Chapter 6
Meanwhile, on Wednesday afternoon at the garage where Terrence Potter worked, everything had started going wrong since closing time. The lights had started flickering and then two fuses had blown. Then, to make matters worse, water had started gushing up from the sink's drain. Terrence knew it was being caused by something supernatural, since he didn't usually have so much bad luck all at once. There was certainly no reason for the water to come up out of the sink - that wasn't natural at all.
Unfortunately, Terrence's boss, Thomas, had been away since one o'clock with his wife to celebrate their wedding anniversary. As Terrence was the only other employee of the garage, because there was never enough work to warrant employing more staff, he had to deal with the problems on his own.
Terrence had called Gloria just after five to say he'd be home a bit late, but then another fuse had blown after he'd finished the call, meaning Terrence would be even later in leaving. He finally got annoyed when he was still there at six and couldn't call his wife again because the phone line had gone dead. As Terrence was against cell phones, he didn't have one to use in case of emergency in the belief that he didn't need to take such a precaution.
"Why me?" he asked, looking up at the ceiling. No one replied - supernatural beings knew that Terrence could do major damage to the culprit responsible if they owned up to irritating him. If he didn't blow them up completely, he'd blow up at least one of their limbs, and even evil creatures didn't like losing body parts. "When I find out who is responsible, I promise I'll do some serious damage to you for keeping me away from my family."
Finally, at seven o'clock, all three fuses had been replaced and the water main had been turned off as a temporary solution to the sink problem. Terrence wasn't a plumber, so he didn't know how he could fix it. He'd have to call in a plumber the next day if the sink was still behaving strangely. The man suspected that some invisible evil creature, perhaps a poltergeist, was causing all the problems that evening.
If the male half-Whitelighter witch had known that his youngest adopted son had vanished from existence earlier that evening, he would've suspected that he'd been purposely delayed so he couldn't help his family when they needed him. It did seem like more than just coincidence that Terrence had been delayed from getting home the same night that JD had disappeared.
Terrence finished tidying the garage and then orbed home like he always did - the Elders didn't mind him doing that, as it was so he could get back to his wife and sons quickly to check they were okay. If his orbing was used to return home to protect others, it couldn't be considered as personal gain.
CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P
Being a half-Whitelighter meant that Terrence had the power of sensing - he could sense anyone he'd been close to for a long time, such as family members or close friends. With his power of sensing, the half-Whitelighter could sense the current locations and emotions of anyone he'd known long enough. Terrence had just to think whom he wanted to sense, and then he'd sense them. Terrence orbed straight to his wife after detecting where she was; he also sensed that she was very distraught about something.
Since Terrence hadn't been around Vin and JD long enough to be able to sense them as of yet, he couldn't tell that only one of them was in the house. The youngest two sons were judged as too young to stay at friend's houses overnight, so were always both at home when Terrence arrived there after work.
Gloria could always tell when her husband was about to orb into the room where she was - it was a sixth sense she'd developed over the years of being married to a half-Whitelighter witch. "What time do you call this, Terrence Potter?" she asked angrily, as soon as Terrence appeared in the room.
"I'm sorry, Darling," apologized the man, feeling bad for not being home sooner. "I had another fuse blow right after I called and then the phone line died as well, so I couldn't tell you."
"I really feel like cursing right now, but I won't in front of Vin. Something terrible has happened to JD." The emotions of anger, sadness and fear were in the woman's voice now - having to recap what had happened was probably the worse thing Gloria would ever have to tell her husband. "He's been wiped out of our lives."
Mr. Potter looked around for their youngest son's body - he thought Gloria meant that JD was dead. "Where is he?"
"Maybe I should rephrase that - now JD was never born, although we can clearly still remember him being here."
Terrence sat on the bed next to his wife, then took Vin onto his lap, and hugged them both. "Maybe it's related to that history book," he muttered. Terrence was unaware of his second son's premonitions caused by the same book, but he knew about its contents, as he'd had a look the previous evening. He had been slightly worried ever since that the boys' ancestors all being in the one history book could be a bad omen. Being a witch for so long, Terrence had often come across seemingly normal objects that had been revealed as cursed or just magical after causing trouble for innocents.
"Chris has only been receiving good, happy premonitions from that book - until today," explained Gloria. She was feeling more secure now her husband was there. "Today's was of an Old West 'JD Dunne' getting murdered by a demon. He must've got it just as our JD vanished from here."
"Where are Chris and Ezra? Shouldn't they be in here with you and Vin?"
Gloria pointed to the doorway. "They've gone to the Magic Room: first to work out how to vanquish the demon responsible, and then to write a time-travel spell. After that, they'll be going back in time to vanquish the demon and help save that 'JD Dunne'. Hopefully, doing that will bring ours back - otherwise I don't know what we'll do."
Gloria burst into tears at the thought of never seeing their youngest son again - she had grown so attached to JD although they'd only had him about a year. Gloria and Terrence had grown very close to JD and Vin in that time, since both boys received the additional share of attention that the older sons didn't need anymore.
Terrence hugged his wife and Vin close, hoping that Chris and Ezra could save the Dunne family-line's future and prevent any more family lines from being ended at their Old West ancestors. He suspected that could happen if the demon wasn't vanquished soon enough.
CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P - CH7P
Meanwhile up in the heavens, Julius and Orion had detected a supernatural presence in the garage where they knew Terrence Potter worked. They could always sense Terrence when he was there, as he was a half-Whitelighter witch and Elders could sense Whitelighters, witches and other Elders.
Like most Elders, Julius and Orion had both started out as Whitelighters until they had done enough good work to be promoted to Elder status, so they still had Whitelighter powers in addition to their Elder ones. They could also sense large concentrations of magic if it was used somewhere, so they had sensed the supernatural activity in the garage. After they had realized that the presence needed further investigation, both angels orbed to the garage to confront it. They knew it was what had delayed Terrence in getting home to his family, and they needed to find out why.
"Damn it!" cursed the transparent man, with shoulder-length mid-brown hair, upon seeing the orbs appearing. He was sitting on the edge of Terrence's desk with his legs hanging down. It was from there that he had plagued Terrence with all of his bad luck.
Ghosts could choose whether to be visible to humans or not, so this one had chosen to remain unseen by Mr. Potter, knowing what Terrence would do if he saw him. This had been confirmed by Terrence's threat of hurting whoever was responsible for delaying him from leaving work. The half-Whitelighter witch would know instantly that the ghost had delayed him from getting home that evening. Terrence cared so much about his family that he would be furious at anyone who tried to keep him from them.
"You must stop this behavior at once," ordered Julius angrily. He knew that the ghost was the one responsible for the supernatural activity.
"He knows 'bout the prophecy, doesn' he?" was the ghost's response, knowing that he had to be direct with the Elders or he wouldn't get the answer he sought. He knew the two angels were Elders, as they wore the long brown robes of Elders, besides that, Elders were the only magical ones on the side of good who could sense him using his special powers there - as far as he knew. The chance of a witch with a sensing power coming to investigate after sensing all the magic there was quite slim. Why would a witch want to waste their time investigating whenever they sensed a lot of magic being used, when they should instead be protecting innocents and fighting against what they knew was actually evil?
"We refuse to answer your question. You should not have delayed Terrence from returning home when his family needed him most." The Elders knew that JD had been wiped from existence when they'd been unable to sense his presence any more. They saw every premonition Chris had, so had also seen his last one, and had instantly linked it to the young witch's disappearance. Just after Chris's most recent premonition ended, the Elders had tried sensing the present JD, but couldn't, so knew that the Time-changer demon had really killed the gunslinger JD. In doing that, the demon had prevented him from marrying Casey Wells, whose future children with that JD would be the first, but not very powerful, Dunne witches.
Each generation of Dunne witches would then be slightly more powerful than the last, until it reached the present JD, who would eventually become the most powerful of his biological family-line because of the prophecy. If the Elders had gotten an earlier warning to the witches, then the Potter family might have been able to prevent the demon from killing the past JD. Achieving that would have ensured the future safety of his magical descendants. There was still the chance of future threats to the destined powerful magical group; but those would be dealt with when there was prior knowledge of them.
"When Terrence's family needed him most? What're ya talkin' about?" asked the confused male ghost, as he absentmindedly made all the pens in the garage float in mid-air, enjoying what he could do with his ghost supernatural powers. After being a ghost for just over a few years, he had finally learnt to control his powers properly.
"Why did you delay Terrence from getting home?" asked Orion calmly. He did not want to reveal to the male ghost that JD had been deleted from the world.
"'Cause I think he agrees with the rest y'all 'bout keepin' the prophecy secret from his sons - I was tryin' ta help them find out, without him there ta interfere, 'cause I disagree it should be kept from them. Not knowin' is puttin' them in grave danger." If he was honest with the Elders on that, they might be honest with him and say if Terrence really knew about the prophecy involving his sons. "Terrence is already s'spicious 'bout the book." The ghost hadn't meant to mention the history book - now the Elders would know he was behind it; even if they couldn't prove it. He'd possessed Gloria with a ghost power and made her take the book, which he'd placed on the library table before he'd joined with her. The ghost felt bad for doing it - it wasn't a nice thing to do to a good witch - but it had been necessary to make his plan work.
"Then it was you who made Gloria Potter take that book from the library?" Orion remained calm - now was not the time for getting angry with troublesome ghosts. They had never suspected that a ghost wanted to reveal the prophecy to the Potters' sons. The assumption was that a demon or some other evil creature had planted the premonitions in the history book to cause havoc in the Potters' lives. Upon finding out about the prophecy, the witches would be distracted by that, making them vulnerable to evil for a while. Then evil would find it easier to kill them and then ensuring the prophecy would never be fulfilled.
The Elders had finally found out how the book had come into Gloria's possession, after sending a Whitelighter to the library to investigate. The suspicion was that someone had recommended that book to Gloria. Upon inquiring at the library about that title, the Whitelighter investigator had found out that the book wasn't on the library's database, meaning that someone else had put it there. The book's checkout either had been wiped from the records or hadn't been recorded properly.
Upon looking for clues in the history section, the Whitelighter had sensed that someone had used magic there not long ago, and had guessed that it had been used to make sure Gloria took that history book. A way to force her to take that book would be to use mind-control on her and then perhaps plant a false memory afterwards so she thought she'd just selected that book. As mind-control was a power that witches, demons and warlocks could have, it meant that anyone with that power would be under suspicion.
"I ain't answerin' unless ya admit Terrence knows 'bout the prophecy," said the ghost stubbornly. Since being killed, he'd watched the Potter family's progress from a distance, and had learnt all about the prophecy. He'd started getting suspicious that Terrence knew about the prophecy from things the man had said or done. That was besides the occasional things the man had said to his family that the ghost knew were lies.
Orion looked at Julius, seeking advice on what to say to the spirit. They didn't like to just assume or guess things too much - they knew that Earth court-cases weren't won or lost on guesswork, so stuck to that idea in their work. Julius shook his head at his friend, silently indicating not to answer the ghost's question - whether Terrence knew of the prophecy or not wasn't the ghost's business.
After about a minute of silence, the ghost stood up and glared at the two Elders. "Figured ya'd say as much. I'll let it slide fer now while yer emotions b'tray ya 'bout somethin' else - I know there's somethin' seriously wrong." Julius and Orion had both made the mistake of feeling sad about the Potters' tragic loss.
"JD is the first victim of the most diabolical plan yet to prevent the prophecy being fulfilled," revealed Julius, failing to keep the sadness out of his voice any longer. Although they weren't meant to have favorites in the Potter family, Julius had always liked JD the most. Before JD had joined the Potter family, the Elder had watched the boy and his real family, envying the people who got to spend time with the amazingly lovable, courageous and intelligent child.
"Victim? Ya mean someone's managed ta kill one of the witches?" asked the ghost in obvious shock and anger; not liking what he was hearing. He knew that no one had ever come close to killing any of the Potter family - they all helped each other and made sure that anyone who got hurt was quickly healed.
"Yes, in a way. Unfortunately, Chris's premonition of a Dunne ancestor being killed only came to him as their JD was fading out of existence. Now the child was never born." A tear fell down Julius's cheek - it was so sad that the boy was gone. The world needed more children like JD.
"Does that mean Michelle Dunne wasn' either? That would've stopped Vin bein' born as well!" The ghost couldn't keep the anguish out of his voice.
"Yes," answered Orion, noticing that Julius was very upset after having to tell someone that the youngest adopted Potter son no longer existed. "We did wonder why Vin still exists when his mother doesn't - but we think that perhaps it's because Vin is the Tanner descendant born to a Tanner male, and he was now born to a different witch mother."
The ghost was looking increasingly upset by the conversation, but suddenly had a thought, and his expression blanked while he voiced it. "If JD was never born, wouldn' that mean no one can r'member him now?" It made sense that if someone suddenly ceased to exist, then no one would have any memories of him or her.
"It doesn't happen as suddenly as that. The family's memories of the boy will begin to fade, but for now they still know he used to exist," explained Julius, regaining his composure slightly. Julius was glad he hadn't lost his memories of the boy yet - he hoped that JD would be living again before he did completely forget about him.
Orion pointed a finger at the ghost and made him freeze - although he was still able to hear what the angels said. "If you hadn't kept Terrence here so long, things might not have happened so fast, plus he could be the one going back in time with Chris, instead of the boy having to go with his younger brother. Terrence would be very careful not to alter time too much, but we fear that Chris and Ezra will inadvertently affect the time-line and make things worse."
Nathan spoke from behind the ghost. "I knew you had somethin' to do with this...Michael." Then the unseen Whitelighter walked around the frozen ghost, and looked at the two Elders stood facing his old friend. The shocked expressions on both Elders faces showed they were surprised to see Nathan suddenly there.
"You should be with the Potters, helping them," commented Orion, annoyed by the intrusion.
Nathan looked suddenly unhappy, remembering his falling out with Gloria. "They wanted me to go back with Chris - I had to leave before Gloria made me feel even guiltier, and persuaded me to go."
Orion pointed a finger at the ghost again and unfroze Michael Tanner, the former Whitelighter who had adopted his middle name as his first since becoming an angel. The Elder was sure that Michael had something to say about the whole issue - maybe he would be useful yet, since he was formerly Vin Tanner, one of the Four Corners peacekeepers.
"What're ya talkin' about; go back where?" asked Michael, perplexed and annoyed by the discussion that he didn't understand completely.
"That book gave Chris a premonition of JD being killed by a demon." Then Nathan realized he needed to correct his phrase slightly. "Our original JD - in Four Corners."
"Damn! The premonitions from that book were all meant ta be good - not like that. I swear I had nothin' ta do with that one." Michael was worried that they thought he was responsible for the premonition of the Four Corners JD being murdered - he would never work with evil, even though ghosts could be aligned with either side. "That premonition musta been planted by someone after JD was killed - ta help the witches work out how to restore things ta the way they should be."
"Who would do that?" asked Julius looking perplexed. "There aren't many people who are capable of such magic. If it had been one of you two then surely you'd remember doing it now."
"It doesn't matter who did it," intervened Nathan - what was important was that someone had planted the premonition that had told the witches how peacekeeper JD was killed. With that information, the witches should be able to set things right and bring back their JD. "Michael, are you admitting that you planted those other premonitions in the book?"
Michael stared down at his feet, feeling guilty. "Guess I am. Ya know I'm against the prophecy bein' kept from the witches. We have ta lie ta keep it from 'em an' it ain't right tellin' 'em lies.
"You do realize that you'll be in trouble for interfering, Michael?"
"Course, but I thought I could get away with it. This ain't the time though. Are y'all tryin' ta tell me that a demon that can time-travel could be tryin' ta stop all the prophesied witches from bein' born? Ya know if they ain't all wiped out by it, that the remainder will get the powers of the non-existent members, makin' them even more powerful. Even though yer a Whitelighter, Nate, ya could get the magic powers of any of the witches that cease ta exist."
There was a large library in the heavens where Whitelighters and Elders could look up information on anything - including the prophecy of "The Charmed Seven." Even as a ghost, Michael had still been able to get into the heavens' library and read about the prophecy his son and step-son would play a part in one day. As Michael was restless because he'd never avenged the evil that had killed his Whitelighter form, he was free to wander anywhere he pleased, until he got his revenge. He still had a transportation power so that he could quickly move between places and planes if he wanted. The Elders had no control over restless spirits so just left them alone unless they started endangering innocents.
"Really?" asked Nathan, momentarily distracted by the thought of having witches' powers - that would include writing and saying spells, something Whitelighters couldn't do. "How would the powers be allocated to the survivors if there was more than one left alive?" He hadn't read much about the prophecy, as he was too busy with his Whitelighter duties.
"This ain't the time, Nate," cautioned Michael; not wanting to think about any of the witches being permanently erased from existence. "Sure, we cain't go back in time an' risk changin' ours or the others' present and future; but we could go down b'low an' find who gave the demon his orders an' make sure they cain't give any further ones." As much as Michael hated the prophecy being kept from the prophesied witches, he didn't want the prophecy to not be fulfilled. The world could become a very bad place in the future if the most powerful witches weren't there to protect it.
"We know who gave the demon his orders," explained Orion, "two eighteen-year-old warlock twin-brothers: 'Ivor' and 'Ivan.' A Whitelighter spy found that information out earlier."
Then Julius spoke; "Michael, your plan is a fine one - Terrence and Josiah need to remain with the rest of the family after their sad, but hopefully only temporary, loss. It makes sense that someone else should visit the Underworld while the family is weakened by their grief. If those warlocks are destroyed, then there will be no one to give the demon further orders. Part of the problem will be gone then."
Then Julius turned to Orion and nodded at him. "It is time, Orion." The other Elder nodded back with a smile. Then Julius took two small brown cloth drawstring bags from pockets in his robes. He handed one to Orion's waiting hand, then held his own bag up. "Michael, do you know what this is?" he asked in a friendly tone.
"Memory Dust so's I forget everythin'?" guessed the ghost, nervously backing away.
Orion pulled his bag open and poured glittering, silver powder into the palm of his outstretched hand. "No, it is the opposite of the dust used to make your soul into a ghost. This will make you a Whitelighter again, but will only work for one Earth day."
Michael stepped forward, trusting the Elder's words - the Elders would never lie to one of their own kind. Even if Michael had been working against them, delaying Terrence from getting home, they wouldn't trick him, as he was a former Whitelighter. "You'll make me a Whitelighter again - even if only fer a day?"
"Yes, but only to help ensure that the prophecy will one day be fulfilled. If you make any further attempts to reveal their destiny to the witch sons, we will turn you back into a ghost and send you to the Spirit plane without a transportation power to get back." Julius and Orion looked sternly at the ghost.
"I'll keep an eye on him and try to stop him if he tries anythin'," promised Nathan, not wanting to go to the Underworld alone. Then he walked farther away from Michael, as both Elders sprinkled all the dust onto the ghost.
"That tickles," commented Michael, as he began to feel the change from ghost to Whitelighter. A wide spectrum of colored orbs enveloped him, working their magic to change his powers and make him solid for one day. Finally, the orbs vanished, leaving a very solid-looking Michael Tanner standing there. He ran a hand over himself, delighted to be solid again, even if he wasn't a living person. Michael had always loved being an angel - he always felt so positive inside, and he enjoyed that feeling.
"A word of warning," began Julius seriously, "you mustn't have any contact with your son or any of his family while you're a Whitelighter. Good luck."
Then Orion and Julius orbed back to the heavens, satisfied that Michael wouldn't make any more trouble for Terrence, at least for one day. It was a big mistake bringing Michael back as a ghost so he could watch his son and step-son growing up, and the Elders would have to find a more permanent solution when Michael completed his mission. They didn't really want to send Michael to the Spirit plane permanently as he could be of further use to them.
To be continued...