A/N: This chapter contains some mild swearing and cursing - do not read if offended :)
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Chapter IX - Of Light and Dark
The Elders were evasive, as usual. Leo could hear Piper's cries of dismay and pleading echoing around his mind, but could he do anything about it? Could he hell. The Elders were murmuring to themselves, whispering possible answers to the mess the girls had got themselves into. But the truth was, nobody knew. And the worst part was, they just would not let him go. He wasn't 'allowed' to think about the situation himself, to help the family out on his own. It had to be under orders, under rules. Just like it always had been.
Wisps of cloud and smoke floated around him as he walked through the Upperworld. Hooded figures drifted by him, meandering their way around as if they had no real purpose in life. Leo flinched as Piper's piercing voice screamed in his head again. He wanted to so much to orb down to her, to tell her that everything was all right. But it wasn't. The powers he had reclaimed were not for his own benefit. He didn't even want them. But he had no choice. His powers inflicted his mortal life, yet again, and all for the Grand Design, and the Greater Good.
"Not so great, now, is it?" He muttered to himself.
A fellow whitelighter looked up to him at his speech, and smiled gently. She was young, with dark brown hair that flicked out at the ends in slight curls. Her brown eyes shone with knowledge.
"New to the craft, are you?" she asked patronisingly, laying a hand on his upper arm. Leo jerked his arm out of her reach.
"Not exactly, no."
For a second, she let a frown trample over the pleasant look on her face. But then, she shook her head, and returned to her smile.
"The good will always be with you," she replied, as if it was somehow the answer to all his prayers. She continued walking away from him when Leo made no reaction.
He rolled his eyes. And then, he made a decision. Enough was enough. If the Elders didn't have an answer, that was fine. If they wanted to brainwash him with mellow thoughts of the good and cheerful, that was fine. But he would not let them cloud his judgement where the sisters were concerned. They were family.
Leo turned, and marched off towards where he knew the Elders were gathered. He stormed in beyond the pillars marking the boundaries between whitelighters and Elders, and rounded on the nearest one he could see. A hard, unwelcoming look spread across his usual agreeable face.
"You need to let me orb back to Piper," he stated to the robe. The robe lifted his hands to his hood, and lowered it. The face looking back at Leo was none other than the Elder who had appeared in the sisters' attic earlier that day. What had he been trying to warn them about? Some shift in the balance? The message had been unclear, and Leo couldn't remember.
"Piper?" The Elder questioned gently, the same genial smile on his face as all the others. "She's just fine," he soothed.
"Like hell she is," Leo spat back. "I can hear her calling me. Why won't you let me go?"
The Elder held an arm out to the other cloaked figures around him.
"You cannot desert those who need you most. Not in such a time as this."
"As what?"
The Elder's eyes washed over Leo's severe face and rigid posture. There was so much good to be had in him, if only he would let it. His love for the witch and her sisters had always been his downfall. But it wouldn't be for long.
"It doesn't matter. Just know that this is for the Greater Good - "
"Screw the Grater Good," Leo interrupted, grabbing the Elder by the robes. A wave of worry spread through the other Elders around, but Leo pretended not to notice. His face almost twitched with anger as he leant is face close into the Elder's. "Send me back to my wife."
For the first time, a deep, worried frown crinkled the Elder's forehead and didn't recede.
"You don't know what you're saying," the Elder replied bitterly, trying to release himself from Leo's surprisingly strong grip.
"I know that there's something you're not telling me."
Distrust was obvious in Leo's voice, and he didn't try to hide it. He didn't want to.
"You're not an Elder anymore Leo," he replied coldly. "We have no right to tell you things."
Leo pulled the Elder in close, his eyes flashing with rage.
"Bull - Shit," he whispered harshly.
"Leo!" the Elder protested, his boundaries of patience being pushes. "What on earth has got into you?"
In a flash, Leo released the Elder and stumbled backwards. He blinked and shook his head, as if he'd just been slapped in the face. He took a double take and unclenched his fists.
"I... don't know," he admitted, a little worriedly.
The Elder's face dropped, and he exchanged a worried glance with his others. If it was already starting, they were in worse trouble than they could handle.
Leo looked around at the whispering, murmuring mass of cloaks. They were obviously trying to decide if they should tell him something. After a few moments, the same man stepped forward from the ring of Elders, where he had retreated.
"Leo, the sisters are in more danger than you could possibly imagine," he said bluntly. Strange, Leo thought, how they could be so evasive and cryptic one minute, and so blunt the next.
"Go on," Leo said, crossing his arms and hoping that that wasn't all they had to offer. They owed him more than that, and he began to recognise Piper's dislike of them.
"The second youngest, Phoebe - she has been taken by evil. Consumed by it. With her, the Book of Shadows is turning too. She has not completely given in, so that is why her sisters are still unaffected. But it won't be long before the evil inside her completely destroys her, taking the Power of Three with it."
"But... I don't understand," Leo said honestly. "She's been evil before. They all have. Why, now, does it matter?"
"Because, to be quite honest Leo, destiny has changed. Hers included."
"I thought destiny was always changing," Leo replied dryly, unfolding his arms. "Free will, and all that."
The Elder shook his head.
"Destiny itself doesn't change," he replied, putting an arm around Leo's shoulder and beginning to pace away from the others. Leo was slightly taken aback, and his shoulders tensed. "What changes," the Elder continued, "are the choices on how one gets there. Timeline, the 'how's and the 'what's - those are what affect how one reaches one's destiny. But Phoebe's - indeed, all of the sisters' - has undergone a complete transformation. Apart from into evil, it would seem, we have no idea how it will change."
Leo was shocked, and walked out of the Elder's calming reach. Why now? Why them? In fact, just why? Hadn't they been through enough? There had to be a spell of some sort, some powerful demon to bring this about. There always was, and they could always fix it.
"Not this time," the Elder said from behind Leo.
"Wha - were you reading my mind?" Leo asked incredulously. The Elder merely shrugged.
"There is no demon or powerful dark magic strong enough to have brought this on," he offered by way of an answer.
"What about powerful good magic?" Leo asked bitterly, distrust wavering in his eyes like waves on the seashore. The Elder pretended not to hear.
"I cannot tell you where the turning point for this ripple in destiny occurred. It would not matter now anyway, as nothing can be done to stop it. But this is what we know, right down to the facts: Phoebe will turn evil, and with her the Book. The sisters are susceptible to it, and will turn as well - if Phoebe doesn't kill them first, that is. From then on, the balance will shift into evil, and all the mortals will be in danger. The three 'Damned Ones', as they shall no doubt be called, will take over the underworld and become far more powerful than any Source has been. They will be invincible to the powers of good magic. We will be thrown into a darkness that even We cannot foresee. But with the sisters, Leo, there is something else. With the sisters evil, you will be drawn to the evil with them. And then, you will turn, aiding them in battles such as you do now. That is why we made you a whitelighter again, for fear of losing you. But the fact still remains - the sisters must be stopped."
The Elder finished his speech with a sigh, as if he had been talking to a five year old. But Leo didn't notice. His mind was reeling as thoughts whizzed through it. It wasn't possible. It couldn't be possible. He looked up desperately to his counsel.
"And... There's nothing you can do?" He pleaded, his emotions brewing in his eyes. The Elder looked almost sorry for him. But, reluctantly, he shook his head.
"No," he said slowly. Leo wheeled around, and screwed up his eyes. A monster like feeling was welling in his heart, and he couldn't contain it. But he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"If you go back down, Leo, you put yourself in danger of turning evil. You put all of us in danger. I can already sense the beginnings of evil in you as we speak."
Leo looked over his shoulder. He knew what the Elder meant, and he knew that he was right.
"So... I can't...?"
"I'm afraid not."
Leo tried to sigh away his fears, and his tears. But it was useless.
"And - there's no one?" He said through broken breaths. The hand released itself from Leo's shoulder and the Elder was silent. Leo brought his head up and looked around, staring at the Elder. He repeated his question, more sternly.
"There is... one..." the Elder spoke reluctantly.
"Who?"
The Elder held Leo's gaze for a minute. Admitting to the hope of salvation was like putting their lives, their courage, their future and their faith in to the hands of the Source. Hell, it very nearly was.
He replied, nevertheless, though with some apprehension.
"The one you call Cole."
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Phoebe was pacing the Underworld impatiently. She had sent Mackenzie up to see what her sisters were up to over half an hour ago, and now her patience was wearing thin and she wished him back. He was more useful to her as a clever demon than a dead spy.
She sighed. The irritating remains of the witch's conscience was still in her, that nagging feeling of thinking of others. It was suffocating. She wondered, briefly, how she had ever managed to keep her head above water before she had been given the chance of freedom. The sisters, she supposed, had a large part to play. She made a mental note to personally thank them for it later - though by means of a card and present was certainly not what she had in mind.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Mack, who shimmered in beside her.
"Well?" she barked. He could sense her anger, and wished that he had no strayed away so long.
"I saw only one of the witches, my mistress," he said sneeringly, getting on to his knees and bowing his head. Phoebe rolled her eyes. The pathetic, snivelling demon was beginning to get on her nerves. If he were 'oh so powerful', why had he not simply vanquished the Charmed Ones himself? She grabbed at his shoulder and brought him back up to his feet.
"I don't need you to be my slave," she said coldly, releasing her grip. "Just tell me what you know."
He shook his head at her strength and confidence. Already she was beginning to learn - a fast study would definitely come in useful for his pledge to the throne of the underworld. And if she played her cards right, he might just let her be his queen. Especially since he had disposed of the love of her life, one of the only remaining things tying her down.
"It was your older sister, Piper, I believe. She was shouting rather harshly at the ceiling, calling for Leo. Her husband, I presume. No doubt those do-good Elders have him up there for - "
"Enough," Phoebe interrupted, and walked away from him. So Leo had disappeared again. Phoebe smiled wryly. Of course. The Elders must have known about her trip to the Underworld, so they were probably running around like headless chickens with no idea what to do. That was what usually happened, anyway. She doubted very much whether Piper would be hanging off their every word - quite the opposite, probably. But she listened to Leo, and if he suggested something, she usually went with it. And if she were concentrating on Leo, she probably wasn't concentrating on the Book.
"Mack!" she shouted out, and turned around. He came pacing up towards her.
"What is it?"
"I'll be going up there to pay my sisters a... shall we say... 'visit'."
Mack looked a little taken aback, to say the least. His demonic nature rose in him, and his distrust was evident on his face.
"You're sure?"
"Of course I'm sure," Phoebe snapped. Good-for-nothing demon. Did he have to question everything she did? He probably had an ulterior motive, wanted her power, and was worried that she was misleading him. It wasn't entirely untrue. She wasn't just going to kill her sisters, if that was what he thought. No, a nice slow torture should suffice - enough to bring them to evil, anyway. Giving in was always easier and, for this time at least, more beneficial.
"Make sure nobody hears of my..." she paused, trying to find the right word to finish her sentence. "Return."
Mack nodded obediently. Phoebe, apparently pleased, tapped in to her powers. She wanted to go to the manor, and she wanted to find the book. She knew she had the capacity and power to do so, but finding the trigger was going to be more complicated. Better now than when it matters, she thought. She became rigid and closed her eyes, willing her body into the manor. Presently, she heard Mack's voice break through the stillness of her thoughts.
"Phoebe?"
She screwed up her eyes as if to tell him to be quiet. He got the message. Manor, manor, manor, Phoebe thought. But it was useless. She opened an eye, and was still standing in the same, dank cave.
"Typical," she scoffed, throwing her arms by her side. "All this power cooped up inside, and I can't even tap in to it to get in to a damn house!"
She could feel the anger rising inside her. Suddenly, her surroundings began to blur into each other and she felt her stomach rise as her anger subsided. Within seconds, the insides of the manor materialised in front of her. Figures, she thought, brushing off her clothes and trying to steady her spinning head. Anger would be my trigger, wouldn't it?
She was standing in the living room, in the same place she had been before she had shimmered out earlier. Blinking is better, Phoebe thought, remembering the time she and Piper had been turned into warlocks all those years ago. Blinking was better and faster, and the after effect wasn't so nasty to deal with. She could hear muffled talking going on in the kitchen, and supposed that Piper was now talking with Cole and Paige. But she hardly wanted to draw attention to herself. No doubt her sisters would try and blackmail her into coming back into the 'light'. And then there was that damned whitelighter, and his goody-goody attitude. It's a pity the Elders had given him back his powers, really - he could have been quite useful.
Phoebe looked around at her surroundings. The last she remembered, the Book of Shadows had been on the coffee table, and it certainly wasn't there now. She dreaded to think that it might have been in the kitchen: now was hardly the time for family reunions. Then again, perhaps she could use this opportunity to convince her sisters that she wasn't evil. She could pretend. They wouldn't expect that after all, would they?
She shook her head, trying to shake all the thoughts of stringing them up for torture out of her head. Reluctantly, she made her way around the table. Then, very carefully, she poked her head around the corner of the kitchen door.
