A/N: Hey, sorry for the delay in updating. Things got crazy.
Anouki90: I've always been known for my wicked cliffhangers :)
CharmedOpal: You crack me up! Lmao. I love reading your reviews; they give me a good laugh! I'm glad you're enjoying so far!
GirlOnFire33: Like I told Anouki, I'm infamous for cliffhangers ;) Thanks! So glad you're enjoying it!
lizardmomma: Don't they always find their way to the attic somehow, at some point? Haha.
Sorry if this chapter is a little off or rushed. I'm like, half asleep. But I feel awful you guys haven't had a chapter in 2 days and wanted to get this updated. So please read, review, and enjoy!
...
"Rebecca?"
Rebecca spun around, a hand to her heart. Melinda stood a few steps down from the landing, frowning up at her.
"I-I-I'm sorry," Rebecca stammered. "I was just..." How to explain? A disembodied voice had been calling to her, had led her to this door. How could she possibly explain that without sounding insane?
"No one is allowed up there," Melinda snapped, then immediately looked ashamed. "I'm sorry, that sounded rude. It's just, that door stays locked. No one is allowed up there. It's an old attic, and it can be dangerous."
It was the cover story they had all settled on; blame rotting wood, falling beams, and rusty locks. The attic had to be off limits, to protect the Book of Shadows, as well as their identities as witches.
"Oh, but, well, it's unlocked right now." Rebecca knew she sounded like a muttering crazy person; hearing voices will do that to a girl, though.
Melinda frowned, though she looked more like she thought Rebecca was crazy than like she was confused. "That's impossible. Only my Mom and Aunts... Aunt... go up there, and they always lock it behind themselves."
"If it had been locked, I never would have tried to get in," Rebecca defended herself, though she knew how ridiculous it sounded. "I shouldn't have snooped, I'm really sorry." She bit her lip, shaking her head. "Nothing excuses my behavior, but this door is not locked. See?" She grabbed the door handle and turned it – and it wouldn't budge.
Rebecca gaped, trying the door again... And again... And once more, just to be sure. But the door was bolted shut. The doorknob barely turned. Barely rattled. It was truly, completely locked, yet a few minutes ago, it had turned easily in her hand.
"Rebecca..." Melinda said cautiously, glancing at the attic door uncertainly. It was possible magic was involved, but how? Rebecca didn't even know she had powers yet. She had no reason to make her way to the attic. So what had caused her to wander up these steps? How had the door opened for her?
"Look, Melinda," Rebecca began, taking on a defensive posture. "I know you say-."
Suddenly, a demon shimmered onto the steps before Rebecca, cutting her off from Melinda and escape. The demon looked very Balthazar-like, but with green skin and blue markings. It had wicked-sharp teeth, and cat-like yellow eyes. He – because Melinda was positive it was a 'he', based on the description from Katelyn's vision – grinned at Rebecca.
She screamed.
The demon grabbed Rebecca by the throat, effectively cutting off her oxygen, the scream dying out, replaced by a choking gag.
Melinda threw her hands up, preparing to freeze the demon. But he caught her gesture out of the corner of his eyes, and he threw Rebecca at her, cutting her off. Rebecca slammed into Melinda, causing them both to crash hard onto the steps, then slide all the way back down to the second floor.
Melinda groaned in pain, helping a terrified Rebecca back onto her feet. She pushed Rebecca behind her, and faced the demon again. She tried, again, to freeze him, but he threw a fireball at them. Melinda yanked Rebecca out of the way, but was too slow in protecting herself. The fireball grazed her arm, cutting through the fabric of her shirt and taking off quite a few layers of skin. She hissed in pain, but barely had time to do more than duck, when another fireball came flying at her. She ducked just in time, and it slammed into the wall.
"Melinda!"
Corrine and Katelyn ran to their cousin's aid. Corrine helped Melinda stand, while Katelyn checked Rebecca over for bruises, and demanded she run like hell back to her room, where it was safe.
But Rebecca was too scared to run. Her eyes fixed on the demon, and she huddled on the ground, crushed against the wall.
The Halliwell Cousins stood in front of her, a solid wall of power.
...
"What's all that noise?" Piper asked cautiously, glancing in the direction of the stairs, then at Phoebe.
"MOM!
"Katelyn..." Phoebe murmured, eyes going wide.
"Demon. Demon from Katelyn's vision..." Piper said suddenly. She took off for the second floor, Phoebe close behind.
"Rebecca..." Paige gasped, finally putting two and two together. She hesitated only a second before running after Piper and Phoebe, taking the stairs two at a time.
...
When Paige finally caught up with her... well, her sister's (though it was still weird to think of them that way), the scene was chaotic.
Corrine, Melinda, and Katelyn stood in front of a cowering Rebecca, looking fierce. Unfortunately, their powers were still developing and Corinne was really the only one with an active power. Paige didn't have a name for what she was doing, but Corrine kept throwing her arm out, and it kept knocking the... the demon... backwards into the wall every time he attempted to come at them.
Melinda's upper arm was bleeding, badly, and the blood was running down the length of her arm, into the palm of her hand, and dripping onto the floor. She barely seemed to notice though, as she stood her ground.
Piper threw her hands up at the demon, blasting him with as much explosive power as she could. He only staggered backwards, looking angrier each time.
"Katelyn, shimmer Rebecca out of here!" Phoebe called to her daughter, never taking her eyes off the demon and Piper.
Melinda felt suddenly stupid. How had she not thought of that before? She used her good arm to grab Rebecca's hand, and suddenly they were gone.
Paige blinked, mouth dropping open in shock. Vanquishing Shax had been her only encounter with magic, and seeing something like that...
"Phoebe, we can't hold him off much longer," Piper growled, still concentrating on trying to blow up the demon who would not blow up.
Growling, the demon threw a fireball at Phoebe, who yelped and levitated, the fireball missing her by an inch. The demon snarled in frustration, and shimmered to Phoebe's side. Before she could lower herself back to the ground, or even attempt an airborne attack, the demon grabbed her by the ankle, spun her a few times, then sent her flailing into the wall.
She hit with a smack and slid to the ground, grabbing her ankle and wincing, rocking back and forth, almost in synch with the pain throbbing up her leg.
Piper gritted her teeth, and this time when she attacked, she froze the demon. He froze, but he was fighting it. Quickly, she grabbed a shell-shocked Paige and dragged her towards their fallen sister. Keeping hold of Paige, she used her free hand to grasp Phoebe's hand.
"The Power of Three Will Set Us Free," Piper chanted. She glanced at Paige. "Say it with us and keep saying it. It's our only chance right now."
So, together, the newly reconstituted Charmed Ones chanted their oldest and most powerful incantation. By the time the demon broke Piper's freeze, the incantation had taken effect, and he screamed in outrage – and hopefully pain, Paige thought grumpily – and then exploded.
The silence, after the intense battle, was almost deafening.
"Pheebs?" Piper glanced at her sister.
"Fine," Phoebe gasped, though she was far from fine.
"Leo!" Piper called, glancing skyward. "Leo, hurry!"
Leo orbed quickly into the hallway, taking in the scorch marks, the blood soaking the carpet, and the sister's, sprawled on the floor.
"Phoebe, heal Phoebe," Piper said, motioning to Phoebe's ankle.
He didn't need to be told twice. Leo got right to work, and healed Phoebe's ankle. Piper and Paige helped her up from the ground, and she leaned into Piper for a minute while she gained her balance.
"What happened?" Leo demanded, looking the part of the concerned Whitelighter.
"The demon from Katelyn's vision," Piper responded bitterly. "He attacked the girls. They're fine," she added quickly, at Leo's horrified expression.
"Actually..." Paige interrupted, pointing at the blood on the carpet. Piper and Phoebe glanced at it at the same time, then looked to each other, eyes wide. Neither had noticed Melinda's arm, in all the chaos.
"Melinda?" Piper called. "Melinda?!"
"In Katelyn's room," Corrine called back.
Piper, Phoebe, Paige, and Leo all rushed to Katelyn's room. They stopped short, taking in the scene: Melinda on Katelyn's bed, holding a bloodied towel to her arm; Corrine sitting beside her cousin, organizing the first-aid kit supplies; Katelyn trying to calm a hysterical Rebecca.
Leo rushed quickly to his daughter's side, nudging Corrine aside so he could heal her.
"Is everyone okay?" Phoebe asked, looking at each girl in turn.
"Melinda got it the worst," Corinne replied. "The rest of us, we just have some cuts and bruises."
Piper and Phoebe looked relieved. Everyone fell silent while Leo worked his healing magic and tried to collect themselves after such an intense battle.
Rebecca was the one to finally break the silence. She looked from the cousins, to Leo, to the Halliwell Sisters, and finally, to her mom.
"Will someone please tell me what the hell just happened?"