SIX
"Jerome?" questioned Geoffery. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, uh, we found him on the street and, well, sort of brought him here so he could get cleaned up," said Piper nervously. "He was a mess."
"I see," said Geoffery.
"You know each other?" Prue asked.
"He's sort of a client of mine," said Geoffery. "We had an appointment yesterday afternoon but he didn't show up. I've been concerned, Jerome. You hadn't even called."
"The demon came back," said Jerome. "I had to get away. They saved me and have been protecting me from it. And there's an angel, too. He healed my arm when the demon attacked me."
"A demon," laughed Phoebe nervously. "What an imagination."
"A demon?" questioned Geoffery. "Is that what it is? You only said it was a monster. You never mentioned it being a demon before."
"I didn't know that until they told me," said Jerome. "We aren't sure what kind it is but Leo, he's their angel friend, he's been checking with the Elders. They're trying to find out just what kind of demon it is so they can vanquish it."
"Of course, Jerome," said Geoffery. "At least now we know what's after you. You should be safe here. I have some friends who can probably help. I can send them over right away."
"Oh, that won't be necessary," said Prue. "We, uh, Jerome can stay here until he's feeling better. I'm sure after a couple of days he'll be seeing things a bit clearer."
"Sure, no problem," said Geoffery. "Oh, Piper, I think I left one of your documents in the car. I need to be getting back to my office. Can you come out and get it, please?"
"Sure, Geoffery," said Piper.
"Jerome, you can't tell anyone about the demons," said Prue after Piper and Geoffery had gone out to his car.
"Why not?" asked Jerome. "People should know about them. How can they be prepared for them if they don't know they exist? We have to tell them. We have to tell everyone."
"No, Jerome, we can't," said Phoebe. "I don't know what we're going to do about Geoffery. If he tells anyone we could have a whole lot of trouble."
"We'll deal with that later," said Prue. "Right now, Jerome, you have to understand that we can't protect you if you start telling everyone. They wouldn't understand."
"She's right, Jerome," said Piper, coming in the front door. "I told Geoffery to send his friends over. They'll be able to protect you better. They have a special place designed just to protect people who the demons are after. He said they should be here soon."
"Are you crazy?" Prue asked. "You want to bring more . . . people here? Now?"
"Yes, Prudence," said Piper, slowing nodding her head. "I think it's the best thing. Geoffery said his friends could identify the demon that's after Jerome. Once they do that they can protect him while we go after the demon."
Prue didn't respond. Piper had called her Prudence. Which meant that something was going on. Piper knew how much Prue hated that name. She would never use it casually. It was also a point that had not escaped Phoebe's attention. Apparently there was something Piper knew that she didn't want to discuss in front of Jerome.
"Well, I don't think the demon is going to attack for a while," said Piper. "I think I'll put on some coffee while we wait for Geoffery's friends to show up."
Geoffery returned less than an hour later with his friends. Those friends turned out to be an ambulance with paramedics and a medical doctor.
"So Jerome is delusional?" Phoebe asked after they had loaded Jerome into the ambulance.
"I'm afraid so," said Dr. Humphrey. "He has the early onset of schizophrenia. He's been acting somewhat erratic lately. I had decided to commit him for observation. His family became concerned when he started acting erratic."
"That's what those papers were that I came by to get this morning," said Geoffery. "Jerome was scheduled to for a commitment hearing this afternoon and I needed the papers for the judge to sign so we could get Jerome into the hospital."
"Is it normal for something like this to happen to an adult?" Prue asked.
"Actually," said Dr. Humphrey, "schizophrenia normally manifests itself in early adulthood. Without treatment it just gets worse. Lucky for Jerome we caught it early. With proper treatment and medication I'm confident that Jerome will be okay. As long as he takes his medication."
"What set this all off?" Piper asked.
"Jerome is a college student," said Geoffery. "He's been working his way through college as a projectionist at a local theater. A few months ago the theater was showing a movie and he became fixated on one of the characters. He thought it was a monster that was chasing him. Apparently his 'monster' has evolved into a demon."
"It's not unusual for schizophrenics to get progressively worse without treatment," said Dr. Humphrey. "And of course when you helped him he just incorporated you into his delusion. Since the monster turned out to be a demon he obviously imagined you as witches trying to help him. Then there's the angel who healed him."
"Yeah," said Piper. "That would probably be Leo, my boyfriend. He, uh, was a medic in the military."
"A healer," said Dr. Humphrey. "A perfect choice to be his 'angel'."
"So you really think he's going to be okay?" Piper asked.
"I imagine so," said Dr. Humphrey. "As I said it will just take the right medication. We'll keep him in the hospital until we're sure he's back to normal. But I wouldn't worry about him too much. He'll be getting the best treatment available. I imagine in a few days all this nonsense about witches and demons will be behind us."
"Thanks for helping him," said Geoffery. "I know his family will be appreciative that you helped him."
"Well, he's in the hospital now," said Prue. "Probably the best place for him to be. We're just glad we could help."
"Geoffery, we really should be getting to court," said Dr. Humphrey. "With this incident I don't think there will be any question about the commitment."
"Thanks again, Prue," said Geoffery.
"No problem," said Prue.
After Geoffery and Dr. Humphrey left the manor, Leo orbed in.
"So it was all in his mind?" questioned Leo after they had explained to him what had happened.
"Apparently so," said Prue. "It would seem that the demon after Jerome was all in his mind. There obviously was no demon. And I think I know why the scrying kept showing the demon in the manor. The athame we thought had been dropped by the demon was actually one of Gram's. Jerome must have found it in the attic. I checked and found the one that we usually keep in the attic missing."
"So, why did Phoebe have a premonition about a demon attack?" questioned Piper.
"Well, I did say I never actually saw a demon," said Phoebe. "Just Jerome running from something. We all just kind of assumed it was a demon."
"Phoebe's premonitions are for you to help people," said Leo. "Apparently in this case you were meant to help Jerome get the help he needed."
"What I don't understand," said Prue, "is that you healed the cut on Jerome's arm. I thought your healing power was supposed to heal any kind of physical infirmity? Why didn't it heal his schizophrenia when it healed the cut?"
"Schizophrenia can be caused by a number of factors," said Leo. "Both physical and mental. If Jerome's wasn't a physical cause then my healing wouldn't have helped him at all."
"Well, that makes sense," said Phoebe. "Just like his 'demon' makes sense now."
"What do you mean?" Piper asked.
"That movie that Geoffery mentioned," said Phoebe. "The one that Jerome became fixated on the character in it. I saw it a few months ago. It's the latest Star Wars movie and the monster he described is a perfect description of the main bad guy in it, Darth Maul. Right down to the staff-like weapon his monster had which would probably be the light saber that Darth Maul used in the movie."
"I would never have known that," said Prue. "I don't really like those kinds of movies."
"I just don't understand why I didn't realize it before," said Phoebe.
"Don't beat yourself up over it," said Leo. "You were thinking about a demon, not some science fiction monster. And it's no wonder the Elders couldn't identify it. They don't exactly keep track of what movies come out each year."
"At least it's over now," said Prue. "And no demons to fight. But there still is that door to the bathroom to fix."
"I'll have it fixed before the day is over," said Leo. "I just need to replace the hinges and rehang it. It shouldn't be a problem."
"Well, I for one could use some sleep," said Piper. "I really didn't get much sleep last night. And I still have to open the club later. I think I'm going to go take a nap before I have to go in."
"Good idea," said Phoebe. "I could use a nap myself."
As the girls headed for their rooms Leo headed for the kitchen to get his toolbox so he could fix the bathroom door.
The End
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed" stories at my website, Creative Passions, listed in my bio. You can also post your own "Charmed" stories or other stories if you like to write fan fiction.