A Kind of Magic
part 5
"You have failed me."
"And I can explain," the demon declared. "There was an interference so to speak."
"Go on."
"The girl's father. He used his magic on me, and-"
"And I told you that magic was not an option. How am I supposed to have pity on you, if you can't follow a simple rule?"
"I never meant to. It was an accident."
"And so will be your death," she replied coldly.
"No, wait," the minion pleaded, clearly stricken with fear. "I have been your servant for many years now. I have never failed you until this point. I beg you. Have mercy on me. It won't happen again."
"That's a very poor excuse on behalf of your life," she concluded.
"I froze that woman. She saw nothing, I assure you."
"You should have just gotten rid of the troublesome human," she retorted, carefully inspecting a fingernail.
"But the girl. She knows."
"And it just saves us from telling her ourselves, you fool."
"Yes. However, they might- well, she already knows to suspect us."
"Which gives me another reason as to why I can't possibly let you live."
"But Boss-"
"You're wasting your breath. And trust me, you're going to need it."
"Please don't."
"If I'm to send you to their home, how can I depend on someone they're expecting?"
"Shall I go with someone then?"
"One chance," she whispered. "And if you screw it up? It will be your loss. Not mine. Understood?"
"Yes."
"Good. And you are aware that the witch and her husband have more than likely let their sisters in on it as well. I mean, with their powers, do you really think you'll prevail? It's truly seems like quite the competition for someone like you."
"Boss-"
"I'm sorry, but devoted or not, you have to go. See you in Hell."
"What?! But-"
"I lied," she sneered, the corners of her ruby red lips twitching themselves into a cruel smile. She pointed a slender finger at him, watching as he exploded into an array of flames. Chuckling softly to herself, she merely shrugged, snapping her fingers together.
A girl appeared in front of her in a blue cloud of smoke, her arms planted firmly across her chest. Her eyes shone a deep set green in color, and glowed in the dim light that surrounded the small room.
Turning her chair in the direction of the cameras, each positioned at a different angle, she pointed to one in particular, giving her new companion a nod. "Here," she said quietly. "Your job is to take this little girl, and bring her back to me. Fail, and you'll be nothing more than a pile of ash."
**********
"Okay. Um...remember when I used to tell you those stories? You know, the real outrageous kind, where your mom always got really angry, and told me to stop?"
"Yes. Those were fun."
"What if I told you that she approved to let me tell you one more?"
"Really?"
"Really."
"I want to hear the story," Alex Turner pleaded.
"All right. Well, it starts out in a manor, okay? A great big manor on a nice friendly street with friendly neighbors. Three sisters lived together there, and they were very special in such a way that remained a secret to everyone else around them. Each of them could do something to help people. Like...one could move things with her eyes and hands, another could freeze objects, and the last one, the youngest, could see into the future. She would know something was about to happen before it actually did."
"Like magic?"
"Yes, but like I said, they helped people with their magic, and were very useful."
"Like you do."
"Right."
"What about Mommy?"
"Your Mommy...listen, Ally. One of the sisters didn’t make it. She died when a very bad man came after her, just like the one who was after you today...only meaner. And her sisters were unable to save her. But what they didn't know, was that there was a fourth sister who was just like them."
"Really?"
"Yes. And so their powers, well, they made The Charmed Ones complete once again. This other sister was able to go from place to place, call for objects...and they would come right to her."
"In pretty blue sparkles," Alex finished, grinning.
"Pretty much."
"It's Aunt Paige," she guessed.
"Yes, and your Aunt Paige is very special. These sisters were...are destined to do good things, as they come from a long line of women just like them."
"So what are they, Daddy?"
"Witches," he brought forth carefully. "But Uncle Leo, me, and your grandpa...are the only ones who know. Well, Paige's friend Glen, but he's never around to begin with, so you don’t even have to worry about him."
"Ooooh," the little girl whispered, her eyes growing wide.
"Mmm hmm. So you can't tell your friends. Because if you do tell them, your mom, Aunt Piper, and Aunt Paige could be in some trouble. Bad men will come after them, too."
"Are you a witch, Daddy?"
Cole laughed. "No, sweetie. I just happen to have a few tricks up my sleeve," he said quietly.
"Well. If Mommy was able to tell what was gonna happen-"
"How do you know that your-"
"Because Mommy called you on the phone at school. You were all sad. I think she knew the bad man was coming."
He nodded. "Did you also know that if your Aunt Piper gets really angry, she likes to blow things up?"
"Wow."
"And let me tell you, it happens quite often."
"Can you do some magic?" his daughter pleaded.
"No, see what I think we should talk about now...is your magic."
"But I don't have any," she said, putting her hands up in defeat.
"Of course you do."
"Like what? You're making this up, Daddy."
"Ally-"
"I told Aunt Paige that it's not good to lie. She lied to me earlier, while you and Mommy were talking."
"You're a descendant of your mother's line," he explained. "That means you've had powers since you were born."
"What kinds then?" she asked, warming up.
He smiled, still focusing his gaze on the tiny innocent before him. A part of him was torn, wondering if he truly did want to attempt this, and another part was still struggling to deal with the inevitable consequences. Despite Phoebe's sudden agreement with him, he still knew that she wasn't the least bit okay with it. In fact, it probably broke her heart more than ever, to know her child's life was so highly valued for an evil purpose. He cleared his throat. "Well...you can do quite a few things."
"But what are they?" she begged impatiently.
"You take after your Aunt Prue," he noted. "Which is why you're probably considered, or...will be considered one of the most powerful witches of your time."
"Aunt Prue," Alex repeated. "Is she the one that died, Daddy?"
"Yes. But she was the strongest. And while you can easily do telekinesis, there's something else...that, um...Prue couldn't do."
"What's that?"
"Throw energy balls."
"But that's bad, right?"
"Not necessarily. I had that power myself when I was half demon."
"Demon? Is that like monsters?"
"Kind of. Only a little more scary."
"Were you really scary?"
"Your mom didn't seem to think so," he joked.
"Am I a demon, too?"
"No. But you also have the ability to take yourself from place to place. It's not a shimmer or an orb, but more of a glow."
"Can I glow now?" she asked excitedly.
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because you don't have your powers now."
"You lied then, just like I said," she accused, pointing a petite finger at him. "It was a lie."
"When you were just a baby, your mother and I, we said some magic- a spell, and took your powers away. We didn't want to see anything happen to you. Aunt Piper did the same with your cousin Melinda. Only, Melinda's powers never came close to being as special as yours. She can orb, but she's almost exactly like your Uncle Leo and Aunt Paige. A whitelighter."
"But Uncle Leo does nothing all day," she countered. "Every time I go to visit him and Aunt Piper, he's always watching TV."
"Yes, okay. So maybe he's gotten a little lazy over the years, but he can have blue sparkles, too. Just like your Aunt Paige's."
"And I want to use my powers."
"You still have one more," he told her, his voice just above a whisper. "You can throw fire, too. I can't say that I know what to make of this, because it's basically associated with pure evil. The Source had this power. He could throw balls of fire… and now, well, so can you. You have to use it wisely, and you can’t use it for personal gain. If you were ever to use it against us-" He stopped, catching himself. "Look...why am I even telling you all of this? You're probably too young to understand. It's just- I care so much about you, and I think that, in a way, this act of binding has protected you up until this point. But given the freedom, you could go either way."
"Is there something wrong with me?" Alex asked helplessly. "Am I a mean person, Daddy?"
He pulled her close, gathering her tiny frame in a tight hug. "No, sweetheart. There's never been any evil in you. Ever. You have to believe me. It's not the powers you have-"
"It's how you use them," a voice echoed.
"I didn't hear you come in," Cole said quietly.
"I was lurking," she offered, smiling. "And, well, I can't really be of much help downstairs, can I?"
"Are you and Mommy ever gonna get back together?" Alex piped up eagerly.
Cole cleared his throat, averting his gaze. He slowly brought it back to meet his daughter's, painfully wincing. "I...I don't think so," he told her honestly.
"Why not?"
"Um...see, sometimes two people think they belong together, but they- well, they find that later on they express entirely different views. It's...like you playing with your dolls one day, then...suddenly deciding you want GI Joe the next. It's not because they've fallen out of love, it's just the issues that may never be resolved. But that's beside the point. There are more important matters-"
"Yes, thank you, Cole. I think you just gave her the complete 411 on stereotypical relationships. You act like we've never been happy since we got married."
"Phoebe-"
"Don't I get a-"
"Well, I didn't, did I?"
"Okay, keep it up," she quipped angrily.
"Yeah, and while we're on the subject? Why is your sister lying to our daughter?"
I'm sure we all have at some point."
"Oh, well, that's a relief, because I was beginning to think she really did live in a perfect world."
"And I just hate this attitude you've got now. Need I say how attractive it's not?"
"What's GI Joe?" came a small voice.
Both eyes turned toward the inquisitive four-year-old. She certainly had quite the knack for saying exactly what was on her mind at any given time. She sat atop her bed, grinning, as she played with one of her long brown curls.
"It's a toy that boys like," Cole explained.
"Yes, and what follows is that whole Charles Bronson phase that men like," Phoebe added sarcastically.
"Oh, would you just give it a rest?" Cole pleaded, rolling his eyes.
"Guys, we've got company," Paige spoke up, peeking around the doorframe. .
"What? What do you mean?" Phoebe asked curiously. "Is it Dad and Melinda?"
"Nope. Definitely another demon, and....she looks pretty cranky," she filled her in, shrugging.
"She's a woman," Cole deadpanned. "What did you expect?"