Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2006 22:22:50 -0800 (PST) From: Jason Decade Subject: Charming the Halliwells Chapter 2: Charmed, I'm sure. All rights to the Halliwells and Charmed go to The Wb and Aaron Spelling. This is a spin-off of his creation, of which we're all thankful for. " So, he wants us to...do what exactly?" Phoebe asked, looking up at me from her article. " He wants the Charmed Ones...that'd be you guys, to let him help you. He said, and I quote, 'Fight the good fight'." I said walking to the table. " Who says that?" Paige chuckled. " Apparently him." I said sitting beside her, " As a matter of fact, he seemed genuine. It was almost scary...or as scary as a demon can get when he's not trying to kill you." I finished. " You don't believe him, do you?" Piper chortled, then stopped at the sight of my face, " Look, Drake, you're family and hopefully we've taught you better than that." she said, losing her smile. " I get it, good vs. bad. But the fight for you guys is over and we might need him in the future. You taught me so much, but...things are strange now and I wanted to let you know." I smiled. " It wouldn't be the first time we've worked with a demon who wasn't evil." Paige said quickly. " That's what he said." I nodded. " What did he say after that?" Piper asked walking to the table. " He did call me ignorant...that was a minus." I sighed. They all gasped and looked at me in shock. " Yeah, then he brought up Cole and Drake...it was like he'd studied you." I said slowly. " Very creepy, especially since you said he was, what? 17, 18?" Paige asked. " So, is it a unanimous 'no'?" Phoebe asked. Paige nodded, but Phoebe didn't. " Do you trust him?" Piper asked me, looking into my eyes. " I'm not gonna lie, I do...but then I don't." I said as honestly as I could. At that moment, Billie walked in a put her coat on the couch. She then walked to where we were. " You don't what?" Billie asked, not bothering to say hi. " Know about him." I answered. "Who is he?" Billie asked impatiently. " The demon who wants to be friends with the power of three." Piper interjected. " Let me guess, a trap? Or, wait, is this for real?" Billie asked with a confused face. " That would be the million dollar question." I said, looking at my watch, " Well, I'm just about late for school, so I'm gonna be off. If you talk to my parent, tell them I said hi and....you know, see you soon." I said as I orbed out, leaving them to think about Talik and his "offer". " What do you guys think?" Billie asked. " Trap." Phoebe and Paige said at the same time. " I don't think so. I'm not sure what it is, but whatever it is, it'll have to wait. I've got to be at the restaurant, then check on the club. ============================================================================================================== Chris, Wyatt, and Melinda walked slowly down the hall, talking about the day before, then they came to a stop at Wyatt's locker. " I can't tell you." Wyatt said, opening his locker, " He didn't even want me to know!" Wyatt smiled without looking at them. " We're all like family. Friends don't even have secrets, so what does that say about family?" Chris said, trying to get the information he wanted from his brother. " That tells me that when he wants you to know, he'll tell you." Wyatt said calmly. " So, is this like a secret that only you know, or is this something a bunch of people know and he just isn't telling us?" Melinda asked. " You really want to know?" Wyatt sighed. Melinda and Chris both leaned forward and nodded. " He's a witch." Wyatt whispered, then laughed. " Wyatt, you suck!" Melinda said storming off. " Now that she's gone, really, what is it?" Chris asked, smiling. " Would you still like him if he was white, Chinese, Indian, or any other way?" Wyatt asked carefully. " What sense does that make? Are you trying to say he's Chinese?" Chris said dumbly. " NO! No, never mind." Wyatt said, slamming his locker and walking to class, avoiding Chris' persistence. " Now they're both doing it." Chris said, shaking his head and walking the opposite direction. ==================================================================================================================== I orbed into a janitor's closet at school and quickly hopped out on the way to class. I had decided that I'd skip my locker and go right to class; I had almost beat the bell when I tripped over someone and fell into the floor! " you son of a bi..." I said, stopping at the sight of Talik. " What did you just call my mother?" Talik said, helping me up. " What are you doing here?" I asked, looking at him oddly. " I've gone to school here forever, you just never noticed me." Talik smiled and I remembered where I'd seen him! How could I be so dumb?! He was on the football team! " I placed a glamour on my life...just the name. So, have you told the sisters about my offer?" Talik said quickly. I tried not to smile, " Maybe. So are you gonna bug me until they give their answer?" I asked, readjusting my books. " No." He said simply. " Good." I said dejectedly. "I'm going to pester you everyday, even after, because I like you." He smiled, making me blush. " You have that kind of time?" I asked, trying my best not to blush. " Yeah, for you I do." Talik chuckled. " As much as I'm enjoying this, I have to go to class. Some of us don't have the time." I sighed. " What? Following the footsteps of Phoebe? Or maybe Piper....or maybe you'll concentrate on whitelighter things like Paige." he teased. I smiled, then felt strange, like someone was talking loudly in my head! I gasped for air and hoped the voices would subside and soon I was on my knees, screaming in pain! The last thing I saw was students swarming from their classes to see what was happening. =========================================================================================================================== At the Manor, Piper, Phoebe, Paige, and Leo stood over unconscious me. For a while, no one said a word, then Piper spoke. " We need," she started, " To tell them. It's not right for them not to know. And we also need to say that spell." she said, not taking her eyes from me. " Yeah, for a while he was normal, as normal as a witch/whitelighter could be, but maybe it's time to tell him." Paige said, wincing at the idea. " You mean them. This affects Wyatt and Chris equally." Phoebe said, bring her hand off her mouth. " Yeah, but Phoebe, he has more to lose." Piper said, beginning to pace. Leo grabbed her into a hug, " It'll be okay, it's only a few more weeks until the day. Until then we need to take care of him as best we can." Leo smiled. Piper chuckled, " We broke him and he's not even ours." she said, breaking the hug. She heard a crash and looked at her sisters and Leo. They all left the room quickly, bolting down the stairs. ================================================================================================================ Wyatt, with his cousins and siblings, waited downstairs in the Solarium. No one said a word, they sat in silence trying to figure out what happened to Drake. Their thoughts were interrupted when Talik shimmered into the room. Henry Jr. stood, " Who's that?" he said, bracing himself for a fight. "Is that Talik?" she said, looking him over. Wyatt sneered, " Yes! You have the nerve to come here after what you did?" he quaked. " What did I do?" Talik said, shocked at the accusation. " You tried to kill Drake!" Chris said angrily. "Why are you here?" Wyatt said, holding Chris back. Talik stepped back, " I swear I didn't." he said quickly. " Ok, then who did?" Henry Jr. said automatically. " I don't know! Look, we were just standing there talking and he flipped out!" Talik explained. Wyatt stepped up, face to face with Talik, " I don't believe you and now you have the nerve to come to my home?" he said trying to intimidate Talik. Wyatt punched Talik and Talik fell backwards into the wicker chair! He quickly shook it off and tackled Wyatt into the armoire, then they both fell to the floor, pummeling each other! Leo and Piper ran into the room and the stopped the fight immediately. Piper grabbed Wyatt, " What in the hell is going on?!" she shouted. " He tried to kill Drake" Wyatt panted. " No he didn't. Drake's powers are malfunctioning. He's still new, so the effects of it are daunting to him." Leo said, straining to hold Talik back. Wyatt stopped struggling and looked at Talik, " You didn't do it?" he said in disbelief. " What in the fuck have I been saying all this time!" Talik shouted, covering his face with his hands. Piper pointed her finger at him, " Hey! Watch the language in this house." Piper said calmly. Talik stopped struggling too, " Is he alright?" Talik asked in concern. " He's fine. He needs his rest, so he's going to stay here until his parents get back." Leo said. " How long will that be?" Chris asked quickly. Piper sighed, " they are scheduled to be gone for a few months, but when I talked to Caly earlier, she hinted that they might be gone a little longer. They're helping a new company set up, so they will be gone for a while." Piper explained. " It's been a...pleasure, but I have other things to do besides get my ass kicked in this house." Talik said, shimmering out. Leo and Piper turned to Wyatt, " Wyatt, What's wrong with you? You've never fought like that. He's a demon, yeah, but there was no reason." Leo asked angrily. Wyatt sneered, " I really don't like him. He's using Drake to get to you guys. He's evil." " Wyatt, there are good demons...not good demons, but you know what I'm saying right?" she said and he nodded. Just then Phoebe and Paige orbed in from upstairs. " What happened here?" Paige asked, surveying the room. Piper again sighed, " Wyatt and Talik had a fight." she explained. " Wyatt won." Henry Jr. said cheerfully. " SHHH! Wait...really?" Paige said, trying to hear more. " Nobody one. They just had to do the 'male' thing and fight." Phoebe's oldest daughter, Prudence said without blinking. Phoebe ruffled Prudence's hair, " That's my little psychologist!" she said happily. Chris scoffed, " There is a word for it and it's not that." he joked. " Do I smell cookies?" Paige asked, smelling the air. " Yeah, want some?" Piper said, walking to the kitchen. Paige and Phoebe nodded, then all the women left the room. The guys stayed behind, shaking their heads. " Women." Henry Jr. said, flopping down on the couch. ================================================================================================================ I woke up when I felt a hand graze my cheek and I looked over to see Talik. I jumped at first, then looked around to see where I was. " I'm glad you're awake." Talik smiled. " Anything to make you happy." I said, smiling. Talik moved his hand on top of mine, " I know you don't trust me, but..." he said, but I interrupted. At hearing that, I frowned, " I didn't say that!" I said quickly. At first he didn't say anything, but then he looked at me in realization, " You've trusted me all long, haven't you? It's Wyatt and the sisters who don't trust me, right?" he said anxiously. I looked away, " I'm not stupid, I've heard about..." I said quietly. " Forget what you've heard! I'm different. The reason why I put a glamour on my name is that I...before we met, I liked you. I just didn't want us to meet under the wrong pretenses." he explained and I smiled. " I don't if that's quite stalking, but it's close." I nodded. " You know, tomorrow's Halloween...and I was wondering would you like to go demon hunting with me?" Talik asked calmly. " You're brave. I could be straight." I smiled. He laughed, " No offense, but I've studied you. So, what is it, you want to go trick or treating with me, or do you just want the treats?" He joked, making me laugh. " I don't know, which one are you?" I laughed. " I guess you'll find out tomorrow." He said, kissing me quickly and shimmering out of the room just in time to avoid being seen by Wyatt. I was so shocked that for the first few minutes I didn't notice Wyatt. Wyatt looked into the air, " Was someone just here?" he asked. I was silent. " Drake." He called. I was still silent. " DRAKE!" he shouted and I snapped out of my daze. " Hey Wyatt." I said, trying to act as normal as possible. He looked at me strangely for a minute, then spoke, " Are you okay? Dad said that you'd be alright, but you seem...should I call him?" Wyatt said with concern. I stared at him quietly for a moment. " What?" Wyatt smiled. I shook my head, " Look at you, all protective. I like. There is something I have to ask you...When we talked the other day, you said that I had other choices. Exactly who do you mean?" I asked carefully surveying his face. Wyatt walked over and sat on the bed, " That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I was.... Just then, the whole family burst through the door! By the time they were all in, Wyatt was halfway across the room and I was a bit disappointed, but I went with it. I talked to them al for hours and they told me that they had come to a conclusion about what to do about Talik. I nodded, but I didn't listen. I was preoccupied by Wyatt, who seemed to be very depressed. I wasn't so cheerful myself. All of a sudden I wasn't feeling so good, but I smiled and nodded. ============================================================================================================= I told Piper that I was going to go to my house, where there'd surely be no noise and less trick or treaters and she reluctantly agreed. At 8:40, Talik shimmered in. I turned and looked at him, then smiled broadly. " I thought you had rethought the whole good guy thing." I smiled. " When are you going to believe that I'm here to help and nothing else?" Talik chuckled. I walked over to my bed and put on my jacket, " When we vanquish the last demon in the world." I joked. He smiled and held out his hand, " Come on, weirdo." he said. I gasped in mock outrage, " You're the demon wanting to fight evil and I'm the weird one?" I said, grabbing his hand and we shimmered away. I found myself in a warehouse. I was about to ask where we were when I heard something clank and a growl! We both ducked behind a nearby crate, looking around it to find what was causing all the commotion. I saw a large demon, very pale, and he was sucking the life out of a kid! I tired to get up, but Talik pulled me back down. " We have to come up with a plan!" Talik whispered. " He could be dead by then." I whispered back, thinking of what the sisters would do. I thought about Piper and what she would do and I held up my hands and the scene froze. I ran to the kid and Talik followed, stopping as we got closer. I stopped too and noticed that he was looking up and I looked up to and saw what he was staring at. There were at least 7 other demons, like the ones feeding on the little boy, waiting for us. Suddenly the room unfroze and the demons came after us! The first one dropped the kid and lined up with the rest of them. I backed closer to Talik, " Got any ideas?" I asked in fear. "One, but you wouldn't like it." he said honestly. I turned to him, " Anything is better than being killed." I said quickly. " Anything?" he frowned. I nodded, " Do whatever you're going to do!" I shouted. I felt him grab me, then he threw me across the floor! I landed next to the kid, who was lifeless on the floor. " I offer you a gift on All Hallows Eve." Talik said, pointing to me. " You ASS! I cannot believe..." I said, very pissed. " Silence!" Talik said quickly. The first demon walked up, " This is a bountiful gift, let us all feast on this delightful morsel. And offer our thanks to our new ally." the demon smirked. "No need. I need to get rid of him." Talik said happily. The demons surrounded me and I looked around trying to find somewhere to go, but there was nowhere to hide! I saw a lead pipe and I focused on it and it blew up, impaling two of the demons, vanquishing them! The other stopped. " Do you smell that?" One said, sniffing the air. " Yes, it will be all the sweeter." the leader said, as they once again moved toward me and the boy. They stopped when energy balls came hurtling at them and they blew up before they could reach us! I looked up and Talik shrugged, " You didn't like my plan?" he said innocently. I punched him in the shoulder immediately, " Next time share the plan!" I said urgently. " Go and get the kid. I'm gonna handle these guys." he said, shimmering over to a group of them. I nodded and made it to the kid, but as I was leaving the lead demon jumped out at me and tackled me to the ground! I got to my feet and looked to him. He charged at me and I jumped into the air trying to jump over him, but I levitated into the air, " What the fu..." I said, but the demon reached up and slammed me into the ground! " Does the little Charmed One need a demon to save him?" Erouck, the lead demon, laughed. I looked up, panting, " Ok, what are you talking about?" I asked, confused by his rambling. " Your blood...the blood of a Charmed One." he smiled. I sat up, " Ok, I'm going to need the 'for dummies' version." I said, listening. " It's in you..." Erouck said, but before he could finish, he was hit with an energy ball and combusted! I got to my feet and shook off my confusion. I hit Talik in the chest, " I was about...You heard what he said! Charmed blood, there is something fishy going on around here." I said impatiently. " Yeah, but I thought he was just playing you." Talik said with a confused look on his face. Suddenly my phone rang! I looked at the screen and Wyatt's name and face popped up. I looked Talik, who looked back with the same shocked expression. " Hey...Wyatt?" I said, answering the phone. But it was not Wyatt's voice, it was 'Angry' Piper's voice, " NO! Where are you! We are so worried, I can't believe you went out without telling us!" she shouted through the phone. " Piper, you would not have let me go if..." I whimpered through the phone. " Damn right! You're still recuperating and...wait, where are you?!" she continued to shout. I frowned, " Demon hunting with Talik..." I said, maintaining my frown. Piper chortled, " That's...really not funny, what in the hell is wrong with you! Get here now!" she said, with Leo behind her, trying to calm her down. I sighed, " Alright, I'm be home in seconds." I said carefully. With a huff, I hung up and turned to Talik, " Can you get this boy home? I have a feeling I'm going to be Manor-bound for a while." I said grimly. Talik smiled and kissed me, " Yeah I think I can manage." he said, groping me. We got caught in the kissing and groping, but I caught myself, " I should really be going." I smiled. We made out for another few minutes before there was a swirl of lights caught our attention and we split quickly. Wyatt quickly appeared and walked towards us. Wyatt tried to smile, but it got lost in translation, " Mom sent me to get you." he said quickly. " Message boy." Talik taunted. Wyatt ignored him, " You know it was really dangerous." he said, about to lecture. I sighed and rolled my eyes," Save the boy scout act, mama's boy." I said without thinking. I tried to pull the words back but it was to late and I had struck a nerve. " Yeah? Well at least my mom's around." He said in a very annoyed tone. I gasped, " You know what, I'm going to ignore that because..." I started, but he interrupted me. " Don't ignore it! Lately you've been different and I think it's because of him...I am begging you to not be fooled by him." Wyatt begged. " How'd I get pulled into this?" Talik frowned. " Drake never acted like this before you came." Wyatt said calmly. " Maybe he just got tired of saint Wyatt coming to his rescue." Talik said equally as calm. We all stopped when we noticed that the boy was waking up. "Talik, I'm going to see you later." I said walking to Wyatt. Talik nodded, " I will see you later." he said, shimmering over to the boy and grabbing him, then they shimmered out. I turned to Wyatt, who was holding out his hand. I turned away from him and he touched my back, then we orbed back to the Manor. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- When we orbed into the living room, the Charmed Ones were waiting for us. They all stood when we orbed in and hugged me, then slapped me in the back of the head. " What is your problem?" Piper said, starting things off. " Yeah, what's going on with you lately? Ever since you met Talik, you...." Paige said, but I was concentrated on Phoebe, who had a look of realization on her face. " Oh...if you guys think about it..." she said, trying to get them to realize the obvious. Soon they all got a look of realization, then one by one they all hugged me. " Why didn't you just tell us?" Piper said quickly. " It wouldn't matter to us, and you know it! We're witches for goodness sake!" Paige added. I frowned, " It wasn't him...I..." I said, searching for the words. " That's how it happened with Cole and I know..." Phoebe said, trying to reason with me, but I was past reasoning. " How I feel?! No, you don't! Wyatt even said it...I have two parents who could give a damn if I was here or not, a demon who wants to be with me, and I'm...I have a question. How do I have Charmed Blood?" I asked, causing them all to look at each other. " Where'd you hear that?" Paige asked. I walked forward, " Demon. What does that mean, Charmed Blood?" I asked, listening with my full attention. Piper looked at her sisters, then me, " When we were younger and fought evil a lot more, our sister Prue was alive and I got infected with a disease and long story short, monkeys got our power and became Charmed monkeys. You got really sick when you were younger and lost almost all of your blood and the only way you were alive was because the whitelighters helped. Well, we could take that much blood from one of us, so..." Piper trailed off. " We all gave some. And therefore, you have all power and our blood." Paige said patiently. I sat on the couch, " Why didn't my parents..." I asked, but they had already known what I was about to ask. " Your mom is anemic and your father...he is not compatible." Paige answered. I looked down, " Doe that mean that we're related?" I asked. " No, but we consider you family." Piper said kindly. " As a matter of fact..." Phoebe began, but Paige cut her off, " No, Phoebe." she said quickly. " One secret at a time." Piper said, holding something back. I stood, " What secrets? Next you'll be saying that there is a prophecy." I joked. They all exchanged knowing looks. My eyes bulged, " Oh." I said, sitting back down.