A/N: I think we all know the play on this chapter, yes? (And I don't even like baseball!) C. C. McKenna: LOL So you really like wild Piper? That's good, because I'm planning on showing more of her "wild side" in this story. I mean, there was only like one episode where she really got to be "fun and reckless." I'm glad you like Emma, she kicked ass on MX before they killed her character off. RJF: I'm tickled that you approve! No, the guys haven't found anything out about Genomex, as it doesn't exist in this world, they've discovered more "mortal motives." charmedsisters: Really? Hmm, I've been trying to collect all of the books, but I haven't been able to get my hands on the one where Piper splits into two. Emma's powers are telempathy (telepathy and empathy; this combo allows her to mess with emotions, cause illusions, tap into powers, read minds, somewhat control minds, and various other things), premonitions,psionic waves, psychic globes of energy, and many other hidden mental powers. She's an extremely powerful being. As far as the twins go, they have a butt load of powers that haven't been discovered yet; orb-force field and they can turn into water (their father is the heir to Atlantis and his mother was a water Goddess of sorts). They won't really show many of their powers, though. Pearl's second power was healing, Phiona's was orbing (in the future) and she may or may not get it (as the future has changed a lot since the girls traveled there). We will definitely be seeing more Pearl/Brandon, though. peanut2lb: lol I'm so glad that you liked wild and sassy Exploding Piper! Although she will eventually be put back together soon, I plan to show more of her wild side in the next subplot. I hope to be putting more of the kids in there, but they just haven't fit lately. The alternate characters (MX included) will be leaving this fic soon and although I haven't been able to write it down yet, I definitely know what will happen between Glenn and Alternate Paige in the end. (Bit of a spoiler here, it'll be at P3 where Jamie O'Neal will be singing one of her hit songs. If anyone's a country fan and they think really hard, they'll probably figure it out.) As for the lack of reviews, I guess it could be because of the plot. But that doesn't matter, because as long as the writer is happy with her/his work, then it doesn't matter what everyone else thinks, in my opinion. (There are exceptions, as with everything, but you get the general idea.) money makes me smile: Yeah, I needed a celebrity nitpick as "Charmed" often has and then it just hit me. damien455: Thanks for the encouragement!The-Cheese-Fairy: Oh I know! Looks like Leo and Piper have untapped darksides that they don't know about each other. Ha, yes! I love that quote! Rose is such an awesome, quirky person and she is just so perfect to play Paige! Prince Halliwell: Yep, that's exactly right; one power and one side of her personality. As far as the alternates go, I'm still not sure how long they'll stay. (I'm planning on wrapping this subplot up soon.) Okay guys, up until this point, Alternate Pamela hasn't come in contact with Prue or Andy.
Every Halliwell Counts
Chapter 9: Charmed One, Two, Three Strikes And You're Out
Paige eyed the glowing crystal cage warily. It was currently holding Exploding Piper, just like it had contained Prue when she'd been turned into a Werewolf at Andy's family reunion not too long ago, or so it seemed in the world of the Halliwells. Emma must be some witch, to be able to keep Piper out that long. She thought, as she turned her attention back to the problem at hand. Unfortunately she'd been ignoring what Andy and her husband were talking about, not purposely of course.
"Paige, are you paying attention?"
Paige's head popped up. "Uh, yeah."
"Na uh!" Pandora challenged.
Zip it! Paige mentally hissed at her niece.
The young Trudeau witch smiled innocently.
"Then what did I just say?" Glenn asked, curiously.
"I, uh, I..."
"Yeah, that's what I thought. Damnit, Paige, can you ever pay attention to me?"
"Here we go again!" Paige griped, as she pulled to her feet.
Glenn rose as well, completely forgetting about the problem at hand. He wanted so badly to get things right with his wife and yet she just continued to fight with him.
"Glenn," Alternate Paige whispered quietly. She wobbled to her feet, her pregnant belly putting strain on her.
Glenn let out a deep sigh, rehashing the alternate witchlighter's words. "I'm going to the bathroom, I'll be back in a few minutes." He excused himself from the room.
Paige flopped back into her seat, seething.
Phoebe chewed her lip, not knowing what to say.
"Maybe we could break into groups and go try to get information in the Underworld?" Emma was trying to ease the pain of the moment as well as finish up what needed to be done here so she and her friends could return to their own reality.
"Cole's already doing that," Phoebe protested.
"But Cole doesn't have the power of premonition," Emma countered.
A swirl of orbs formed next to Emma, turning into Wyatt. Then everyone heard a loud scream from upstairs. It wasn't one of help, but rather annoyance. Wyatt giggled to himself, as he saw his cousin run into the room.
"I thought I told you no orb and seek!" Alternate Pamela blistered, before her voice caught in her throat as she saw her parents, or rather her parents from an alternate reality.
Prue's blue eyes curiously examined the teen. Although she'd seen the girl walking around earlier and was told that she was part of the gang from the alternate reality, she never really got a good look at her. But to her amazement, she looked quite a lot like herself. In fact, she resembled Andy too and she looked a wee bit like Pandora. That was when it hit the Charmed One; this was the daughter her alternate counterpart must've had!
"Pamela?" Alternate Paige said, realizing the upset that her niece must be feeling. The young witch had clear unresolved issues with Prue, in any reality.
"Is something wrong?" Prue asked, not taking her eyes off Alternate Pam.
"Yeah, you!" Alternate Pamela cupped her fists. "You've always been the wrong thing in my life!"
"Pamela!" Alternate Paige chastised. "This is not your reality! This Prue never did anything to you!"
"She's the same person, right?" Alternate Pam fumed. "The same in any reality, which means she'd do the same thing if she'd had half the chance!"
Hurt and pain were evident on Prue's face.
"Don't talk to mommy like that!" Pandora cut in, her innocent face red and flustered. Nobody had ever seen the young telepath so angry. She slid off the couch and cupped in fists in the fashion that Alternate Pam had, although it was completely unintentional just genetic.
Andy stood up, pulling his daughter to him. He'd never noticed how much she resembled Prue when she was angry. "Pandora, calm down," he whispered. His hand graced Prue's neck, comforting her slightly, and then he sat Pandora his in seat and turned to Alternate Pamela. "Pam, what happened? What are you so upset about?" Like Paige, he had been trained with how to handle emotionally disturbed people in his line of work, and had decided to put the training to good use in this moment. He didn't want to talk down to the teenage witch, or make her feel as if he was, he needed to gain her trust.
The alternate teenager whirled around to Andy, not recognizing him as she'd never been graced with the chance to meet him before. "This doesn't concern you," she replied icily.
"You should hear him out, Pam," Emma insisted. She knew the true story. When Prue had been temporarily ressurected after Phoebe left, she and Prue had some time to talk, although this wasn't widely known to Piper and Paige. Emma and Prue had quite a lot in common, both being dead and 'replaced' for one reason or another. She'd seen pictures of Andrew Trudeau and known all about the love of Prue's life, who just happened to be Alternate Pamela's father.
"You know Emma, this isn't really any of your business either. It's between me and her."
"No, Pam, it's between you and your mother, not you and this Prue." The psionic's voice was stern and sent a shiver through Pam. The mutant witch barely ever used such a tone. Using her telempathic powers, she forced Alternate Pam to feel the pain that she was causing Prue, who had no idea what she or her alternate self had done to the poor teenager.
Alternate Pam struggled, feeling gravity pull her to the floor as the pain and hurt hit her like a flash flood hits an unsuspecting town. Her face puckered and she felt tears begin to sting the back of her eyes.
"Emma!" The alternate witchlighter shrieked. "What did you do to her?"
"She'll be fine," the redhead replied.
As Alternate Pam struggled to her feet, she could feel a stream of salty liquid dribble down her left cheek. Without a word, she turned and fled the room.
Alternate Paige was about to run after her, when Emma grabbed her arm and held her back.
Persia raked her hand through her hair. Although she hadn't been formally told about Alternate Pam's background, she was sure that she knew what had happened to the teen, and she knew that she could relate. She quickly left the room.
"Persia!" Phoebe's voice yelled back.
"No, it's okay," Emma said, quieting the psychic Charmed One.
"But-"
Emma waved her hand, quieting Phoebe. "Persia will be fine with Pam, I know she will."
Prue and Andy shared worried looks, wondering what their counterparts could've possibly done that would cause their daughter so much pain.
"You were adopted, weren't you?"
Alternate Pamela's head popped up from the Book. "What do you want?"
"To help," Persia replied as she shut the attic door behind herself.
"And just why do you think I need help?"
"Don't be a smartass, it's not the time," Persia replied.
The alternate teenager blinked. Persia and been so sweet and timid, and well, nice. She never once expected that the electrical witch could harden in such a split second. She closed the Book of Shadows. "What is it the time for?"
"You still haven't answered me," Persia fired back.
"About what?" The alternate teen had put her defenses back on. She wasn't sure how she felt about this secret side of Phoebe's oldest daughter.
"You were adopted, weren't you?"
As the telekinetic opened her mouth, she was cut off by Persia's hardened voice.
"Just answer me."
"Yes," Alternate Pamela replied. "Are you happy now? You know one of my dirty little secrets?"
"No," Persia stated. "I'm not. I'm not happy with the way you treated my aunt."
"And I thought this was going somewhere useful! Chalk another wrong assumption up for Pamela Walker. I guess it's really true what they say, don't 'assume' because it makes an 'ass out of me and an ass out of you'."
"Well I can certainly agree with the former," the Child Of Light returned. She wet her lips, before continuing. "You never even knew them, did you?" She paused and when she recieved no answer, she continued. "Your parents, your Prue. She gave you away and you never even knew her, right?"
"Did someone suddenly gain her mother's power?"
"I didn't have to, because I know what you're going through."
Alternate Pam cocked her head to the side. "You think you know what I'm going through, huh?"
"Yeah, I know I do." Persia now had Alternate Pam backed up to the wall. "You wanted to know, 'Why?' Then you moved onto not wanting to know her at all, now you're furious with her. Hell, maybe you've always been deep down. But she's not around in your world, she actually died, so you can't reconcile with her."
"There's nothing to reconcile! She abandon me!" Alternate Pam roared, shocking Persia. "She left me because she was too afraid of what dear old granny would say! She left me because of her pride and I paid for it!"
"Because you went through a thousand different foster homes, some worse than others, and you had powers that were seemingly unexplainable? Because you were finally forced to get emancipated so you could live your life away from everyone else?"
"Phoebe gave you up?" Alternate Pam's face registered shock and then slowly transformed into acknowledgement. "Why didn't you just say so?"
"Why didn't you?" Persia challenged.
The telekinetic bit her lip. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be," the electrokinetic responded. "I wanted you to get to that point."
"What point?"
"The point where you could let it all out to someone who wouldn't be hurt by what you had to say," the electric witch replied. "I only wish that I could've had someone to explode to before I met my mother and realized why she gave me away."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why did she give you up?"
"She was living in New York at the time, not even twenty-one yet. She-she..."
"No, nevermind."
"No it's okay," Persia replied. "She was raped by my father. She didn't know it until years later, but he was actually an evil witch, but he didn't know she was a Charmed One. It was when her powers were still bound. I don't know what I would've done in her position, but I'm glad she decided not to abort me. Sure there are things I wish I could change, but the good things in my life definitely out weigh all of those."
Alternate Pam had fallen silent. She'd never thought about it that way before. Did all of the good out weigh the bad? She loved her adopted brother, despite the fact that he was half demon. She loved her cousins, her aunts, and she loved being a witch. If her mother had never had her, then she wouldn't know any of this. No Zach, no Emma, no Jen, no Magic School. Her body began to relax as she felt the tears coming on again, but this time they weren't Prue's, they were her very own. Then she felt warm arms around her. "Thank you," she breathed as Persia gave her a strong hug.
"No problem," Persia whispered. She knew she was going to hurt when Alternate Pamela returned home, because this was the first person she'd ever met who she could really relate too. Sure she'd known witches and sure she'd known people who'd been adopted, but Alternate Pam was the first person who was an adopted witch given up by a Charmed One, and that was something you really couldn't duplicate.
The telekinetic pulled back and wiped her eyes, as if she'd never cried at all. She was amazing at hiding things like that. "What'd you say we go kick some demon ass now?" She had a renewed vitality now. She could really relate to the Child Of Light, as they had so many things including age in common and she knew that Persia would be the only person she'd ever show weakness to like that. But then again, Persia was the only person who'd ever really understand her situation.
"Lead the way, my friend, lead the way." Persia held out an awaiting hand, pointing towards the doors.
"Uhm, Prue," Andy whispered.
"Yeah?" Prue's eyes turned to meet Andy's. She'd been lost in her thoughts ever since Persia had run after Alternate Pamela.
"I think Piper's wild side has just awoken," Andy informed.
Exploding Piper stood up in the crystal cage. Her dark eyes looked sinister with all of her makeup, as she glared at her older sister and brother-in-law. "Let me out of here!"
"Not until we can get you and...yourselves, back together."
Exploding Piper let out a deep growl as she raised her gloved hands and sent a blast at the crystal cage. Fortunately the magic was strong and the blast sent her falling on her ass.
"Whoa! What happened in here?" Phoebe entered the room with Pam at her side.
"Spears is up," Prue informed.
"Dude, we should so be taping this," Phoebe replied. "Then we'll have proof that Piper isn't as sweet as she looks."
"I guess there's a few things Piper and Leo never knew about each other."
Phoebe, Prue, and Andy turned to see Glenn standing in the entrance of the room.
"What're you talking about?" Phoebe and Prue asked together.
----Flashback----
Glenn's eyes flashed open and he rolled over, bumping into Leo. Forgetting he was at the hotel for Andy's bachelor party, he gently placed his hand on the form next to him. His eyes still filled with sleep. "Hey, baby.."
Leo rolled over, sleepy eyed as well. "Hey." He smiled, before realizing he was sleeping next to Glenn. "Oh, Glenn!" He screamed.
"Leo!" Glenn yelled, jumping to his feet.
"Man!" Leo said, holding up his hands. "I don't know what kind of secrets you're keeping, but I'm not like that!" Leo bit his lip. "N-not that there's anything wrong with it, but...Paige may want to know.."
Glenn glared, grabbing a pillow and hurling it at his brother-in-law. "You ass."
Leo smiled. "Hey, you were the one calling me, 'baby.'"
Glenn frowned. "I forgot where I was."
"Sure. But I'd watch it if I were you, Grace might get jealous." Leo quipped. He wasreferring to the popular television series, 'Will & Grace', when Will hadn't realized his real sexuality, until after he and Grace had tried dating.
"Man, I'm betting that Piper has never seen this un-angelic side of you, has she?"
Leo rolled his eyes. "Why ruin a good thing?"
"A huh. I'm gonna hit the sh..." His eyes hit the alarm clock. "Shit!" He said, realizing the time. He looked back at Leo, realizing that orbs now stood in his place. He spun around just in time to see the door to the only bathroom in the room close and lock.
----Flashback----
"Nothing," Glenn replied as he rolled his eyes at the memory of Andy's bachelor party.
"Something going on down here, because we heard a blast?" Emma asked as she entered with Chris in her arms.
Glenn motioned towards the crystal cage.
"Oh," Emma nodded.
"My momma don't look like dat," Chris exclaimed.
"Oh, you'd be surprised how your momma from any world can be," Prue quipped.
Chris frowned, but decided not to talk back to Prue. He'd never been around that aunt and he wasn't sure what she could do, but he'd heard that she'd been one hell of a witch in her day and so he didn't want to see what her counterpart could do. If she was anything like his oldest cousin, he'd be in deep trouble.
"Look out!" Alternate Pamela's voice rang through the room as she flailed her arms, blasting Prue and Andy across the room with extraordinary telekinetic force.
The wall cracked, as Andy's body hit it with full force, knocking him out as blood began to dribble from his mouth.
Prue had managed to phase through the wall in time, allowing herself to land with a nothing more than a painful bump in the next room. She had no idea what had happened to her husband.
Persia outstretched her hands and fired two consecutive electric bolts at the hyper blur, but her power was too slow and the bolts demolished a brand new Lazy Boy armchair.
Alternate Pamela threw out her arms again, causing the house to shake with her telekinetic powers. Unfortunately the hybrids were still moving too quickly and all her power added was chaos, as well as moving the crystals to unleash Exploding Piper.
"I want mommy!" Chris cried, as he held on tightly to Emma.
Alternate Paige orbed in, just in time to see a potion bottle hurling straight for the group of witches and Glenn. As in the attic, a protective shield of orbs formed around the entire group of witches and Glenn, protecting them from whatever was in the potion bottle. Then a gas began to seep from the bottle, hovering around the dome of orbs which the twins refused to put down. That was when Alternate Paige realized that Exploding Piper and Andy, who she noticed was bleeding to death, had been too far away to be protected by the orb field. "No!" To her amazement, the gas suddenly stopped expanding and she turned around, looking through the orbs to see that Freezing Piper and Slow Motion Piper were standing in the doorway.
"What are they doing?" Phoebe asked, rhetorically. Her heart was pounding wildly. "Pam, shimmer me to them."
Pam shook her head. "I can't shimmer out."
"What?"
"The twins," Paige replied. "Their field is up because they're afraid of us getting hurt by that gas. They're using their magic to keep us from using any sort of teleportion powers to get out."
Outside of the orb shield, Slow Motion Piper had justed worked her power, bringing the triplets to normal speed and not allowing them to return to hyper motion.
"Just what exactly was in that potion?" Exploding Piper growled, as she stepped seductively towards the eldest and most powerful of the hybrid triplets.
"Wouldn't you like to know, witch?" The eldest hybrid snarled.
"Actually-"
"We would," Freezing Piper cut in. She froze everything but the head of the nasty hybrid demon, including his brothers behind him.
The hybrid opened his mouth and released a silver beam at Slow Motion Piper and Freezing Piper.
Slow Motion Piper, still not quite used to her new power, shoved the two of them down and narrowly missing the silver beam. But to their horror, they heard a scream behind them and turned to see Prue being flung into the wall by the beam as her skin began to sizzle and transform into a jello looking substance, causing her to scream even more before finally passing out.
"You bastard!" Exploding Piper hissed. Her hands raised and she was about to explode him when he was able to return to hyper motion and send her crashing through the wall.
Again, Slow Motion Piper tried to activate her power, but being that it was still new, it didn't work.
"Catch us now, witch!" It was a new voice, another triplet.
Anticipating their move, Freezing Piper froze everything around her, realizing that she'd just saved herselves from a magma ball. Then she realized that there were several cuts along her body. She touched her forehead, realzing there was a large and bloody gash there. "How did that..." She turned to see Exploding Piper walk in with the same injuries.
"It must be because they're all the same person," Glenn said from inside the orb shield. He wanted desperately to help his sister-in-law, seeing her get hurt was worse than not having powers in order to help his family with.
Alternate Paige waved her hand. "I'm sorry Glenn, I can't orb anything with the twins' shield up." She looked on in horror.
Outside of the shield, Slow Motion Piper was trying to activate her power again.
"Hurry!" Freezing Piper yelled.
"I ca-" Slow Motion Piper's heart raced as she saw the magma ball unfreeze and head straight for them. Suddenly the room was forced into slow motion again, allowing her to see the triplets at regular speed again.
Freezing Piper froze the room again.
"This time you're going down!" Exploding Piper made circular motions with each of her hands, blasting th weakest triplets into oblivion simotaniously. "Unfreeze his head."
"But-"
"Now!"
Freezing Piper nodded and wiggled her fingers, unfreezing the head of the strongest triplet.
"Kiss this!" Exploding Piper said before making the motion of blowing a kiss to the eldest triplet and as she did so, she unleashed her power, and he exploded into nothingness.
TO BE CONTINUED...