Charmed and Dangerous—Part 4
"You're a white lighter," Phoebe whispered. "Oh God…" Paige was still standing in the middle of the room, still as a statue with her clothes bundled in her hand. Phoebe's brain seemed to have momentarily crashed, and then sped into hyperdrive as all the implications hit her. Paige wasn't human. Paige wasn't even alive, technically. Even though she had always known this about Leo and not been upset by it, somehow it seemed very different now. Would Paige be called away to her charges at all hours, without warning, just like Leo? Would they even be allowed to be together? Or would the elders insist that two charmed ones coupled with white lighters was simply unacceptable?
"Paige are you…are they gonna…" Phoebe's voice broke, and a gut-wrenching sob sprang Paige into action, as she rushed back to Phoebe and the bed, cradling her tenderly.
"No, honey, please don't cry…shhh…I'm not a white lighter. I'm a very human girl, who catches colds and skins my knees. Really, it's okay." Paige gently wiped away Phoebe's tears as she spoke, covering her face with gentle kisses.
"But…you orbed!" Phoebe sobbed, wanting to believe Paige, but unable to understand these confusing new events.
"Yeah," Paige agreed. She had no idea how Phoebe knew about orbing, but she realized that they both had secrets that would have to come out; the confusion was causing Phoebe terrible distress, and Paige simply wouldn't allow that.
"My mom was a white lighter," she explained as she continued to soothe Phoebe, running her fingers through soft brown hair. "I got the orbing from her…but that's all, nothing else. My dad was just a regular guy, and Mom couldn't save him when he got sick." Paige swallowed hard, trying not to think too much about the father she had lost so very long ago. "After that it was just me and Mom…she told me what she was then. She had to, there was just too much to go unexplained. I didn't know up till then, didn't even know what I was, cause Mom bound my orbing power to keep me safe from too many questions. She told me that one day, when I was ready and we both agreed, she'd release my power. But then she was killed protecting one of her charges…" Paige trailed off, this pain too fresh to swallow away. Phoebe hugged her, not trying to offer any false words of assurance. She knew how painful it was to lose a mother.
"Anyway," Paige continued, "after she died, my power was released. It was all so sudden, and I had no idea how to control it. Any time I got angry or scared, I was orbing all over the place. I totally freaked out, and ran away from the foster family they'd put me with. This was three years ago," she added.
"So, what happened?" Phoebe asked tentatively. Paige smiled fondly.
"I was hitchhiking to LA, and this guy picked me up in his truck. Then he grabbed my hand and orbed me," she jerked her thumb up, "somewhere safe. He said he was my new white lighter, and he'd teach me how to control my power. He calmed me down a lot, and got me to agree I'd go back to my foster parents. And he did teach me," She finished. "I've got it all under control now…except for the, uh, sneezing thing, which you are the only person to have ever seen." She grinned shyly. Phoebe smiled back. It really was cute, she thought mischievously. "I'm still working on that, but it seems kinda hopeless. It's completely involuntary, you know? Just like a regular sneeze is. And Leo says that since I'm the only human to ever have been known to orb, there's no way to know if…" Paige trailed off as she noticed Phoebe's eyes bug out.
"Leo?" Phoebe gasped.
"My white lighter," Paige clarified.
"Paige, Leo is my white lighter, too…not to mention, Piper's husband."
"Huh? And…huh?" Now it was Paige who stared at Phoebe in disbelief.
"My sisters and I are witches."
"Not just any old witch gets a white lighter," Paige pointed out hesitantly.
"Yeah…well, my sisters and I, we're not just any old witches," Phoebe said with a small grin. "We're the Charmed Ones."
"Holy shit," Paige gasped. "You…you're…wow." A dreamy expression of disbelief came over Paige's face. "My girlfriend is a charmed one!"
"I'm your girlfriend?" Phoebe squeaked, her toes wiggling happily under the blanket. Snapped out of her reverie, Paige looked up in an expression of horror, a deep blush rising in her cheeks as she backpedaled furiously.
"Oh, I didn't mean—I shouldn't have—I mean if you want—" Phoebe silenced her with a deep, smoldering kiss.
"Paige," she breathed when they broke apart, "I've, um, never moved this fast before. I'm not exactly a put-out-on-the-first-date kind of girl. But what's happening between us, it's not about putting out. I've never moved this fast before…because I've never felt this way about anyone before."
"Me neither," Paige agreed softly, still in a slight trance from Phoebe's gentle fingers grazing her face.
"So rest assured, that there is nothing on this earth I want more than to be your girlfriend." Phoebe gave Paige a glowing smile. "Do you want to be mine?"
"Yes," Paige breathed, kissing her in a way that was almost worshipful.
"Good," Phoebe sighed as they broke apart. "Glad we got that taken care of." Paige giggled, then her eyes slid out of focus.
"Achoo!" Paige sneezed, once again giving Phoebe the most delightful sensations everywhere they touched as she orbed quickly out and back in again.
"Oh, honey," Phoebe kissed her forehead, smiling gently. "I almost forgot, with everything and all, that my baby doesn't feel good." She gently laid her hand against Paige's face; it was definitely warm. "I'm gonna make you some nice hot raspberry-ginger tea, okay? It'll make you feel better." Paige nodded, smiling shyly. She wasn't used to having anyone dote over her like this.
"Although…" Phoebe added mischievously, "it does feel really good when you do that."
"Do what?"
"Orb out against me."
"Really?" Phoebe nodded, and Paige returned her evil grin. "You mean, like this?" And Paige began to dissolve back into the hazy blue light that tickled Phoebe's senses so. But she didn't orb out completely; she managed to hover somehow, to hold herself in limbo for several seconds before orbing back in.
"Ohhh," Phoebe moaned, squirming under her very satisfied looking girlfriend. "That feels so good, Paige."
"Well, I showed you mine…" Paige trailed off, looking at Phoebe significantly. Phoebe knew exactly what she wanted, and spared a momentary thanks to the guys upstairs for giving her something to show off besides her premonitions. Kissing Paige lightly on the mouth, she wrapped her arms firmly around her girlfriend, and twined their legs together. Then she levitated them both three feet off the bed.
"Whoa!" Paige squealed. "Holy shit, Phoebe. That is so cool!" Phoebe giggled, feeling rather proud of herself, and they began to kiss in midair, moving against each other in a weightless sort of way.
"Mmmmm," Paige sighed, "how long can you do this, Pheebs?"
"As long as you want," Phoebe murmured. They kissed passionately. And then the door flew open.
"Pheebs, sorry to wake you, but I need my car ke—" Piper's entrance startled Phoebe so badly that she fell, along with Paige, landing on the bed with an undignified grunt as both girls had the wind knocked out of them. Piper shrieked as her eyes fell upon the scene before her, clapping her hands firmly over her eyes and stumbling backwards in retreat. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Piper cried, tripping over her feet and falling on her butt in her haste. Her hands remained firmly over her eyes. "Uh, Phoebe," she said hesitantly, "Did I just see what I think I just saw? And I am not talking about the naked part."
"Piper, it's okay." Phoebe managed to say when she regained her breath. "You don't have to worry."
"Are you nuts?" Piper screamed. With her hands still covering her eyes, it made for a very comical argument. Paige reached down and pulled the covers back up over herself and Phoebe, sparing them all from further embarrassment.
"Piper, you can open your eyes now," Phoebe said calmly. "And no, I am not nuts." Piper hesitantly removed her hands from her face, relieved to find the scene no longer X-rated.
"Look…Piper," Paige said haltingly. "I have powers too, okay? Trust me, I won't rat out the charmed ones." Piper's eyes bugged out.
"You must be Paige," she said finally. Paige nodded. "Great. Well, that's…that's just…um…nice to meet you." Piper was blushing furiously, utterly confused and discombobulated.
"Look Piper, why don't you go downstairs and let Paige and I get dressed, okay? We'll come down in a minute and explain everything to you and Prue." Piper nodded dumbly. "And make some raspberry-ginger tea," Phoebe added as Piper got up from the floor. As the door closed behind her, both Paige and Phoebe collapsed onto the bed.
"Whoaaaaa…" Paige gave a deflated sigh. Then both girls erupted into a fit of giggles.
Ten minutes later, the two entered the kitchen in pajamas to find Prue and Piper waiting for them. They looked confused and slightly apprehensive, but not openly hostile, and for this, Phoebe was grateful. Seeing the teapot steaming gently on the stove, Phoebe went over and got a cup, adding a generous amount of honey to it before she brought it back to Paige.
"Here baby, drink this." Phoebe offered Paige the cup as she sat in her lap. "It'll help your sniffles."
"Thanks," Paige smiled shyly at Phoebe and kissed her. Piper and Prue looked at each other, confirming what they both knew: Phoebe was going to be absolutely sickening from now on, and they couldn't be happier about it. As long as her new girlfriend didn't turn out to be in any way demonic, of course. And that was the part that made them both look apprehensively at the snuggling young couple.
"Okay," Piper said loudly when Phoebe and Paige still hadn't broken apart, "there's really no nice way to ask this, so I'll apologize in advance for making a horse's ass of myself…but, what the hell are ya and what are you doing floating naked with my baby sister?"
"Piper!" Phoebe exclaimed, feeling more embarrassed than she had when Piper had walked in on them in the first place.
"I'm sorry, Phoebe, but we have to know everything that goes on in this house that is remotely connected to magic! You're mixing work and pleasure here," Piper said insistently, waving her hands around the way she always did when she was anxious.
"Right, Piper, you're one to talk," Phoebe growled.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Piper asked.
"It means, you're married to your white lighter, just like my dad was," Paige said quietly.
"You're a white lighter?" Prue gasped.
"Half," Paige corrected her, rubbing her nose.
"So what does that mean?"
"Well I…I…ACHOO!" Paige sneezed, orbing out from under Phoebe in her chair. Phoebe fell to the floor in a heap. Piper stared open mouthed. Prue burst out laughing. Then Paige orbed back, looking down apologetically at Phoebe.
"Sorry, baby," She said sheepishly, helping Phoebe to her feet.
"S'okay," Phoebe groaned, "I guess that's not a very smart place for me to sit till your cold goes away." She rubbed her sore butt.
"Want me to do that for ya?" Paige asked her, her voice about an octave lower than usual as they held each other's gaze.
"Okay, okay, people!" Piper said shrilly, clapping her hands to get their attention. "Let's save the bedroom eyes and focus on the issue here. Can we make sure we've got this all straight?" Across the table, Prue burst out laughing again. Phoebe scowled at her.
"How old are you, twelve? What have you done with my big sister?"
"Sorry," Prue gasped through her laughter, rendering her apology rather ineffective.
"O-kay," Piper broke in again. "Just to be clear." She looked at Paige. "You are half white lighter."
"Yup."
"And you can orb."
"Yup."
"Can you heal?"
"No, not that," Paige shook her head emphatically. "The only special thing about me is the orbing."
"There's lots more special things about you, baby," Phoebe drawled, winding her fingers into Paige's sleek hair and kissing her.
"Oh, for crying out loud, get a room!" Prue groaned, making shooing motions with her hands.
"I HAVE a room," Phoebe said pointedly, "but it seems like SOME people in this house may have forgotten how to knock." Piper blushed and put her hand over her eyes.
"Okay, okay, get outta here," Piper said with a wave of her hands. Phoebe and Paige gave each other another smoldering look, and quickly jumped up, still holding hands. Phoebe grabbed the tea off the table, giggling as Paige pulled her out of the kitchen.
After they had gone, Prue and Piper looked at each other, shaking their heads.
"Goddess," said Prue, "they are just like you and Leo were when you first fell for each other."
"Did you hear them call each other by name even once?" Piper asked.
"Oh, honey, oh, baby," Prue teased, and both sisters erupted in laughter.
"I guess angels make pretty good partners for Halliwell witches, huh?" Prue mused.
"Maybe we should find one for you," Piper teased.
TBC…
