Molecular Immobilization

**Molecular Immobilization**, more commonly referred to as freezing, is the ability to slow down molecules to the point where they move so slowly that objects and people appear completely motionless.

## Gaining Control

Originally Piper could only freeze objects in the same room as her or that were in her direct line of sight within a certain range, regardless of what room they were in, and the freeze would only last for seconds at a time. When she was outdoors, it was unknown the range of effect that her powers had, but it can be noted that she was able to freeze a truck and a baby stroller moving on the other side of the street from her front door step, giving her a considerable range.

Over time, Piper was able to freeze people and objects on command. She was initially scared of her power, considering that she was a jumpy person and could accidentally freeze someone, but as she grew more skilled at using her ability, she could freeze without needing panic as a trigger, could unfreeze a target, could freeze someone for a longer period of time, and could freeze or unfreeze desired objects or parts of an enemy without affecting the rest of her surroundings.

This power advanced for Piper so much that she was able to almost completely freeze two Triad members.

In a fight against Dr. Curtis Williamson, it was revealed that Piper was able to make her Molecular Immobilization power stay active as long as she focused. She was able to keep a metal disc frozen by keeping her hands up and mentally focusing.

## More Advanced

    Aside from the obvious limits of range, the type of being that is to be frozen may also affect how well this power works. For example, initially Piper was not able to freeze good witches or upper level demons. Still, over time and as her powers developed, she (almost) overcame one of these limitations. Piper was able to freeze Billie Jenkins, but possibly only because Billie had been partially transformed into a demon. Piper also froze a member of the Triad, whose powers surpass many if not all upper level demons.

This power advanced to where Piper did not need to directly see an object to freeze it. She has shown this ability when she only stuck her hand through the door the freeze the jury, and after having a long look at the jury, she did it again when she, Leo, and Paige left after helping Phoebe summon the spirit Angela. She also displayed this again, when Phoebe was possessed by Mata Hari and tried to walk away from Piper and Paige. As Phoebe/Mata Hari walked towards the stairs, Piper froze her without being able to see her. This is substantiated by the fact that after she froze Phoebe, she and Paige walked around the corner to stop her before she went up the stairs.

Piper uses this more offensively sometimes, usually in conjunction with her combustion power or demonic attacks. For example, in Still Charmed and Kicking, while disguised as Wyatt, she froze an energy ball in mid-air and then blasted a demon into the frozen energy ball, which vanquished him. Later, she froze two Triad members and a fireball; however, Piper said that she couldn't freeze them for long and the Triad was clearly starting to unfreeze slightly, and after Paige orbed one in front of the fireball, she unfroze them, vanquishing one and allowing her to vanquish the second one with her Molecular Combustion power.

## Selective Freezing

    This is an ability within Molecular Immobilization. This allows the user to unfreeze certain parts or things, within the frozen area. For example: Piper became able to unfreeze one person while keeping a room frozen; then in the following year, Piper learned that she could set a criteria for a freeze, such as freezing only innocents, then later on discovered that she could unfreeze a body part, such as a head, allowing her to talk to a demon while their body is still frozen. This ability also entitles the user to freeze another section of things; this would mean if other people entered the room during the freeze, the user could freeze them without unfreezing the entire room, and freezing it again. For example: Piper was able to freeze Jack, and then when Jeff walked she was able to freeze him also, without unfreezing the room. Piper has also been shown to be able to freeze demons in mid-shimmer, for example, she did this to a possessor demon

## Channeling

This power is always channelled through the use of one's hands,usually by stretching forward one or both arms at the target and extending one's fingers. However, pointing only one finger also worked. When Piper's hands were bound, she was rendered powerless. This also applied to Patty when her hands were restrained by hand cuffs. Unfreezing was usually done by waving one's fingers inwards at the frozen subject, as if physically pulling off the freeze. There were other gestures used to unfreeze that were demonstrated.

**Examples include:**

* Waving one's hand. Piper taught Denise how to unfreeze using a simple hand gesture; gently waving one's hand diagonally upwards.
* Pointing at the subject with all digits extended. When Curtis Williamson gained this power, he unfroze a doctor by simply pointing his hand forward.
* Flicking one's wrists. Piper unfroze a busy hospital by simply turning her wrists very slightly. She also unfroze a loud restraught by twisting her wrist with her index finger pointed.
* Moving only one's digits. Piper once unfroze Bane Jessup by tapping her fingers together while both her hands were joined. Piper also unfroze a Genie, while keeping the area frozen, by spinning her index finger at him in a circular motion.
* Nodding one's head. When Piper was a child before having her powers bound, she could unfreeze by nodding her head.

## Personal Gain

    Piper attempted to use this power a number of times for personal gain. When at a beverage supply store, Josh takes the last bottle of Calera Jensen which Piper needs for a coq au vin recipe. She freezes him and is tempted to take it but then decides it's the wrong thing to do. Piper used the power to freeze a noisy restaurant when she was on a date with Leo

She also froze a hallway full of people, because they kept touching her stomach, Paige even chastised her for it. Piper also uses the power to freeze regular humans a few times throughout the course of the series rather than for magical threats, but most of the time it is so she can think things through or prevent accidents, thus it can't be considered personal gain. She also uses this power for sexual purposes, as mentioned by Leo Wyatt.

Melinda often would often use this power for her own needs when she was a teenager. Every now and then she still does though.

## Notes

* This is one of the three original powers of Melinda Warren.
* Witches cannot freeze other witches.
* While dressed as Glinda, the Good Witch, was able to channel her power through her toy wand and freeze the Grimlocks by waving it at them.
* Piper hascreates a potion to duplicate this power.
* Of all the non-Warren beings to have possessed Molecular Immobilization, Zahn is the only being who didn't acquire this power through Piper Halliwell.
* Even though Piper cannot freeze something if it's behind a physical barrier, she can still use her power successfully while wearing gloves.

## See Also

* Temporal Stasis
* Molecular Inhibition
* Molecular Manipulation