Dear Faithful Readers,
Well here it is, the long-awaited conclusion. Thank you all for reading and giving such awesome feedback and reviews, they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. I have noticed the recent discussion going on between y'all in the reviews, as to whether or not Phoebe and Paige are an appropriate pairing, and I just want to say thanx to those of you who have been sticking up for our girls. Obviously this pairing isn't for everyone—but no one's forcing you to read it. That's the beauty of fanfic, isn't it? It gives you the chance to say, "Wow, Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan have such awesome chemistry, I wonder what it would be like if they were girlfriends instead of sisters?" And from there, you get to invent whole new worlds. There are plenty of stories out there with more conventional pairings, so if this isn't your cup of tea, by all means go find something more to your liking. Those of you who remain, please enjoy the final installment of Phoebe and Paige's adventure!
Godsmacked—Conclusion Part II
By JewWitch
Back at the manor, Paige was frantically scrying for Prue using one of the silver arrows left behind in the battle, while Willow and Tara tried to explain to the slayers their new problem.
"Well we're going with you," Buffy said simply upon hearing the news that one out-of-control goddess had been dealt with, with three more on the loose. "We don't know what Prue's capable of; I think now might be the time for some old-fashioned muscle. Besides, you guys have done enough already," she added to Willow and Tara. "I think you should stay her with Dawnie while Faith and I go with Paige."
"Buffy, Prue is still a good witch," Tara frowned, glancing at an agitated Paige out of the corner of her eye to see that she still hadn't managed to locate the eldest Halliwell. "She may not be able to control her powers, but she'd never do anything evil…not like Glory."
"Evil, no," Paige agreed, lines of frustration etched on her face as she swung the crystal over a large map of California. "But she's completely lost herself in her powers, and she's armed with a bottomless quiver of arrows and a whopping dose of righteous fury. Who knows what could happen?"
"Paige is quite correct," Artemis interjected gravely. "Mortal bodies, even those of powerful witches, were never meant to contain the powers of the gods. The longer our powers remain inside the Charmed Ones, the harder it will become for them to control themselves…eventually, they will go mad with power."
"And the fun just keeps on coming," Faith observed, cracking her knuckles restlessly.
"Why can't I find her?" Paige growled, throwing down the crystal angrily. The pull of Phoebe's magic was as strong as ever inside her, and it was becoming harder by the minute for Paige to ignore it and focus on finding her girlfriend's sisters. They had all agreed that Prue presented the most immediate danger, and finding her was their first priority; Paige reminded herself of this now, even as the magnetic sensation of Phoebe's heart calling out to hers threatened to pull Paige bodily from her seat. She had to force herself to actively suppress the urge to orb; it was rather like holding your breath when you have the hiccups, and Paige wasn't sure how much longer she could do it.
"Perhaps you need a larger map, child," Demeter suggested gently.
"What she needs is to go to her love," Aphrodite stated with a serene smile. "She calls you to her, does she not?"
"Yes," Paige groaned, squeezing her eyes shut and bending forward in her seat.
"Oh god, Paige, are you okay?" Tara asked anxiously, suddenly noticing the fine sheen of sweat coating Paige's pale face. "I should've known something like this would happen…you're still anchored to Phoebe, aren't you?" Paige nodded, too overcome with the astral tug-of-war to speak.
"Well what are you waiting for, angel-girl?" Faith asked, a rare expression of concern in her dark eyes. "Get outta here! Go get your girl."
"Can't," Paige panted, eyes still tightly shut. "Gotta get Prue…could hurt someone…"
"We'll get Prue, Paigey," Tara swore, rubbing the trembling girl's back gently. "Willow and I can scry for her, and we'll summon her the same way you summoned Artemis. Go get Phoebe; you're no good for anything else right now."
"'Kay," Paige nodded, with a deep, steadying breath. Without opening her eyes, she waved one hand and orbed the three vials of potion from the wall that she'd made earlier. She put one in her pocket, and Faith took the other two.
"Make sure Prue drinks the power-releasing potion," Paige ground out, finally opening her eyes. They were glowing with golden light, just as Phoebe's had while battling Glory's minions. "Piper too," she added.
"We promise," Faith said immediately. "Now get going." Almost before Faith had spoken, Paige orbed out.
The moment she rematerialized, Paige felt the force that had been squeezing her from the inside out suddenly release, and she gave a huge sigh of relief. She opened her eyes to find herself in the middle of a huge, stone temple, with columns wider than redwoods all along the open-air perimeter, and gigantic steps, three feet tall each, leading down to a picturesque landscape of rolling hills and olive groves below.
"Uh-oh…" she groaned.
Back in the manor, Prue was screaming bloody murder. She was trapped inside a crystal cage that Willow and Tara had set up before summoning her from a military base in Nevada, where she had obviously been gathering her new army.
"Release me, foolish mortals!" she shrieked again, throwing herself against the white-hot barrier of the cage.
"You're gonna regret that in the morning," Faith observed, cocksure as ever now that Prue was in her sights.
"Idiot child!" Prue fumed, eyes blazing. "Have you no idea who you are addressing? I am the goddess of the hunt, protector of righteousness! Release me or you and your disciples shall feel my wrath!"
"You're my disciples," Faith sniggered to her friends, none of whom seemed to share her amusement in their current situation.
"Prudence, you must calm yourself," Artemis said soothingly to the quivering girl inside the cage. "Remember the purpose you sought in taking on my powers; see that it has been fulfilled. You must release yourself before you are lost."
"You are a demon from Hades sent to trick me," Prue spat, eyeing Artemis without a hint of recognition. "The Underworld shall not know my powers! Go to your master and bay him abandon his futile quest!" Prue raised her hands and sent out a huge surge of white-hot energy, colliding with her cage and filling the room momentarily with an eruption of live electricity.
"Damn it, Prue, snap the fuck out of it!" Faith snarled, going right up to the edge of the cage and locking her large brown eyes with the ice blue ones across from her. "You are a good witch, and we need you on our side. You said you could handle this, remember? We trusted you. We still trust you." For a moment no one said anything; Prue and Faith just stood there, breathing hard, staring each other down while everyone else stood as far away from the volatile girl in the cage as possible.
"I'm gonna let you out of this cage now," Faith said very quietly. "And then I'm gonna give you this," she held up the power-releasing potion that Paige had given her. "You'll be okay, Prue, I promise. Everything's gonna be five by five." Prue just stared at the small figure in front of her, the goddess and the mortal waging war inside her. Faith never looked away, never blinked.
"Do you trust me, Prue?" Faith asked softly, in the gentlest voice any of the assembled Scoobies had ever heard from the tough slayer. For several long moments, the room was filled with nothing but a buzzing silence. Then Prue nodded. Faith kneeled down, and picked up one of the crystals, breaking the magical containment field. Everyone held their breath, terrified of what the power-crazed demi-goddess might do. Faith alone looked calm as she held out her hand to Prue, the potion resting in her palm. Prue took it, finally breaking eye contact with the slayer to tip her head back, swallowing the contents of the vial. The moment she had done so, another brilliant flash of light erupted in the attic; when it was gone, Prue stood in the middle of the room wearing the same worn jeans and tank top she'd had on when the goddesses had first arrived. Artemis, smiling serenely between Dawn and Willow, had her golden crescent-moon crown back, as well as her quiver of silver arrows. Prue shivered, eyes wide with horror as her senses returned to her. Her blue eyes filled with tears.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, shaking her head as the impact of what she'd tried to do hit her. Faith was still standing in front of her, close enough to feel Prue's ragged breath as the tears spilled down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry…"
"Shhh," Faith murmured, putting out a hand and laying her fingers gently against Prue's lips. Then she leaned forward onto her tiptoes, wrapped both arms around Prue's neck, and kissed her. Willow clapped one hand over Dawn's eyes, but Dawn pulled it away, grinning as Prue and Faith floated several inches above the floor.
"Blessed be," Artemis intoned, bowing deeply to the group. Then the goddess disappeared.
Thousands of miles away, Paige stood staring, mouth slightly agape, as Phoebe reclined on a red velvet throne, surrounded by kneeling worshipers. Two young women stood on either side of her throne, fanning the goddess with large, ornate feather fans, while a muscular blond man wearing nothing but a loincloth sat at her feet, feeding her grapes.
"Hey, buddy, get your fingers out of my girlfriend's mouth!" Paige exclaimed indignantly, grabbing the devoted youth by one well-muscled arm and pulling him back away from Phoebe.
"Paige," Phoebe sighed happily, "I knew you'd come back to me."
"Don't you dare smile at me, missy! You are in so much trouble." Paige glared, hands on her hips. "What the hell are you doing in the Parthenon?" She demanded.
"My followers have gathered," Phoebe said simply, still smiling at Paige without a care in the world. "Their only desire is to worship me."
"Phoebe, you are not the goddess of love!" Paige shouted, her cheeks reddening as her frustration mounted. "This power is just a loaner, remember? You've gotta give it back to Aphrodite now!"
"Why are you troubled, my darling?" Phoebe asked, rising from her plush throne to caress Paige's face with gentle hands. "You needn't worry, love, I won't leave you behind when I ascend to Mount Olympus. I can make you immortal, Paige; we'll be together for all eternity."
"I don't want to be immortal, Phoebe, and neither do you," Paige said desperately, angry tears welling up in her eyes. "This is not our life to live! You have a family waiting for you, a home, a whole city full of people who depend on you every day." Phoebe frowned, a cloudy expression passing over her eyes.
"You don't want to be with me anymore?" she asked slowly, looking up at Paige with a lost expression.
"Phoebe," Paige murmured, clasping both of Phoebe's small hands in her own, "I will always want you. You're my whole world, baby, you know that. But I can't let you take us somewhere we don't belong." Releasing Phoebe's hands, Paige drew out the vial of potion from her pocket. "Let the power go back where it belongs, Pheebs. Then come home with me…where you belong." Two pairs of dark brown eyes found each other, as Phoebe wound her fingers into Paige's black hair and kissed her. Paige felt as if she were being burned alive; the power surging through them seemed to boil over, pouring out of them in billowing clouds of shimmering steam. Phoebe gasped, and a few blood-red rose petals fell from her lips as she pulled back from the kiss. Glancing down, she realized she was back in her old clothes, her skin no longer glowing with immortality.
"Paige?" She asked hesitantly, looking back into her girlfriend's equally wide eyes. "What happened? I didn't take the…"
"You didn't need the potion, Phoebe," Aphrodite said, appearing beside her. Phoebe squealed in shock and leaped into Paige's arms. "You alone remained connected to your anchor," the goddess continued, motioning to Paige, who kept a firm hold on her trembling girlfriend. "All you had to do to reclaim your humanity was to make the choice…you chose Paige, and the balance was restored." The two shell-shocked lovers stood silently before the goddess, words failing them both. Aphrodite beamed at the pair of them.
"Truly, you are the Children of Light," she intoned respectfully, bowing deeply. "Your love does me great honor. Know that you will be held in the highest regard on Olympus, as will your children." Unable to speak, Phoebe and Paige simply gaped.
"Thank you for everything," Paige finally said, and Phoebe's hand squeezed hers gently in agreement.
"Blessed be," The goddess intoned, glowing with brilliant golden light before she vanished. Paige blinked, shaking her head slightly, before looking down to notice Phoebe staring at her, wide-eyed and smiling.
"What are you staring at?" She asked, a silly grin on her face.
"The most beautiful girl in the world," Phoebe replied simply.
"What a coincidence," Paige smirked. "Me too."
Epilogue"So, Pheebs, are you ready for your last semester of college?" Prue asked lazily, eyes half-lidded in the bright sun as she lay on the large beach blanket, surrounded by her sisters and their friends.
"Sure I am," Phoebe sighed, her voice equally relaxed as she lay on her stomach with Paige rubbing coconut oil on her back. "You're ready, aren't you Paigey?"
"Absolutely," Paige agreed, sitting back on her heels to admire the smooth, shiny length of Phoebe's tanned back. "I wish I could get a tan like that," she sighed, pulling out her own bottle of SPF 30 from her beach bag.
"Tell me about it!" Prue agreed. "Every summer when we were kids, Piper and I would always end up getting burned to a crisp, while she gets so dark she looks like some kind of Sicilian princess!"
"Aw Prue, stop flattering me, it's cheap," Phoebe teased, smirking up at her porcelain-skinned sister.
"Ha ha," Prue sulked, sticking out her tongue. "The truth is, Paige looks a lot more like our sister than you do." She held out her arm against Paige's, so they could all see just how evenly matched their skin tone was, not to mention their idenical black hair and high cheekbones.
"Prue!" Phoebe squealed, sitting bolt upright and staring at her sister with a scandalized expression. "I'm a psych major, you can't just say things like that to me! Are you trying to give me a complex?"
"Huh?" Prue gazed blankly at the agitated face of her youngest sister.
"Ignore her," Paige said blithely, "We just read Totem and Taboo in class last week."
"What's Totem and Taboo?" Piper asked from across the blanket.
"Just Freud at his most twisted," Paige said dismissively. "But it wigged Pheebs out a little. You know how first-year med students always get all freaked out every time they study a new disease, and think they have it?"
"Yeah," Piper nodded.
"Well, psych students can be the same way," she grinned affectionately at Phoebe and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Phoebe frowned and grumbled something under her breath about always being patronized.
"Pheebs, I never thought I'd be saying this, but you need to loosen up," Prue laughed.
"Oh yeah?" Phoebe challenged, her eyes glinting mischievously. "So I guess it wouldn't bother you if I were to sit here," she crawled across the blanket and stretched out next to Faith, "And point out certain similarities between me and your girlfriend?" Phoebe held her arm out next to Faith's; everyone couldn't help but notice how perfectly identical their dark olive skin was, as well as their matching height, chestnut brown hair and large brown eyes.
"Okay, okay, you've made your point," Prue winced. "Now I'm all grossed out. Thanks a lot, Pheebs." Phoebe smirked, with a serves-you-right-for-messing-with-me look in her eyes as she crawled back to Paige, curling up happily against her girlfriend's sun-warmed side.
"Forget about it, babe," Faith said airily, trailing her fingers teasingly over Prue's bare stomach. "I've always said book smarts will just confuse you…I know just how to clear your mind."
"You do, huh?" Prue smirked, as a flush rose in her cheeks that had nothing to do with the hot sun overhead.
"Oh yeah," Faith growled, leaning down so her long hair trailed over Prue's collarbone, and kissing her soundly.
"Can you two stop snogging each other for five damn minutes?" Piper groaned, burying her face against Leo's shoulder. "I can only take so much, you know!"
"Snogging?" Phoebe repeated with a snicker. "You've been reading the new Harry Potter again, haven't you, Piper?"
"It's just so unfair!" Piper cried, lifting her head from her husband's strong shoulder. "I can't believe Ron and Hermione still haven't gotten together! What are they waiting for?"
"Aw, well, they had to save something really juicy for the last book, didn't they?" Willow pointed out.
"Piper's not known for her patience," Phoebe giggled, trailing her fingers absently up and down Paige's arm. Suddenly Paige got to her feet, pulling Phoebe with her.
"Wanna go for a walk, baby?"
"'Kay," Phoebe nodded, dismissing the wisp of tension she felt in her stomach as she reached for Paige's hand. They left their family laughing and bickering gently on the blanket, walking in silence for several minutes. Neither felt the need to talk; they simply basked in each other's presence, their interlocked fingers teasing each other's hands lightly until they both had goosebumps running up the back of their necks. Eventually, they came to the edge of a large cliff face; once around it, they found themselves quite alone in a deserted cove. Phoebe grinned.
"Why Miss Matthews," she murmured coyly, "are you trying to seduce me?"
"I have to try now?" Paige teased, giggling as she kissed Phoebe's sun-warmed lips. The salty tang of ocean air mixed with the sweetness of their kisses, pushing them both quickly into a state of intense arousal. Phoebe's teeth grazed Paige's bottom lip, which always drove her crazy, but this time instead of deepening the kiss, Paige broke away.
"Wait," she panted.
"What's wrong, babe?" Phoebe asked, cocking her head in confusion. "Do I have bad breath or something?"
"No, silly, you know you always taste good," Paige grinned reassuringly, though her eyes glinted nervously in the light of the afternoon sun.
"Then what?" Phoebe asked curiously.
"Well," Paige began, looking down at her sandy toes, "I was gonna save this for after graduation, but…after everything that's happened…waiting seemed kinda stupid." She looked up from beneath her long lashes, grinning shyly at a wide-eyed Phoebe. Holding out her hand, palm up, Paige said, "Ring." A gold engagement ring orbed into her hand, shimmering brightly in the light of the blazing sun overhead.
"Oh my goddess…" Phoebe whispered, her wide brown eyes filling instantly with tears.
"Phoebe," Paige said softly, fighting back the quaver that was rising in her voice, "Every morning that I wake up next to you, I know I'm the luckiest girl in the world…" She swallowed hard as a tear slipped down her cheek. "I can't even imagine the rest of my life without you, without feeling you here." She took Phoebe's hand and held it to her heart, "Guiding me, loving me, keeping me safe. As long as we're both on this earth, I know I'm never gonna be alone again…I love you, baby, more than my own life." The tears now pouring down Phoebe's face did nothing to diminish the beautiful glow of her huge, beaming smile.
"Phoebe Halliwell," Paige said firmly, "Will you marry me?"
"Yes!" Phoebe sobbed, grabbing Paige's face with both hands and kissing her until they were both breathless. When they finally broke apart, Paige took Phoebe's hand and gently slipped the ring onto her finger. Incongruously, they both burst out laughing.
"We don't have to move to Massachusetts now, do we?" Phoebe asked, grinning.
"No baby," Paige laughed, "I think we're already exactly where we're supposed to be."
THE END