Disclaimer: I do not own "Charmed" or its characters or its demons, I make zero financial profit from this nor would I like to as it is merely for fun

Something Wicca This Way Comes

Part 1

"So when did you meet Jerri?" Phoenix questioned curiously popping some more popcorn in his mouth, the two of them sitting at the table playing with the old spirit board.

"About six months ago – right before Grams died. We met in the hospital cafeteria the day Grams was admitted. She was covering a story and I err… I had spilled coffee all over myself," Pan answered slowly looking slightly embarrassed, "so she handed me a napkin."

"How romantic," he prompted sarcastically.

"As a matter of face it was, the napkin had her phone number on it," Pan pointed out and Phoenix couldn't help but laugh, "stop pushing the pointer."

"I'm not touching it!" Phoenix protested as his brother stood up and grabbed the near empty bowl.

"You always used to push the pointer. More popcorn?"

"Hey, I forgot your question," Phoenix called out while his brother disappeared into the kitchen.

"I ask if Payt would have sex with anyone other than himself this year!"

"That's disgusting!" Phoenix pointed out turning back to the spirit board, "please say yes."

Phoenix had just started to sigh when to his shock the pointer moved, darting to the letter 'A' and pulling his hand with it. He blinked a few times in surprise, for a second wondering if he was imaging things.

"Pan…" he began only for the pointed to jump to 'T,' "Pan get in here!"

"What?" Pan complained returning from the kitchen while Payt came in from a different door scowling at them.

"What did you guys do now?" Payt demanded.

"Me? I didn't do anything."

"The pointer on the spirit board, it moved on its own," Phoenix said while they both gave him disbelieving looks, "I'm serious, it spelled 'A' 'T'."

"Well did you push it?" Pan wondered.

"No!"

"You used to always push the pointer."

"My fingers were barely touching it, look," Phoenix protested lightly putting his hand back onto the pointer, waiting expectantly but nothing happened. Frowning he glanced back at his brothers who started walking away and felt his hand tugged again as the pointed sprang back then returning to 'T' once more, "ah! It did it again! It moved!"

They turned back, still looking doubtful.

"It's still on the letter 'T'," Payt pointed out starting to sound irritated.

"I swear it moved," Phoenix said defensively while Payt just left, he glanced back to the board and noticed the pointer moving again, he jumped up realizing Pan was still watching, "there. Look. You saw that right?"

"I think so, yeah," Pan agreed.

"I told you I wasn't touching it," Phoenix stated triumphantly as the pointer began moving yet again.

"Payt, can you come in here for a sec?"

"Now what?" Payt demanded returning while Phoenix scrawled down the letters on the nearest paper which happened to be the back of an envelope.

"I think it's trying to tell us something," Phoenix announced showing them the envelope, "Attic."

No sooner had he spoken there was a tremendous clap of thunder and the power died sending them into darkness, Phoenix jumped despite himself but was no less deterred. He was going to look in that attic.

He hurried to get a flashlight from the kitchen, scrambling through the draws mostly by feel and the occasional flash of lightning to guide him. He could hear his brother's argument from the foyer.

"Don't you think you're overreacting?" Payt was saying, "we're perfectly safe here."

"Don't say that, in horror movies the person who says that is always the next to die!"

"What are you a teenage girl? You can't go running to Jerri's because of a stupid spirit board! What will she think of you?"

"Well then I'll… I'll just wait in a cab until I think of something to tell her," Pan babbled nervously.

"That'll be cheap."

"Payt, I saw that pointer move!"

"No! Look, what you saw was Phoenix's fingers pushing the pointer," Payt insisted and Phoenix couldn't help the bubble of anger he felt at still not being believed as he finally grabbed a working flashlight, "there's nothing in the attic, he's playing a joke on you."

"You don't know that! We've lived in this house for months and we've never been able to get that attic door open… Great, now the phone doesn't work!"

"Yeah, the power's out. Look, go with me to the basement," Payt continued as Phoenix headed to the stairs.

"What?"

"I need you to hold the flashlight while I check the main circuit box," Payt explained as Phoenix reached the stairs, sparing a glance for his brothers.

"Phoenix will go with you to the basement, won't you Phoenix?" Pan begged pleadingly but Phoenix had already made up his mind besides he didn't like the basement.

"Nope. I'm going to the attic."

"No you're not!" Payt commanded.

"I am not waiting for some handyman to check out the attic and I'm certainly not waiting until tomorrow, I'm going now," Phoenix announced daring Payt to challenge him but the older man simply stalked into another room as he climbed up the stairs.

"Payt, wait!" Pan called following their brother.

Phoenix ignored them and continued upstairs, finally reaching the final flight of stairs leading to the door. Without hesitation he ran up to it and grabbed the handle, finding it locked, he tried a few more times more forcefully but it still wouldn't budge. It always worked in the movies. He gave it one last effort by kicking the door and instantly regretted it, painfully stupid thing to try barefooted.

Cursing silently he started back down the stairs only to hear a loud, slow creek. Hesitantly he turned back to see the door opening, triumphantly but cautiously he entered the attic. Shining the flashlight briefly across all the old junk before he was drawn to a trunk, bathing in light.

He walked over to it and shoved it open, seeing a large, thick and extremely dusty book. Curiously he picked it up and blew off the dust off, marvelling at the odd symbol on the front. He sat down and opened it.

"The Book of Shadows," he read the title a loud and turned the page, "

Here now the words of the witches

The secrets we hid in the night

The oldest of Gods are invoked here

The great work of magic is sought

In this night and in this hour

We call upon the ancient power

Bring your powers to we siblings three

We want the power

Give us the power."

"What are you doing?" Payt demanded and Phoenix spun around to see his brothers entering the attic.

"Uh… reading… an incantation. It was in this Book of Shadows, " he answered slowly, "I found it in that trunk."

"How'd you get in here?" Pan wondered.

"The door… opened."

"Wait a minute, an incantation? What incantation?"

"It said something about there being three essentials of magic. Uh… timing, feeling and phases of the moon. If we were ever going to do this, now – midnight on a full moon – is the most powerful time."

"This? Do what?" Pan questioned nervously while Payt snatched the Book from him and began glancing through it.

"Receive out powers."

"What powers? Wait, our powers? You included me in this?"

"No, he included all of us," Payt pointed out reading from the Book, "Bring your powers to we siblings three. It's a book of witchcraft."

"Let me see that!" Pan snapped taking.

Payt snorted with disapproval and just started walking away, Phoenix and Pan hurrying after him.

"Spirit boards, books of witchcraft," Payt began ranting, "it figures all this freaky stuff started when you arrived."

"Hey! I wasn't the one who found the spirit board!"

"But it wasn't my fingers sliding around on the pointer!"

"It doesn't matter!" Pan interjected, "nothing happened, right Phoenix? When you did the incantation?"

"Well my head spun around and I vomited split-pea soup, how should I know?"

"Well everything looks the same."

"You're right," Phoenix reluctantly agreed glancing around the house, not sure what he was expecting but it didn't look different.

"This house still needs work," Payt complained.

"Everything feels the same so nothing's changed."