Chapter 15 Revelations of the Merriwick Family.
Now back in San Fransico, we have Phoebe and Piper sat in the attic, at the Halliwell manor. In the attic, the two are sat at a small wooden table with the Halliwell Book of Shadows open among other spellbooks.
"We need to find a way to lift this curse." Phoebe comments.
"I can't believe how it just happened. Once the boys' powers are gone. Then the curse will go after ours." Piper replies.
"If only Paige or Prue was here they might have been able to see a solution. That would actually work." Phoebe spoke.
"I know I just can't believe how Abraxas was resurrected. We vanquished him on our first anniversary of becoming witches. I know we have been forced to deal with evils we fought coming back. But I thought we were at our strongest and couldn't come back. And I want to know where Abraxas got the power to cast such a curse." Piper says.
"I'm not sure but I miss our two sisters and Henry Jr. It can't be easy to be in a different country away from your only family." Phoebe confesses to Piper.
"I know but Henry is trying to do his best for his family with Jr being mortal and without Paige, he's more vulnerable to demonic attacks. I just hope the protection and the many cloaking spells we cast on Henry Jr and his school haven't weakened." Piper responds.
"If they have then we have a problem," Phoebe said.
Rose, Nathaniel, Ethan, Travis and Henry Jr with Samantha appear at the Sommers Bar and Grill in front of Alex and Elijah emerging from a flash of white light. Samatha is carrying her sacred Book of Shadows, Samatha's Book of Shadows is a purple leatherbound portrait journal with a raven on the front.
"You're back what took so long?" Alex asked concerned for the children and Travis.
"We had a confrontation of some sorts," Travis answers feeling a tad bit bitter that Samatha was able to beat them all.
"More like she kicked our butts." Henry Jr said.
"Samatha did not kick our butts." Travis snaps.
"Enough you weren't prepared. As of right now, our only concern is training you to be at the top of your game to defend your Rings of Power." Samantha spoke up she wasn't in the mood to put up with Travis's bruised ego.
"Before we go any further Samantha, I would like to introduce myself my name is Elijah Mercer and the man next to me is my cousin Alexander Christopher Mercer, he is Henry Jr's biological father," Elijah says offering his hand to shake to Samatha. Samantha accepts his hand and shakes it briefly.
"Adopted tell me, Henry, what witch bloodline do you to belong too?" Samantha questions.
"I was adopted into the Warren bloodline of witches. But the Ring of Light gave me powers shortly after I arrived here." Henry Jr answered in a nice manner.
"Interesting as of right now we have little time. I'm not big on breaking rules but the rule that states the bloodlines that guard the rings should keep away from one another and not make contact can no longer stand. This new threat proves it's time we recreate the coven of the Rings of Power in the early days of the keepers we were once allowed to be a single coven." Samantha replied.
"What exactly can evil do with a Ring of Power?" Alex questioned.
"They can cause immense damage to the world and the balance. It all depends on the which Ring of Power they have. Now let's get started we're going to need a lot of protection and cloaking spells up at every one of your bases and places you most practice witchcraft." Samantha tells the group.
"Looks like we have our hands full," Rose speaks.
"We'll start here," Samantha announced.
It took half an hour to set everything up and perform the many cloaking and protection spells at the bar and grill. After casting the cloaking and protections spells at the bar and grill. The group made their way over to the boarding house Rose is residing at until she graduates. Rose opened the front door and as the group entered Samantha not wanting them to draw attention holds out one of her palms and lightly blew on it from Samantha's palm a long but thin stream of red smoke manifests. The smoke quickly travels from Samantha's palm and entered every rum putting students and staff asleep. In Rose's bedroom is where they cast the cloaking and protection spells. Before finally moving onto Merriwick House. In the kitchen, we have Henry Jr, Nathaniel and Samantha chopping various ingredients with the Merriwick Book of Shadows on a small stand on a counter beside them.
"Can you tell me more about my aunt and my parents please?" Nathaniel asks Samantha.
"All I know is that your father was a human rights lawyer and your mother Dorothy was a nurse. Your aunt Joyce didn't inherit the ability to practice magic she was just a potential carrier of the witch gene that she could have passed down to her baby if she and her baby wasn't killed. Joyce ran away after getting pregnant not wanting to put her child in an environment where demons and warlocks would target the child." Samantha explained.
"Joyce Merriwick," Alex mutters to Elijah.
"Excuse me," Elijah responds.
"How common is the name Joyce Merriwick?" Alex asked.
"Not very I assume the first name Joyce and last name Merriwick is rather traditional and Merriwick is an unusual last name." Elijah answers.
"If that's the case then Henry over there was definitely meant to come to Merriwick house and meet Nathaniel," Alex spoke in a whisper.
"I'm afraid I don't understand Alexander," Elijah says in a whisper.
"Joyce Merriwick, I was with her, she was the only woman I would have ever considered settling down with. When she found out about my demonic hunting she fled I never knew she was pregnant." Alex explains.
"Nathaniel and Henry are cousins!" Elijah blurted out catching everybody in the kitchen's attention.
"WHAT!" Nathaniel and Henry Jr shout in unison.
"I believe that your aunt Joyce, Nathaniel is, in fact, the same Joyce, I fell for and fathered Henry Jr too. After all, Joyce Merriwick isn't a common name." Alex responded.
"B..but that's impossible Nathaniel's family died in a house fire my biological mother died in the streets by a Darklighter. My adopted mom Paige had to orb me out of her womb." Henry Jr pointed out this couldn't be true.
"Joyce left family home not long after she got pregnant. She was homeless for a long time." Samantha spoke up.
"But still in bloodlines children being as carriers isn't common. He would have manifested powers years ago." Nathaniel reminds the group. Henry Jr has become a close friend and a part of him wanted to believe what Alex is saying but things didn't add up.
"Maybe but remember not long after we were born there was the big switch when mortals gained magic. What if Henry's a late blossom magic wise and being born prematurely that made his magic development process more complex and when the switch happened it accidentally triggered his suppressed/dormant witch genes." Rose theorised.
"And my parents what thought it had to be another witch's power? I know my mom bound the power of cryokinesis not long after it manifested." Henry Jr said.
"And then what the Ring of Light somehow recognised him and restored his powers?" Nathaniel assumes.
"There is a way we can confirm the theory of Nathaniel and Henry being cousins," Samantha announced.
"How?" Henry Jr asks.
"Well, Joyce once told me that in the Merriwick Book of Shadows lies the family tree and it is enchanted to list all members dead and alive if he is truly Joyce's biological child he will be listed," Samantha answered. Nathaniel quickly opens up the Merriwick Book of Shadows and starts searching for the family tree. About two-three minutes later Nathaniel finally comes across the family tree. Nathaniel with Henry Jr then start to read through the family tree. They see Nathaniel's parents listed and aunt. The two look under them and both stare at the name under Joyce Merriwick.
"Well," Ethan said wanting an answer just like everyone else present.
"Joyce Merriwick had a son listed as Caleb Merriwick Mercer/Henry Mitchell Jr. I am Joyce's biological son." Henry Jr says confirming Alex's suspicions.
"Nice to know that not all my family died in the fire after all," Nathaniel commented the Merriwick boys share a brief smile.
"We're getting bombarded with surprises lately," Rose speaks.
End of chapter 15.