Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to the show Charmed or to Phantom of the Opera. Only original stuff is mine.
AN: Here it is, my new Phantom of the Opera fic! I hope that readers will give feedback after they read this chapter. I know that some people don't believe in witchcraft or magic, but it's still fun to pretend that a person can have cool powers, right? Therefore, please read this story with an open mind and a sense of imagination. Also, this chapter is more of a history lesson on the Charmed characters; it's important, so skipping it is kind of a bad thing. For (much) more info on the Charmed Ones, please see my bio page for the web link. Thanks, and please review!
Prologue: A History of the Halliwell Line:
Over three hundred years ago, during the Salem Witch Trials, a woman named Melinda Warren was sentenced to death.
A true witch, one in possession of three incredible powers, Melinda had the power to move things with her mind, to freeze time, and the power to foresee the future. But as she lived in the town of Salem, she kept her powers secret and used them, along with her knowledge of herbs, to protect the people around her. One of those she protected was her young daughter, Prudence, who was slowly coming into her powers as well.
However, Melinda's precious secret was betrayed to the town's people by her lover, Matthew Tate, a warlock (or an evil male witch) who possessed the ability to copy the magical powers of good witches. After tricking Melinda into letting him copy her powers and take them as his own, Matthew betrayed her when he no longer had any use of her. Because of his betrayal, Melinda was sentenced to burn at the stake. To protect her daughter, Melinda accepted her fate, though with a heavy heart.
Then, on the day she was to die, Melinda had a vision. From her and her young daughter, Prudence, would come a line of witches, with each generation of her family line evolving in their strength and knowledge of magic. But the one thing that gave Melinda the most comfort was the fact that, one day, her descendants would produce three sisters — sisters who would become the greatest witches the world had ever known. It is recorded that these were her last words:
"I vow that each generation of Warren witches will grow stronger, culminating in the arrival of three sisters. These three sisters will be the most powerful witches the world has ever known. They will destroy all kinds of evil and shall be called the Charmed Ones."
With this vision of hope and pride, Melinda gladly went to her death, knowing that her family line was safe and destined to do great things.
Over time, the Warren line produced many witches, each one of them gifted with a power. Most of them had possession of a magic gift that once belonged to Melinda herself, such as freezing time or moving things with their mind. Occasionally, from one generation to the other, a Warren witch's magical powers would be greater or smaller than that of her mother's or sister's, but no matter how strong or weak their magical gift was, each Warren girl knew that they were part of a very special family with a great destiny to do good in the world.
And so Melinda's line continued on. But the magic passed down from one generation to the next was not the only thing her descendants inherited. The Book of Shadows, a tome filled with magic spells and potions, was created by Melinda years before her death, the very book itself shielded against Evil's touch and possession by Melinda's magic spells. Throughout the years, with each changing of hands, The Book became thicker as each Warren witch added her own knowledge and brews to aid future generations. Because of Melinda's magic, and that of her family, the knowledge and power contained within The Book of Shadows became increasingly powerful, so much so that Evil would do anything to acquire it, causing the women of the Warren line to protect it as well as the innocent people around them.
However, there were consequences to being a witch. One of them was the fact that no Warren woman had the hope of keeping a husband or lover for a long period of time. As can be expected, once a man discovered that his wife was a witch, he was sure to leave her at some point in the future. Rarely did a husband remain with his Warren wife, but when he did, it was only a matter of time before he was caught in the battle between good and evil and lost his life. Thus, no woman in the Warren family was able to keep hold of the man she loved, just like their ancestor, Melinda. Nonetheless, as long as a child was produced from the union, the magical line was secure.
Centuries later, in San Francisco, those three sisters were born. Prudence, Piper, and Phoebe Halliwell were born to Patricia Halliwell and her (eventual ex-) husband, Victor Bennett. However, Patricia was killed by a water demon when the girls were young, and with their abandonment by their father, the three sisters were left to the care of their grandmother, Penelope (Grams) Halliwell.
It was their beloved Grams who discovered that Prue, Piper and Phoebe were destined to become The Charmed Ones. Fearful of what would happen if the Powers of Evil were to discover the little girls and attempt to destroy them, Penelope 'bound' her granddaughters' special gifts, making sure that the girls had no magic and no memory of ever possessing them. Without magic and no memory of its existence, the girls were safe from evil magical attacks, and were able to grow up and, eventually, into their destiny of becoming The Charmed Ones.
Upon the death of their grandmother, Prue, Piper, and Phoebe were given back the powers which had been taken from them. Prue had the power of moving things with her mind; Piper could freeze time with her hands; and Phoebe had the gift to see the future (and later the past). With these gifts, the women known as The Charmed Ones did as they were prophesied: they vanquished Evil and all who did magic in its name, and protected the innocent. All of this was done at the cost of leading normal lives and having to hide who they really were from those they most cared for.
With their powers in hand, The Charmed Ones began to discover a whole new world outside the mortal realm. Now that they had magic, the sisters were able to see what is invisible to mortal eyes. Soon, their home (known as The Manor) was visited by magical visitors; fairies, elves, dwarves, trolls, ghosts, and other beings of myth and legend became their friends, and sometimes aided them in the destruction of many evil creatures of darkness.
However, one magical being in particular became closer to The Charmed Ones than he should have.
Leo Wyatt, a guardian angel of the Charmed Ones known as a Whitelighter, fell in love with Piper Halliwell, and eventually married her, even though it was forbidden for Whitelighters and witches to be together romantically. The Elders, higher beings who oversee the magical world and work to keep it on the side of good, tried to prevent the marriage, but soon believed that some Great Power would be born to Leo and Piper, and so allowed the marriage to take place.
Many trials and battles followed the sisters during the course of their lives as witches. They fought countless demons, evil curses, murderous ghosts, and even destroyed several physical embodiments of Evil itself. Death, fear, and heartache became common to them, and when it did, Prue, Piper, and Phoebe were always able to turn to one another or to Leo for help and comfort.
Then, one day, the Halliwells' stability as a family was shattered by a tragic loss.
Nearly four years after The Charmed Ones received their powers, Prudence Halliwell lost her life in a battle with Shax, a powerful assassin demon sent by one of the physical embodiments of Evil. With the Charmed Ones broken and without a sister, Evil gained an upper hand as Piper and Phoebe lost all desire of ever doing anything good in the future. It was then that the two remaining Charmed Ones discovered their long-lost sister, Paige.
Paige Matthews was born to the Charmed Ones' mother, Patricia, and her Whitelighter, Sam, after Patty's divorce from her husband when her daughters were still toddlers. Since the love between Patty and Sam was forbidden, baby Paige had been given to a church in the hopes that she would be safely away from any danger. She was soon adopted by a kind, loving family known as the Matthews, but remained ignorant of her powers and witch origins until she was needed by her sisters. With the arrival of Paige, as well as her newly revealed Whitelighter powers, the Charmed Ones were reconstituted and could continue fulfilling their destiny.
Many more adventures and battles followed: time-travelers from the future visited with warnings of dangers to come; battles with demons and warlocks were fought; and as before, death and strange occurrences were ran rampant in their lives. On more than one occasion, the sisters found themselves turned into many kinds of strange and magical creatures or beings, such a mermaids, goddesses, and dryads, all of it to help the side of good win against evil.
But through all of this, the sisters triumphed. Now, after their defeat and the destruction of The Hallow, a great source of Evil's magic power, each sister has been rewarded for all of her sacrifices. Given the chance to find true love, the three Halliwells finally found the happiness and contentment they have longed for, though for one, it came with a price. For Piper, there was a catch when it came to having a life with her husband.
In spite of The Elders' approval, and regardless of all the good that he had done for the sisters, Leo was eventually stripped of his Whitelighter powers and forced to live out his future as a mortal man. Because of his devotion to Piper and their children, Leo's choice of his family over the Greater Good of the world indicated a "fall from grace," which forced the Elders to make him human.
With the loss of his powers, Leo become an instructor of young magical children at an institution known as Magic School, a place where young witches and Whitelighters could learn control of their powers and to use them for the greater good. This new path set before him now allows Leo to spend much more time with his wife and their growing little boys, Wyatt and Chris.
For Piper's sisters, no higher price was needed to be paid, and so Phoebe and Paige settled down with their husbands to live out normal lives. Well, as normal as life can be for The Charmed Ones.
And so the story of the Halliwell sisters continues…
AN: Okay, probably not the best chapter I've ever written, but it's the best I can do, considering I'm trying to simmer down an entire television series into one prologue! For more info on Charmed, the characters, and their history, please visit my bio page; there's a link for you to follow. Oh, and Erik will appear in another chapter or two. Thanks, and please review!