A/N: I love feedback…I love it! I love you guys! You have been berry berry good to me….I reached my record in reviews!!! This has been my highest-review fic ever….and I just wanna say….THANK YOU! I really enjoy writing this fic when I know that I have people who like it J So….I worked up the motivation and determination to write another chapter! Hopefully….it's as good as the other ones have been. Thank you thank you thank you!!! Oh and Brooke….sorry if I disappoint you a little bit in this chapter……
Summary: This is an A/U fic. What if the Elders never let Piper and Leo get married? What if they forbid them from having any kind of relationship? And they followed the rules, except that Piper still got pregnant. So what if their daughter had the exact same story Paige had? Piper and Leo had to give their powerful daughter away to another family...and they were never the same.……time passes by, and a chain of events….leads Piper's daughter and the Halliwells to another exciting, and emotional adventure.
Disclaimer: I do not own the show or any of the characters, except for some that you don't recognize
Separation- Chapter 10
Paige sipped her Pepsi from the straw sticking out from the McDonalds labeled disposable cup. She was sitting at a booth alone with papers from the huge file scattered all over her table. She was reading several reports on 'Samantha Melinda Fielding' so she could see if there were any clues or anything to see if she could actually be her niece. Paige was searching in a determined manor, hoping and praying that this was her sister's daughter, so it could give Piper some peace.
This was normal for her. She was always determined to help her sisters in any way that she could. She felt it was her duty to do it, considering that she was the only sane one left in the family and because her sisters have done more for her than anyone could ever know. She needed to repay them, and doing these things to ease their troubles seemed like the perfect thing.
Phoebe was no longer right in the head. Her troubles with Cole have drove her off the deep end. She had become the FREAK. Always going on dates with people she barely knew, always working on her advice column which by the way has been going down since people have been complaining constantly about her bad advice, and also snapping at Paige whenever she mentioned her ex-husbands name. And Piper, well….you already saw most of her bad side. Paige was really keeping the whole family together and she was determined to keep it from falling.
Her eyes scanned the papers in her hand quickly as she tried to process each and every word. Everything was in this file. Her grades since Kindergarten, reports on misdemeanors, exams, personal information, and even a photo from each grade. Paige took the photos and spread them out on the table in order. She watched the evolution of this young girl, from missing places in her mouth in Kindergarten, to that beautiful mini replica of Piper in sophomore year.
Paige decided that was enough proof for her to drive over to their house and question her supposed aunt and uncle. She searched through all the papers , looking for the personal information page. She smiled once she found it. She carefully read the page and found her address. She grinned happily. But the grin disappeared once she thought of what else she could do. She slapped her head hard. "DUH!"
Her birth certificate. Every school record should have a copy of the student's birth certificate enclosed in their file. If they didn't, it was either lost, or you were an illegal immigrant or something else. If it was in here, then it would show who her parents were, no matter what. She searched frantically for the copy throughout all the hundreds of papers in front of her. Her search continued for a while until she came upon another personal information sheet that contained an important message at the bottom. It was in pen ink and it looked like a message that was written from the principal.
"Guardians registered with no birth certificate. Claimed it was lost while moving to the location. The whereabouts of the Mother and Father of the student unknown. Although other information was retrieved. Student was excused from the lost document, and allowed to complete registration into school. Repeat: No Birth Certificate"
No Birth Certificate. The words appeared over and over on Paige's mind. Could this be one ironic coincidence? Paige sighed, taking the minor setback all in. She banged her head lightly on the table, groaning. "Damn, Damn, DAMN!" she whispered to herself, so that no one else in the fast food joint would hear her moans. She now had a newfound hate for irony.
After getting over her anger, she sighed deeply and started to put the papers together. 'At least I have the address….At least I have the address…..DAMN I hate irony!!!' she thought as she gathered her things together. She got up from her booth and sipped the last few drops of her pop before throwing it in the trash. She walked out of the fast food restaurant, and breathed in the fresh air of the night. The place was beginning to smell like socks since she was sitting right near the children's play place.
Paige jumped into her car, and held the paper with Samantha's address in front of her. She carefully pulled out of the driveway and drove away, not knowing what to expect once she did meet with Sam once again.
****
"It's no use fighting whitelighter." Spencer said calmly, blocking each and every punch Artemis was throwing at him. But Artemis didn't seem to hear what he was saying. Nothing was blocking the anger from taking over his veins and doing everything he could to take revenge. A kick here and an attempted throw there, but Artemis just couldn't get his hands on him like he wanted to. Spencer laughed as he moved his head quickly. Fighting Apolla and winning had given him a boost of energy, and more confidence that he was actually going to succeed in his doings.
Spencer managed to duck and kick Artemis at the same time, weakening him. Artemis knew that he had a good chance of losing, since he hadn't had the same amount of training Apolla had had, and he wasn't exactly fit for it either. Living for over a century took it's toll on you. Artemis backed away, trying to get over the shooting pain in his leg.
He then surprised Spencer by jumping on him. Spencer fell to the ground. Artemis punched him hardly in the face, making Spencer's jaw ache like crazy. Artemis stood up. Spencer tried to get up slowly, and he was on his knees when Artemis kicked him from the bottom and buried the front of his shoe right into Spencer's chin. Spencer's head jerked up suddenly and he felt the blood in his face suddenly rush to his brain. While still in the air, Artemis' leg swung over his head, and then he roundhouse kicked Spencer on the side of his head, making Spencer fall sideways on the floor.
Artemis looked down at Spencer, still not satisfied that he was still breathing. Spencer's jaw lay flat on the floor. He moved slightly, trying to get up but Artemis just kicked him once again so he would stay on the ground. Artemis had much anger in his eyes, wanting to use every ounce in his strength to beat him until he would live no more, but he knew that was against everything he lived for. He sighed and knelt on the ground. Artemis may not have been trained very well in the martial arts, but he still had an enormous amount of strength in him.
He picked Spencer up by his neck, and held him up so that his legs were dangling in the air and he was choking a bit. "Give me Apolla's soul now. And tell me how to release it." He said sternly, holding him up, not showing any sign of weakness. Spencer glared at him with squinty eyes and spit at him. "Go to hell…" he whispered. Artemis' anger rose once again and he screamed as he threw Spencer across the room.
Spencer crashed into the dining room table, of course now the dining room table was only a pile of broken wood. Artemis could hear Spencer groan a bit and Artemis took a small breather. But he was shocked when Spencer's crossbow suddenly appeared in his hand. His arm stretched out toward Artemis and he pulled the trigger so that it went flying, heading straight for him. Luckily Artemis sensed it in time and moved his head slightly to the right, so that it would miss him and head straight for the wall. Artemis' senses went right back up and he started moving around since Spencer kept shooting arrows constantly at him.
Artemis moved swiftly, avoiding all the arrows that were being shot at him. One arrow went right over his head, just missing the top of his gray hair when he ducked. Another arrow was shot to his side, but he bent his back slightly so that it missed him by just an inch. Arrow shot lower this time, aiming for his leg but he jumped, spreading his legs out so that it went right through. It was like the matrix all over again….only with angels.
Spencer then shot another arrow toward Artemis' face, and Artemis eyes were wide open. He had no choice but to grab the arrow's body and grip it with his hand right before the arrowhead hit his face. He gave a big sigh of relief as his hand held the arrow tightly and his eyes were cross-eyed for looking at the very tip of the arrow. But he suddenly yelped in pain, as he felt stinging in his hands. He dropped the arrow, and as it fell on the ground, he fell to his knees, clutching his right hand.
His hand was turning reddish purple from the poison that was spread across the arrow. It burned his hands and he screamed in agony as he felt the poison go through his skin and into his veins. He could hear Spencer laughing in the background as he clenched his teeth and shut his eyes tight. Spencer slowly got up from the pile of wood he was lying on. His crossbow still in his hand, now with a new fresh arrow in it's clutches. He groaned a little bit, still feeling the aches in his bones from the throws and kicks but got up anyway.
He walked over to Artemis smiling, and once he got to where he was, he knelt so that he and Artemis were at the same level. Artemis' eyes were getting droopy, and it seemed like someone had drugged him. His head was hanging now, and sweat drops slowly started to form and fall down the side of his head. "The poison spreads fast no? Even with the slightest touch of the arrow, it's like the poison can sense if the receiver is a whitelighter or not…..more whitelighter you are, the faster it spreads."
Artemis kept trying to keep his head up, but his strength was fading fast he couldn't even keep his mouth closed. His eyes were rolling around the place, not staying in one place. He took small, deep breaths. 'No…I have to stay strong….I have to stay up…I can't let the poison take over. I need to protect Samantha….. I promised Apolla….' He thought over and over in his brain.
"It's no use fighting whitelighter. The poison will just keep spreading until it has gone through every vein and nerve in your body until you are withered away. But see, I can't wait too long, so I'm just gonna help you a little bit." He said. He came closer to Artemis, and Artemis looked at him in the eye. He suddenly jumped and screamed in pain as Spencer shot another arrow right into his stomach. Artemis was no longer on his knees and fell to his side. Spencer merely laughed at the sight of Artemis suffering.
In the middle of his cackle, and his senses suddenly jumped. "Hmmm….I can sense the child……" he said, tilting his head to think and to try and see how close she was. He smiled once he sensed her completely. "Oh. The girl's coming home….." he said, laughing once more. "Ah, this is working out too well for me. Traps, traps and more traps. I might get promoted to personal assistant by the end of the day!" he said proudly. Artemis only laid on the floor, shaking a bit, and sweating like mad. Spencer could hear him breathing heavily, trying hard to fight the poison.
"I'll be back Arty…." He said mockingly, as he disappeared in black orbs.
****
Samantha hugged herself tightly so she could withstand the bitter cold of the night. She glanced at her watch. 11:30. It had been half an hour since the major incident at P3. The whole night was confusing to her, she was deciding whether it was a dream or not. Blowing things up, and freezing people except for that one person. The person who had chased her all 6 blocks away from the club.
She reminisced in her head about the events that happened tonight. She went to a club. She met the most coolest guy, and he could be her next boyfriend. She froze every inch of the club with her hands, not knowing what the hell she had done. A worker had caught her at the club. She ran nearly a mile to get away from the lady, but then with her hands again she blew a trash can up. She ran another 5 blocks just to get away from the woman, and she found out she had dropped her wallet in the process so she was forced to walk home instead of taking a warm bus or cab.
Another thing was that the woman had looked terribly familiar. She KNEW in her mind and in her heart that she had definitely seen that woman before but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She needed answers. Where had she seen that woman before exactly? Why was she the only person who didn't freeze with the rest of the civilians? Why had she chased her so far? And why was she looking at her like she realized some familiarity between them too……
The woman had looked just like her. She didn't want to believe it, but god how could she not notice? She looked at reflection in the mirror long enough to memorize every single detail about her features, her look and her body. And it was like this woman was her all grown up. Same hair, same eyes, same….everything. What was she a mini clone of her? She remembered the old classic movie from the 90's that she saw on the Turner Classic Movie Channel….what was it called? Something with Powers….Austin….something like that.
'Ah Sam! Why the heck are you thinking of old cable movies at a time like this? Do you still not BELIEVE what just happened right now? You FROZE and BLEW UP something. That's not something your average person would do…..'
Then again, she was anything BUT normal. All the weird feelings, all the crazy suspicions, never knowing her past, not knowing the truth. 'Oh my god…this thing is like one big puzzle. And the pieces seem to be slipping together one by one…..'
She decided that she would talk to her uncle and aunt about all of this. She was going to pour out what she had to say and what she had done tonight and what had happened in the last few days. She would tell them each and every one of her suspicions and ask them for more answers. She needed to find out about her parents. And she needed answers to her questions about her guardians to, like where they went or who they really were…..or where do they get all the freaking money!
She had been walking for at least 45 minutes now, with the amazingly thin jacket and the cold breeze blowing against her making her goosebumps rise and making her shiver like crazy. She was about a block away from her house now, and it wouldn't be long until she was warm with her aunt's cup of cocoa and her favorite gray Old Navy hooded fleece sweater that always kept her warm in the winter nights like these.
Suddenly, a feeling went through her. One of her weird feelings. Another big gust of wind blew at her, but she realized that this feeling had absolutely NOTHING to do with the bitter cold. She stopped in her tracks and closed her eyes tight. Something bad had happened. She could feel it so badly inside of her. She couldn't explain how she knew that it was something bad but she just knew. She looked up ahead of her, glancing at the empty and quiet street and she saw her house far away. She had to get there. Now.
'Now.' She told herself, as she let go of the tight hold she had on her elbows and told herself to just run. She gathered speed and her legs were rushing as much as possible. She didn't care how cold it was with the wind blowing against her skin, but she knew that she just needed to get home.
'Run, dammit. RUN!' she forced herself. She didn't really feel herself running. She couldn't feel her feet heavily pounding on the ground as she took big steps. She ignored the signs of aching bones and tiredness. All she was focusing on was her house and she needed to get there as fast as she could. Her breath was getting shorter, and it tired her out as she was breathing in the cold air in her lungs heavily and fast as she ran. Her chest was starting to hurt from running so fast but she was almost there.
As soon as she got to her front lawn, she stopped and paused. She glanced at the fairly large house. All the lights were shut except for a few hall lights upstairs and the single office light in the lower left front window right next to the door. 'That's….weird. Aunt Apolla should be watching tv or something in the house….all the lights shouldn't be closed. They're never closed until at least 12…..' she thought to herself.
'Oh God. Something's wrong.' She thought, worried and scared to death. She laid her hand on her chest, trying to control her breathing and the aching pain in her chest sensing that something was DEADLY wrong. Her eyes were filled with worry and anxiety. She quickly took her keys out from her coat pocket. She was lucky not to have dropped those while escaping from club security. She held her key as she walked up the front steps.
Sam was about to insert the key into the keyhole, when she noticed the slightest crack in the door. 'Oh….God. The door….is open.' She thought once more, examining the unlocked, open door with widened eyes. She took a deep breath and pushed to door wide open. She ignored the loud creak in the hinges and walked in slowly. She looked up the stairs, and into the office, wishing that she would see her aunt watching TV on the couch or her uncle busily punching keys onto his calculator, but it was practically pitch black.
She looked straight ahead to the kitchen and could see something on the floor, but couldn't make out what it was since it was so dark in the house. She walked towards it slowly, wanting anxiously what it was. She peered at it, hoping that it was an inanimate object but she practically shrieked and jumped when she saw it move slightly. She got over her fear quickly, and walked towards it more. Then, with a little more moonlight shining through the kitchen window, she saw who it was.
"Oh my….UNCLE ART!! UNCLE ART!" she screamed, now running towards the body on the floor. Once she got to the kitchen she slid down on the floor and knelt to where he was. He had an arrow in his stomach and blood was spread all over his white polo shirt and over the tile floor. Sam broke into tears as she saw her helpless father figure on the floor. She took his hand and held it tightly. It was icy cold.
"Uncle Art?" she whimpered, shaking him a bit. "Uncle Art…wake up…..please…wake up….." she pleaded. Her tears running down her cheeks, a liter a minute. Her denial took over her, and she acted like a little helpless girl. "Uncle Art….come on….stop…..stop joking. Wake up….PLEASE wake up…." She said, still shaking him. She heard him groan a bit, and he opened his eyes.
"Samantha….." he whispered. His voice was cracking and she could tell that he was weak and was slipping fast. "Samantha…get out of here…." He managed to say. He was weak and was wounded but he still had the strength to talk clearer than Apolla did when she was hit. "Too…dangerous."
"No, Uncle Art. Who did this to you? Who did it???" she asked him, her tears still running. Her heart was weakening just looking at him. She was breaking down as she held his hand. She rubbed it, hoping that he would warm up. "I'll call 911. I'll call the ambulance. They'll help Uncle Art. They'll help…You're going to be okay…." She said, acting a little happy, still believing that he would be just fine.
"Samantha. I….We….we're not….related…." he tried to say, but took deep breaths first. "I'm not your uncle….I'm your angel…."
"Stop talking Uncle Art….you're delerious."
"Sammy listen to me. There's not enough time to explain this all….no time….you're in danger….you need…Prue….darklighters want…power….." he said, stopping in between each word. Samantha looked at him with a ghastly expression. "What are you talking about? I don't…know….."
"Your parents….were…magical. You're…powerful. You have powers……and Auntie Pam and I were watching….over you…..and Prue….."
"Prue? What does she have to do with this? What are you talking about??" she whimpered, with fear rising in her eyes. Artemis took more deep breaths.
"An evil person did this to me….and he wants you. You need to find Prue….and tell her…when I…am gone……"
"Gone…stop talking like that Uncle. You're not going to be gone. You're going to be fine….once the hospital……"
"No hospital can save me…..I'm an angel, and only magic can heal me…."
"What? Angel…? Magic?"
"I'm an angel Samantha. I am your guardian angel. I protect you and I have magical powers. We are from up there….and we protect witches and future whitelighters."
"Witch…what the….."
"It's a lot to take in. I know it is. But you're going to have to trust me…….." he said, but then groaned a bit. He could feel the poison taking over the last clean part of his body. "Prue…..find….Prue…." he said, before making one last gasp. He felt the poison finally take it's deathly toll on him, and he closed his eyes as he took one last breath. Sam's eyes widened.
"Uncle Art…..Uncle Art…..UNCLE ART!!!" she screamed, with more tears running down. "No….no…NO!!!!!!!!!" she screamed out loud as she cried and kept holding his hand. She lied down next to him and laid her head on his shoulder. She cried her heart out on him, and still couldn't believe he was gone. He couldn't be gone….it just wasn't possible. He was talking nonsense. Her eyes were shut, and she was still laying with her uncle when the similar bright ball of light that came out of Apolla, came out of Artemis, and as it lifted into the air, it shot right into Sam.
Samantha felt it and jumped. She sat up and felt the big energy boost. Her tears were still running down her cheeks but what shocked her even more, was to find her aunt laying down in the corner of the kitchen, as pale and as lifeless as her uncle was. She let go of her uncle's hand and ran over to her. "No….not you too…NOT YOU TOO!" she screamed angrily as she tucked some of her aunt's hair behind her ear.
"No…this can't be happening….this can't be HAPPENING." She screamed, her voice clouded with sadness and anger. The sudden voice behind her made her jump. "But it is my dear….it is."
Samantha jumped to her feet and whirled around. She saw the ruffled hair dirty blonde, with the black messy trench coat and dusty clothes. He had a crossbow in his hand but he was trying to hide it behind the long trench coat. Her eyes widened as she saw the mysterious stranger. "Who are you….what did you do….why….are you here…."
"I'm here for you honey. And only for you…." He said, smiling and pointing the crossbow at Sam. He smiled mockingly and held out a shiny crystal. He laughed as he examined the crystal that was shining brightly and blinking constantly. He held it out to the lifeless body of her uncle, and she watched in horror as he sucked an enormous amount of light out of his body. "Ahh….sweet power." He said as he laughed.
"What the hell did you do to them….." she said in anger. Spencer suddenly looked up at Sam. He smiled evilly and lifted an eyebrow. "What are you going to do about it?" he said, still smiling. She held up her fists and stood in a defensive stance. "I'm trained in tae kwon do. I can kick your sorry ass for doing this." She whispered. It seemed to have made him laugh even more.
"Oh my gosh. I'm so scared of the little girl. Save it. You're a whitelighter now. And that means I'm going to take your power and kill you just as well." He said as he held the crossbow up to her face. Her eyes widened as she ran. He shot out an arrow that missed her by one little centimeter. She ran out of the kitchen and into the office. He smiled as he ran after her.
"Come back here little whitelighter!" he screamed. He saw her run into the office. He followed her and shot another arrow. It hit the TV instead of her leg. She ran some more. He kept shooting arrows at her but Sam ran as fast as she could. She hopped on and off the couch and the desk. An arrow accidentally hit their only light source and they were in darkness.
But since they were near a window, Spencer could still see her clearly. He kept shooting arrows at her and Sam kept avoiding them. Until….Sam got tired, and thought he couldn't see her anymore. She was crawling behind him, trying to get out of the room, but Spencer sensed her and aimed the crossbow at her. She stopped and froze in her position. Spencer, having no mercy smiled and laughed, as he pulled his final trigger.
Sam screamed in pain as the arrow hit her stomach. She fell down to the floor, and could feel her strength slowly slipping away. Everything started to go black, and as she closed her eyes, she whispered something quietly, something that only she could hear and not Spencer, since he was too busy laughing his head off from the victory.
"Prue…"
****
Prue smiled as she laid all the delicious plates of food on the small, old kitchen table. The poor family that was seated around the table smiled and their stomachs growled at the sight of all the food. They hadn't eaten in weeks, and it seemed like this angel had come from nowhere as a savior to their hunger. The four around the table, held hands and said grace. There was a mother, a father, and two little boys. The youngest was the one who was saying the small prayer and his words and cute little voice touched Prue's heart.
"God bless my family….my food….and God bless the beautiful angel that came to save us." He said in a little baby voice. "Amen." Everyone repeated. The two boys and the mother immediately dug into the food, considering that they hadn't had a descent meal in weeks. Their clothes were already dirty and smelly, and their hygiene you could tell was terrible.
Prue stood on the side with her hands crossed. The father stood up from the table and went up to Prue. "Thank you….thank you so much. We would have starved if you hadn't come…..Especially Peter there…." He said, glancing at his youngest son and admiring his courage and bravery. Prue grinned.
"It really is no problem Mr. Waters. This is my job. And speaking of jobs, a little source told me that you were in desperate need in one. Let's just say I hooked you up with a good paying one." She said, pulling out a piece of paper out of her pocket. She handed it to Mr. Waters and his eyes lit up with joy.
"Oh Miss….thank you. You are really heaven sent and I hope you have many blessings coming your way. You definitely have ours." He said, shaking her hand and grinning. She smiled and nodded. "Just…don't quit doing those good deeds of yours. And keep teaching your family your good ways. It will all pay off….I promise." She said reassuringly. He nodded and then went back to the table. She walked out of the rotten tenant, feeling proud of herself.
She sighed, knowing another good deed was done. She was wondering what she could do now, since the voices in her head had all calmed down and none of her charges were in need anymore….for now. She was about to orb to home to her apartment until something caught her ear. It was a scream. A torturous scream. She listened more carefully to all the voices in her head.
"Prue…." She heard quite clearly. She recognized that voice. 'Sam….' She thought, sensing her fear and pain. "Oh no…she's in trouble. SAM!" she screamed, orbing out, in desperate need to come to her rescue. She could feel all the fear, anxiety and pain that was going on inside of Sam, and there were a million reasons on what it could be about….
To Be Continued…..Stay tuned for Chapter 12 of "Separation."
A/N: Well…another chapter….I decided to update because I have been getting a lot of encouragement lately….. *eyes CF12 and Brooke*. Hehehehe. Well…I hope you like this chapter…and hope you didn't get too disappointed with Artemis Brooke….sorrrrieee…but I promise that the end will make up for it. I hope this chap wasn't too long….or I hope that this wasn't too boring. Please read and review!!! And one little question….I wasn't sure if I showed enough emotion with Sam and Artemis and Apolla…did it lack something? I hope not….but don't be afraid to tell me if it's lacking emotion or something….okay…..read and review now!!!!!