by Paul Ruditis
“That body was in a vegetative state,” Piper reminded her. “There was no hope for her. I looked into it.”
“You did?”
“I wanted to make sure her family wasn’t going to be coming after us,” Piper said with her own shrug. If a member of the Halliwell family suddenly disappeared she would have blown up every demon between here and the Underworld to get them back. Conscious or not. It was only logical to expect the family of the witch whose body Prue possessed might want to do the same. If there was, in fact, any family to find.
Prue didn’t seem to like Piper’s reasoning as the expression on her face revealed her thoughts. “You thought I didn’t check these things out? What? Did you assume I just jumped into the body of the first random woman I came across?”
“No,” Piper said, surprised by the venom in her sister’s tone. “Of course not. But I didn’t think it would hurt to do some follow-ups. We are messing with some pretty big forces here.”
“Really?” Prue said. “Please tell me more about how big these forces are? You’ve been doing this so much longer than me after all.”
“Hey!” Paige stepped between them. “We have enough enemies out there. We don’t need to be fighting in here too.”
Prue took a deep breath. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I just… I’ve been on my own so long I forgot what it was like to be part of a team again.”
“I’m sorry too,” Piper said. She didn’t understand why she was getting angry with Prue. None of this was her fault. Well, some of it was her doing, but ultimately she was just trying to get her life back. Piper couldn’t blame her for that. She’d never been dead before. Well, not permanently. “I shouldn’t have been looking into things behind your back. I don’t know why I didn’t mention it earlier.”
Prue let out a mirthless laugh. “It’s not a surprise. We’ve all been tiptoeing around what I did. Obviously taking over another person’s body wasn’t my shiniest hour. I mean, talk about personal gain! I do deserve some kind of punishment for forcing myself into the world again when I was warned against it. I’d just like the chance to go out and see that world from time to time. Maybe have some out privileges or whatever they call it when you’re on house arrest.”
“At least we can visit,” Paige said.
Prue wrapped her arms around her sisters, pulling them into a hug. “And that makes everything worth it.”
As the trio embraced, a familiar pink glow filled the couch as Coop and Phoebe returned. Piper was the first to break free of the trio when she realized something was wrong. Phoebe was on the couch, eyes closed, completely unconscious. “What happened?”
Coop looked up at her with fear in his eyes. “I don’t know. We were visiting one of the couples on her list and she just collapsed. Paige, can you…?”
“On it.” Paige knelt over Phoebe’s body and reached out with her healing power. There was no visible wound so she held her hands out over Phoebe’s head and slowly moved down her sister’s body until the power connected with the problem. Paige’s hands began to glow when they hovered over Phoebe’s heart. It didn’t seem to be a physical issue with the organ that pumped blood to the body. It was more a metaphysical one with the center of emotion in the human soul.
Paige did what she could to draw out the poison that seemed to be affecting her sister, but she wasn’t sure that she was doing any good. Whitelighter magic might not be useful against this sort of spell.
Once again, Piper was jealous of a sister’s powers. This too would come in handy with three danger-prone children who bore the many scrapes and cuts of a traditional childhood, plus the bonus magical damage they could inflict on themselves. Phoebe’s empathy would come in handy when they reached the teen years, now that she thought of it too. Their family was really more powerful working together as a single unit than they were in their individual lives, though they were pretty kickass individuals as well.
Phoebe’s eye shot open and she took in a couple of deep, heaving breaths before Paige could even bring her magical glow to full strength. Piper quickly squeezed in by the side of the couch. “Phoebe? Are you okay?”
“Getting there,” Phoebe said as she tried to sit up. “What happened?”
Piper placed a hand on Phoebe’s shoulder. “You should stay down for a minute.”
“I don’t have a minute.” Phoebe pushed her sister’s hand away as she shakily got to her feet.
Coop was beside her in a second, supporting his wife, who was more unsteady than usual. “We do have a minute. We have more than a minute.”
“No,” she insisted. “Someone… something is attacking the couples I brought together. We have to do something about this.”
“How about you start by filling us in on what’s going on?” Prue said.
“If Phoebe sits back down, I will bring you up to speed,” Coop said as all eyes fell on his wife.
“Okay, fine!” she said as she dropped back on the couch, nearly missing the edge and slipping onto the floor. “I’m just going to close my eyes for a second while I get my bearings.”
“Good idea,” Coop said with his eyes full of concern. He brushed a stray hair from Phoebe’s face as she smiled up at him. Part of her seemed annoyed to be sidelined at the moment, while another part of her was obviously happy to have someone to rely on to take over while she caught her breath.
Once Coop was satisfied that his wife was not about to fall off the couch, he filled her sisters in on what they had learned since they left earlier. He regaled them with the story of the Jordans’ sudden breakup and what was supposed to be a visit to a happier couple. He didn’t have many details, but at least now it seemed pretty certain that some kind of magic was at play. Phoebe’s extreme reaction to the anger coming from that last couple seemed to be fairly definitive proof that something wicked had definitely this way come.
“But you didn’t see anything?” Piper asked. “No one using any kind of magic on Phoebe directly?”
“Nothing that resembled any kind of attack,” Coop said. “It seemed more like a reaction to the emotions coming from the couple. The closer we got to them, the weaker Phoebe was, until it all overwhelmed her.”
“What about you?” Paige asked. “Cupids are empathic too, aren’t they? I thought that was a pretty big part of the gig.”
“I certainly felt it,” Coop replied. “I probably would have felt it if I didn’t have any sensitivity to that kind of thing. The rage was emanating from them. We didn’t even need to be in the same room to be hit by it.”
“But it didn’t overwhelm you like it did Phoebe?” Paige clarified.
“Well, look at him,” Phoebe said as she got to her feet again, Coop quickly reaching out to grab her. “He’s more than twice my size. An emotional ox couldn’t take him down.”
“I don’t even know what that means,” Prue said.
“I don’t think it matters.” Coop held tight to his wife, providing support although she seemed much more steady on her feet this time. “And I don’t think that’s the reason you were overwhelmed.”
“You’ve been in this game longer than me,” Phoebe said with a wave. “Do tell.”
“You have a personal connection with these couples,” Coop said. “You’re the reason they’re together. Even more than that, you’re the one who bonded them in marriage. Someone seems to be working to undo these couplings. A side effect of that must have weakened your magic.”
“But who?” Piper asked. “Why?”
“We’ve got a book full of possible subjects at home,” Phoebe said. “Take your pick. Or it could be some new enemy. My one question is does it have anything to do with this congressman turning to stone?” She looked around the living room. “My other question is what did you do with Cole?”
“He’s with Leo,” Piper said. “They’re contacting the magical community. We figured if more people are turned to s
tone it will help to have a fairy, a leprechaun, and a dwarf on call.”
“I still don’t know why,” Prue said. “The Power of Three spell worked fine with my boost from the Nexus.”
Phoebe looked to Piper before speaking. “Yeah. I don’t know that we should do that again. It wasn’t all that fun.”
It confirmed what Piper had been thinking. Something wasn’t right with their powers when Prue brought the Nexus into the mix. She wasn’t the only one who had felt it. And maybe she was still feeling it. There was something more to the little argument that she’d had with Prue earlier. Something not entirely natural.
“And the congressman?” Phoebe asked.
“Back to his important work setting the country back a few decades,” Paige said. “Another success in the work of the Charmed Ones.”
“Okay then.” Phoebe took her husband’s hand. “You focus on your problem and we’ll deal with mine. I need to get back to work and check the files on all the couples I married that day in the park. There’s one couple in particular that I’m worried about.”
Coop looked concerned. “Phoebe, if you’re going to be affected by—”
“These people are my responsibility. I have to help them.”
“Your sisters could probably use some help too,” Coop reminded her.
“We’re okay for now,” Prue said, more to Coop than anyone else. “We can stand to split up our resources. We’ll call you if we need you.”
“I’m going to go see if the Book of Shadows has any suggestions,” Piper said, trying to move the conversation forward. “Maybe come up with some suspects of our own before someone else is turned to stone.”
“I’ll check in with Henry,” Paige said. “See if any other mysterious statues have been reported to the police.”
“And I’ll go back to work on my puzzle.” Prue leaned over the table. “I’ve almost got the entire sky complete.”
Piper shot her sister a look. “Prue.”
“Just kidding,” Prue said. “I’ll consult the library here. There’s got to be something in one of the books this place conjured up. Turning people to stone is pretty basic magic. It happens enough in mythology, fairy tales, and our own personal history that we probably have any number of possibilities to choose from. You focus on your thing. We’ve got this.”
Phoebe looked up at her husband and squeezed his hand. “Sounds like everyone’s got their marching orders. To the Bay Mirror, if you please.”
Coop shook his head, but beamed them out of Prue’s home without another word.
“We’ll be back soon,” Piper said as she took Paige’s arm and they orbed back to the Manor.
Piper went straight for the Book of Shadows as they arrived in the attic. By now she had the book pretty much memorized, but new entries still popped up occasionally, which made it worth browsing whenever a magical issue came up. She began with the Titans, just to see if there was anything they might have missed. Greek mythology was rife with people being turned to stone. It was as good a place as any to start.
As she reached the page on the Titans, she realized that Paige was still in the attic, standing at the door that opened the portal to Magic School.
“We can get Leo on research in the school library when he returns,” Piper said. “You should go see Henry.”
“That’s not it,” Paige said. “I was thinking, I can’t just keep orbing everyone across the globe when they feel like visiting Prue. Maybe there’s a way to make a portal to the Nexus. She could use the company.”
Piper joined her sister at the door. “That would be great. Do you think we can do it?”
“Beats me,” Paige said. “I’m still not sure what that Nexus can or can’t control.”
“None of us are,” Piper agreed with a shiver.
“And that’s what I’m worried about,” Paige said.
“You felt it too?” Piper tentatively asked. “Something is… off there?”
“The whole place is off if you ask me,” Paige said. “But yeah. I felt something weird when Prue tried to boost our power with the Nexus. It wasn’t the first time I felt weird while we used our magic there.”
“Glad to know it’s not just me,” Piper replied. “But maybe it’s just because we’re not used to it yet. If we can get some kind of portal going there, it might make us all more comfortable with the place.”
“It’s worth a try,” Paige said. “Anything that will make life easier would be good. I’ll check in with Henry and then we can try some experiments.”
“That should be fun,” Piper said dryly.
Paige smiled. “I know. What could possibly go wrong?”
Chapter 8
Coop and Phoebe beamed into her office at the newspaper, making sure that they stayed away from the windows when they appeared. It was as discreet an entrance as two people accompanied by a bright pink glow could make and one they got away with far more often than they should have. Most of the reporters in the bullpen were usually too busy to notice that Phoebe hadn’t passed through on her way to her desk. Who knew what they thought of the light that came through her windows? Or if they even noticed it at all.
“I’ll go check in at work,” Coop said as he leaned in for a kiss. “See if they know anything.”
Phoebe’s lips met his and lingered a bit longer than might have been appropriate for a workplace. Thankfully, she had her own private office. Then again, a little PDA from the resident love expert wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.
“What was that for?” Coop asked as they broke apart. “Not that I’m complaining.”
Phoebe smiled. “I’m just… I feel lucky we found each other. This magical life isn’t easy. I don’t want to take any of it for granted.”
“I love you, too,” Coop said.
Phoebe played with the pile of letters on her desk to avoid looking her husband in the eyes. “I’m actually surprised you’re letting me continue to investigate considering what happened earlier.”
“I may have planted a tracking device somewhere on your body.” Coop pulled her into another kiss.
“I suspect we’ll have fun searching for it later,” Phoebe said as she pulled away again, swatting him playfully on the arm. “But you can’t distract me from my mission. Now go. Find out what you can. We’ll regroup later.”
“I live to serve.” Coop bowed as he beamed away.
Phoebe tensed as he disappeared, glad that he was gone and wouldn’t notice. It was weird that Coop had said the same thing that Cole had said earlier. Sure, it was a common phrase, but the two men couldn’t have been more different. She shrugged it off as an odd coincidence, smiling down at the photo of him and the girls she kept her desk.
She really was luckier than most people. Not just because she’d found love with a Cupid, although, seriously, she couldn’t have asked for a better partner in life. Phoebe’s dating history might have had numerous false starts, but each guy in her life had helped her grow in some special way. Even the evil ones. If she hadn’t gone through the highs and lows with Cole, she never would have been ready to accept Coop’s love.
Maybe there was such a thing as having more than one soul mate. It was something worth considering since it seemed that her past and her future were going to be sharing parts of her life now. But that was an issue for another time. She had other soul mates to protect today. No more relationships were going to fall apart on her watch.
Phoebe blew a kiss to the framed family portrait as she sat behind her desk and brought up the archived files on her computer. Mika had pulled together information on all the couples that came for the mass wedding photo op back when the event had happened. The archives held far more than the addresses she’d texted earlier.
Elise had devoted the full Sunday supplement to the mass wedding, including a photo spread, interviews with the couples, and tips from Phoeb
e for making a lasting marriage. She’d never been particularly comfortable with that last bit, considering she was still a relative newlywed at the time she’d written it. Mostly, she’d looked to Piper and Leo’s marriage for her advice. If those two could survive the amount of turmoil they’d been through, anyone could.
The supplement also included the original letters that Phoebe had answered for the couples that had decided to be part of the photo op. She wanted to go over everything she had about these people to see if there was anything in their history that linked them together before their mass wedding. Maybe whatever evil force was at work here was playing a long game from the start. The odds were slim, but she didn’t have any better ideas to go on. At the very least, she’d be better prepared to talk to the other couples than she had been earlier with Bri.
As Phoebe skimmed through the files, she wondered about one couple in particular that would not be in the archives. One of the pairs of newlyweds she had married hadn’t come because of her work on the paper. They had been more interested in her other job. It was the one human interest story she never could give to Elise, even once her boss knew about her connection to the magical realm. That mass wedding in the park had also united the original spirits of the most famous couple of all time: Romeo and Juliet.
Through a weird combination of magic and creative writing, William Shakespeare had doomed the spirits of the characters to a tragic romance for the ages. It wasn’t something that was just played out by actors on stages and movie screens. These two souls had taken on lives of their own. Several centuries’ worth of lives to be precise.
Phoebe had undone the spell by presiding over their wedding so Romeo and Juliet could live happily ever after. Afterwards, they went off on their merry little way. Didn’t even bother to send a postcard from their honeymoon. Phoebe worried that if something had happened to reverse their curse, it might have had an effect on the other couples that had been part of the ceremony. It was the most logical explanation for an incredibly illogical situation.
