Disclaimer: I don’t own them. They belong to the WB


Frontier Mommy

Prue: Age 16
Piper: 14
Phoebe: 9

‘Phoebe Marie Halliwell! Get your butt down here right now!!!’
My voice was shaking, but still, I wanted to be in control.
‘PHOEBE!’
I saw my baby sister looking particularly guilty as she made her way, very slowly I might add, down the stairs.
‘Hurry up!’ I yelled, a little more harshly than I had intended. ‘SIT!’ I pointed at the couch.
Her little body slumped as she curled into the corner. She stared at the ground. Her overalls, which by right were miles too big for her, sagged around her ankles.
I put my hands on my hips and bent over her intimidatingly.
‘Look at me!’ I demanded.
She lifted her head.
‘Do you know why you’re in trouble, Phoebe?’
She shrugged.
‘Think! Use that brain of yours once in a while!’
Phoebe stared at me. Her big brown eyes were so big and innocent, her bottom lip and chin began to wobble. She was clinging to her pride, so damn reluctant to let any tears fall.
‘I DON’T KNOW!’ She yelled a little too loud.
‘Phoebe!’ I growled. ‘Miss Peters called me…She said you cut off Rachel’s Ponytail!’
Phoebe scowled.
‘So?’ She suddenly sounded so young.
‘How would you like it if she cut off your ponytail?’
‘Wouldn’t…’ She moped and hung her head, looking at her feet.
‘You know better Phoebe!’ I was ready to reason.
‘Nu-uh! She deserved it!’ Ahhh. The kid was pushing every one of my buttons.
‘That’s it! I’ve had enough!’ I scooped her up into my arms and carried her up the manor stairs and into her room. I pulled her across my knee and let my hand come down 5 times hard across her legs. I felt her squirming and heard her screaming. When I was done I sat her on her bed facing me. I grimiest at her tear streaked face.
‘You’re grounded for three weeks. No soccer prac, no nothing! And on Monday you are going to apologise to Rachel AND her parents! UNDERSTAND?’
‘Noooo Prue, you can’t!!!!! They HATE me!’
‘Phoebe, do you want another smack?’ I saw her shake her head. ‘Stay up here until dinner! Don’t even THINK of coming out before!’ I spat the words out at her. She continued to sob as I hurried out the door, slamming it as I went.

By the time dinner was ready, I had calmed down. My heart had stopped pounding and my fists had stopped clenching. Now the guilt was creeping in. I sat at the table with my hands in my head. I was at loss. Piper was shuffling around the kitchen preparing dinner. She looked over at me and touched my shoulder.
‘You ok?’
I shrugged.
‘I guess I am. It’s just…She gets me so mad.’
‘Prue…’ she hesitated, possibly re-wording her sentence. ‘She doesn’t do it on purpose.’
‘Where have you been? She cut of another kid’s hair!’
‘Have you even asked her why?’ Piper did have a point…why would she have done that? Phoebe was normally so affectionate. She wouldn’t have vandalized Rachel’s hair without a reason. She smiled. She had done her bit.
‘I’ll go talk to her.’
‘K. And wash up for dinner too. It’s nearly ready.’

I left Piper and made my way to Phoebe’s room. I knocked on her door and let myself in.
The nine year old was stuffed up underneath her bed, cuddling up to her one true friend, Patch, the stuffed toy Panda I had given her at birth. She had made a tiny cave like thing in the time she had been punished, draping covers down the side of her cot and piling the pillows across the floor. She screwed up her face and glared at me.
‘Go away!’ she whispered.
I rolled my eyes and kneeled in front of her.
‘Phoebe honey, can we talk?’ I used my motherly, caring tone in an attempt to encourage her…it failed.
‘No.’
Her stubborn and uncooperative attitude just infuriated the situation.
‘Phoebe PLEASE! I am just trying to understand why this happened!’
She frowned at me.
‘Why do you care? What makes now so different than three hours ago?’
‘Baby, I’m your sister. I will always care. I was just upset before. I’m not now. I’ve calmed down.’
She looked thoughtful.
‘I don’t want to talk.’
There she went again! The little brat had me on edge.
‘We’ve got to sort this out. Dinner’s gonna be ready soon.’
I reached out my hand and touched her back. She flinched and pulled away.
‘GET OFF ME! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!’
She began to howl as if I had just hit her extremely hard, even thought I hadn’t.
I tried to stay composed. I kept my hands flopped by my sides, but she was trying me. I closed my eyes and stood up.
‘Fine. If you need us you know where we are.’

I followed on down the stairs and met Piper’s inquisitive glance. She had obviously heard Phoebe throwing a ‘tiny’ temper tantrum.
‘She’s just bad news you know!’
Piper held her arms out and I fell into a hug.
‘I can’t do anything right.’ I whine. ‘I tried the hard way. I tried the nice way. It just isn’t working!’
To my surprise, she laughed. I sat up and glowered at her.
‘What?’ I asked through gritted teeth.
‘Nothing.’ She rubbed my arm for a second. ‘I’ll talk to her.’
‘Gee. You’re brave!’
She raised her eyebrow.
‘Yep!’


Piper was at the top of the stairs, fidgeting. She didn’t really know how to start the conversation. Finally, she gave in and somewhat flung herself into Phoebe bedroom. The small child, buried under a stack of cushions and a down comforter looked up. She exaggerated her childish pout.
‘Missy, if that lip drops any further I could trip over it.’ It was an attempt to make Phoebe laugh, but it just made her frown even more sorrowful. ‘Oook.’ Piper let out a heavy sigh. Seeing her sister so miserable made her stomach churn. ‘Wanna cuddle?’
The youngest shook her head and sunk back into her hideout.
‘Come on babe. At least come out from there.’
Receiving no response, Piper continued.
‘Stop being such a brat. Prue and I are just trying to help!’
Suddenly rage amplified through Phoebe’s entire body. Her head popped out and her voice sreached in Piper’s ears.
‘PISS OFF!!!!!! I hate you and I hate Prue!’
Her body flew from underneath the crib and she pushed at Piper, desperate to send her out of the room. Piper was so taken aback that she allowed it. She rushed downstairs into the kitchen.
I stared at Piper in utter shock. My middle sister began to cry.
‘What the hell just happened?’ I knew I sounded overly concerned.
‘I don’t know! She just went psycho!’
I wrapped her arms around Pipers shoulders and rubbed her back.
‘Shhhh it’s ok, it’ll be ok. Let’s just give her some time to cool off hey?’
‘She said she hated us!’
I pulled my younger sister onto my knee and gently rocked. I blinked back my own tears and patted her sisters arm, withdrawing from the embrace.
‘Phoebe’s just going through some funky phase right now. She was just blowing off some smoke and you happened to be near the fire.’
‘I guess so.’
‘So, you ready for dinner yet?’
‘I’m not hungry tonight Prue.’
‘I don’t care. I can’t send the both of you to bed with empty stomachs. Social services will be on me like that.’
‘Like force feeding me is any better!’
I pretended to be mad and stood up, letting her drop off my lap, but she just laughed. It was good to see at least one of my sisters smile.

It wasn’t until the next morning that we heard anything from Phoebe. She had woken up early, probably trying to sneak in and out of the bathroom unnoticed, embarrassed by yesterday’s performance. But when breakfast time had come she was no where to be seen.
‘Phoebe stop mucking around!’ Piper and I were both threatening, both calling, both particularly peeved. We were already late. Piper had missed her bus. We checked everywhere, that’s when we noticed a note on the top of her bed.

‘Pipe! Get in here!’
I heard the rushing footsteps.
‘What, what’s up? Did you find her?’
I shook my head and simply handed her the piece of crumpled paper.
Piper read out loud.
‘Dear Prue and Piper. I know you guys are gonna be shitty with me so I’m not coming home. You both hate me. From Phoebe.’