Post by StoryGirl83 on Jul 26, 2012 0:22:11 GMT -5
THE TWICE-CURSED CHILD TRILOGY
PART ONE - HIS BEGINNINGS...
Written by StoryGirl83 and LexiCharmed
Edited by Esmeralda and Silverstar03
Disclaimer: We do not own anything Charmed. If we did, the end of Season Five and the beginning of Season Six would've been more like this. Warren, the Twice-Cursed Child, is our original character and cannot be used by others without our permission. This story takes place in an alternate universe starting ten months after the events of "Necromancing the Stone", and ignores all episodes after it, including the Charmed comics.
CHAPTER ONE: The Power of Four
PART ONE - HIS BEGINNINGS...
Written by StoryGirl83 and LexiCharmed
Edited by Esmeralda and Silverstar03
Disclaimer: We do not own anything Charmed. If we did, the end of Season Five and the beginning of Season Six would've been more like this. Warren, the Twice-Cursed Child, is our original character and cannot be used by others without our permission. This story takes place in an alternate universe starting ten months after the events of "Necromancing the Stone", and ignores all episodes after it, including the Charmed comics.
CHAPTER ONE: The Power of Four
BACKGROUND - MAY, 2004
Ten months have passed since the wiccaning of Wyatt Matthew Halliwell and things have been going pretty good for the Halliwells.
Piper and Phoebe have slowly but surely accepted the fact that Prue is truly gone, while Paige finally feels like a sister, and not just a substitute for Prue in the Power of Three.
Leo is busy with his charges while still making a lot of time for his wife and son. Piper herself has accepted the fact that it's just as important for Leo to take care of his charges as it is for him to be her husband and Wyatt's daddy. She's busy with P3; Paige has decided to go back to social work rather than temp jobs; and Phoebe is busy with "Ask Phoebe"...and Jason.
Although Phoebe knows that she will never completely forget Cole, she also knows that she has once more found love, this time with Jason. In fact, Jason has decided to move his main office back to San Francisco to be near her. It took Phoebe a long time, but she finally admitted to herself that she loves him and decided to let him in on the family secret a couple months ago. And Jason loves her enough that he accepted it right away and didn't immediately print it on the front page of The Bay Mirror. His connections have actually helped her and her sisters save a number of innocents. Now she is expecting a marriage proposal at any time, and when it happens, she plans on accepting.
But what none of them know is that while they have been building their lives, power has been building up in the Underworld. Power in the form of two patient and yet as-of-yet-unknown demons.
Ever since the vanquishing of Cole Turner, another powerful being has become a vessel for the essence of the Source of All Evil. This demon not only holds the powers of the Source, but also has a Seer advisor of his own. She is the sister of the previous Seer and is determined to succeed where her sister failed.
Even before this demon became the Source, these two have been watching the Halliwells for many years, ever since they first became Charmed. They watched as the original Source failed; they watched as Cole and the Seer's sister failed.
Now, two years after the Source's ultimate demise, they are ready to act. It is their mission to counteract the Twice-Blessed Child by bringing forth the Twice-Cursed Child, the child prophesied to be born from an unholy union between a Charmed One born from a forbidden union and a great evil-the one destined to destroy the Halliwells once and for all.
THE SEER'S LAIR
The Seer stood, her eyes opaque, watching in her mind's eye as the half-whitelighter walked out a very recognizable front door. Satisfied with this turn of events, she pulled herself out of the vision and her eyes cleared up only to reveal the large, dark, robed-covered shape of Kernus, vessel of the Source of All Evil, staring at her impatiently.
"Are the signs lining up?" he demanded.
The Seer smirked. "Quite nicely, Master. Today is definitely the day. And in a few hours the half-whitelighter will be going to the beach. Alone." She emphasized the last word to assure Kernus that nothing would interfere with their master plan. Although powerful as a group, the Charmed Ones were vulnerable when separated. Kernus need only prepare his spell in the location she would provide.
"You have the spell?"
"Yes. If all goes well on this powerful day of evil magic, the Charmed Ones will be no more and one of them will be forever evil, a half-warlock, half-darklighter rather than a half-witch, half-whitelighter. Enjoy yourself, Master."
"Oh, I shall. I definitely shall."
BEACH ON THE BAY
A flash of flame and Kernus appeared on the beach, supplies bundled together in a blanket. He spread out the blanket enough so he could access the supplies and started working, putting cursed talismans on a long string. It seemed like trivial work, but he trusted no one but himself to get the job done properly. Nothing could interfere with the day's events.
Hours later, just as the sun began its ascent, the long line of string and talismans formed a circle and were hidden neatly under a thin layer of sand. With a pleased smile, he flamed out.
THE MANOR
Paige sat on her bed, talking on the phone. "Thanks. There're just a lot of things going on lately, and I really appreciate you giving me some time off, Mr. Cowan." What she heard next made her grin. "Yeah, I'm glad I decided to come back, too. I'm so much happier and I really appreciate this opportunity. Thanks again. I'll see you tomorrow."
She waited a moment before hanging up. Then, picking up her art supplies, she walked out of her room and down the stairs. Just as she reached the foyer, Phoebe walked in from the kitchen with Wyatt in her arms. "Isn't it a bit early to be going out?"
Paige shook her head and pursed her lips in a small frown, as she set down her supplies so she could grab a light jacket.
Phoebe gave her a knowing smile as she readjusted Wyatt on her hip. "Finding out that Glen and Jessie are going to have a baby getting to you?"
"Yeah. Even though they said that they were going to name it Paige if it's a girl, it still hurts thinking that she could've been mine."
Phoebe, remembering the feeling of being pregnant with the child of the man she loved, nodded. "I understand."
"I convinced Mr. Cowan to let me have the day off. I just want to go to the beach and paint for a while, get away from people. I just need some time in my own head, you know?"
Phoebe nodded. "You deserve that time off, Paige. Enjoy it. See you tonight?"
Just as Paige nodded, Wyatt waved his little arm. "ByeBye."
Paige chuckled as she clucked him on the chin. "Bye, Wyatt. You be a good boy now."
She grabbed her painting supplies and headed towards the door as Phoebe turned towards the living room, telling Wyatt, "Good thing I have the day off with both of your parents working and now Paige, too. I know that Piper can always call your nanny - thank God she's come back since we've hardly had any d-e-m-o-n attacks since your mom told off that nasty old crone - but you'd rather have one of us, right?"
"FeeFee! FeeFee!" and that made her grin.
They could hear the door shut behind Paige as Wyatt looked up. "PayPay" he said, making Phoebe laugh as she walked over to the TV, turning it on and then flipping through the channels, looking for a cartoon show to entertain her nephew. But Wyatt wasn't watching the TV; he had his neck craned to the wall behind his Aunt Phoebe's head.
Had she turned around, she would've seen a distortion ripple against the wall before a demon flamed out.
P3
Piper was busy in her office, having come in early so she could catch up on her books, when her door opened. She smiled when one of her bartenders stuck his head in. "Hey, Piper."
"Hey, Brad. What are you doing here?"
"Well, I was in the neighborhood, so I decided to tell you in person rather than call you on the phone. Something's come up and..."
He didn't have to finish. Brad was one of Piper's first P3 hires and had always done his job well. She couldn't remember the last time he'd made a request like this, so she interrupted with a smile. "No need to continue. Go ahead and take the night off. We can handle it."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. See you tomorrow night."
Brad grinned. "Thanks," and he closed the door before making his way into the empty nightclub. With a sinister grin, he flamed out.
BACK TO THE BEACH
Kernus, AKA Brad the Bartender AKA the Source of All Evil, flamed in, checking to make sure that all of the talismans were still in place. After doing a once-over, he picked up the two ends that formed the circle and waited. Eventually, the sound of light footsteps on the sand reached his ears.
Seeing the half-whitelighter walking down the hill toward the beach, a sad smile on her face, made a large one beam on his. He watched as his target reached the beach and walked across his string before setting up her own supplies, including a half-finished painting of the peaceful scene. He couldn't help but note that the Seer's predictions had been faultless. His circle of talismans fit perfectly around his target.
Smiling evilly, Kernus connected the two ends and tied them together. The visible talismans glowed red for a second before returning to normal. Reaching into his blanket knapsack, he pulled out a large crystal which he placed on ground outside of the circle.
Then he started to chant.
Paige added several more strokes to her painting, mirroring the scene in front of her. She was so caught up in what she was doing, she didn't see a shaft of dark light shoot down from the sky, striking her and coursing through her body.
She paused, dropping her paintbrush as a strange feeling welled inside her. For a moment she struggled to fight it, but the urge to fight disappeared just as soon as it had appeared. Then a malicious look crossed her pretty face. After a moment, she picked the paintbrush back up and started painting again.
Having seen that change in her expression, Kernus stood and dusted himself off. He waved a hand, disguising the crystal as a rock, before he walked across the barrier towards her.
As he approached her, she stopped painting and turned around. Seeing him, she set down her paintbrush before standing and stepping into his waiting arms. "What took you so long?"
He pressed his lips against hers. "You weren't ready for me."
"I'm ready now," and she pressed her lips against his, moving her hands down so she could pull him tight against her. "More than ready."
BACK TO THE MANOR
Wyatt sat on the floor of the conservatory, playing with a rattle. Maybe he was already a year old, but the toy had always been one of his favorites, mainly because he could use it to attract the attention of the adults of the household, the same way continuing to talk baby-talk got his messages across loud and clear.
Phoebe marched in, holding the spirit board under one arm. A look of relief crossed her face at the sight of her nephew. "There you are! That's no fair, Wyatt Matthew! I can't orb, so what are you doing playing impromptu games of orb and seek?"
Wyatt looked up, innocently. "Or an See?"
Phoebe couldn't help laughing as she shook her head and sat down on the floor with the spirit board. "I don't think I'll ever forget the first time we used this thing, Wyatt, long before you were born, and how surprised we were when it suddenly started spelling out things."
She turned the board over and read the words she'd read so often:
"To my three beautiful girls.
May this give you the light to find the shadows."
She sighed. "And it has. A lot. We don't use it all that much, but maybe we should." She reached out to touch her finger to the word "Mom". "I didn't know her, not at all. We saw her when we went to the past and when she came to your mom and dad's wedding, but that's still not enough."
She gave Wyatt a conspiratorial look. "Let's see if she will talk to us, shall we?"
Wyatt shook his rattle.
Phoebe laughed, taking that as his assent, and put her fingers on the pointer. Her laughing abruptly stopped, however, when the pointer pulled her fingers across the board to the "S". Her eyes grew wide in surprise. "Apparently she does."
As she watched, the pointer spelled out "SUMMON". Phoebe looked at Wyatt. "Summon? Summon who?" even as the pointer pulled her fingers again. This time it landed on "P", "R", "U", "E".
"Prue?" Phoebe cried. "Summon Prue!" She hadn't thought about summoning Prue in quite some time. In truth, a small part of her believed that, unlike with her grandmother and mother, she would never be allowed to summon her oldest sister. But the spirit board had spoken, and who was she to argue with the dead? She grinned at her nephew. "Hey, Wyatt, how would you like to meet your Auntie Prue?"
"Pwoo?" Wyatt asked.
Phoebe laughed then stood before reaching down to scoop up Wyatt. Leaving the board and pointer behind, she hurried towards the foyer and the phone. "Who do I call first, Wyatt? Your mom will want to see her and I think your Auntie Paige will. And so will Grandpa...well, I'm not sure about him. The ghost part might bother him."
"PayPay!" chanted Wyatt. "PayPay!"
"Paige?" Phoebe laughed. "You really think your Auntie Paige would want to meet Auntie Prue?"
"PayPay!" insisted Wyatt. "PayPay!"
She started laughing again. "Very well, Paige it is." But although Paige's phone rang and rang and rang, there was no answer. "Sorry, Wyatt, Auntie Paige must be out of range. How 'bout we call your mom instead?"
"MaMa!"
"Yup, Mama it is."
"DaDa?"
"Nope, sorry, I'm afraid I don't have a phone number for your dad. And if he's not around, that means he's with a charge. It sounds like Mom wants us to summon Auntie Prue now, so we better not wait, Or maybe it's Auntie Prue who wants us to summon Auntie Prue now. Maybe even Grams. Whoever, we better not wait," and she made another call.
AT THE GROCERY STORE
Piper, finished with P3's paperwork, was doing the weekly grocery shopping. When her cell played out Phoebe's ringtone, she quickly grabbed the phone, worried about Wyatt. "Phoebe?"
"I was showing Wyatt the spirit board and..."
Piper rolled her eyes. "Unless this is an emergency, start over with 'Hi, Piper', or I'm gonna start panicking."
"Hi, Piper. I'm summoning Prue."
Piper's eyes widened and she nearly dropped the phone. She vividly recalled the last time she attempted to summon her dead older sister. "Phoebe, we've never been able to do that. What's so different now that makes you think this will work? And why the sudden interest? Did something happen?
"I tried to tell you. I got a message on the spirit board. It said 'Summon Prue'. Piper, it should be okay. It's been three years!"
"You should call Paige."
"Already did that, but she didn't answer her cell."
"You called Paige first?"
Phoebe had to chuckle. "Your son's idea. Anyway, I need to get off the phone, so I can get things set up. I'll try calling her again," and Piper agreed.
AT THE MANOR
But there was still no response from Paige. "Crap! I was gonna ask her to orb here so she could watch you."
"Or an See! Or an See!" and with that Wyatt orbed out.
Phoebe sighed in frustration. "Yes, exactly. The game would be a bit more fair if you were playing it with someone who could also orb!" Even as she grumbled to herself about her lack of active powers, she yelled out, "Leo!"
Immediately blue-white orbs appeared and formed into her brother-in-law. He looked around, anxious. "What's wrong? Where's Wyatt?"
No sooner did he speak than Wyatt orbed back. "DaDa!"
Leo grinned, reaching down to pick up his son. "There's my little buddy. Have you been a good boy for Auntie Phoebe?"
"FeeFee! FeeFee! Or an See! Or an See!"
Leo looked Phoebe, confusion etched over his face.
"Orb and seek, which is exactly what your son has been doing."
"You called me because my son is playing a game?"
"Pwoo!"
"Prue?" Leo asked. "Why would Wyatt be saying Prue?"
"That's what I was trying to tell you. I got a message on the spirit board to summon Prue. Know anything about that?"
Leo stared at her in shock, even as his heart ached at the thought of the charge he had lost. "No. I didn't think you girls were allowed to see her yet. So what did she have to say?"
"I don't know yet. I'm trying to set up the crystals, which means I can't keep an eye on Wyatt. I'd call his nanny but only Piper or you can do that. And Paige isn't answering her cell and Piper is on her way home. "
"Phoebe, if someone wants you to summon Prue, you need to do so at once, not wait."
"You think it's that important?"
"Ghosts don't tell you to summon them on a whim. Usually they wait for you. It's a lot easier."
Even as Phoebe's eyes grew large with worry and a bit of fear, Leo added, "I was with a charge, but he doesn't really need me. Let's go up to the attic and do this."
"MaMa!" Wyatt insisted. "PayPay!"
"Wyatt's right, Leo. We should let both of them know that if they want to see Prue, they better get here as soon as they can."
Leo had to agree. "You go set up the circle; I'll phone Piper and Paige."
BACK TO PAIGE AND KERNUS
Paige and Kernus were still kissing, passionately now. Paige was running her fingernails up and down Kernus' bare back as he began pushing up her top so he could remove it. For the second time her phone began to ring insistently, but Paige kept right on kissing Kernus as she shoved her hand into her pocket, pulled out the phone and threw it down the beach as far as she could. Then she turned back to Kernus, lust on her face. "Now where were we?"
Kernus leaned in and began kissing her even deeper as he removed her top.
Paige murmured against his mouth, reaching out to undo his shirt buttons. "Oh yeah."
UP IN THE ATTIC
Phoebe put down the last candle and holder. She began to light them as Leo walked in with his son in his arms. "I couldn't get a hold of Paige," he told her.
"Can't you sense for her?" Phoebe asked. "Or should we scry for her? I'm not sure how much she'd like to meet her oldest sister, but Wyatt's insistent..."
"PayPay!"
"Well, I can sense her, but I can also sense that she's not alone," Leo told her. "Better see what Prue wants."
Phoebe nodded with an anticipatory smile as she began lighting the candles.
Wyatt shook his rattle. "Pwoo!"
Phoebe grinned as she looked back at her nephew. "Sometimes I think that kid understands us more than we think he does."
Leo's grin was even bigger. "My boy is smart," and Phoebe grinned back as she lit the last candle and stood up.
"Ready?" she asked even as Wyatt shook his rattle chanting "Pwoo! Pwoo!"
Leo nodded and Phoebe began to chant:
"Hear these words,
Hear my cry,
Spirit from the other side
Come to me,
I summon thee,
Cross now the great divide."
White orbs of light filled the air and the ghost of Prudence Halliwell appeared in the center of the candles.
Phoebe couldn't take her eyes off her sister. She was wearing the same clothes she was wearing when they buried her, even the same hairstyle. Phoebe took a moment to rememorize every detail of Prue's face.
Meanwhile Prue was looking at the three of them, her eyes lighting up at the sight of Wyatt. "Oh, Leo, he's so beautiful! Things down here are a bit blurry up there."
"Pwoo!"
Prue laughed. "Exactly."
"Prue, I don't think you had Phoebe summon you so you could meet my son, much as he is a delight." Leo's face was set in a business-as-usual expression, despite the ache he felt at seeing his lost charge.
Prue nodded, her face growing somber. "Right. Paige…"
"Paige?" Phoebe asked. "We couldn't reach her."
"Of course not. I can't believe we trusted a demon like that!"
Both Phoebe and Leo stared at her, startled. "Prue!" cried Phoebe. "Why bring that up now? It's been almost two years since we vanquished Cole!"
Prue gave them both an annoyed look. "Of course I know that. I'm not talking about Cole. I'm talking about the demon who's with Paige right now. At least, I think he's a demon. He might be a warlock. Whatever he is, he's trouble. More trouble than Cole ever was."
"What demon?" Phoebe demanded, pushing thoughts of Cole far from her mind.
"Are you saying that Paige is under attack?" Leo asked at the same time. "Where? I don't sense—"
Prue had to snicker. "Oh, I wouldn't say under attack, exactly. He must be a warlock because he did something to her and last I checked they were…kissing."
Phoebe stared at her in disbelief. "Paige was kissing a warlock?"
"Hey, little sis, you're not the only one attracted to the dark side!"
"Yeah, but Paige?"
Prue shrugged. "I think he cast some sort of spell on her. He must be a warlock. Maybe he's both. At any rate, he was chanting something about a powerful day of magic."
Leo frowned. "I'd better go check with the Elders," and he handed Wyatt towards Phoebe.
She nodded and took back her nephew before Leo orbed out while Prue focused back on her younger sister. "You have to find a way to stop that warlock before he gets whatever it is he wants from Paige."
Suddenly Phoebe grinned as she made the connection. "It's that bartender at P3, isn't it? Brad?"
Prue nodded, smiling appreciatively.
"I knew there was something off about him," Phoebe grumbled. "I've never seen him with anyone - male or female - and I don't know how often I flirted with him before I met Cole and before I met Jason, but he never once gave me the time of day!"
Prue shook her head, laughing over the fact that her little sister hadn't changed much. She started to give her a bad time but all of those thoughts vanished from her mind when the door opened and Piper ran in.
A broad smile bloomed on Piper's face. "Prue! Oh, Prue! I've missed you so much!"
Prue smiled sadly, desperately wishing that she'd be allowed to be corporeal so she could hug her sisters. "I've missed you, too, Piper. You have a beautiful little boy."
Motherly pride made Piper glow. After all, starting her own family was what had helped her finally move on after Prue's death. "Isn't he though? Looks just like his daddy!" She looked around. "Wait, where's Paige? Is she on her way?"
Prue slowly shook her head. "Actually that's why I'm here. That warlock you have working for you is trying to seduce her to the side of evil."
Piper stared at her in shock. "What? Paige would never..."
"Oh, yeah? Well, she was lip-locked with the warlock and I think you need to hurry."
Piper nodded. "Of course. Where are they...and...warlock?" Prue's words, had finally sunk in and Piper looked to Phoebe for answers. "What warlock?"
Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You know that bartender of yours who has never given me a second look? Well, now we know why."
Piper turned her shocked stare from one sister to the other. "Brad? You must be joking!"
"Piper, this is no joking matter," Prue insisted.
Piper stared, stunned. "But Brad? He's the very first person I ever hired!"
"Looks like he's been spying on us," Phoebe growled.
"Wouldn't be the first time demons infiltrated our work lives," Prue added, thinking back to Rex and Hannah.
Piper was still thunderstruck. "Brad? He never struck me as...wow. I never saw that one coming." She let out a deep sigh. "Alright. Where is he and what's he doing to her?"
"An empty beach on the bay," Prue replied. "And you don't want to know what."
Piper's eyebrows rose as she captured Prue's meaning.
"She told me she was going to go work on some paintings," Phoebe told them.
"Oh!" cried Piper. "I took a peek at the one up in her room last night. I recognized the scene – she'd done such a good job with it. It's down by the cove where Mom used to take us swimming."
Prue nodded. "Good. I have to go in a moment, but I know you'll set things straight. I love you guys."
Tears filled Piper's eyes. "Wait, Prue, don't go," she begged. "You just got here."
"I'm sorry, Piper, but I have to. But now that it's okay for me to visit, if you need me, just summon me. Also, just know how very proud I am of all of you. Be sure to tell Paige that she doesn't have to try to be me – she's wonderful just being her."
Piper smiled, knowing how much that would mean to their youngest sister. "We'll tell her."
"If we can get her away from that warlock before she turns evil!" Phoebe added.
"You will. If Piper and Paige could save you from Cole when he was possessed by the Source, you guys can certainly save Paige from a plain, old ordinary warlock!" and that made them all sadly laugh.
Well, all of them except for Phoebe. She could still remember the pull of evil all too well. Subconsciously, her hand drifted to her stomach. Sometimes she could still feel the sting of the evil fetus that once grew inside of her. At other times she wished that fetus hadn't been stolen from her. She remembered the potion that the Seer made her drink. She was certain that without its influence and through the power of her own love she could've raised that child to be good.
"Now go find her. I love you," and Prue left, surrounded by the white circling lights, as behind them Leo orbed in. Piper spun around at the sound of her husband orbing.
He sadly looked at the empty circle. "I see I missed Prue."
Piper nodded. "She said we really have to find Paige."
"She was right. We don't have much time. The Elders told me that today is a powerful day for evil magic, so powerful that it can turn powerful good into powerful evil, permanently, or until the next time the signs align, which in this case might as well be permanent. If Paige is under the influence of evil, then you have until sunset to reverse it. And you have to get her away from the demon responsible before you can reverse the spell."
"Of course we do," Piper said sarcastically, wondering why the Elders always waited until the last minute to give them this sort of news.
Leo's words, however, pulled Phoebe from her reverie and she caught Piper's eye, horrified at what might happen to their youngest sister. "Let's go!"
"No, I should go," Leo told them. "I can sense her and orb to her. It will be faster."
"You sure?" Phoebe asked and when Leo nodded, she agreed. "All right. You go, but take a camera so we can ID him in the Book."
Piper nodded and immediately reached for Prue's old digital camera, which was sitting on a shelf of the attic. She held it out to Leo. "Here. Let's see what we're up against."
Leo nodded and then orbed out.
"Book!"
"Book?" Piper asked, looking at her son. "You want us to read you a story?"
Wyatt shook his head and pointed at the Book of Shadows. "Book!"
Phoebe grinned. "Wow, little guy, you really are the smart one."
"Must come from being Twice Blessed," Piper said proudly. "Because you're both right. That's a very good idea. "
Phoebe nodded as she carried Wyatt over to the pedestal, telling him, "Let's see what the Book of Shadows can tell us about this evil day of magic." She opened up the Book and wasn't the least bit surprised when it flipped to the right page. She looked up. "Thanks, Prue!"
"Pwoo!"
Piper smiled at her son's words while Phoebe quickly scanned the page. "Well Piper, it looks like your son and Prue led us to some interesting stuff, but nothing about our demon."
BACK TO THE BEACH
Leo was happy that he could still sense Paige. It meant she was still salvageable. He orbed in some distance from where he could sense her and looked around. In the distance, he made out two figures on the beach, obviously doing more than just kissing, but it was through reeds and weeds, so it was hard to see clearly. That, however, was just fine with Leo. He started toward them, but something on the ground caught his eye. Stopping short, he squatted down and noticed the long line of string with talismans. Definitely something for the sisters to check out, so he quickly took a picture, happy when he was able to figure out how to do that with the digital camera.
Then he began walking around, looking for a better view of the couple, specifically the man. He finally found one. His face went beet-red when he saw Paige and Kernus falling down onto a blanket, both wearing only underwear. Just like Prue had said, their lips were locked, hands roving.
For just a moment, Kernus broke the kiss so he could look Paige right in the eye as he began pushing down her bra straps.
Leo took a picture of his face and orbed out as fast as was physically possible.
BACK TO HALLIWELL MANOR
Piper was brewing a potion while Phoebe had the Book on the kitchen table, nervously tapping her fingernails. Wyatt was on the floor, still playing with his rattle, making sure his mother and his aunt were aware that he was there.
"Okay, Phoebe, I've got the potion going," Piper announced as she walked over to the table. "Now show me what you found."
"Book!" cried Wyatt, shaking his rattle. "Pwoo! Book!"
Phoebe grinned. "Yes, Wyatt. You and Auntie Prue found the page in the Book for us."
Piper looked at the opened pages. "Most magical days. And it's written by Melinda Warren's mother, Charlotte." She began to read:
"There are two days of powerful magic.
One is for good. One is for evil. They happen so very rarely that most people forget they exist, but yesterday they overlapped and my daughter was born.
It will be over three hundred years before the day of evil happens again, and perhaps thousands before they overlap again. When they do magic can be accessed in ways it normally cannot.
I only hope that when the day of evil returns, my descendants, the descendants of my little Melinda, are there to protect the good.
Blessed be.
Charlotte Warren."
Piper looked up. "So the last time this happened was when we were in the past helping her give birth to Melinda in safety."
Just as Phoebe nodded, Leo orbed back in. "You're back. Did you get a picture?"
Leo took the camera off his neck. "Yes. Come and check out the screen. But one of you is going to have to work it."
Phoebe hurried over, taking the camera from him and shaking her head at him. "Leo, I know you lived in the 20's and 30's, but you really have to come into the 21st century," and Piper had to laugh, too, despite the concern she was feeling for her sister.
Phoebe quickly glanced through the pictures Leo had taken. "Oooo! Now this guy is hot! He doesn't look anything like Brad the Bartender!"
Piper rolled her eyes. "Phoebe..." but when she saw the pictures, her eyebrows also shot up. Tall and dark and muscular, this guy was a hunk. She could see how Paige could be attracted to him, even if her sister wasn't under magical influence.
"I think I recognize him from the Book," Phoebe told them and quickly walked back to it. Even as she did, the pages began flipping again. "Thanks, Prue!"
"Gwam!" Wyatt insisted. "Gwam!"
Phoebe looked at him. "Grams? Well, Prue was confused. Maybe Grams isn't." She started reading. "Oh! No wonder Prue was so confused. Piper, Leo, this guy is the Demon of Confusion!"
Leo looked at her with raised eyebrows; he'd heard of the Demon of Confusion and this wasn't good news.
"Like brainwash on steroids!" Phoebe continued. "His name is Kernus and he can take on the illusion and the powers of just about anything evil you can think about! That's why he could cast a spell like a warlock. In fact, the Book says that his powers makes him so powerful that the Source was afraid of him."
"So why didn't the Source just vanquish him?" Piper demanded.
Phoebe read a little more. "Couldn't. He kept confusing the Source into thinking that he was a different form of evil so the Source kept vanquishing the wrong being. They finally came to a truce, with the Source agreeing that Kernus would inherit the Source's power after the Source was vanquished, which, of course, the Source never expected to happen, but Kernus somehow must've known would. Piper! This guy is the new Source and has been since we vanquished Cole the first time!"
Leo nodded. "And right now he's lying down on the beach with your sister wearing nothing but his underwear – if he's still wearing those…" and his face went beet-red again.
"How close can we get to them?" Phoebe wanted to know.
"Can you make it go back a picture?"
"Sure," she replied as she did. "Why?"
"Well, you can get within about thirty feet before you run into these," and he used his finger to trace the talismans on the string. "If I'm not mistaken, I think you do that and you hit a magical alarm. I didn't test it, but if I'm right it will be too risky to test until we are ready to do something."
"So when we cross it, we'll have to be ready." Piper put in.
Phoebe nodded. "He'll probably want to flame out with Paige."
Leo shook his head. "He can't. I got that much from the Elders. He may want to, but in order to influence Paige to the side of evil, he would need to use something to concentrate the day's magic, and you know it's not something he's hiding in his underwear."
Of course Leo didn't mean that the way it sounded, but that didn't stop the girls from giggling.
Leo rolled his eyes in response, and then turned serious again. "But he has to keep her near that magical amplifier until sundown," he soldiered on. "Find that and you'll loosen his hold. Not break it, mind you, but loosen it enough to get her away from him."
He reached down to pick up his son. "Do you know that today is a day of powerful evil magic?"
Phoebe nodded. "We found it in the Book," and she went on to explain everything she'd read in the Book of Shadows.
"That will definitely make it more difficult to vanquish him," Leo sighed, trying to imagine the Demon of Confusion with the extra punch of the Source.
"But how?" Phoebe asked. "There's no vanquish for him in the Book."
"Well, a Power of Three spell may work, but you're down one witch for that. Even if she were willing, Paige can't help while evil."
"What about Prue?" Piper asked, hoping for a chance to see more of her beloved older sister. "We could summon her back."
"That won't work," Leo insisted. "Prue is no longer a Charmed One - not since Paige became Charmed. As you know, there's no such thing as a Power of Four."
Phoebe sighed, defeated. "Anything else we need to know?"
"You need to find out the exact spell cast and cast a specific one to undo it."
Suddenly Piper looked towards Phoebe. "Do you think you'd be able to get a premonition from the amplifier?"
"You mean of the past? That's a vision, not a premonition."
Piper glared at her impatiently. "You know what I mean."
Phoebe shrugged. "They don't just come at will, Piper; you know that. And I'd need to touch it in order to get the answers we need."
"I'm not certain if the amplifier will be enough for you to get a vision off it," Leo admitted.
"But it might."
Leo agreed. "The only problem is that if you destroy it, he'll know and have no reason to stay once you do. He needs to stay on Earth until sunset because the magic won't work anywhere else. If he goes anywhere, he'll take Paige with him."
"Right," Piper nodded, realizing that saving Paige wasn't going to be so easy. What was it with her sisters and an attraction to the dark side – and not just any dark side, but the ultimate Source of all Evil? "Well, I guess I'd better call Nanny for Wyatt."
BACK AT THE BEACH
Leo orbed himself, his wife and her sister just outside the boundary line. A few feet away, they could see two figures standing in each other's arms, faces pressed together, obviously kissing. Leo diverted his eyes, still embarrassed at what he had seen earlier. At least they were fully dressed again.
"Where's the amplifier?" Piper wanted to know, checking out the ground as best she could and trying not to think about what Kernus was doing with her youngest sister.
"Maybe it's hidden by magic," Phoebe suggested before quickly chanting:
"Magic hides and magic reveals.
Show to us what magic conceals."
A few feet away, the crystal reverted to its normal form, right in the line of Phoebe's vision. "It's there!" she cried, trying to keep her voice to a whisper but happy that her spell had worked.
"And it's on our side of the barrier," Leo added with a smile.
Phoebe quickly made her way to the crystal and bent down, cautiously placing her hand on it. She gasped as she was pulled into a vision of the past.
Once she came back to herself, she quickly returned to the other two while reaching into her jeans pocket to pull out the pad and pen she always carried with her in case she was inspired to write a spell.
"What did you see?" Piper demanded.
"Do you remember when we went to the past that Halloween? The festival and Ruth Cobb's house? Do you remember the talismans?"
Piper rolled her eyes. "How could I forget? I still remember the punch they packed! Although on that day, magic was doubled on top of being Halloween."
"But remember this is one of those special days," Leo reminded his wife while his sister-in-law jotted down something. "They'll still pack quite a punch now if you try to get through them."
"This is the spell he used on the talismans," Phoebe told them as she passed the pad to her sister.
"Remember, " Leo warned them, "you need to write the opposite - you need your counter-spell to say something about turning her good. And remember the crystal. He'll know when you do something to it but you need to in order to weaken it enough to say the counter-spell."
"And you said we also have to get her away from him," Piper nodded. "Although we don't know how far."
"I think as long as they're not touching, that will be enough," Leo speculated. "Maybe you can freeze him," he suggested, reminding his wife of the power she usually forgot.
Phoebe shook her head, even as she worked on the revised version of the spell. "I don't think so - remember; he's taken over as the new Source," Then her eyes brightened. "But, Piper, maybe you could blow him back. I'll read the spell while you take care of him."
"And the crystal," Piper sighed. "I'll have to explode that to weaken it." She nervously waved her hands in front of her. "How far do you think this shield of his goes?"
"It will probably be a dome," Leo answered. "Which brings the question of how will you get Paige out."
"We'll worry about that later," Piper decided with a labored sigh. "First let's get her back to good and thinking clearly."
"So then the spell," Phoebe agreed, as she held up the pad of paper. "How's this?"
Piper quickly read the spell and then nodded with a grin. "That should do it." She glanced back at Paige and Kernus through the reeds. At least they were dressed. That meant they wouldn't be dealing with a naked Paige running towards them - Piper was still haunted by the time they had orbed into her apartment before she agreed to move into the Manor.
"Well, if we're gonna try it, we'd better do it now," she decided, looking down at the crystal. "Get ready to say the spell." And with that, Piper flicked her wrists, shattering the crystal and sending shards flying everywhere. Then remembering what Leo had told her, she quickly flicked her wrists again, this time freezing all the shards before they hit anybody.
"Nice work," Leo grinned at his wife as Phoebe began chanting the spell. Piper watched Kernus as he jerked his head towards them.
"Before the setting of the sun,
Let the evil in our sister run.
Turn her back to an agent of good…"
Before Kernus had a chance to do anything, Piper flicked her wrists and Kernus flew backwards a short ways.
"Return the balance to be the way it should."
They watched as Paige backed away from Kernus, even as a dark light coursed through her from her feet up. The dark light shot into the sky.
Suddenly Paige waved her arm and called out something, although they were too far away to hear her. It must have been the demon because he momentarily disappeared in orbs and then reappeared further up the beach.
Even before he had fully formed, Paige started running away from Kernus. "Get away from me!" she screamed.
"Paige!" Piper shouted just as Kernus began to pull himself from the ground. "This way!"
Paige turned and, seeing her sisters, she gave out a small whimper and began running towards them. Just as Paige drew close, Piper held up her hands. "Freeze!"
Paige stopped in a panic. "What's wrong?"
"Talismans," Phoebe quickly explained. "They're all around you."
With Paige stationary, Kernus was moving closer. Piper quickly flicked her wrists again, shoving him back again, even as Paige stuck out her hand, calling out, "Talisman."
Orbs surrounded one of the talismans on the ground. Paige waved her arm to send the talisman somewhere else, but the talisman didn't move. Everybody frowned.
"Talisman!" Paige called again.
This time, before either of her sisters or Leo could protest, just as the orbs surrounded the talisman, Paige ran across the string and into Phoebe's arms. She wasn't sure what had just happened to her, but she knew she had to be safer with her sisters.
"Let's get out of here!" Phoebe cried, hugging Paige in relief, just as the talisman reappeared in the sand and Leo grabbed Piper's arm and orbed out with her.
Before Paige orbed, something in the back of her head was telling her to stay. She glanced back at Kernus who was once more running towards them.
"Paige!" screamed Phoebe. "Orb! Now!" so Paige shook the thought out of her head and orbed out with her sister.
Kernus growled in frustration and flamed out, leaving behind his useless talismans.
BACK TO THE ATTIC
Leo orbed in with his wife in tow. Piper instantly looked around the room. "Paige and Phoebe!" she panicked just as orbs filled the room, revealing her sisters. She quickly ran to her youngest sister and hugged her tightly, "We were so worried when Prue told us!"
"Prue?" Paige asked, confused, as she looked between her two sisters, still trying to process the last hour. "Prue came here?"
"We summoned her," Phoebe explained, before hunching her shoulders. "She kinda told us to."
"She said if we need her again we can summon her," Piper quickly told Paige, seeing the surprise on Paige's face. Piper wasn't too sure whether it was a good surprised look or a bad one; she knew how much Paige initially felt like a replacement for Prue.
So did Phoebe. "She also said that she's been watching all of us," she grinned. "And you don't have to try and be her – you're wonderful as you!"
Paige's cheeks went scarlet at these words from the big sister she had never met but sorta wanted to and sorta didn't want to. She wasn't sure what she felt about Prue watching her, but her oldest sister had helped save her today and she couldn't help feeling grateful. She supposed there were all kinds of guardian angels.
"Anyway," and Piper went into mother-mode. "Let's get you changed into something besides that," indicating Paige's clothing.
Paige looked down and immediately felt her face go red as she could now recall all the details of her "encounter" with the demon. She then turned up her pert little nose. "I think maybe I'll burn them."
Neither of her sisters could help it. Paige's words made both of them break into laughter.
"Okay, we can do that," Piper chortled. "How about over his ashes after we vanquish him?"
Paige joined the laughter, although with less gusto than her sister. "You've got yourself a deal!"
Phoebe sobered up. "At least we know who the demon is," as she broke into a proud grin – after all, she had been the one who found him. Well, with help from Prue and Wyatt. Thinking about Prue helping them save their youngest sister made Phoebe decide that Leo was wrong - the sisters had put together a pretty cool power of four – even if Prue was no longer Charmed.
"So we go back and vanquish him?" Paige asked, hope gleaming in her eyes. But the hope turned to disappointment when she saw both of her sisters and Leo shake their heads.
"Vanquishing him today isn't an option," Piper admitted. "Even the Source couldn't vanquish him and now he is the Source."
"The Source?" Paige groaned. "I thought we got rid of him. Twice!"
"No," Piper told her. "This is a new one."
Suddenly, Paige felt even worse. She thought her brief time as a vampire had been bad, but she had never felt more violated than she did right now. She almost recoiled at the idea of being so close to the Source.
Phoebe looked sympathetically at her little sister. She wouldn't wish her experience with the dark side on anyone, least not her younger sister.
"But the good news is that you three have vanquished two Sources in the past," Leo pointed out, trying not to linger on the fact that one of those Sources had had Prue killed and the other one was Phoebe's husband at the time. "So you will be able to do it eventually. Just not tonight."
"Tomorrow then?" Paige asked, causing her sisters to laugh. At least she was back to her usual, witty self…at least on the outside.
Suddenly little Wyatt orbed in. ""PayPay!" he squealed in delight, making Paige smile. "PayPay!" Wyatt instantly orbed so that he was standing at Paige's feet. Looking up, he raised his arms hopefully.
"Hey, sweetie," Paige smiled as she scooped up her nephew. "How's my favorite boy?"
"Wuv PayPay!" Wyatt said, wrapping his arms around Paige's neck.
"I love you too, Wyatt," Paige replied, hugging him back.
"Kiss?" Wyatt asked, puckering up.
Paige laughed as she planted a huge smacking kiss on his lips.
Just then Wyatt's elf-nanny appeared, as usual looking like she had just swallowed a lemon. "Wyatt Matthew Halliwell!"
Wyatt looked down at her. "PayPay!"
"Please forgive him, Nanny," Piper begged. "Paige has been missing and we just got her back. Wyatt was worried about her."
Nanny glared at her. "There better not be more demon trouble in this house! I warned you when I came back…"
Piper put her hand behind her back and crossed her fingers. "No, Nanny. No demon problem at all. Just a missing beloved auntie."
Nanny again glared at her. "Hurrumph!" and she vanished, making all three sisters laugh.
Just then the grandfather clock began bonging. Piper sighed. "I almost forgot, I've gotta get to P3. Are you girls gonna come tonight? You know who's playing!"
Phoebe bounced happily. "Oh, yes! Jason and I have been looking forward to this for weeks." But her bouncing subsided as her eyes turned once again to Paige. Would Kernus try anything else tonight?
"Piper, if you don't mind, I feel like staying in tonight. I feel like a night in with my favorite little guy," and Paige planted another smacking kiss on Wyatt's lips.
Even as Piper and Phoebe gave her a questioning look, Paige just shrugged. She wasn't sure how much Piper and Phoebe had witnessed down at the beach. Even if they were ignorant, she still felt violated. She knew a long, hot shower wasn't going to be enough to vanquish her memories, but she might as well try. A night at home to collect her thoughts couldn't hurt either.
Besides, she had to mull over the appearance of yet another family member - Prue. She had to deal with the fact that Prue was back…sorta. Until now, her sisters couldn't summon their oldest sister, but now they could.
But she didn't want to ruin her sisters' night with her worries and fears about something they wouldn't want to hear, especially not when they had been looking forward to this concert so much.
"PayPay! Wy an PayPay!"
Piper smiled. "I understand. And I'd just as soon not call Nanny again. But maybe Leo should stay here with you. Kernus is still out there, and for whatever reason, he seems to have targeted you. Leo?" and she turned to her husband.
"No, no, you should go," Paige insisted, turning to Leo with Wyatt in her arms. "The Manor is the safest place for me, I have Wyatt's shield, and I can call you if anything seems off."
Leo gave her his best concerned whitelighter look. Above all else he did not want to lose another charge or force his wife to lose another sister.
"Really, Leo," Paige insisted, "Go! Have some fun with your wife."
Knowing that the Warren women always got their way in the end, Leo turned his attention away from Paige and back towards his wife, a questioning look in his eyes.
Piper, who had been looking forward to a date-night with her husband, smiled her consent. Then it faded as she turned back to Paige, going back into mother-mode. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"
"Go," Paige insisted. "Have fun. You enjoy those guys while I enjoy time with your little guy," and now Piper's smile returned.
DOWN IN THE SEER'S LAIR
The Seer stood, an evil smile on her lips, as a very angry Kernus flamed in behind her. "Your plan failed, Seer."
The Seer slowly turned around. "Did it, Master?"
"Her sisters rescued her before the sunset. She's back to being good."
"Oh, we do not need the Charmed One to make my vision of the future come true. She would only have been a bonus."
"Damn your illusive chatter! You obviously did not tell me the whole thing. So tell me this plan of yours now. I'm ready to destroy them."
The Seer smirked evilly, ignoring the Source's outburst in a way only a practiced Seer could. "And destroy them we shall, although not right away I fear. The Twice-Cursed Child is now on his way. But he must be raised evil in order for him to fulfill his destiny."
"The half-whitelighter would never do that!"
"No, Master, she won't, but we will!" At that, the duo laughed sinisterly and began plotting their next move.
MEANWHILE AT P3
What Kernus and his Seer and the Charmed Ones didn't know was that while Kernus was seducing Paige and her sisters were discussing how to rescue her, the future version of Piper and Leo's younger not-yet-conceived son had stepped through a triquetra-shaped portal into the back room of P3. Since then Chris had been wandering around San Francisco, trying to figure out what was going on. He'd found a newspaper which had given him the shock of his life. He wasn't where he was supposed to be; he wasn't even when he was supposed to be.
Thinking over the spell that had brought him here, he couldn't figure out what had gone wrong. His brother, the Twice-Blessed Child, had written it and all of Wyatt's spells always worked. Why hadn't this one?
Worst of all, he wasn't sure how to get back home or even if he should go back.
Finally returning to P3, Chris walked down the steps into the club and then froze at the bottom of the steps as he spotted Piper and Phoebe with Leo and Jason.
"Dad!" he murmured, staring at Leo. "You're alive!"
What do you think? Do you want to read the next chapter?