Disclaimer : My name’s not Aaron Spelling, so I don’t own them. But I really, really, really like to write about them.

This is a follow-up story to a couple of others I‘ve written. Reading them first isn’t necessary, but you may not understand Rion‘s connection to the Halliwell sisters.

Identity Crisis
by Freaky Fan


Prologue

It played over and over again in her mind as she looked down at the twisted remains of her body. Meeting up with Shay and Cally and Lisha. Calling the corners. Casting the spell. Being disappointed when nothing happened. Telling the others she could handle the clean up. The red mist rolling in, bringing the horned thing with it. Running as fast as she could. Breathing a sigh of relief when she reached her Harley and took off. Realizing she should have slowed down as she lost control on a curve less than a mile from her house. The feel of the powerful machine beneath her sliding away. Excruciating pain.

A lone figure suddenly appeared out of nowhere, a mournful expression on his handsome face as he leaned over her body. She strained to stay where she was, to see what the stranger was going to do, but felt herself being pulled away. Pulled into what she assumed was the nothingness of death.

“You’re wrong, my dear. Death is not an end for a Warren. It is a new beginning.”

Something took her by the hand, pulling her toward a brilliant white light. Her first instinct was to kick and scream and try to get away until whatever had a hold of her let go. She didn’t want to die. Not yet. She was too young. But then she realized she felt safe. Truly safe for the first time in a long time. Years of being misunderstood and alone fell away as she passed through the light.

“Welcome home, Jenna.”

She looked up into the soft brown eyes of the woman holding her hand.

“I’m Penny Halliwell. Let me show you around, darling.”

A wave of belonging washed over her as Penny led her toward a large group of women. She wasn’t sure, but she thought maybe she had finally found a place to call home.


He stayed at the scene until the paramedics put the gurney containing the body bag into the back of the ambulance. It wasn’t hard to be inconspicuous. Accidents like this always drew a big crowd of onlookers. People who pretended to be there on the off chance they were needed when all they wanted to be able to do was relate all the gory details at the office water cooler the next day. Where he worked there was no water cooler and They didn’t enjoy hearing about the misfortunes piled on innocents. As a matter of fact, They would be disappointed with him for failing one of his charges.

Jenna Abernathy would have been twenty-three in two days. She had absolutely no idea she was a descendant in the most powerful line of witches ever to exist. To her and her friends witchcraft was just something to dabble in until society deemed something more exciting. Unfortunately for her she was meant to follow in the footsteps of so many other Warren women before her and die at a young age.

Leo turned away from the crowd and walked behind one of the fire trucks, deciding to orb home instead of up there. They would call him when They were ready for him. Right now he needed to see Piper.

He orbed into their bedroom, a little disappointed to find the bed empty. He knew Piper hated to be alone at night but he had hoped, just this once, that she would have waited to see if he would make it back. He couldn’t blame her for bunking with some else though. Her sensitive nature and overactive imagination came back to haunt her in her sleep, bringing dreams of the possible outcomes of all the what ifs and near misses involving her sisters and cousin. Having someone to hold on to seemed to bring her piece of mind and helped her rest better. But he wanted to be the one she held on to. Especially tonight.

In the past he would have gone to Prue or Phoebe’s room in search of his wife but now he always checked the couch first. Rion was Piper’s go to gal. Piper told everyone she was making up for lost time like it was a joke or something, but Leo knew the real truth behind her words. Family was everything to Piper and the thought of Rion being alone for so long tore her up inside. It was her mission to make sure Rion never felt lonely again.

The events of the night weighed heavily on his shoulders as he made his way downstairs. Losing a charge was never easy, but it was especially hard when they were so young. Sometimes it made him question his role as a Whitelighter. But then he would take one look at Piper or Prue or Phoebe or Rion ... at his family ... and know that everything he saw, good and bad, contributed to the greater good. That in the end evil would be defeated and the good guys would triumph. His faith could be tested, but as long as he had his family he would never truly lose it.

He smiled as he stepped into the living room. All three sisters were curled together on the floor in front of the television. Prue was in the middle with Piper on her right and Phoebe on her left, their arms and legs a tangles mess. He loved seeing them like that. Knowing that their bond as witches was strengthened by their bond as sisters. He sat on the arm of the couch and stared down at them. They gave off such an air of innocence. As if they had never fought a demon or heard of witchcraft before in their lives.

The sound of laughter coming from the kitchen drew his attention away from the sisters. So Rion was having another late night round of milk and cookies with Cole. The two of them had gotten along famously ever since they met. He had thought maybe Rion would be leery of the former demon, seeing as how he tried to kill her cousins on more than one occasion, but if she was she didn’t show it. No, he was the only one she seemed to watch out for. It wasn’t that they didn’t get along. They would talk when they were working on the basement together or make polite conversation when Piper was around, but she had never opened up to him like she did with Cole and her cousins. Maybe it was time they had a talk. Rion was his charge too. He didn’t want her to feel she couldn’t come to him.

“I would have given anything to see the look on Shalaman’s face when the powers he thought he was getting wore off and your surprise kicked in.”

Leo stopped in the doorway of the kitchen as Cole spoke. They were both so at ease with their big plate of cookies and tall glasses of milk.

Rion nodded. “Me too. But sometimes leaving a little something to the imagination makes life more interesting.” She looked up as they shared a laugh, a little of the twinkle in her blue eyes disappeared when she saw the figure in the doorway. “Leo.”

Cole followed her gaze. “Hey Leo.”

He was too concerned with Rion’s reaction to make his mind concentrate on what Cole had said. Cole felt the room growing thick with tension and decided to get out while the getting was good.

“Well, I’d better be getting to bed. I have a full day of shopping with Phoebe tomorrow.” He stood and started to leave the room, clapping Leo on the shoulder as he passed by. “You can have my milk. I never touch the stuff.”

“Thanks.” Leo waited until he heard Cole climbing the stairs to join Rion at the table.

“I’ll get him to drink it one of these days.” She tried to smile but ended up sighing instead. “Leo, can we talk?”

He didn’t like the tone of her voice or the way her normally proud shoulders were slumped, but she wanted to talk. That was a start. “Of course we can.”

“Good, because there’s something I’ve been wanting to say to you.” She swallowed hard, looking down into her milk glass instead of at him. “I’m extremely uncomfortable around you.”

Her admission caught him off guard. He had expected her to beat around the bush a little bit, not be brutally honest from the start.

“At first I thought it was because I felt guilty. See, I can remember you coming into the diner and thinking you were the hottest thing since sliced bread. There was definitely an attraction there. I even worked up a couple of fantasies about you. Finding out you were married to Piper put a stop to that, and I know I never acted on my feelings, but I still felt guilty for having had them in the first place.”

He couldn’t help but feel flattered. It wasn’t every day someone told you they had fantasies about you.

“Then I realized that wasn’t it. It’s not even really you as a person I’m uncomfortable with. It’s who you work for.”

“The Elders?”

Rion nodded. “They took me away from my family once, Leo. They could do it again.”

He looked at her, dumbfounded. “Is that what you think?”

“How could I not?” She shot up out of her chair and started pacing the length of the table. “I had the perfect life, Leo. A great mother, three loving cousins, an aunt who would have given me the shirt off her back. And in one foul swoop it was all taken away from me. I know it was my father’s decision not to bring me back right away, but They played a part in it too. They didn’t even really look for me or my mother before telling Aunt Penny to cast that damned spell. If They had I think They would have found me. They would have found me and I could have gone on living my perfect life. My mother would have been gone but I would have had the rest of my family to help me through it. Instead I ended up completely alone.” She blinked back tears. “You have no idea what that’s like, Leo. Ten years of being completely and utterly alone.

“Then, by some fluke, Piper found that box of pictures and I suddenly had my family back. I felt whole again for the first time in a long time. I knew who I was and where I belonged. And then it started. I would see you watching me and I would wonder if They were watching me too. Waiting for me to screw up somehow so They could justify taking me away again. I know it sounds stupid. I’ve told myself that a thousand time, but I can’t shake this ... this fear. I don’t want to lose my family again, Leo. Prue, Piper and Phoebe are my world. I’d rather die than be separated from them again.” She looked toward the ceiling, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Do you hear me?! I’d rather be dead!!”

He did what came naturally. He stood up and embraced her. She tried to get away but he just tightened his grip. “I’m sorry you feel that way, Rion. I’m sorry you’ve been hurt so badly you can’t feel safe with your own family. But know this. I would never, could never do anything to hurt you. You’re part of my family.”

She looked up at him, not the confident young woman he had come to know, but a lost child. “Really?”

“Yes, really. And I know this is going to sound weak, but I don’t think you have anything to worry about as far as They are concerned. You’ve proven yourself to be a valuable asset. How many people can say they single-handedly brought the Charmed Ones back together? You’re their protector, Rion. An important part of their lives. The Elders might seem cruel at times, but They know a good thing when They see it.”

Rion chuckled, wiping the tears from her cheeks as she pulled away from him. “You sure know how to cheer a girl up.”

He smiled. “It’s part of my job. So are things better with us now?”

She gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Does that answer your question?”

“I don’t know. That could have been something left over from your fantasies.” He laughed as she smacked him on the arm.

“Don’t ever tell Piper about that.”

“Trust me, I won’t. Your secret is safe with me.”

Rion went back to her chair and gestured for him to do the same. “Care to join me for some milk and cookies?”

His heart sang as he sat back down. “Don’t mind if I do.”

*************

They were still at the table when Prue came stumbling into the kitchen and headed straight for the coffee pot, which was programmed to brew a fresh pot every morning at six.

“What are you two doing up so early?”

Rion shared a smiled with Leo. “Who says we ever went to bed?”

“Did I hear someone say they never went to bed?” Piper came into the room, rubbing sleep from her eyes. She got as far as Leo’s lap. “What have you two been up to?”

Leo held his wife close. “Just a little family bonding over some milk and cookies.”

Piper looked at Rion. “Did you eat all the cookies again?”

“I had a lot of help.”

Prue chuckled as she sipped her coffee. “Speaking of help, are you still up for the photo shoot at the docks after your all night cookie binge?”

Rion sprang up out of her chair. “Do you even need to ask?”

“Guess not.” Prue sat her cup on the counter. “Let’s get dressed.”

“Thanks for everything, Leo.” Rion gave him a radiant smile as she followed Prue out of the kitchen.

Piper saw the satisfied look on her husband’s face and frowned. “What really happened out here last night?”

“Like I said, a little family bonding.” Leo pulled her into a passionate kiss. He may have lost one charge the night before, but he had regained the trust of another.


Jenna could hardly believe her eyes as they walked up the front steps toward the huge house on the hill. “You live here?”

Penny smiled at her as she opened the front door. “Yes. It’s an exact replica of the house I lived in when I was alive. And it has an open door policy. You can come here any time you like. After I’ve shown you around that is.”

Jenna returned her smile as she walked inside, trying to take in everything at once. The house was amazing. Huge and airy with so much to look at it made her head spin. “This is amazing.”

“Glad you think so.” Penny headed toward the kitchen. “I’ll make tea. Feel free to look around.”

She didn’t need any prompting. The pictures on the mantle had drawn her attention as soon as she walked in the door. There was something about seeing other people’s lives captured on film that fascinated her. The first one she came to was of a young woman holding a baby, a radiant smile on her face.

“That’s my daughter, Patty. She ought to be around here somewhere.” Penny sat the cups of tea on the coffee table and moved to Jenna’s side. “And these are my pride and joy. My granddaughters.” She beamed as she picked the picture up and pointed at each of the girls in turn. “Prudence, Piper and Phoebe. The Charmed Ones.”

Jenna quirked an eyebrow. “Charmed Ones?”

“The three most powerful witches ever. Separate they are strong, but together they are virtually indestructible. Truly charmed. Especially since they found their protector.” She put down the picture of the girls and picked up another one, tracing the young woman’s face with her finger as she spoke. “This is Orion, my great niece.”

“What’s a protector?”

Penny chuckled. “It’s not quite as glorious as it sounds. She watches over my girls. Speaking from experience, it’s a thankless job.”

Jenna giggled as she looked at the two pictures again. “They look harmless enough to me. And... Orion was it? She looks like she can handle herself.”

“Yes, well they’re the reason we’re here. It’s their destiny to protect the innocents in the mortal world and it’s our responsibility to help them in any way we can.”

“I don’t know how I could possibly help them. I only got into witchcraft to make my friends happy.”

“We all contribute in some way, darling. I’m sure...” Penny stopped short. “Oh dear. I’m afraid I have to go.”

“Go?” Jenna frowned. “You’re just getting to the good stuff. Where do you have to go?”

“They’re calling me, darling. And when They call I have to go. Stay here and relax. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Jenna watched in amazement as the older woman disappeared. This certainly was turning out to be a day to remember so far. She had seen her own dead body, found out she was one little witch in a line of very powerful witches and now her afterlife host had disappeared right before her eyes. What else could possibly happen?

“Mother, I...” A stunning woman with lighter brown hair and shining dark brown eyes came bustling into the room, stopping short when she saw the stranger sitting on the couch. “You must be the new arrival.” She smiled. “I’m...”

“Penny’s daughter. I saw your picture.” Jenna stood up and extended her right hand as she walked toward the newcomer. “I’m Jenna. Jenna Abernathy.”

“I’m Patty Halliwell.” Patty’s smile spread across her face as she shook the young woman’s hand. “It‘s very nice to meet you.”

“I hate to cut the introductions short, but we have a problem.” Penny spoke as she reappeared.

Patty looked at her mother. “Is it...”

“No, darling. The girl’s are fine. This has to do with Jenna.”

Jenna looked surprised. “Me? What did I do?”

“You failed to mention your Wicca oath.”

“What?”

Penny sighed. “You told me you and your friends fooled around with witchcraft, but you failed to mention you all took a Wicca oath.”

Jenna frowned. “What does that matter now? I’m dead.”

“It makes a big difference. Taking that oath freed your abilities as a Warren. The spell you cast set free a very dangerous demon.”

“The horned thing?”

Penny nodded. “His name is Krilus. He was imprisoned by a Warren over two hundred years ago and only another Warren could set him free.”

Jenna closed her eyes in disbelief. “Me.”

“Yes. With a little help from your friends.”

“This is just my luck.” Jenna threw herself down on the couch.

Penny shared a look with Patty before sitting down next to her. “We don’t have time for this right now, darling.”

Jenna looked at her. “What are you talking about? This is eternity, right? We have all the time in the world.”

Patty shook her head. “Not in this instance. Krilus is what’s known as a soul collector. In order for him to regain the ability to take mortal souls he must destroy those who set him free.”

“My friends! They’re in danger, aren’t they?”

Penny took the girl’s hands in both of her own. “That’s why They called me. Krilus has already gotten to one of your friends.”

“Oh, God. Which one did he get to? Which one?!”

“Lisha.”

Jenna hung her head. “This is all my fault. My friends are in danger and there’s not a damned thing I can do about it.”

“That’s where you’re wrong.” Penny couldn’t help but grin at the hope she instantly saw in the girl’s eyes. So she was a Warren after all. “You see, another Warren could recapture Krilus and try to put him somewhere safe like before, but you can vanquish him.”

“How? I’m dead!!”

Patty sat on the arm of the couch and rubbed Jenna’s back. “She’s getting to that part, dear. Mother has a flair for the dramatic.”

Penny narrowed her eyes at her daughter before continuing. “Orion can channel the spirit of any Warren. They have agreed to let you take over her body in order to vanquish Krilus.”

“What do you mean take over her body? As in I’ll be alive again?”

“In a manner of speaking.” Penny chose her words carefully. “You’ll have two days to find Krilus and vanquish him. My granddaughters can help you, but they can’t do the vanquishing for you. And you can’t tell them who you are. If they figure out what’s going on, you can explain everything. Otherwise you’re still their cousin, Orion. Do you understand?”

“I think so.” Jenna swallowed hard. “I get to be your great niece for two days, in which time I have to find and vanquish the horned thing. If you’re granddaughters figure out what’s going on I can tell them everything but otherwise I’m Orion. And I have to do the vanquishing.”

Penny nodded. “Very good.”

“I just have one question.”

Patty smiled. “Only one?”

“Yeah. What’s vanquishing?”

Mother and daughter shared another look.

*************

Prue smiled at Rion as they reloaded her camera. “Are these guys hot or what?”

Rion shrugged. “If you’re into perfect bodies and blond hair.” She tried to keep a straight face but didn’t do a very good job. “OK, so I’d like to jump on any one of them given half the chance. I’m human, you know.”

Prue laughed. “Me to. But which one would you...” Her voice died in her throat as Rion suddenly pitched forward. “Rion!” She dropped her camera and caught her cousin, laying her gently on the ground. “Rion, can you hear me?” She looked up into the eyes of one of the models. “Could you stop standing around and get some water or something?”

“Ugh..”

She returned her attention to her cousin. “That’s it, sweetie. Wake up.”

Jenna opened her eyes and tried to sit up. “What happened?”

Prue caught her by the shoulders. “Just stay down for a second. I think you fainted.”

“Fainted?” Everything came back to her in the blink of an eye. She was in the great niece’s body. For all intents and purposes she was Orion Marie Matthews, not Jenna Abernathy. She looked up into the worried eyes of one of the granddaughters and struggled to remember her name. “Prudence!”

Prue frowned. “OK. Staying up all night with Leo must have been harder on you than we thought. What’s with calling me Prudence?”

A knot formed in Jenna’s stomach. Had she managed to blow it already? “That’s your name, isn’t it?”

“Technically. Look, we can talk about this later. Right now I think we need to get you home and to bed.”

Jenna breathed a sigh of relief as Prudence helped her stand up. Things were a little shaky, but she could handle this. She had to. Cally and Shay’s lives depended on it. Besides, how hard could it be to fool the Charmed Ones for a couple of days?


“She should be out for a while longer, right? I mean, the trip here is much harder on a being than the trip there.”

“I think that’s wishful thinking on your part, Mother. You realize you’ll have to face her sooner or later.”

“I’d prefer it be later.”

All nighters with Leo and too many cookies were definitely off limits for a while. Not only did the voices she heard not sound like her cousins, she could have sworn one of them was her Aunt Penny. She told herself to stop being ridiculous and concentrated on waking up. She would never live down passing out in front of Prue. And the models. She wouldn’t stand a chance with any of them now. They probably thought she was pregnant or sick or something.

“Oh, her eyes are opening.”

“Calm down, Mother.”

Rion wasn’t prepared for what she saw. Standing there, looking down at her, was Patty Halliwell. The Patty Halliwell. The same Patty Halliwell she had seen a million times in photos. The mother Phoebe never had the chance to know. The cousin her mother talked about all the time. The woman who had been dead for nearly twenty-two years now.

“Oh, ....”

“What kind of language is that for a young woman?!”

She shot upwards and curled into a ball when she saw her Aunt Penny’s angry face. This couldn’t be happening. It just couldn’t be. Her Aunt Penny and Patty were both... She felt like she was going to be sick.

“Am I dead?”

Penny saw the fear in her niece’s eyes and decided to forgive her indiscretion. She would have done the same thing if she had woken up to find two dead women staring down at her. “No, darling. Far from it.”

“But...” She uncurled herself, still staring at the two women before her. “You both are, right?”

Patty smiled at her reassuringly. “As a door nail, dear.”

“Then how... I mean... What the hell is going on?”

Penny‘s face grew red. “Orion Marie Matthews! I realize you’re a grown woman now, but your mother didn’t raise a sailor!”

“She didn’t raise a fool either.” Rion stood, backing away from them until she felt she was a safe distance away. Her cousins had warned her about demons who tried to draw you in by taking on the appearance of a friend or family member. “The only way I could be seeing you two is if I’m having one messed up dream or if I’m dead.”

“Or if They decided someone else could use your body for a few days and your spirit was sent here to stop you from interfering.”

Rion frowned. “What?”

Penny nodded. “A young Warren by the name of Jenna Abernathy unknowingly unleashed the soul collector Krilus and died before she could vanquish him. All he has to do is kill the three friends who helped her cast the spell that freed him and he can walk among mortals again.”

“And the only option They had was giving her my body?”

“Yes. Only the Warren who freed Krilus can vanquish him. Another Warren could trap him and try to keep him imprisoned, but they can’t destroy him. The only way for Jenna to return to the living to finish the job was to channel through you.”

Rion ran her hand through her hair. “Let me get this straight. Some kid unleashes a soul collector and gets herself killed before she can do the right thing and clean up her own mess. Rather than let Prue, Piper and Phoebe re-trap him and then free him again to vanquish him, They gave the kid permission to throw me out of my own body? Forgive me if that doesn’t make much sense!”

Penny dismissed her with a wave of her hand. “You make it sound so easy. Krilus had already killed one of her friends and a decision had to be made quickly. I merely suggested...”

“You did this to me?!” Rion snorted. “I can’t believe this. First a spell to make everyone forget I ever existed and now this. With aunts like you, who needs enemies?”

“Oh, stop being dramatic. So Jenna takes over your body for a few days. Big deal.”

“It could be. Tell me this, does she have my powers?”

Penny frowned. She had a feeling she wasn’t going to like where this was going. “No.”

“Then what happens if she gets hurt while she’s in there? Or worse yet, what if something happens to one of my cousins? There’s not a damned thing I can do about it from here. I have no idea how to regain control of my body.”

“You can’t.” Penny squirmed uncomfortably under Orion’s gaze. “You’re stuck here until Jenna is either successful or fails. You should make yourself comfortable.”

“How can I do THAT?!” Rion started pacing the room like a caged animal. “This place looks just like the Manor. Everywhere I look I see the girls and all that does is make me worry about them. How do you expect me to ‘make myself comfortable?’”

“You could start by stop being so angry!”

Patty gripped her mother’s arm. “Why don’t you let me handle it from here, Mother. I think you could us a break.”

Penny saw the storm of anger in Orion’s eyes and knew her daughter was right. She wasn’t ready to deal with anything like that today. “Fine. I’ll just go see how Jenna is doing.”

Rion seemed to relax the second Penny faded from view. “Sorry you had to see that. It’s just that this really makes me angry. Every time I turn around They‘ve cooked up another scheme to get me involved in. The thought of Aunt Penny helping them out on this one makes me want to hit something.”

Patty took her by the hand and led her back to the couch, sitting next to her. “Have you ever thought maybe They’re testing you?”

“Been there, done that. Don’t tell me you didn’t hear about our attempt at ‘quality time’ in the mountains.”

“That was a different kind of test. Maybe They’re testing you to see how you’ll react to different situations.”

“And maybe They should just leave me alone for a little while!”

Patty looked at the young woman next to her intently. “Think about it, Rion. You’re protector of the Charmed Ones. The one who’s supposed to do whatever it takes to make sure they succeed in defeating evil. Do you really think the Elders would let just anyone do the job? They have to be sure you’re capable.”

Rion leaned against the back of the couch. “I hadn’t thought of it that way. I’ve certainly done a bang up job so far.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, let me see.” Rion started putting up a finger for every point she made. “First I drown in a puddle of rain water, then I get sucked into another realm and promptly get shot by a poisoned crossbow bolt and now I’ve been replaced by a pod person.” She looked down at her hand. “Hardly seems successful for only a few months.”

“Now hang on just a moment. First of all, you brought Prue back from the dead.”

“That was my father.”

“And you freed Phoebe from the underworld.”

“That was luck.”

“You drowned in that puddle trying to get Prue to safety.”

“Which proves a klutz shouldn’t lead the way down a wet embankment.”

“And despite being sick, you managed to come up with a plan to handle the demon’s in Elias’ realm.”

“That was the fever talking.”

Patty sighed exasperatedly. “Stop it!! You’ve taken good care of my girls and I’m grateful for it. But how you handle this particular situation will determine what the Elders think of you. If you go off half cocked and say something you’ll regret later, they’re not going to hold a very high opinion of you.”

“But if I remain calm and act like it doesn’t bother me, They’ll think I’m great and stop pestering me so much?”

“Maybe. See, there‘s more to being the protector then you know.”

Rion looked confused. “Like what?”

“There was another page in the Book of Shadows. A page your mother destroyed after your birth.”

“Why would she do a thing like that?”

“It was a prophecy. One that foretold your separation from the Charmed Ones until they had received their powers and were ready for your return.”

Rion was glad she was sitting down. “You mean I was destined to be taken away? To miss out on so much time with your girls?”

Patty nodded. “Apparently so. It also said your return would trigger a change in power in the underworld.”

“Shalaman.”

“Yes. Your mother didn’t want to believe it was true so she destroyed the page in the hopes it would destroy the prophecy.”

“Too bad it didn’t work.”

Patty put her arm around the girl. “I know it hasn’t been easy on you, Rion, but hang in there. You were meant to be with my girls. Nothing can change that.”

Rion leaned into her. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course you can.”

“Where is my mother?”

Patty looked stunned. “She...” She thought about lying but knew Rion was too smart to fall for some lame story. “The demon that attacked you took her soul. She never made it here.”

“I had a feeling you were gonna say something like that.“

Patty drew Rion into a hug. “I’m sorry, honey.”

Rion fought back tears as she returned Patty’s hug. “Then I guess I better make her proud by being the best damned protector I can be.” She rolled her eyes as she pulled away from Patty. “Sorry about my language.”

Patty grinned. “That’s all right. I’ve said more than my fair share in my life. Mother’s just a prude.”

Rion laughed. “Thanks Patty. For helping me keep my head on straight.”

“Anytime.” She tucked a stray piece of hair behind Rion’s ear. “You remind me so much of my girls.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Rion stood. “Now is there somewhere I can watch what’s going on with this Jenna girl? I want to make sure she doesn’t screw things up too bad.”

Patty smiled as she stood and put her arm around the young woman again. “Yes, there is. But Mother will be there.”

Rion shrugged. “That’s all right. I can handle Aunt Penny.”

“You’ll have to tell me your secret.”

They both chuckled as they made their way up the stairs toward the attic.


“I bet you’ll listen from now on when I tell you to take better care of yourself.”

Jenna had had about all she could take of Prudence. Either Rion was some kind of handful or the eldest granddaughter was a real nag. She had managed to say the same thing fifty different ways since they left the docks. If they didn’t get wherever they were going soon, Jenna was going to have to bail. She breathed an audible sigh of relief when she recognized the house they were approaching. She barely waited for the car to stop before unbuckling her seat belt and throwing open her door.

Prudence grabbed her by the arm. “Rion, wait.”

Jenna tensed. One more speech and she was going to pull Rion’s hair out. She turned to face her tormentor.

“I know I went a little overboard with the preaching, but you scared the hell out of me.” She grinned. “Forgive me?”

The love radiating from Prudence’s eyes took Jenna‘s breath away. It wasn’t like the looks you got from your friends, or even your significant other. It was the type of thing you saw between a mother and their child. Between people so connected nothing could ever tear them apart. Between family.

“Forgive you for what?”

Jenna and Prudence both jumped as the youngest granddaughter suddenly appeared on the passenger side of the car. She grinned like the Cheshire cat when she saw their reaction. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Yeah, well can you keep an eye on Rion for the rest of the afternoon?”

The youngest frowned. “Sure, but why does she need a babysitter all of a sudden?”

“Because she took a header at the docks for absolutely no reason. I was going to leave her with Piper, but since your home... I’d love to stay and take care of her myself but I’ve gotta get back to my shoot.”

The youngest put up her hand to silence her sister. “Enough said. Of course I’ll take care of her.”

“Thanks, Pheebs.”

Phoebe. That was the youngest one’s name. Her thoughts were interrupted by her new watch dog pulling her out of the car.

“Don’t mention it. Now get going before you lose your light.”

This was just great. She had hoped no one would be home when Prudence dropped her off so she could get down to finding Shay and Cally. Now she had Phoebe to deal with. She flinched as the youngest linked arms with her and led her up the front stairs. Physical contact wasn’t her specialty.

“So did you really pass out?”

Having no idea how Rion would react, Jenna went with a safe bet and nodded.

“Does that mean you’re not up for our afternoon of shopping?”

Jenna’s heart leapt. What better place to lose someone than a store? Chances were they would go downtown, which would put her close to Shay’s place. “I think I’ll survive.” The words escaped her lips before she even knew they were coming. She held her breath until Phoebe smiled and gripped her arm.

“I thought you’d say something like that. All we have to do is come up with some convincing story to tell Piper and we’re out of here.”

Piper. The middle granddaughter. Something told Jenna she wouldn’t as easy to dupe as Prudence and Phoebe.

“Hey guys.” Piper called to them as she bustled from the living room toward the kitchen, stopping short when she realized there were indeed two of them. She turned back around with a suspicious look on her face. “What are you doing home already, Rion? Did something go wrong with the shoot?”

“No. She just got tired of being Prue’s lackey and came home early to hang with me. Right, Rion?”

Jenna nodded again. She should have asked more questions about Rion before she left Penny and Patty. This nodding instead of not really answering was bound to get her in trouble sooner or later.

Piper frowned. “Are you sure? You’re not acting like yourself, Rion. Usually you’re worse than a hurricane when you come into a room.”

“She’s just tired from her all nighter with Leo. Nothing a good night’s sleep tonight won’t cure.”

Thank goodness for Phoebe. Without her Jenna would be sinking. She found herself liking the youngest granddaughter. Piper, on the other hand, was making her nervous. Could she possibly know she wasn’t who she appeared to be?

“Come on, Piper. Stop being such a worry wart!”

Piper continued to stare at Jenna for a moment before nodding. “All right. I guess you could be right about her being tired.”

“Yeah, but there are still a couple of stores with our names on them. Can we borrow the jeep for a little while?”

“Are you sure Rion’s up for one of your shopping trips?”

“I’m always up for shopping.” Jenna almost clapped her hand over her mouth as she heard Rion’s voice. Silence was better than sounding stupid. Rion seemed the type to hate shopping.

“Take it.”

Phoebe squealed as she threw her arms around her sister. “Thanks, Piper. We won’t be gone too long.”

“You’d better not be. We’re having one of Rion’s favorites tonight. Spaghetti. Six o’clock sharp.”

“We’ll be here.” Phoebe took Jenna by the arm again and led her back out the front door. “Let’s go before she changes her mind.”

Jenna could hardly believe her luck. Not only had none of the granddaughters realized she wasn’t their Rion yet, she was on her way downtown. Maybe this whole Rion thing would be easier than she thought.

*************

Piper watched them out the kitchen window as they pulled out of the driveway. Since when did her cousin jump at the chance to go shopping with Phoebe? She tried to tell herself the two of them were just up to another of their schemes, but she couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong with Rion. She reached for the phone to call Prue just as the back door opened.

“Hey, Piper.” Prue slung her equipment bag off of her shoulder and on to the table. “My conscience got the better of me and I called off for the rest of the day. I felt horrible dropping Rion off after what happened.”

Piper frowned. “What are you talking about, Prue? Phoebe said Rion came home early because she was tired of being your lackey.”

“What?! Rion passed out this morning! I asked Phoebe to take care of her!”

“Oh, she’s taking care of her all right. They’re out shopping.” Piper thought twice about asking her sister the question on the tip of her tongue but decided to go with her instincts. “Did something seem... off with Rion?”

Prue hesitated. “Yeah, come to think of it, it did. First she called me Prudence when she woke up and then she didn’t say a word after I nagged her all the way home.”

Piper swallowed hard. “I can’t explain it, Prue, but I think something’s wrong with Rion. I think we should find her as soon as possible and find out what’s going on.”

Prue knew better than to argue with Piper when she had one of her feelings. “Let’s go.”

*************

Losing Phoebe had been easier than she thought. Five minutes in the first store and the youngest had a whole handful of clothes to try on. All she had to do was wait for her to go into one of the fitting rooms and she was on her way to Shay’s apartment. Her friend wouldn’t recognize her but at least she could make sure she was safe.

She crossed the street with a whole group of people, completely unaware of Piper and Prue watching her as they waited for the light to change. Nor did she see Phoebe running up the street after her, fresh from a premonition in the fitting room. She was too wrapped up in deciding what she would say to Shay. Her friend wasn’t one to heed the warning of strangers.

A loud crash from the vicinity of Shay’s apartment sent a chill down her spine as she approached the front door of the apartment complex. She pushed every button on the panel until someone finally buzzed her in, throwing open the heavy wooden door and taking the stairs two at a time as she rushed toward Shay’s third story apartment.

“NO!!”

She recognized Shay’s voice as she reached the third floor. She sprinted toward her friend’s door, hoping it was Shay’s ex-boyfriend causing trouble again and not the horned thing. She reached the wide open door in time to see Krilus hefting a now unconscious Shay over his head.

“Put her down!!”

Krilus gave her what she assumed was a demon smile. “Come back for more, witch?”

Jenna’s eyes grew wide. How could he know?

“I can see your soul, little girl. Unfortunately I can only take one of you at a time. But don’t worry, I’ll be back for you and your other friend. Catch!”

Jenna sidestepped Shay’s body as he hurled it at her. Seeing her friend laying there, motionless, was more than she could stand. She threw herself at the demon.

“You bastard!!”

Her own words were the last thing she heard as Krilus flung her across the room and blackness overtook her.

*************

“Why didn’t she heal? And how did she know that demon was going to attack that girl? Do you think our ancestors warned her?”

Piper watched her little sister as she paced the waiting room floor. “No. I don’t think that girl in there is our Rion.”

Phoebe looked to Prue for guidance. “What’s she talking about?”

The eldest Halliwell crossed her arms. “She’s talking about the fact Rion’s been acting weird all day. Didn’t you notice?”

Phoebe instantly felt guilty. “No.”

“Well don’t feel bad. I wouldn’t have noticed if Piper hadn’t pointed it out.”

Phoebe went to sit between her sisters. “How did you know?”

Piper shrugged. “I had a feeling. How do I know when one of you or Leo is in trouble?”

As if on cue their Whitelighter came rushing into the waiting room. He looked confused as he walked up to them. “I thought one of you was hurt.”

Piper stood up and gave him a hug. “Not us. Rion.”

Leo pulled back to look at her. “Rion? But she can heal.”

“Not if she’s not here.”

They all four looked at Rion as she walked slowly into the room.

“I think I have some explaining to do.”


“She certainly handled that well.”

Penny glared at her niece. “That’s enough.”

“They’ll have to shave half my head to stitch that gash up.”

“Orion.”

“Not to mention the fact the girls could have been hurt.”

“I’m warning you, young lady.”

“And she lost another one of her friends.”

“Don’t...”

“Two down, one to go.”

“You are absolutely impossible!!” Penny disappeared as her words echoed around the attic.

Rion turned to Patty with a triumphant smile. “That’s my secret. Annoy her enough and she’ll leave you alone.”

Patty couldn’t help but laugh. “I’ll have to keep that in mind.”

Rion’s eyes sparkled as she looked back into the portal. “You do that.”

*************

Piper turned as soon as the door to the doctor’s lounge clicked shut. She was pissed and had no intention of holding anything back. Some pretty strange things had happened to them as witches, but none of them had ever been possessed or channeled or whatever it was Leo and Rion would call it. She wasn’t about to let some complete stranger put Rion in...

Her motherly instincts kicked in the instant she got a good look at her cousin. Rion, or whoever it was, was extremely pale with a glazed look in her eyes and a blood soaked bandage capping her head. She knew the trip the girl took through the glass top coffee table couldn’t have tickled but she had no idea what kind of damage it had caused.

“All right, whoever you are. Get the hell out of my cousin!”

Prue put her hand on her little sister’s shoulder. “Calm down, Pheebs.”

Piper shot Phoebe a look before returning her attention to Rion. “Are you all right? Has a doctor seen you yet?”

Jenna silenced her by raising her right hand, which was connected to a gauze covered forearm. “There was a bleeder a couple of cubicles down. They won’t miss me for a while. And I really needed to talk to you guys. You have to go find my friend Cally before that thing gets to her.”

“And why should we listen to anything you have to say?” Phoebe felt her sisters looking at her and threw her hands in the air. “What?! We don’t even know who’s in there.”

“We can fix that. Just let me sit down first.” Jenna winced as she settled into a chair. “My name’s Jenna Abernathy.”

Leo looked shocked. “Jenna?”

Piper frowned at her husband. “You know her?”

Leo nodded. “She’s the charge I lost yesterday.”

Jenna gave him a once over. “You’re the guy who showed up right after my accident. Just before Penny came for me.”

“Penny?” It was Prue’s turn to frown. “As in our Grams?”

“Yeah. She came for me right after I died.” Jenna saw how confused the granddaughters were. “Let me start at the beginning. My friend Cally thought it would be cool to become witches, so me and my other friends, Shay and Lisha, took a Wicca oath with her. We tried to cast our first spell last night and thought we failed miserably. I told them all to head back to Cally’s and I would clean up the mess we made. They had just left when this strange red mist rolled in and this big horned thing appeared. I ran and managed to make it to my motorcycle safely, but wrecked less than a mile away from my house. I died and Penny came for me.”

Phoebe looked at her suspiciously. “Why would our Grams come after you?”

“I’m some sort of distant cousin or something.”

Piper raised her eyebrows. “You’re a Warren?”

“She would have to be. Rion can only channel your relatives right now.”

Piper frowned at Leo again. “What do you mean ‘right now?’”

Leo shrugged. “I just meant Rion’s powers could grow with time. Yours have.”

“Let’s focus here, guys.” Prue looked at Jenna. “Do you have any idea who this ‘horned thing’ is?”

Jenna nodded. “Penny and Patty...”

“You got to see our mother?!”

Prue sighed. “Phoebe!”

Phoebe looked at her shoes. “Sorry. It just doesn’t seem fair that she got to see mom.”

“It wasn’t by choice, trust me. I’d rather be in my own body right now. But it’s not in the cards so we might as well get used to it and move on. Penny took me to an exact replica of your house and...”

“Grams has a replica of the Manor?” The words slipped from Phoebe’s mouth before she could stop them. “Sorry again.”

If this were happening under different circumstances Jenna would have laughed. But now wasn’t the time. “The horned thing is a soul collector called...” She hesitated, trying to remember. “Krypton... Krocus... Kricheck...”

“Krilus?”

Jenna gave Leo an appreciative nod. “That’s it. Krilus. We accidentally freed him with our spell.”

Leo shook his head. “And he has to kill the ones who freed him to regain the ability to take souls from the mortal world.”

Jenna nodded again. “He’s already gotten to me, Lisha and Shay. That’s why you’ve gotta go find Cally and take her someplace safe.”

Piper still looked confused. “Why can’t we just vanquish this thing and be done with it?”

“Because I’m the only one who can vanquish him. I freed him, I vanquish him. All you could do would be imprison him again.”

Phoebe shrugged. “Good enough for me.”

“Not for the Elders. They’re the ones who let me borrow Rion’s body.”

“That figures.” Prue looked to her sisters. “So what do we do now?”

Leo walked toward the door. “Someone needs to stay here with Jenna until they’re done treating her. The rest of us should go get her friend. Cally, was it?”

“Yeah. Cally Fisher.” Jenna grabbed a pen off the table and tore a piece of gauze from her arm. She scribbled something on it before handing it to Leo. “Here’s her address. I don‘t know how you‘ll get her to come with you, but you need to hurry. I only have until tomorrow to vanquish this thing.”

Piper gave her a reassuring look. “We’ll come up with something.”

“I’ll stay with her.” Prue went to stand behind Jenna’s chair. “I filled out her paperwork.”

“There you are!” An angry looking nurse suddenly stormed into the room. “What do you people think you’re doing?! This young woman is hurt! You had no right taking her from the examining room! Who‘s in charge here?!”

Piper pointed at Prue. “She is.”

Phoebe nodded. “Yeah. We don’t know these two. We came in here by mistake.” She gave the nurse an innocent smile. “We thought this was the snack bar.”

“Well now you know it’s not! It’s supposed to be doctor’s only in this room!!”

Piper grabbed Phoebe by the hand. “OK. We’ll just be going now.” She couldn’t help but whisper, “Have fun,” as they passed Prue.

Prue narrowed her eyes at her sisters and Leo’s retreating forms before turning to calm down the nurse. “We...”

“I don’t want to hear it!! The least you can do is keep an eye on her while I get a wheelchair to take her back!”

Jenna rolled her eyes. “I can...”

“No comments from you, young lady!!”

Phoebe giggled as they made their way down the hallway. “And we thought we had our work cut out for us.”

Piper pushed her along, trying not to giggle herself. “Shut up and keep moving.”

Even Leo chuckled when the nurse bellowed something else as they finally made it to the exit.


Prue was starting to get worried. It had been nearly an hour since the nurse from hell snatched Rion or Jenna or whoever it was from the doctor’s lounge and told her in no uncertain terms that she couldn’t go with them. So here she was, sitting in her least favorite place in the world waiting for word on someone she didn’t even know who just happened to be in the body of her cousin. It sounded like something straight out of one the rags in the checkout line at the supermarket. ‘Family anxiously awaits word on presence inhabiting loved one’s body.’ Rion would have gotten a kick out of that one.

Rion. She had been trying to convince herself all day that her cousin was all right, but how could she? None of them knew where Rion was or what was going on with her. Was she with their Grams and mother or was she alone, wondering what was going on?

“But the doctor wants to keep you for observation!”

“Well I’m going and there’s not a whole hell of a lot you can do about it.”

Prue looked up to see Rion coming toward her, the nurse from earlier storming after her.

“I don’t think..!”

“See, that’s your problem. You actually believe people care what you think, but they don’t. Wanna know why? Cause you’re not a very nice person! All you do is yell and boss people around and treat them like their idiots.” Rion grabbed Prue’s hand and pulled her into a standing position. “Come on. We’re getting out of here.” She glared at the nurse. “And I’m walking out, not riding in some stupid wheelchair!”

Prue was too shocked to say much of anything as Rion led the way out of the hospital. If she didn’t know better, she would swear it was actually her cousin and not Jenna who told the nurse off. She finally found her voice to say so as they stepped outside.

“You couldn’t have sounded more like Rion if you tried.”

“Good to know I sound like myself.”

Prue stopped in her tracks. “Rion?”

Rion grinned. “For the time being.”

Prue grabbed her in a fierce hug. “But how? I thought Jenna had control until tomorrow.”

“She’ll be back, but the time frame has changed. Look, can we talk about this in the car? I need to get down to some serious healing.”

“Of course.” Prue grabbed her cousin’s hand, smiling when she saw the look on Rion’s face. “You’ll just have to suffer this time cause I’m not letting go.”

It didn’t take them long to reach the car. Familiar blue light surrounded Rion as soon as she shut the passenger side door. She sighed with relief as her injuries disappeared.

“Who would have thought a coffee table could cause so much damage?” She felt Prue looking at her and frowned. “What? I had a gash on my head, glass in my forearm and two cracked ribs.” She pointed at her head. “And I couldn’t fix my hair where they shaved it to stitch me up. Sue me for enjoying what I could fix.”

Prue chuckled. “I’m just glad you’re back.”

“Yeah, but not for long. Aunt Penny sent me here to play Florence Nightingale, which I’ve done, and to pass along a plan she’s come up with. Once I do that, it’s back to the replica Manor for your cousin until Jenna vanquishes Krilus.”

“So take your time telling me the plan.”

Rion smiled. “It doesn’t work that way. I have to tell you about the plan before They figure out I’m down here.”

Prue sighed. “All right. What did you mean by the time frame has changed?”

“They want Krilus vanquished immediately if not sooner. They thought he could only claim one soul a day, which would have given Jenna plenty of time, but it turns out he can only claim one soul at a time. There’s no time attached to it. If he gets his hands on Cally, the mortal world is in big trouble. These soul collectors aren’t ones to mess with.”

“Point taken. What’s the plan?”

“To use Cally as bait.”

“What?!”

Rion held up her hand. “Hear me out here, Prue. You’ll have what Krilus wants most. What better way to draw him out than to use Cally as bait. It’s not like she’ll be alone. She’ll have the Charmed Ones watching her back. All you have to do is keep her safe until Jenna does her job.”

Prue frowned. “What if Jenna fails?”

“Then Krilus kills Cally and claims everyone’s souls and you’ll see me again in that big Manor in the sky. In other words, don’t let her fail.”

“And how do we do that?”

“Hold her hand. You’ve been at this whole witch thing a lot longer than she has. She’s gonna be nervous. And she’s not going to like using Cally for bait. That’s why Aunt Penny sent me to tell you. That way you can keep it a secret until the time comes.”

“Can I tell Piper and Phoebe and Leo?”

Rion rolled her eyes. “Be serious, Prue. I’m running out of time here. Do you understand what you have to do?”

Prue nodded. “Sorry. I was trying to stall again.”

“I know and I appreciate it.” Rion suddenly yawned. “And that’s my cue. If you’ll excuse me, I’ve gotta go. I’ll give Patty your love if you’ll give mine to your sisters.”

Prue didn’t get a chance to answer before Rion’s body went limp and her head lulled against the back of the seat. She started to check and see if her cousin was all right when soft snoring filled the air. Prue smiled and started the car. The sooner they got back to the Manor the sooner she could tell everyone the plan, carry it out and get Rion back for good.

*************

Phoebe looked at the small house before them. “All right. Now what do we do? We can’t sit here and stare all night.”

Piper shot her a look in the rear view mirror. “We’re tryi