Shape of Things to come

Shape of Things to Come

Part 3:Seeds of Time

Chapter 36

‘All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players.
They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts'
...William Shakespeare. As You Like It

After lunch, Phoebe nervously stood by and watched Francesca orb from a quiet corner of an alley beside the restaurant, although Francesca insisted that all was safe.

Phoebe had some strong thoughts about what she would say if Francesca ever condemned HER recklessness again.

She was in fact so concerned that she called Cole to check with Proctor that Francesca was indeed safe, which he immediately did. However, he did not call back for an hour, leaving her battling not to give into worry and guilt she may have put Francesca in danger. When Cole did call back, he explained Francesca was safe but the visit with Proctor was at the cost of a considerable amount of port and an hour’s monologue from Proctor, who, annoyed-for him, with some irritation recited a long history of Francesca following her duty, at the risk of her own safety.

Phoebe then joined Piper and Paige for afternoon tea in the conservatory. Paige had found an excuse to come home early again, worn out from the battles at work with Powers that Be, being constantly targeted by Evil, and worrying about Mark and her family. As they sat in the armchairs drinking coffee Phoebe was intricately explaining all her concerns to her sisters when the doorbell rang.

“Curses” she muttered as it rang insistently. She glanced hopefully at her sisters. However, both determinedly remained seated and so Phoebe sighing scrambled to her feet. She could see the outline of a man and was less than delighted when she recognised Agent Wilbur leaning on the bell when she opened the door.

“Afternoon Dr Halliwell” he murmured in his politest voice. “May I come in?”

“What do you want?” Phoebe tried to keep the door mostly closed, but Agent Wilbur had his moves well practiced and he wiggled his way inside before she could stop him.

“I believe your husband did” Agent Wilbur smiled smugly. “Are you rescinding the invitation?”

“What do you want?” Phoebe demanded trying to keep him in the hall but he pushed ahead of her into the conservatory and then he stopped cold as he saw Paige with Piper.

“I don’t believe we’ve met?” he finally almost drawled at Paige. Paige glanced at Piper and Phoebe picked up her phone and called Cole who answered almost immediately, although his voice had a port-induced rasp to it. “FBI turned up on the doorstep” she told him.

He was quiet for a second. “Be about twenty minutes got a client” he told Phoebe. “Don’t answer anything” he told her.

“You okay with the client?” Phoebe asked concerned. “You know after your visit… earlier.”

Cole laughed “They don’t care,” he replied, leaving Phoebe to assume the client was one of his ‘deadbeats’.

“Okay” he answered. “Phoebe, don’t even have a conversation about the weather. Will get you talking harmlessly and it will become official and he’ll be looking for ways to… ahh guide the conversation.”

“Okay” she noted. Agent Wilbur clearly heard and smirked but still appeared annoyed as well. “Paige is here” she added.

Phoebe ended the call wishing she could swipe the smirk of Agent Wilbur’s face.

“Paige Matthews. I live next door,” Paige replied as Agent Wilbur sucked his lip.

The witches all sat around staring at each other. Three times Agent Wilbur started to speak and three times they all sat there until Piper finally just wanting to move asked if he wanted a coffee. This time he agreed so Piper went into the kitchen while Phoebe uncomfortably, and Paige rather enjoying herself, stared into space. Agent Wilbur stood up and wandered around the room picking up a few family pictures and surreptitiously touching other furniture. About ten minutes later Piper returned with a coffee pot, milk, sugar, cups, and a plate of cookies. Phoebe glared at her.

Piper glared at him and just stopped herself retorting anything as she poured coffee for Paige and Phoebe and Agent Wilbur who indicated sugar and milk. They all sat quietly when Cole walked in from the yard, not even pretending to have driven. Phoebe wondered why he did not bother.

“Afternoon” Agent Wilbur” Cole smiled extending his hand. Agent Wilbur shook it with a forced civility. “What can we do for you?” Cole asked pleasantly.

Agent Wilbur did not respond. He looked pointedly at Paige. “There’s a film going around on social media of a brawl at the University several days ago. Is that you?”

Paige looked at Cole and he shook his head “My clients have not seen any film” he told Agent Wilbur.

“Do you know that under 18 U.S.C. § 1001, it's a federal crime to make a false statement to a government agent when it's related to a federal issue?” Agent Wilbur told them darkly.

“My clients have not seen any film, from the university or anywhere else” he stated. “My clients have no evidence it exists. So, they cannot answer any questions about it.”

“It exists” insisted Agent Wilbur forcibly “And I remind you about lying to the FBI about a federal crime.”

“Eight university staff are missing” Agent Wilbur snapped “since a brawl at the university was witnessed several days ago. We have witnesses to the brawl.” He added emphasising the word witness.

“Sorry that we have the film or people are missing?” Agent Wilbur drawled “Participants look like your wife and her sisters.”

The three witches exchanged glances as Agent Wilbur let slip he was aware who Paige was.

“I thought we established on our last meeting that many people look like my wife and her sisters” Cole murmured.

“Did you know there has been another death connected to the university?” Agent Wilbur asked pugnaciously.

“It’s a big university” Cole murmured. “Bound to be the odd death or two.”

“I know you know her” Wilbur bit out to break the silence. Cole finally nodded while the sister’s exchanged glances again.

“She’s … was.. supervisor .. for a degree my “Phoebe hesitated. “Foster family’s Ph.D supervisor.” Phoebe answered.

Wilbur hesitated “Stroke” he admitted. “Doctors said it was very violent” Wilbur informed them not completely certain.

“Are you arresting my wife for a remote connection to someone she has never met having a stroke?” Cole asked his expression blank.

Wilbur half pounded his fist on the table “Dr Halliwell” he snarled “You may have a..” he glared at Cole “smartarse lawyer for a husband but he won’t protect you from the law.”

Phoebe was pushed “I expect me being innocent of any crimes to protect me from the law” she replied.

“He’s trying to” Cole grinned. “Is there anything you want to arrest one of my family for?” Cole asked him calmly.

Agent Wilbur smiled rather smugly and then he decided. “No” he answered. “Not at this particular time.” He stood up, giving all three witches his best official glare and turned to leave. Cole followed him out but not before turning to the sisters and putting his finger on his lips.

Agent Wilbur turned back. “We’ll be watching you” he smirked, then left the room as Cole followed him out.

Cole returned. He sat where Agent Wilbur had sat, feeling around under the table, and finally pulled out an electronic bug. “Anything you want to say?” he asked.

Cole then crushed the bug in his fingers “Hope that shatters their ear drums” Cole grinned. Then waved his hand and there was a sort of electronic fizzle, in the kitchen and a noise near the family photographs. Cole went over and squashed another bug.

“Well kinda ironic them threatening us about lying to the FBI when we were telling the truth” Phoebe hissed.

“Sounds like they’ve got concerned about the ones I destroyed. That’s why he came in with another one” Cole said.

Cole shrugged “You may want to watch what you say at work or P3 or in your cars” he told them.

“Same problem as the last one?” Cole suggested. “Magic makes it look like a fake. Editing it will make it irrelevant. They need you to make a statement.”

“Ironically probably not” Cole told them. “Not saying that he isn’t being guided by malcontents though.”

“Not all of ‘em” Cole answered “But police, DA, FBI have their attractions to Evil.”

“Sit it out. Don’t talk to anyone without me or Leslie. If you talk amongst yourselves make damned sure where you are” Cole clearly had given up suggesting they did not. He bowed to the impossible.

“Only if you want to lie to the FBI” Cole told her. He gave Phoebe a quick kiss before heading into the yard to debug next door.

“Making it hard for Good to work. Making Good look like they are bad.” Paige banged her fist on the table, making the coffee pot and paraphernalia jump. “Sometimes this …making mundane, taking away the joy in magic … stinks.”

“Need to see the video” Piper told Cole later that night. They were sitting in the parlour while Patsy and Wyatt seated at the dining room table were catching up on sorting and editing their photographs, mostly so their parents were aware they had not been allowed out on expeditions for a few weeks.

“They didn’t drag you in to see it so I figure its worse than the last one for magic, so hoping I can forestall any direct questioning” Cole told her.

Patsy sitting at his computer, was actually listening to the conversation intently. Very reminiscent of his mother he put his head on the side “What do you want to find Dad?” he asked with a know-it-all smile.

Patsy shrugged while Cole and Piper sighed, then fiddled around on the computer. “Got it” he exclaimed after a few minutes “Wow. I need to find the original” he added as Cole sighing came over and Piper reluctantly followed. “Some memes going about” Patsy told them, then even for a smug thirteen-year-old boy he was slightly embarrassed. “You don’t want to see them Aunt Piper” he mumbled.

“What don’t I want to see?” Piper asked tightly and Patsy just a little cheekily showed her the screen. He was right. Piper wished she did not see them. Mostly they were sections of a very wobbly out of focus bits of film showing her with Paige and Phoebe in full on demon fighting mode but the film was cut so as to make it a joke about old ladies making the moves as the title said. It was supposed to be funny, watching Phoebe fall over as she levitated, Paige knocked over when she took the force of a full blast of shaker power and Piper crashing after a full force slide on demon goo. In fact, they were only small parts of the battle, some after the chant and potion that crushed the Power of Three had been said. The vids also had various words and bits added, much like the old Batman series, mostly timed as the magic was happening, Cole realised.

Pasty started to laugh and Cole lightly flicked the side of his head. “Stop it” Cole ordered.

“Find the original” Cole ordered him. Piper started to fume and Cole murmured to himself “Those memes could be useful if we need to create any doubts.”

Ten minutes later Patsy, rather proud of himself, called out he had found the original and Cole told him to send the link then go on with what he was doing. “Aww Dad” Patsy groaned.

“All the kids at school will see that” Patsy muttered but finally did as he was told.

“Cole we need to do something about this” Piper told him, calmly. “You remember when Prue died what it was like. If this gets out, when this gets out.”

“I do. We unfortunately need to deny its anyone we know” he agreed. He opened a bottle of red wine “Fortitude” he grinned as he gave Piper a glass then set up his laptop to watch the film. Without the special effects it was a long jerky often out of focus film that showed the reality of a magic fight. There were gaps between attacks, lots of demons or their lackeys knocking each other over to avoid being in the front ranks. It was clearly done on phone camera and it did not pick up much of the light when the force fields were in action and the demon Briareos was making his threats.

“Get over being horrified” Cole told Piper “and look at what you can see.” Piper drained her glass and poured another one. “Or more importantly what you can’t see, Cole told her.

“Not much of the girls” she noted. “And it ends when all the demons took off. So it was a demon who took it.”

“Yeah and it was focusing on the Charmed Ones” Cole mused. “And I suspect the bit where the lost souls got it, is tampered with. It jumps and then its clear and then it kinda looks like Charlie is reaching toward them but there are quite a few frames missing. I think it looks reversed.”

“Yes” agreed Piper studying the film closely. “Demon fights aren’t as action packed as, you know, make-believe ones. Either bang you’re gone or lots of running around. Very chaotic but short on action. I mean who would be stupid enough to go hand-to-hand with a demon.”

“Which makes it look fake,” Cole agreed. He went to the beginning of the film.

“Yeah” he answered. “Because I have a strong suspicion if the FBI have a witness their statements will turn out to be what is seen on the film with a few added details.”

“Hope so, because I can have fun with the evidence” Cole laughed “It was getting dark. They would have barely seen anything amongst the hedges or been really confused if they did. Interesting. Trouble is with demons when they do things like that film, they haven’t much connection to reality and it shows. At least it explains why our friend agent Wilbur did not drag you in for questioning.”

“Also, curious that it was about the Charmed Ones” Piper realised, “when the girls did most of the initial fighting and it would have looked more bang-bang or burnt offerings.”

“Part of me wants Agent Wilbur to go to court” Cole grinned “Love to see the forensic reports.”

Piper laughed a little “What is the elemental makeup of demon goo?” she grinned.

“Well, if it turns out to be .. of this earth, FBI are making it up” Cole told her “And if they are honest about the evidence I can carve them up.”

“In some ways that’s not fair” Piper commented. “Doing the honest thing makes them look like idiots.”

“There’s a reason magic is not exposed” Cole nodded. “Innocents get hurt”

Cole leaned back against the sink after handing Piper another glass of very best red. “While I have the chance I’m going to tell you something Pip” he decided, “and I can say the spirit winds are a bit shaky over it, so I’ll probably have Therold coming down on me.”

“Oh god the parlour can’t stand another fight between you and Therold” Piper bit out.

“Maybe he will get mad and I won’t have to deal with him for another fifteen years” Cole smiled.

“I’m telling you this, not because it will stop you worrying because I don’t know the journey how it goes or who or where” Cole spoke quietly “but in the eclipse I saw…well I saw how it ends kind of for Phoebe and me.”

“Yeah” said Cole “but if what I saw was written, and I am assured it is, just not written the way I expect so… anyway Wyatt and Patsy and Melinda were all around at the end. But I don’t know how they got there.”

“It wasn’t written then” Cole replied “Just it was … there was another generation of witches. It could have happened anyway … so I’m going to assume Mandy was okay and I can tell you Melinda was. Only I don’t think she stops being Melinda.”