanted faintly in her ears, but she could hardly hear it through her own internal anguish. A bright light filled the room and a form began to take shape in front of her. Paige crawled towards the coming figure, praying it was her salvation and not another demon.
A deep pain seared its way through her abdomen, and Paige looked down to check the wound. Her eyes widened in surprise when she noticed the hilt of an asthame sticking out of her flesh. Unconsciousness encompassed her once more, and she was unaware of the demon beside her exploding or Piper urging her to hold on while she got some help.
Piper rolled Paige onto her back, checking for a pulse as she did so. A weak rythm beat under her fingers, and Piper battled tears of relief. She looked around, searching for a phone. A sickening realization slammed into her, causing her to draw in a quick breath. The spell had carried her into the Underworld, where Leo could not hear her calls for help. There was no way to get an ambulance for her sister, there wasn't any kind of communication between herself and the outside world. Impatiently, Piper racked her brain for ideas. Fragments of the spell she had used earlier danced around in her head, teasing her, then burying themselves again. Piper glanced at Paige, who had made a small, shuddering sound. Fear crept into her heart, and she knew she had little time to think. Impulsively, she muttered a spell.
"What's mine is yours, What's yours is mine, Let our powers cross the line, I offer up this gift to share, Switch our powers through the air," she finished and felt an odd emptiness, followed by a surge of power. Without wasting time on the doubts swimming through her thoughts, she knelt beside her sister and concentrated on the comforts of the Manor. After a brief period of nothing, she felt an odd building of tension, then a light, airy feeling of weightlessness. It took her a full minute to realize that she had tapped into Paige's power and had successfully orbed them to the Halliwell Manor. The phone began to ring, causing Piper to jerk her head up.
She ignored the sound and channeled her energy. She had to try to activate the power of healing, although Paige hadn't shown signs of that ability. Piper silently breathed a prayer to whoever would listen, then held her hands over Paige's body. When nothing happened, Piper choked down a sob.
"Leo," she screamed, "I need you. Paige needs you..."
"Come on, Piper," Darryl whispered under his breath, pressing his cell phone closer to his ear. He allowed two more rings, then hit the End button. He almost felt relieved, knowing he didn't have to tell Piper that gunshots had been heard. What would he say to her? He had no way of knowing if anyone had been shot, and it would only result in a lot of worrying on Piper's part. Darryl didn't dwell on it for long. He had to concentrate on the job at hand.
"Let's get those people out of there," he called to a man a few feet away. He recieved a slight, purposeful nod in response.
"This isn't fair to her," Leo insisted angrily, staring at the ring of Elders surrounding him. His behaviour bordered on insubordinance, but Leo didn't allow himself to care. "Paige could die. You would lose the Power of Three. Do you want that?"
"Leo," a white-haired Elder answered patiently, "We have to show Piper that pushing her sister away will result in nothing but harm. You must understand that." Leo choked back a snort of disbelief.
"Now is not the time to 'school' the Charmed Ones. You have to let me go down there, at least to heal Paige. Please, let me do that, then You can bring me right back." Leo looked beseechingly at each of them, searching for a set of eyes that portrayed some sign of acquiesance. All he recieved were determined looks, and he sighed heavily in defeat.
"If Paige dies, she will blame You," he argued weakly. A younger looking Elder smiled at him, infuriating him all the more.
"I trust that you will explain Our situation fully when you return," the Elder said. Leo glared at Them all and walked away at a furious pace.
"Paige, I am so sorry. I don't know what else to do," Piper whispered. She had called an ambulance, but the way things were going, it would be too late.She felt a tear roll down her cheek, but she didn't even bother to wipe it away. She was a failure. She hadn't managed even to learn from her mistakes with Prue. She had let Prue die, jsut the way she was letting Paige die now. She could tell from the gasping, gurgling breaths Paige was taking that it wouldn't be long.
That thought filled Piper with an intense fear that boggled her mind. Hadn't she been the one so keen on distancing herself as far away from Paige as possible? Piper felt as though she were betraying Prue by feeling so sad. Prue deserved to be grieved properly, not alongside another death. Piper knew her train of thought was getting out of hand, but she jsut couldn't stop herself.
A little of the anger she felt towards Paige began to resurface as she thought about Prue. Prue deserved so much more than what she was getting. After all, she had looked after Piper and Phoebe for most of their lives. Paige hadn't even been around until jsut recently, and already she was wrecking things. Piper was immediately flooded with guilt. She glanced down at Paige's dying form and nearly broke down.
"My God, I'm so sorry," she breathed. Paige had her eyes closed, her face contorted with pain. Piper lightly traced her features with one finger. "I'm sorry," she whispered again.
AN: Thanks everyone who has reviewed. I know I haven't been so great at updating lately. I'm really sorries, but, well, writer's block has a strong grasp on me. I have been struggling to get out the low-quality chapters you've gotten so far..Y'all have been great, though. Thanks.
CharmingTess: Yes I had to leave it like that...yes I have to leave it like this. Hehe...thanks for your continuously great reviews! You are so sweet!
ProtectionPaige: heh, thanks!!!
Fury Piper: I guess I jsut misunderstood. Thanks for still reading! You rock!
pippergurl: Thanks! Read on to find out Phoebe's fate...heh, sort of...
Starring Piper: All that dancing make ya dizzy? lol. Houdini is evil, dontcha think? I'm glad you liked last chapter, hope you like this one. Thanks for reading the first part, 'cuz your idea helped me write the last part! You rock! LYLAL! PTTT!
Phoebe Christine: Thanks sis, LYLAL! Gummy bears...mmmmmm
lmcheese: Thank you, hope you continue to read, and like, my story!
Piper stared blankly at the spell in front of her, unable to force her mind to comprehend the words on the page. Slowly, her vision blurred as her eyes became unfocused. After a few moments, Piper snapped back to reality and blinked rapidly to stop the slight burning she felt in her eyes. Her mind raced, trying to figure how long she had been standing there. She did not understand why the simple task of reading a spell was becoming too much for her. With a frustrated growling sound, she softly read aloud the words in front of her. She stopped before completing the spell, gauging whether or not it would be effective in her current situation.
Through the thick, cotton-like barrier in her mind, Piper could hear a small voice telling her to focus, but she could not make herself follow its instructions. Once again, her thoughts retreated into a past memory as she stared sightlessly into space. This was getting ridiculous. With a tired sigh, Piper grabbed the Book from its altar and sat down on the hardwood floor. Her hands pushed a path through her brown hair, snagging, then pulling through a tangle. Hard determination kept her eyes on the page and finally the words she read pieced themselves together in her head. From what she understood, the spell should bring at least one of her sisters to her. Taking a deep breath, Piper read the rhyme into the empty attic air.
Paige opened her mouth, but she was unable to scream. The demon's last blow to her stomach had left her breathless and in desperate need of oxygen. She felt talons rip through the skin on her arm and winced. A voice chanted faintly in her ears, but she could hardly hear it through her own internal anguish. A bright light filled the room and a form began to take shape in front of her. Paige crawled towards the coming figure, praying it was her salvation and not another demon.
A deep pain seared its way through her abdomen, and Paige looked down to check the wound. Her eyes widened in surprise when she noticed the hilt of an asthame sticking out of her flesh. Unconsciousness encompassed her once more, and she was unaware of the demon beside her exploding or Piper urging her to hold on while she got some help.
Piper rolled Paige onto her back, checking for a pulse as she did so. A weak rythm beat under her fingers, and Piper battled tears of relief. She looked around, searching for a phone. A sickening realization slammed into her, causing her to draw in a quick breath. The spell had carried her into the Underworld, where Leo could not hear her calls for help. There was no way to get an ambulance for her sister, there wasn't any kind of communication between herself and the outside world. Impatiently, Piper racked her brain for ideas. Fragments of the spell she had used earlier danced around in her head, teasing her, then burying themselves again. Piper glanced at Paige, who had made a small, shuddering sound. Fear crept into her heart, and she knew she had little time to think. Impulsively, she muttered a spell.
"What's mine is yours, What's yours is mine, Let our powers cross the line, I offer up this gift to share, Switch our powers through the air," she finished and felt an odd emptiness, followed by a surge of power. Without wasting time on the doubts swimming through her thoughts, she knelt beside her sister and concentrated on the comforts of the Manor. After a brief period of nothing, she felt an odd building of tension, then a light, airy feeling of weightlessness. It took her a full minute to realize that she had tapped into Paige's power and had successfully orbed them to the Halliwell Manor. The phone began to ring, causing Piper to jerk her head up.
She ignored the sound and channeled her energy. She had to try to activate the power of healing, although Paige hadn't shown signs of that ability. Piper silently breathed a prayer to whoever would listen, then held her hands over Paige's body. When nothing happened, Piper choked down a sob.
"Leo," she screamed, "I need you. Paige needs you..."
"Come on, Piper," Darryl whispered under his breath, pressing his cell phone closer to his ear. He allowed two more rings, then hit the End button. He almost felt relieved, knowing he didn't have to tell Piper that gunshots had been heard. What would he say to her? He had no way of knowing if anyone had been shot, and it would only result in a lot of worrying on Piper's part. Darryl didn't dwell on it for long. He had to concentrate on the job at hand.
"Let's get those people out of there," he called to a man a few feet away. He recieved a slight, purposeful nod in response.
"This isn't fair to her," Leo insisted angrily, staring at the ring of Elders surrounding him. His behaviour bordered on insubordinance, but Leo didn't allow himself to care. "Paige could die. You would lose the Power of Three. Do you want that?"
"Leo," a white-haired Elder answered patiently, "We have to show Piper that pushing her sister away will result in nothing but harm. You must understand that." Leo choked back a snort of disbelief.
"Now is not the time to 'school' the Charmed Ones. You have to let me go down there, at least to heal Paige. Please, let me do that, then You can bring me right back." Leo looked beseechingly at each of them, searching for a set of eyes that portrayed some sign of acquiesance. All he recieved were determined looks, and he sighed heavily in defeat.
"If Paige dies, she will blame You," he argued weakly. A younger looking Elder smiled at him, infuriating him all the more.
"I trust that you will explain Our situation fully when you return," the Elder said. Leo glared at Them all and walked away at a furious pace.
"Paige, I am so sorry. I don't know what else to do," Piper whispered. She had called an ambulance, but the way things were going, it would be too late.She felt a tear roll down her cheek, but she didn't even bother to wipe it away. She was a failure. She hadn't managed even to learn from her mistakes with Prue. She had let Prue die, jsut the way she was letting Paige die now. She could tell from the gasping, gurgling breaths Paige was taking that it wouldn't be long.
That thought filled Piper with an intense fear that boggled her mind. Hadn't she been the one so keen on distancing herself as far away from Paige as possible? Piper felt as though she were betraying Prue by feeling so sad. Prue deserved to be grieved properly, not alongside another death. Piper knew her train of thought was getting out of hand, but she jsut couldn't stop herself.
A little of the anger she felt towards Paige began to resurface as she thought about Prue. Prue deserved so much more than what she was getting. After all, she had looked after Piper and Phoebe for most of their lives. Paige hadn't even been around until jsut recently, and already she was wrecking things. Piper was immediately flooded with guilt. She glanced down at Paige's dying form and nearly broke down.
"My God, I'm so sorry," she breathed. Paige had her eyes closed, her face contorted with pain. Piper lightly traced her features with one finger. "I'm sorry," she whispered again.