Chapter 29: Vengeful Spirits

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! You're so nice. Here's the next chapter. It's really good…I promise! I should be doing my homework, but this is more fun. Enjoy!

The entire Halliwell family was assembled in the living room. Not a word was spoken as they were all immersed in deep thought. This new problem was a baffling one. Just when they thought they had won, this happens. Future Piper, in particular, was having an internal battle. Having technically vanquished the Jorgen King, her family was pretty much saved. Yet, a vengeful ghost was a real problem. She had a nagging suspicion that she had changed a little too much. Future Piper wouldn't feel comfortable with going home until this new threat was dealt with. If she went home now, Chris and Patty might never be born.

Chris was overwhelmed and exhausted. The past couple of days had really taken a toll on him. It was all so confusing. He couldn't make heads or tales of what these recent events meant for his mission. Had he saved Wyatt? All the future version of his mother could tell him was that he succeeded. Chris couldn't say he expected any more. After all the times he had explained things away with future consequences, he was surprised that she had told him anything. It was still comforting to know that his time in the past had not been wasted. Now with the love and support of his family, Chris finally believed that he could do this.

Phoebe too was very worried about this recent turn of events. The Jorgen King had been dangerous enough in a corporeal form. As a ghost, he could do things that a normal demon never could. For all she knew he could be invisible, and watching them at this very moment. That vanquish was very taxing both physically and mentally. All she wanted to do was to sleep for a week. Unfortunately they could not do that. She had dealt with ghosts many times before, and they were not to be taken lightly. This ghost was angry, and he was coming for them. They needed to do something, and they needed to do it fast. She couldn't stand to lose anyone else ever again.

Paige wasn't as worried as the rest of her family was. They are the Charmed Ones after all. In the book of shadows, there was the ghost banishing spell. Sure, you had to be dead to say the spell, but who in this family hadn't died half a dozen times? Leo had left the house with Wyatt, but they didn't really need him. All present were well aware of CPR. Maybe something was wrong with her, but she couldn't muster up the sort of panic the others had. They had overcome much worst then this. They killed the source of all evil for goodness sake. They shouldn't be so worried about a measly little ghost. She immediately corrected herself. This wasn't just your average ghost. There was a lot more at stake.

Past Piper knew all too well what was at stake. She had seen the death of all her sisters. The death of Prue had nearly destroyed her. Without her other sisters, it would have. She would never let them die like that. It may sound self-centered, but she would rather die than live without her sister. "We have to kill that demon once and for all", Past Piper said evenly. She knew it was what they were all thinking, but somebody had to say it. There was no question that this ghost of a demon had to be vanquished.

"How?" Phoebe asked in an anxious voice.

"There's the spell to banish a ghost", Paige added quietly. A stunned silence followed this statement.

"Who would have to die?" Chris asked. He knew exactly what the spell entailed, having performed it once himself. None of them knew how to answer the question. Finally, after several silent moments, Future Piper spoke.

"I'll do it. I'm the only one who can. If something happens to you now, I might ruin the future instead of saving it. Just make sure one of you revives me", Piper said in one big breath, a small smile forming on her lips. Paige tried to argue, but Future Piper's mind was made up. Past Piper actually fully agreed with her future counterpart. She had been thinking about who could die with the least risk, and she could come up with no other solution. After all, if something went wrong, they could always change it.

Finally, after a bit of convincing from future Piper, they all agreed that it was the only way. Future Piper would have to die. As long as one of them revived her, everything would be okay. With a sigh, Phoebe said, "Let's go to the attic to get the recipe for our handy dandy killing potion." They trudged upstairs to the attic. Even a few hours ago, none of them could imagine that this is what they would be doing. Future Piper walked behind them all, telling herself that she made the right decision.

Each member of the Halliwell clan stopped as they heard a click, and then the lights went out. "He's here", Phoebe whispered, her heart thumping hard with trepidation. They heard the voice they had never wanted to hear again. It was the voice of the Jorgen King. "I told you that you could never stop me", said the king in a mocking voice. Chris stepped forward, acting much braver than he felt. "You won't hurt us anymore!" Suddenly, instead of darkness, they saw the Jorgen demon as he remembered him, with a slight difference. He was transparent, and her eyes were bright red.

"You think you can tell me what to do?" he said malevolently. They were standing in the stairway too shocked to do anything. Paige shivered internally a moment before they all felt the cold wind that enveloped them. Somehow, she knew that the ghost had the upper hand, at least for the moment. She couldn't shake the feeling that their troubles were far from over. Suddenly, everybody heard a chilling sound. It was a sound much worst than the sound of the ghostly demon. They heard a blood curdling female scream.

The scream made everyone's blood run cold. All at once the lights came on. Paige's heart was beating fast as she searched for the source of the scream. The rest of her family was doing the same. They saw no injured person, no blood…nothing. Chris was the first to notice what had happened. The ghost demon was gone, but so was Future Piper. There was no sign of her anywhere. It was as if she had just vanished into thin air. Chris sat on the steps with a sad look on his face. Phoebe put a comforting hand on her nephew's shoulder. He was lost in thought, so he didn't even notice it.

The family didn't move as the gravity of the situation suddenly hit them all. Their little glitch just turned into a big problem. With Future Piper missing, their problems could only get worse…

TBC…