Many years later, when Four Corners existed only as a ghost town...
In Austin, Texas, a slim and fairly short woman with pale skin and long golden hair named Michelle Tanner, was listening with joy in the doctor's office to the sound of her baby's heartbeat. She was seven months pregnant and looking forward, with much excitement, to the day when her first child would be born.
Unlike most children, Michelle's child was magical - Michelle was a witch and the baby's father was a Whitelighter - Michelle's Whitelighter at that. That fact didn't stop Michelle from having check-ups with ordinary doctors who knew nothing about the real existence of magic. She was even going to give birth to her baby - half-Whitelighter and half-witch - in a normal hospital. The baby's father might not be there though - he had disappeared a few months into Michelle's pregnancy. She suspected that it was something to do with the Elders not approving of Whitelighters getting involved with their charges. The Elders always meant well though, and Michelle hoped that they'd send him back to her eventually.
The thing about Whitelighters, was that they had many charges to guide and look after - fathering children would be one more job for them to add to their lists; either Michael would be too busy with the baby or he'd be too busy looking after his charges to spend much time with his wife and child.
Michelle and her Whitelighter had got married after they'd found out she was pregnant. It had been a quick ceremony and kept secret from the Elders, who still disapproved of Whitelighters and witches becoming romantically involved, although they didn't usually say nor do anything if that rule was broken. There were quite a few witches and Whitelighters who were couples now, and the amount of half-Whitelighters in the world was steadily growing. Michelle had added her Whitelighter husband's surname of Tanner to the end of her name, as she was proud to be a "Dunne" and didn't want to lose that name, making her become Michelle Dunne Tanner.
"Your baby has a good strong heart-beat, Mrs. Tanner," said the Indian Doctor, Dr. Singh, with a smile. "Are you sure you don't wish to know which sex it will be?"
"I'm certain I'd rather not know the baby's sex, Doctor," said Michelle with a smile. Somehow, Michelle had gotten away with not having an ultrasound done - she was scared that the doctors would find signs that the baby was magical, and she couldn't risk exposing her or her baby's magic to anyone. That meant that she couldn't find out the baby's sex until it was born - but Michelle didn't mind if she had a boy or a girl anyway, as she'd love it just the same regardless of its sex.
The Doctor talked to Michelle about a few things concerning pregnancy and birth, then they ended the appointment.
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While Michelle was at the doctors, Michael, her ex-Whitelighter was talking to his Whitelighter friend, Nathan Jackson, in the heavens, the place where the Elders lived and worked; also the place where Whitelighters stayed when they weren't with their charges. The heavens weren't accessible to anyone without the magic to travel to them - they weren't just in the sky, so even planes and birds couldn't reach them. Birds would probably drive the Elders crazy if they could fly there.
Michael didn't look very healthy, because he was unhappy that he'd been forbidden from being with Michelle anymore; he hated watching his wife from a distance without being able to talk to her or listen to his child's heart-beat. Whitelighters could be in the same place as their charges without being on the earth-plane, so their charges wouldn't be able to see or feel them there.
"Vin?" asked Nathan; his friend was staring into space rather than listening to him.
"Nate, I already told ya, m' name's Michael, not Vin," answered Vincent Michael Tanner, the former one-seventh of the Four Corners' peace-keepers, who'd adopted his middle name as his first, ever since he'd died and become a Whitelighter.
"It takes some gettin' used to - calling you by your middle name. The Elders gave Chris that vision early, to fore-warn him that your child will be in danger - unfortunately they gave him the vision too early, but he worked that out because the clothes worn in the vision haven't come into fashion yet. The Elders want your child to embrace its witch side, so growing up with the Potters will ensure he or she does." In the heavens it was difficult to measure time, so although Chris had received a premonition about Michael's child five years ago, it seemed like only yesterday in the heavens.
"Seems convenient that my child's ma's gonna be killed by warlocks. I don't trust THEM at all."
"I don't trust warlocks either," agreed Nathan whole-heartedly. Warlocks were witches who had either opted to use their magic for evil or had been changed to evil by dark magic.
"No, Nate, I meant I don' trus' the Elders," corrected Michael. "I reckon they have a secret pact with the Underworld if they want to shape people's destinies a certain way. They WANT to kill 'Chelle so's my kid can be 'dopted by witches an' never be taught ta use its Whitelighter powers."
"The Elders would NEVER make warlocks work for them. Maybe it's gonna be Michelle's time to die. You know only the good die young."
"You're right there, though you didn' die that young, remember?" Nathan had been in his fifties when he'd died.
"Everyone has to die sometime," answered Nathan gently. "I'm sorry, but she's going to die and that can't be changed."
"You didn' tell me, but I found somethin' interesting out another way," said Michael, hurriedly changing the subject slightly. "There's a boy with my child in young Chris's premonition - about two years younger. Perhaps one of Michelle's witch friends' children."
Nathan grew nervous at the mention of the younger child - the truth about that child would upset Michael because of how much he loved his witch wife.
"You know more than you're sayin', Nate. Ya mus' tell me what you know," demanded Michael, not bothering to keep his voice low.
Nathan sighed, then began to explain reluctantly. "Michelle will soon meet a human male and they'll fall in love because of how hopeless it seems for you to return to her. She'll become pregnant with a witch-son, giving your child a half-brother."
"NO! She's mine; no man 'sides me will have her." Michael began to pace, angry with what he'd just been told.
"Vin, you can't get angry - you know it won't be good for you if you do. You have to just try to see the good in the situation. Michelle will be able to have a second child and another man to take care of her while you can't, and your son will have a brother to play with."
"My son? I'm goin' ta have a boy?" asked Michael, his anger suddenly turning to joy. He'd always wanted a son and now his friend had let slip that he was to have a son rather than a daughter.
"Oops," said Nathan, hoping the Elders wouldn't find out he'd let slip about the sex of his friend's unborn child.
"I have to be with Michelle - I have ta look after them. Then she won't fall in love with someone else an' have a child with him." Michael began to orb.
"No, Vin, you mustn't..." began Nathan fearfully, but was stopped when Michael disappeared. "There's no tellin' what will happen now." Nathan hung his head - something bad would probably happen, as Michael wasn't supposed to rejoin Michelle - it wasn't part of his destiny. The thought of being parted from his friend again filled Nathan's thoughts, and tears began to fall from the Whitelighter's eyes.
Usually, Whitelighters were unable to outwardly express negative emotions. Part of their make-up meant that they had a very positive personality and were able to keep negative emotions inside; but more-experienced Whitelighters had learnt to openly show bad emotions, after learning that storing bad emotions inside wasn't good for their health. Like with humans, storing negative emotions inside without ever letting them out was painful - it took a mental toll on the Whitelighters over time, as the bad emotions built up inside.
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Michael had almost arrived in his and Michelle's home, when suddenly his orbs changed his destination. He ended up in a dark cave; a Darklighter with an arrow pulled back in his crossbow was facing him.
As Michael's orbs disappeared, the Darklighter fired the arrow and it flew into Michael's chest where his heart was; the poison began to kill him on impact.
Michael couldn't call for help or orb out, so never arrived in Michelle's home again, and Michelle didn't find out until much later that he'd died.
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Michelle arrived home from the doctor's office, content that her child was healthy. She longed to see her husband again - it wasn't fair that the Elders could just take him from her. Hopefully, the Elders might send him down at least to see the birth of his child.
The months went by and Michelle gave birth without any complications or signs of magic from her first-born. She named him Vincent Michael after his father and didn't attempt to hide magic from him.
When little Vin was eight months old, his mother met a human named John, and he moved in with them a month later. Three months after that on Vin's first birthday, Vin's mom's stomach started sticking out, and the toddler was told that he was going to have a baby brother or sister, although Vin didn't really understand.
One day, Vin was left with his grand-parents: Grandma and Grandpa Dunne, while Michelle went into the hospital to have her second child; then Vin got a little brother named John after the baby's father.
The new child was given Michelle's maiden name of 'Dunne' as John Junior's parents weren't married. Vin took to calling the child 'JD', refusing to call him John as he didn't like that name and didn't like JD's father either, and the name stuck. When John Junior was able to talk, he told people his name was JD.
John Senior, JD's father, was killed in a car accident when JD was only three, and Michelle was left to bring up her two sons alone, having less time to help innocents along with her coven of witches.
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Late one night, shortly after Vin's sixth birthday, Vin was awakened by a tinkling sound in his room. He opened his eyes and saw a quite tall and slim man standing beside the bed. The man wore long white robes and had shoulder length light-brown hair. His hair was only a bit darker than the little boy's hair.
"Vin, 'm here to tell you about your Whitelighter half," informed the man in a soft, gentle voice. "I'm the ghost of your father, Michael Tanner." There was the faint hint of a Texan accent in the man's voice.
"Pa? Am I dreamin'?" asked the little boy, surprised to see his father there.
Michael thought about it, then decided to tell Vin he was dreaming. Then the little boy wouldn't tell people his father had really been in his room. "Yes, Son, yer dreamin'"
Michael started to tell the little boy about his Whitelighter powers, demonstrating orbing to the boy, but telling Vin it wasn't safe for him to try it until he was older. Michael didn't stay for long, and his last words were 'remember you're a Tanner'. Then white orbs appeared, and Vin waved as Michael orbed back to his plane. Vin never saw his father again.
To be continued...