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Post by theswedishmystery on Jul 30, 2008 5:00:30 GMT -5
Disclaimer: I do not own the concept of "Charmed". This is a work of fan fiction and no infringement of copyright is intended.
Summary: Set after season seven. The Elders discover that Paige might not be their real sister and The Charmed Ones are falling apart. Just when they need each other the most - The Charmed Ones has a new enemy who has sworn to destroy them in the worst way possible. And he has called in some very unusual help to achieve this.
Author Notes: This is the first part in a complicated and maybe somewhat confused trilogy about The Charmed Ones.
This is my first fanfic ever. English is not my mother tongue so please forgive me for all the bad spelling and unimaginative language. I just had to get the story out of my head and I am very grateful for anybody who reads the d**n thing.
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Chapter 1. - Introduction
It was a cold and rainy day in October, around lunchtime, when Benny's team met their new client for the first time.
The sky was so dark that all the streetlights outside were already lit, when Benny and his three colleagues arrived at one of San Francisco's most expensive and over-designed hotels.
No one in the hotel lounge noticed them walking in - because all four in the team were invisible to the human eye. If the team had chosen to be seen by us ordinary mortals on that particular time, everyone in the hotel lobby probably would have panicked. Some would even have screamed and other would have fainted.
Why?
Well, because Benny and his team is Kalla Bong.
If any of you readers don't know what a Kalla Bong is - that is highly understandable. Very few know they exist. Very few non-demon-warlock-powerbroker-or-your ordinary-Underworld-citizen that is. This is because Kalla Bong belongs to the Underworld.
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Benny's new client had of course chosen a room on the highest floor, the one with the best view. This meant a long and hard climb for Benny and his teamsters.
You see; the problem for Kalla Bong is that they have very low density. They are somewhat transparent - which means they can go through walls and doors. On the other hand they have very difficult to stay put on things that are moving, like an elevator for example. Unlike most of the Underworld's creatures they cannot shimmer. At all. No one knows this in the Underworld. It is a well-kept secret Kalla Bong wants to keep to themselves.
Therefore they have invented this very complicated technique that simulates shimmering. It requires extreme amounts of energy, seven potatoes and an approval from the Kalla Bong Ministry of Transportation. Unfortunately Benny didn't have a transportation approval for this particular assignment so he and three colleagues had to climb all seventeen stairs to meet their new client - Mr. Ledin.
While the poor Kalla Bong is climbing the stairs, let me describe them for you so you might understand why their appearances would have caused panic in the hotel lobby downstairs - if Benny and his team had chosen to be visible.
Kalla Bong are small, pear-shaped, slightly wrinkled beings. They have one or two eyes, a pair of arms and no legs. Kalla Bong glow a little bit in the dark and their colors can range from dark cobalt blue to greenish yellow. The Kalla Bong in California usually has pink or a deep lilac tone. Some say Kalla Bong look a little like the slimers in the movie "Ghostbusters"(I'm talking about the first film not the sequel) - you know the ghosts that Dan Akroyd, Bill Murray and their team catches on their first mission. There is a certain similarity… but don't say that to a Kalla Bong because they would get very offended. Most Kalla Bongs have very little patience with ghosts and poltergeists in general. They see them as creatures with no goal or purpose and if you knew a Kalla Bong you would know that there is no one more goal-oriented and serious as a Kalla Bong.
If you still are unsure whether it is a poltergeist or a Kalla Bong there is one little detail that can help you. All Kalla Bong bears a gun-belt. Instead of a gun they have a banana. No one knows why.
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After the long climb Benny finally stood in front of his new client - a tall, attractive man with gray hair, intelligent eyes and expensive, tailored clothes of European cut. The man greeted them warmly, and with a politeness uncommon in the Underworld. He then opened a bottle of champagne and offered courteously the two women in Benny's team a glass each. He gave Agneta, the younger of the two female Kalla Bong, a flirty smile and she smiled seductively back and blushed at the same time, turning into a shade of deep purple.
Benny felt a headache arriving together with irritation. This was exactly why he opposed women working in the field; they were far too emotional, unfocused and easy manipulated. Working with demons was dangerous; you had to constantly be on your guard. The only reason Agneta was on his team was the fact that her father was First Bong of The Kalla Bong Council, a very high position in the their society.
"I am so pleased that you are finally here! This is such a happy moment for my associates and me - I have so looked forward to this! Here, have some Cristal..." the man gave Benny and Björn, the other male Kalla Bong in his team, a glass of the bubbling liquid. "Let's make a toast! To an inspiring and successful partnership in this new adventure we will embark upon together! Skål!"
Benny and his teammates echoed the client and drank the champagne in one gulp. They couldn't help to feel a little bit overwhelmed at the man's enthusiasm. Usually their clients held them at arms length and treated them with ill concealed contempt. Kalla Bong was well respected in the Underworld but at the same time no one really could stand them.
"My name is Mr. Ledin. I am a high level demon who recently has returned home from my businesses in Europe to finally do something that I have been craving for centuries. I want to destroy The Charmed Ones! Not just kill them, I want to crush them, obliterate them... I want to make them feel the pain and emptiness they have caused me. Yes, it is time to bring those wretched bitches Halliwell to their knees, to bend them over and let them taste the bitter taste of defeat once and for all. I have long waited for my revenge on The Charmed Ones and with your help I will get what is rightfully mine. So my new friends; here's to the destruction of The Charmed Ones!"
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To be continued in "Chapter 2. - Benny's First Report"...
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Post by theswedishmystery on Jul 30, 2008 5:16:55 GMT -5
Chapter 2. - Benny's First Report
Benny's Report, Day 5
After almost one week Benny's team was fully installed under The Halliwell Mansion. They found that the sewers under the house was warm, humid and full with interesting fungus that smelled a lot - just the way Kalla Bong likes it.
All their equipment was now up and running. Benny was especially happy with being able to tap into the Internet connected to the house. Björn, one of Benny's junior agents, had made it possible for them to monitor all the internet activity coming in and out of The Halliwell Mansion.
Now it was time to give his first report to their client - Mr. Ledin.
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Benny went alone to the second meeting with his client. He preferred it that way, alone he would be able to closely watch Mr. Ledin without the distraction of having to worry about any of his younger agents.
This time Mr. Ledin had rented a luxurious conference room across town. It was on the eighteenth floor with a fabulous view over the city, which meant another exhausting climb for the legless Kalla Bong.
Again Mr. Ledin met him with an overwhelming enthusiasm and respect that was bewildering. Demons were never polite or respectful but rather straightforward and rude. A behavior Benny had come to appreciate over the years.
"So tell me, have you and your agents been able to settle down close to the house for surveillance?" Mr. Ledin asked as he served Benny Colombian coffee and Danish bread.
"Actually Mr. Ledin. We live right under them, in the sewers." Said Benny as he took a bite of the Danish bread - it tasted truly delicious.
"Ah, how perfect! I hope it is not too much of a discomfort for you living there?"
"Actually it is quite nice."
Mr. Ledin gave him an intrigued look. Benny never liked that - clients who where curious of the lives of Kalla Bong.
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Right now, you, my dear reader, are probably wondering; what exactly IS a Kalla Bong? What is it that Kalla Bong DOES? Well, it's complicated…
The best way to describe the Kalla Bong's function is to say that they are the private investigators of Underworld. They know almost every secret there is to know of the The Evil Realm and that is one of the reasons that they are so despised by all the other evil species.
Beside that, the Kalla Bongs are known for their focus, efficiency and loyalty - they are one of the few, maybe the only ones in the Underworld that never breaks a promise or a commitment. They never strive for power - they strive for control. Kalla Bong believes that the only way to gain control is by controlling the information.
Kalla Bong can stay invisible to most creatures on earth, which means that they can do their business undisturbed. Furthermore some of them have a small amount of telepathic or emphatic power, which is a good thing if you are working in the investigating business.
They are also somewhat of the Underworlds equivalent to Leprechauns… in a way… they do not have the power of luck or anything, they rather make things happen - they are catalysts. If they actively meddle in the things they are investigating, they set things in motion… BIG things. Anything can happen! Which is an explanation to why Kalla Bong strives for control. They feel if they have all the information they possibly can have, maybe then they have a chance of controlling what they set in motion.
They are by all means the Underworlds best kept secret - the Elders know almost nothing about them thanks to their discreet and professional way of working. They are everywhere and they are monitoring and influencing some of the most important leaders of today. Trust me when I tell you this - more or less every presidential election anywhere in the World the last thirty years has some Kalla Bong involvement…
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"So, Benny what do you have for me? How have you set up your work? Do you have anything of substance to report to me already?" Mr. Ledin was ready to get to business and he sounded very eager to hear everything Benny was about say.
"Yes. As I told you before - we set up a base under their house so that we can monitor them and move freely around the house. Each of my agents has been assigned to a Halliwell female in the house." Benny wanted Mr. Ledin to understand that he and his team was very serious and methodical about their mission.
"Good thinking! So how are things in the Halliwell household? I want to know EVERYTHING about them! What kind of people are the girls? What do they like? What don't they like? Do they get along? What are they doing? What kind of hobbies do they have? Do they have hobbies? Who or what will they vote for in the coming elections? Are they going to vote? Are they happy? Are they bitter? How is the magic life treating them? I want it ALL, Benny!" Mr. Ledin sounded very manic when he was talking and he made a sweeping movement with his right arm that would have knocked Benny out if the Kalla Bong hadn't ducked in the nick of time.
"Well… we will do our best to answer all your questions but some of them will take some more time. I hope you have the patience and understanding for our work Mr. Ledin. Furthermore I think we need to define the nature of our assignment, the exact purpose of… " Benny tried to address the importance of defining their mission and at the same time stay out of reach from Mr. Ledin's flailing arms.
"Yes, yes we will get to all that later, but now just give me a quick report on how things are in that house!" Mr. Ledin had started to pace around impatiently in the room.
"From what we gathered so far is following; it has been a rather calm period for the sisters, after that whole incident with Mr. Gideon - you know, the former mystic and teacher at The Magic School… They try to act normal but it is obvious that they are all pretty shook up since the death of young Chris Per… "
"Wait a minute! Wait a minute! What are you saying, is the young whitelighter dead?" Mr. Ledin stopped and turned towards Benny with an angry look on his face.
"Yes, haven't you heard that? That's the only thing the Underworld been talking about these last three months." Benny was a little surprised that Mr. Ledin didn't know this consider his all-consuming hate towards the sisters.
"Why haven't I been informed about this before? Don't tell me that… that DOLT of a husband to the oldest sister is back as a whitelighter! That could seriously mess up my plans!"
Benny didn't like the way his client looked. Mr. Ledin was absolutely furious and he was starting to ramble about associates and who to trust.
"We don't know if he is their whitelighter anymore. From what we gathered he has hardly been there since the birth of his second son. You know there is some speculation that the deceased young whitelighter was in fact their second son… sent from the future to protect his older brother from turning evil. " Mr. Ledin was starting to frighten Benny with this sudden outburst.
"Is it true?" Mr. Ledin stood right over Benny and looked him straight in the eyes.
"It would make sense."
"He he he, that would make them all kind of anguished and tormented right?"
"Yes."
"Excellent!" Mr. Ledin gave him a smile that looked more like a grimace and his eyes glittered in a way that made Benny finally see the demon under his client's polished façade.
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Benny suggested that he would continue with his report. It consisted mostly of Benny and his team's first hand impressions of the Halliwell sisters and hopefully Mr. Ledin could get some of his questions answered. Mr. Ledin sat down in of the room's expensive leather chairs and listened to him intensely.
"I will start with the oldest sister; Piper. I have assigned agent Björn to monitor her. She had her son three months ago as I said before, and though it was a rather difficult birth she is now fully recovered and spends all her time and devotion on her two sons. She seems to be a bit isolated and worried - Leo, the husband and father of her sons haven't showed up in the house for a loooong time. And she misses him, we can tell."
"Has Leo walked out of his wife and two kids? How utterly remarkable!" Mr. Ledin looked very amused at this fact.
"Indeed. Everyone talked of him as an Elder with the highest morale… We suspect he is on some kind of revenge bend for the murder of his son - the one who is now born. Yes, I know, it IS confusing! Leo seems to be the one who took Chris's death the hardest while Piper ironically enough is the one who is seems to be the least affected. Which is weird since she was the one who almost became a fury after her older sister, Prue's death."
"Interesting… do you have any theories?"
"Well… Piper is the mother figure of the Halliwell household. She was that even before her older sister died. Piper was the one who opposed the magical life and all the dangers that followed, the most. Yet she is the one with the aggressive witch power. She can explode things with her mere hands. Other than that she has the power to stop time. Piper is the worrywart of the family but at the same time she is extremely grounded and matter-of-factly. This is why we think she understands that Chris is alive, he is three months old and he needs her - that is her only focus right now - to love her sons and to protect them. I also think that Piper knows that magic is the ONLY way for her to protect them."
"But why doesn't that dimwit whitelighter of hers understand that?"
"Since he is never around we haven't really gotten a clear picture of who he is. As to your other questions regarding Piper: She likes to try out old recipes in her kitchen. She can watch her sons when they sleep for hours and hours. She doesn't like how the other two sisters messes up in the kitchen or in any other part of the house for that matter. Piper absolutely HATES surprises since she feels most of them are bad. As I said before she is isolated and worried about her husband and her sons right now, but other than that she is quite content. She gets along fine with her sisters as long as they don't mess up her kitchen or when she is in a grouchy mood. The mood is a hormonal thing that will pass says her doctor. We think that she is a republican but that is pure speculation on our behalf. Björn heard her say something positive about Anne Coulter in the kitchen once." Benny felt proud of his junior agent, it was a brilliant analysis of the oldest sister and Benny couldn't have done it better himself.
"An absolutely excellent first report! Give my congratulations to Björn! Now lets hear about the middle sister… Phoebe?"
"Thank you Mr. Ledin. That's right Phoebe is the middle sister, former youngest sister of the Halliwells. I have assigned agent Agneta to monitor Phoebe and… "
"Agneta, that's the pretty pink one, isn't it?"
"Yes… if you let me continue. Phoebe as you know, works as an advice columnist. She is very popular and has a lot of readers. As for her witchy life… The Tribunal recently stripped her of her active powers - empathy, premonitions and levitation. She has yet to earn them back."
"So she is entirely without power?" This was a fact that made Mr. Ledin very excited.
"Phoebe is still a witch, she can still cast spells and is well trained in Martial Arts so she is not harmless. She is without a doubt the most creative of them when it comes to making quick spells. The funny thing is that I was told she was the one of the sisters who embraced magic the most, but since we came to the manor I have gotten the impression she is actually the one who wants out of the magic life. She hasn't really tried to earn back her powers and she seems restless and distant."
"How come?"
"My theory is that the death of that young whitelighter, her nephew, made her think that the price of magic and fighting the good fight, was too high. She wants a real life and seeing Piper alone with two magical children made Phoebe realize that she isn't getting any younger and it is time for her to fulfill her dreams before it is too late."
"So what are her dreams?"
"The hard part for Phoebe is that her dreams change from day to day. I have never seen so much indecisiveness or in-continuity in my entire career! It is like she has an attention span of zero! Other than that I can tell you that she is secretly working on a radio deal and a stint at a TV show but hasn't had the guts to tell her sisters about it. She LOVES attention and doesn't seem to distinguish between good attention and bad attention. That can result in very destructive behavior if she's not careful. Her other weaknesses are handsome dark men and shiny things. As you can imagine it's hard to pinpoint exactly what Phoebe likes and dislikes since it changes all the time, but this is as close as we can get. She pretends to get along with her sisters right now but our impression is that she tries to be at home as little as possible. We have absolutely no idea of who she will vote for in the coming election, she can go either way depending on…eh… anything."
"Wow! Again a very good report! Please, will you take this box of chocolates to your beautiful little agent as a token of my appreciation?"
Benny took the box with a small sigh. Agneta was a total useless agent. She had done very little this week, besides surfing the Internet and telling everyone how good Phoebe dressed. Most of the report was Benny's own thoughts on the middle sister.
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They took a small pause and Mr. Ledin again proved he was an excellent host and served Benny more coffee and the best cognac he ever tasted. Afterwards they smoked a cigar.
"So tell me about the youngest one, Paige Matthews."
"Paige Matthews is their half sister. She moved into the house three years ago, replacing Prue - the oldest sister that was murdered, as a Charmed One. No one of them knew each other before that so it must have been quite a shock, for everyone. Paige have accepted and learned magic amazingly fast. Almost too fast… She is like Piper's two sons - half witch, half whitelighter. She can orb herself and other things. I have assigned agent Annifrid to monitor Paige. "
"What do you mean 'too fast'?"
"I don't have the entire answer to this question, but what normal person accepts that she is a witch and has to fight evil in almost no time at all? Paige even gave up her job as a social worker to become a better witch and support her new sisters. This summer Paige has been helping Piper with her children and Piper's club - P3. Paige has also been the only sister who has been reading up on magic during this time. Why is she always over compensating? Is she THAT insecure about her relationship with her new family? Unlike the other sisters, she was in the police register. We are still waiting for them to send us all the files. Maybe we can find some more insight to… "
"You will find some really interesting stuff, trust me! You should also try to get her files from Social Services."
"We're waiting for them too. I don't understand how hard it can be to e-mai… Stop there for a second Mr. Ledin, do you know something about Paige Matthews that we don't?"
"Lets just say that Paige and I have some history together. And don't you worry, Benny - you will know everything you need to know in those old files that they are sending you. Now, let me hear more of your thoughts on my little friend Paige Matthews." Mr. Ledin looked like he hardly could contain himself from telling Benny what he knew.
Benny loathed the fact that Mr. Ledin was hiding things from him. He hated surprises as much as Piper Halliwell did.
"Paige tries to be cheerful for Piper's sake but we don't buy that - after Leo she seems to be taking Chris Perry's death the hardest. Paige gets along well with her sisters and looks up to them quite a bit. She loves helping people and hates being alone. Since she is a social worker and the fact that she went to the cinema and saw 'Fahrenheit 911' makes us think it's a safe bet that she will vote for the democrats." Annifrid wasn't a bimbo like Agneta and her analysis of the young witch, was solid. Benny was thankful but he still didn't like to work with female Kalla Bongs - he was just too old fashioned for that.
"This is brilliant Benny! You and your team have impressed me very much. This bodes well for the future." Mr. Ledin clapped his hands.
"I am glad that you are satisfied with our work Mr. Ledin. But I still think there are matters of this assignment that we need to discuss. What is the exact purpose us spying on The Charmed Ones? What are your plans and what are we looking for?" Benny held his breath for a moment because this was the most important part of the meeting for his part. Mr. Ledin had so far been very elusive with the details of their whole operation.
"Your job is to continue to spy on the Charmed Ones and report to me what is happening in the Halliwell household. There is also the task of finding this... thing for me. Something that those wretched bitches have stolen from me."
"What thing?"
"I can't tell you exactly what it is but you will definitely know when you find it. My best guess is that it is probably the most guarded thing in the whole house "
"You wants us to find something that they stole from you, but you don't know what it is?"
"Now don't be such a pessimist Benny! This is going to be fun, trust me! My associates and me have a BIG surprise planned for The Charmed Ones. Something that will rock their world! Something that will eventually destroy them." The laughter that followed that sentence was deeply disturbing even for an old, seasoned Kalla Bong like Benny, who had worked with some of the Underworld's most twisted minds.
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So there it was - Benny's new employer wanted them to spy on the Charmed Ones, the most powerful witches in this part of the hemisphere. Mr. Ledin also wanted them to find and retrieve an unknown object of great importance for him that was hidden in the Halliwell Mansion. Benny sighed - he knew there was more at stake for Mr. Ledin than simple revenge - he wanted the girls dead or worse - hurt in every possible way. Mr. Ledin truly hated the Charmed Ones and he would stop at nothing to make them suffer.
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To be continued in "Chapter 3. - Leo Drops The Bomb"...
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Post by theswedishmystery on Jul 30, 2008 5:18:06 GMT -5
Chapter 3. - Leo drops the bomb
Benny's Report, Day 14
It was an ordinary Wednesday morning and Benny and his team had started to get the hang of how the sisters lived their lives on Prescott Street. They knew that Chris was the first human to wake up at seven o'clock. He would subsequently wake up his older brother and together they woke up Piper with their wailing. Paige would go up half an hour later and make breakfast for everyone. Phoebe was the last one up; she was always so late to her job that she never had the time to sit down to eat with her sisters. Benny suspected that she did this intentionally.
This Wednesday morning was different - before Phoebe was able to escape through the door, Leo had shown up with a grim look on his face. Benny paid attention immediately; he knew something of great importance was about to happen. He also suspected that Mr. Ledin and his so far unknown associates had something to do with whatever the whitelighter was about to say. But Benny would never have been able to guess how devastating the news would be to the sisters - news that would break the Halliwell family apart.
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"Well, well look at that! The prodigal father returns!" Phoebe said with a smirk on her face.
"Shut up Phoebe. Leo! Where have you been? Do you have any idea of how worried I have been and your so… " Piper looked worriedly at her husband who directed her to sit down. He obviously had something important to say.
"Please Piper, I have some very important things to tell you." Leo looked haggard and tired. "You better sit down."
"Ok, but you better be quick Leo because I have a deadline and it has to be… " Phoebe tried her best at looking very stressed and busy so that she could get out of the kitchen before Leo delivered the bad news. He looked so upset; it couldn't be anything other than bad news.
"Shut up Phoebe. What's up Leo? Is it another rising in the underworld? Another Source?" Paige was all business, ready to go off fighting demons in an instant.
"Paige… you might want to sit down as well when I tell you what I have to say." Leo pointed at one of the empty chairs around the kitchen table. Paige reluctantly sat down.
She sat down beside Piper. The three sisters were all giving Leo their absolute attention and the kitchen was totally silent except for little Wyatt who was munching on a banana. After three seconds of silence Leo's theatrical pause almost became unbearable. He looked at them, struggling with the words he was about to say.
"Well, it looks like… I don't know how to say this… but it looks like Paige might not be your sister."
"WHAT!" Phoebe was the first one to react.
"What are you talking about? How can she not be…?" Piper looked very upset, almost angry.
Phoebe started to ramble:
"Of course she is our sister! I would know this, I feel this!"
"You tell them Elders that they finally crossed the line! They have played with our lives and emotions for the last time!" Piper got up from her chair and started to pace around the kitchen.
"Where is Ma or Grams? THEY can tell us the truth! Tell them to come down here and explain everything this minute!" Phoebe was more or less shouting at this point while her older sister continued to walk around and curse everything that lived up in heaven.
"Piper, Phoebe! Please!" Leo's voice cut through the sister's protests. "I know this is painful and hard but you need to listen to what I am saying. After Gideon's betrayal and… and… Chris's death, no one of the Elders, including me, knew what to believe anymore. For a while accusations flew in every direction, paranoia and talk about conspiracies was the only thing we were capable of, up in heaven. I must admit that I was probably among them who were the loudest of them all." As Leo told them this he was looking at youngest son with pain written on his face.
"With good reason Leo. With good reason… " When Piper said this she couldn't help giving him an encouraging smile. She still loved him dearly but she also felt how far they had drifted from each other.
Leo continued:
"After a while all the Elders calmed down and started an investigation. The investigation uncovered that there actually WAS a conspiracy and that there still is."
"A conspiracy among the Elders! That's absurd!" Phoebe couldn't help sounding off her doubts.
"Please let me finish Phoebe." Leo said. He knew that the sisters would be upset but it was grating his nerves to be constantly interrupted. "You say it's absurd, but still Gideon was able to murder Chris and HE was an Elder. There is still a conspiracy out there that is trying to kill Chris and Wyatt, trying to prevent two very magical children from growing up and become maybe even more powerful than the Elders… "
"Oh wow! But that doesn't explain Paige not being our sister." Phoebe still didn't want to believe a word Leo had said.
"This conspiracy has been around for a very long time, trying to prevent The Charmed Ones from gaining more power. We just uncovered some documents and that clearly states that Paige isn't your sister. She was placed here to weaken the Charmed Ones but the whole thing misfired and she actually saved you instead of destroying you. Please understand this - Paige herself has nothing to do with this conspiracy. She was merely a tool. She knew nothing of this. Paige is as much of a victim as you are." Leo said trying to explain how he had started to believe this impossible scenario.
"This is crazy! What do Elders say?" Phoebe was still doubtful.
"They don't know what to do right now… some have even been talking about reinstating the original Charmed Ones with Prue but… " Leo stopped and regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth.
"Can they do that?" The hopefulness in Piper's voice was so apparent for everyone in the kitchen it was embarrassing. Phoebe even winced when she saw the look of Paige's face when Piper vented her most secret wish - to get Prue back.
Finally Leo spoke. "It was decided against that. Piper, you have no idea how hard it is to turn someone who is dead into a permanently living person again. It is just wrong to do that, so many things can go wrong on so many levels."
"Then send Mom and Grams down here NOW so we can sort this thing out!"
"We can't… do that. Since we don't know what the threat is we can't really risk them coming down here. Besides, they have all been relocated to a safer place." Leo didn't want to get into more details since he actually knew very little of the dead Halliwell Women's whereabouts.
"There is a safer place than heaven?" Phoebe looked totally perplexed.
"Phoebe, I can't say more right now - it is all very complicated since Gideon's death and no one really knows what and who to believe anymore. Their location is very top secret. All I can say is that they are safe in another realm right now."
"In another REALM?" Phoebe was still totally baffled of the fact that there were other realms out there and some of them were even safer than heaven.
"Yes. So you don't need to worry about them. I must go now but I promise that I will come back as soon as get more information." Leo wanted to wrap up the whole discussion so that he could get back to business.
"Leo… " Piper didn't want him to go. They looked at each other and for Piper it felt like it was a giant abyss between them. This time it was Leo that offered her a little encouraging smile.
"I will be back as soon as I can, I promise. Now promise me that you start to look after yourselves and the boys. OK?" Leo almost started to orb before Piper reached out to him.
"Let me follow you out." Which was a pretty stupid thing for Piper to say to her whitelighter husband who could orb from wherever he stood. Everyone in the kitchen, except maybe Leo himself understood that Piper needed some time alone with her estranged husband.
Piper more or less had to drag him out to the garden.
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Left in the kitchen were Phoebe, Paige and the little boys. Paige hadn't said a word since Leo had dropped his bomb about her not being their sister. Her face was white, paler than Phoebe ever seen Paige's face before.
"Paige?"
"Yes?" Paige looked up and Phoebe could see that her sister was struggling hard to keep it together. Paige's hands were shaking so much that she dropped the spoon she was holding. The clattering sound of the spoon falling to the floor made Wyatt cry. After two seconds Chris started crying as well.
"I… I better go to work now… otherwise Elise will have my head for lunch… We will all talk about this in the evening when I come back. OK?" After those affirming words Phoebe fled to her office. She kept saying to herself that she left because she wanted to give Paige some time alone to recover from the shock, but deep down inside Phoebe knew that she had bailed, when her little sister needed her the most.
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In the garden Leo turned to Piper.
"Listen to me Piper, I feel I can't trust anyone up there anymore and I want you to do the same!"
"What do you mean Leo?" She looked at him
"I mean it Piper! Trust no one! They are after our children and you must do everything you can to protect them."
"What are you saying? Should I stop trusting Paige? C'mon Leo, you know she would rather die a thousand deaths than let anything happen to Wyatt and Chris." She turned her back at him as if she wanted to hide how conflicted her feelings were.
"I'm not telling that Piper, but you must remember; if these documents are true then Paige is a tool in this great conspiracy that wants to destroy the Charmed Ones and kill our sons." When Leo said this he turned her around and wiped off a tear from her cheek.
Then he orbed out. Leaving Piper in the garden with a hammering heart and a feeling of heartbreaking loneliness that chilled her bones. "Goodbye… " She whispered to the few glowing white orbs from her husbands departure that were slowly fading in the cold morning air.
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Benny and his team wildly discussed the morning's events that whole day. They all suspected that Mr. Ledin was behind this latest development. The whole team thought it was absolutely brilliant.
When the night came Benny's team reported back; it was obvious that the three sisters were deeply disturbed by everything Leo had told them.
Björn told them that Piper had been occupied with her two children the whole day. She had even taken them with her when she went to check up some things at P3, never once asking Paige for help.
Agneta hadn't been able to keep up with Phoebe during the day much to Benny's frustration. Phoebe on the other hand hadn't come home yet. Benny guessed she probably would sneak into the house somewhere after midnight when everyone was asleep. Then again, nobody of the sisters would be able to sleep after everything that happened that morning.
Annifrid's report on Paige's reaction was definitely the most interesting one. Paige had stayed in her room all day. She had been sitting, curled up, on her bed most of the day looking straight ahead at nothing in particular. She was obviously in shock.
Annifrid who possessed some small telepathic ability told to Benny and the others that on some level Paige wasn't surprised at all. That Paige always known that it all would end - like every relationship she had with people she loved.
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Later, when Benny was writing his report he couldn't help thinking that his client, Mr. Ledin would be very pleased to know about the recent development in the Halliwell household. He would be pleased but probably not surprised.
But somewhere in the back of Benny's structured and experienced mind he also wondered what kind of "associates" Mr. Ledin could have if he was able to cook up a conspiracy among the Elders.
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To be continued in "Chapter 4. - A Star Is Born"...
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