The X-Philes - Charmed: Hubble, bubble, toil and trouble 7

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Halliwell Manor

In the attic, Pheobe is explaining The Book of Shadows to Doggett and Reyes. In the kitchen Paige is trying to brew potions and Piper is trying to fix some lunch.

'Careful! Don't get any of that into my soup. We don't know what it'll do to the FBI agents' says Piper. Paige sniffs.

'Mmm what herbs do you put in your Veg soup and is that bread I smell baking?' she asks. Piper laughs.

'You know better than to ask me about my culinary secrets. So how's the potion coming?' Piper says. Paige frowns.

'I've hit a couple of dead ends but with a bit of tinkering we'll get there' she replies.

'Anyway, that's enough for now - it's lunch time.' Piper carries mugs of soup and coffee and a platter of rolls up to the attic. At the Book of Shadows Pheobe is explaining how it works.

'Jeez what's that?' asks Reyes pointing at a picture. Pheobe smiles.

'Gremlin - and this is the spell to banish them back to the underworld. It's a kind of supernatural exterminator. Gremlins aren't evil, just annoying. We had a water gremlin once and it took us days to get rid of him. We were always finding him dancing in the shower, annoying little thing.' she says.

'So where did this book come from?' asks Reyes.

'It's a family heirloom. It's been written by the women of our family since the seventeenth century. Every generation updates it, including us. This chapter should be quite interesting.' Pheobe replies. Piper and Paige come through the door.

'Lunch time!' calls Piper. Everyone gathers around and sits on the sofa or on the floor.

'You really didn't have to do this.' says Reyes. Piper waves her hand dismissively.

'It's no problem. We are all in this together now.' she replies. There's a knock at the door. Leo peeks through the window.

'Agent Scully's back.' he says.

'I hope she's got over what ever it was.' says Doggett as Leo goes downstairs to let her in. Leo opens the door and lets Scully in.

'We're in the attic.' he says. Scully follows him up the stairs. As she goes up she starts fiddling with her gun.

'Hey, Scully, you feeling any better?' asks Doggett as she comes through the door. She nods.

'Much better. I have seen the light, I know what must be done.' she says as she draws her gun and fires at Paige who disappears in a swirl of bright light and reappears next to Doggett.

'Scully what the hell you doing?' says Doggett.

'What you should have done.' she replies in a flat voice as she fires at Pheobe who jumps in the air and levitates out of harms way. 'Kill the witches.'

'Paige orb the gun.' yells Pheobe.

'Gun!' says Paige. Scully's gun disappears and reappears in her hand. Scully lets out a howl of rage.

'NOOOOOOOO!!! I'LL KILL YOU WITCH!' She picks up a knife and slashes at Paige's face but catches her arm as Paige raises it to protect herself. Doggett grabs Scully's arm and pins it behind her back dodging the wildly slashing knife. Reyes has her gun pointed at Scully.

'Dana don't make me do this please.' she pleads. She takes a closer look at her face. 'Look at her eyes - they're... blank.'

'I can't hold on to her much longer. Do whatever it is you do Piper.' says Doggett. Piper raises her hands and everything stops. She touches Reyes and Doggett who come out of it.

'What the...' starts Doggett as he unfreezes.

'She's frozen for the moment.' says Pheobe. 'What was it you said about her eyes?'

'I said they looked blank... you know... empty.' replies Reyes peering at Scully.

'Spell?' asks Paige. Her sister nods. Leo places his hand on her arm and the gash begins to heal.

'Can you do anything for her?' Monica enquires.

'I don't see why not.' says Piper. 'How about the de-zombiefying spell we picked up from that Voodoo Queen in New Orleans? With a few ajustments it should be perfect.' Doggett looks at Reyes who shrugs. Pheobe is looking through the book.

'Here, it says we need salt and gold.'

'Gold?' says Doggett.

'Like a necklace, ring, earrings maybe.' she replies. He spots Scully's cross and chain.

'Will that do?' he asks pointing. Pheobe nods.

'Put it in her right hand.' she says. Paige comes through the door with a box of salt in her hand.

'What do you want done with this?' she asks.

'Put some in her left hand and some in a circle around Agent Doggett.' Pheobe replies. 'I need you to grab her hands and keep them closed. Nothing will happen to you as long as you stay inside the salt circle.' she says to him. 'Ok, lets do it. She'll unfreeze in a second.'

Scully twitches as the freeze wears off. Doggett grabs her hands and the sisters begin to chant.

'A soul is bound by an evil spell. To bring it back from the gates of hell, put salt in her left hand and gold in her right, cast out the dark, restore her soul's light.' At the end Reyes blows salt into Scully's face. She blinks and her knees buckle.

'Dana... Dana... are you ok?' says Reyes. She nods feebly and collapses to the floor.

'Ahhh... my God what did I do? Oh God... I'm so sorry I couldn't stop it.' she groans. Reyes cradles her head.

'It's ok Dana, you're ok now.' she croons.

'I remember being angry and I remember being with Agent Wells. I was angry... really angry... but I can't remember why.' she mumbles. Her face contorts as she remembers more. 'He said I had to kill the sisters and bring Monica to him at 8.30.' Tears start to roll down her cheeks. 'He said if I did this I'd get Mulder back. I could see myself doing it; I could see everything but I couldn't stop.' Reyes hugs her tight.

'Don't worry everything's ok now. He was messing with your mind that's all.' she says. She looks desperately at the sisters for reassurance.

'Why did he want Monica?' asks Doggett suddenly. Pheobe picks up her drawings.

'Does he look like this by any chance?' she enquires. The three agents nod.

'How did...' starts Scully.

'He's a demon called Azrael. He can control strong emotions and use them to his advantage...' replies Pheobe. '... which is why Agent Scully got into the state she did.'

'It still doesn't explain why he wants Monica.' says Doggett.

'He needs to replenish his powers by killing those with empathic powers and you're next.' she says to Reyes. 'You're the one he needs to regain his full power. After that he'll be unstoppable.'

'How do you know all this?' says a stunned Reyes.

'Agent Scully dropped a packet of tissues in the hospital. I saw your death in a vision when I picked them up.' says Pheobe.

'They were the ones you gave me back in Washington.' says Scully. Realization dawns on Pheobe's face.

'Which is why I saw your death.' she says to Monica. Suddenly Cole shimmers in holding a struggling Oracle.

'Look who I found sneaking around the underworld looking for Tempus.' he says. 'Now why d'you think she needs to mess with time?' The Oracle glares at him.

'Oooh I don't know. Maybe a plan's gone belly up? Perhaps a prophesy has taken the wrong track and she needs to start again.' says Piper. 'Am I right?' Oracle shifts uneasily and stares at the floor. 'Bingo!'

'Who the hell is she?' asks Doggett.

'She's the Source's soothsayer. She can see the future and according to Cole she's working with Azrael to make sure Satan reigns supreme.' says Pheobe.

'So what went wrong?' asks Cole.

'Like I'd tell you...' snarls Oracle. '... and all you're little truth spells won't work on me either.' Pheobe walks up to her and looks her in the face.

'Oh we don't need spells. All we need to do is ask Cole to take you back to the underworld and tell the Source just what you've been up to. I'm sure he'll love to know what his trusted prophetess gets up to behind his back.' A look of panic crosses The Oracle's face.

'No, No! Please. I'll tell you everything, just don't tell him please. You don't know what it's like working for him especially now with Satan in the mortal world. He doesn't want to hear the truth so I have to lie, tell him what he wants to hear and call in all kinds of favours to make sure it comes true. So when I heard of Azrael's plan and saw Satan's demise in the mist's of time I decided to help in anyway I could.' she says.

'Hold on, what's all this about Satan's demise and the mist's of time? What do you know? Who is Satan disguised as?' interrupts Doggett.

'When a vision is surrounded in mist it means the events can still be changed. If a vision is surrounded by stone it means events are set, they can't be changed, set in stone.' answers Pheobe.

'I can't tell you about Satan because I don't know who he is. Up here, when I see him, I see his true self.' Oracle says. 'Truthfully I can't tell you.'

'But you do know what's going to happen or you wouldn't have been looking for Tempus.' Cole remarks. Oracle nods her head.

'Four of you are the key to Satan's demise. You three and one who's body is here but his spirit is hovering between earth and the afterlife.'

'Mulder!' interrupts Scully. The Oracle nods.

'Satan and his followers are watching him closely. It is well known that the prophesy will not come true if one of you is dead. Satan has agents watching the one between worlds, but he has guardians not of this world or ours. I cannot see their destiny. Azrael knows this, that is why he wanted to kill her...' she points at Reyes. '... by taking her empathy he could be restored and the prophesy could not be fulfilled. But you helped screw it up.' she says to Doggett.

'Me! what did I do?' he retorts.

'You believed the Charmed Ones. You were supposed to ally yourself with Azrael and bring down the witches. Your past encounters with the supernatural were supposed to have turned you against them. Azrael misread the signs and worked on Agent Scully's anger towards his alter ego, Ashton Wells, and thought she was the unbeliever. I thought everything would remain the same but events have started to change. I wanted Tempus to reverse time so we could start again but Balthazar found me first.' Oracle hangs her head in failure.

'So nothing is set in stone yet?' says Pheobe. Oracle shakes her head.

'But the mists are clearing.' she replies.

'And your precious plan is going awry or why would you need Tempus.' retorts Piper. Oracle doesn't reply. Piper raises her hands. Leo grabs them.

'Oh no you don't! Blowing her to smithereens is not going to help.' he says.

'Wanna bet?' she spits. Leo smiles.

'We've got her over a barrel. She keeps what she knows about the agents and their future to herself and Cole doesn't tell the Source about her and Azrael.' he says. Oracle glares at him.

'Never!' she growls. 'I'll watch you die one by one.' Cole smirks.

'Have it your way.' he says. 'Agent Doggett, do you mind taking over, there's someone I need to speak to.' Doggett grabs her arms and twists them behind her back as Cole shimmers away.

'No Balthazor, Balthazor come back please.' she cries. Cole shimmers back.

'Changed your mind?' he asks. She nods miserably.

'Paige, get the entrapment crystals.' says Pheobe. Paige gets five crystals and places them in a pentegram shape around Doggett and the Oracle. When the last is in place a web is formed by bolts of what looks like electricity.

'Hey, how do I get out? Am I supposed to stay here with her?' asks Doggett. 'Not that I'd mind.' he adds silently, glancing at the scantily clad Oracle.

'You can just step out.' replies Pheobe. 'It's perfectly safe for you.'

'So now what?' says Reyes.

'Get Azrael in the open and vanquish him.' says Pheobe. 'I've finally got the spell finished. What about you, Paige?'

'Just a couple more hours and I'll have the potion done.' Paige replies.

'And you'll need me to lure him out!' remarks Reyes. The sisters nod.

'No, Monica. You mustn't! We've got no way of protecting you if something goes wrong.' insists Doggett.

'They have.' she says nodding at the sisters.

'Monica... ' he says.

'No, I've made up my mind. You have to let go and have faith sometimes.' replies Reyes.

'Ok, so what's the plan?' asks Cole...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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