A/N: Okay, this is more of a Natalia chapter. I know she's not the most popular character, but I have a lot of fun writing about her. Enjoy the chapter anyway.

Chapter Seven: The Demon's Pact

Suite 666. For awhile Cody just stared at the door, still not sure if this was the best idea. After debilitating it a moment longer, he reached for the knob. He recoiled his hand back almost instantly, because the knob turned on its own, opening the door a crack. He could see nothing through the narrow except darkness, but it was now or never. He took a deep breath, and shoved the door open, plunging himself into whatever lie in wait.

When he opened his eyes, his heart skipped a few beats. He had been expecting something a little different, but nothing close to this. It was like he had stepped through time into one of the castles he'd read about in one of his books about King Arthur. The walls were made of mortar brick, and the room was dimly lit by torches. In its center was a marble pentagonal table, emblazoned with a pentagram. It was obscured by the same symbol he had seen on Natalia's palm.

What surprised Cody most about the room was the bookshelves that lined the walls, full almost to bursting. He couldn't resist a quick peek, and began perusing through them when a smooth voice, like stone wrapped in velvet, sounded behind him.

"You wished to see me Cody?"

The young witch jumped, and whirled around to see Natalia sitting at the table in a high-backed chair that had not been there before. It seemed she had abandoned her usual black attire for a long elegant violet dress with a low neckline that, Cody was a little embarrassed to note, plunged all the way down to her waist. The opening was held together by drawstrings. With her long dark hair, and mocha skin, she vaguely resembled an Egyptian princess. Her violet eyes watched Cody with a mix of waiting, and amusement.

"So," he stammered, "You read a lot? Are they all spell books?"

"Some of them," She replied. "Others are strictly history. You can find any topic from Heroes to Villains, quests, tragedies, love, hatred, and I think I have a little Shakespeare somewhere."

"You read Shakespeare?"

"I knew Shakespeare, although back then we called him William. You might say he took some inspiration from me. You may be acquainted with Mercutio's rant about Queen Mab? In any case, I keep them with me. You see humans tend to forget the importance of stories and history. Those who don't study history are doomed to repeat it."

"Santa Ana said that." Cody said in awe.

"He heard it from me."

"You knew Santa Ana too?!"

"How do you think he stayed in power for so long? Anyway, we're not here to talk about me. I actually find myself to be quite loathsome. I believe we're here because you have questions."

Cody swallowed. In the midst of all the talk, he'd nearly forgotten why he was here in the first place. Up until now, he hadn't really though of Natalia as a person. She had been more like a sinister entity out of a storybook, lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to spring and eat him. Now that he was here, the thought of the beautiful slender woman actually eating children seemed absurd.

Something else caught his attention about her, and he couldn't help but ask. "Um… sorry, it's just… your ears."

She smiled darkly, and pulled her long raven hair back over her ears which, as Cody could now see clearly, were pointed and elf-like. "Very observant." She told him. "This is my true form. I had to keep them glamoured to look human to avoid exposure."

"Because protecting magic from exposure was the one thing both sides agreed on."

"You're a smart boy. I can tell you've been reading from the Book of Shadows."

In spite of himself, Cody blushed. It felt odd accepting a compliment from someone he was still terrified of.

"Have a seat Cody." She made a beckoning motion with her hand, and Cody felt his legs pushed out from under him. A chair had appeared behind him out of nowhere, and pushed itself until he was seated at the table. The sorceress nodded. "Now remember, I can only provide you with answers to questions you ask. SO choose them carefully."

Cody took that in for a moment. So she was going to be cryptic was she? Fine, he'd take it. "Alright, to start; how do you know my mom, and why did she bind our powers?"

The demoness nodded apathetically, and tapped her finger to the table's smooth marble surface. Cody watched, transfixed as gray mist distorted it, like smoke on a mirror. When it cleared Cody saw his mother… but it couldn't be her. She looked different somehow. She never wore her hair that long. And who was the little girl on her lap? Wait, he thought, it wasn't his mother. It was his grandmother. His mother was the little girl on her lap being read to. She couldn't be more than six or seven. Cody recognized the house they were in from an old family album.

It was a calming vision. So peaceful, Cody began to wonder why Natalia was showing it to him. Then a black-clad, masked demon burst through the door, and hurled a fireball. The woman in the vision grabbed the girl, and dove out of its path just in time. It exploded against the wall. The demon through another one, but with a wave of her hand, Cody's grandmother sent it flying back into its owner, killing him instantly.

Smoke misted the table's surface again, and the scene changed. His grandmother was arguing with a man that Cody recognized as his grandfather. The vein in his forehead was throbbing with his anger. "I told you, I didn't want anymore of this witch stuff near this family again!"

"Dan, that 'witch stuff' is who I am! You want me to just turn my back on that?! I can't do that! Its my heritage, its my destiny!"

"What is, To have demon after demon burst through that door or blast through our walls until one of them finally gets us?!" In the far corner of the vision, Cody could see his mother watching the scene from the staircase, a tear running down her cheek. The gray mist returned, and clouded the table once more.

"Your grandparents had many arguments of that nature." Natalia explained. "It tore her apart to see her mother and father that way. To make matters worse, the witch-gene skipped her generation. She grew up without powers. Oh, she could mix a potion or two, but that was about it." She waved her hand over the clouded face of the table. "And then you two were born."

The mist cleared and Cody saw his mother, now a grown woman with a baby Zack, and baby Cody seated on her lap. The two toddlers remained completely unaware of the effects the conversation taking place would have on them.

"I don't see why you think I would help you. If witchcraft is to be their destiny, who are we to interfere with the way they were born." Cody jumped when it became clear that Natalia was the one speaking in the vision. She looked no different than the woman he was talking to now. She was clad in her usual black outfit, with her legs crossed casually, completely emotionless in regards to the pleas of the other woman.

"Please." Carey pleaded again. "I can't watch my boys go through the same thing my mother did."

Natalia interrupted her, clearly not caring about Carey's reasons. "One thing that confuses me; why did you come to me? Why not the Elders?"

"I've already tried that. They won't do it. They keep feeding me that garbage about the grand design."

"So you turned to demonic help?"

"Well… that's not the only reason I came to you. My mother once told me a story about how you helped my ancestor Eva Proctor, and her friend Melinda Warren."

Cody couldn't read the past Natalia's expression, but there was definitely a reaction. The sorceress in the vision looked at the baby twins, as if analyzing a dinner menu. "Have they come into their powers yet?"

"I'm not sure." Carey admitted. "I think Cody might have moved a blanket to him without touching it, and this morning I could swear I saw Zack's hands glowing."

The demon woman stretched her arm towards the twins, and made a smooth gesture with her hand, twirling her wrist and closing it into a fist. "There. I've bound their powers."

Carey breathed a sigh of relief.

"But I have one condition." Carey looked back up to see the sorceress had risen from her seat to tower over her. "I will return one day, when your sons are older. When I do, I will offer them the choice to keep or relinquish their powers. Agreed?" Natalia removed her black glove, and extended her hand. A strange birthmark was plainly visible on it; a fire-colored eye with bat-like wings on either side.

Carey hesitated, but took the other woman's hand. "Agreed."

The gray mist returned one final time to distort the vision as Carey and Natalia shook hands. When it cleared Cody was met with the same flame-colored eye, with black wings protruding from its sides. The eye on the table seemed to be staring at him malevolently, as if waiting for his reaction.

"Satisfied?" Natalia's voice pulled him back to the present. He looked up at her through narrowed eyes.

"So she just assumed we'd end up like Grandma? She didn't even give us a chance? Why?"

"Who knows?" Natalia shrugged. "Perhaps she just thought you were too weak to handle it. It often puzzles me that she still refers to you as 'her baby'."

That made sense. It seemed their mother had always coddled them. But he never thought she thought of them as weak.

"Very well then, I suppose we're done here."

"Wait." Cody stopped her. Something about the conversation he had just seen bothered him. He had one more question. "Who's Melinda Warren?"

"It's late." She hissed. "And little boys like you should be in bed by now." One look into her shadowy purple eyes told Cody he had struck a nerve. She tried to lighten her mood again. "You've learned much tonight." She said, not looking at him. "I trust you need some time to take it all in."

"Yeah, I guess." He agreed. He rose from his seat and made for the door. "Thank you." He turned back to her once more. She was gone, and her chair was empty. He just shook his head and left the strange room, re-entering the Tipton hallway. He wasn't sure what to make of her anymore, but one thing he was sure of now. His mother had lied to him, and tried to keep his destiny from him without even giving him the chance to choose. The resentment he felt was stronger than ever.

"Well I had a great time." Zack yawned as he and the sisters filed into the suite.

"Yeah, shame Cody had to leave though. You think he's okay?"

"Ah he'll sleep it off." He answered.

Piper fumbled around until she found the light-switch. When she flipped it on they were all met with something quite unexpected. Carey was seated on the couch with a broad smile on her face.

"Mom!" Zack cried, and ran to hug her.

"How are my boys? Where's Cody?"

"He's probably asleep. I'll go get him." Zack sped for the bedroom.

"You're back early." Paige inquired. "We weren't expecting you back till tomorrow."

"I took an earlier flight. I wanted to surprise the twins. Lucky me, I found one that let me fly out this morning." Carey smiled.

"So how did the record deal go?" Piper asked, but was interrupted by the phone ringing.

"Oh, I'll get it." Paige reached for the phone and placed it to her ear. "Martin residence, Paige speaking."

"Hi Paige, that's right, the cousin." Came a man's voice on the other side. "Hi it's Kurt."

"Who?" Paige blurted.

"The boys' dad."

"Oh right, sorry."

"Hey no problem. Listen did Carey call you? She was supposed to meet me back at the restraunt."

"Oh she's here. She took an earlier flight this morning to surprise the twins. Didn't she tell you?"

"What?" Kurt asked surprised. "That's impossible. I just saw her an hour ago."

"What?!" Paige exclaimed. She had been so caught off-guard, she hadn't noticed the darklighter crossbow as Carey pointed it at her.

Cody dragged his feet down the hallway, dreading returning to the suite. Zack and the sisters had to be back by now, and he didn't have an excuse. It was usually Zack who came up with the cover-ups. When he reached the door, he turned the knob and opened it a crack. He peeked inside. It was dark. Maybe they weren't back yet. He opened the door all the way and flipped the lights on.

The second he was inside, he was grabbed from behind, and his arms were held firmly at his side. Rupert Stryker kicked the back of his knees, forcing him down. Helen' Stryker's shrill laughter sounded from the bedroom as she dragged a struggling Zack into view. His hands were tightly bound to prevent the use of his powers.

"Cody, no!" he cried.

Cody cast his eyes about the room in disbelief. Paige lay on the floor groaning with an arrow sticking out of her. Piper and Phoebe lay next to her, unconscious, with cuts and bruises on their faces. Demons clad in black lined the walls, standing at attention. In the middle of it all stood Carlisle with the Brute Demon at his side.

Before the young witch's eyes Carlisle fell to the floor as comatose as the sisters. In his place, The Heir was piercing him with those grey hate-filled eyes. They made the poor boy want to crawl into a corner as they raked him over with wave upon wave of evil.

"Cody," he smiled showing a row of sharp angular teeth, "we've been expecting you."