"It's too bad we couldn't warn them about Melinda's fate." Phoebe said sadly. "Maybe the Elders got us out of there when they did, because they were afraid we would say something more."
"If Melinda doesn't go to Salem, someone else might die." Piper agreed. "Saying something might have meant sacrificing one life for another, that's not a chance anyone should take, especially when it comes to the past. Doesn't mean I'm not still pissed at them, this jerking us around stuff was old the first time they tried it."
"I'm going with Cordelia's nickname for them, Annoyances that Be, myself." Prue agreed. "Yes, helping protect our ancestor was necessary, their methods aren't."
"Oh!" Phoebe hurried towards something lying on the floor in the foyer. "The decoration I was holding earlier, it's changed!" She turned it around so the others could see it. Where before there'd been an old crone riding a broomstick passed a full moon, now there was a man and a woman, both looking decrepit, holding hands and flying without the aid of a broom. "We did change something, but how much?"
"Somehow the way witches are depicted hasn't changed, but the representation of them has." Piper touched the colorful cardboard. "It's real, but we remember both. I wonder if any of the Elders remember? Whitelighters, Cupids, any of them?"
"Any that were outside time, like Cupids, probably do." Prue said thoughtfully. "How many others, we might never know."
"For now, it's been a long day." Andy took the picture from Phoebe's hands and set it on the foyer table. "We all need some sleep, we can't deal with anything if we're exhausted."
"Because there's still the fact that someone evil traveled to the past first and did so in the hopes of helping the dark practitioner get ahold of Melinda." Leo reminded them. "Which would have destroyed her descendants as well, namely you guys and everyone in between."
"And that Triad that the Genie mentioned." Daryl added. "The two are probably connected to each other in some way, but that's still multiple enemies targeting you that you need to be alert for. Hard to see them coming if you're exhausted."
"Okay, you're right and given how tired I am, I think Andy and I should crash in my old room." Prue said. "Daryl, you can take Grams' old room, I don't want you driving when you're tired. Sheila would find a way to curse us if something happened to you and who could blame her?"
"I'm going to take you up on that, even though she'd probably make your lives living Hells rather then curse you." Daryl smiled tiredly and followed everyone upstairs.
Over at Xander and Cordelia's, Xander laid Cordelia on their bed and went to get a blood bag, he slapped it against her teeth and then slapped one against his own. Once they were drained he tossed the remains in the trash and looked at the clock.
"Ten minutes until All Hallow's Eve is over." He murmured. "Still time for me to tap into the Source of Magic again." His lips quirked slightly. "I have a message to deliver to those arrogant so-called higher beings. What better time than now?"
He gently touched Cordelia's shoulder and woke her up, if he left her out of this, she'd never let him hear the end of it. She blinked her eyes and focused on him. "Xander?"
"Still ten minutes until midnight and All Hallow's Eve is over. What to help me express our feelings regarding the Elders attitude to them?"
She smiled and reached for her power, whitelighters could orb to the Realm of the Elders, it's how they consulted with them after all. And now she knew she could do it carrying someone with her.
They materialized in the midst of figures wearing hooded robes.
"Who are you? How dare you invade our Realm?!"
"Really? That's the first thing you say to someone who may be an invader?" Xander raised his eyebrows. "Boy, are you lucky I choose to be on the side of good, if I didn't, I could have done considerable damage while you just stood there looking like an idiot."
"And if the stories are to be believed, this wasn't originally your Realm, you took it over. The stories say the first witch created it." Cordelia glared at the arrogant Elder. "Now we've got something to say and you're going to listen, whether you like it or not."
"I will not be dictated to by a lower being!" Another of the hooded beings said.
"Really? Lower being." Xander paused as he considered that thought. "You think witches, probably humans in general, are lower beings. The ones that fight the wars while you hide up here, all cozy and warm, safe. Like the cowards you are. You've overstepped your job requirements, we're just here to remind you of what those requirements are."
"We know well what our job is, we do not need you to tell us!"
"Your job is to provide counsel and healing to good witches, as well as information." Xander's eyes were glowing as he issued an order. "Not to be generals in a war you refuse to fight yourselves. You do not dictate to witches! You do not dictate to anyone. Someone, sometime, saw the need to create whitelighters and Elders. Doing that made the Powers decide a balance was needed and they allowed the creation of darklighters. That means that person bears the responsibility of the death of every whitelighter and good witch killed by a darklighter. What do you think those pricks that be will decide balances your arrogance and overstepping of your given boundaries? Think hard on that question, because they're more powerful than you, which means you answer to them! I may not like it myself, but I acknowledge it. I suggest you do too. And you most especially do not give orders to the Charmed Ones or myself or Cordelia ever again. You advise, you supply information, but you don't send any of us on missions without full disclosure or our accepting of a mission. Is that understood?"
"And what will you, yourself, do if we fail to heed your warning?" Another asked.
"I'm currently tapping into the Source of all Magic, if the stories are true, I can show you just exactly how powerful I have the potential to become. The first witch, the one who created the Realm you claim for yourself? It's said she had power to rival a god's. I'll give you a taste of my potential."
It's probably a good thing the Elders, unlike whitelighters, don't need food, which means they have no need to use bathrooms, considering a pissed off Xander Chase is capable of scaring demons and especially considering just how scared the Elders were of the very brief display of his potential power he gave them.
"Remember, you're not at the top of the food chain." Xander grinned. "Neither am I, but those that are, they're watching you."