The Second First Born

N.B.I hope you're in it for the long haul! Please R&R! Also, disclaimer. I don't own Charmed, the show or any of the original characters.

It was still dark, but it was always dark down there. The fiery torchlight flickered, sending beams of crimson light into the treacly black darkness. The beams made shadows dance upon the grey stone walls of the cavern, as a sudden draught blew the fire. The draught turned to fire, and two heavily cloaked demons emerged from the inferno.
Søren turned, as he felt the rush of air creep down the back of his neck, and was confronted by them. 'We have the witch,' said the left one.
Søren nodded, understanding, 'Any problems?' The demon on the right shook his
head, 'No. She has been…subdued. You were right. She put up no fight whatsoever.'

The left one continued, 'It was almost too easy. If only we could drain her…'
Søren put up a hand, and looked serious, 'You can't. I told you what would happen if that…unfortunate, incident were to happen.' One of the demons turned directly towards Søren. A pair of scarlet eyes suddenly burned white-hot and seared into his. 'We…will…not…take…threats...' Søren started to shake, and the expression on his face turned sour. The demon released his gaze. '…At least not from lower level scum…'

Søren staggered and rubbed his eyes frantically. After he was convinced that no damage had been done, he smiled, slyly. 'Unfortunately for you, I am not the one doing the threatening.'
The left demon said, in his low pitch, 'What do you mean by that?'
Søren stopped smiling, and his face returned to normal; almost as if a mask had been slipped over it. 'That,' he said shrewdly, 'Is none of your concern. Go back to the witch. She is vital to the smooth running of this plan.'

The demons momentarily glared at him, their eyes red again. Then, they nodded and flames erupted from underneath their cloaks. Søren cringed, and covered his eyes. When he looked up again, they were gone.

The first light of day was just beginning to show itself. The thin shafts of light passed through the patterned net on the window. They came to rest on a woman's face. Her eyes were closed; her long eyelashes almost touching her cheeks. Her skin glowed as the daylight shone. Long, coffee coloured hair was spread out on a cushion behind her head; a few strands escaping, and falling over her face.

Leo sat opposite the sofa in one of the armchairs and watched Piper sleep. The blanket that she was covered in rose and fell with each breath, and she had a serene smile of her face. She looks so peaceful, Leo thought.
As his eyes scanned her face, a feeling of longing overtook him. He still loved her, and it was painfully obvious to everyone. If only…

He thought back one year, to when he had first become an elder. His eyes glazed over as he remembered the look on Piper's face when she realised. He couldn't believe that he had been so stupid to hurt her…Leo stood up and started to walk out of the room. He got to the doorway, and he turned around, and looked at Piper again.

'I could never tell you this when you're awake…but I miss you…'he whispered.
Piper's eyelids twitched, and she stretched her arms. She opened her eyes, and looked around, sleepily. 'Leo? What time is it?' she said.

Leo walked round and looked at the clock in the next room. 'Just gone 9 o' clock,' he said, gently.
Piper looked aghast, and she sat up, throwing the blanket off her. '9 o' clock? I was only supposed to rest my eyes for a few minutes…that was 7 hours ago. Why didn't you wake me?'

Leo walked over to the sofa, and sank down next to her. 'I couldn't,' he said, 'You were exhausted, and you need rest.' He put his hand on hers, where it was resting on the cushion. 'You're carrying our son; I wanted to make sure that you were relaxed. Remember all the problems we had with Wyatt?'
Piper stroked her stomach, instinctively. 'How could I forget? But I've no right 'relaxing' while Phoebe is missing' she said, 'speaking of our son, did you find him, or Phoebe?'

Leo stood up silently, and held out a hand.
Piper looked at it confused, 'Leo…?'
Leo shook his head, and took her hand. He led her through the lounge and into the kitchen.
Sat at the table, Piper saw a familiar face…
'Chris…?'she said. Chris stood up, and Piper moved towards him, and embraced him, warmly.

All of a sudden, she pulled away from him, and struck him across the head, not maliciously, but it was hard enough to make Chris duck.
'Ouch! What was that for?' he asked, confused, and rubbing his head. Piper stepped back, and sat down in Chris's chair. 'That,' she said, 'Was for taking off…again, and not telling me where the hell you were.'

Chris looked at his feet, 'Oh…that.' Leo started to laugh. Chris turned towards him and he looked half hurt, and half bemused at the hysterical Leo.
'What's so funny? Me being beaten?' Chris asked. Leo shook his head, and with a large grin on his face said, 'No…well yeah. You two looked like a real family then…'

Chris stared at Leo, 'So to make us a 'real' family, I need to be hit, vigorously around the head, twice a day?'
Piper looked at him. 'Stop being such a baby,' she said to him, 'And anyway, where exactly have you been?'
Chris looked into her eyes, 'The Underworld,' he said.

Piper looked angry, 'So much for you being on 24 hour Wyatt Watch. I can't believe that you'd go back down there.'
Chris folded his arms and raised his eyebrows. He waited until Piper stopped stopped talking, and the said, 'Well if you're done yelling at me, then maybe I can tell you what I found out.'

Piper was about to retort, but then she stopped talking after she heard what Chris said. She asked him, 'What...what do you ean found out? About Phoebe?'
Chris replied,'Yes.'

Piper turned to him,'Why didn't you tell me to shut up or something?'
Chris leaned against the kitchen counters, 'I didn't want to get hit again.'

Piper gestured wildly around, 'What about Phoebe?'
Chris ran his fingers through his hair and said, 'I'm getting to it. So,after Laura and I had that little...' he coughed, '...disagreement, I decided to make myself useful.' Piper nodded,'Go on.'

Chris continued,'I orbed down there,' he pointed towards the ground, ' and do you remember when I said it was unsettled?' He looked at Piper when he asked this and she nodded. 'Well it's not anymore,' he finished. Piper stared at Chris, 'Wait, what do you mean?'
Chris said 'It's different. The whole atmosphere. The demons seem almost...happy.'

Piper looked confused, 'Happy? Isn't that a little out of character?'
Chris nodded and said, 'Yeah, that's what I thought. So I asked around...'
Piper interrupted,' You asked around? Is that even possible?'

Chris looked annoyed and replied, 'Apparantly. Am I going to be able to finish telling you about this; maybe before I'm born?' He stared at her, pointedly.
Piper nodded. 'Carry on...' she said.

Chris said 'Anyway, I spoke to this demon, and he said that there's a rumour going around that The Undying are feeding again, on a very powerful witch. A Charmed One.'
He looked around. The sentence seemed to hang in the air.
'The What are feeding? Feeding...on Phoebe?' Piper said, in shock.

Leo seemed to find his voice again, 'The Undying. They're very powerful demons,' Leo said. Piper nodded 'They would have to be. So, what's their speciality? Fireballs?'
Leo shook his head, 'They don't kill. They feed by sucking the memories and emotion of their victims.'
Piper winced, 'So...these demons, they have Phoebe?'

Chris nodded, 'I came back here as soon as I heard.'
Piper looked blank, 'But how, and why?'

Leo said,'Well, she's the most vulnerable, ad she's a Charmed One. That's reason enough; for them at least.'
The full effect of this sentence sunk in and Piper sat, stunned.

Chris leaned over to Piper, 'Are you okay?' he asked.
Piper looked up at Chris, 'I need Paige...where's Paige?' Chris looked back at her worried, 'She's in the attic working on a few spells..'

Piper stood up, 'Why more than one?'
Leo said, 'It's more than likely that they will be immune to your active powers,' he said, before adding, 'Plus, you need to track them too. They're notorious for being unseen when they need to be.' Piper nodded and walked out of the door. Chris started to walk after her, but he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to Leo, who looked at him and said, 'Let her go. This is what she does.'

Chris stared Leo in the eye, 'She needs to calm down because it's not okay for her to be stressed right now!'
Leo nodded, 'I know, but we can't stop her from saving her sister.'
Chris shook his head, 'But she's pregnant! We can't just let her go and vanquish demons!'

Piper walked into the attic, where she saw Paige sat down at the desk, scribbling something on a pad. When she heard Piper, she looked up. How the morning sunlight had treated Paige was somewhat different to Piper. There were black shadows underneath tired, glazed eyes. Her skin was a pale grey colour, and the lack of sleep was apparent.
'Hey,' she said to Piper, before letting out a great yawn.

Piper sat in the chair opposite Paige. 'You shouldn't have let me sleep so long. I would have taken over.' Paige shook her head, 'No, you need your sleep more than I do. Besides,' she said replacing the cap on the pen, and holding up a piece of paper,'I've finished these spells, and I'm raring to go.' She let out another yawn.

Piper raised a eyebrow, 'Raring to go,huh?'
Paige looked determined, and she stood up, 'Yeah...well. I have to be. I presume that you've been briefed abut the demons?'
Piper nodded, 'Yes, and believe me, I'm not over the moon about their names. 'The Undying' isn't exactly encouraging...'

Paige, who was pouring over the book, looked up when Piper said this.
'Uh, you don't think you're going, do you?' Paige asked her.
Piper stared back at her, 'Going where?' Paige pointed to one of the spells that she held in her hand.
'To vanquish some demon ass...you're pregnant.'

Piper's face was fixed, 'So I've heard,' she said, 'But Leo said the demons were powerful, so you'll need the Power of...' she trailed off, when she realised that the Power of Three was exactly what they didn't have. Paige, however, looked surprisingly optimistic. 'Already accounted for. This vanquishing spell doesn't require the Power of Three.'

Paige lifted the book up and placed it one the desk in front of Piper, 'That's who we're up against,' Paige said, pointing her finger at one of the pages in the book.

Piper lookd at it. On it, there was picture of a large black figure, heavily cloaked, with blood red eyes staring out from underneath a raven hood. The lettering at the top of the page spelled out the words, 'The Undying'. On the yellowing pages of the book, there was a description of the demons, which Piper began to read aloud:

The Undying are a race of immortal demonic vultures, which feed upon their victims memories and emotions. They do not kill, but they slowly seperate their victims from their humanity, which eventually turns them into one of their own. The Undying usually attack under cover of night, as they are easily camouflaged. They only emerge centennially, and never attack in public, unless desperate. The full extent of their powers is currently unkown, as those who come into contact with these creatures rarely live to tell the tale.

Piper stopped reading, and scanned the rest of the page. 'Once again, Leo sounds like he has swallowed the books.' She added, 'This part about their victims being turned into one of their own; that doesn't sound good. I have to come with you. I can't let you face these things alone.'

'She won't be alone,' said a voice. Paige and Piper both turned their heads.
Laura was stood at the doorway, holding Wyatt in her arms. She walked across the room, and placed Wyatt in his playpen. 'I'll be with her,' she finished.

Paige had a cynical smile on her face, 'You?' she said almost mockingly. 'You're a kid!'
Laura put her hands on her hips, 'I resent that,' she stated.
Paige said back, 'Of course you do, you're a teenager. You resent everything!'

Laura shot her a death-ray look across the room. Piper stood up and put up her hands. 'What is the matter with you Paige? She's just trying to help for god's sake!'

Paige said, 'How could she possibly help us? She's just a child!'
Laura interrupted, 'Okay, first off, 'I'm not a child, okay? Secondly, for someone who is claiming to be the 'adult' here, you sure are whining a lot. Thirdly, if you continue to describe me as a child, then i might have to start acting like one...and throw you out of the window.'
Paige scowled and folded her arms, 'You could try...' she said.

Laura looked at Paige, almost pityingly. 'Why are you trying to make me out to be something I'm not? I'm not evil, I'm not a demon or a warlock and I've not been sent here by anyone evil. I came here to escape evil. You think you've got it bad? You think you're superior to me?'

She walked over to the window seat, and sat down, facing Paige. 'I grew up with my powers. I know what magic can do. I've seen it kill my mother and my two aunts. I've seen it turn my cousin evil. It can destroy entire families, and even worlds. I don't blame you for not trusting me, with so much evil out there. But while you still live in a world where good has the upper hand, you can afford to trust, Paige. You can afford to trust me.'

She lapsed into silence, maintaining eye contact with Paige. Paige turned to Piper, who was quiet after the sudden outburst.

Laura turned her back to them and looked out of the stained glass in the window. There was a low rumble of thunder, and Wyatt let out a cry. This made Laura turn around.

The sky started to lighten, and the rain that had started to pound upon the window, ceased.
Paige looked at Laura. 'Was that you?' she asked her, amazed.

Laura stood up and wiped a tearstain off her face. 'What was me?' she asked, innocently. She walked over o the desk, and looked at the piece of paper.

'I'm going to make a copy,' Laura said. She picked up the pen. Paige looked a little disapproving, and was about to say 'No', but Piper touched her arm.

'Paige, I think you should let her. I think she's proved herself, and you can't go alone,' Piper whispered.
Chris and Leo walked in. Leo said, 'I've just got a call from the other Elders. It sounds important; will you be okay without me?'

Piper sat down, 'Yeah, it sounds like everythings ready...' Chris leaned against the desk, 'So you have a plan?' he asked. Paige looked from Laura, to Piper. Piper nodded at her. Paige sighed and said, hesitantly 'Laura and I are going to track The Undying with this spell,' she gestured to the paper in her left hand 'and then we are going to vanquish them with this spell.'

She gestured to her other hand. Leo said, 'That doesn't sound like such a good plan. What if they're ready for you? It could be a trap.'
Piper said, 'It's always a trap, Leo. We have to save Phoebe.'
Leo said, 'I know, but what happens when you get there?'
Laura walked over, 'We'll just have to phone it in,' she said.

Chris stood up straight, 'I'm coming with you.'
Leo shook his head. 'No, if this is a trap, and someone's after Wyatt your mom will need you,' he said, 'Piper, will you be okay?'
Piper nodded, 'I have the added advantage in this pregnancy that I can blow things up without me having to worry about my baby messing around with my powers.'

Leo touched her shoulder, 'Okay, but you also have the added disadvantage that this baby can't heal you.'
Chris mumbled under his breath, 'They just can't leave that alone...'
Piper looked at Leo, 'I'll be fine...really.' Looking reassured, Leo orbed out; the swirling blue lights passing through the roof.

Paige opened a cupboard, and drew out six candles. She arranged them into a hexagon on the floor. She looked around. 'Does anyone have a light?'
'Let me,' said Laura. She pointed to a candle, and a small orange flame ignited the wick. She repeated this five more times.

Paige and Piper looked dumbfounded at this, but Chris didn't flinch. 'What...what they hell was that?' Piper asked.
Laura shrugged, 'What?'
Paige stepped into the centre of the candles. 'Never mind, come on,' she said to Laura. Laura stepped in, and stood next to Paige. They held hands, with their eyes were fixed on the spells.
'Be safe,' said Piper. The two witches stared to chant:

Mist and shadow of the mind,
Clear so we can seek to find,
That which thrives and feeds on pain,
And who's eyes see only gain

White lights surrounded them, and they disappeared.