Fic: Comes Out of Darkness, Morn (33/37)
Mar. 16th, 2012 11:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sara_wolfTitle: Comes Out of Darkness, Morn
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Summary: Pax's disappearance shattered Paige. Losing Prue, three years later, reopens old wounds that she thought she'd managed to close off, forever. But, through tragedy comes a sliver of light, and discovering that she's a witch is only the beginning...
*****
After driving around for about half an hour, Piper finally felt calm enough to go back to the house. Paige was sound asleep in the conservatory, a peaceful expression on her face, and Piper covered her with a blanket, brushing her hand across her sister's shoulder.
"I'm going to find a way to fix this," she murmured, quietly. "I promise."
Then, she headed for the attic.
An hour later, she barely looked up at the sound of footsteps in the doorway. She sensed someone coming up behind her, but she didn't take her eyes off the demon she had trapped in a crystal cage in the middle of the room.
"Um, Piper?" Phoebe, and her younger sister stopped just behind her, to hover at her shoulder. "What'cha doing?"
"My new friend here knows Barbas," Piper said, nodding at the demon. "Don't you?" she added, warningly, and the demon nodded, frantically.
"Yeah, yeah," he said, his head bobbing, wildly. "Barbas and me, we're in the same part of Hell. Banished, you know."
Phoebe nodded, slowly, taking Piper by the arm and pulling her back a few steps. "You've certainly got him jumpy," she remarked. "Dare I ask why you're torturing demons in the attic?"
"Because Paige is asleep downstairs, and I don't want to stress her out even more than she already is," Piper retorted. When Phoebe simply crossed her arms and looked at her, she sighed. "Okay, fine. I want answers on how to stop Barbas. Who better than another demon?"
Phoebe looked like she had a million protests to that comment, but she swallowed everything. "Did you learn anything?" was all she asked.
"I learned that he's the one who taught Barbas how to astral project," Piper hissed, furiously. "So, he's partly responsible for everything Paige is going through."
"Anything else?" Phoebe asked, and Piper shook her head.
"I've only had him in the cage for about fifteen minutes," she replied.
"Well," Phoebe suggested, as they walked back over to the cage, "two heads are better than one." Turning her attention to the demon, she demanded, "Why is Barbas after our sister?"
"I already asked him that," Piper muttered, under her breath.
"I don't know, all right?" the demon said, at the same time. "He just wanted me to teach him astral projection. He didn't exactly confide in me why he wanted it."
"How do we stop him?" Phoebe pressed, and the demon snorted out a laugh.
"Stop him?" he echoed, incredulously. "You do know who you're dealing with, right? The Demon of Fear, practically invincible-"
"Wait, back up," Piper said, quickly. "Practically invincible?"
"Well," the demon said, hesitantly, "when he astral projects, his soul is up here torturing your sister, which means that his body is in a coma-like state."
"Great," Phoebe said, enthusiastically. When Piper shot her a look, she elaborated, "If Barbas goes into a coma every time he goes to torture Paige, then – I'm sorry, I don't know your name," she added, to the demon.
"Stimple," the demon told her, and Phoebe raised an eyebrow.
"Stimple, really?" she echoed. "Okay, not important," she added, when Piper elbowed her in the side. "What is important is that the next time Barbas goes after Paige, Simple, here, can just shove his body into the fiery pit below."
"Excuse me!" Stimple interrupted her, loudly. "I am not your errand boy, witches. If I do this for you, what are you going to do for me?"
"What do you want?" Piper asked. Phoebe stared at her in amazement, and Piper retorted, in a quiet voice, "Hey, this guy can help us get rid of Barbas once and for all. Paige can have peace for the first time in a month. I think he can name his price."
"I don't want a lot," Stimple interjected, quickly. "I just want out of Hell."
"Can't you get out on your own?" Phoebe asked, cautiously.
"I can astral project out," Stimple answered, "but you," he added, nodding at Piper, "just proved that you can summon me, body and soul, out of that damn pit. I want out of Hell. I help you off Barbas, and you get me out of that pit."
"And have you come after us?" Phoebe asked, a challenging note in her voice. "I don't think so."
"Oh, come on," Stimple snorted. "Look at me. I'm barely a demon. You know who banished me to that pit in the first place? Other demons. I'm not going to come after you. I just want to get out of the pit and get my life back in the Underworld. What remains of it," he added, with a self-depreciating laugh.
Phoebe exchanged a long look with Piper, but Piper already knew what her answer was. She would do anything to get Paige peace, and if freeing some low-level demon did it, then she'd do it, happily.
"Looks like you have a deal," Phoebe said, after a long moment, speaking for them both. "So, the next time Barbas astral projects, you'll shove him into the pit. Then, once we're sure it's done, we'll summon you out and let you go."
"Small problem with that plan," Stimple said, fidgeting uneasily. "See, I'm standing on a rather tiny shelf of rock. Not a whole lot of space to move around. And Barbas is on another shelf. One that I can't reach."
"Then, why did you even bring it up?" Piper exploded, furiously. "If you're useless-"
"Not useless," Stimple said, quickly, a placating tone in his voice. "I can astral project out the next time he goes after your sister, and then one of you can come back with me, land on the rock Barbas is standing on, and shove him in."
"Why can't you just astral project over to Barbas's rock and push him in, yourself?" Phoebe asked, sounding like she was fighting for patience.
"My power isn't based on physical distance," Stimple told them, "it only lets me astral project among different planes. And the pit is on a different plane than this world. That's how demons are prevented from shimmering out."
"We can still make this plan work," Phoebe said, quietly, to Piper. "We just have to change a few things around."
"Fine," Piper gritted out, "but you need to tell us the second that Barbas goes after our sister," she threatened Stimple. "We want to get this over with."
Continued here
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Summary: Pax's disappearance shattered Paige. Losing Prue, three years later, reopens old wounds that she thought she'd managed to close off, forever. But, through tragedy comes a sliver of light, and discovering that she's a witch is only the beginning...
*****
After driving around for about half an hour, Piper finally felt calm enough to go back to the house. Paige was sound asleep in the conservatory, a peaceful expression on her face, and Piper covered her with a blanket, brushing her hand across her sister's shoulder.
"I'm going to find a way to fix this," she murmured, quietly. "I promise."
Then, she headed for the attic.
An hour later, she barely looked up at the sound of footsteps in the doorway. She sensed someone coming up behind her, but she didn't take her eyes off the demon she had trapped in a crystal cage in the middle of the room.
"Um, Piper?" Phoebe, and her younger sister stopped just behind her, to hover at her shoulder. "What'cha doing?"
"My new friend here knows Barbas," Piper said, nodding at the demon. "Don't you?" she added, warningly, and the demon nodded, frantically.
"Yeah, yeah," he said, his head bobbing, wildly. "Barbas and me, we're in the same part of Hell. Banished, you know."
Phoebe nodded, slowly, taking Piper by the arm and pulling her back a few steps. "You've certainly got him jumpy," she remarked. "Dare I ask why you're torturing demons in the attic?"
"Because Paige is asleep downstairs, and I don't want to stress her out even more than she already is," Piper retorted. When Phoebe simply crossed her arms and looked at her, she sighed. "Okay, fine. I want answers on how to stop Barbas. Who better than another demon?"
Phoebe looked like she had a million protests to that comment, but she swallowed everything. "Did you learn anything?" was all she asked.
"I learned that he's the one who taught Barbas how to astral project," Piper hissed, furiously. "So, he's partly responsible for everything Paige is going through."
"Anything else?" Phoebe asked, and Piper shook her head.
"I've only had him in the cage for about fifteen minutes," she replied.
"Well," Phoebe suggested, as they walked back over to the cage, "two heads are better than one." Turning her attention to the demon, she demanded, "Why is Barbas after our sister?"
"I already asked him that," Piper muttered, under her breath.
"I don't know, all right?" the demon said, at the same time. "He just wanted me to teach him astral projection. He didn't exactly confide in me why he wanted it."
"How do we stop him?" Phoebe pressed, and the demon snorted out a laugh.
"Stop him?" he echoed, incredulously. "You do know who you're dealing with, right? The Demon of Fear, practically invincible-"
"Wait, back up," Piper said, quickly. "Practically invincible?"
"Well," the demon said, hesitantly, "when he astral projects, his soul is up here torturing your sister, which means that his body is in a coma-like state."
"Great," Phoebe said, enthusiastically. When Piper shot her a look, she elaborated, "If Barbas goes into a coma every time he goes to torture Paige, then – I'm sorry, I don't know your name," she added, to the demon.
"Stimple," the demon told her, and Phoebe raised an eyebrow.
"Stimple, really?" she echoed. "Okay, not important," she added, when Piper elbowed her in the side. "What is important is that the next time Barbas goes after Paige, Simple, here, can just shove his body into the fiery pit below."
"Excuse me!" Stimple interrupted her, loudly. "I am not your errand boy, witches. If I do this for you, what are you going to do for me?"
"What do you want?" Piper asked. Phoebe stared at her in amazement, and Piper retorted, in a quiet voice, "Hey, this guy can help us get rid of Barbas once and for all. Paige can have peace for the first time in a month. I think he can name his price."
"I don't want a lot," Stimple interjected, quickly. "I just want out of Hell."
"Can't you get out on your own?" Phoebe asked, cautiously.
"I can astral project out," Stimple answered, "but you," he added, nodding at Piper, "just proved that you can summon me, body and soul, out of that damn pit. I want out of Hell. I help you off Barbas, and you get me out of that pit."
"And have you come after us?" Phoebe asked, a challenging note in her voice. "I don't think so."
"Oh, come on," Stimple snorted. "Look at me. I'm barely a demon. You know who banished me to that pit in the first place? Other demons. I'm not going to come after you. I just want to get out of the pit and get my life back in the Underworld. What remains of it," he added, with a self-depreciating laugh.
Phoebe exchanged a long look with Piper, but Piper already knew what her answer was. She would do anything to get Paige peace, and if freeing some low-level demon did it, then she'd do it, happily.
"Looks like you have a deal," Phoebe said, after a long moment, speaking for them both. "So, the next time Barbas astral projects, you'll shove him into the pit. Then, once we're sure it's done, we'll summon you out and let you go."
"Small problem with that plan," Stimple said, fidgeting uneasily. "See, I'm standing on a rather tiny shelf of rock. Not a whole lot of space to move around. And Barbas is on another shelf. One that I can't reach."
"Then, why did you even bring it up?" Piper exploded, furiously. "If you're useless-"
"Not useless," Stimple said, quickly, a placating tone in his voice. "I can astral project out the next time he goes after your sister, and then one of you can come back with me, land on the rock Barbas is standing on, and shove him in."
"Why can't you just astral project over to Barbas's rock and push him in, yourself?" Phoebe asked, sounding like she was fighting for patience.
"My power isn't based on physical distance," Stimple told them, "it only lets me astral project among different planes. And the pit is on a different plane than this world. That's how demons are prevented from shimmering out."
"We can still make this plan work," Phoebe said, quietly, to Piper. "We just have to change a few things around."
"Fine," Piper gritted out, "but you need to tell us the second that Barbas goes after our sister," she threatened Stimple. "We want to get this over with."
Continued here
