Phoebe pointed at the automotive shop. "There, that's it. I just hope
it hasn't closed yet. It's almost ten." She opened her door to get
out. "Otherwise, I'll have to get Cole to shimmer me here in the
morning.. and you know how he's worried about being in public now,
especially with demon bounty hunters after him."
Piper nodded. "Yeah, I know. I just hope that if we vanquish The Source, that it'll all be over. But Leo said no other witch has been able to, not even if they had the Power of Three. I mean, for goodness sakes, it's the source of all EVIL!"
Phoebe said, "Well.. I might actually have a plan about that. I've been trying to come up with a vanquishing spell that involves the magic of the entire Halliwell line." She looked at her watch. "I gotta go!" She turned around, rushing for the doors.
"Ok, I'll just wait here, then." Piper leaned back in her seat.
Phoebe went inside the shop, approaching the front desk. "Umm.. hi.
I'm Phoebe, Phoebe Halliwell. I brought my car in for a check-up
earlier?"
The young blond man at the counter nodded. His ID tag read, 'Tommy M.' "Right. Oil filter had to be changed. I'd have a talk with the guy who sold it to you, if I were you."
"Oh, believe me, I'm going to do that as soon as I leave here. My boyfriend happens to be a lawyer, so I'm not too worried." She opened her wallet up, which showed a photo of her and Cole together. She turned it to the back, taking out a wad of bills.
Tommy looked a little surprised, but didn't show it. "Hey, is that your husband? He looks like.. someone I met before.. named Cole or something."
"Cole Turner?" Phoebe smiled. "Actually, he's my fiance. Did you know him?" Small world. She didn't think her half-demon boyfriend ran into too many mechanics.
Tommy shrugged, taking the money and giving her change. "Umm.. not
sure. He can't be your Cole, the one I met was back when I was a kid,
on the outskirts of town. He'd be a lot older."
Phoebe was half tempted to mutter something about how demons don't age very much, but thought better of it. "Yeah, you're probably right. So.. my car is ready for pick-up?"
"Sure, around back." He nodded, then the phone rang. "Hello? Ohh.
hi, Kay. What? slow down, what's wrong.. what!"
"Ok, err.." Phoebe didn't want to get in the middle of a sibling
dispute. Besides, she had to go get her car. "Ok, thanks.. I'll just,
umm.. go get that.." She made her way for the door.
"Evan.. what! WHEN did he see you, what did you talk about? Hey,
don't get hysterical, just tell me-- no, wait! I'll-" But the other
line hung up the phone. "Shit!" He had to get home before his sister
did something drastic. He swore, if Evan did something.. he'd be
dead!
Phoebe was in her car now, driving it out into the parking lot. She waved to Piper, motioning for her to head for the manor.
Piper and Phoebe just came into the house after driving for an hour.
Paige suddenly orbed in, landing on her rear. "Oof! Darn it.. still got to get the hang of that."
Piper smiled, obviously impressed. "Paige? You're orbing at will now?
That's very good."
Leo added, "Very impressive.. looks like your powers are improving."
Paige agreed, "Yeah, but the landing needs work. I'm trying to orb naturally, instead of relying on fear reactions. But hey, at least I'm improving." She looked at Phoebe. "So, got your car back?"
Phoebe nodded. "Yeah, the mechanic changed the oil. But something is.. weird about him."
Cole shimmered in, standing next to Phoebe. "Does he have horns?"
Phoebe shook her head. "No.. but he seemed to recognize your picture.
He said he met you before. I think his name is.. Tommy. He just got a
call from his sister Kay."
Cole said, "I did meet him. This was.. back in my bad days, when I was evil. He was some kid who liked pranks.. something was dark about him, too." He sighed at that part. He didn't like to think about his past too much.
Phoebe patted him affectionately on the shoulder. "Hey.. that's not you anymore, Cole. I know you're different now."
"Tommy.. and Kay." Leo pondered this, it sounded familiar. "Kayleigh Miller? if that's Tommy's sister.. then.." he said to Phoebe, "Was there something wrong when she called him?"
"Yeah." Phoebe paused. "Something really pissed Tommy off, especially when the name 'Evan' came up."
Leo nodded, his memory was refreshed now. "She had a troubled past.
I.. think she's supposed to-" Then he heard a jingle, so he looked
upwards. "They're calling me.. sounds bad. I'll try to hurry." He
orbed out, going back up to the Elders.
Piper walked into the living room. "I hope it's not to serious.
Knowing 'them', it'll be quick.. like, say.. five hours?" As if in
response, lightning flashed in the sky. "I'm kidding!"
Paige went to join Piper. "I think I'm going to try orbing again. It wasn't too good, I only did it from the attic. I'm thinking about trying it from a farther distance."
Phoebe looked at Cole, concerned. She knew about his past, knew that sometimes it still troubled him. A lot of evil had been done in a century. She hoped that with him being good now, he his good deeds could one day outweigh all the bad he had done.. but judging how long Belthazor had been around, that wasn't likely.
Just then, Leo orbed back in. He didn't look too happy. "Bad news,
guys.. Kayleigh was supposed to become a whitelighter. I was supposed
to train her as another one of my charges.. the Elders believed she
would have done a lot of good in her life. She committed suicide
tonight. Unfortunately, that negates any possibility of her becoming
a whitelighter."
"What?" Piper walked out of the living room, coming over to
Leo. "Ohh.. I'm so sorry." She knew how Leo cared for his charges,
how he felt about them. She hoped he would be alright.
Phoebe said, "Tommy seemed a bit pissed, from how I heard him talking.. Kayleigh was upset about something.. oh yeah, and he kept threatening to do something to Evan. Something about whatever Evan spoke to his sister about."
Leo nodded. "That's right. Kay's father was a very sick man when she was younger. It's not the sort of thing someone can get over."
Paige walked over, curious. "Wait.. did you say Tommy? Kayleigh.
Evan.." Then her eyes seemed to light up, as if she rembered
something she had forgotten some time ago. "That's it! I remember
them now, I went to school with them. They had another friend I
think.. some heavy kid named.. Lenny. Yeah, that's it."
Piper said, "You knew them? What were they like?"
Paige shook her head. "No, I didn't know the kids personally. I was just in a few of the same classes that they were in. I heard that Evan used to have these blackouts back then.. it seemed like he'd lose track of time. And Tommy.. well, he had a reputation for losing his temper."
Phoebe replied, "Oh, yeah. I could see that."
Leo added, "Well, I'm going to the funeral tomorrow morning. I feel like I owe her that much. You can all come if you want to."
The sisters nodded. Phoebe spoke up, "Yeah, I'm definitely going. I feel like I just need to express my condolences."
Cole said, "I'll come with you, Pheebs, for support. Besides, I'll have a chance to see the kids again, all grown up.. hadn't seen them since the mailbox incident." He shrugged. "Sorry.. long story."
The next day, everyone in the Miller family was at the funeral, even some of the family's friends. Leo, Cole, and the Charmed Ones stood behind the people, so they wouldn't draw too much attention.
Evan stood farther away, near the trees. He was holding a flower in his hand, watching the service go on. He noticed a few people he didn't know, but one looked eerily familiar.. like the lawyer he had seen at the time of the dynamite accident years ago.
When the service had ended, the family members had started to leave.
Tommy then turned to go, when he saw the woman from his shop
yesterday.. then he saw Cole standing next to her. "Phoebe.. what are
you doing here?" Then he glanced at Cole. "And you. Why are you
here! Wait.. are you that same lawyer I met when I was 13.. but.
that can't be-"
Cole shrugged. "Hmm, maybe I am." Then he felt a nudge from Phoebe,
indicating for him to behave. "Actually, that was my father. People
are always saying that I look just like him."
Leo remained silent. He didn't know how he could help. Things happen for a reason, your sister is in a safe place, your dad can't abuse her anymore, etc.. none of that seemed helpful.
Phoebe said, "Look.. I'm just her because.. I want to express my condolences. I know what it's like to lose a sister, especially when it wasn't her time. Prue was everything to us. It still hurts, and I don't know if we ever get over something like that."
Tommy breathed heavily, anger in his eyes. "Did you GET the one who caused it?"
Paige replied, "Yes, actually.. took all three of us."
Tommy stared at her. "Pretty tough motherfucker, huh? And who are you, lady?"
She had her mouth open in shock. This was a hard time, but that didn't mean the guy had to be rude to her. "Paige Matthews.. you probably don't remember me now, because I don't have braces or long dark hair. And yeah, Shax was a big guy."
Tommy paused, then shrugged his shoulders. "Oh, right.. I remember
you, chick. Whatever. I'd love to chat about old times, but you see,
my sister just DIED! Excuse me." He turned to go, accidentally
brushing against Phoebe's arm.
Phoebe felt a jolt, her eyes closed quickly in reaction. She saw a
little boy at the top of the stairs, twisting a doll's head off, a
man down below in the basement, a boy and a girl looking in front of
the video camera.. She opened her eyes, looking at Tommy. "Look.. I
don't mean to pry, but.. did your father do something bad when you
were kids? There was a doll, you broke it at the top of the stairway,
above a basement-"
"What!" Tommy stopped in his tracks, staring at Phoebe as if she
were insane. But how the Hell did she know that stuff? "I don't know
who you are, but stay away from me! Crazy chicks." He shook his head,
running off.
Paige whispered, "Could I please orb a glove to smack him with?"
Piper chuckled, "No.. though it's understandable."
Cole added, "He's lucky I didn't toss an energy ball at him."
Phoebe said, "I do understand how he feels, though. Even though he
was rude to us. Maybe.. ohh, I just got an idea! We can use the
ghost-
summoning spell. remember when we called Angela's spirit for the
jury? We also called on Grams quite a few times. We could summon
Kayleigh, to see if she can tell us anything."
Leo nodded. "That's a good idea. I think I'm ready to go." He started walking.
Cole and the other two girls follwed behind him.
Evan walked past them, going to the lowered coffin in the ground. He held a piece of paper in his hand.
Phoebe looked at his backside. "Umm.. Piper, freeze him. Just trust me."
"Ok.." Piper pointed her hand at the young man, then he seemed stuck in place, not moving.
Phoebe ran over to him, then motioned for Piper to follow. "Alright,
let's see what you have here.." She looked at the note Evan was
holding, which read "I'LL COME BACK FOR YOU."
Piper saw it as well. "Oh. I guess he and Kayleigh.. they must have been great frinds.. maybe more." She sighed, knowing how she would feel if she ever lost Leo. It sure came close to that a few times.
"That paper looks old." Phoebe touched the note to feel it, then felt another jolt. She saw young Evan being driven away in a van, holding the same note up to his window, then a blond girl seeing it.. she seemed sad. Then, Phoebe's eyes opened. "Oh my God. Umm.. he loved her. come on, we better get out of here." She started back to where her sisters were going.
Piper then went back as well, waving a hand at Evan as she left.
Evan didn't notice the loss of time. He tossed the flower down on the coffin. "I'm sorry.. I'll make it better.. I promise. I won't lose you again." He let go of the paper, watching it fall down next to the flower. He wiped the tears from his eye, then turned around to leave..
It was evening now. The sisters were upstairs in their attic. Cole had gone to check some leads in the Underworld, and Leo had gone 'Up There'. There were six candles arranged in a circular pattern on the floor, all lit up. The incense had been lit.
Phoebe held a piece of paper, now standing between her other two sisters. "Ok, here we go.." They read from the note, all three of them in unison.
"We sisters three call on a spirit,
sister to mortal Tommy,
whose father is an enemy,
we call a lost soul from the previous day,
we summon the spirit of Kayleigh.
Spirit from the other side,
hear these words, hear my cry,
come to me, I summon thee
Cross now the great divide."
Then, there was a circle of bright lights inside the circle, which formed together to become a transparent form of Kayleigh Miller. "What the.. how.." She saw three women in front of her. She also noticed a series of candles around. "What kind of voodoo craziness.. who are you people?"
Piper said, "We're witches. More specifically, the Charmed Ones. We need to ask you a few questions."
Paige said, "Yeah, it's about.. why you committed suicide. We're really sorry about what happened. Tommy isn't taking it well, which is normal."
Kayleigh stared at her. "Paige? But how.. so, you're a witch? I didn't know you had sisters."
Paige replied, "Neither did I.. on both counts. Just found out,
actually. We saw Evan at the funeral today."
Phoebe spoke up, "Yeah.. when I accidentally touched Tommy, I saw something. You and Evan were there in your dad's baement, doing some play about Arthur or Ivanhoe.. or something-"
"Robin Hood," Kayleigh corrected. "And don't go there. That's not a
happy topic for me. Evan just had to dig up those old wounds, so
don't you start on it too! I told him that it never gets better.
I'm.. a little happier now, but I wish I wasn't stupid enough to kill
myself. I've been told that I could have been a lighter-something."
Piper said, "Whitelighter. My husband Leo is one. They're like guardian angels, they guide and heal wounds, help others on their path.. usually witches. Since they died already, only a special arrow can kill them.. but before they die in life, they do alot of great things, like you could have done. Leo says you could have helped a lot of people."
Kayleigh crossed her arms. "But I did die. So.. what's the problem?"
Paige said, "You killed yourself.. see, there's these guys up in the
clouds called Elders, who make all these rules. This is one of them.
Suicide cancels any plans of whitelighter status."
Phoebe said to the spirit, "We just want to know what happened with Evan last night. I think Tommy is going after him soon, I think he might.. kill him."
Kayleigh gasped. "Oh no.. please, not that. I resented him for not returning like he promised.. but I don't want him to die.. it's just that he.. fine! I'll tell you. My father was a sick bastard. The basement was my Hell. What he did to me.. ohh, you don't want to know! Believe that. He stopped at some point, but the memory was always there. I'm just glad I don't have to see him anymore."
"I'm sorry. You shouldn't have gone through that." Piper then asked, "What's the deal with Evan and your brother?"
Kayleigh answered, "Oh, that. Tommy was always jealous. I really liked Evan, but my brother didn't think he was good enough. Might have something to do with Evan's blackouts, plus writing all the time in his journals. I guess my brother thought the guy was crazy. It was really bad after that incident at the movies, then it got much worse at the junkyard. I really hope Tommy doesn't hurt him. Can you tell him a message.. let my brother know that I'm ok now?"
Paige nodded quickly. "Yes, we can do that. I'm also giving serious
thought to having a talk with your twisted father. He had NO right,
he ought to go jump off a.." She tried to compose herself. "Sorry, I
work at this social services agency.. something like this always
touches a nerve with me. I really despise abusive parents, it's the
one thing that gets under my skin, when children are helpless against
hurtful people."
"It's alright. By all means, go to him. And if you can.. umm, stop Tommy from doing something stupid." She paused. "Can I go back now?"
"Sure," Phoebe nodded. She put the paper in one of the candle flames,
letting the note burn away.
Kayleigh then changed back into the swirling lights, finally vanishing back to the spirit world.
Piper said. "Alright.. now we have to stop a jealous brother from killing Evan." she paused to think for a moment, going over some rhyming in her mind. "Okay, I think I got it. Grab hands."
The two sisters grabbed her hands.
Piper spoke out, "Take us to the surving brother of the summoned spirit, take us to Tommy, take us right away.. stop his vengeful path, divert his angry wrath.. so mote it be." Then.. they all orbed out, the spell using Paige's power to take them to Tommy's location.
Evan was up in his college dorm. He grabbed the journal labeled "Age
7", then flipped open the pages. He had to see if this worked. Last
time, he had dropped his cigarette on himself in the past.. could he
do more this time? Could he convince Mr. Miller to leave his daughter
alone? It was worth a try, it was all Evan could do. This was his
only chance. "Ok.. where is it.. here.." He took a deep breath,
preparing to read it out loud.
Meanwhile, outside ther building, Tommy stood at the door. He held a loaded pistol in his coat, as well as a knife in his hand.
Just then, the three witches orbed in front of him, coming together from a swirl of bright blue lights. Paige said with a smirk, "Hello again, Tommy. Surprised to see us again?"
Tommy jumped back in surprise, unprepared for any of this. "What on Earth! How.. what are you!"
Phoebe levitated up in the air, delivering a jump kick to the man's
chest, knocking him on his back. "Witches. Three very powerful, ass-
kicking witches. See, we just talked to your sister. Her ghost,
actually.. she doesn't want this. Oh, and.. she said she's ok, so you
don't have to worry anymore."
Tommy got up, holding himself. "Psycho.. you are all psycho!" He threw his knife, sending it flying right for Piper.
Piper pointed at it quickly, freezing it in mid-air. Then she pointed again, causing it to blow up in a ball of flame. "You're next, if you don't stop this. We don't want to hurt you. Kayleigh doesn't want you to hurt anyone, either. And as for your father.. we're planning to go have a word with him after this, after you come to your senses and let Evan live in peace."
"You.. you people." He shook his head, drewing his gun. "You're so full of shit. I didn't want to kill a bitch tonight, but I guess I'll have to! Evan will be next."
Paige shook her head, holding her hand out. "Fine, have it your way... gun!"
Tommy smirked. "I know it's a gun, idiot--hey!" He was surprised to see the gun vanish in a flash of blue orbs, the lights going over to Paige. He stared in mute shock as his weapon materialized in the girl's hand.
"Ok, that's enough from you." Piper put her hand up, freezing the man
in place. Her patience could only go so far. They could be out
vanquishing a demon by now, or preparing for The Source.. but no,
they had their hands occupied with some jealous psychopath who didn't
get enough hugs growing up. "Phoebe, can you call Darryl now? I'll
unfreeze this guy when I see some sirens."
"Sure." Phoebe agreed, taking the cell phone out of her jacket
pocket. "It was fun while it lasted." She started dialing the number.
But for some odd reason, their surroundings shifted, bright lights
everywhere. Tommy immediately vanished in a flash, as if he was never
here. The gun disappeared from Paige's hand. The area, everything in
it.. it all appeared to glow and shake with a cosmic tremor...
The sisters found themselves back at the manor. It seemed as if they had no memory of the previous events; the funeral, summoning the spirit, fighting Tommy at the college dorm.. it seemed like it never happened. Piper was with Leo, talking in the living room.
Paige was in the attic, reviewing some information in the book of
Shadows. She wanted to see if The Source had any weaknesses. So far,
there's been no such luck.
And Phoebe.. well, she was laying in her bed, reading a book. She
recalled getting her car from Dave, the clerk at the auto shop. As
she read silently to herself, she felt a hot flash in her temples.
She shook her head, confused about the images in her mind. It felt
just like a premonition. Except it was events of the past two days,
all crammed into a few seconds. She opened her eyes, adjusting to
what she had just felt. "Whoa.. now, that was something new." She
wondered if it was another power, or an extended version of her
current one.. or something else entirely. She had no idea what it
was, really. She shook her head, closing her book and setting it on
the table. She wondered if Cole would have any explanation about
this..