"LIES AND CONSEQUENCE"
RATING: PG - Adult language.
SUMMARY: Phoebe deals with the consequences of her breakup with Jason Dean.
FEEDBACK: - Be my guest. But please, be kind.
DISCLAIMER: The Charmed Ones, Cole Turner, Chris Halliwell, Jason Dean, Darryl Morris and other characters related to Charmed belong to Spelling Productions, Brad Kern and Constance Burge. Olivia McNeill Turner, Harry McNeill and a few other characters are my creations.
NOTE: Takes place about three weeks following "Breath of the Undead". Alternate Universe Season 6.
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"LIES AND CONSEQUENCE"
PART I
While San Francisco soaked from a mid-winter downpour, Harry McNeill drove his silver-blue Mazda along Prescott Street. He finally came upon a parking space several yards away from the Halliwells' salmon-colored manor. After he eased the car into the parking space, he switched off the engine.
"Is this really necessary?" Harry's passenger demanded. "I've already apologized to Phoebe for what happened."
Harry gave the dark-haired young man a pointed look. "As I recall, all you did was give Jason the potion to vanquish the spirit from Phoebe's body. I don't recall an apology coming out of your mouth."
Richard Montana opened his mouth. Then he closed it. "Well, I . . . I figured you and Paige would be pissed after I had promised not to use magic again. Especially Paige. But I only wanted to free myself from my family's bad karma. How was I to know that I would end up channeling Mata Hari's spirit into Phoebe?"
A long suffering sigh left Harry's mouth. He and Paige had met Richard at Ostera's last fall. They learned that he came from a magical family embroiled in a feud with another magical family named Callaways. The young couple had befriended the male witch, when they helped him deal with the ghost of his former love. What they had not bargain was Richard's addictive use of magic to deal with his personal problems.
"Look Richard," Harry finally said, "I understand. But unless you want Paige and her sisters to be pissed at you forever, I suggest that you apologize in person. And then we'll try to do something about your . . . problem." He reached for his umbrella in the backseat, before climbing out of the car. Richard, who already carried an umbrella, did the same.
The two men dashed through the heavy rain and toward the Halliwell manor. Once they reached the top of the stoop, Harry rang the doorbell. Minutes passed before Piper Halliwell opened the door. "Harry!" she greeted with a friendly smile. Then her eyes fell upon the other male witch and chilled slightly. "Richard, what are you doing here?"
"I came to speak to Phoebe," Richard replied nervously. "To all of you."
Coolly, Piper replied, "Phoebe hasn't returned home, yet."
"May we enter anyway?" Harry begged. "It's wet out here." He indicated the downpour with a quick nod.
Piper opened the door further. "Sure. Come on in. Paige just got home from work. She's in the kitchen, fixing a cup of hot chocolate. Do you two want a cup?"
"Considering this wet weather, it sounds like a great idea," Harry said, after he and Richard entered the manor.
The oldest Charmed One led the two men into the kitchen. They found Paige sitting at the table, rocking a sleeping Wyatt in her arms. A steaming mug of hot chocolate sat on the table in front of her. "Hey Harry," she warmly greeted her red-haired boyfriend. Her eyes chilled slightly at the sight of Richard. "Oh, it's you. Here to clean up your mess?"
Richard opened his mouth, but Harry spoke instead. "I believe that Richard has already cleaned up his mess, when he gave Jason that potion to use on Phoebe. By the way, was Phoebe speaking with a French accent, when she was possessed?"
Piper shrugged her shoulders. "I guess so. Why? Wasn't Mata Hari a spy in Paris?"
"She was Javanese born," Richard explained. "Mata Hari came from a family of Dutch colonists in Indonesia."
"Thanks for the history lesson, Richard," Paige acidly retorted. The male witch's face turned red.
Harry felt sorry for Richard. He knew that the other man harbored a slight infatuation of Paige. But he did not worry about, since Paige had never shown any interest in Richard.
Piper went to the stove and began to prepare hot chocolate for the visitors. "By the way, Richard, don't you have something to say?"
Richard cleared his throat. "Uh . . . yeah. Um, Piper . . . Paige, I want to apologize for what happened to Phoebe. Like I had told Harry before, I was only trying to rid myself of my family's bad karma. I had no idea that I would end up channeling Mata Hari's spirit. And I certainly didn't realize that Phoebe was in the house, at the time."
Paige retorted, "You weren't supposed to be using magic in the first place! Remember? I should have insisted that you leave before we left the house. And not leave you in the attic all alone."
"But I thought if I . . ."
Piper added, "Richard, if you're having such a big problem with using your magic, why don't you simply bound or strip away your powers?"
Nodding, Paige said, "That's what I've been saying."
"I disagree." Everyone stared at Harry.
Paige demanded, "You've got a better idea?"
Harry thanked Piper, after she handed him a mug of chocolate. "Yeah, I do." He turned to the other man. "Richard, you need to seek help. Badly. Bounding or stripping your powers won't help you. You'll simply find something else to use as a means to hide from your problems - booze, drugs, food, or maybe sex. You need someone to help you deal with your problems. Face them. And since a psychiatrist is out of the question, maybe this witch coven in Vermont can help."
"More witches?" Paige asked. "What can they do that we can't?"
"Help him."
Richard frowned. "How? I mean . . . why recommend them?"
Harry explained, "The Blue Wave Coven are a group of witches trained in both psychiatric and spiritual guidance. Not only can they help you deal with your personal problems, they can also help you control your magic."
"And I won't have to strip my powers?" an incredulous Richard asked.
Harry replied, "I don't think the Blue Wave Coven would recommend it. But I might be wrong. Why don't you pay them a visit, first? They were a big help to Olivia, after her . . ." From the corner of his eye, he saw Richard wince. Harry sighed. "Dude, you've got to stop reacting every time my sister's name is mentioned."
Richard inhaled sharply. "I'm sorry, but I just find it weird that your sister's name is the same as my Olivia. And that her former fiancé's name was Richard."
"Yeah . . . whatever," Paige muttered. "About this Blue Wave Coven . . . are you going to Vermont to check them out?"
The two sisters and Harry stared at Richard. Who sighed. "I really should consider this coven, should I?"
"I think you should," Harry replied.
Richard took a sip of hot chocolate. "Well, before I contact them, I still need to apologize to Phoebe. Where is she?"
"Probably still at work," Paige answered.
Piper shook her head. "No, she's not. Phoebe told me that she had planned to leave the office early. To see Jason." She sighed. "I wonder how that panned out."
END OF PART I
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