Chapter 7: Love is all around (rewritten)
The morning light shone into the Halliwell's Manor, signing a brand new day, hopefully without any demons or warlocks to the Charmed Ones. Piper was trying to get some sleep after the horrible night before, just as the bell rang. "Argh!" She groaned, pulling away the blankets covering her. "I'll get it!" The middle Charmed One yelled so as to announce her sisters that there'd already been someone to answer the door. After all, she couldn't get anymore rests since the noise which was created by the bell.
To her surprise, the person standing in front of the main door was none other than the long-time-no-see whitelighter. "Hey." He greeted the speechless woman who was staring at him happily but of course, in disbelief.
"L…Leo! But…I…I thought…" Piper stammered. She couldn't even believe in her own eyes anymore, she'd always thought she could never see him again just because of a stupid law that forbad whitelighters and witches to be together.
"Yeah, I know, but…let's just say I'm having some business down here, and…I passed by." Leo replied, as he was pulled into a tight hug from Piper. "I'm glad you did." She whispered. After a few minutes enjoying the sensation being in each other's arms again, Leo pulled away, as he looked inside the house and was really shocked with what happened to it. "It seems like there was a demon attack, huh?" he asked, looking down to the woman who was clinging onto him tightly.
"Oh, that…Don't worry we finished it off." The middle Charmed One replied, the strain between her and Leo broke for a split of second as she looked inside the house. "C'mon, let's go inside." She whispered, grabbed his arm and pulled him in, just as the youngest sister who was looking sleepier than ever slowly walked downstairs, greeted the two with a yawn.
"Hi Leo, hi Piper." Phoebe groaned, obviously had completely forgotten the fact that Leo was not supposed to be there. She was about to reach the kitchen when something pulled her back, as she noticed the strangeness. "Leo? Is that you?" The psychic asked in surprise, staring at the whitelighter as if he was some sort of illusions.
"Of course it's me. Who else could it be?" Leo smiled, rolling his eyes and raised his hands upward, as the super witch approached them.
"I thought you were banned to see us?" Prue walked down the stairs, completely dressed, apparently ready for work.
"Not exactly…I'm banned to be with Piper, not to see you guys. After all, I'm your whitelighter." Prue and Phoebe shared with each other a 'do you understand that' look, as Piper cut off, "C'mon, that doesn't matter now. Who wants breakfast?" she exclaimed, still not letting go of Leo's arm.
"Actually I was thinking about…inviting you guys out for breakfast. What do you think?" Prue looked at the watch. It was 8:00 AM and she was running out of time.
"I can't come. There's an important auction this morning and Claire will fire me if I'm late, again." The oldest Charmed One replied, quickly grabbed her purse which was hung on the hanger. "I'm really sorry, maybe we can all go out some other time!" She yelled back, and left the Manor. Phoebe rolled her eyes in disappointment, "Does she ever rest?" Piper didn't really pay attention to it, she was too busy enjoying having Leo there again with her.
"So…when are we going to go?" She asked, wrapping her arms around Leo, and smiled with him seductively.
"How about…now?" He whispered to her, leaning closer to her lips.
"Not until I change, handsome." The middle Charmed One replied, even quieter, pulled him into a passionate kiss. Phoebe quickly looked away, didn't want to see what she wasn't supposed to see. "Go get a room!" She complaint, and they all laughed.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Lot 281, a Chinese Vase from the Ming, will begin with 500,000 dollars. 500,000 dollars, is there anyone? 520,000…" The auctioneer said in his loud, clear voice at the buyers sitting in front of him. At the same time, Prue Halliwell was trying her best to hold back her tired yawns. She almost didn't sleep the last whole night, when her mind had been playing over and over again the kiss she and Andy shared earlier. Although she'd shut her eyes hoping to shoo away those thoughts and kept telling herself that they were over, she couldn't stop them.
Suddenly she heard someone whispered her name. Looking around, she realized it was the Inspector she was thinking about. Carefully sneaking through the auction place, Prue approached Andy silently.
"Andy? What are you doing here? We're having a…" The oldest Charmed One asked as if she was annoyed by his presence, but actually inside her butterflies were flying crazily.
"An auction? I know, I'm not blind." The handsome Inspector joked, trying to get that important part as far as possible. He still wasn't really sure whether he should do it or how he was going to do it, and he knew he couldn't bear it if she said no.
Squinting her eyes suspiciously, Prue had a feeling their meeting wasn't about supernatural cases at all, but tried to shrug it off. "Now what do you want?" She smiled with an apparently nervous and sheepish Andy standing in front of her.
"Erm…nothing…I just…" Andy stammered, didn't know what to say, or truth be told, was too embarrassed to say anything. 'C'mon Andy, it's now or never, you gotta say it man!' he reassured himself for somewhat like a millionth time. "It just that…erm…I…ah…have these…movie tickets…and…erm…you know…ah…" As he was saying, Prue interrupted him, reading his thoughts.
"You're trying to set me up for a date, aren't you?" Prue smirked, hoping she wasn't right. He was the one who wanted to break up with her at the first place after all.
"I…ah…not really exactly, but you can call it a date if you want." Andy grinned, making Prue's heartbeat, again, went crazy. "Actually these tickets are complimentary ones from someone Darryl and I helped, but he couldn't go so he gave it to me, and I think it'd be a waste if we just throw it into a trashcan, so…I wonder if you'd like to go." Andy sighed. He could have sworn he had practiced that part billions and billions times so that Prue wouldn't realize what he was trying to do, but still his true purpose exposed. And of course the witch could see it. Thousands of thoughts entered her mind, as she hesitated if she should accept it or not. It was her who determined to see them as friends, and if she decided to go out with him which meant she'd see them as a couple. Just as she was deep in her thoughts, a voice interrupted her.
"Prue, what are you doing out here? Aren't you supposed to be in the auction?" It was Claire, Prue's boss. Never before Prue felt so thankful and if she could she would have shouted that she loved her boss for getting her out of the situation. But then it all changed upside down when the middle-aged woman realized who her employee was talking to. "Oh, Inspector Trudeau! What a pleasure meeting you again!" she exclaimed, extending her hand out, expecting a handshake. Andy of course took her hand. "Yeah. Me too." He replied.
"So…is there anything we can help, inspector?" Claire questioned, remembering the time when Andy had 'borrowed' Prue for some police issues, and she almost had fired her best assistant ever. Just as he began to answer that there was nothing and Prue could be back to work, an idea entered his mind. "Oh yeah, we're having a case which requires us a great knowledge about antiques, whom I consider Prue." He lied, grinning evilly at his ex-girlfriend, who was squinting at him in disbelief that he could do such things.
"Oh…Well, if that's the case, feel free to borrow our Prue." The moment the sentence slipped out of Claire's lips, Prue's feelings immediately reversed from happiness to terror, which because she'd have to face the answer whether she'd go out with Andy or not. Although her mind was shouting inside, telling her to decline it, but her heart was totally different. The middle-aged woman then walked away, leaving behind the two lovebirds.
Standing alone in an extremely awkward silence, neither Prue nor Andy had plucked up enough courage to start a conversation. It seemed like centuries had passed, when endless thoughts just kept entering their minds and then got out for others to come. With Prue they were about decisions for a date with her childhood friend, but with Andy, he was digging through the deepest part of his brain, trying to find out even a slightest reason or some urge that would make Prue accept his offer. Finally, part because he couldn't stand waiting for her answer anymore, part 'cause it was his only chance to put pressure on her and he might have what he wanted, the Inspector broke the silence, "So…what do you say Prue?" The witch lifted her head up from where it was, just to look at his sparkling blue eyes.
"I…I don't know…I mean…Andy, I already told you that we can't be together as a couple, and now you're asking me out…According to the past, I think I'd say no." The oldest Charmed One answered, picking her cuticles like mad. Right just when Prue started, Andy'd known she'd decline, and he felt like it had just ripped his heart out of his chest. His mind ran through a million of curses, of blames, for not preparing for the conversation better. But when she finished the answer, the mortal raised his eyebrows. There was something, deep in her voice, her sentence, let him know that he still had hopes left yet.
"You think. Right." He smirked, made Prue did the same, as she looked down sheepishly. Thinking for awhile, he decided to share his thoughts. "You remember when I said I'd never give up? When I say it, I mean it. I don't want to, Prue." It was the moment when the witch looked straight into Andy's eyes, smiling happily. From the bottom of her heart, she knew she had the answer.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"Thanks for the meal, Leo. It's really great!" Phoebe complimented, finishing the last piece of her breakfast. Piper, Leo and she were at Quake, for the whitelighter had invited them out.
"No problem. That's what friends do, right?" Leo answered, looking at his ex-girlfriend amorously, admiring her beauty. If he had had one wish he would have wished he wasn't a whitelighter so that he and Piper could be together without any forbidding rules.
"Yeah, sure. Right Piper?" The youngest Charmed One replied, nudged her older sister slightly at the arm. Piper the whole time had just been staring at the food and putting them in her mouth unconsciously, so she was kind of jumped when the psychic did that.
"Oh, huh? Yeah. Sure. Of course. Why not?" The chef responded, though she had no idea what Phoebe was asking her, but she answered anyway.
"Piper, you don't look well. What happened?" Leo asked, concerned. Suddenly Piper blushed when she heard his voice. "Nothing! I just…" She looked up, just to find his worried loving eyes. "I'm just happy that you're here." The middle Charmed One almost whispered the words, feeling so embarrassed to say it out loud. Smiling, Leo wrapped his arms around her, making Piper felt totally relaxed. Realized what was happening, the youngest decided it was time for her to leave for awhile. "Erm…I guess I should go…" she announced, although she knew nobody would notice. Walking to the bar, she looked over at the two lovebirds. The psychic was really glad that they were finally together again, for they were such a lovely couple. Suddenly she felt somewhat like being left out, when her older sisters both had someone to love. Phoebe then shook her head really hard, wanting to shoo that thought out. 'I should rather be happy for them, not mourning over myself!' she yelled mentally. Just as she was going to order something to drink, a handsome guy came round her.
"Hey. Can I buy you something?" The stranger greeted, approached the Charmed One. He was a tall, pretty dark man, and – according to Phoebe – was extremely charming and gorgeous.
"Um…yeah, of course, thanks. I'm Phoebe by the way. Phoebe Halliwell." She introduced herself confidently, as extended her hand. She'd been through that situation many times but none gave her such a strong heartbeat like that.
"I'm Cole. Cole Turner." The man replied, taking her hand and kissed it, while smiling at the woman. She replied the smile, and of course, in a seductive way. "Vodka?" He asked, started to get along. Just as Phoebe was about to answer, she noticed Cole had been frozen. Looking around, she realized the same thing happened to everybody, except her. Then she heard a voice from the kitchen, and no second thought, she knew it was Piper's. When the youngest sister was about to go in and check on her sister, everyone unfroze, which included Cole. Immediately she sat back in her previous situation, pretended like nothing had happened.
"Oh, yeah…um…I'd love to, Cole, but…I think I heard someone called me, so…bye." Phoebe said, tried to hide her terror for what could had happened to her sister. Hurry leaving the place, she was pulled back by Cole's yell after her.
"How about dinner tonight?" Cole shouted, trying to get his last chance.
"Pick me up at 7:00!" Phoebe shouted back, and was glad he finally asked her out. Quickly pushing that thought beside, she ran like mad to the kitchen, only to find a happily faced Piper walking out of the kitchen. Behind her was some yells from whose she guessed was Piper's boss.
"What happened, Piper? Where's the demon?" The youngest Charmed One asked, didn't mind if she was gonna expose magic or not. Immediately her sister used her hand to bit her lips. "Shh! Somebody can hear you!" Piper warned, as she looked around to make sure nobody overheard. "There wasn't any…you know, that. It was just that I quit!" She exclaimed happily, in Phoebe's surprise. Staring at her sister for a few seconds, finally she found her way to her words. "You made it! You made it Piper, you quit!" The psychic exclaimed as well, feeling happy for her sister.
"Yeah! You bet." Together they walked back to the table where they were sitting. Leo, meanwhile, was paying the bill. "Looking at your face, I guess you made it?" he asked, looking at the chef, who was smiling to her ears. "Yep! And I'm gonna have my own club soon!" The last sentence surprised Phoebe, again. "Wow, that's a really big jump, Pipe! I'm so proud of you!" She replied, hugging her older sister. When they broke the hug, Leo started.
"So Phoebe, I saw you earlier with a guy. Aren't you gonna introduce him?" the whitelighter asked, and this time it was the middle sister's turn to be surprised. "Oooh, look at you! Tell me, who's he?" she asked, as the gang started to walk out of the restaurant.
"His name is Cole, he was completely gorgeous, and you wouldn't believe this but he asked me out!" Phoebe almost yelled the last part, she was so happy, she even considered that to a dream come true.
"I've never seen you in this state before, Pheebs. Maybe…" Piper left the sentence unfinished, realizing she should leave it all naturally. "Maybe what?" Phoebe questioned closely, wanted to find out what her sister was saying. "Oh nothing. C'mon, let's go home."
Underworld
"Good job, Belthazor. Now are you ready?"
"I've been waiting for this moment for my whole life, my Lord."
A/N: Okay, I am a mess. I truly am a mess. Work just pours into me like…I'm gonna be dawn in it! My head is even worse, I can't think of anything good! Anyway…I think the last paragraphs aren't good, since I was in a hurry. I'm sooo stupid! Oh, and thanks meowmeowtheblackcat for beta-reading this chapter.