I'm baaaaack! After working non-stop, and then being sick (it figures, eh?) I finally summoned up enough strength to write! I'm SO sorry to leave you all hanging…the end is so near, and yet I made you all wait for more. I hope you'll forgive me. Thanks for all of the wonderful reviews; it thrills me to know that people actually enjoy the crazy stuff that pops out of my head.
Just to refresh your memories…
The facts:
- On Halloween night a 'true nature' spell was cast by a demon, revealing all concealed magical creatures for what they are…unfortunately for the Halliwell's, the spell has effected Chris, Leo, Wyatt, Cole, Paige and Mel- turning them into either demons or angels
-Leo discovers that the spell can only be reversed within a 24 hour period…if they can't fix it soon, they'll be stuck in their new forms forever…
-Thanks to the spell, Chris finds out that his crush Jenny is half-whitelighter too. Jenny's mother had hidden her magical past, to avoid the repercussions of her forbidden relationship from the elders.
-They believed the Demon Demetrius to be responsible for the spell, but his vanquish did not reverse the effects…
Recent Events:
- Chris, Wyatt, Paige, Jenny (Chris' girlfriend), and Mel were all captured by the cops (headed by Inspector Jameson). The half whitelighters are locked in one cell; Mel is alone in a cell elsewhere
- The Adults (Phoebe, Piper, Leo, Cole and Emily (Jenny's mom)) have recently discovered that the demon Coronus is in fact responsible for the 'true nature' spell- hey have briefly discussed a plan of attack, and will need the power of three for the vanquish
-At the end of chapter 21, Piper calls for her sons and realizes something must have happened to them…
-Darryl and his son DJ were locked in the police station by the ambitious Jameson, and unable to stop the cops from going to the manor. Darryl was ready to give up on finding an escape, but DJ's feeling for Mel have kept him determined
-Jameson plans to expose the Halliwell's for his own fame and glory
Enjoy…
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Chapter 23
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Melinda Turner sat starring blankly into the suffocating darkness of her lonely cell. She had woken up approximately half an hour ago only to discover herself trapped and alone in what appeared to be the police station's prison. Initially she had been filled with confusion and panic as she tried to recall how, exactly, she had ended up in this predicament. But as the memories of the police raid had come flooding back, she found her panic replaced with a burning rage.
The cops had bust into their home, just when everyone's hopes had begun to return. They had subdued her with some sort of painful dart. They had gotten Chris and Paige…and, for all she knew, the rest of the family too…
To make the situation even worse, she knew that something must have happened to Darryl and DJ- they never would have let the cops come to the manor if they could stop it…they would have at least warned them if they could have…
She could only hope, as she sat alone with nothing but her own dark thoughts to keep her company, that those she cared for most were- by some miracle- still okay…
Her insides churned as she thought about the injustice of it all.
Her family saved innocent lives on a weekly basis, and this was the payment they got for it.
They were imprisoned…caged like animals…
It was only a matter of time before the whole world new their secret…
Mel could only imagine the horrible fate that awaited them all.
The ignorant humans would gawk at them in fearful fascination. They would be studied, tested…dissected even.
Life, as they knew it, would be over.
'It's all the spell's fault' she thought bitterly as she took a seat on the cold metal bench which acted as the only piece of furniture in the room. Two days ago, everything had been fine…she had at least appeared normal…and, in such a superficial world, that was all that had really mattered.
She had had friends, a boyfriend, a close knit family…
But then, quite unexpectedly, the spell had hit, revealing them all for what they really were…breaking them apart….making them outcasts…
She had lost so much in such a short span of time. Her imprisonment was just the final step in the total destruction of everything good in her life.
All she had left now was a very tiny shred of hope…hope that, somehow, things would work out…
After all, her mother and aunts had always managed to pull through before, maybe they would pull through this time too…
Maybe…
Despite her efforts to reassure herself, she could not rid herself of her gut wrenching doubt. Even if she did figure out a way to bust out of her prison, chances were that it would already be too late to reverse the damage of the spell.
She could suddenly hear Uncle Leo's s voice in the back of her mind… "Eight o'clock tonight…" he had said sombrely, reporting the news he had gathered from the elders. "The effects will be permanent"
She knew that it was time to face the cruel reality.
She would be stuck in demon form for the rest of her life…
Last she had checked, there had been just more then an hour left to reverse the spell…she didn't know how long she had been knocked out for…and there certainly wasn't a clock within her range of vision at the moment…
For all she knew, the deadline had already passed…
With a frustrated sigh, Mel tried to shimmer out of her cell, only to be thrown painfully back into the wall as the magical cage sensed her attempt. She knew it was useless to keep trying- who ever had trapped her had obviously had enough sense to take extra precautions- but, in her opinion, anything was better then simply waiting for the time to pass her by. At least the dull pain now throbbing at the back of her skull was a temporary distraction from thoughts of what lie ahead.
"Let me the hell out of here!" she shouted, her angry voice echoing off the cell walls. "You'll be sorry if you don't!"
She waited several seconds, hoping that some passer-by had heard. Earlier, she had hated that fact that her new form had such a chilling effect on people, but in this time of desperation she was willing to use her frightening exterior to the best of her advantage. Perhaps she could scare some spineless young cop into letting her free…
"I'm serious…either you let me out, or…." She paused, trying to think of something menacing to say. She may have looked demonic at the moment, but she had been on the side of good her entire life…threatening innocents wasn't exactly her forte. "Or…" she began again. "Or I'll stick you on a skewer and roast you alive in the fiery pits of hell…"
She grinned inwardly, amused by her somewhat dramatic attempt.
"It's only a matter of time before I escape…then you'll pay."
Mel waited again, hoping beyond hope that someone- anyone- had heard her cries. All she needed was one intimidated individual to wander in her direction…she could fool them into releasing her…or at least squeeze a bit more information out of them…
Like the whereabouts of the rest of her family, for starters.
She hated being so uninformed- not knowing anything was almost worse then knowing the horrible truth.
What if they were even worse off then she was at the moment?
What if the cops had done more then simply knock them out?
What if they were…
Mel shuddered and tried to push that thought to the back of her mind. They couldn't be dead…she refused to believe it. She knew that this wasn't how it was meant to end. The Halliwell's had fought for so long, they wouldn't meet their demise at the hands of a few mortal cops.
"It's okay." she whispered, as if denying it out loud would make it more true. "They'll be fine."
But, somehow, she still was not entirely convinced.
Her thoughts drifted briefly to her father- the strong willed man that had always done everything in his power to protect her and her mother. He was, perhaps, the one in the most danger now. There was no way the mortals would take the time to look past his demonic exterior to see the kind and caring man contained inside.
No, they were much too judgemental to ever do that.
They'd approach him with the most fear…and he, in his anger, probably wouldn't give them much reason to believe that he wasn't a threat.
Cole Turner may have long since given up his demonic life, but when his family was in jeopardy, there was no telling what he'd do.
Mel could only hope that how wouldn't do anything to make the situation worse.
With a sigh, the girl returned to the cold metal bench and leaned heavily against the stone wall. Maybe the others really had evaded capture…the adults, for the most part, had been up in the attic when the cops had barged in.
Maybe they were still safe…
Maybe her parents were on the way to rescue her right now.
She smiled slightly at the thought. She could picture them racing down the dark hall…she could see her dad blasting the bars clean off the wall, and her mother kicking away the magical cage…
They'd take her in their arms and tell her that everything would be okay…that it was all over now…
"You're safe now, Ladybug." Her dad would say, flashing his handsome smile. "Mommy and daddy have got you…."
Perhaps if she had been a few years younger, and a bit less wise in the ways of the world, she would have had an easier time believing her wonderful fantasy.
But she had learned, as all children one day do, that things rarely work out as we hope.
Not everyone could have their happily ever after.
Not everyone had a prince charming ready to race to their rescue.
The real world- as the past days had made painfully clear- was far from perfect…
Mel felt the tears prickle behind her eyes as a myriad of emotions began to well within her.
It's not fair. She thought bitterly. Why me?
Why us?
Why can't…
"Hello?"
A new jolt of energy ran through Mel's body and she jumped up from her seat, her self pity instantly forgotten. If she was not mistaken, she had just heard a faint voice, calling out from the distance.
"Hello?"
The voice came again, making her absolutely sure that it had not been a hopeful hallucination.
"Mel?"
Whoever it was knew her name…she tired to remember out where she had hard the voice before, but it was still so distant and quiet that it was hard to distinguish.
"Yes." She called out, not particularly caring if the voice was there to help or harm. Talking to someone- no matter how bad- was better then sitting alone in the dark. "I'm here."
She listened as the foot steps drew closer and closer…the person was coming towards her…
Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest, and all of her hampered hopes began to flare up again…
Maybe a rescuer really had come…
Maybe the ordeal really would end…
The footsteps grew louder and louder…the person was so near now…she could see his shadowy figure in the darkened hallway…
Mel held her breath, unable to stop herself from shaking in both fear and anticipation.
She knew that in only a matter of seconds, her fate would be sealed…
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Piper Halliwell felt as if the last ten minutes had been nothing but a dream.
A horrible, terrifying, and devastating dream.
She had known the moment that her sister and sons did not respond to her calls from the attic that something had gone terribly wrong. She had rushed down the stairs, head spinning and heart beating, only to see her deepest fears confirmed.
Something was very wrong.
They had been taken.
Captured.
Her sister, sons, and niece were gone.
At first, it had hit her like a ton of bricks…she had felt her chest seize up, and if Leo had not been there to give her physical support, she would have been nothing but a crumpled heap on the floor. The room had spun around her, and her mind had hardly been able to comprehend how everything had come crashing down so suddenly.
She had been happy, moments earlier. Phoebe had had a premonition and discovered which demon they were after…they had discussed a plan of action…and it seems as if it all might finally be over…
But, as she looked around the now chaotic living room, she could not help but let her hopes die down once again. They couldn't reverse the spell without Paige…she couldn't carry on without the knowledge that her boys were safe…
She felt- if possible- worse then she had at any other point in this terrible ordeal. And she realized that she wasn't the only one. As she stood comforted in Leo's shaking arms, she could see Phoebe sitting motionless on the couch, the tears streaming silently down her face. After her initial shriek of surprise and anguish, the middle sister had not made so much as a peep. Her brown eyes had glazed over as she stared straight ahead, obviously pushed over the edge by what had happened to her daughter.
Phoebe had been through so many ups and downs in the past two days…it seemed that this latest complication had been more then she could take.
If Piper had not been in such a state of shock herself, she would have rushed to her sister's side…but as it was, keeping her own breath steady was about all she could focus on at the moment.
Cole was faring only slightly better then his wife…
He hadn't stopped pacing since his arrival in the living room, and his yellowed eyes were cast angrily down at the floor. Occasionally he would mutter something to himself, and even fling a burst of energy into the wall in typical Cole fashion. On a regular day Piper would have scolded him for his careless outbursts…but today, she understood completely. She was tempted to blow the room to pieces herself…
But she knew that wouldn't help.
Acts of aggression wouldn't bring back her boys…
Drawing a deep breath, Piper moved her head slightly to glance at the fifth and final person in the room. Surprisingly, it was Emily that seemed to be coping with the situation best of all. Her daughter, Jenny, was also among the missing but the witch seemed determined not to completely lose her cool.
While the others had been in far too much shock to move, Emily had shakily located a mysterious dart lying at the side of the room, and had now proceeded to scry with it- hoping to find the location of whoever had taken their beloved family members.
It had been almost five silent minutes, and so far, the witch had had no luck…Piper admired her persistence, however…Emily appeared as if she had no intention of stopping until they knew who was responsible.
"Anything yet?" Piper asked the woman quietly.
"No." she replied shortly, her eyes not straying from the map of San Francisco placed neatly on the table. "Nothing yet."
The oldest Charmed on nodded sombrely, trying hard to collect her thoughts. She felt completely useless at the moment…she wished that she had the strength to do something productive…
But, every time she tried to move, pictures of her precious little boys flashed across her mind…
She could see Chris' sparkling green eyes, always so full of laughter…
She could see Wyatt's perfect blonde curls, lit by the shining sun…
They were her sons…
Her little angels…
And it was almost suffocating to think that they could be trapped…even hurt…at this very moment…
She knew that she would never be able to carry on if anything truly terrible happened to them. The powers that be had already taken Chris from her once; there was no way in heaven or hell she was going to let them do it again.
"Here!" She heard Emily shout suddenly, jumping from her chair with sudden excitement. "The crystal landed."
"Where?" Leo asked, holding firmly onto his wife's shoulder. The couple tensed…hoping beyond hope that Emily had found them an answer.
The other witch hesitated, squinting back down at the map. "Crestwood St." she said quietly. "But that's…"
"The police station." Piper replied before Emily could finish. "Of course…"
She should have figured it out sooner…the Morris' had warned them that the cops were already on their trail…
"Something must have happened to Darryl and DJ…the cops must have come…they had evidence against us, after all…" Leo began, voicing what Piper was thinking at that exact moment. "They had a tape of the boys…testimony against Mel…"
Piper nodded, somewhat relived that their children hadn't been captured by demons, but also very very worried about what the mortals would do to them…in their current state, they'd surely make front page news.
"I can sense them there." She heard Leo mutter beside her. The whitelighter had shut his eyes for a few seconds as he tried to narrow down on their location. He had attempted to sense for them earlier, but a combination of his own panic and the complete mystery of their whereabouts meant that he had had no success. Now that Emily had found a possible location, however, he was better able to focus his energies. "It's still faint, but they're definitely at the police station. The cops have got them."
"I'LL KILL THEM!" Cole shouted, enraged as he flung yet another fireball into the manor's living room wall. "If they so much as lay a finger on any of them, I'll make them regret the day they were born! I'll g-"
"Cole, calm down." Leo said loudly, shooting a pointed glare at his brother in law. "Getting mad isn't going to help us get them back…we need to stay calm and focus. At least we know where they are now…"
Cole ceased his infuriated firing and turned abruptly to look at the whitelighter. "How do you expect me to stay calm when my little girl has been captured by a horde of stupid, worthless, pig headed cops? Who knows what they're doing to her…you may not care, but-"
"You think I'm not upset?" Leo shot back, his voice even louder then before. "My boys were taken too! And Mel is my niece, I don't want her hurt any more then you do. I just think that you bursting into the police station and incinerating everyone in sight isn't going to help our cause any. We have to approach this properly, or we'll just end up in even more trouble."
"Screw that. There is no way I'm going to stand here and wait for you to check with the elders, or meditate, or…what ever it is you whitelighters do." Cole replied tensely, his eyes narrowed in fierce determination. "I don't care what happens to me, I'm getting them out of there!"
He turned away from Piper and Leo, evidently intent on shimmering out of the room.
"Cole, Leo's right." Piper tried, hoping the demon would listen to reason. "The kids have already been exposed- you getting exposed, and possibly captured, won't help."
Cole turned to glare at her. "Sure, stand up for the pacifist, I didn't expect-"
"THAT'S ENOUGH."
A fourth and unexpected voice cut into the argument, causing all three to stop abruptly.
Phoebe had stood up from her seat on the couch, her tear streaked face now glaring between them all.
"Our kids and our sister are in trouble, and you're arguing about who is right and wrong." She began angrily. "This family has already been torn apart once in the past forty eight hours, and I am not going to let that happen again…especially when the others need our help. We're not going to check with the elders- and we're most certainly not going to go busting in there." The woman paused and shot a look directly over at her husband before summoning up the strength to continue. "We're going to do what we always do- come up with a plan, and kick evil's ass."
Piper sent a weak smile in her little sister's direction, glad to see her come out of her stunned stupor.
She was right of course…this was not the time for petty arguments. Even though the family's differences were glaringly obvious at the moment, they could still find a way to pull together and achieve their common goal.
Getting the rest of the family back was really all that mattered right now.
It seemed that Piper was not the only one moved by Phoebe's speech- even Cole had hung his head in shame for his rather heated comments. Any desire he had had to immediately bust into the SFPD was now subdued by his wife's words.
"Fine." He muttered his voice uncharacteristically gentle as he chanced a look over in Phoebe's direction. "What do you propose?"
She hesitated slightly, her mind going over the few options they still had left. "We need to get them out- obviously." She muttered, more to herself then the others. "And Piper, Emily and I should be the ones to do it- our appearance won't arouse as much suspicion."
The two men in the room exchanged a brief glance; neither was thrilled with the idea of letting their wives tackle the task alone…
But they knew that Phoebe was right…a demon and an angel walking into a mortal police station would attract more then a little attention.
"I agree." Piper cut in, giving Leo's hand a reassuring squeeze. "Considering the circumstances, we're the ones that should do this…"
Phoebe nodded before continuing, her voice filling with more and more determination. "We can still use your help though." She said, addressing her comment at Leo. "You can orb us into the alley way behind the station, and we'll use the back door to get inside. If we're lucky, we'll be able to find them quickly and get out. Chances are we'll have to call you again to orb us home though…if any of them could orb themselves, they would have done it by now…"
Piper shuddered involuntarily.
Her sister had a point…the boys would have gotten themselves home by now if they had been able…that meant that they were probably still knocked out…or hurt…or…
She shuddered again as she tried to push those horrible thoughts to the back of her mind.
They'd be home soon. She'd make sure they stayed safe…
"If we encounter any cops Piper can freeze them." Phoebe continued, her brown eyes narrowing. "And Emily can use her temperature changing thing to freeze them literally, if need be."
The third witch nodded enthusiastically, happy to be a part of the plan that would, hopefully, save her daughter.
"It shouldn't be too difficult" the eldest charmed one added optimistically. "Hopefully they're all being kept together…and the moment we find them, and freeze the surrounding cops, we can call for Leo and get everyone home safely."
There was a slight pause after this final comment, as all present tried desperately too believe that things really would work out as planned…
That soon, they would all be reunited…
"What about me?" Cole asked, turning once again to face his wife.
It was obvious that he was not happy with his exclusion form the plan.
Phoebe looked up into his now demonic eyes and gave a sad smile. "You stay here." She said, taking a step towards him. "I won't risk you getting hurt…"
The demon scowled.
"We need someone to stay." The brown haired witch continued. "We can't forget about my premonition. I saw Coronus and a few minions shimmering into the attic…we need you to stay here and fight them off if they arrive before we get back."
"How can I fight them?" Cole retorted, his mind drifting to the entry they had recently read in the book of shadows. "The book says he can only be defeated by the power of three."
Phoebe sighed, taking another step forward and placing a reassuring hand on her husband's shoulder. "You may not be able to kill him, but I have complete confidence that you can distract him long enough for us to get back. When we return with Paige, we'll be able to get rid of him…and his stupid spell…once and for all."
Cole looked as if he was about to retort, but instead of arguing he drew a deep breath and placed a gentle kiss atop his wife's head. "Be careful." He whispered so that only she could hear. "And bring our little girl home safe."
The woman nodded as she drew back, locking eyes with him once more before silently moving across take a small piece of paper off of the coffee table and proceeding to latch onto her sister and brother in law.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" she asked, grabbing onto Leo's arm and gesturing for the dazed looking Emily to come over. "We've got a family to save."
Piper could not help but smile at her sisters words. She was so proud to see Phoebe take charge of the situation…she had looked past her own fears and doubts and managed to keep them focused on the task at hand.
Even though she knew that there were still many challenges to be faced, she could not suppress the hope now growing inside of her.
They could get through this. There was nothing the Halliwell's couldn't do.
"I can hardly believe that it's really going to be over." She heard Emily mutter quietly from her side as she took hold of Pipers arm.
Piper smiled, and turned to her husband. "Ready?"
The whitelighter nodded, his face stoically calm. "Let's go."
She felt the world begin to dissolve around her as the now familiar sensation of orbing filled her body. Through the gathering blue lights she could see a sombre Cole standing alone in the living room, watching them with a combination of hope and worry.
Turning her head slightly, she used her final seconds of visibility to glance over at the well worn grandfather clock…
"Seven thirty…" she muttered, her voice becoming bodiless as their combined orbs began to streak out the room towards their destination.
That meant that there was only half an hour left to set everything right…
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A/N Cutting it close, aren't I? Well, hope you enjoyed that. I suppose it was a bit slow, but I need to build up to the next action packed chapter. Only about two or three chapters left (depending on how long I decide to make each one). In case it wasn't clear…Mel is trapped in a separate cell at the police station (as Jameson said in the last chapter). Hope the scene with the adults made sense…it picks up about 5 minutes after we last saw them…it's implied that they all rushed down stairs to realize that the kids and Paige were gone…I decide to show their later reaction rather then their initial ones.
Once again, I'm sorry for the wait, and I hope you haven't forgotten the story…I have hardly had time to sleep this past month, let alone write anything decent. Please forgive me. The next update won't take nearly as long.
Up next…the adults rush to the rescue…will it be as easy as they hope? Will the demon arrive in their absence? Who will win the showdown? Will everything work out in time? Also- a scene with all of our favourite half whitelighters, and an update on the Darryl DJ situation…
Please review!