"Alright, I added the ginger root." Paige stated as she looked down at the steaming yellow brew.
She, Phoebe and Cole had been working on the potions supply in the kitchen for the past while and had managed to concoct a fairly impressive amount. But aside from the potions, little progress had been made- they had worked in virtual silence, speaking only when absolutely necessary.
The tension between Paige and the other two was more then apparent.
She still hadn't forgiven either of them for the previous night, and she was determined not to do so anytime soon. Phoebe had said some horrible things before storming out…she had called her an unwanted half breed…she had made the youngest Charmed one feel like she didn't belong. Paige hated those feelings- they had faded over the many years she had lived with her half sisters at the manor, but they had never really disappeared…
Phoebe had brought them back. Phoebe had reminded her that she was different…
She was just there to replace the sister they had lost. Their true sister. It was ironic really, that even though it had been Piper who was most reluctant to accept Paige after Prue's death, Phoebe had been the one to reopen the old wounds…
'You'll never really belong here' Phoebe had shouted, knowing how much it would hurt.
And it had.
A lot.
She couldn't forgive her so soon after that. Not completely. Not yet.
Sure, Phoebe was technically 'fine' now…she had overcome the curse she was supposedly under at the time she had said such hateful things…but Paige could not help but suspect that there was a grain of truth behind her words. Maybe Phoebe had never really accepted her…maybe Phoebe had never really loved her…maybe, it had all been one big act…
After all, it had been Phoebe's love for Piper, not Paige, which had broken her out of the spell. Piper and Phoebe were true sisters…Paige was just there to unsuccessfully fill the gaping void Prue had left…
Frowning bitterly at the thought, Paige threw the next ingredient into the pot and watched in satisfaction as a puff of purple smoke erupted. At least she had done something right.
"Do we have any horned slugs left down here?" she asked, looking up at her so called sister.
Phoebe quickly began to shuffle around in the cupboard. "No." she replied shortly after, her voice full of tense formality. "I'll go get some upstairs."
The younger sister gave a curt nod and continued to skim the ingredients list, making sure that she had everything else she required.
She hoped this would be one of the last potions she would have to make. She didn't know how much longer she could stand being in a room with them.
She had no idea why Piper had assigned them to work together. She should have known that it was an unwise idea after all that had happened…
Phoebe had tried to hut her…and Cole…
Paige chanced a glance up at the demon who now sat at the table carefully chopping some sort of leaf for the potion Phoebe had been working on. If she hadn't been so mad at him she would have laughed at the sight of someone with such a tough exterior meticulously slicing up a tiny plant…the two things simply did not match.
Yesterday, however, his actions had matched his exterior perfectly.
He had fought viciously with her and Wyatt. His eyes had flashed with a sickening hatred and she had known beyond a doubt that he wanted nothing more then to see her dead.
He had been waiting for that moment for years…
She couldn't believe how stupid she had been for thinking that they had gotten rid of their old issues. She knew now that they hadn't- they had just pretended to be okay- buried their feelings beneath the surface…
They were back now, and Paige couldn't not help but wonder how she had managed to live in the same house with this man for the past seventeen years.
"We can't keep this up forever, Paige."
The sudden sound of his voice gave her a slight jolt and she looked up with a cool stare.
She couldn't believe it. Did he actually want to try to talk about this? Did he actually think things could be okay again?
He was even more pig headed then she had initially thought.
"Keep what up?" she snapped, trying to avoid his penetrating gaze.
Cole sighed and pushed his work off to the side. "We can't keep acting so irritably towards each other. I know you're mad about what happened- you have every right to be- but you have to accept that what happened yesterday doesn't reflect how Phoebe or I really feel." He paused. "I know we've had our issues, Paige. But we have to move beyond that. I care about you…Phoebe cares about you. We're family…"
"Family?" Paige scoffed, cutting him off before he could continue. "Families don't try to kill each other. Look at us, Cole. We're too different to ever really be a family. I'm an angel, you're a demon. We're not supposed to care for each other, we're supposed to want to kill each other…and I know you do…you made that pretty clear last night."
Cole looked sadly down at the table, searching desperately for a way to get his sister-in-law to let go of her anger.
They had been fine until yesterday. The spell had ruined everything…
"Look," he began again, feeling slightly frustrated. "That's wasn't really me- that was what the spell made me do. I don't want you dead Paige- I'll admit, there was a time when I did- but that was a very long time ago. Since I came back, and since I really got the chance to know you I've realized how delusional I was back then. You didn't break Phoebe and I apart; evil did." He passed as his mind wondered back to the events he had tried so hard to forget. "But we overcame that evil. I overcame the evil inside of me- and I swear to you I will do everything in my power to make sure it never returns again. I don't want to see you hurt Paige…"
His words slowly trailed off as he stared into the woman's stony face. She was almost expressionless…he had no idea if she was even listening anymore…
Maybe things really were ruined for good…maybe he had blown his last chance…
He sighed again. "Alright Paige, don't believe me." He muttered dejectedly as he went back to his careful chopping. "I hope you can find it in yourself to forgive me- and Phoebe- one day. You may be part angel and I'm may be part demon, but we're both part human…that brings us together. If we can just hold onto that part of ourselves we can care for one and other…we can be a family again."
And with those final words, the room fell into silence.
Paige looked back down at her potions book and tried to refocus her mind on the task before her, but only a few seconds of a failed attempt told her that she couldn't. It may not have looked like she had been listening, but she most certainly had…she had heard every last word and they all rung in her head, making her feel more conflicted then ever before. He had spoken with such emotion and honesty…his eyes, although demonic, had shown his pain.
He truly did want things to be okay…
It was possible that he did care…
With a quiet sigh, Paige threw in the next ingredient. She wasn't ready to forgive them just yet, but maybe-just maybe- she would be soon…
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"If I didn't know any better Darryl, I'd say that you didn't want me to go." Inspector Jameson stated, leaning back in his desk chair and folding his arms across his chest.
DJ and Darryl exchanged a nervous glance…it was becoming clear that the other cop was beginning to catch onto their stall tactics…
Darryl had worked quickly after his son had come rushing up; frantic that Jake McDermott had given testimony confirming Melina to be the demon at the high school last night. They had managed to get to the inspector before he left the station, and he had convinced him that more research was needed before they barged into the Halliwell residence.
The man had bought his argument and they had spent the last two hours going over other witness statements, shifting slowly through various papers, and following every dead ended lead the Morris' could come up with. Both DJ and Darryl were determined not to let Jameson leave…they knew from years of experience that if they could buy enough time, the Hallowell's would have this whole mess figured out…
"That's ridiculous." Darryl replied dismissively, distracting himself with a floor plan of Bay Side high. "You know, who ever it was may have had enough time to run into these trees' back here." He said, trying his best to come up with another distraction.
He drew a red line on the sheet of paper and passed it to Inspector Jameson. "See, here." He said, pointing to the map. "The perpetrator may have fled through these doors and gone through the back. Maybe we should check there for any evidence of materials that could have been used to make the fire balls."
DJ nodded in agreement, trying his best to look convinced of his father's theory. "You're right." He stated, pretending to scrutinize the floor plan. "That would be a great place to drop off the fire crackers or chemicals they must have been using."
Raising an eye brow, the inspector looked back and forth between father and son. "Perhaps…" he replied, sounding mildly perplexed. "It may be worth a check."
"Definitely." Darryl agreed quickly, sensing that he had successfully distracted the other man. "Why don't we go check it out now?"
Jameson ran a hand through his thinning grey hair and sighed. "Why don't we do it after we check out 1329 Prescott Street?" he suggested, glancing over at the note pad which contained the information Jake had given him. "I don't see what the big deal is- we'll just ask if we can speak with Melinda Turner, and if she seems normal then we can be pretty sure it isn't her. I don't think her family will mind a few simple questions, especially if she is innocent…"
Giving a loud sigh, Darryl slumped slightly in his chair. Maybe he hadn't distracted the man as much as he thought. "I just think that it's a bit much to show up on someone's door step and ask if their daughter is a demon…" he countered, trying to sound as if he was taking a logical approach to the situation. "They could get highly offended…and maybe even file some sort of lawsuit. I still think we need more proof…"
"Perhaps we should ask Jake a few more questions- then go." The inspector suggested.
"Er- I don't think that's the best approach." DJ cut in, his mind nervously jumping to his…conversation…with the boy that had betrayed Mel. He hadn't even had a chance to explain it to his father yet, and he knew that this wasn't the best time to add his abuse of a witness to their list of problems. He knew he'd have to pay for his actions- and he still didn't care- but he did not want it to get in the way of protecting Mel. "Jake was pretty…beat up about the whole issue." He continued, smirking slightly at his choice of words. "He was obviously exhausted and I think it would be best to just let him sleep off the trauma for a bit before dragging him back in for questioning."
Inspector Jameson rolled his eyes. "Fine." He muttered, shifting through more papers on the desk. "If you're both that set against it I suppose we could check your theory about the school first."
DJ and Darryl both beamed. Finally- some success…
"Excellent." Darryl said, standing up and grabbing his coat, "Lets get a move on."
His son and his colleague quickly followed him out the door and Darryl could not help but give a slight sigh of relief.
He was thankful that he had managed to lead Inspector Jameson off of the trail for now.
He hoped that this would buy the Halliwell's enough time…he hoped that they would solve the problem soon…
Inspector Jameson was suspicious…they had already stalled for him two hours…
It was only a matter of time before they were forced to question Mel…
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Why is this so hard?" Piper asked angrily as she slammed the Book of Shadows shut with a loud snap.
She had gone through almost the entire book and was yet to come up with any leads. Quite frankly they didn't know nearly enough about who or what had cast this spell and just aimlessly flipping pages was getting her no where.
It took of her strength not to collapse onto a heap on the attic floor and cry.
She knew that there was still time left, but she already felt defeated…this was all her fault…
She felt Leo's arm lace around her back and she fell into his warm embrace. He always seemed to know exactly when she needed his support…she supposed it was part of being a whitelighter….and a husband…
"I don't know what to do, Leo." She sighed, her voice tired and worn. "This spell could have been cast by anyone…maybe it wasn't even a demon…I have no idea where to even start. And now with this deadline…"
He held her tighter and placed a gentle kiss a top her head. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news." He replied softly.
"It's not your fault…I'm glad you told us, we need to know these things….I just can't help but feel the pressure…" she trailed off and buried her face in his shoulder to hide her welling tears. "What if we don't fix it in time? What's going to happen to our boys?"
He body shook slightly at the thought of her sons being condemned to a lifetime of isolation just because they hadn't managed to reverse a stupid spell. It wasn't fair…they hadn't done anything to deserve such a fate…
Leo hesitated slightly before leading his distraught wife over to the attic's worn couch. He ran his hand up and down her back reassuringly and tried his best to giver her a warm smile. "Come on Piper." He began, gently wiping a stray tear off of her cheek. "You said it your self- we'll figure this out."
She scoffed. "We don't know that! I only said it so the others wouldn't worry. I'm supposed to be the strong one…I couldn't very well tell the rest of the family that the situation is hopeless…and that they're all going to be stuck this way forever. I had to give them a little hope…" another warm tear tailed down her face and she knew that if Leo had not wisely forced her to sit down her knees would have buckled beneath her by now.
'So much for being the strong one.' she thought bitterly to herself.
Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest and her body was overcome with fearful chills.
She felt just as lost and worried as everyone else…if not more so…
She had failed to uphold her duty.
She wasn't strong…she wasn't Prue…
"And you did give them hope." Leo replied, breaking her away from her thoughts. "You're great at that, Piper. You managed to stay calm and in control, and now everyone is working on ways to reverse it. And you know as well as anyone that there is nothing the Halliwell's can't do if they put their minds to it."
Piper gave a quiet laugh in spite of herself. She could always trust Leo to come up with encouraging clichés at times like these.
"Well, they may have hope, but I don't." she began with a loud sigh, her smile quickly fading. "Did you see Wyatt's face when you told him the news? I know he was trying to hide it, but he's terrified…and that breaks my heart. It's so hard to go on knowing what my boys may have to face because of me."
Leo's green eyes clouded over in confusion. "Because of you?" he asked. "If anyone is to blame here it's me. I'm the reason they are…the way they are. If I was human they wouldn't be in this predicament."
She shook her head and began to fidget nervously with one of the pillows on the couch. "No. We've talked about this…" she began. "You're not to blame here Leo. If I hadn't been so careless last night and had actually set the alarm to wake us up at a decent time then this would probably all be over by now. If anyone's to blame right now, it's me."
Leo stopped rubbing her back for a second and locked his eyes on hers. "Everyone makes mistakes." He said quietly, hardly able to believe the strong feelings of guilt radiating off of his wife. "And if I recall correctly you weren't the only one who was too distracted to remember the alarm…that is just as much my fault as it is yours. You know what they say…it takes two to tango."
She gave another quiet chuckle as her mind drifted back to last night. Maybe he was right- maybe she was placing too much of the blame on herself.
Still smiling and feeling suddenly more relaxed, she looked up into her husband's enchanting green eyes. "You know, I think you have a point." She stated, a slight playfulness in her tone. "You are partially responsible…if you weren't so damn handsome then maybe I would have been able to resist you…and maybe I would have remembered to set it…"
He laughed, relieved that the Piper was beginning to recover from her depressed state. "Hey." He defended. "It's not like I can help it."
She hit him playfully on the arm before reaching up to give him a fervent kiss. "Watch the ego there mister." She muttered, her body feeling less and less tense by the second. It was amazing how a brief conversation with Leo always managed to lift her spirits.
The whitelighter laughed again and gave her another deep kiss which she returned eagerly. His arm drew her closer and she smiled widely as she allowed herself to succumb to his embrace. She couldn't help herself…she couldn't resist…
Her hand slowly began to undo the buttons of his white shirt…
They kissed again.
She needed this…she needed to release the pressure…
She needed his love to take away her pain…
"No...we can't…"
Leo's gentle voice snapped her suddenly back to reality and she forced her self to draw back.
He was right…they couldn't…not now…
The guilt quickly came rushing back and a deep blush spread across her cheeks.
She and Leo were the ones responsible for the first delay…they didn't need to be responsible for another.
'Stay focused Piper.' She internally scolded herself as she stood up from the couch and took a few steps back. 'Once this is over you can have all of the fun you want…'
"See, this is what I mean." She muttered, folding her arms across her chest and glaring over at her husband. "Even after twenty two years I can't resist you…"
He looked sheepishly down at the floor. "I can't resist you either…but we both need to stay on track here…just think about everyone else…they need us, we need to fix this."
She drew several deep breaths and straightened out the bottom of her shirt as he began to do up his. "We're worse then a couple of teenagers, Leo." She stated as she walked back to the book of shadows and began flipping through it as a distraction.
Leo gave a quiet laugh at her remark. "Yeah, if we're not careful we'll have another little angel on our hands soon."
"I'm almost forty seven." Piper scoffed as she continued to flip the pages. "And you're…"
"Ninety Seven." He cut in helpfully.
Piper cringed in spite of herself- even after all of this time she did not like to be reminded of the fact that the father of her children had been born way back in the 1920's. "Exactly." She muttered. "We're too old to even think about that…and besides, it's been enough of a challenge raising two of them- we certainly don't need a third."
The whitelighter shrugged and was about to reply when the appearance of a third person in the doorway distracted them both away from their conversation.
"Hey guys…" Phoebe said quietly as she walked through the thresh hold. "Do we have any horned slugs?"
Piper looked up at her sister and gave a slight frown. Although Piper was not the empath, she easily could sense her sister's pain. Even the smile plastered across her face was unable to mask the sadness so clearly displayed in her eyes.
Phoebe was trying to put on a brave façade…but inside, she was falling apart…
"How's the potion supply going?" Piper asked, trying to sound upbeat as she passed her sister the bottle of slugs from a near by self.
Phoebe shrugged and looked down at the mass of gooey grey creatures. "Pretty good I think." She said, her voice void of almost any emotion. "We've made quite a bit…but since we don't know what kind of demon we're up against it's hard to know if we're making the right type."
"And how's everything else going?" she asked cautiously, wondering if it had been a mistake to have Phoebe and Paige working together in the same room. She hadn't really considered the current situation as she had quickly delegated tasks…perhaps that was what was causing her sister so much discontent…
Phoebe did not reply to her question.
Not verbally anyway…
But Piper could see it…she could feel it…
He sister needed her support…her strength…
"Oh sweetie." She whispered, taking a step forward to pull Phoebe into a warm hug. "What's wrong?"
The middle sister leaned heavily on her big sister's shoulder and sighed deeply before summoning the strength to reply. "Everything's wrong Piper." She said, her voice shaking as the long suppressed tears began streaming down her face. "My husband and daughter may be stuck being demons for the rest of their lives…we still don't have a plan…the police may already be on to us…and Paige is never going to talk to me again. She hates me Piper, I can tell…"
Piper felt familiar feelings of guilt building inside of her as Phoebe finished talking.
She had been too wrapped up in her own self pity to consider what her little sister was going through. She had been so worried about her own children, and finding somewhere to place the blame that she had forgotten that Phoebe must be feeling even worse then she was…
"Phoebe." She began slowly, looking into her sisters tear filled eyes. "First of all, Paige doesn't hate you. I know she doesn't. She just a little upset at the moment- but I'm sure that sooner or later things will go back to normal."
Phoebe gave a slow nod, but Piper knew that she was not fully convinced. "Secondly," she continued. "We have to trust that Darryl and DJ have the police situation under control. I'm sure that they're doing everything they can…and I'm sure that they'll manage to keep Mel safe."
"Okay…" the younger sister choked between quiet sobs as she continued to clutch Pipers arm for support.
"And as for the spell…" Piper began again. "We'll reverse it- we'll set things right. I promise."
There was a long pause as Phoebe tried to regain her composure. She felt slightly ashamed for loosing control, but she had been holding it all in for so long. It was nice to get a bit of her emotion out…to share her fears…
She just wanted things to go back to the way they had been. She wanted her family to be normal…she wanted Paige to trust her again…she wanted her daughter to be safe…
"I hope you're right, Piper." She said, her voice barely a whisper.
The older sister smiled. "I always am."
Phoebe laughed in spite of herself and gave Piper another grateful hug. She was glad that at least one of them hadn't completely lost her sanity yet. She had always admired Piper's strength…she always seemed to handle these situations effortlessly.
"I never break my promises Phoebe." Piper stated as they slowly drew apart. "And I promise to set this right."
The younger sister nodded, and a slight smile crossed her face.
Piper could tell that her reassurances had worked…and she was glad that she had managed to overcome her own doubts in time to help someone that needed her guidance…
And it was true- she had never broken her promises before…she always did everything she could to stay true to her word…
She could only hope that this would be no exception.
"So…" she began again. "Why don't we all get back to work?"
Phoebe nodded and began to head out of the attic. As she reached the door way she paused and looked back. "Thanks Piper." She said quietly. "I feel better now."
Smiling slightly as she watched Phoebe leave the room and walk down the stairs, Piper congratulated herself on this one small victory before turning around to face Leo.
He too was smiling from his spot on the couch. "See…" he began knowingly. "You are good at holding this family together. Phoebe looks up to you, and you did a great job comforting her."
"I hope so." She replied as she walked back over to the book. "But you're the one who deserves most of the credit. I may be the one holding them together, but you're the one that holds me together. I could never do any of this without you."
Leo smiled again. "Glad to know that I'm still of some use."
"Of course you are." Piper stated, returning his smile. "If you weren't here I'd probably be a crying heap on the floor right now." She paused. "So, what do you say we try to keep that promise…I'll try the book again and you try looking through that pile of demonic encyclopaedia's your brought home from magic school last week."
He nodded in agreement and quickly stood up to grab the books and begin his task.
Piper smiled again as he watched him go, feeling calmer and more collected then she had all day…
Maybe- just maybe- things really would turn out okay…
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
A/N Well, sorry for the wait people, but as I said, exams have been taking up a lot of my time. Arg. But I'm almost done now, and I have a bit more time to write…I'm hoping chapter 20 will be up soon!
Please Review!
Miss Poisonous- You are anything but horrible! That was the longest review I've ever had! Awesome! You're right, it wasn't Demetrius…but as I have said, the answer is easily found at the end of chapter one;) Glad you're enjoying Wyatt so much- I've enjoyed writing him, lol. Don't worry, he shall appear again soon. Also glad you like Mel and DJ…but sad that you're not too fond of Jenny. It's not your fault of course, she hasn't quite turned out how I was hoping…it's hard to make her create conflict and still be likable…perhaps I souldn't have attempted that. Oh well, too late now. And I agree, Wyatt is a total hottie- I like him more and more everyday, lol- so happy you liked the shirtless scene;)
The-Cheese-Fairy- Yes…sorry Paige is alone- I too would like her to end up with someone, but don't know who(Personally I like Brody, but a lot of people don't seem to) …and I figured that this story had enough characters without adding in another guy. So glad you think I've created a realistic Wyatt-Chris relationship. No, I don't have brothers- but my sister and I fight like that quite often, lol (I'm like Wyatt, she's like Chris, tehe) and I also observe the relationship my best friend has with his brothers. Also glad you like DJ, more of him to come. Oh and about the names…I thought the older one was Mikey too…but according to a script I read Darryl said 'My kid'. I don't know…but in my story DJ is the name of son number one 1, and son number 2 is not important;)
chattypandagurl- Thanks for reviewing!
Phoenix5143- lol, glad you'll still like me after long updates…tehe, like the DJ scene, eh? Yes, I wanted to punch Jake too…but if U can't do it, at least my characters can;)
IcantthinkofaFnick- Wow, another Male/DJ fan…the relation ship may not get that developed in this story, but because of the great response I've been getting I may write a sequel about it…maybe…thanks for the review!
ilovedrew88- Glad you liked the DJ scene too! Thanks!
C.Charmed24/7- thanks for reminding me what episode they mention DJ in, You're right…I knew I had heard it somewhere.
Alyssa Halliwell- Yes, it's sad that he's too late…but where would the conflict be if he wasn't?
phoebe turner- thanks again!
foureverCharmed- Sorry that this chapter took me awhile…thanks for reviewing!
JadeAlmasy- Thanks- sorry for the delay.
charmedtomeetyou- So glad you found the last chapter amusing, I love hearing what lines make people laugh- hopefully I'll manage to include some more funny bits soon:)