A/N: The chapter was 25 pages so I decided to split them into two different chapters to make it easier for you. This chapter has action, emotions, Paige's birthday and is a set-up. The following chapter is action packed. If you notice, I titled the chapter as a two-parter, "A Wish Gone Wrong" was the original title, but since I split it, that's my result. Enjoy, Read and Review both chapters, please.
Chapter 4- How to Put Magic in a Mortal (of the A Wish Gone Wrong Two-Parter)
August 2nd 2006
Paige Matthews fought the urge to rest for five more minutes and roused herself, brushing her brown hair from her face. For several seconds, things were blurry, but after knuckling the sleep from her eyes, her vision cleared. She looked at the other side of the bed, expecting to see her parole-officer husband, but he wasn't there.
She rolled out of bed and wandered off to the living room. If her better half wasn't with her, then he'd be in front of the TV, watching ESPN, his routine whenever he took a day off from work. But there was no Henry in the living room when Paige entered.
"Henry!" she called. There was no response. "Henry, are you here?" called Paige again, looking around. He didn't answer.
Now she began to worry, and with good reason. In the unceasing war between Good and Evil, it was never beneath a demon or a Darklighter to use a witch's loved one as either bait or leverage. And Paige, a Charmed One who was half-witch and half-Whitelighter, had an ordinary, sports-loving, non-magical spouse who was no less vulnerable to Underworld attacks than she herself.
What if a demon got him while I was asleep? she fretted. Or a Darklighter snatched him to lure me into a trap? Or maybe --
The sound of footsteps made her turn quickly, but she calmed down, relief washing over her as Henry emerged from the kitchen with a food tray. He smiled at her.
"Happy birthday to you," he said in a sing-song voice.
She smiled back. "Thank you." She eyed the tray. "Breakfast in bed, I suppose?"
He chuckled. "You suppose right. Now get back in bed and enjoy this feast I made."
Paige skipped merrily back to the bedroom, her husband following at a more leisurely pace. Yes, it was her birthday today, her 29th to be exact. And on this day she always behaved like a happy child.
She jumped onto the bed, positioning herself against the bed board as Henry walked in. He unfolded the legs of the tray and placed it on her lap.
"Now, madame," he said in an exaggerated French accent that made Paige laugh. "We have for you one omelet, two slices of buttered toast, and a side dish of strawberries. And to wash it all down, a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice with pulp."
"Oh, merci, monsieur," Paige replied in a French accent that was no better than her husband's. "It makes me want to orb this to the Eiffel Tower in Paris and enjoy." She took a strawberry and bit into it.
Henry switched back to his regular voice "How is it?"
"It tastes as good as it did when it came out of the package," Paige joked.
"Good!" he laughed. "Now try something homemade; my famous Mitchell Omelet."
"Mitchell Omelet?" chortled Paige. "You just made that up, didn't you?"
"Of course I did," Henry said. He added with a whimper, "Don't hurt my feelings, though."
"Oh, all right," said Paige, still chortling. She grabbed her knife and fork and sliced herself a piece of omelet. Before she could sample it, she heard a charge's call ringing in her mind.
Henry recognized her expression. "A charge?"
She nodded. "I have to leave," she said as she put her food down.
He sighed. "It's your birthday, Paige!"
"I know," said Paige, climbing off the bed after she had place the tray to one side, "but Evil doesn't care. And I can guarantee they're not celebrating my birthday today; more likely, they're spitting on pictures of me."
Henry gestured at her. "Well, I hope you know you're going in your pajamas again."
Paige looked down and saw her bedroom attire as well as her bare feet. "Yeah," she sighed, "don't have time to change, but at least I won't be barefoot." She turned, extending her hand toward the floor underneath the bed. "Slippers!" she called and they orbed into her grasp. She immediately put them on.
"Be careful," Henry said.
Paige smiled reassuringly. "I will," she said and gave him a quick parting kiss. "Off I go," she said, soaring off in a glowing white vortex.
Henry sighed resignedly, picked up a strawberry, and took a bite. His mood improved a bit. "Hey, these are good."
(X)
Paige came out of orb in the apartment living room of her charge, a college student named Steve. She didn't see him, but she knew why; he had the power of invisibility. And when she turned she saw the reason: A goateed male demon in a ragged brown sweater, an athamae in his hand.
Paige didn't waste a second. "Athamae!" she shouted, orbing it into her outstretched palm. She threw the weapon at the demon, but he quickly caught it. His hand shot out, telekinetically sending her into a bookcase with such force that several books fell on her. He then hurled a fireball that Paige dodged by quickly orbing out and back in.
The demon was about to let fly with his athamae when he felt a sudden pull, then another, and oncemore. He tried to ignore them, but the pulling kept up so persistently that the demon grew angry, whirled, and lashed out at whoever was interfering. He found himself striking only empty air, and suddenly something invisible hit against his hand, knocking the athamae out of it. The blade hovered in mid-air and then plunged squarely into the demon's chest, vanquishing him on impact.
Paige watched her adversary meet his fiery end. After the flames died away, she smiled and placed her hands on her hips. "You can come out now, Steve," she called wryly.
A brown-haired, brown-eyed young man materialized three feet away in front of her with a crow of "Surprise!" Though Steve was two months new to the craft, he was quite dedicated and had honed his skills during that time. His vanquish of the goateed demon was proof positive, and it made Paige wonder why he had summoned her in the first place.
"You handled that demon fine," Paige said, "so why did you call me? It wasn't necessary."
"I needed the diversion," Steve explained. He grinned. "And besides, I wanted to give you this."
He turned and pointed to a table. At the twirl of his finger, a long green box with a blue ribbon materialized on the table top. Paige smirked at her charge's antics. This was his other talent, the one he liked to call "the hide-and-seek effect", but what other witches knew as concealment.
Steve walked over to the table, picked up the box, and brought it to Paige. "Here, happy birthday."
She blushed as he presented it to her. "Oh, Steve," she said as she took it, "really, this is very nice, but you didn't have to."
"Yes I did," he disagreed cheerfully. He gave a modest shrug. "It's not much, just some clothes."
"Oh?" said Paige, looking the box over. "Just some clothes?"
"Yeah," Steve replied with a little nod. "But you deserve them, Paige. You've been great to me, so this is a token of my appreciation."
As much as she wanted to, Paige couldn't get angry enough at Steve's deception to refuse his gift. "Well, thank you, it's very sweet. I should be going. I have to say you did a great job vanquishing that demon." Before she orbed out, she fixed him with a firm look. "But promise me that next time you'll call me when you have a problem that you can't handle alone."
The young man smiled sheepishly and nodded. "I will."
Paige orbed herself and her birthday gift out of the apartment.
(X)
The sight that met Paige's eyes when she came out of orb in her bedroom was that of a sour-faced Henry eating half of the birthday omelet he had made for her.
"Oh, honey, what can I say? I'm so sorry," she apologized.
"It's fine," he said coldly. He swallowed the piece of omelet he had been chewing. "I guess I just have to get used to it." He eyed the package in Paige's arms. "Where'd you get the box?"
"From my charge," she answered with a shrug of embarrassment. "It's clothes, his birthday gift to me."
Henry stared at her. "He called you away just to give you a box of clothing?"
"No, there was a demon there, but Steve vanquished him." Paige's expression changed to one of annoyance. "He said he needed the diversion to do it as well as give me my present."
Henry groaned, rolling his eyes in exasperation. "How stupid can that guy be? I don't care if he is your charge, Paige! You could have been killed! You should have thrown the box in his face for tricking you like that!"
"I made Steve promise not to do it again. If he does, I'll let the demon nail him good with an energy ball to teach him a lesson. But I couldn't ignore his call; if I had, he could have been the one killed." She gazed levelly at Henry as she placed the green box on the bed. "And why are you upset about it, anyway?"
"Because it's still frustrating, Paige!" he said.
"Look, Henry, we've gone over this," she replied, going to the walk-in closet to pick out an outfit to wear. "When I told you I was a witch as well as a Whitelighter, you accepted it. So, I don't need an argument with you about it, especially not today."
"I won't argue," he said, raising his hands in placation. "But I have to admit that, as much as you tell me and as hard as I try to, I still can't fully understand. At the end of the day, I'm just mortal."
"And you think it makes me think any less of you?" said Paige, choosing a white sleeveless shirt and black pants. She walked deeper into the closet, put on the shirt and pants, and walked back out, holding a pair of slip-on shoes in one hand and pulling her shirt down with the other. She put the shoes down. "Imagine how it would be if you were a witch," she said, tucking her shirt into the top of her pants. "You'd have your own innocents to protect from demons, and that would take away any free time we might have together." She stopped and looked at Henry. "I'm very happy with the fact that you are mortal. I just need you to be understanding of who I am and what I have to do."
He nodded with a little smile. "I get your point, Paige, but it's still hard for me to understand."
As she sat down on the bed to put on her shoes, Paige flashed on a conversation she had had with her ex-boyfriend, Glen, shortly after she had moved into Halliwell Manor. At first, he had refused to believe that she was truly a witch with powers. With his permission, she had used a Stretch-the-Imagination spell from the Book of Shadows to make him realize the existence of magic. The spell had worked, but not in the way she expected; it had changed Glen into Reed Richards by giving him the ability to stretch himself physically across the length of a room. Fortunately, she was able to reverse the spell and return Glen to his normal self, but it was the reason why Paige was dead set against using magic on her husband in a similar circumstance.
She finished slipping her shoes on, and was about to respond to Henry's comment when the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it," Paige said. She left the bedroom and crossed the living room to the front door. She opened it to see a grinning Billie Jenkins with a sports bag slung over her left shoulder, a potions pouch slung over the right, and her hand clutched around a luggage handle.
"Billie!" exclaimed Paige in delighted surprise.
"Hi, Paige," Billie fairly shouted. She dropped her luggage and threw her arms around Paige's shoulders. "Happy birthday!"
"Thanks!" said Paige, returning the hug. She stepped back. "Come on in."
"Thank you," responded the young blonde. She picked up her luggage and entered the apartment with it.
"It's great to see you," Paige said, closing the front door. "But why didn't you go to the Manor first? Piper's willing to let you sleep in Phoebe's old room instead of the backyard."
Billie laughed softly. "I know," she said, nodding, "but I still feel bad about what I put her through, and I knew you wouldn't mind me hanging out here until it was time to go to your birthday gathering." She looked past Paige and glimpsed a still-unhappy Henry sitting on the bed. "Uh, did I come at a bad time?"
Paige glanced over her shoulder in the direction of the bedroom. "Oh, no, it's fine." She smiled. "Let me show you to the guest room."
"Guest room?" asked Billie, her green eyes going wide. "I know Henry had this place before he met you, but why would he need a guest room?"
"He uses it as an office; he has his computer and stuff in there. It's a bit cramped for space, but it's got a bed."
"Well, I won't need that since I'll be heading over to the Manor. I'd go to my dorm, but I'm not ready yet." Billie's face clouded and she heaved a sigh. "To be honest, I'd much rather vent my frustrations and all these other suppressed emotions first."
"Then let's go to the guest room," Paige suggested. "We can talk privately in there." She smiled in an attempt to lighten Billie's mood. "The computer won't mind a bit."
Billie chuckled and returned the smile. "Thanks," she said gratefully
Paige led the way to the guest room. When they entered, Billie saw it was exactly as Paige had described it. Henry's computer sat on a desk covered with stacks of reports; the "In" and "Out" baskets were overflowing with folders while beside the desk were stacked files on parolees Henry worked with. Against a wall stood several cabinets containing more files. On another side of the room, below a large office calendar marked off with appointments and court dates, was a bed aligned against the wall.
"So, how are you handling everything?" Paige asked, closing the door.
Billie plopped down on the bed. "Well, I've learned when to cry, when not to, and how to be strong. But I now understand Christy's actions." Billie leaned back against the wall and lowered her head, her eyes clouding again. "My big sister lived with demons for fifteen years, so for me to expect that any remnant of good still existed in her was just plain stupid. So I guess I've learned my biggest lesson: don't trust children who were raised by demons, whether those children are family or not." She raised her eyes to Paige. "But why does it have to hurt so much?"
"Because it's how we learn the most important lessons in life," answered Paige. She smiled gently. "Take it from one who knows."
"I'd be too scared to have my own kids because of what happened to Christy," Billie confessed.
"Well, I think the chances of that ever happening again range from slim to zero," said Paige reassuringly. She then remembered her husband. "Can I help you get settled in?"
"No, I can manage. Thanks."
Paige nodded, left the guest room, and returned to the bedroom. She knew her talk with Henry was not finished, but with Billie now in the apartment, Paige would make sure that she and her husband kept their voices down.
(X)
In an Underworld cave, Avo was pacing back and forth, plotting his next move, when a telepathic demon, Vilo shimmered in. Vilo was an accomplished telepath, who knew it'd be best to side with Avo. The chilling Underworld winds blew his long gray robes back and forth.
Avo turned to him. "Did you plant the thought in Piper Halliwell's mind?"
Vilo nodded. "She'll bump up the birthday dinner."
"Good," responded Avo. "The sooner that's done, the sooner we can set my plan into motion."
"May I ask a question?" Vilo said.
"Of course."
"How do you know about the Witchlighter's charges, and when to send a demon after them?"
"It's simple. I have sensing abilities; I track many charges, using my magic to learn if a particular charge is one of the Witchlighter's."
Vilo lifted his dark brows in surprise. "But if you can do that, then surely you can kill her charges by yourself."
"Yes, I can," Avo answered, "but I don't dare risk exposure. It's why I have other demons, like Sivor, attack them; it's to keep the Witchlighter thrown off the scent." He smiled slyly. "I knew that one charge of hers, the young male witch with the power of invisibility, would vanquish the lower-level demon I sent to attack him. The goal was to get Paige Matthews out of her home and make her mortal husband upset about it."
"What do you hope to accomplish?" asked Vilo.
"I want to provoke her into making a wish that will help her spouse understand."
"What if she doesn't? What if she wishes for something else, like world peace?"
Avo snorted with laughter at the very idea. "She won't, trust me. I have much faith in this plan, but I might manipulate the situation even more to my advantage. I'll need another demon to help."
"Let me!" Vilo said, brightening. "I can telepathically manipulate Paige into making the wish."
"No," replied Avo with a shake of his head. "The candles won't work with any magical interference."
Vilo gave the demonic Darklighter a confused look. "What candles?"
"These." Avo opened his hand; surrounded by swirling black orbs, three pink and white striped birthday candles materialized into his palm. He smiled darkly. "What can be more innocent? They're enchanted so the witches won't know. I'll replace three of the candles on the Witchlighter's cake with these, then sit back and watch my plan unfold."
"Brilliant," Vilo commented, shaking his head admiringly.
"I know," the Darklighter said in a cocky tone. He extended his free hand. "Now, let's bring in that other demon, shall we?"
Another demon shimmered in and immediately bowed down before Avo. "Your Greatness," he said, "how may I serve you?"
Avo chuckled. "You have to love cowardly demons," he commented to Vilo. "They act so loyal, it's hilarious."
Vilo chuckled slightly, if a bit nervously. He didn't want Avo thinking that of him as well.
(X)
In a glowing rain of orbs, Paige, Henry, and Billie materialized in the foyer of Halliwell Manor.
"Hello?" Paige shouted. "We're here!"
"Me too!" quipped an unseen Piper.
With a smile, Paige led her husband and Billie to the dining room. They entered to see pink and white party streamers hanging from the ceiling. Pink, white, and pink-and-silver foil birthday balloons were scattered about the room, anchored with little weights. The table was already set and laid out with food; Piper had suddenly phoned three hours earlier to say she was nearly finished making dinner and that it had to be eaten soon. The call had taken Paige back and she had asked if this was a surprise party after all, but Piper had given a reassuring no.
Piper emerged from the kitchen with a casserole, grinning as she caught sight of her youngest sister. "Hey, Paige!" she said as she placed it on the table. She went to Paige and enfolded her. "Happy birthday!"
"Thanks, Piper," answered Paige, returning the embrace. She was truly comforted, though still curious as to why her sister was in such a rush to get the dinner party going.
"How are you, Henry?" Piper asked, giving him a hug of greeting.
"I'm good," he answered with a grin and a hug of his own.
It was then that Piper's gaze rested upon Billie, and Paige felt herself go tense. It had been three months since the final showdown pitting the Charmed Ones against the Ultimate Power comprised of Christy Jenkins and the kid sister she had brainwashed into thinking the Halliwells were evil. The savage battle had left the entire Manor in a shambles, Phoebe, Paige and Christy dead beneath the rubble, and the surviving Piper and Billie determined to magically change that outcome by going back in time. And they did, Piper with Coop's ring and Billie with her power of physical projection. Learning how the Triad and the demon Dumain had manipulated Christy and herself, Billie had tried unsuccessfully to get her sister to see reason. Christy and Dumain had then seized Coop's ring to time-travel back to save the Triad from the Halliwell sisters, but they were too late; the Charmed Ones and Billie arrived at exactly the same time to vanquish Dumain and the Triad. Enraged at her sister's betrayal, Christy had hurled an above average fireball at them. Left with no choice, Billie had deflected the lethal fire back at Christy, killing her in self-defense.
Shortly afterward, Billie had left for Chicago as the executor of her family's estate, also taking that time to mourn and reflect on what had happened. Then she had done an enormous amount of grief work and soul-searching as had been clear to Paige during their prior conversation. She hoped Piper could see past her anger to realize that too.
She needn't have worried. Having been present at Magic School to witness Billie's vanquishing of Christy, Piper no longer had the energy or the desire to continue hating someone when she now had the life she always wanted. In addition, when a grief-wracked Billie had projected herself back to Halliwell Manor, Piper had sat her down and calmly confronted her. The ensuing talk did a great deal to clear the air between them, and Piper had discovered there was really no need to exact any revenge or punishment; the loss of her entire family was punishment enough for Billie.
Now face-to-face with the young witch who stood before her with lowered eyes, the protégé who had betrayed the Charmed Ones' trust and paid an unbearable price for it, Piper subdued a twinge of anger and smiled warmly. "How are you, Billie?" she asked, reaching out to enclose the girl in a gentle hug.
Billie's face brightened and she stepped into Piper's embrace. "I'm okay, and you?" she said, her own arms wrapping themselves around the Charmed One's shoulders.
"Just fine," answered Piper. She stepped back and gazed at Billie. "How did the soul-searching work out?"
Billie gave a shrug and a little smile. "It wasn't necessarily soul-searching. It was actually more finding out who I really am and realizing that I truly am a good witch."
"I'd pretty much call that soul-searching, Billie," Piper said to her smilingly.
"And I'm sure she wasn't literally searching for a soul," a warm feminine voice joked from the staircase. Everyone turned and smiled as Phoebe Halliwell, her long dark hair thrown back over her shoulders, descended the stairs, wearing an indigo top, white pants, and white slip-on shoes. "In our world those two meanings can get a bit mixed up," she added with a knowing wink.
She went straight to Paige and hugged her. "Oh, happy birthday, sweetie," she said as her half-sister hugged her back.
"Thanks, Phoebe," Paige said as Phoebe released her. "I didn't expect you to be here so early. We pretty much rushed over here, so this is a nice surprise."
"I had Coop drop me off," explained Phoebe. "I was upstairs looking after the boys while Piper prepared the dinner. I just finished getting them dressed."
She then remembered Henry and Billie. "Oh, forgive me, I'm being rude." She and Henry shared a hug of greeting, and Phoebe turned her attention to Billie. She smiled warmly and pulled the girl into an embrace. "It's so good to see you, Billie."
"You too," Billie replied, returning the hug and the smile.
"And how is Mr. Cupid these days?" Paige asked.
"Busy shooting arrows from love's bow," Phoebe replied, laughing. "He'll be here later. Meanwhile, he told us to go on without him; he has potential lovers to unite."
"Cool," said Paige, looking around. "Where's Leo?"
"In the garage working on that dump of a car," answered Piper with a smirk.
"Excuse me?" interjected Leo's voice. "My what of a car?"
All eyes turned to see Piper's husband coming through the front door, smeared from head to foot with motor oil and axel grease.
"Uh, your hunk of a car," Piper said quickly, batting her eyelashes as she slapped on a cheesy smile, "your hunky, beautiful car."
Leo laughed along with everyone else. "What a horrible attempt at covering up!"
"Then I'll keep on being blunt," quipped Piper. Everybody laughed again.
The ex-Whitelighter-turned-auto mechanic grinned as he came up to his young sister-in-law. "Happy birthday, Paige," he said. "I'm going upstairs to change since I'm covered with filth."
"A shower wouldn't hurt either," Piper reminded him teasingly, causing another chorus of laughter from all present.
"I hear and obey," said Leo humorously. He smiled at his family. "I'll be back in twenty minutes," he said and jogged up the stairs.
Paige spotted a pile of wrapped gifts in a corner of the dining room. "Are those for me?" she asked innocently.
"I'll never tell," answered Phoebe in a coy tone.
"Yeah, don't amuse her, Phoebe," Henry joked. Paige slapped him on the chest and they joined in the others' laughter.
(X)
Twenty minutes later the adults were all sitting at the table, starting the meal, while Wyatt and Chris ate at the children's table in the conservatory. In between mouthfuls of Piper's excellent cuisine, the group engaged in small talk about Billie's stay in Chicago, Paige's Witchlighter destiny, Henry's parolees, the Giants, the 49ers, and plain old life in general.
The voices floated into the kitchen. Sitting on the island in the middle of the room was the white-frosted cake Piper had a local bakery make for Paige. It was trimmed along its edges with pink-frosting roses. Happy Birthday Paige was written across its top in pink frosting, surrounded by five pink and white striped birthday candles in a finishing touch. Normally Piper would've made the cake, but the spell that was cast on her put her in a rush that wouldn't have given her the time.
Avo and the minion demon materialized beside the cake. "Keep an ear out at the dining room," whispered the demonic Darklighter. "Warn me if anyone comes this way."
The minion nodded and posted himself beside the kitchen door.
Turning to the candles on the cake before him, Avo black-orbed three into his hand and replaced them with the enchanted ones. He then turned to the minion.
"I've planted the candles," he hissed. "Make your move." The minion nodded as Avo dark-orbed away.
Spotting Piper's butcher knife on the kitchen counter, the minion grabbed it and charged into the dining room.
Phoebe heard the sound of running footsteps and turned to see the demon burst into the room and make straight for her, brandishing the butcher knife. Yelling a warning to the others, she leaped up from her seat, grabbed her dinner plate, and threw it into his face. She then seized the demon's hand, holding the knife, trying to wrestle it out of his grip.
Piper, now on her feet, thrust out both hands. "Move, Phoebe! I'll blast him!" she shouted.
Billie, Leo, and Henry had already jumped up from their chairs, and Henry rushed the demon.
"Henry, no!" cried Paige.
He ignored her. Tackling the demon to the floor like the high-school football player he had once been, Henry wrestled the butcher knife out of the intruder's hand. The demon, however, was stronger than Henry had expected; he effortlessly threw Paige's husband off of him and leaped to his feet. Henry hurled the knife at the demon, but the being shimmered out of its path and the butcher knife plunged into the dining room wall.
"Huh?" exclaimed Henry, looking around him. "Where'd he go?"
Suddenly, the demon shimmered in behind Henry, a fireball blazing in his hand. "That's for me to know," he said with a dark smirk. He hurled the fireball; it hit the parole officer in the back and sent him flying into the wall. Henry then landed on the floor with a thud.
"Henry!" Paige shouted as she ran to him.
Leo pounced on the minion and floored him with a haymaker. Mildly fazed by the blow, the demon leaped up and retaliated by launching a fireball at the ex-Whitelighter.
"No you don't!" shouted Piper. She flashed out both hands and froze the fireball in mid-flight. "Billie!" she called over her shoulder.
"I got it!" the girl answered. With a sweep of her arm, she telekinetically sent the fireball into the demon, but to Piper's and Billie's surprise, it didn't vanquish him. He merely fell to the floor and got up again.
Piper stared at him. "Why didn't he blow up?"
"I don't know," Billie said. She spotted the butcher knife embedded in the wall. "But maybe this will do the trick." She extended her hand, telekinetically pulled the knife out of the wall, and launched it at the demon to stab him in the chest. He roared in pain and staggered, clawing at the knife.
Piper finished the job by exploding the demon with a flick of her hands. "When a fireball and a kitchen knife fail, trust in your power to blow up the bastard," she said to herself in satisfaction.
Meanwhile, Paige knelt over her motionless husband, her hands hovering over his back. "Don't you dare die on me," she said tensely as gold light emanated from her palms. She moved them along the wounds, watching as the healing glow bathed and closed them. She gave a deep sigh of relief when Henry grunted, and turned him over to glare at him.
"Are you crazy?" she scolded. "That was not smart, Henry Mitchell!"
"Don't talk to me like I'm five years old!" Henry retorted. "You're my wife, not my mother!"
"Why would you risk your life like that?" Paige shot back. "What the hell made you think you could take that demon on? He could have killed you!"
"I wanted to prove my worth to you, Paige!" Henry snapped as he picked himself up. "You always make it seem like you never need any help with fending off these demons."
"You're mortal, Henry!" Paige protested. "You keep forgetting that!"
"And you keep forgetting we're a couple!" Henry shouted. "One day you'll need me to help you fight these guys! And if that makes me a bad husband, then I'm sorry!"
Paige turned to her sisters. "Please back me up," she implored. "Tell him he's wrong."
"But he's not," Phoebe said.
Paige's brown eyes widened. "What?" she exclaimed.
"She's right," Piper joined in. "Henry has a point." She nodded at her husband. "Look at Leo. He didn't want to sit around twiddling his thumbs after he fell from grace, remember?"
"No, I didn't," Leo agreed. "Piper tried to keep me safe after I became mortal. But I felt useless and wanted to pull my weight."
"And I couldn't stop you," said Piper, "no matter what I did -- crystal cages, Magic School. In the end I realized it wasn't your place to be sheltered." She turned to her sister. "You should be proud of Henry, Paige, cautious but proud."
Henry scowled at Paige. "See?" he told her. "You think I should be stuck at home, waiting for you to come back." He turned and marched out of the dining room.
"Where are you going?" Paige called after him.
"Out for some air," he answered. He left the Manor, slamming the front door shut.
There were several minutes of awkward silence, and then Paige sighed miserably. "Well, this has turned into one fantastic birthday, hasn't it?"
Phoebe put a supportive arm around her sister's shoulders. "Sweetie, this can be fixed," she said gently. "It's not too late. You and Henry have made a few mistakes and --"
"Uh, Phoebe," Paige interrupted. "No offense, I know the whole advice thing is what you get paid for, but I don't want to hear what a screw-up I am, and especially not today."
"I'm not telling you this because I'm a columnist; I'm telling you this because you're my baby sister. You and Henry have only been married for five months. You're both going through a period of adjustment, where newlyweds make the transition from being single to being a couple." Phoebe smiled reassuringly. "Despite what you see in the movies, it's not easy, so marital problems are expected and totally understandable."
"We don't think you're a screw-up, Paige," added Piper, "and you can't afford to think that either."
"I know. I'm a fantastic witch and a damn good Whitelighter, but a wife on top of it?" Paige shook her head. "I don't know if it can work." And she wanted to change the subject. "Can we cut the cake now?"
"Don't you want to wait for Henry to come back?" Piper asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Why? He left on his own; I didn't throw him out," Paige said as she returned to her seat and sat down.
Piper exchanged concerned glances with Billie, Leo, and Phoebe. "If you say so," Piper said. She disappeared into the kitchen to get the cake as Leo went to get Wyatt and Chris from the conservatory who stayed hidden from the attack.
Paige sat silently, tapping the table with her fork. On one hand she knew she was right, and the other she knew Henry was right. But at the moment it didn't matter who was right. He had walked away and she felt horrible.
At a signal from Phoebe, Billie switched off the lights. A soft yellow glow appeared as Piper emerged from the kitchen, carrying the cake with its five lit candles. She, Leo, Billie, and Phoebe began singing Happy Birthday to Paige, the little boys attempting to sing along. Paige smiled as the cake was placed down before her, her wounded feelings soothed by the family love that still presided in the room. When the song was finished, she stood to make her wish.
She closed her eyes. I wish Henry could understand magic as I do, she thought. With that, she leaned forward and blew out the candles, unaware of the dark magic she had just set into motion. Unaware of it as well, everyone else clapped.
"Presents!" Billie shouted gleefully.
"Nope, cake first," laughed Leo, handing Paige the cake knife.
(X)
Avo looked at Vilo, who sat with his eyes closed in concentration. The demonic Darklighter then gazed around his Underworld surroundings in anticipation.
The telepathic demon opened his eyes. "She wants her husband to understand magic as she does," he announced.
"And she'll get her wish," Avo said, smiling as twin demons in black suits, black shirts, and silk ties shimmered into view.
Avo nodded to them. "Power Brokers, welcome. Thank you for being prompt."
"Why are we here?" asked the first Broker.
"A Charmed One's birthday wish summoned you. I want you to make it come true."
The Brokers raised their eyebrows in surprise. "Help a Charmed One?" said the second one. "You can't be serious."
"I'm quite serious," replied Avo.
"What are we to do?" the first Broker asked. "Give her more power?"
"No, you're to give her husband his own gifts. She wants him to understand magic; what better way than by giving him powers that will unstabilize and then kill him?" He smiled. "Brilliant, don't you think?"
Vilo looked at his overlord curiously. "I don't understand. Why did you need enchanted birthday candles? Couldn't you have simply summoned the Brokers yourself?"
"If I had, then the Witchlighter would have found out and come looking for me. It's much better that she blames herself for what will happen to her husband." He gazed ahead of him thoughtfully. "I must admit, it's interesting to watch the Witchlighter's powers unfold; I didn't think it would be. I'm definitely learning more about her."
"So, the Charmed One's mate is human?" The first Broker asked and received his answer from a nod from Avo.
"What shall we give him?" the second Broker asked. "Fireballs? Energy balls? Lightning bolts?"
Avo smiled. "Lightning bolts are perfect; they use the most energy. Can you also throw in a teleportation power?"
"We can," the first Broker said with a nod.
"Excellent, then proceed," said Avo. "If I kill the Witchlighter's husband, she'll be too upset to track me. And as a result, she'll be weak enough to be felled by a demonic attack." Avo smiled. His plan was coming together and soon Henry would be a powerful being who would target his aggression at the person who's upset him the most…Paige.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed. Please Read and Review this chapter giving me your thoughts before you proceed to the next.